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With that, Tsunade turned swiftly and vanished into the woods bordering the training ground with a few quick leaps, leaving the heavy atmosphere and the difficult problem entirely to the young boys and girls.
Minato Namikaze, who had remained behind, saw his gentle smile fade slightly.
He looked at his own three students, then at Squad 10 across from them, and said, "Alright, the rules have been made perfectly clear. There are only two bells, and there are six of you. How you formulate your strategy—whether you prioritize cooperating to take the bells from Senpai Tsunade or me, or use some other method—is entirely up to you to discuss and decide."
He paused, offering a specific warning: "However, be careful with Senpai Tsunade. Her strength is far beyond anything you can currently imagine. Any reckless frontal assault has absolutely zero chance of winning. Make good use of this final preparation time."
With that, he too vanished in a flash using the Body Flicker Jutsu, leaving the space entirely to the six young shinobi from the two squads.
For a moment, the six gazes of the two squads intersected in the center of the training ground, descending into a delicate silence.
Obito Uchiha was the first to lose his patience. He grabbed his messy black hair, his face a picture of anxiety and inner struggle. "T-This rule is way too cruel, isn't it?! We have to get a bell, but there are only two! And we're not even in the same squad! I-I don't want to fight my comrades, but I don't want to go back to the academy either! That would be way too embarrassing!"
Standing beside him, Rin Nohara furrowed her delicate brows, her eyes equally filled with worry.
She looked at the members of Squad 10, then at Kakashi and Obito beside her. Her lips parted as if she wanted to say something to ease the tension or suggest a plan, but she ultimately just let out a soft sigh and swallowed her words.
Kurenai Yuhi and Shizune exchanged a glance, both seeing the gravity of the situation in each other's eyes.
Kurenai took a deep breath, stepped forward half a pace, and spoke in the calmest, clearest voice she could manage: "Minato-sensei is right. Both instructors are far stronger than us. Acting alone gives us almost no chance of winning. I believe the most rational choice for our two squads right now is temporary cooperation. We should pool our strength and find a way to take the bells from the instructors first. As for who gets the bells afterward, we can figure that out later..."
"There's no need."
A cold voice cut her off.
Kakashi Hatake stepped forward, his gaze sharp as a knife, pinning Shinichi Higashino in place.
"Shinichi Higashino," Kakashi began without any hesitation or probing. "The rules are clear. Whoever gets a bell passes. Wasting time on pointless cooperation and bickering will only lower our efficiency and increase the risk of being picked off one by one by the instructors."
"They can't keep up with our pace. In front of Tsunade-sensei and Minato-sensei, they are nothing but distractions and obvious weak points. If the two of us team up, our chances of getting the bells are the highest. The others are just dead weight holding us back."
"You bastard, Kakashi! Who are you calling dead weight?!" Obito instantly exploded, his face turning bright red as he pointed a finger and roared at Kakashi.
Kurenai and Shizune's expressions also darkened considerably. Rin looked at Kakashi with urgency, pleading softly, "Kakashi, don't say that..."
However, Kakashi completely ignored Obito's roar and the ugly expressions on his comrades' faces. At that moment, his eyes only had room for one person.
"Kakashi, I won't abandon my comrades."
Shinichi shook his head, rejecting him flat out.
Kakashi frowned, his voice cold and hard. "I thought since you're already a Chunin and have experienced real missions, you'd have a clearer grasp of reality. In the face of an absolute gap in strength, meaningless bonds and baggage will only lead to total failure. I didn't expect you to still be clinging to naive academy ideals."
His gaze swept over the other four again, his tone indifferent. "In this level of confrontation, fresh Genin graduates like them are just dead weight. Letting emotions dictate your actions will only..."
"That's enough, Kakashi!"
Shinichi's voice suddenly rose, cutting Kakashi off.
"The test hasn't even started, yet you couldn't wait to undermine our morale, destroy any chance of cooperation, and demean your comrades as worthless!" Shinichi stepped forward, glaring sharply at Kakashi. "You don't even understand the most basic principles of teamwork. Are you truly a qualified shinobi? It seems graduating early didn't help you grow; it only made you lose your way."
"You call them dead weight? The way I see it, you—the one creating internal rifts—are the biggest unstable factor in this team. You are the real dead weight! The one who should go back to the academy for a few years to learn how to be a proper shinobi is you, Kakashi."
"What did you say?"
Kakashi's eyes instantly turned freezing cold. The air around them seemed to solidify as an oppressive, razor-sharp aura radiated from his body.
The shadow of his father, Sakumo Hatake's, suicide was his heaviest shackle, but also his most obsessive driving force.
He had graduated early, desperately taken on missions, strictly adhered to those cold rules, and suppressed every emotion he deemed weak.
Everything he did was to prove his father wrong. To prove that prioritizing the mission and valuing efficiency above all else was the correct path of a shinobi. To prove that he would not repeat his father's mistakes.
And now, Shinichi Higashino was standing right in front of him, reprimanding him for not being a qualified shinobi, calling him dead weight, and even telling him to go back to the academy?
This wasn't just a clash of ideals; it was a complete and utter denial of all his struggles, his perseverance, and the very beliefs that had kept him going for the past three years!
"What? You don't agree?"
Shinichi also took a step forward, not backing down an inch.
"Kakashi, if you believe your logic is the absolute truth, if you think power is the only standard..." Shinichi's gaze sharpened like the edge of a sword, his voice echoing clearly across the silent training ground. "...then let's settle this using the method you respect most."
A challenge!
Kurenai, Shizune, Obito, and Rin all held their breath, staring in shock at the rapidly deteriorating situation.
No one had expected that before the test even began, infighting would break out between the two squads—and it was a direct confrontation between their two core Chunin!
"Kurenai, let me borrow your sword."
"Huh? Oh, right!" Kurenai was stunned for a moment before recovering. She hurriedly unbuckled the sword from her waist and handed it over.
Her sword was different from the common, slightly curved katana. It was a straight, double-edged longsword with a slender blade that gleamed with cold metal.
Shinichi took the longsword. It felt slightly heavy in his hand. The balance and feel were a bit different from his usual tachi, but it wouldn't hinder him in the slightest.
"I remember very clearly. Four years ago, during the academy's combat exams, you said that the next time we fought, you would definitely defeat me."
Shinichi flicked his wrist. The longsword let out a clear, resonant hum as he raised the tip, pointing it directly at Kakashi.
"So, right here, right now, show me exactly how much you've improved over the past four years!"