"Hm?"
Holy shit!
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow and was distracted for an instant.
At the same time,
a kunai flew toward Jiraiya's waist.
Trying to steal it?
He immediately dodged, but—
Poof!
The Kakashi in front of him turned into a log.
The next instant, a blade slashed across Jiraiya's waist.
The cord of one bell was cut!
But—
Almost at the same time, Jiraiya's hair grew longer and grabbed Kakashi by both hands.
Kakashi gritted his teeth and threw the bell toward the ground.
"Kyohiko!"
Kurenai Yuhi sprinted below, throwing kunai and shuriken one after another.
There were no traps left nearby.
The only thing she could do...
was help Kyohiko clear the obstacles and find a safe place to land.
Whoosh!
A kunai thrown by Kurenai cut the rope holding the spiked wooden raft flying toward Kyohiko, and it crashed down with a tremendous noise.
Kyohiko turned around and immediately grabbed the edge of the incoming raft.
Then—
He gathered his strength and pushed off.
He sprang upward, twisting around and reaching desperately for the falling bell.
Clang!
He caught it!
The instant Kyohiko grabbed the bell, Jiraiya's hair reached him.
He was wrapped up like a cocoon and hauled up like a chicken, then set down beside Kakashi.
Jiraiya glared fiercely at Kyohiko.
If he hadn't said that, how could Jiraiya have been distracted and let the bell be snatched away?
That kid...
He looked like he wasn't paying attention to anything, but he was craftier than anyone!
"Whew. You brats aren't half bad. You were at each other's throats yesterday, but today you're working together?"
"Lord Jiraiya, that was all part of the strategy!"
Kyohiko grinned.
Kakashi's face turned red.
Strategy?
What strategy?
They'd just argued yesterday.
Jiraiya let go of Kyohiko.
Then he switched to rope and tied Kakashi up with a jutsu.
"I said that whoever performed the worst would be tied up with rope and wouldn't get any lunch."
Jiraiya carried Kakashi down.
Kyohiko followed right behind.
Jiraiya grinned and went over to a medium-sized tree in the distance, then tied Kakashi to its trunk.
"Hmph!"
Kakashi turned his head away and didn't try to defend himself.
Two lunch boxes were set beside him.
Kurenai Yuhi came over and stood with them.
Jiraiya pointed at the two lunch boxes.
"According to the rules we agreed on, you each get one. He gets nothing. If either of you dares to share with him, he'll have to take part in this afternoon's test too."
"But..."
Kurenai Yuhi was anxious and wanted to protest.
But Kyohiko had already picked up a lunch box and started eating.
She hesitated, then picked up the other one.
Jiraiya's lips curled into a slight smile. "Well, I'm off to get some ramen. Keep an eye on him."
"Yes, sir."
Kyohiko answered respectfully.
Jiraiya left.
Kurenai Yuhi felt conflicted. She held the lunch box, but had little appetite.
"I'm sorry. I was the one who didn't help, but you're the one who ended up tied up."
"..."
Kyohiko focused on shoveling food into his mouth, as if he hadn't heard.
Seeing that, Kakashi could only offer an awkward attempt at comfort. "You did well too. Besides, there's no way you could pass the test on your own."
Kurenai Yuhi's genjutsu had provided useful cover, and her sensory abilities had pinpointed their targets precisely.
Not to mention—
She'd also helped conceal the genjutsu, the clones, and the traps along the way.
So—
She had contributed.
Kakashi knew that he really had performed the worst—
As a Chunin, Kyohiko had been the one directing the fight, and had even made sure to leave Kakashi plenty of room and opportunities to attack.
Without Kyohiko and Kurenai Yuhi working with him, he couldn't have cut the bell's cord at all.
By comparison...
Kyohiko seemed more like a proper Chunin.
Was he really an unqualified ninja?
Kakashi began to doubt himself, his spirits sinking. Just then, his stomach growled.
He was hungry!
As he sat there feeling ashamed,
Kyohiko held out his lunch box. "I've eaten half. If you don't mind, you can have the other half. We'll take the test together this afternoon, and our chances will be better."
Beside them, Kurenai Yuhi looked down—
He'd only eaten half!
She understood.
Kyohiko didn't resent Kakashi. He'd planned from the beginning to take the test alongside him.
She made up her mind at once.
"You two use a lot of energy in close combat, while I mostly provide support. I only need to eat a third of mine to get some strength back. I'll split the rest between you."
"You're both taking the test together. There's no reason I should be the only one left out."
A smile spread across Kurenai Yuhi's face.
Kakashi blinked. For a moment, he couldn't say anything. He just felt something catch in his throat.
"Don't get the wrong idea. I just don't want our team to be one person short. Besides, feeding you doesn't break the rules if we're all taking the test together."
"Right."
Kurenai Yuhi nodded, then glanced discreetly at Kyohiko—
Just as she'd thought.
The real Kyohiko was kind, considerate, and thoughtful. Even now, he was mindful of Kakashi's feelings.
Yesterday, he'd clearly only been trying to correct Kakashi's mistake.
She reached out.
"Can I take off your mask?"
"Th—"
Kakashi struggled to get the word out.
His mask was removed, revealing his handsome face.
Kyohiko held out the lunch box and fed Kakashi with his chopsticks.
Whether they really had to take the test again that afternoon or passed outright, they still needed to eat.
Tsk!
Jiraiya was really playing along. He still hadn't shown up!
Kyohiko fed him.
As he ate, Kakashi had to hold back the emotion and bitterness rising in his heart...
It was the hardest meal Kakashi had ever eaten.
Just then,
Whoosh!
A figure landed in front of them.
"You actually dared to break the rules. Looks like you want to take the test again, huh?"
Jiraiya's expression was cold.
"That's right."
Kyohiko nodded.
Jiraiya gave a mocking laugh. "All right. This afternoon, I'll give it everything I've got..."
Kakashi's breath caught, and his face turned pale.
"No, I..."
"I'll let you pass."
When Jiraiya finished the sentence, Kakashi and Kurenai Yuhi gaped at him. Kyohiko also looked surprised.
But then—
Jiraiya slapped Kyohiko on the shoulder.
"Quit pretending, kid. You guessed it, didn't you?"
"More or less. As one of the Sannin, you wouldn't have agreed to lead a team if you planned to give us a test we couldn't pass. So I figured there was a chance we could all pass together."
Kyohiko explained.
Jiraiya looked a little surprised. "But you could've abandoned him. It wouldn't have stopped you from becoming my subordinate."
"If I'd abandon my comrades just to become your student, would you dare trust me with your back?"
"Hahaha!"
Jiraiya burst into laughter.
Then he said solemnly, "That's right. In war and on missions, sacrifices are inevitable. But if someone doesn't care about their comrades' lives, how can other ninja trust them with their own lives and their missions?"
Jiraiya's words—
Exploded beside Kakashi's ears like a thunderclap.
His comrades' lives?
He fell silent.
Kyohiko's words from yesterday echoed in his ears again.
"You came back two years after graduating for a reason. You judge others, and they judge you too..."
Yesterday, Kakashi had been angry and furious.
Now, he found himself reflecting.
Could it be—
That he shouldn't have abandoned those people during past missions?
No!
As a ninja, the mission and the rules had to come first.
Kakashi's old beliefs and his new thoughts clashed within him like two forces at war, neither able to gain the upper hand.
Kyohiko hadn't expected to settle everything with one fight.
Someone as stubborn as Kakashi wouldn't become a "better person" so easily. If he could, he wouldn't have turned into a liability to his team.
Still, this was a good start.
But in the next instant—
[As Hokage, you never deliberately tried to win people over, yet still earned their trust through your personal charisma.]
[Reward: Improved chakra control]
Hm?
Kyohiko glanced at Kurenai Yuhi. He wasn't exactly surprised, but his feelings were complicated—
He hadn't won over his main target.
But he'd gained a secondary one...
That wasn't bad either.
You could never go wrong with improving chakra control.
What a steal!
Before you continue