Takasaki didn't know how he'd offended Sakura Haruno, or why Kurenai Yuhi was helping him.
It didn't matter. He could figure that out later. For now, dealing with the exam was what mattered.
But after glancing at the questions on the test paper that he didn't have a clue how to answer, he quickly lost interest.
Takasaki turned his head toward Naruto, winked, flashed him a smile, and mouthed a few words.
Takasaki wasn't worried about Naruto's predicament.
He understood how things worked.
Since Kurenai Yuhi was protecting him, she definitely wouldn't send Naruto to the Academic Affairs Office.
Otherwise, the teachers there could easily identify him by comparing the handwriting on Naruto's palm.
Naruto breathed a sigh of relief, the weight lifting from his chest.
At least he hadn't dragged Takasaki into this.
He couldn't help thinking that Teacher Kurenai's teaching skills seemed a little lacking. She couldn't even recognize her own student's handwriting.
He saw Takasaki grinning at him and waggling his eyebrows.
He even saw Takasaki mouth, "Don't be scared. You'll be fine."
Naruto knew Takasaki was trying to comfort him.
He couldn't smile at all.
He'd be fine?
How could he possibly be fine?
The Ninja Academy wasn't run by Takasaki.
He'd been caught cheating, so he had to accept the consequences.
He'd definitely lose his eligibility to take the exam and have to repeat the year.
Just as Naruto resigned himself to the punishment and prepared to get up and head to the Academic Affairs Office, Kurenai Yuhi sighed. "All right, Naruto. I've watched you grow up, so I'll forgive you this time. Don't let it happen again."
What?!
Naruto could hardly believe what he'd just heard.
She'd forgiven him? He wouldn't be punished?
As though she'd just dealt with some insignificant matter, Kurenai Yuhi paid no attention to Naruto's reaction. She turned and scanned the examinees, then said sternly, "There are only 40 minutes left! The exam will continue. Focus on your papers, and don't look around!"
After that, Kurenai Yuhi returned to the front of the classroom and sat down with her legs crossed. She no longer kept an eye on Takasaki as she had before, and resumed her proper demeanor as a teacher.
Kurenai Yuhi knew very well that cheating wasn't necessarily forbidden.
After all, cheating itself was a way to gather intelligence.
You just had to make sure the proctor didn't catch you.
She'd already helped Takasaki twice.
Others might not have noticed, but Takasaki definitely had.
So, there was a good chance that if Takasaki wrote her name a few more times in his next diary entry, she'd receive a reward.
Naruto sat in his seat, stunned for ten minutes before he finally accepted that Kurenai Yuhi hadn't taken him to the Academic Affairs Office to be punished.
Come to think of it, why hadn't Teacher Kurenai punished him?
It made no sense.
Something clicked in Naruto's mind, and he suddenly realized something.
He remembered that Takasaki had just mouthed that he'd be fine and told him not to be scared.
Sure enough.
He really was fine!
It was as if everything had been under Takasaki's control. It was incredible!
"Takasaki must've been helping me behind the scenes..." Naruto thought it over and came to just one conclusion.
The more he thought about it, the more unbelievable it seemed. He looked at Takasaki again. Maybe it was his imagination, but Takasaki seemed different somehow.
Before, Takasaki had been just another dead-last student in the class, like him. But today, Naruto had the feeling that Takasaki had become the leader of the pack.
There were still 40 minutes left in the exam.
Naruto didn't dare cheat again.
Teacher Kurenai had given him one chance, but she might not give him another.
In fact, as if afraid that Teacher Kurenai might still take him to the Academic Affairs Office, Naruto took his pen and blacked out every bit of writing on his palm, destroying the evidence.
Once the evidence was gone, Naruto wouldn't risk being caught cheating and disqualified from the exam.
The problem was, if he failed the written exam, he also wouldn't be eligible to take the ninjutsu exam in ten days.
On Naruto's test paper, every multiple-choice question, fill-in-the-blank question, and most of the written-response questions were blank.
The only two questions he'd filled in were ones he'd answered while cheating just now.
What was he supposed to do about the rest?
With his usual bottom-of-the-class ability, there was no way he could pass the written exam without cheating.
There were 30 minutes left in the exam.
Naruto grew more and more anxious.
Suddenly, he seemed to think of something. I don't know how Takasaki got rid of his evidence earlier, but his situation must be the same as mine. He probably only answered one or two long questions with the help of his cheat sheet. He can't answer the others either.
Takasaki must be panicking now, too, right?
For some reason, when Naruto didn't know what to do, he always thought of Takasaki.
He looked up at Takasaki and saw him writing furiously.
With a pen in hand, Takasaki scribbled across his test paper.
Naruto stared in shock. "Takasaki actually knows the answers?"
The thought had barely crossed his mind before he dismissed it.
He and Takasaki were both at the bottom of the class, with terrible grades.
If Takasaki could pass the written exam on his own, why would he need to cheat?
So Takasaki had to be cheating.
The problem was, the evidence from Takasaki's cheat sheet had already been destroyed.
"It's Hinata..."
Naruto saw that Hinata's seat in front of Takasaki had shifted slightly to the side, revealing most of her densely filled-in test paper.
At that moment, Naruto understood.
He'd just remembered that Takasaki had told him earlier that he'd arranged with Hinata to cheat.
Takasaki had two cheating plans!
Takasaki seemed to notice Naruto looking at him. He glanced back, met Naruto's eyes, and smiled. Then, covertly mouthing the words, he told Naruto, "Copy mine!"
As he spoke, Takasaki shifted his test paper slightly toward Naruto so he could see it clearly.
What did it mean to see who your true friends were in times of hardship?
To Naruto, this was exactly what it meant.
Sakura Haruno, whom he'd shamelessly pursued for so long, had reported him for cheating.
His classmates didn't understand him and laughed at him.
Only Takasaki, who was just as far behind as he was, had gone out of his way to help him.
Even when Teacher Kurenai caught him cheating, Takasaki had somehow gotten her to let him off the hook.
Tears welled in Naruto's eyes. He was so moved that he almost burst into tears.
Takasaki finished copying Hinata's answers to the multiple-choice questions and was about to copy the fill-in-the-blanks when he glanced back at Naruto.
Seeing Naruto staring at him with red-rimmed eyes, Takasaki mouthed a reminder: "No, don't cry now. Copy my answers first, then cry, idiot."
Naruto wiped away a tear and mouthed back, "I'll treat you to ramen after the exam."
He felt a little guilty that after Takasaki had helped him so much, all he was offering was one meal at Ichiraku Ramen.
Naruto added, "I'll treat you tonight, too!"
Takasaki made an OK sign and bent back over Hinata's answers.
Takasaki didn't think he was doing anything especially nice for Naruto. He was just giving Naruto a hand when he needed help most.
Besides, Naruto had the Nine-Tails as a trump card, and he was also destined to become Hokage in the original story. He was incredibly loyal to his friends.
Once Naruto accepted someone as a friend, he'd forgive them no matter what they did—even something like killing Naruto's parents.
He was about as high-value a friend as you could get.
So, since Takasaki had already helped Naruto cheat successfully on the exam, Naruto would probably forgive him if he stole Hinata, Naruto's future wife in the original story, later on, right?
The more Takasaki looked at Hinata in front of him, the more he liked her.
Especially when she moved her test paper toward him, as if afraid he wouldn't be able to see it, then cautiously glanced back at him.
The moment their eyes met,
Hinata's little face turned red. She turned around, lowered her head, and picked at her fingernails, letting him copy her test paper without complaint.
Her shy, bashful expression made Takasaki want to pull her into his arms and steal a kiss.
As Takasaki copied Hinata's answers and imagined taking her home one day to live happily ever after,
a loud, familiar voice rang out from his left. "Teacher, I'd like to report..."
Sakura Haruno again!
And was she coming after him again?
A wave of irritation washed over Takasaki.
When had he ever done anything to Sakura Haruno? Enough already! Did she really think he had no temper?
With a bang, Takasaki slammed his pen onto the desk and turned to look at Sakura Haruno.
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