Atmosphere

This also served to verify Naruto's previous thoughts from another perspective.

Among this year's graduates, excluding Naruto and his peers, those classmates who were essentially cannon fodder were only led by Chunin. As for whether they could stand out in the future, that would depend on their capacity, perseverance, and luck. This world valued bloodlines, heritage, and talent, but that did not mean ordinary people had no chance to get ahead. Of course, these "ordinary people" still needed unique persistence or talent in certain areas. Take Might Guy, for example; compared to those geniuses who grew up relying on bloodlines and heritage, Might Guy belonged entirely to the category of ordinary people. Yet, this "ordinary" Blue Beast of Konoha nearly kicked the series finale into existence. Looking across the entire world of Naruto, such "ordinary people" were certainly not limited to Might Guy. The probability was not high, and it was far from universal, but such a group of "ordinary people" capable of defying their fates did exist.

The "cannon fodder" of today might very well become important supporting characters in the future.

Such a possibility.

Naruto would not deny it.

To speak of things too absolutely.

That in itself was a mistake belonging to "absolutism."

However, all of this remained to be seen in the future.

For the time being.

Among this year's graduates, the only ones worth noting were Team 7, Team 8, and Team 10. These three Genin squads were all led by Jonin, a ratio that was quite reasonable. Referring to previous years, only two or three squads per graduating class were qualified to be led by Jonin; in some years, there might only be one, or even none at all. That was perfectly normal.

Even in the Hidden Leaf Village, which was hailed as a cradle for geniuses.

It was just that the probability was slightly higher compared to other villages.

If it were truly as common as wholesale cabbage.

Then a genius would no longer be a genius, and the uniqueness would lose its intended meaning.

The unfamiliar Chunin kept entering.

The graduates were taken away one after another.

Soon, the entire classroom became empty.

Until the very end.

After the two Jonin who arrived together—Asuma Sarutobi and Kurenai Yuhi—took away Team 10 and Team 8 respectively, the large classroom was finally left with only Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura Haruno. Before Hinata left, Naruto gave her a subtle wave. After the girl departed with a shy expression, he narrowed his eyes and sat in his seat, closing them to rest his mind.

I'll probably have to wait another two or three hours, if nothing unexpected happens...

Naruto thought silently to himself.

Who was the Jonin instructor for Team 7?

Did that even need to be asked?

It had to be that famous Copy Ninja—Hatake Kakashi.

If Naruto had been worried about whether the team-assignment plot would change, his heart was completely at ease after seeing that the team members were identical to the original story. Looking at the composition of their Team 7, was there any Jonin more suitable than Kakashi?

No!

There was not.

As a former subordinate of the Fourth Hokage and a possessor of a Sharingan, Kakashi was the most suitable person in the entire Hidden Leaf Village to lead Naruto and Sasuke.

And the personality of this Copy Ninja.

Naruto knew it very well.

Including, but not limited to, his love for reading adult novels and his penchant for being late without reason (for non-essential matters).

Today's team assignment.

Was exactly what one would call a non-essential matter.

The tardiness of this Copy Ninja was a foregone conclusion.

Since that was the case.

Rather than waiting idly, it was better to rest a little and consider his upcoming training plan.

Sasuke also maintained an extremely indifferent expression.

Then, Sakura Haruno suddenly realized.

The atmosphere in the classroom seemed a bit chilly?

This was different from any scenario Sakura Haruno had imagined before.

Having a crush for the first time was a very happy thing, and being assigned to the same team as the person she liked was an even happier thing.

And the other teammate was also a top student in the class with a handsome appearance.

This should have been a triple layer of happiness.

But why?

Why was the air so heavy right now?

There wasn't a single shred of happy atmosphere or vibe.

Could it be that she had opened the script the wrong way?

Sakura Haruno glanced at Sasuke with great unease, then shifted her gaze to Naruto. She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but it felt as if she were being controlled by some invisible force.

A very uncomfortable feeling.

Or perhaps it should be said, this overly stifling atmosphere.

Sakura Haruno's expression gradually stiffened.

Sasuke was still his usual self, and Naruto was far from the goofy, nonsensical version seen in the original story.

This resulted in the profound silence currently filling the classroom.

Of course, Sakura Haruno was the only one who felt uncomfortable.

Naruto and Sasuke, on the other hand, were quite enjoying the atmosphere.

After all, neither of them was the type to enjoy a noisy environment.

Especially Sasuke.

One should not expect this cold young master to make any move to actively befriend his teammates.

Naruto was the same.

He would rather spend that idle time and energy on training. Even simple meditation with eyes closed could be considered a way to exercise mental power. One had to understand that for a Ninja, chakra was the foundation. The components of chakra were, first, the energy extracted from each of the 130 trillion cells in the human body (the amount extracted determined the upper limit of one's chakra), and second, the mental energy honed through extensive training.

Unless one encountered some incredible stroke of luck or accident, or underwent surgery involving physical or genetic modification.

The upper limit of chakra a Ninja possessed from birth was constant.

However, this did not mean that one possessed that maximum amount of chakra the moment they became a Ninja; it only meant they had the potential, and they still needed to train to reach that limit.

And what determined this was mental energy.

As mentioned before, chakra equals physical energy plus mental energy.

The former determined the upper limit one possessed.

While the tempering of the latter determined whether one could actually reach that limit.

To put it more bluntly, physical energy was the foundation for chakra formation, while mental energy acted as a conversion method or a medium.

And if one wanted to further refine Sage Chakra, one had to add a portion of natural energy on top of those two!

That was why it was said that innate talent was one thing, and acquired effort was another.

One had to balance both.

Only then could one grow into a true powerhouse.

Although meditation could hardly be called mental cultivation and had only a negligible effect on extracting mental energy, it at least served to improve mental focus. Since he was idle anyway, and adhering to the principle of not wasting any time.

Naruto naturally wanted to utilize every available moment for training.

Sasuke and Naruto were composed and at ease.

But Sakura Haruno, over there, already looked like she couldn't take it anymore.

Sakura Haruno, who had initially been eager to get a little closer to Sasuke—even wanting to sit directly next to him—had her face stiffen after being glanced at by Sasuke's cold eyes, and she didn't dare to move a muscle.

Another hour passed in this atmosphere that felt nearly frozen solid.