The Test Is Passed!

"Huh? What aura? What rhythm?" Ling Yue was panicking inside, but she tried hard to play dumb. She even deliberately took two heavy breaths, as though that burst just now had merely been an exceptional performance. "I just... ran here with everything I had."

Kakashi narrowed his exposed eye. Instead of pressing further, he returned to his lazy demeanor. "Well, forget it. Looks like you failed too."

Somehow, he produced another rope.

Ling Yue's scalp prickled, and she instinctively took a step back. Was she about to be hung up too? To keep those three miserable companions company?

Just then!

"Ahhh! I can't take it anymore!" Naruto, who was hanging there, suddenly roared. His stomach growled loudly enough to shake the heavens. "I want to eat!"

He struggled violently and actually bit through the rope tying him up!

He fell to the ground.

"Grumpy-face teacher! Take this!" Naruto grimaced from the fall, but charged ahead regardless, forming hand seals again. "Shadow Clone Technique!"

Dozens more Shadow Clones appeared, screaming as they charged at Kakashi.

"Hmph. Boring." Kakashi casually prepared to deal with them.

But Naruto's target this time was not Kakashi at all! All the clones rushed forward, but it was only a feint.

Their real purpose was to grab Sasuke and Sakura, who were still hanging nearby, and clumsily help them untie their ropes!

"Idiot! What are you doing?!" Sasuke cursed furiously, but the rope had already been torn apart in a messy tangle.

"Naruto!" Sakura was stunned as well.

"Bastard! Who asked you to meddle?!" The moment Sasuke landed, he wanted to punch Naruto.

"Shut up, stupid Sasuke!" Naruto shouted back with his neck stiffly raised. "I'm hungry! And... and watching your companions go hungry is the worst thing you can do!"

As soon as he said that, Sasuke's fist stopped halfway through its swing. Sakura froze too.

Kakashi watched the farce without saying anything, but something subtly changed in his eyes.

Watching this scene, Ling Yue silently thought, Here it comes! The beginnings of the protagonist's talk-no-jutsu!

She immediately realized this was an opportunity! An opportunity for teamwork!

She hurried over and stepped between Naruto and Sasuke, who were about to start arguing again. "Stop fighting! He's right, we're teammates!"

She looked at Kakashi and shouted, "Kakashi-sensei, if we work together and take the bells, does that mean all of us pass?"

Kakashi looked at the four of them, who finally seemed somewhat presentable, and scratched his head. "Oh dear, what a hassle... In theory, rules are rules..."

But before he could finish, Naruto had already lost patience. "Who cares about the rules! Let's do this together! Once we get the bells, we can all eat lunch together!"

"Hmph. I'll cooperate with you just this once." Sasuke put on a battle stance with a cold expression. His Sharingan attempted to activate again, and this time it seemed somewhat steadier.

Sakura also gathered her courage and stepped forward.

"Then... let's try it!" Ling Yue took a deep breath and activated [Thunder Breathing] again. This time, however, she controlled its intensity, maintaining only enough to enhance her speed and reactions. She did not dare unleash her full power like before and arouse suspicion.

"Here we go!" Naruto yelled as his Shadow Clones charged forward again. This time, they were a genuine feint meant to disrupt Kakashi's vision.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke finally spat out a fairly large fireball. Though Kakashi easily dodged it, it still forced him back a step.

Sakura seized the chance and threw several shuriken, blocking Kakashi's retreat.

Meanwhile, relying on the speed boost from [Thunder Breathing] and the predictive ability of [Paper Arts], Ling Yue moved along the edge of the battlefield, constantly searching for a chance to approach the bells.

Her movements were even more nimble than before, and several times she narrowly avoided Kakashi's casual attacks.

"Your coordination's starting to look decent," Kakashi commented while effortlessly dodging.

An opening!

Ling Yue saw that Kakashi had a tiny gap while sidestepping Sasuke's Phoenix Sage Fire Technique and Sakura's kunai!

Chakra spread beneath her feet as she accelerated again, her fingers reaching straight for the bells!

This time, Kakashi seemed half a beat too slow because he had to deal with all four of them at once!

She touched it!

Ling Yue's fingers finally brushed one of the bells!

Almost at the same time, one of Naruto's clones pounced from the other side and grabbed Kakashi's other leg!

"Now!" Sasuke spotted the opportunity and rushed forward at full speed, aiming for the other bell!

"Cling!"

A crisp bell rang out.

Sasuke's fingers tore off another bell as well!

Time seemed to freeze.

Naruto's clones vanished one after another. All four of them panted as they looked at Kakashi.

Kakashi lowered his head to look at his empty waist, then raised it to look at the four of them standing ready. His gaze lingered especially on Ling Yue and Sasuke.

After a moment, his eyes curved into crescents, and he clapped his hands.

"Pass."

"Yeah!!!" Naruto was the first to leap up and cheer. "We did it! I told you we were unbeatable!"

Sakura also let out a relieved breath and smiled.

Sasuke looked at the bell in his hand and snorted, but the corner of his mouth seemed to lift ever so slightly.

Ling Yue also breathed a sigh of relief. They had finally passed. That had been far too close.

Kakashi somehow took out four boxed lunches. "Here, your lunch. Rest this afternoon. Starting tomorrow, you'll begin taking missions."

"Great! I'm starving to death!" Naruto immediately snatched one and began wolfing it down.

The four of them sat by the training ground and ate.

Naruto ate without a shred of decorum. Sakura chewed slowly and carefully, while Sasuke ate quickly but quietly.

As she ate, Ling Yue secretly observed Kakashi. This guy was definitely still suspicious about the source of her abilities. He simply had not exposed her yet.

She needed to find a way to smooth it over, or... make him think it was some kind of special secret technique.

Just as she was thinking about it, Kakashi suddenly leaned over and crouched beside her. In a voice neither too loud nor too soft, he asked, "Hey, Yue, that sudden burst of speed you had earlier, along with the technique you used to hide your aura before that—was it a secret technique passed down through your family? I've never heard of it before."

As soon as he said this, Sasuke immediately perked up his ears. Even his eating slowed. Naruto also looked over curiously.

Ling Yue felt tense as soon as she heard it. Here it comes!

She tried her best to remain calm, swallowed the food in her mouth, and vaguely replied, "Ah... sort of. I figured it out and practiced it myself. I'm still not very good at it."

"You figured it out yourself?" Kakashi's tone rose slightly, clearly unconvinced. "That efficient method of chakra usage and that unique breathing rhythm don't seem like something you could figure out on your own."

His gaze became somewhat sharp. Though he still wore a smile, the pressure was already mounting.

Ling Yue's scalp tingled as her mind raced, trying to figure out what excuse to make.

Suddenly, as though he had sensed something, Kakashi sharply turned toward the direction outside the village. His ever-lazy dead-fish eye instantly became incomparably sharp!

"Tch, trouble's here." He stood up, his eyes still fixed on the outskirts of the village. "Training is over for today! You four, go home immediately. Don't linger outside!"

With that, he ignored the four of them. His figure flashed, and he vanished in an instant.

The four of them were left staring at each other.

"What happened?" Naruto looked utterly confused. "I don't know. Kakashi-sensei looked like he was in a hurry." Sakura seemed uneasy as well. Sasuke frowned toward the direction Kakashi had vanished, his eyes flickering.

Ling Yue looked in that direction too, and an inexplicable sense of dread rose within her.

What could make a jonin like Kakashi's expression change in an instant and force him to rush out...?

She suddenly remembered the mission the system had issued earlier, as well as the timing...

Could it be... the Land of Waves mission was about to begin?