The Chunin Exams preliminaries had finally come to an end. Eight people advanced to the finals: Naruto, Sasuke, Hyuga Neji, Nara Shikamaru, Shino Aburame, Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro.
Two pairs of contestants had failed to determine a winner during their matches and were therefore both eliminated. Sakura and Yamanaka Ino were one such pair!
"The finals are a month from now. I have to get serious during this time!"
Naruto sat in his messy apartment with a serious expression, staring at a box of Ninjutsu Scrolls in front of him.
His opponent in the finals was Hyuga Neji, hailed as Konoha's strongest Genin—a tremendously powerful opponent!
Normally, Naruto might not have cared so much, but in the previous match, he had personally watched Neji beat his classmate Hinata so badly that she was still lying in the hospital's intensive care ward, unable to leave. No matter what, he had to defeat Hyuga Neji!
"Hmm... what should I do?"
Naruto picked up several scrolls and opened them, but no matter how he looked, he could not make out the words on them.
"Should I go find Kakashi-sensei?"
"No, no! If he finds out I stole this box, he'll definitely confiscate it!"
Naruto still thought no one had discovered that he had stolen the box, so he was being quite sneaky about it.
After pulling faces and pondering for a long while, his eyes suddenly lit up. "That's it—I'll go find Old Man Hokage!"
Naruto casually grabbed a scroll, shoved the box beneath his bed, and headed out.
When he arrived at the Hokage Building, he found the busy Hiruzen Sarutobi. Pulling out the scroll, Naruto put on an expression that said, "I humbly seek your guidance, so please enlighten me."
Hiruzen Sarutobi was far too busy to play around with a