Chapter 68
A few days later.
The weather was clear and sunny, the sunlight warm but not harsh, a gentle breeze brushing across the face.
On the training field of the Ninja Academy, Iruka's class had already assembled in full, standing neatly in formation.
What nice weather, Iruka thought to himself.
Standing before the students, his gaze swept across the young, excited yet nervous faces. He nodded in satisfaction.
"Very good—everyone is present."
He cleared his throat, his voice ringing out especially clear across the open field.
"Today, we will be conducting a special lesson—Ninja Wilderness Survival Exercise!"
A wave of barely suppressed murmurs immediately rippled through the ranks.
"Wilderness survival exercise?"
"Awesome! Finally something besides throwing shuriken!"
The students exchanged glances, excitement shining in each other's eyes.
In their imaginations, being a ninja was never about sitting in a classroom reading books all day,
or dryly practicing kunai and shuriken throws on the field.
Uzumaki Naruto, standing in the formation, lifted his head at the announcement and habitually glanced up at the sky.
Iruka continued from the front: "The location for this exercise will be… Konoha Training Ground No. 7."
He deliberately paused, building anticipation.
"I've already prepared today's exercise content for you."
"You will experience there the kinds of real difficulties a ninja might encounter on a mission."
"Move out!"
Iruka's voice cracked like thunder, instantly unleashing the pent-up excitement.
…
The students cheered and laughed all the way, the large group marching along as though they were simply going on a picnic outing.
In truth, the difference from an actual picnic wasn't that great.
After all, these were only seven- or eight-year-old children—no truly dangerous scenarios would be set up.
They arrived at the entrance to Training Ground No. 7.
It was a modestly sized forest training area, complete with woods, a river, and varied terrain.
"Quiet!"
Iruka raised one hand, raising his voice again: "Listen to the rules!"
The clamor gradually died down. All eyes focused back on Iruka.
"For this wilderness survival exercise, the objective is to locate the nine mission scrolls hidden in different locations throughout the training ground."
"To simulate real conditions, you may choose to operate alone or form teams—but each team can have no more than three people."
"Important: only those who obtain a scroll and return here with it will count as having completed the task."
"There are only nine mission scrolls!"
Iruka emphasized the number, letting the competitive atmosphere spread.
"During this exercise, it is allowed to take scrolls that other classmates have found—but when you act, be mindful of your strength."
"While I do not encourage this, once the exercise begins, you are all acting as mission-oriented ninja. Do not blame classmates who take your scrolls."
"Remember: treat every practice exercise as a real ninja mission—not as child's play."
"I have already asked two other academy teachers to set up traps and various prop animals inside the training ground in advance."
"If you trigger a trap or enter the range designated by a prop animal, you will be considered 'dead.' Be cautious and scout carefully."
"Students who fail the task must voluntarily withdraw and return here—you cannot interfere with others anymore."
His gaze first swept over Naruto and Sasuke, then settled on the rest of the students.
"Though this is just a simple game, it is a comprehensive test of your scouting, judgment, and teamwork abilities."
"Now—anyone who needs to can start forming teams!"
The moment he finished speaking, the students in front of him sprang into action.
"Sakura! Let's team up!" Yamanaka Ino grabbed Haruno Sakura's hand beside her, her tone leaving no room for refusal.
Sakura had just been worrying whether she'd have to go solo or find a team.
Seeing Ino take the initiative, she immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
Shikamaru yawned: "What a drag… Going solo makes it hard to find enough scrolls, but teaming up might not guarantee we get enough for everyone to pass."
He glanced at Akimichi Chōji beside him: "Then just the two of us. We'll wander around inside and participate a bit."
"Mm, fine by me." Chōji was still chewing chips and didn't object.
After all, it was only a simulation exercise.
Inuzuka Kiba held Akamaru up in front of Iruka with a grin and asked his question: "Iruka-sensei, do Akamaru and I count as two people?"
Hearing this odd question,
Iruka's forehead vein throbbed. His face darkened: "You and Akamaru count as one person. You only need to get one scroll to pass!"
Akamaru let out a dissatisfied "Awoo!" after hearing this.
It seemed to feel Iruka wasn't treating it as combat strength.
Naruto ignored the commotion and walked straight toward Sasuke.
At that moment, Sasuke was completely surrounded by a crowd of girls.
They all wanted to team up with Sasuke today.
"Sasuke! Are we competing or teaming up—"
Naruto's questioning voice reached Sasuke's ears.
"Team—team—"
Sasuke had originally been cold-faced, intending to tell the surrounding girls to back off and state directly that he had no intention of teaming up.
But now that Naruto had come looking for him, he immediately saw a way out.
He quickly squeezed out from the crowd of girls and reached Naruto's side, letting out a long breath of relief.
Now they were a two-person team.
But the other girls, seeing the two top students forming a team with one spot left, all widened their eyes, eager to volunteer themselves.
Sasuke quietly leaned close to Naruto's ear and whispered: "Find one more person—someone else."
He signaled Naruto not to drag any of these overly enthusiastic fangirls into the team.
Naruto scratched his head and scanned the crowd.
His gaze quickly landed on Hinata Hyūga, who was standing off to the side, looking somewhat hesitant.
"Hinata!" Naruto waved at her.
Hinata jumped in surprise. Her cheeks instantly flushed, her body stiffening.
"Naruto-kun…"
As if surprised that Naruto had called her first.
"Come join our team! Teaming up will make things more efficient!" Naruto invited enthusiastically.
Hinata nervously glanced at Uchiha Sasuke standing so close to Naruto, worried he might object.
Then she looked back at Naruto.
After knowing each other for so many years, she quickly regained her composure.
Finally, she gave a small nod.
"I… I'd like to."
Sasuke only glanced at Hinata and made no objection.
The main reason was that, in class, Hinata Hyūga never bothered him the way other girls did.
And he had to admit—the Hyūga clan's kekkei genkai, the Byakugan, was superior to the Sharingan in scouting and perception.
It was also much easier to awaken.
This kid Naruto had picked a pretty good teammate.
Was it because he thought of the Byakugan's scouting advantage?
Or did he simply hear "find one more person" and call over the first familiar face he saw?
The other girls sighed when they saw Hinata had taken the spot.
But at least Hinata posed no threat to them—they weren't worried about her stealing Sasuke.
Soon, the teams were mostly set.
Most formed groups of two or three.
A few—like Inuzuka Kiba—were confident in finding mission scrolls alone and chose to go solo.
Actually, Kiba had noticed that kid in class who always wore black sunglasses and a hood.
Seeing him standing alone without moving, Kiba had briefly thought about teaming up with him.
But he couldn't recall the guy's name at the moment, felt it would be awkward to approach, and ended up not bothering him.
Iruka watched these energetic students and nodded in satisfaction.
"Very good! The exercise will last the entire day today. I and the other two teachers will be observing your actions inside the training ground."
"If everyone is ready—begin!"
With Iruka's command,
more than twenty students rushed one after another through the entrance of the training ground.
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