A Rather Awkward Situation

At almost that exact same moment.

As Kakashi was swallowed by the flames.

And a massive, charred crater burst open before them.

Sakura, who had been hiding in the forest to observe, leaped out at that very instant.

"You actually killed Kakashi-sensei? This is just an exercise! Sasuke! Naruto!"

With a look of shock and fear on her face, Sakura shouted toward the direction of Sasuke and Naruto. The moment her figure darted out, Sasuke frowned, and Naruto's expression shifted drastically as he shouted sharply toward her.

"Sakura! Don't come out, go back!"

"Eh?"

However, Naruto's warning was a step too slow.

As Sakura stood there, slightly stunned, she suddenly felt someone tap her on the shoulder. She turned her head instinctively, and the sight of Kakashi's smiling face greeted her eyes before she could even react.

Kakashi quickly formed hand seals.

"Genjutsu: Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique."

In an instant, Sakura's once-clear pupils became unfocused.

The next moment.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Accompanied by a piercing, high-pitched scream.

Amidst Naruto's helpless sigh as he covered his forehead with his hand.

Sakura's body slumped limply to the ground.

One down, easily dealt with.

Honestly.

Naruto didn't even know what to say.

If Sakura had stayed put in the forest, Kakashi, who was holding back to deal with them, certainly wouldn't have gone out of his way to find her. But by jumping out herself, she had given Kakashi the reason and the opportunity to take her out.

Seriously.

You already know Kakashi is a Jonin.

How could he possibly be defeated so easily by the two of them?

And then she had to jump out with that "you've caused a huge disaster" expression.

At that moment, Naruto didn't even know how to roast her. After all, during her time at the Ninja Academy, Sakura Haruno's theoretical scores were always at the top of the class. From that perspective, her brain should have been quite sharp.

So why, over these few days of interacting with her, had Sakura Haruno consistently lowered the floor of Naruto's assessment of her intelligence?

She was a Genin who had graduated after six years of study at the Ninja Academy.

Like this.

If she were taken outside.

Never mind the Genin from the other four great villages; even those from the Waterfall Village, Grass Village, Rain Village, or even rogue ninjas not affiliated with any village could easily defeat or even kill Sakura Haruno.

This was really dragging down the average standard of Hidden Leaf Village Genin.

Sakura's clean and swift elimination also caused another one of Naruto's previous plans to fall through.

The bait was gone.

The plan couldn't be implemented at all.

"Now, the difficulty is really going to be even higher..."

Watching Kakashi place Sakura to the side, Naruto couldn't help but sigh again, muttering to himself.

Sasuke only knew through intuition that Kakashi was strong.

But Naruto was very clear about Kakashi's current level of power.

Even if he were holding back significantly, his strength—once he stopped going easy—was not something that rookies like himself and Sasuke could handle.

Two noobs starting with level one Doran's items going up against an level 18 boss with a full build.

Even if the boss uninstalled their Q, W, E, and R keys and sold all their items, they would still get crushed. The only difference was whether it would be a miserable defeat or an even more miserable one.

If the original trio had coordinated just a little better.

According to Naruto's earliest plan.

The success rate would have been relatively decent, but now, it seemed...

"Plan A failed outright, Plan B died in the cradle, now I can only see if Plan C will work..."

Watching Kakashi not far away, and seeing the opportunity where Sakura had been dealt with by Kakashi, Sasuke pulled away and came to his side, looking at Kakashi with a guarded expression. Naruto took a deep breath, a faint golden halo emerging in his pupils.

Although he knew the chances were slim, there was still a sliver of a winning chance.

Moreover, as he had said before, this was the best stage to test his limits; he could not give up so easily.

Naruto took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled. With his eyes closed and his emotions gradually calming, his inner heart became as still as frozen water, without a single ripple. Before Kakashi's gaze could shift back to him, Naruto seemed to sense it. He suddenly opened his eyes, his pupils deep as pools and cold as ice. A bone-chilling cold that seemed to make the temperature of the space plummet erupted the moment their gazes met.

Kakashi was slightly startled, then raised an eyebrow, revealing a faint smile.

"Should I say that he is truly worthy of being a Ninja who has experienced life-and-death struggles? It seems that dealing with this guy Naruto will require a bit more effort..."

Looking at Naruto and Sasuke standing side by side, Kakashi focused more of his attention on Naruto. Sasuke was excellent; compared to the vast majority of his peers, Sasuke was undoubtedly a genius. But at this moment, compared to Naruto, Sasuke appeared too green and immature.

It could be said that.

In the field right now, only Naruto could pose a slight threat to Kakashi in his "holding back" state. Looking at Naruto's expression, it was clear he had a corresponding strategy, and this was what interested Kakashi the most. He was eager to know if this kid could bring him more surprises.

"I'll provide the feint, Sasuke, you look for an opening. Remember, our goal is only to grab the bells. You should be very clear about how big the gap in strength is between us and Kakashi-sensei; it's impossible to defeat him!"

Naruto hunched his body, his muscles tensed, and he spoke to Sasuke beside him with a very serious expression.

Sasuke maintained his extremely arrogant posture, nodding coolly without saying much, though the increasingly cold expression on his face proved that he, too, had fully entered the zone.

This was an important assessment concerning whether he could graduate successfully.

The pride of the Uchiha Clan would not allow Sasuke to fail here.

His ambition, his goal!

That man was still waiting for him in the distance!

"How is it? Have you discussed your tactics? I'll say it again: if you don't hold the resolve to kill me, you won't be able to grab the bells!"

Kakashi gently flicked the bells at his waist, his face still wearing an extremely lazy expression, accompanied by the crisp sound of the bells.

"Jingle..."

Kakashi's slightly teasing words rang directly in the ears of Naruto and Sasuke.

"Heh, then Kakashi-sensei, you had better be prepared as well!"

Looking at Kakashi's expression.

Naruto also smiled broadly, a flamboyant aura radiating from him in that instant.

While it made Kakashi slightly startled.

"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

The next moment.

Naruto quickly formed the seals, his voice clear.

"Poof, poof, poof, poof."

A thick white mist instantly spread out.

Even with Naruto exercising control.

Hundreds of solid clones still appeared directly.

Not to mention Sasuke on the side.

Even Kakashi's pupils constricted at this moment, a look of shock appearing deep within his eyes.