Chapter 17 – The Chunin Exam Begins
Kakashi stood before Team 7 on the training ground, holding three sheets of paper in his hand. His visible eye curved slightly as he handed them out one by one.
"Fill these out. They are your Chunin Exam application forms."
Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke looked at the papers in their hands.
Kakashi placed his hands in his pockets and looked at them calmly.
"You three are ready for the Chunin Exams."
There was a quiet sense of pride in his voice.
They had all grown far stronger than when they first became a team.
Sakura had made remarkable progress during the past weeks. She had fully mastered the Hair Manipulation Jutsu Naruto taught her and could control it with impressive precision.
Her medical knowledge had also improved greatly.
She could already apply Earth Release Hardening to her hair, making it tough enough to resist kunai strikes.
Sasuke had also progressed steadily.
His Sharingan had awakened two tomoe, and his combat abilities had improved rapidly with Kakashi's training.
Kakashi was even considering teaching him the Chidori soon.
Then there was Naruto.
Kakashi sighed internally.
Naruto was simply a monster.
He had learned every jutsu Kakashi taught him almost instantly. His chakra reserves were easily fifty times greater than Kakashi's own.
Even his taijutsu had become terrifying.
With taijutsu alone, Naruto could already fight multiple jonin-level opponents.
---
On Training Ground 8, Kurenai Yuhi stood in front of her own team holding three similar forms.
She handed them to her students with a small smile.
"You three are ready for the Chunin Exams. Good luck."
"Thank you, sensei." ×3
Kurenai watched them proudly.
Her team had developed well over the past months.
Shino remained calm and analytical as always, while Kiba had grown stronger through relentless training.
Still, Kurenai suspected Kiba might struggle during the exams.
Then there was Hinata.
Hinata had changed the most.
Her taijutsu had improved dramatically, and even Kurenai herself struggled against her in sparring matches.
With her Byakugan, most genjutsu techniques were meaningless.
Hinata looked down at her exam form with a small smile.
Let's see who shines brighter, blonde.
Her grip tightened slightly.
I won't lose… not with Naruto-kun watching.
---
Meanwhile on Training Ground 10, a similar situation was happening.
Asuma Sarutobi had also given his team their Chunin Exam forms.
Shikamaru looked at the paper and sighed.
"This is such a drag…"
Choji simply nodded quietly while eating his snacks.
Ino, however, stared at her form with burning determination.
This time I will be the one to shine brighter, princess.
A confident smile appeared on her lips.
I can't lose in front of my Naruto.
Just then a familiar voice echoed in both girls' minds through the telepathy seal.
{Ino, Hinata, did you two receive your Chunin Exam forms?}
Hinata immediately responded.
{I got it, Naruto-kun.}
Her voice sounded cheerful.
Ino replied moments later.
{Me too! Hey Naruto, how about a date at Yakiniku to celebrate?}
Naruto answered casually.
{Perfect. Let's meet at Yakiniku. I want to tell you something important.}
---
Later that evening, the three of them sat inside a private room at a Yakiniku restaurant.
The warm smell of grilled meat filled the room as plates of food covered the table.
Naruto sat between Hinata and Ino while they cooked and shared the food together.
Ino occasionally leaned close to feed Naruto a piece of grilled meat.
Hinata shyly did the same a few moments later.
After a while, Naruto quietly placed a sealing barrier around the room.
His expression turned slightly more serious.
"So I wanted to tell you something."
Hinata and Ino both looked at him curiously.
Naruto continued calmly.
"The Chunin Exams are going to become messy."
He leaned back slightly.
"So keep your real strength hidden."
He then added another important detail.
"There will also be a break between the second and third exam rounds. During that time we can train together."
Ino leaned closer and wrapped one arm around Naruto as he fed her another piece of meat.
"Hmm… what kind of mess are we talking about?"
Naruto shrugged casually.
"How would I know?"
He smirked.
"It's not like I have some kind of spy system."
Suddenly—
Hinata lightly poked Naruto with her Gentle Fist, channeling a tiny spark of lightning chakra.
"Oww!"
Naruto jumped slightly.
Ino also flinched beside him.
"Oww!"
Hinata huffed slightly while feeding Naruto another piece of meat.
"Stop hiding things."
Ino immediately glared at her.
"You did that on purpose, didn't you?"
Hinata blinked innocently.
"What?"
Ino crossed her arms.
"Don't act innocent. You could have easily controlled that lightning shock."
She leaned closer toward Hinata with a teasing smirk.
"Or maybe someone is slacking in training and can't control her lightning anymore?"
Hinata's mouth twitched slightly.
"Tsk… fine, you win."
She looked toward Ino with a small glare.
"But stop being so touchy with him."
Ino smirked proudly.
"Why? Are you shy, Hina?"
She leaned even closer to Naruto.
"Don't have the courage to be this close to Naruto-kun?"
Before the argument could escalate further—
Naruto flicked Ino on the forehead.
"Alright, enough."
Both girls looked at him.
Naruto sighed.
"The truth is… I think Orochimaru might attack the village."
The room suddenly became silent.
Ino frowned deeply.
"You mean the S-rank rogue ninja… Orochimaru?"
She spoke slowly.
"The Sannin?"
Hinata looked confused.
"But why would he attack the village?"
Naruto gently pinched Hinata's nose.
"Because of the last Uchiha."
Hinata blinked, Ino leaned closer with a serious expression.
"So an S-rank monster might be running around during the exams?"
Naruto nodded slowly.
"Possibly."
Then he calmly explained everything he knew about Orochimaru's plans and possible invasion.
Both girls listened carefully.
The atmosphere in the room had become far more serious than before.