"But? But wouldn't that be a little unfair, Kakashi-sensei? We all passed the Ninja Academy graduation exam, and now..."
Although Kakashi's expression had frightened her a little,
this concerned her career as a ninja.
Sakura still mustered her courage and spoke up.
Failing meant going back and repeating the year, and now there were only two spots?
Didn't that mean one of them was certain to fail?
Her overall grades at the Ninja Academy hadn't been too bad. (That was mostly thanks to her theoretical knowledge; Sakura had come first in several exams.)
But today's test was clearly a practical exercise.
When it came to personal strength,
Sakura knew her own limits well enough. If two people were certain to pass, they would have to be Sasuke and Naruto, not her. Just thinking about that outcome sent a chill through her.
"Fair? Sakura, what do you think being a ninja means? Playing house? If that's all the resolve you have, then you shouldn't become a ninja. In the world of ninjas, talking about fairness is laughable. The exam at the Ninja Academy only tested whether you had the potential to become a competent ninja. A real ninja is far more complicated than that. Whether you like it or not, you have to take this test. Of course, you can give up—but that means giving up your right to become a ninja. Don't think you can switch instructors. You'll have to go back to the Ninja Academy and repeat the year. The Bells are right here. If you want to truly graduate, come and take them! And as I said, this is a special Survival Exercise. If you aren't prepared to kill me, you'll never get the Bells!"
Kakashi smiled faintly. A trace of grimness blossomed in his eyes, and a wisp of killing intent—whether released unconsciously or deliberately kept in check—emanated from him. It was only the faintest wisp, yet all three before him, Naruto included, shuddered.
Naruto most of all. He had just been through a fight to the death, making him more sensitive to that kind of killing intent.
And this was only the tip of the iceberg of Kakashi's overwhelming killing intent.
Yet even that was enough to make the three rookie Genin feel a bone-deep chill. For the first time, they experienced firsthand the sheer presence of a Jonin!
"This isn't even close to the same level..."
Looking at Hatake Kakashi before him,
Naruto took a deep breath, his gaze growing even more solemn.
"All right, time waits for no one. It's already 11:10. You have only fifty minutes left. If time runs out before you complete the mission, you'll fail all the same!"
Kakashi addressed Naruto and the others in a leisurely tone.
After Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura exchanged glances,
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
The three darted away in a flash, scattering and hiding in the nearby woods.
Conceal your presence, look for an opening, and strike with a single, deadly blow.
That was something the teachers at the Ninja Academy
had stressed more than anything else, because it was the essence of ninja combat. (Although in the Naruto world, ninja battles later on were almost always fought head-on, nothing like what they learned at the Ninja Academy, in the early stages—especially in a battle like this—this approach was the most reasonable and effective.)
Naruto was certain, not merely guessing, that Kakashi would go easy on them.
That meant he needed to make use of every tactic and advantage the terrain offered.
Defeating Kakashi wasn't something Naruto even considered.
But getting the Bells—
that was one of his goals.
And to do that, he needed to combine the strength of all three of them.
That's right, all three.
Even Sakura
could serve as a competent decoy in Naruto's tactical plan.
The key was how to use her.
He had to trick Kakashi into falling for it.
As mentioned before, this was only a test. There was no way an elite Jonin like Hatake Kakashi would use his true strength. He wouldn't use the Sharingan or any advanced jutsu, and that was the only opportunity the three rookie Genin had.
As for the three of them hiding,
Hatake Kakashi didn't care in the slightest. He remained standing leisurely where he was, even reaching behind himself to pull out a novel. With an utterly relaxed expression, he appeared to be reading it very intently.
"He really is taking it easy, Kakashi-sensei..."
Even though Naruto understood the gap in their strength,
seeing Kakashi still looking so relaxed
left Naruto muttering under his breath in irritation.
"Let's leave Sakura aside for now. First, I need to make Sasuke see why we have to work together. And I have to make the first move..."
Naruto held his breath and sensed his surroundings.
Thanks to his experience in that previous fight to the death,
and the fact that even Sasuke's attempt at hiding was still rather crude—he had only concealed his body, while his presence still leaked out—Naruto could sense roughly where he was.
I'll make the first move.
Force Kakashi to shift his position.
Create an opening. (That would also require Kakashi's cooperation, but Naruto was certain that if he made the most "reasonable" choice and attacked with all his strength, Kakashi would probably give him an opening.)
Then wait for Sasuke to strike.
If they could pull that off,
they would at least have gotten a feel for the test's main objective.
And there was a battle from the original story
that Naruto remembered vividly. He could use the same tactic in this test, too. As long as he and Sasuke coordinated well, they might have a chance to get the Bells.
"Phew..."
His thoughts raced by in an instant.
In just two or three seconds,
Naruto had worked out a rough attack strategy in his mind. Once he had organized his thoughts,
he fixed his gaze on Kakashi, not far away.
His right hand flipped, and a Kunai appeared in his palm.
"Then! Let the game begin!"
His body bent slightly, his muscles tensing in an instant.
The next moment—
"Hm?"
Within his range of perception,
"Boom!"
A blast of air erupted.
"Oh? So Naruto really is the first to make a move?"
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
In that instant,
several flashes of cold steel shot out of the forest.
On the lawn,
Kakashi raised an eyebrow slightly. A faint smile appeared at the corner of his eye as he watched the Shuriken flying toward him.
He remained standing where he was, the book still open in his hand.
With just two shifts of his body,
"Thud, thud, thud, thud!"
Like a figure drawn around a person, the positions of his body parts seemed to lie side by side.
He slipped neatly between the blades,
effortlessly avoiding the incoming Shuriken.
They plunged straight into the dirt behind him.
The next moment—
"Boom!"
A surge of force swept outward.
A golden figure suddenly closed in on Kakashi.