Naruto: The Strongest Suiton User

Chapter 12: Team 7

In the end, Sakura didn't get a chance to sneak a peek at the Scroll of Seals.

Soon after, the Anbu arrived to take Mizuki away, and they also gave Iruka's wounds some simple treatment.

Iruka said a lot, including a more detailed and moving account of his own personal experiences, which earned him countless favorability points with Naruto. Later, Naruto and Iruka hugged and cried together—it was truly a sight to behold. Naruto also recounted the process of how Mizuki instigated him to steal the Scroll of Seals and demonstrated his ridiculously numerous Shadow Clone Jutsu, which greatly surprised Iruka.

Even Sakura was shocked by the hundreds of shadow clones. Seeing it in the manga didn't have the same impact; only in the real world could one truly appreciate the astonishing presence.

"Naruto, your Clone Jutsu... you pass. Close your eyes," Iruka said with a smile. After all that had happened, he already understood Lord Hokage's intentions. He gently untied his own forehead protector and tied it onto Naruto's head. "Alright, you can open your eyes now."

Naruto looked at Iruka, touched the forehead protector, and jumped up in joyful surprise.

"Congratulations—you've passed the graduation exam. You have now... graduated!" Iruka said with his head lowered and his eyes narrowed in a smile. After a whole night of commotion, the sky had unknowingly begun to brighten. The morning light illuminated his face brightly.

"The sun's up... let's go!" Sakura said, looking up at the sky.

"Yeah, it's dawn... Let's go! To celebrate, let's all go get ramen together! My treat!" Iruka said, gazing at the sky.

Following his gaze, the clouds in the sky had been blown away by the wind. The rising sun was bright, and its warmth spread from one's body to one's heart.

"Alright! Sensei's treat! I want an extra-large bowl of seafood ramen!"

"You idiot! Iruka-sensei is covered in injuries right now! Show some consideration!"

Sakura appeared behind Naruto in a flash, grabbing the back of his collar like she was picking up a kitten and stopping him from扑ing onto Iruka.

"Ye-yes! Anything is fine!" Iruka laughed shyly. "Naruto, you're getting too excited! The path of a ninja is full of hardships, and this is just the beginning!"

The path of a ninja, huh...?

Sakura felt a wave of emotion as she looked at the short, energetic boy before her. At this moment, who would have thought that this little ninja, still full of life after a whole night of trouble, would one day become the great hero who saved the world?

Konoha greeted another peaceful new day.

The next day, at the team assignment meeting.

"Team Seven... uh, Haruno Sakura..." Iruka glanced at Sakura, who returned his gaze with an unsurprised calmness.

"...Uzumaki Naruto,"

"Yeah!" Naruto shouted excitedly. Sakura also turned her head back to look at him and smiled gently.

"And... Uchiha Sasuke."

Sakura turned her head just in time to meet Sasuke's disdainful gaze. He then snorted and turned back around. Sakura couldn't help but roll her eyes. What's with this stuck-up attitude?

"What? No way!" Naruto also yelled.

"Iruka-sensei, why did you put me in a group with that stuck-up Sasuke... An excellent student like me—!" It seemed Naruto's current perception of Sasuke was still primarily that of an arrogant rival. Though Sasuke probably doesn't even consider you a rival!

"You idiot! Once the groups are decided, they can't be changed!" Sakura gave Naruto a sharp bonk on the head, which finally sealed his mouth. She rubbed her forehead, feeling a headache coming on. It seemed the relationship between the three of them was even worse than in the original story. One treated his teammate as a rival, while the other outright said he didn't want Sasuke as a teammate.

"Hey, I say... let's go get Ichiraku Ramen for lunch together!" Sakura suggested after the assignments were finished. Eating together was a good way to build relationships. Kakashi's test was about teamwork, and with the current animosity between the three of them, they would never pass.

Naruto was about to object when Sakura shot him a sharp glare. "My treat!" This forced Naruto's "Ramen again, I'm sick of it!" back down his throat.

She then looked at Sasuke, and with a sickeningly sweet smile, she successfully disgusted him. Sasuke shuddered. "Fine, I'll go! Just stop smiling like that!"

Under a combination of threats and bribes, the three of them finally made it to Ichiraku Ramen. However, things did not go as smoothly as expected—

"...In short, since we're a team now, we should get along well in the future. Teammates should be close and friendly, only then can we—"

"Boss, boss, I want this signature large bowl of braised beef noodles!"

"One large bowl of tomato and egg noodles, thank you!"

"Hey, I'm talking to you two!! Are you even listening?! What I'm saying is really important, you know!!"

Naruto and Sasuke continued to eat their noodles without even lifting their heads.

Let's rewind time a bit, to that morning in the Hokage's office.

The Third Hokage was using his Telescope Jutsu. Looking at the noisy image in his crystal ball, he spoke to Kakashi with a hint of resignation.

"Kakashi... that boy Naruto is rough around the edges, but you're more meticulous. I'll be more at ease leaving him to you. The Uchiha boy has also been assigned to your group. Right now, you're the only one who can teach him..."

"This seems pretty troublesome—" Kakashi said with a grimace, looking at Naruto and Sasuke arguing in the crystal ball. "They're like a cat and a dog. Can they really get along?"

As if to prove Kakashi's point, Naruto and Sasuke, who had been glaring at each other face-to-face for several minutes, were suddenly pushed together by a mysterious and irresistible external force and kissed each other on the lips. Seeing this, both Kakashi and the Hokage broke out in a cold sweat.

"Don't worry, Haruno Sakura is their friend. She'll help you handle the interpersonal relationships," the Hokage said, wiping away non-existent sweat and puffing out a cloud of white smoke. At this moment, the image in the crystal ball had just progressed to Naruto being about to attack Sasuke for ruining his first kiss, only to be violently suppressed by Sakura for taking it too far. "However, the real problem child in this group... is Haruno Sakura herself!"

"You mean the genius Sakura who developed a series of S-rank Water Style jutsu at the age of 10?" A drop of sweat seemed to slide down Kakashi's face. My head hurts. Why can't I get some normal people in my squad!

"It's said her talent is even greater than Orochimaru's..."

"Actually, it's two... The other one is likely a jutsu even more powerful than S-rank, a jutsu beyond S-rank," Lord Hokage said, dropping the bombshell in a calm tone. "A super-difficult ninjutsu that even Haruno Sakura is stumped by. She's been developing it in secret alongside her water cutter series and still hasn't given up despite little progress. From this, you can see the power of this jutsu. If you can tame her, you can easily control the whole team!"

There was one more thing the Hokage didn't say. This jutsu likely had a function unlike any ever seen in the ninja world. This child, Haruno Sakura, her way of thinking was different from every other ninja...

"If possible, try to help her out. This child has a habit of keeping things to herself. You are quite knowledgeable in ninjutsu, so maybe..." Lord Hokage sighed.

"...I'll do my best." Kakashi felt his stomach cramp. To think he had to lead such a troublesome team, and he couldn't even refuse this hot potato. Kakashi felt his life of leisure was gone forever.

Afternoon. In the empty classroom, only Sakura and the other two remained. Clearly, Kakashi's habitual lateness was his way of putting the expectant Team 7 in their place.

However, Naruto's chalk eraser prank soon paid Kakashi back in kind.

The moment Kakashi pushed the door open, he had already spotted the trap. But he subconsciously judged the eraser as harmless and chose not to dodge. In a moment of carelessness, he ended up with a head full of chalk dust, looking quite disheveled.

"Hahahahaha, Sensei, you're so lame!" Kakashi was stunned to find that the one laughing the loudest was actually Sakura.

She really is a problem girl... Sakura is arrogant because she's a genius, but Naruto, you're the dead-last, what right do you have to laugh so arrogantly? Kakashi complained inwardly. Is it because Naruto is just that clueless?

Kakashi raised an eyebrow, glanced at Sasuke who was secretly showing a look of contempt, and at Sakura and Naruto who were openly laughing in disdain, and then he also threw his head back and laughed to himself.

"Well, how should I put this," Kakashi said, rubbing his chin. "My first impression of you guys—"

"You're a bunch of idiots!"

"Alright, let me introduce myself first. My name is Hatake Kakashi. The things I like and dislike are many. My hobbies are also varied. As for my dream, there's nothing much to say about it..."

Isn't that the same as saying nothing at all? The three of them thought silently.

"Alright! Now it's my turn to introduce myself, my name is—"

Naruto rushed to speak but was cut off by a wave of Kakashi's hand.

"—No need."

"Huh?"

"I said... introductions, before you pass my test and gain my approval, are unnecessary," Kakashi said coldly.

After a moment of silence, Sakura spoke up, "A test?"

"That's right. Tomorrow morning at the training ground, a survival exercise test!"

"This isn't an ordinary survival exercise. In this exercise, your opponent will be me," Kakashi continued, seeing the unconvinced expressions on Naruto and Sasuke's faces. "This is a test with a sixty-seven percent failure rate. Out of twenty-seven graduates, only nine will ultimately be recognized as Genin!"

"What?" Even Sasuke, who had maintained a deadpan expression, was shocked by the exaggerated failure rate.

Actually, it's not that hard at all. It's just that many people don't know that the fundamental requirement of Kakashi's test isn't a ninja's talent, but a sense of camaraderie. In other words, as long as you show enough awareness of your comrades, even to the point of breaking the rules for them, you can gain Kakashi's approval. On this point, Sakura wasn't worried. With just a little guidance, both Naruto and Sasuke had a strong sense of camaraderie.

"Kakashi-sensei, we will definitely pass the exercise. Tomorrow, you will definitely hear my name!"

Sakura stood up and announced without hesitation, a confident smile on her face.