Iruka held the class roster in his hand, and sitting behind the proctor's desk next to him was Mizuki with a soft, gentle smile.
"Son Goten, although your Taijutsu scores have always been full marks, but..."
Iruka looked at the yawning boy before him, feeling somewhat troubled.
"The core of the graduation exam is the Three Basic Techniques. Especially the Clone Technique; if you can't even manage the most basic Chakra control, I can't let you graduate either."
"Does it have to be clones?"
Son Goten scratched his head. "But Iruka-sensei, you know I have a special physique, and as for that Chakra, I really can't produce it."
"Then that's a failing grade." Mizuki pushed up his glasses. "Ninjas fight using Chakra; sheer brute force is just for beasts."
Son Goten glanced at Mizuki.
This look made Mizuki's heart skip a beat inexplicably; it was the kind of look one gives an ant.
"Fine, fine, isn't it just making a few extra people?"
Son Goten said impatiently, moving his neck and making a cracking sound.
"Since the rules are dead, I'll do it my way. Sensei, I'm starting now, don't blink."
"Your way?" Iruka started. "Without Chakra, how can you..."
Before the words finished fading.
"Buzz...!"
The air inside the exam room suddenly trembled.
Son Goten's figure vanished out of thin air!
It wasn't the smoke-shrouded disappearance of Ninjutsu, but a vibrant, living disappearance just like that!
"What?!" Mizuki abruptly stood up.
The next second.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
In the cramped classroom, seven or eight Son Gotens appeared!
One sat on the podium, one crouched atop Mizuki's head, one hung from the ceiling, and another leaned in face-to-face right in front of Iruka, grinning as he stared at him.
"Th-This is the Shadow Clone?! No, there's no solid presence..." Iruka's pupils shook.
As a Chunin, he hadn't even clearly seen the Hand Seals at all!
He hadn't even sensed the flow of Chakra!
"No! This isn't a clone!" Mizuki's expression changed drastically, and he reached out to grab the "Son Goten" on his head, but his palm passed straight through.
An afterimage?!
A visual persistence created purely by physical movement speed?!
How could this be! In this cramped space, to reach a speed that created such solid afterimages, how much load would the body have to bear? Even a Jonin specializing in Taijutsu couldn't achieve this level!
"Hehe, Iruka-sensei, this counts as a clone too, right?"
The real Son Goten directly in front grinned, casually picked up a piece of chalk from the podium, and flicked it lightly.
Whoosh!
The piece of chalk shot out like a bullet from a barrel, instantly piercing the wooden board target at the back of the classroom and embedding itself deeply into the concrete wall.
"Does this count as passing?"
All the afterimages instantly returned to one.
Only the violent wind stirred up by that ultra-high-speed movement blew Iruka and Mizuki's hairstyles into a complete mess.
At that moment, a crow flew past in the air and let out three caws.
Iruka's mouth hung wide open as he looked at the bottomless little hole in the wall, cold sweat trickling down his temples.
If that piece of chalk had been aimed at someone's head...
"Gulp..." Iruka swallowed a mouthful of saliva, trembling as he picked up the Forehead Protector. "P-Passing."
Son Goten took the Forehead Protector and casually tied it around his arm, speaking with disgust. "This thing is so hard, how uncomfortable is it to wear on your head."
Before walking out the door, he turned back to glance at Mizuki, who was still in shock, his gaze playful. "Mizuki-sensei, who did you say was a beast just now?"
Cold sweat streamed down Mizuki; he was actually scared speechless by a ten-year-old child.
Outside the classroom.
The setting sun cast its light as once again some rejoiced while others sorrowed in the classic fashion.
"Damn it! Why am I still no good!"
Naruto sat alone on the swing, looking at the failing notice in his hand, his eye rims red.
In the distance, the kind-hearted Hinata hid behind a tree, wanting to step forward to comfort him but growing too shy to move.
When Son Goten passed by Hinata, he smirked and intentionally slipped his foot, his entire body tipping toward behind the tree.
"Oops!"
"Ah... Goten-kun!"
Hinata flusteredly tried to steady him, but was pulled into a waist-hug "borrowing leverage" by Son Goten.
The little girl's body was soft, carrying a faint, milky fragrance.
"Sorry, sorry, I feel a bit dizzy right after the exam." Son Goten lingered in Hinata's embrace without getting up, taking the opportunity to rub his cheek against that yet-to-fully-develop softness. "Mmm... Hinata, your heartbeat is so fast, are you sick?"
"N-No..." Hinata's face instantly turned as red as a steam engine, her whole body stiffening like a block of wood as she let Goten hold her.
"This guy Goten..." Kiba in the distance watched, grinding his teeth. "He's taking advantage of Hinata again!"
"Alright, I won't tease you anymore."
Seeing when to stop, Son Goten knew this was the school gate after all. He released the nearly fainting Hinata and gently pinched her blushing cheek. "Feels really nice. Next time I'll treat you to Ramen, the kind with an egg added."
With that, he walked toward the dejected Naruto.
He didn't really know how to comfort Naruto either.
"Sigh! Nothing in the world is difficult, as long as you give up."
"Naruto, don't cry." Son Goten patted Naruto on the shoulder. "Come on, I'll treat you to noodles. Once we're full, let's go find Sakura and Ino to mess around."
"Goten..." Naruto wiped away his tears, so moved that a snot bubble even popped out.
Right at that moment, Mizuki's face, filled with a hypocritical smile, appeared around the corner.
Son Goten spotted him instantly.
"What is this annoying guy doing here?"
Before you continue