The Survival Exercise Begins

Before five the next morning, Naruto was already up, dressed in a sharp new outfit, and at the Training Ground Kakashi had mentioned the day before.

He knew Kakashi might be messing with them, but he had come early anyway. He wanted to arrive on time, make a good impression, and perhaps persuade Kakashi to teach him one-on-one.

"Morning!" Sakura called to the figure ahead as she approached, still half asleep.

When she realized it was Sasuke, she snapped awake. Blushing, she lowered her gaze to her toes and fell silent.

Sasuke gave her a puzzled look, then paid her no more attention.

Naruto ran up, drenched in sweat and panting. He flashed Sasuke and Sakura an inexplicable grin, then kept running laps around the Training Ground.

In truth, even if they had not agreed to meet at five, he would still have risen early to keep up his daily training.

Getting stronger was not just something to talk about. He could not rely entirely on the system, either. He had to put in the work himself and improve a little every day.

Sasuke looked no better. He had trained until one in the morning before finally reaching the top of a tree, and four hours of sleep had left him exhausted.

But seeing Naruto work so hard energized him. He began practicing Taijutsu against a nearby Wooden Post and, in his mind, finally agreed to the cooperation Naruto had proposed.

Naruto watched Sasuke train and saw that his Taijutsu was nothing like what they had learned at school. It made him want the Ninjutsu Scrolls left by the Uchiha Clan—and private instruction from Kakashi—even more.

I need to do well today. If I can grab a Bell and show Kakashi what I can do, he'll definitely be willing to train me one-on-one!

With that thought, Naruto picked up his pace.

Yet Kakashi did not stroll in until the sun was high overhead.

By then, Sasuke's and Sakura's stomachs were growling.

Naruto alone had eaten breakfast, and he had secretly wolfed down a few rice balls during his training.

"Morning, everyone!" Kakashi greeted the three of them, his right eye drooping.

"You're way too late!" Sakura complained.

"Well, a black cat crossed my path," Kakashi explained weakly, gesturing as he spoke.

They plainly did not believe him. He coughed to cover his embarrassment and set an alarm clock on a Wooden Post in the middle of the Training Ground.

"I've set the alarm for noon." Kakashi took out two Bells.

"Your task today is to take these from me. Anyone who fails doesn't get lunch. They'll be tied to that post and have to watch the other two eat."

"What?" all three exclaimed, Naruto's feigned surprise loudest of all.

Grrr.

Sasuke's and Sakura's stomachs growled with hunger.

Only then did they understand why Kakashi had told them not to eat breakfast.

"But why are there only two Bells?" Sakura asked, finally catching on.

"Because that guarantees at least one of you will be tied to the post and sent back to school for failing the exercise," Kakashi said with a smile.

"You can use Shuriken. Unless you come at me prepared to kill, you'll never take the Bells!"

The three of them turned serious.

"Ready? Begin!"

The instant Kakashi finished speaking, all three scattered and vanished.

Naruto still had his schoolbag on his back. He had not put it down.

"Sasuke, we need to work together," Naruto whispered as they hid among the trees.

"Sakura, we need to work together," Sasuke whispered as they hid in the grass.

As an Elite Jōnin, Kakashi did not take the three of them seriously. He stood not far from their hiding places and casually opened Icha Icha Paradise.

It was blatant humiliation and contempt.

Suddenly, Sasuke hurled a Fūma Shuriken straight at Kakashi.

"Fūma Shuriken: Shadow Windmill!"

Whoosh!

The huge Fūma Shuriken shot toward Kakashi and cut him in two.

But Kakashi had clearly used the Substitution Technique. He had escaped unharmed and hidden somewhere nearby.

The moment Sasuke threw the Fūma Shuriken, he and Naruto gave away their position. They immediately moved toward Sakura, then hid again with the three of them positioned around Kakashi.

Kakashi had known where they were all along. It was not that he had any special sensing ability; to an experienced Elite Jōnin like him, their attempts to hide were clumsy.

Now he deliberately walked near them again, baiting them into attacking so he could teach them a lesson.

Naruto nodded to Sasuke. A moment later, another Fūma Shuriken flew at Kakashi.

At the same time, Naruto burst from cover and created dozens of Shadow Clones in an instant. They swarmed Kakashi, with Sasuke following close behind after throwing the Fūma Shuriken.

This time, Kakashi did not use the Substitution Technique. He sidestepped the Fūma Shuriken and fought the Shadow Clones with Taijutsu—exactly what Naruto wanted.

But Naruto's Taijutsu was too weak. Kakashi kicked the clones apart one by one, leaving clouds of smoke around him that gradually obscured his vision.

Kakashi's lips curled into a smile.

"Genjutsu!"

A Naruto Shadow Clone had crept close to Kakashi. It suddenly cast a Genjutsu on him, and Kakashi seemed to lose focus for an instant, his movements stopping.

"Now!"

Another Naruto Shadow Clone rushed Kakashi with a Kunai and launched a fierce Taijutsu attack.

Bang, bang, bang.

Kakashi came to his senses. Still holding Icha Icha Paradise in his left hand, he used a Kunai in his right to block the attacks.

But he soon realized something was wrong. This Naruto Shadow Clone was unusually good at Taijutsu.

He had to put Icha Icha Paradise away and fight the clone seriously with both hands. Little by little, the fight drew him to one side.

The Fūma Shuriken Sasuke had thrown earlier was lodged in the ground at his feet.

However skilled this Naruto Shadow Clone seemed, he was still no match for Kakashi. After a dozen exchanges, Kakashi kicked him away, and with a pop, he turned into Sasuke.

Sasuke had used the Transformation Technique to disguise himself as Naruto.

Likewise, the other Naruto Shadow Clone—the one who had cast Genjutsu on Kakashi—was Sakura in disguise.

"Now!" Sasuke and Sakura shouted together.

Pop!

The Fūma Shuriken at Kakashi's feet suddenly turned into Naruto, who lunged at him.

At the same moment, Sasuke and Sakura hurled a barrage of Shuriken at Kakashi. The blades flew toward him and cut off every route of escape.

Their Shuriken-throwing scores had been among the best at school. At this distance, neither of them would miss their mark.