200 Kilometer Physical Fitness Test (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

"Iruka, you overpraise me," Qiushui said sincerely. "It is mainly because you taught him for three years, laying the foundation. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for me to get his Clone Technique up to a passing grade in just one month."

Iruka froze for a moment, then smiled.

Qiushui stood up and announced, "For the Clone Technique exam, Hinata Hyuga and Sasuke Uchiha are tied for first place."

A round of applause erupted from the crowd.

Hinata lowered her head, her face turning slightly red.

The applause died down.

"Next," Qiushui flipped to the next sheet, "shurikenjutsu exam."

Shurikenjutsu.

In this exam, Sasuke Uchiha and Hinata Hyuga were once again tied for first.

Sasuke's kunai seemed to have eyes; every single one struck the bullseye with precision. Ten throws, ten hits.

Hinata's movements were gentle yet steady, also landing ten out of ten.

But what surprised the others even more was Naruto.

He actually hit seven out of ten, achieving a respectable fifteenth place.

Sasuke Uchiha looked at Hinata, who was talking to Naruto, his expression sour. He had always taken first place alone, but now, there was someone else.

After lunch and a short rest.

The final exam of the afternoon was a three-hundred-kilometer endurance run.

The sun was scorching, and heat waves shimmered off the track. Students gathered in small groups, doing their final warm-ups.

Kiba Inuzuka watched Naruto stretching his legs and couldn't help but walk over to remind him: "Naruto, watch yourself when you're running."

Naruto looked up, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Today's exam is three hundred kilometers," Kiba Inuzuka said with a serious face. "Don't go charging ahead like last time, or you'll be collapsing on the ground by the second half."

Naruto blinked, then nodded vigorously, saying earnestly: "Kiba, thanks for the reminder. Don't worry, I definitely won't do anything reckless."

Kiba Inuzuka looked at his serious demeanor and felt a bit uncomfortable. "O-okay then." He scratched his head and walked away with Akamaru.

As soon as the race started, Naruto Uzumaki immediately bolted forward, and Tsume Inuzuka, who happened to be right next to him, stiffened.

Didn't we just agree not to charge ahead at the start?

Didn't you promise me?

How could you go back on your word in the blink of an eye?

But he didn't have time to dwell on it, because those few seconds of hesitation had already left him at the very back of the pack.

The three-hundred-kilometer long-distance run quickly stretched the group into three distinct echelons.

The first echelon led the pack, four people running side by side: Sasuke Uchiha, Hinata Hyuga, Naruto Uzumaki, and Shino Aburame.

The second echelon lagged about two hundred meters behind, consisting of Kiba Inuzuka, Choji Akimichi, and Shikamaru Nara.

Kiba Inuzuka was followed by Akamaru, the boy and dog running with relative ease; Choji Akimichi's pace was slightly heavy, but his speed hadn't dropped much; Shikamaru Nara still wore his usual lazy expression, but a closer look revealed his cadence was actually very steady, not at all as careless as he appeared.

The third echelon was further back, led by Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka, who were competing against each other. The two glared at one another as they ran, neither willing to let the other get ahead. Behind them followed the other girls and a few boys who had fallen behind.

The line was stretched thin, like a winding snake slowly moving along the track.

In the first echelon, the four maintained a consistent speed.

Sasuke Uchiha glanced at the three beside him, calculating silently.

Shino Aburame, he wasn't worried about.

In every previous long-distance run, he had taken first, with Shino Aburame at best placing second or third. Although that guy had decent stamina, his explosive power was limited, and he was no match for him during the final sprint.

But the other two...

Sasuke's gaze swept over Naruto and Hinata. If this were before, he wouldn't have considered them rivals at all, but now, he felt a sense of wariness toward them.

Because during this period, he had watched every day how Naruto and Hinata trained and how grueling their workload was; that level of intensity was definitely not something an average person could endure.

Sasuke looked at Naruto's profile.

Usually, he only saw the back of the guy, or saw him panting for breath, but right now, he was running steadily, his breathing even, his stride powerful—was there even a hint of excitement on his face?

The sun gradually dipped westward, its rays no longer so venomous, but sweat had already soaked through everyone's clothes.

After one hundred and fifty kilometers, the vast majority of students began to show signs of fatigue; their breathing grew ragged, their footsteps heavy. Some began to gasp for air, while others slowed down and fell further behind.

But the first echelon maintained their original pace.

After two hundred and fifty kilometers.

Except for the four in the first echelon, the speed of the others had dropped significantly.

The gap between the second and first echelons widened, and the third echelon had already been lapped.

Sakura Haruno and Ino Yamanaka were still competing, but their speed was clearly not what it had been, and their expressions had shifted from "I'm going to win" to "I have to hold on."

Only ten laps left.

On the track, the four people in the lead group continued to move forward side by side.

Just then.

Naruto Uzumaki made his move.

His pace suddenly accelerated, like a sports car that had been held back for too long and finally released the throttle, surging out of the pack in an instant, so fast that the others were caught off guard.

Hyuga Hinata followed him almost instinctively.

Her stride was lighter than Naruto's, and her speed was not a bit slower, keeping her close behind him.

Aburame Shino watched their retreating figures as they dashed away, his mind rapidly beginning to calculate.

With ten laps to go, according to his physical distribution plan, he should start his sprint in the final five laps; sprinting now, while he could keep up for a while, might lead to exhaustion later on.

Aburame Shino adjusted his sunglasses, watching their backs as they ran further and further away.

He still chose to maintain his original pace.

Uchiha Sasuke actually shared a similar line of thought to Aburame Shino; based on his previous experience, a sprint in the final five laps was the most logical approach, and sprinting now would likely disrupt his rhythm.

Although his reason told him to stick to the plan, he still could not stand Uchiha Sasuke—no, Naruto Uzumaki—running ahead of him, so he abruptly quickened his pace and charged forward.

On the track, three figures were in pursuit.

In the lead was Naruto, running like a gust of wind, with Hinata following closely behind.

Further back, Sasuke was striving to catch up; his speed was high, but the distance did not shorten significantly.

"I announce that the winner of this physical fitness test is Naruto Uzumaki, second place is Hyuga Hinata, and third place is Aburame Shino..." Qiushui said after everyone had finished running.

As soon as the words fell, Naruto Uzumaki's face lit up with excitement; he clenched his fists and couldn't help but jump on the spot, shouting, "Yeah!"