"Again! Next time, I'll definitely win."
Fu Hua felt a little black-faced. She'd only been born three days ago, and she'd already spent all three of them playing mahjong, but she hadn't won once. Her young heart had suffered serious damage.
Kushina was just as annoyed. She'd actually been bullied by a fox. It was simply outrageous.
"Naruto, come here and help Mom teach this stinky fox a lesson."
"No problem, Mom. Leave it to me."
With Naruto's full support, Kushina won the round.
A smile spread across her pretty face. Kushina reached out and tugged Naruto's ear, her tone unkind. "I seem to remember... class is still going on out there. You ran in here to play mahjong..."
Naruto, used and discarded. Mom, I can't match how fast you turn on me.
Naruto grumbled inwardly, but his face remained perfectly calm. "You must be mistaken. Look outside if you don't believe me."
Outside, the school bell rang.
It was the year 63 of Konoha, and the graduation exam had begun.
"Listen up, everyone. This year's graduation exam is... the Clone Technique!"
Standing at the lectern, Iruka took out the roster and looked at the students in the classroom, feeling rather wistful.
Six years had passed, and the children had all grown up. At last, they were about to become ninjas.
He felt reluctant to see them go, and worried, too.
Could these children... really withstand the cruelty of a ninja's life?
With a quiet sigh, Iruka looked at the roster and said, "The exam will begin now. When your name is called, go to the next classroom in order..."
Naruto lay face-down on his desk, his mind sinking into the Sealing Space. He went behind one of Kurama's tails.
The tail was connected to a ball of warm,