Submitting the Application

Naruto and Sasuke didn't need to say a thing. Sakura had already decided to take the Chunin Selection Exams. "I want to know whether all the training I've done lately has narrowed the gap between us."

At that, Naruto and Sasuke exchanged a smile and each patted one of Sakura's shoulders.

Naruto said, "Don't worry. You're much stronger than you were on the day we graduated."

"Just like Naruto said."

Sasuke nodded, fully agreeing. "I've seen how hard you've worked lately. You're already an excellent ninja."

Naruto's encouragement made Sakura happy. Sasuke's words nearly made her head explode with joy.

The lovestruck side of her, dormant for a long time, burst out in that moment. Sakura couldn't stop thinking about Sasuke's words, "I've seen how hard you've worked." Her imagination raced ahead to their future together, all the way to the end of their lives—surrounded by grandchildren, they would pass away with smiles on their faces.

Sakura had no memory of what happened after that. She only knew that when she came to, she was sitting at home, with her mother looking at her in utter exasperation...

On the morning of July 1, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura brought their application forms to the school.

As they walked down the familiar halls and looked at the familiar surroundings, Sakura suddenly felt a strange pang of emotion. "Who would've thought that the first time we came back to school after graduating would be for an exam?"

Sasuke seemed to feel the same way. He quietly murmured, "Yeah."

Naruto was focused on something else. "So that's why we suddenly got a few days off five years ago. It was for the Chunin Selection Exams."

Sakura immediately shook off her strange mood. "I can't believe you remember that so clearly."

Naruto said, "Because that was when I met my master."

"This is the first time you've mentioned that."

Sasuke sounded interested. "Tell us about the first time you met your master."

"Hmm... I don't think there's much to tell."

Naruto thought for a moment. "My master suddenly appeared that day and pulled my consciousness into the Sealing Space. After that, somehow, he modified the seal without breaking it. The chakra my parents had left inside the seal was separated out and connected to Kurama, allowing their chakra to keep existing. Then he taught me how to train, and that's how things have been ever since."

"That really is simple."

Sasuke shook his head. He felt like Naruto had said something, but also like he hadn't said anything at all.

Sasuke had been learning from his master for a while, but whenever he was around him, he still felt a certain distance, as if his master were both close and far away.

Sasuke hated that feeling, but he didn't know much about his master. "Did your master ever tell you why he wanted to help you, or why he wanted to teach you?"

"He did, actually..."

Naruto tried to remember. "My master said he taught me because he was 'interested.' As for everything else he did for me, he said he hoped I'd study hard."

Hearing this, Sasuke fell silent for a long while, then sighed. "It sounds simple, and not like much of a reason, but it's definitely something my master would say."

"Don't overthink it."

Naruto patted Sasuke on the shoulder, comforting him. "My master takes teaching us seriously. We just need to train hard and get stronger. Nothing else matters."

Sasuke fell silent again, as if that was exactly what he'd expected.

They could see other people ahead, so the conversation about their master ended there.

More than a dozen Genin had gathered outside Classroom 301. Two people who called themselves senior students stood on either side of the doorway, blocking the others from passing through.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura glanced at the sign for Classroom 301, then stepped back a little and spoke in low voices.

"Isn't this the second floor? I remember that spot being the stairs to the third floor. Why is there a Classroom 301 here?"

"It's a genjutsu."

"And those two people at the door who called themselves senior students are disguised with the Transformation Technique."

"So the Chunin Exams start with submitting the application forms?"

"Are the people over there idiots? It's so obvious..."

"Maybe they noticed but are pretending they didn't."

"What should we do? Just force our way through?"

"No need. We can go around outside and reach the third floor directly."

After discussing it, the three climbed out through a second-floor window, focused chakra on the soles of their feet, and walked up the outside wall to the third floor. They found Kakashi standing outside Classroom 301.

"Hey, you're all here."

Kakashi greeted them. "Now you can go in."

Sakura's eye twitched. "Kakashi-sensei, does that mean we couldn't go in if even one of us hadn't shown up?"

Kakashi nodded. "The rules for this exam require three-person teams to sign up."

Naruto said helplessly, "I understand, but if you keep doing things like this, we'll end up hating you, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi guiltily looked away. "Next time, I'll try to use a different approach."

The three didn't dwell on it. They opened the classroom door and went inside.

The classroom was fairly spacious, and since they'd arrived early, there weren't many people there yet.

The three quietly went to a spot where there were fewer people and began talking in low voices.

"Don't these people look a little nervous?"

Sakura asked, "It feels like they might attack at any moment."

"They're in another hidden village, possibly one that was once their enemy's, and they're here to take an exam. Anyone who isn't nervous in a situation like that either has nerves of steel or is absolutely confident in their own strength."

Sasuke's gaze swept over everyone in the classroom. "The people here all look pretty ordinary."

"A few of them are especially dangerous."

Naruto kept his eyes forward. "Judging by the Qi in their bodies, one is about as strong as Kakashi-sensei, and another is even stronger than him. They can't be Genin. They're probably people disguised as someone else."

"Stronger than Kakashi-sensei!?"

Sakura was a little frightened. "Should we report the people in disguise?"

"It won't help."

Sasuke shook his head. "They haven't done anything yet, and they're signing up for the exam through the normal process. Even if we report them, without evidence, the village can only have Anbu monitor them. Otherwise, it could cause a diplomatic incident."

"Sakura, you should have a little more confidence in yourself."

Naruto said, "The three of us are all strong. If we work well together, we may not be able to defeat them, but we won't lose in a short time, and we won't be in danger of dying. Even if something unexpected happens, I can ask Kurama for help. And if all else fails, I can use the Flying Thunder God Technique to get us out of there."

Naruto's list of safeguards put Sakura somewhat at ease. Sasuke beside her relaxed a little, too.

The three sat down on chairs in the classroom, quietly entered a Qi Refining state, and waited for the exam to begin.

Every few minutes, another three-person team walked into the classroom.

Sasuke noticed a few faces they'd seen on the second floor earlier. "So they were deliberately acting weak."

Most of the people who came in afterward were strangers, but a few were familiar classmates: Hinata Hyuga, Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru, and Shino Aburame from Team 8; Choji Akimichi, Shikamaru Nara, and Ino Yamanaka from Team 10.

When they saw the three members of Team 7, they came over to greet them and stick together. They were classmates, after all, and even if they'd be competing against each other in the later exams, they were still more trustworthy than ninjas from other villages.

But as more and more people filled the classroom, the atmosphere grew increasingly tense.

Just then, a young man wearing a Konoha Forehead Protector approached with a harmless smile plastered across his face. "Hey, you're the nine rookies who just graduated this year, right? Nice to meet you. I'm Kabuto Yakushi. You could say I'm one of your seniors..."