Chapter 21 Chunin Exams"Sorry I'm late."
"Did you get lost or run into a cat this time, Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura huffed in dissatisfaction.
"No, no, actually, I couldn't help it. Three brats, for some reason, kept trying to attack me. Ugh, I didn't get much sleep all night."
Kakashi's voice was slightly hoarse, and he even yawned involuntarily after speaking.
Holy crap! Naruto and Sakura exchanged a glance involuntarily. Could this be the work of Konohamaru's trio?
"Hey, you two, do you know something?"
Kakashi appeared behind Sakura and Naruto at some point, staring at them suspiciously. Their earlier little movements had clearly not escaped Kakashi's notice.
"No, no!"
Naruto and Sakura shook their heads vigorously.
Kakashi had a feeling the two might know something, but after all, you need to catch a thief red-handed. Without evidence, he had to let it go. He'd been through too much last night and needed to get some sleep as soon as he finished.
"Alright, although this decision is a bit sudden, because of my recommendation, you'll be participating in the Chunin Exams. This is the application form."
"The Chunin Exams?" Sakura was surprised; Naruto had actually guessed right.
"Yes, first of all, I want to clarify that my recommendation isn't mandatory. Whether you participate or not is your choice. Those who want to participate, sign the application form and come to classroom 301 at school at 3 PM five days from now."
Naruto and Sasuke naturally chose to participate without hesitation. Seeing that they both chose to participate, Sakura, though worried, didn't want to fall behind and ultimately decided to participate as well.
With only five days left until the Chunin Exams, Naruto and Sakura agreed to train together, and Naruto would also teach Sakura the Healing Palm Technique.
Naruto, walking home after a day of training, encountered Konohamaru and his two companions.
"Boss, boss, come play with us!" Konohamaru called out, and the three looked at Naruto expectantly.
Naruto replied expressionlessly, "Konohamaru, have you completed the mission I assigned you?"
"Huh? Boss, we've been working hard on the mission, we were almost done, but that guy named Kakashi disappeared this morning, and we're tracking him down."
Konohamaru explained loudly, while Moegi and Udon nodded repeatedly.
As they chatted idly, a ninja wearing a straw hat suddenly appeared behind them, attempting to snatch Moegi away.
However, Naruto had already noticed his every move. He used the Body Flirting Technique to appear beside Moegi and casually swung his elbow backward.
"Ugh..."
The ninja immediately knelt on the ground, clutching his groin, cold sweat pouring down his forehead, seemingly suffering immense pain. He struggled to form hand seals and escape the scene.
"Huh???"
Naruto was a little confused. Had he really hit that hard? He already knew it was Iruka-sensei in disguise, just testing his preparation for the exam, so he hadn't gone all out. Seriously? Iruka-sensei is a Chunin, how could he be so weak?
Unbeknownst to Naruto, due to his short stature, his elbow strike landed squarely on Iruka's vitals. One had planned it, the other was completely unprepared; the pain was unimaginable.
"Wow, as expected of the man I chose, the leader is indeed powerful!"
"The leader is amazing!"
"Teach us, leader!"
Meanwhile, Iruka, disregarding the remaining mission, rushed home to check the bathroom. Thankfully, he had urinated and could still use it.
Iruka breathed a sigh of relief, but couldn't help roaring, "Naruto, you just wait!!!"
---
Five days later, Team 7 arrived at classroom 301 at the school as promised.
The door was already in chaos. Two ANBU ninjas disguised as teachers guarded the door, keeping many other ninjas outside.
Roh from Team Guy and Tenten tried to force their way in, but were both turned away.
"Please, let us through!" Tenten's pleading didn't earn her any leniency; instead, she received a powerful punch.
"What?! That's outrageous!"
The surrounding genin all voiced their condemnation. Although they didn't know Tenten, seeing the exam instructor attack a young girl evoked some sympathy and a sense of shared indignation.
The ANBU ninja scoffed, "What did you say? Listen carefully, we're being quite lenient. The Chunin Exams aren't something anyone can just casually participate in. We've seen plenty of guys give up on becoming ninjas and become despondent after failing. Besides, Chunin are squad leaders; if a mission fails and a subordinate dies, it's entirely the captain's responsibility. Can you really take that responsibility?"
"For those destined to fail, what's wrong with turning them away? They're going to fail anyway."
At that moment, Naruto swaggered forward, and Sakura tried to stop him, but it was too late.
"Hey, the exam's about to start! We don't have time to waste here. Let us through quickly! And that genjutsu barrier you created, get rid of it already. We need to go up to the third floor."
Naruto's words shocked everyone, especially the genin who had been blocked outside. Was what had been holding them back for so long just a genjutsu?
Sasuke's lips curled slightly. He had already seen through the genjutsu, but Naruto had beaten him to it. But that was how it should be; that was the Naruto he should be, not always chasing after Sakura.
The ANBU ninja chuckled, "Pretty impressive, kid, but just seeing through it..."
Before he could finish, the ANBU ninja had already struck first, kicking Naruto.
Naruto formed hand seals almost at the same time the ninja moved, already using Body Flicker Technique to teleport two meters away. The ninja had only created an afterimage.
This was also because the opponent hadn't used their full strength; otherwise, with Naruto's current sensory abilities, keeping up with the ANBU ninja would have been very difficult.
Seeing that Naruto easily dodged the attack, the two ANBU ninjas didn't intend to continue. Instead, they both disappeared. The genjutsu, no longer maintaining its power, naturally dissipated, revealing that the classroom that had been labeled 301 was now the stairwell to the second floor.
"Great, let's go."
Sakura shouted excitedly and pulled Naruto and Sasuke to leave, but a voice stopped her.
"Um, wait a minute, my name is Rock Lee. Are you Sakura?"
"Huh?" Sakura was taken aback, looking strangely at the boy in the green bodysuit standing in front of her. She didn't seem to recognize him.
Lee smiled confidently, gave her a thumbs up, and said, "Go out with me! I'll protect you until I die!"
Naruto was furious. "You big oaf, you trying to steal my girl?"