The golden-red sunlight cast a warm glow over the Hokage Rock.
The streets were bustling with activity. On both sides of the roads, large-scale construction projects were underway. Workers moved quickly, setting up scaffolding and stacking materials. The air was filled with the roar of machinery and the rhythmic clang of hammers.
It was a lively, vibrant scene full of promise and energy.
Team 7 wandered idly through the streets. Kakashi-sensei was still at the Hokage's office, submitting his mission report on the unexpectedly high-risk Wave Country assignment. The reason they hadn't disbanded yet? Kakashi had promised to treat them to Ichiraku Ramen afterward.
"This is crazy! It's only been a week, and the whole village's gone wild!" Naruto complained, hands clasped behind his head. "Even the Hokage Rock got a fresh coat of paint!"
"Hmph. Typical dead-last," Sasuke said, glancing at Naruto with mild disdain. "Haven't you heard about the ninja system reforms? The announcement's been posted on the mission board for days."
"Eh? I might've missed it... probably busy on the forums," Naruto scratched his head, looking confused.
"Figures. Dead-last as always."
"Shut up, you jerk! Who're you calling dead-last? That's twice already!" Naruto shouted, jabbing a finger at Sasuke's face.
"Alright, alright! Cut it out, Naruto!" Sakura interrupted, clearly biased. She raised a fist menacingly. "Keep yelling and I will hit you!"
Naruto fell silent immediately. He and Sasuke exchanged sharp glares and looked away from each other.
Just then, Kakashi strolled toward them from the direction of the Hokage's office, flipping through a small booklet. He didn't even look up as he waved lazily.
"Yo. Still hanging around, I see."
"Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto ran up eagerly, face beaming. "Did the report go okay? What did Lord Hokage say?"
Kakashi replied in his usual laid-back tone, "Well, the Third did scold you three for quite a while... but overall, I guess we passed."
Not exactly. In truth, the Third Hokage had spent thirty minutes roasting Kakashi for being weaker than he was as a child, muttering all kinds of cryptic things like, "The weakest S-rank ninja I've ever seen... wasted my coins... not even a tenth of the First Hokage..." It had been brutal. If not for sheer dumb luck, Copy Ninja Kakashi might've died on that mission.
Afterward, Hiruzen gave him a ten-minute lecture on the Will of Fire, followed by five minutes explaining Konoha's reforms and the upcoming Chūnin Exams. He even took a moment to ask about Naruto's training.
"Why did he scold us?" Naruto asked nervously, on behalf of the trio.
"Because the mission went wildly off-course and turned into something far beyond its original rank," Kakashi explained smoothly. "But he also acknowledged your efforts. You protected the client and defeated Zabuza and Haku. That's commendable."
Kakashi, seriously? You ran into a fight at elite jōnin level and didn't think to request backup? What if there had been more than one? What if they had reinforcements? Every one of those kids is the future of the village. How could you risk their lives like that? You think the past Hokage would rest easy hearing this? The Third's words still echoed in his mind.
"Then it's all good!" Naruto sighed in relief, patting his chest with a smug smile. "Told you! Team 7 is the strongest!"
"But next time, don't be so reckless," Kakashi said, squinting slightly. "You can't always count on luck. Risk assessment is part of being a ninja."
Kakashi, you were way too careless this time. You're just not strong enough. You even had to rely on your students to survive. You were lucky, that's all. Wake up. More of the Hokage's voice, disappointed but hopeful.
"Got it, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto replied with a grin, clearly brushing off the warning.
"Alright. Change of plans. I'm treating you to barbecue today."
"Whoa!" Instant excitement lit up their faces. "Weren't we going to Ichiraku? Why so generous all of a sudden?"
"Because it might be our last dinner together as Team 7," Kakashi said casually. "I just signed your names on the Chūnin Exam registration forms."
"Eh?!" x3.
"If you fail, Team 7 could be disbanded early. Anyone who doesn't pass will have to go back to the Academy. According to the new jōnin manual, this is the last standard-format Chūnin Exam before the reforms fully take effect. No promotion? Back to school," Kakashi explained, holding up the small book in his hand.
This time, it wasn't Icha Icha Paradise. It was the freshly issued jōnin manual, full of policy changes and notes on the Akatsuki.
"Whaaaaaat?!" Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura all shouted, eyes wide with shock.
"You're joking, right?" Naruto jumped to his feet, pointing at Kakashi again. "We just finished a super tough mission! I'm not going back to school!"
"Yeah, Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura added, panicked. If we disband, what happens to me and Sasuke?
Sasuke said nothing, but his frown deepened. He'd worked so hard to become a ninja. There was no way he was going back to that childish playground. He had revenge to focus on.
Kakashi stayed relaxed. "Well, those are the Hokage's new rules. Not my call. Besides, this might be the last Chūnin Exam ever. No one knows how promotions will work going forward. If you want to pass, you'll need to train hard."
Kakashi didn't really mind either way. From his perspective, it might even be better if they went back and matured a bit more. He might end up teaching at the new ninja high school himself. Signing them up was just a way to give them a real challenge, a trial by fire.
Thinking back on the transformed Konoha, even the Third Hokage now radiated the aura of a wise reformist ruler.
"Come on. Let's eat. At least the barbecue should be something to look forward to. I'll explain the rest after."
Sizzle.
Inside the barbecue restaurant, the rich aroma of grilling meat filled the air. Oil dripped from the meat slices onto the charcoal, sending up little puffs of fragrant smoke.
"Kakashi-sensei, now can you tell us more?" Naruto asked, rubbing his full belly and looking content.
"Well, it's basically like the genin exam. I can't tell you the details, of course," Kakashi said, putting down his chopsticks. His eyes scanned Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura, who were all clearly curious. "Just focus on training, and you'll be fine. I believe in you."
"That's basically saying nothing!" Sakura grumbled.
"Explaining it all would be a pain here," Kakashi pulled out the new jōnin manual. "Technically, you're not allowed to read this yet, but it's not exactly top secret. Take a look."
He handed it over, giving Sasuke a meaningful glance.
Sakura, being the most literate, took it first. Naruto and Sasuke leaned in from both sides to read along.
"What's this 'Academy City' thingy?" Naruto asked, squinting at the page.
"Looks like Konoha plans to build several specialized ninja schools," Sakura said. "New students will get invitation letters? That sounds kind of cool."
"Ninja elementary covers Clone Techniques and tool handling... ninja middle school does advanced ninjutsu, nature transformation... there's even a ninja high school!" Naruto blinked. "So just knowing Clone Techniques means we're still in elementary?"
Sakura's heart sank. Her level only matched elementary.
"I know Shadow Clone!" Naruto raised his hand proudly.
"Hmph. I can already use several advanced Fire Jutsu," Sasuke said with a competitive glare.
"What the heck... I don't know anything," Sakura muttered, sounding defeated. Her inner self fumed, but another part of her secretly liked the idea of going back to school with Sasuke. A high school romance sounded kind of nice.
"Whoa! So it's real! The villains in the novels actually exist!" Naruto suddenly shouted. "This guy's a bad guy too and he's an Uchiha!"
"Looks just like Sasuke," Sakura said dreamily.
"Shut up," Sasuke snapped, barely holding it together. His Sharingan nearly activated. He snatched the manual from Sakura and read the page on Uchiha Itachi in silence.
Kakashi stroked his chin. As expected.
Compared to the other colorful Akatsuki members, Itachi's profile was... surprisingly plain.
Sasuke's confidence in his revenge surged.
Even Naruto could sense the tension. "So this guy's your enemy, huh? I'll help you beat him up!"
Sakura quickly chimed in, "Yeah, me too!"
"Hmph. Stay out of it. I'll kill him myself," Sasuke muttered coldly. Harsh words, but his heart was stirred.
Looking back, Sasuke realized he'd only feared Itachi so much because he'd been a child. But now, comparing him to other S-rank criminals... maybe Itachi wasn't such a big deal.
He was probably just the weakest one in the whole Akatsuki.
The notes said he was only slightly stronger than a typical jōnin. Might not even be on Kakashi's level. And since the info came directly from the Third Hokage, it had to be accurate.
Pathetic. He committed all those atrocities just to play bottom-tier villain in a criminal gang?
Watch me, Uchiha Sasuke, avenge the clan.
First step: find the strongest jōnin currently available.
"Kakashi, do you know Uchiha Itachi?" Sasuke asked, eyes fixed on his teacher, who was calmly flipping meat on the grill.
"Hm? He was technically my subordinate once," Kakashi said after a pause.
Sasuke was surprised. He hadn't expected his seemingly unreliable teacher to be Itachi's former superior. That confirmed it he had only thought Itachi was terrifying because he'd been too young.
So that was it. Itachi wasn't all that.
"How does Itachi compare to you?" Sasuke asked bluntly.
Kakashi rubbed his chin and considered. "We're probably about evenly matched."
Hmph. So he'd underestimated him slightly. Reaching Kakashi's level would still take some time.
"Kakashi, teach me. I want to train." Sasuke clenched his fists, eyes blazing. He'd become a Chūnin, then a jōnin, and then he'd get his revenge.
"I'm in too! I, Uzumaki Naruto, future Hokage, will crush the bad guys!" Naruto shouted.
"Me too," Sakura added quickly. She wasn't that enthusiastic about training, but she had to keep up with Sasuke.
"Well, I was planning to train Sasuke and Sakura myself before the exam," Kakashi said. "As for Naruto... there's another teacher who suits your style better."
"No fair! You're playing favorites!" Naruto crossed his arms and pouted.
"Don't worry. This teacher's even stronger than me. And Lord Hokage said he'll personally give you extra lessons when he has time."
Still grumpy, Naruto reluctantly accepted the explanation.