Chapter 123: Gatekeepers Blocking the Door
On the third day since the Ramen Shop reopened, business remained booming.
Haruko leaned against the bar counter, appearing to be slacking off, while in reality, his eyes were scanning the shop.
"Welcome!" Ayame's crisp voice interrupted Haruko's slacking.
Three Ninjas wrapped in headscarves walked in through the door; one look and it was clear they were from Hidden Sand Village.
The leader was a young woman with face paint; if one didn't know better, they might mistake her for someone from the Inuzuka clan.
'She looks a bit familiar... Oh, I remember now, she's Pakura's apprentice."
Maki from Hidden Sand Village had just stepped one foot into the shop when her figure faltered imperceptibly.
"Maki, what's wrong?" Her companion noticed her hesitation.
"Um... nothing..."
Maki looked around vigilantly, but ultimately found nothing.
"Welcome, order over here." Haruko called out from behind the bar.
Even after sitting down, Maki still glanced around from time to time.
As a Ninja skilled in Sealing Jutsu, she was also very sensitive to Barrier Ninjutsu.
She could feel something abnormal, but couldn't find the source.
'Should I say she's truly worthy of being Pakura's disciple? To have a reaction even to this."
Haruko observed her actions and praised her inwardly.
Currently, the Suppression Barrier and Defense Barrier were in standby mode, making it almost impossible to detect them.
The Anti-Reconnaissance Barrier was turned on, but nothing could be seen from the inside.
'Come to think of it, shouldn't this person have been a Chunin long ago? Are they suppressing their rank?"
The wind chime at the door rang again.
"What a pain... why do we have to wait in line just to eat."
"Crunch, crunch... Only waiting in line proves that this shop is delicious, Shikamaru."
"I want a large bowl! I want that limited-edition roast pork!"
Three familiar brats walked in.
Shikamaru still looked like he hadn't woken up, Choji was clutching a bag of potato chips, and the loud blond kid walking in front was none other than Naruto.
"It's that demon fox brat..."
"How come we run into him everywhere..."
The whispering was kept very low; it was only out of respect for Teuchi and Haruko that they weren't too explicit, but Haruko still heard it clearly.
"Naruto, keep it down." Shikamaru said helplessly, "This is a public place."
"Got it, got it." Naruto seemed not to take it to heart at all, sitting down at the bar. "Brother Haruko! Long time no see!"
"Hmm, what are you having today?"
Haruko didn't discriminate against Naruto, but he could understand the reasons why the villagers disliked him—it wasn't just because of the "demon fox," Naruto himself was also a troublesome kid who liked to get attention by being mischievous.
However, ever since he had disciplined him a few times, Naruto had been much better behaved in the shop, so Haruko interacted with Naruto normally.
"The ramen is ready!"
Teuchi's voice came from the back; Haruko turned around and brought the ramen from the serving window to the three of them.
The atmosphere in the shop gradually returned to normal. A few villagers finished eating in a hurry, paid, and left, while the Ninjas from other villages stayed a while longer, seemingly observing something.
"Yo Business is good, huh"
A familiar, lazy voice rang out; Kakashi was standing at the bar before anyone noticed.
"Fill this out and submit it to Classroom 301 at the Ninja Academy by 4 PM tomorrow."
Haruko glanced at it and lost interest—it was a standard Chunin Exams application form, nothing special.
"I've already given the forms to Izumi and Hana. Remember to be on time tomorrow."
"Mm."
After Kakashi left, Naruto leaned in.
"Brother Haruko, are you going to participate in the Chunin Exams? I thought..."
"I am a Genin." Haruko picked up a pen and signed his name on the paper.
"Nom nom... Good luck, Brother Haruko."
"Geez, isn't this bullying people... Anyway, good luck."
After sending off the three former "stand-in buddies," the peak period in the shop was over.
Haruko glanced at the girl sitting in the corner.
Hyuga Hinata.
She had been sitting there the whole time, eating her ramen quietly, occasionally looking up at Haruko, then quickly lowering her head again.
Once most of the customers in the shop had left, Hinata stood up and walked to the bar.
"Brother Haruko... um..."
She lowered her head, her fingers poking at each other unconsciously.
"G-good luck... Brother Haruko is the best!"
After saying this, as if she had used up all her strength, she turned and ran, stumbling as she disappeared around the street corner.
"Thank you."
Haruko watched her back, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.
...
The next afternoon, Haruko appeared at the entrance of the Ninja Academy on time.
Inuzuka Hana and Uchiha Izumi were already waiting there.
"You're too slow! I was about to go find you directly!"
"I thought you weren't planning to come."
"Heh..." Haruko yawned, "It's just an application form, couldn't you have just gone and submitted it? Why wait for me?"
"Because we have to submit it as a team of three!"
"Ah—you are really something! You don't come for training, and you're not in a hurry to sign up!"
The two girls dragged Haruko into the building as if he were a prisoner.
"Uh... sorry..."
Walking up the stairs, a crowd of people blocked the passageway completely.
"What's going on?"
"I don't know."
Unlike the two girls who were confused, Haruko guessed the reason instantly.
"It's probably the gatekeepers blocking the door; don't worry about them, just walk right through."
"Gatekeepers...?"
"Blocking the door...?"
"Mm, you'll know when you see them... Sorry, excuse me, let us through."
With the arm strength from the Superhuman Strength Technique, everyone was pushed aside by Haruko like little chicks, with no power to resist.
The three of them squeezed through the crowd and saw a spiky-haired guy and one wearing a headscarf blocking the door to "Classroom 301."
"Pfft..."
"It really is the gatekeepers blocking the door..."
Through her sense of smell, Hana, and through her Sharingan, Izumi, saw through the two's true identities—Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki, Konoha's eternal gatekeepers.
Bang—
Another examinee who tried to force their way in was knocked to the ground.
"With this level of skill, you still want to participate in the Chunin Exams? I advise you to give up as soon as possible!"
Kotetsu sneered, "This is for your own good."
"This is the second floor, right? Aren't we going straight upstairs?" Hana tugged at Haruko's clothes.
"Don't rush, let's see how the others handle it. This is also a way to gather intelligence on our competitors." Haruko made an excuse and stood to the side to watch the show.
Scanning the crowd, he saw a few familiar faces.
Mino Ichi and Kamano were rubbing their fists, but were pulled back by Maki Retsu; after whispering a few words to them, they calmed down.
Locking eyes with Haruko, they nodded at each other and also stood to the side to watch the show.
"Can you dispel the Genjutsu and let us pass?"
A gray-haired man wearing glasses walked out of the crowd.
The moment he saw the person clearly, Haruko couldn't help but frown.
"Haruko~kun? Do you know that person?"
Izumi looked at the person's harmless appearance and didn't understand why Haruko had such a strong reaction.
"Mm... I suppose so..." Haruko answered in a low voice, "That guy... will be very troublesome."
"Hmph, you've got some skills." Kotetsu, having had his Genjutsu seen through, praised him—
"But just seeing through the Genjutsu isn't enough!"
At the same time, he kicked toward the other person.
The bespectacled man didn't seem to expect a sudden attack; he only managed to raise his arm to block the blow, staggering back several steps and nearly falling over.
"That's it?" Izumi was even more puzzled, "He's not that impressive."
Haruko just smiled and didn't explain further, but his expression became increasingly grave.
'I didn't expect this guy to participate too... The Master of Fulfilling Dreams—Yakushi Kabuto."
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