Japanese schools generally graduated students at the end of March, but the world of Naruto was different; there were several graduation periods each year.
However, the Land of Waves incident had a clearly defined timeframe: late spring, when snow rabbits had already shed their winter coats.
But that also meant there was actually a six-month "blank period" between graduation and the Land of Waves.
That was perfectly reasonable.
After arriving in this world, Sparkle's old memories had not become blurry. On the contrary, they had become remarkably well organized.
According to the character guidebook Rin no Sho, the Third Hokage was sixty-eight years old and died at sixty-nine. His birthday was in February, and he died during the Chunin Exam in August.
Naruto's birthday, meanwhile, was October 10, and he only turned twelve after that. In other words, the graduation period for the "Konoha Rookie Nine" was actually between October 10 and February.
—Of course, the most likely explanation was that Kishimoto simply had not thought that far.
A manga artist only needed to draw manga well. The real world had far more things to consider.
If Anime Original episodes were included, the original Naruto anime had created quite a bit of content during this period through flashbacks, such as recovering a stolen golden statue of the Daimyo's Imouto or finding a lost ostrich—those flashback filler plots meant to pad out the runtime.
As for whether this real world would still have such "plots," that was hard to say.
Based on Sparkle's investigations so far, the most reliable parts came from Naruto's manga and anime main storyline. Those matched what Sparkle knew best. There was far less material from other Anime Original episodes, novels, and games.
But the content from Anime Original episodes had limited credibility. It could be used as reference, but only sparingly; it could be believed a little, but not entirely.
The simplest example was this.
For instance, in Anime Original Episode 399, Kakashi Hatake should currently have been peeking through the banner bearing the class's "ninja way," but in reality, the entire wall there was solid. There was no extra space at all—Sparkle had specifically checked with her Byakugan.
And judging by the scene on the stage, Kakashi and the other Jonin should have been seated around the Third Hokage's crystal ball, observing the class.
But if none of it could be fully trusted, then this world really did have places like the Land of Demons from the movie edition and Hozuki Castle. Fuka Fujikaze, also known as Kazahana Koyuki, was a famous actress, and even something like Warring States Sealing History existed.
"Since the real-world date is October 15, there's quite a lot of room for the plot to develop afterward," Sparkle mused.
If she got the reward for an OVA filming opportunity, perhaps she could use it here? But the story began too early, so it was not very suitable.
In Sparkle's own opinion, an OVA would fit best before, during, or after the Chunin Exam.
"Naruto, move out of the way!"
"Huh? Why should I give it to you?"
Because she had to prepare her camera, by the time Sparkle arrived in class, most of the others were already there.
When Sparkle entered, Naruto and Sakura were arguing.
In the "original work," Naruto had been sent flying by Sakura because he sat beside Sasuke, and the girls began fighting for the right to sit next to Sasuke.
But in this real world, Naruto did not have that kind of crush on Sakura Haruno.
As a result, when Sakura Haruno wanted Naruto's seat, the two actually started arguing.
"This seat is mine!"
Oh, it was not just those two. There was also Ino, another classmate nearby.
"It's mine!"
"Mine!"
Ah, no. All the girls had started arguing.
"Whoa!"
In the chaotic brawl, Naruto, the lone boy, was the first to be eliminated. No one knew who had slapped him flying to the side.
Sparkle walked over and poked Naruto's cheek with a twig.
"Ah—Sparkle!"
Naruto had been sprawled on the ground, dazed and muddled from the fall. The moment he saw Sparkle, his eyes immediately cleared, and he stood up straight.
"Good morning, Naruto. Are you okay?" Sparkle asked with a smile.
"I-I'm totally fine!" Naruto adjusted his forehead protector. "Damn it, it's all Sasuke's fault!"
"This isn't really Sasuke's fault, is it?"
"Huh? Why are you saying that too, Sparkle?!"
Naruto looked at Sasuke, and the more he looked, the more displeased he became. As if making a show of it, he jumped onto a desk and crouched in front of Sasuke.
The moment the two locked eyes, the girls immediately stirred. Sakura Haruno stepped forward. "Naruto, stop pestering Sasuke!"
"Exactly!" the other girls echoed.
"Sparkle, hurry up and do something about Naruto!" Someone nearby even pulled Sparkle over.
"My, my, it seems something has gone wrong here," Sparkle said as she fiddled with the camera in her hands.
"Huh, seriously?"
At that very moment, the student in the front seat leaned backward.
The whole room instantly fell silent.
Pushed by the force from the front, Naruto's and Sasuke's lips collided. The scene was so shocking that all the girls fell silent.
"Ah—" Sparkle, who had been fiddling with the camera, also seemed to have "accidentally" touched something.
Click—
The camera in Sparkle's hands flashed.
This scene had to be preserved no matter what. (Commander Ikari face.)
Please favorite and recommend it, everyone. I'll do anything~.
You can go without living, but not without content
[Make them kiss!] [Make them kiss!] [Nuclear energy ahead!] [Holy shit, they really kissed] [Iconic scene] [World-famous painting] [Sorry, I laughed out loud] [Front-row guy, you did well, you did very well!] [Yooooooo!] [So she's not the second male lead, but the female lead?] [Front-row bro, you did well, you did very well!] [Miss Sparkle got the photo. Why does it feel intentional?] [My stomach hurts from laughing] [What a coincidence—they kissed at exactly the right time, and the camera caught it at exactly the right time] [Sparkle: You think I'm the female lead, but I'm actually the CP mastermind. Hehehe~]
It exploded instantly.
The appearance of that iconic scene immediately flooded the screen with Danmaku. Sparkle's popularity also shot upward. Even though she was not the protagonist of this scene, getting a sip of the soup was more than enough.
But the scene on-screen changed once again.
The entire scene was being watched by the Third Hokage through his crystal ball.
A group of Jonin stared at the scene before them and fell silent.
"Uh... this year's new students are really energetic," Asuma Sarutobi said, sweat trickling down his face.
"That Naruto is, as always, deeply caught up in chaos," the Third Hokage said, holding his pipe as he too fell silent.
"That must be Sasuke Uchiha, the top student of the year," a Jonin beside him said, trying to smooth things over.
"Yes." The Third Hokage naturally changed the subject. "If we're talking overall first place, it's him. Sasuke Uchiha."
After saying that, the Third Hokage glanced at Kakashi Hatake beside him.
"Overall first place" meant he was not first in every individual subject.
"That girl playing with the camera is Sparkle Hyuga, right?" Kurenai also watched the crystal ball from the side. "Although she can't use the Hyuga Clan's bloodline limit, her Genjutsu seems exceptionally good."
Sparkle had not taken part in the commotion just now, but dressed so gorgeously, she was as dazzling as fireworks in the night. No one could possibly ignore her.
"Mm." The Third Hokage knew what Kurenai was thinking.
The three students assigned to Kurenai's class were Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, and Hinata Hyuga.
Although Hinata Hyuga was Sparkle's older sister, their talents could not be compared.
Kurenai specialized in Genjutsu, yet those three had very low Genjutsu scores. In Konoha's official ratings, the three-person team had Ninjutsu 13, Taijutsu 13, Genjutsu 7, and Teamwork 20.
This was a reconnaissance team. Kurenai's greater role was to help them learn to identify and guard against Genjutsu. For scouts, those were extremely important skills. So as this team's Jonin leader, Kurenai was more there to make up for their weaknesses.
But who would not want an outstanding student? Unfortunately, that was impossible. Without the Byakugan, even if Sparkle could live like an ordinary person, she had no way of joining that reconnaissance team.
The Third Hokage's crystal ball then shifted its view to Naruto Uzumaki.
"Naruto Uzumaki..." Kakashi looked at Naruto in the image and fell into thought.
Inside the classroom, the entire place instantly descended into chaos.
Naruto was dragged away by the girls, while Sparkle naturally took the seat beside Sasuke.
[Crafty prisoner] [Wrong, woman] [That's a meme] [What a scheming girl, she just took the seat beside the king of pretenders] [Maybe the one beside him is the real female lead] [This is a shonen battle anime. Can the fujoshi please get lost?] [It's a shonen manga, please stop making a chaotic CP stew!]
Sasuke looked at Sparkle beside him. "You took a picture just now, didn't you?"
"I didn't put any film in it. I brought this because we're forming teams today. Of course it's for taking a group photo with everyone," Sparkle said.
"Teams? What do you mean?" Hearing that there was no film, Sasuke did not pursue the matter.
"Graduates will form groups of three and follow a Jonin while carrying out missions." Sparkle stole Iruka's upcoming lines.
"Groups of three?"
Ino and Sakura, who had been fighting over there, also stopped throwing punches and looked toward Sparkle.
"Ninja operate in groups. We graduates will all be split into teams of three and assigned to a Jonin. Besides, we aren't actually real Genin yet..."
Before Sparkle could finish, Iruka had already opened the door and walked in.
"Everyone, take your seats. The briefing is starting."
Sparkle said no more.
It was not yet time to reveal that there would be another exam, so Sparkle deliberately paused and let the arriving Iruka interrupt her.
"I wonder who'll be on Sasuke's team..." Although the girls had taken their seats, they were still whispering among themselves.
"Congratulations. Starting today, you're all independent ninja." Iruka glanced at Sparkle beside him. "Well, everyone should have heard some of this already. That's right, you'll be divided into teams of three and carry out missions under a Jonin. To ensure each class is balanced, the teachers will decide the groups. Now, I'll begin the announcements..."
Iruka began announcing the team assignments.
"Next, Team 7: Naruto Uzumaki, Sparkle Hyuga..."
"Oh, it's Sparkle! Nice!"
Naruto was quite happy.
Before you continue