The Essence of the Bell Quest

As expected, the moment Sakura charged in, Kakashi seemed to have eyes in the back of his head. He sidestepped slightly, casually catching her fist with his palm, and used the recoil to leap backward swiftly.

Sakura let out a light laugh, her eyes flickering with cunning as she instead bolted in the opposite direction, converging toward Naruto.

Just then, their eyes met.

Sakura was calm as still water, concealing every trace of sharpness in her gaze. Facing Kakashi head-on, she showed not an ounce of retreat.

Kakashi studied Sakura with keen interest.

Not stubborn, not reckless, knowing when to quit.

Like a lion in the grass leaping at your face for a combo, only to find your health still solid and vanish back into the brush without hesitation.

Restraint, control, biding time for a powerful strike.

A thought suddenly struck Kakashi.

This might be the most troublesome team he'd ever encountered.

Naruto was cunning, Sakura was calm, and Sasuke had the strongest overall ability.

"Interesting. But I'm not passing you just yet," Kakashi thought to himself.

He'd seen plenty of people like this—gifted, strong in ability.

But that didn't matter.

At that moment, Sakura sprinted up beside Naruto: "Had your fun yet?"

Naruto stared straight at Kakashi: "One more try."

"That eager to beat him?"

"Not really," Naruto said with a grin. "If I wanted to beat him, I'd just pop the Nine-Tails cheat code."

"I'm running an experiment—to see how far we, as ordinary people from Earth, can actually go."

At first, Naruto's plan was just to coast through the plot, maybe pick up a girl, build a harem.

But Sakura's words had made him realize the gravity of the situation.

This wasn't some chosen-one-transmigrates-into-the-Naruto-world righteous shonen story. It was a group-transmigration tale where anyone could get strong.

What if someone transmigrated into a hostile faction—say, Nagato, Obito, or Madara?

Then it wouldn't be a solo dance on the battlefield; it'd be a full-on group performance.

So Naruto wasn't just going to pluck the Nine-Tails' fur; he had to explore every possibility outward and turn those experiences into his own fuel.

"That's way too cryptic. What's this experiment nonsense?" Sakura asked, confused.

"You'll see when I show you," Naruto said, dropping his offensive stance entirely. He looked at Kakashi with a half-smile. "Boss, fighting like this is pointless."

"Is it?" Kakashi narrowed his eyes. "Rules are rules. If you don't grab the bells in time, I'll send you all back to the Ninja Academy."

Sakura pondered this. What could talking really accomplish?

Naruto crossed his arms: "Boss, you're a jonin. No matter how well we three coordinate, we can't out-snatch the bells from you."

"The key to this mission is teamwork. Going solo is a dead end, right?"

Kakashi nodded: "You don't seem like a dead-last at all."

Sasuke stared intently at Naruto, a storm churning in his chest.

"But I think there's more to it—the number of bells. There are only two, yet they demand teamwork. Obviously, that's meant to make us turn on each other."

Naruto paused, then said abruptly: "This mission is meant to make one of us sacrifice themselves, isn't it?"

Silence fell, broken only by the wind.

Sasuke pressed his lips tight, his chest heaving violently.

He'd noticed the bell count, sure, but he'd never considered teamwork, let alone sacrifice.

What shocked him was that Naruto had seen through the mission's essence in an instant.

Like everyone gathered for a riddle, stumped, and some slacker strolls over, glances at it, and casually blurts out the answer.

Did that make sense? No, it made no sense at all.

Kakashi looked at Naruto, a hint of approval in his eyes: "Sharp. Sacrifice is indeed the core of this mission. But why did you just say this mission is meaningless?"

"Don't you think that's contradictory?"

Naruto grinned: "If you really wanted to test us, Boss, you wouldn't have to guard the bells so tightly. The real challenge is how we distribute them. Snatching the bells is just a test of whether we can work as a team."

"We cooperated, but you still wouldn't let us succeed and move to the next step. That goes against the purpose of the test."

Sakura understood now.

He was going to talk Kakashi down—and not by following the script.

According to the plot, Team 7 was the first squad Kakashi ever formally led; everyone else he'd sent back to the academy.

Kakashi believed in Obito's philosophy: comrades matter more than the mission. Anyone who didn't value their teammates was worse than trash.

Only by showing that tendency in the test would Kakashi pass them.

But this contradicts the sacrifice required by the mission.

Shinobi, like mercenaries on Earth, have one duty: complete the mission.

"Maybe you just don't have enough teamwork yet," Kakashi said with a dismissive shake of his head. "Frankly, based on your performance just now, you'd be better off not being shinobi at all."

Naruto chuckled inwardly. You psychological-warfare jonin really have dirty hearts.

On the surface, he remained calm. "We all graduated from the Ninja Academy, which means our overall qualifications are up to standard. You don't need to provoke us."

"How about this: give the bells to Sakura and Sasuke, and I'll go back to the Academy for a redo."

Kakashi's heart tightened. "You want to sacrifice yourself?"

Naruto said lightly, "I'm not just going to complete the mission—I'm going to make sure my teammates don't get sent back to the Academy either."

"Satisfied now?"

Kakashi said nothing.

A one-eyed, short-haired figure materialized beside him, gently patting his shoulder. "Are you going to pass them?"

Kakashi turned his head. A young Uchiha Obito was smiling at him.

"He hasn't given me his answer yet."

Kakashi faced the three. "Do you think the ninja world is that simple? Naruto, I'm considering passing you, but your two teammates? They're done as shinobi!"

Naruto tilted his head, offering no reply.

Sakura just wanted to yawn.

Sasuke looked at Naruto, then at Sakura, then at Naruto, then at Sakura again...

Why does it seem like I'm the only one panicking here?

In truth, Sasuke was both shocked by Naruto's resolve and angered by Kakashi's words.

And Sakura, with her completely blank expression—Sasuke made a mental note to find a village doctor to fix her facial paralysis later.

But what bothered him most of all was still Naruto.

Who told you to show off like that?!

You think you can just sacrifice yourself all nobly like that?

What gives you, a dead-last, the right to be so cocky?

Sasuke couldn't help recalling that blood-soaked night. Back then, he had survived under his brother's scythe, forced to shoulder his clan's hatred and future alone.

Every day was either training or drowning in painful memories. Even as the top student, he faced endless gossip from passersby.

After all that, what did it matter if he stopped being a shinobi? Could it really be worse than what he'd already endured?

"Let me..." Sasuke's voice trembled, his body starting to shake along with it.

"I'll be the one to sacrifice."

"Huh?" Naruto turned in surprise. You, with those big earnest eyes, want to sacrifice yourself? What about your revenge?

Sasuke glared at Naruto.

"Naruto, what are you trying to prove in front of everyone?"

"A dead-last talking about sacrificing himself—do you even know what sacrifice means?"

"Kakashi, give the bells to those two. I'll quit myself!"

Naruto sighed helplessly. Since when did quitting become something to rush for?

Sakura glanced at the two of them. "I'll go back instead. I'm afraid these two idiots might kill each other in a fit of rage."

Naruto and Sasuke: "..."

Kakashi fell silent once more.