This absolutely didn't count as a romantic battlefield!
Naruto had never crossed the line with Tenten. Besides, his interactions with Tenten before this could at most be considered friends teasing each other, and he hadn't been flirting with Sakura either.
Friends, right? It was perfectly normal to have a heart-to-heart talk now and then and engage in a little physical contact, wasn't it?
Besides, Sakura wasn't Naruto's confidante or anything. At most, they currently shared the bond of comrades in revolution.
That's right, a bond forged through revolution. Naruto felt he had completely figured out where he stood.
So she had no right to be angry!
But considering that, apart from being good at games, she was still a sensitive and fragile young girl at heart, Naruto instinctively explained himself to Sakura:
"I went to buy ninja tools from her shop a few days ago and helped her business, so seeing me puts her in a better mood."
Sakura said nothing. She simply stared at Tenten, who was approaching with a beaming smile. "Naruto, when are you coming to see me again?"
Naruto had already arranged with Tenten that he would come play with her whenever he had time.
After all, most of her time was spent either minding the shop or going on missions with the Taijutsu Squad. Might Guy and Rock Lee were visibly hopeless when it came to emotional intelligence, leaving only Neji to occasionally talk with her.
Naruto's arrival had suddenly made her dull life much more interesting.
"Hm?" Sakura's voice rose unconsciously as she looked at Naruto.
"Ah~ You mean buying ninja tools, right? I'll come find you after I pass the preliminary exam." Ignoring the confusion in Tenten's eyes, Naruto called out toward the back, "Yo, Lee. Long time no see."
Rock Lee solemnly stepped forward, his eyes burning as he looked at Sakura.
"Finally... If you hadn't come, I'd have gotten another huge bump on my head." Naruto secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
According to the original story, it was time for Lee to shine.
Sure enough, Lee solemnly stepped forward and confidently revealed eight teeth. "Your name is Sakura, right? I've noticed you for a long time. There are always all kinds of boys pursuing you..."
But before he could finish, Sakura waved her hand. "No way. There's absolutely no chance for the two of us. Anyway, Naruto..."
"Huh?" Lee felt as if he had fallen into an icy abyss. He hadn't expected the girl before him to react so indifferently.
Moreover, her attention seemed to be focused entirely on Naruto, who was still explaining himself beside her.
"Naruto-kun..." Lee murmured, a blazing fighting spirit igniting in his eyes.
Their last fight hadn't been satisfying enough. This time, he had to find an opportunity to probe Naruto's trump cards, no matter what!
Neji, who had been behind them, stepped forward. "Let's go, Lee, Tenten."
With that, he took a deep look at Naruto before walking ahead. Tenten and Lee hesitated for a moment, then followed him.
After returning to Konoha, Neji found time to ask the elders at home. He discovered that the infamous Nine-Tails was residing inside this boy.
In other words, he had grown up under the contempt of the villagers, yet he could easily handle Lee's taijutsu.
Not simple at all...
Before long, Team 7 also headed toward the classroom, and the atmosphere was somewhat peculiar.
Sakura didn't believe Naruto's explanation at all. But after Lee distracted her, she suddenly forgot what she had wanted to say, and Naruto brushed her off with a rapid-fire barrage of words.
She immediately felt a tightness in her chest—not because of a second growth spurt.
Seeing all the powerful peers of his generation focusing their attention on Naruto, Sasuke also felt a pent-up frustration with nowhere to vent it.
Seeing that things had finally calmed down, Naruto let out a long breath and instantly became completely laid-back.
The three arrived at the classroom. Just as in the original story, two disguised Special Jonin, Izumo and Kotetsu, blocked the doorway.
"Hm, judging by this, there don't seem to be any transmigrators nearby... Eh?" Naruto was thinking when he saw Sakura walk over expressionlessly, visible blue Chakra suddenly gathering around her right fist.
"Listen, a Chunin is equivalent to a company commander in the military. They are responsible for any failed missions or deaths among their subordinates... Wait, what are you doing?!"
Before Izumo could finish, a girl with a pink high ponytail charged forward like a tiger and slammed her sonic-boom-producing fist into the floor in front of them!
Bang!!!
Bang!!!
The surrounding Genin failed to react in time. The shock wave from the fist striking the floor knocked them over, leaving them looking rather miserable.
Before Izumo could react, Kotetsu beside him signaled for him not to move.
The blue-clad, black-haired boy was pressing a kunai against the back of Izumo's neck, while Kotetsu similarly held the long-handled kunai on his back against Sasuke's chest.
Sakura remained in her ground-smashing stance and glared at the two men. "Stop playing these illusion tricks. Get lost."
Naruto was dumbfounded. Did these two eat cannon shells? Why were they being so reckless?!
He hurriedly stopped Sakura, who was about to beat the two men senseless, then quickly signaled for Sasuke to lower his kunai, indicating that he would have a proper talk with the two older brothers.
Naruto put on an apologetic smile. "Haha, sorry about that. My two teammates are in a bad mood today. I apologize to you both."
"Everyone's in quite a hurry. How about you two dispel the illusion? To be honest, everyone has already seen through it."
Sasuke couldn't help glancing at Naruto. So this is how you play the peacemaker?
Kotetsu's face twisted with anger. Are Genin this arrogant nowadays?
He was just about to lose his temper when he suddenly felt the weight in his hand disappear. Looking forward, he saw that the long-handled kunai he had held against the black-haired boy had somehow been split in two!
He abruptly turned toward the blond, blue-eyed boy and saw him watching Kotetsu with an amused expression. "Saying the same thing once or twice is fine. Say it again, and it's rude. Wouldn't you agree?"
For some reason, Kotetsu felt a powerful palpitation in his chest, and every hair on his body stood on end.
Weren't his eyes red just a moment ago...? Did I see that wrong?
"F-Fine, you pass." Izumo dispelled the illusion and let everyone through, then left with Kotetsu.
The Genin stared blankly at Naruto, some of them beginning to question their entire lives.
His methods were far too advanced for them. Was this really the level of a Genin?
In the shadows, the two men took several deep breaths in succession in a corner. Izumo spoke softly. "That pressure just now..."
"It was strange," Kotetsu murmured. "I felt as if I sensed something, but that feeling vanished in an instant."
"It was that boy's doing," Izumo reminded him, then sighed. "Looks like this year's Chunin Ninja Exams will be worth watching."
Since the moment had come and gone so quickly, neither man let his thoughts run wild.
Elsewhere.
"What technique did you use just now?" Sasuke couldn't help asking Naruto.
"Classified." Naruto gave him a mysterious smile and didn't answer.
Sasuke snorted and turned his head away, privately digesting the turmoil in his heart.
Sakura lowered her voice. "Was it the Nine-Tails?"
"Yeah."
This was the result of Naruto's special training during this period. He had compressed a tiny amount of Nine-Tails Chakra into a thin strand, maximizing its hardness, and then instantly sliced the kunai in Kotetsu's hand in half.
He had plenty of other tricks like that. As a ninja, his assassination abilities had improved tremendously.
The three soon arrived at the classroom door, where Kakashi was waiting.
"All three of you made it. That wasn't unexpected." Kakashi smiled. "Are you ready?"
"Of course." Naruto spoke as he reached out to push open the classroom door.
Suddenly, Sakura patted Naruto on the shoulder, her expression extremely solemn.
Naruto followed Sakura's gaze.
The July sun streamed through the window and fell on the three of them. Near the window was a faint, tiny doodle that no one would notice without looking closely.
Naruto focused his eyes on it.
The doodle depicted a boy with spiky hair, fox whiskers, and his tongue sticking out.
Naruto felt a chill travel from his heels straight to the crown of his head.
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