Exam Results

The Chunin Selection Exams held in Konoha came to a close after a joint attack by Sunagakure and Orochimaru, an S-rank missing-nin from Konoha.

Thanks to Konoha's timely response, swift counterattack, and the efforts of several outstanding shinobi, they quickly suppressed Sunagakure's forces and Orochimaru's people, suffering only a few casualties.

Most of the shinobi who died in the incident were nobodies. The only notable one was Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage of Sunagakure.

By the time Sunagakure's people found his body, it was crawling with flies and maggots. There were no signs of a struggle at the scene, so he had most likely been killed in a sneak attack.

Taking this as an "opportunity," Sunagakure placed all the blame for the attack on Konoha on Orochimaru. Afterward, they paid a token amount in compensation, preserving the alliance between the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire and preventing the situation from escalating further.

However, to buy back Gaara, their important Jinchuriki, along with Temari and Kankuro, Sunagakure was still forced to pay a hefty ransom.

Three days after the Chunin Selection Exams ended.

Konoha had already returned to its usual quiet. Although some buildings remained damaged, most villagers' lives had been unaffected.

Sakura and Sasuke were at Naruto's home, eating breakfast with him.

"Sasuke, do you think we'll become Chunin?"

Sakura asked. "It's been three days, and we still haven't heard anything."

"It doesn't matter either way."

Sasuke chewed a rice ball in small bites. "It won't affect our strength."

"In the long run, it does matter a little."

Naruto corrected him. "Chunin earn more than Genin, so they can buy more training resources and improve the results of our training a bit."

"There's something like that?"

Sasuke pressed him. "Why haven't you mentioned it before?"

"Because we don't spend much. The herbs used in the medicinal meals our master prepares for us are cheap. The allowance I get from the village is enough to cover them."

Naruto explained, "But if we had more money, our master could choose recipes with stronger medicinal effects. They cost far more than what we use now, though, and the results are only a little better. It's not worth it."

"How much more expensive?"

Sasuke had little concept of money. "I get an allowance from the village too, and I've also inherited some of the Uchiha Clan's assets."

"Twenty times more, maybe even thirty, but the effects improve by less than a tenth."

Naruto gave him a rather large figure. "If we switched to a better recipe, our savings would only be enough for one medicinal meal a month after covering our living expenses."

Sasuke said, "That's a huge difference!"

Naruto shrugged. "That's why I didn't tell you."

Sasuke was silent for a long while before he sighed. "It's still better to have more money."

"As long as we have enough, it's fine. The medicinal meals we have now are good enough for us. In a couple of years, when Zabuza's funds come through, we can try the better ones for a while."

Naruto said, "In a few days, Grandpa Third will hand out the rewards. If there's anything left over, we can ask our master to make us one high-grade medicinal meal to try."

"Okay."

Sasuke nodded seriously. "But I'll pay my share."

"Me too," Sakura said.

"Of course you have to pay!"

Naruto said, "I don't have enough money to buy ingredients for three meals!"

After breakfast, the three of them headed to the village training ground as usual.

Someone had arrived before them. "You're here to train today too?!"

"You're up early as always, Rock Lee!"

Naruto greeted him with a smile. "How's your body recovering? Want to train together?"

"Absolutely!"

Rock Lee threw rapid punches and kicks on the spot to show that he had recovered. "But I'm only doing Taijutsu training. Can we still train together?"

"We can do the Taijutsu part together."

As he spoke, Naruto suddenly reached out and squeezed Rock Lee's arm. "Hmm... It really is stiff. The way you've been training puts a huge strain on your body, and you haven't been getting enough rest, have you?"

"Because I don't have much talent, I have to work as hard as I can!"

"I'm not saying there's anything wrong with working hard. It's the way you're doing it—or, more precisely, the direction you're taking—that's a bit off."

Naruto rubbed his chin, then turned to Sasuke. "Don't you think Rock Lee is a little like you?"

"He's exactly like I used to be—all I did was push myself harder, without caring about anything else. The results were limited, so I always thought I lacked talent."

Sasuke said with a sigh, "Rock Lee, hard work is important, but the direction and method you choose are even more important, in a way."

Rock Lee clenched his fists and lowered his head. "But I don't know any way to work hard besides training in Taijutsu."

"Our master does!"

Naruto patted Rock Lee on the shoulder with a bright smile. "Our master said they'd be willing to adjust your training routine. It might not be as intense as your current training, but it'll be more effective."

Rock Lee's spirits soared. "R-really?!"

"No teacher could stand by and do nothing after seeing a child work so hard without finding the right direction—that's what our master said!"

Naruto gave a thumbs-up and a sunny smile he'd inherited from generations past. "Let our master help you find a better way to work hard, and a direction that suits you!"

"Okay! Please help me!"

Rock Lee quickly wiped away the tears at the corners of his eyes and returned Naruto's bright smile. Only then did he ask, "Who's this master you mentioned?"

The master made an entrance. "It's me."

Rock Lee was startled...

From that day on, Rock Lee joined Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura for Taijutsu training every morning. He mainly studied "Qi Refining" with their master—and learned how to "eat."

After years of intense training, Rock Lee's physical strength had nearly reached the limit for someone his age. At the same time, however, his body was almost "depleted." No matter how hard he tried, it would be difficult to make any obvious progress in the short term.

So the first thing to do was help Rock Lee "nourish" his body back to health. And when it came to nourishing the body, the simplest and most effective method was to eat.

Of course, eating alone wasn't enough. He needed to eat well, get plenty of protein, and maintain a balanced diet.

The next step was Qi Refining.

Qi was one manifestation of life energy. Qi Refining involved gathering within the body the life energy that would otherwise naturally disperse and go to waste.

This life energy was excellent nourishment for the body.

With both approaches working together, Rock Lee's condition improved almost every day.

A week passed in the blink of an eye, and the Chunin Selection Exams results were announced. As expected, only Shikamaru was promoted directly to Chunin.

The others, however, hadn't come away empty-handed.

Team 7's three members had proven themselves far stronger than ordinary Genin, earning the approval of the Daimyo and the examiners. All three were granted "delayed promotion to Chunin."

When the Chunin Selection Exams were held again next year, all three members of Team 7 would be promoted directly. For now, however, they remained Genin.

With the village back to normal, its shinobi returned to their usual missions.

"You're all here."

Kakashi came to find them early in the morning. "Perfect. We have an important mission, a rare A-rank one."

"An A-rank mission?"

Naruto pointed behind Kakashi. "What kind of A-rank mission needs Grandpa Jiraiya to take part?"

"So you've already met Lord Jiraiya."

Kakashi turned and respectfully addressed Jiraiya. "Sorry to trouble you, but could you explain the mission?"

"Even though you're technically my grandchild, being called Grandpa by you feels rather complicated."

Jiraiya stepped forward with an odd expression. "In short, we're leaving the village to find someone and bring her back to take the position of Hokage. I've found out roughly where she is. All we have to do is figure out how to bring her back."