Chapter 18: Team Spirit
"Stop acting, Kakashi-sensei! We've already figured you out!"
Naruto was walking when he suddenly heard Sakura's voice from behind.
He turned around and looked at her with pure confusion in his eyes.
Has this woman lost her mind?
"What did you just call me?"
"Still pretending!"
Sakura smiled confidently. "We already know this is your test, Kakashi-sensei! You wanted to test our observation skills, right? I have to admit, Sasuke and I were almost fooled!"
"But unfortunately, you overlooked one very important point!"
"What?" Naruto asked instinctively.
"That the real Naruto could never be as strong as you!"
"..."
Naruto looked down at his own hand. Did I slap her too hard earlier? Did I turn this idiot into a brain-damaged mess?
"Kakashi-sensei, aren't you going to drop the act?" Sakura urged, confused by Naruto staring at his hand.
"Drop your head, you idiot!"
Naruto rolled his eyes at Sakura, then looked at Sasuke. "Do you believe her nonsense too?"
Sasuke silently moved a step away from Sakura, clearly distancing himself.
But Naruto could tell this idiot had also bought into Sakura's theory and thought he was Kakashi in disguise.
"I'm genuinely impressed with you two. Why do I have to be teammates with such idiots?"
"If you're sick, go get treatment. If your IQ is low, go buy some walnuts to nourish your brain."
Seeing that "Naruto" didn't transform back into Kakashi and instead insulted them, Sakura was completely stunned.
Did I guess wrong?
Right… only that annoying guy would curse at me like this!
Kakashi-sensei may not look like a good person, but he wouldn't insult me!
Realizing she had made a complete fool of herself in front of the real Naruto, Sakura's face turned bright red with embarrassment.
"Looks like you two had quite the misunderstanding~" Kakashi suddenly appeared behind them and said with amusement.
"Kakashi-sensei…"
Sakura became even more embarrassed when she saw the real Kakashi.
"Alright, the comedy show is over. You two, follow me."
Kakashi shook his head at Sakura and Sasuke.
How can the gap between Genin be this big?
Although… when I was a Genin, I probably wasn't as strong as Naruto is now.
As expected of the Fourth Hokage's son, I suppose.
Back at the meeting point,
Kakashi tossed two ropes to Naruto. "Go tie them up."
Naruto caught the ropes and threw one to Sasuke. "You tie her up, then tie yourself up."
Sasuke: "..."
Kakashi: "..."
Sakura: "?"
A moment later, Sasuke tied Sakura to one of the wooden posts.
Then he sat down in front of the post, tossed the remaining rope around himself a few times, and tied the end into a knot, successfully binding himself.
Naruto couldn't help but admire Sasuke's flashy rope work.
As expected of someone who plays with ropes. This skill might be unmatched across the entire shinobi world.
"Alright, time for the mission summary."
Kakashi looked at the three of them and said calmly, "In this test, except for Naruto, both of you failed completely!"
Although they had expected it, Sasuke and Sakura still looked disappointed when they heard the verdict — especially Sasuke, whose eyes were filled with unwillingness.
"You might think you failed because you didn't get the bells, but that's not the real reason," Kakashi continued, noticing their expressions.
"It's not?"
Sakura asked in confusion, "Wasn't the whole point of the exercise to take the bells to pass? And Naruto… didn't he pass because he managed to get a bell?"
"Yes and no."
Kakashi glanced at Naruto. "Naruto's overwhelming individual ability allowed him to take a bell from me. But the reason he passed the test is because he demonstrated team spirit!"
"Team spirit?"
Both Sasuke and Sakura looked at Kakashi in confusion.
Instead of answering directly, Kakashi asked them a question: "Why do you think teams are formed with three people?"
"Three-man teams? What does that have to do with this test?" Sakura asked, puzzled.
Seeing that they still didn't understand, Kakashi's tone turned colder. "Ninja missions are completed through teamwork. Individual strength is important, but if you ignore your comrades, you'll put them in danger."
"The reason Naruto passed is because he considered the existence of his teammates."
"As for you two? When Naruto tried to work with you, you completely ignored him. Sakura, you only had eyes for Sasuke! Sasuke, you only wanted to be a lone wolf!"
Both Sakura and Sasuke lowered their heads in shame after having their true thoughts exposed.
But Sakura quickly found another issue. "But Kakashi-sensei, there were only two bells. How were three people supposed to work as a team? Even if we got the bells, someone would have to give one up, right?"
"You still don't get it?" Kakashi said coldly. "That was a deliberate trap designed to test whether you would prioritize teamwork in that situation!"
"Didn't Naruto know there were only two bells? Yet even so, he still chose to cooperate with you two, didn't he?"
Sakura and Sasuke subconsciously looked at the expressionless Naruto, their faces burning with embarrassment.
They never expected the gap between themselves and Naruto to be this huge — not just in strength, but in mindset as well!
Even though Naruto had shown far superior power, he still didn't choose to go solo.
"You will be carrying out life-and-death missions from now on. Look at this."
Kakashi walked over to a stone monument nearby. "The names carved on this stone belong to ninjas who were called heroes by the village. But they all died during their missions. My comrades are among them too."
Sasuke and Sakura remained silent, their expressions heavy.
For the first time, they seemed to truly understand the meaning of comrades and the fragility of life.
Carrying out missions… can really get you killed!
"I'll give you two one last chance!"
"This afternoon, we will have another bell-grabbing test. However, because you failed the morning test, you are not allowed to eat lunch!"
"Naruto!"
"Hm?"
"You can eat two bentos by yourself, but you are not allowed to give any to them. That is the rule. If you break it, your test results will be changed to failure. Understood?"
Naruto stared at Kakashi with his dead-fish eyes for a moment, then replied indifferently, "I understand."