"Good morning, everyone!"
Kakashi's voice carried lazily across the Training Ground.
"You'reLATE!!"
Naruto, Kiba, and Sakura shouted in a furious unison.
Kurenai paused mid-step and slowly turned her head toward the silver-haired jonin walking beside her.
"You gave me the wrong time?"
She asked, her tone dangerously calm.
Kakashi blinked once.
"Umm… I forgot."
He spoke with a matter of fact tone while ignoring her gaze.
He casually reached into his pouch and pulled out a small stopwatch.
"Students won't respect you if you behave like that, Kakashi."
Kurenai's voice came, low enough for only Kakashi to hear.
Kakashi visibly flinched.
Kurenai stepped forward, crimson eyes scanning each of them carefully.
"Being a shinobi means valuing time."
She said calmly as she looked at Kakashi with a teasing smile.
"Especially your comrades' time."
Kakashi rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.
"Yes, well. That concludes today's lesson on punctuality."
Kakashi placed the stopwatch carefully on a weathered tree stump.
He glanced up.
"…Wait."
His single visible eye narrowed slightly.
"Where's Rin?"
Kurenai's gaze swept across the five genin standing before them.
Naruto.
Sasuke.
Sakura.
Kiba.
Hinata.
Only five.
Naruto lazily lifted a finger and pointed toward the trees behind them.
They turned as they saw a figure stepping out from the shade as he walked forward at an unhurried pace.
In his hand—
A skewer.
Three empty sticks.
And one last piece of dango.
Rin took a casual bite, chewing thoughtfully as he approached.
"Huh?"
He said lightly, finishing the last piece.
"You guys got here early."
"No!"
Naruto exploded, pointing at him dramatically.
"You are late!"
His voice carried extra frustration.
He was hungry.
And watching someone else enjoying food was torture.
Rin blinked once.
"Oh."
He swallowed.
"Well… good morning then."
Kurenai exhaled slowly.
Kakashi tilted his head.
"Rin,"
He said mildly.
"I remember instructing you all not to eat anything."
Rin turned to him, expression calm and faintly amused.
"No,"
He corrected politely.
"You advised us not to eat in case we throw up."
He tossed the empty skewer into a small pouch.
"And that was just a light snack."
"Haa… Alright."
Kakashi let out a small sigh and turned toward the tree stump in the clearing. He adjusted the stopwatch carefully, making sure all six pairs of eyes were on it.
"I've set this alarm to go off at noon."
He straightened and lazily hooked a thumb toward his waist.
"Both Kurenai and I have two bells…"
Kurenai stepped forward and held up her hand.
Four bells in total.
"Your challenge,"
Kakashi continued, voice deceptively casual.
"Is to steal these from us before the timer goes off."
Silence.
"Anyone who fails… doesn't get any lunch."
Naruto froze.
Kiba stiffened.
"Instead, you will be tied to that stump—so I can eat your lunch in front of you."
5 stomachs growled in near perfect synchronization.
Understanding dawned slowly…
'So that's why you didn't want us to eat breakfast.'
Naruto clutched his stomach.
And then—
All of them turned.
Toward Rin.
Who was casually standing a little to the side.
Still munching on something.
A small paper packet of candies had somehow appeared in his hand.
Crunch.
He blinked at the collective glare.
"…What?"
Naruto pointed accusingly.
"You KNEW?!"
"No I didn't."
Rin replied, brushing crumbs off his fingers.
"I Just... forgot."
Kiba's eye twitched.
'I should've ate something as well!'
"Alright, stop arguing and listen."
Kakashi's tone lost its laziness.
"All you need is just one bell, But since there aren't enough to go around… two of you are definitely headed for the stump."
The words dropped like a bomb.
"Whoever that is, will be the first to fail."
Naruto's fists tightened.
Sakura's throat went dry.
Hinata looked down.
Kiba grit his teeth.
"Two of you, are on your way back to the academy."
Silence pressed in from all sides.
The forest suddenly felt colder.
Kurenai stepped forward slightly, her expression composed but unyielding.
"You may use any of your tools, Shuriken. Kunai. Wire. Traps."
Her crimson eyes swept over them.
"Attack as though you mean to kill.
Or you'll never stand a chance."
A pause.
"…Mean to kill?"
Sakura's voice came out barely above a whisper.
Beside her, Hinata fidgeted nervously, fingers twisting together.
Naruto forced a laugh, throwing both hands behind his head as if this were all some kind of joke.
"C'mon, chalk-face! That's dangerous!"
He grinned, though it didn't quite reach his eyes.
"You couldn't even dodge an eraser!! You're gonna die!"
Kiba let out a short, uneasy chuckle.
Yeah.
That helped.
A little.
Kakashi's gaze lowered slowly.
Very slowly.
And then lifted—
Locking directly onto Naruto.
"Must you talk so big?"
He muttered.
Kakashi's eye narrowed slightly.
"Only the weak speak loudly.
Now let's ignore the idiot. We'll start on my signal."
The word echoed.
Naruto's face flushed red instantly.
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING AN IDIOT?!"
He barked, yanking a kunai from his pouch and lunging forward.
But he didn't get two steps.
A hand caught the back of his collar.
Naruto's legs kept running.
His body did not.
He dangled awkwardly in place, still kicking midair.
"Let go of me!"
He snapped, struggling.
Rin stood behind him, grip firm on his collar.
But his expression wasn't as firm.
It was tense.
His shoulders were tight.
His face locked towards Kakashi.
Kakashi didn't respond to the scuffle.
He simply lifted his hand slightly.
"Now… Ready…"
Steady…
Go!"
The word hadn't even fully left Kakashi's mouth—
And all six genin exploded outward.
The clearing had fallen quiet.
Kurenai stood still at Kakashi's side.
'Did he read Kakashi's intent? That was sharp thinking.'
"Alright, you handle it here."
Kurenai turned slightly toward the forest as she spoke as that thought went through her head, her dark hair shifting against her shoulders.
"It's time for the match to begin!"
Naruto's voice erupted from the clearing.
He was still standing there.
Right in the open.
Both Kakashi and Kurenai stared at him for a second.
'You may be thinking of a wrong kind of match…'
The thought surfaced at the same time in both jonin as sweat dropped from their forehead.
Kakashi slightly turned his head toward Kurenai.
Kurenai caught it and she turned fully toward the forest once more.
"As I said, you handle it here."
She stepped forward—
And vanished into the forest.
Leaving the obnoxious boy entirely to Kakashi, Kurenai barely spared Naruto another glance as she moved away from the clearing. Out of the corner of her eye she could still see him charging straight toward Kakashi without the slightest hint of caution, loud and reckless.
The sight drew a quiet sigh from her before she turned her attention away from the spectacle and stepped into the forest.
The sounds of the clearing faded quickly behind her.
Kurenai slowed once she reached a small open patch between several tall trunks. She stopped at the center of the area, her posture relaxed.
Then she closed her eyes for a moment.
Her focus shifted inward.
As a sensor-type ninja, locating chakra signatures had long since become second nature to her.
It required far less effort than visual tracking, especially in terrain like this where concealment could easily hide movement from the eye. The moment she concentrated, faint impressions began to spread through her awareness.
Distinct pulses of chakra.
Each one belonging to one of the six genin who had scattered moments earlier.
It was almost effortless.
Though even as she did so, a familiar thought crossed her mind.
'Of course… it still wouldn't compare to the Byakugan.'
The Hyuga clan's vision could pierce through obstacles and read chakra pathways with frightening clarity. Compared to that, sensor perception relied more on awareness and interpretation.
Still, it was more than sufficient in many situations.
Several chakra signatures revealed themselves at different distances around her.
Separated.
Stationary.
Hidden.
Kurenai tilted her head slightly as she registered their positions.
'Hmm…'
Her lips pressed together faintly.
'They all went off on their own.'
Each of the signatures was isolated, positioned at different edges of the surrounding forest. None were clustered together, none showing signs of coordination or movement toward one another.
The observation brought back the earlier conversation she had had with Kakashi before the test began.
She had doubted the structure of his survival exercise.
The idea of pushing fresh academy graduates into such a scenario had felt excessive at first. But seeing the result now—the immediate instinct for every student to act independently—made the reasoning clearer.
'Guess I shouldn't have doubted Kakashi's methods so much.'
Her thoughts remained calm as she continued observing their positions.
Still, it was too early to reach conclusions.
The test had only just begun.
First reactions rarely reflected how people behaved under sustained pressure.
'Perhaps they would regroup later.'
For now, the situation was simple.
Kurenai opened her eyes again, the faint sunlight catching the red of her irises as her gaze moved through the trees.
A small, almost amused breath escaped her.
The rules of the exercise were clear: the genin had to survive against them while trying to obtain the bells.
'And judging by their current behavior…
It seems these kids won't realize until the end what the test is actually about.'
The thought lingered quietly.
Then—
She shifted her stance as she noticed the sudden change in the kid's movements.
.
"Argh! THIS IS SO STUPID!!"
Naruto's voice tore through the clearing, loud enough to send a pair of birds flapping out of the nearby trees in alarm.
The boy dangled helplessly from a rope, his ankle tightly bound as the trap held him upside down from a thick tree branch.
His arms flailed in frustration as he struggled against the rope, trying to grab it, trying to pull himself free, but accomplishing nothing except making the branch above creak faintly.
"This is so stupid!"
He shouted again, his voice filled with outrage.
Kakashi stood calmly near the base of the tree with his favourite orange book in his hand, watching the spectacle with his usual half-lidded eye.
Naruto had charged at him without hesitation the moment the test began.
No strategy.
No caution.
Just a straight, reckless attack.
And the result now hung in front of him.
Kakashi didn't react to the shouting.
Instead, he bent down slightly and picked the bell up from the ground.
"No,"
Kakashi said plainly, his tone completely flat.
"You're stupid to be caught in such an obvious trap."
It was more of an observation than an insult.
Naruto froze mid-struggle for a second, his upside-down face twisting with indignation.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY—"
But Kakashi had already begun turning the bell lightly between his fingers, his attention shifting away from Naruto for a moment as he examined the clearing.
He had barely begun to speak again when something sliced through the air behind him.
Instinct moved before thought.
Several shuriken burst out from the forest line, spinning rapidly as they cut toward him.
Kakashi's body vanished at the exact moment the projectiles arrived.
Substitution Jutsu.
The shuriken slammed into the trunk of a tree with dull thuds, their metal edges embedding deep into the bark where Kakashi had been standing a fraction of a second earlier.
The clearing fell quiet again.
From within the shade of the surrounding forest, Kakashi now stood partially hidden behind a thick trunk, his visible eye focused toward the direction the attack had come from.
'So you're there…'
The thought passed through his mind as he stared toward the spot in the forest where the shuriken had been thrown.
He had just begun preparing to move toward the spot where he had last sensed them, when a faint sound brushed against his ears.
The subtle creak of wood.
A branch bending under weight.
'Oh… so he isn't running away…'
He thought with quiet amusement.
Instead of moving, Kakashi simply raised his left arm outward.
Right on cue—
A fist shot toward him from his blindside.
The punch came fast, direct, aimed cleanly at his ribs.
Kakashi caught it effortlessly.
His hand closed around the attacking wrist with calm precision, stopping the strike as though he had been expecting it all along.
At the same time, his other hand casually slid the small orange book back into his pocket, the motion completely unhurried—as if being ambushed in the middle of a forest training exercise was nothing more than a mild interruption to his reading.
Only then did he turn his head.
Sasuke was already moving again.
The boy didn't hesitate after his first strike failed. His body twisted sharply, dark eyes locked onto Kakashi as his second attack came immediately—a follow-up aimed to capitalize on the brief moment of contact.
Kakashi shifted his body slightly.
The attack passed by him.
"Uchiha clan is the most elite clan in Konoha…"
His voice was relaxed, even as the fight unfolded between them.
"…I'm looking forward to its strength."
Before Sasuke could pull away, Kakashi's grip tightened.
In a quick motion, he captured the boy's other wrist as well, pinning both of Sasuke's arms in place.
Sasuke's eyes flickered upward.
Then—
He moved again.
Even with both of his arms restrained, Sasuke suddenly jumped upward, twisting his body as he drove his leg forward in a sharp kick aimed toward Kakashi's torso.
The speed of the motion forced Kakashi to react.
He released one of Sasuke's wrists and caught the incoming leg instead, his hand locking around the ankle mid-strike.
The exchange lasted barely a moment.
But in that moment—
Sasuke smiled.
Because his hand—the one Kakashi had just released—was already moving.
Straight toward Kakashi's waist.
Toward the bell.
Kakashi's eye widened just slightly as he noticed the movement.
Without hesitation, Kakashi pushed off the branch beneath his feet and leapt backward.
In a blur of motion he landed lightly on another tree, the distance instantly breaking Sasuke's reach.
The bell remained hanging at his waist.
'This one is good… though even he hasn't realized the meaning behind this test.'
Kakashi's gaze lingered on Sasuke for a moment longer.
The boy stood poised on the branch, shoulders squared, eyes still fixed on him with that same sharp intensity.
There was no hesitation in his posture, no sign of backing down after the failed attempt.
Kakashi watched him quietly.
Then—
SNAP!!
CLINK!!
The sharp sound of wire snapping and metal striking wood echoed somewhere in the trees.
'Huh?'
Kakashi's head turned to the left, his eye narrowing as he followed the direction of the noise.
A kunai had struck a tree trunk a short distance away, the blade still trembling faintly where it had embedded itself.
His attention shifted there for only a fraction of a second.
Then—
RUSTLE-CRASH!
The voice came from the opposite side.
'What?!'
Kakashi's eye snapped sharply to the right.
Something large burst into motion from the dense cover of leaves.
A massive tree trunk came swinging straight toward him, the thick log cutting through the air with heavy force.
A wire was wrapped tightly around it, pulled taut as the momentum carried the trunk forward like a pendulum.
Kakashi's gaze flicked upward instinctively.
The other end of the wire was tied high above him, anchored to a branch directly over his position.
'A trap?!'
The realization flashed through his mind instantly.
The trunk was already closing the distance, the sheer size of it filling his vision as it came crashing toward the tree he stood on.
There was barely any time to react.
Kakashi pushed off the branch at the last possible moment, his body twisting away just as the trunk thundered past him.
A deafening crack split through the clearing.
THUD!
The massive log smashed into the tree Kakashi had been standing on, the impact splintering bark and shaking the entire trunk violently as wood groaned under the force. Bits of bark and leaves scattered through the air from the collision.
Kakashi landed on another branch nearby, his feet touching down lightly despite the sudden movement.
His eye flicked back toward the destroyed tree.
'Well well… would you look at that.'
Kakashi's eye shifted from the shattered tree trunk back toward the branch where Sasuke had been standing only a moment ago.
It was empty.
The leaves there were still swaying faintly from the boy's movement
Sasuke had already vanished into the forest.
Kakashi's gaze lingered there for a brief moment, calm and observant as he pieced the sequence together in his mind.
'They are working together.'
The thought crossed his mind quietly.
Kakashi slipped one hand casually back into his pocket as his gaze moved across the forest.
A faint curve touched the corner of his eye as he smiled slightly beneath his mask.
.
.
.
.
.
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