"…So that's how it is."
Back in the waking world, Naruto opened his eyes, finally having a relatively clear understanding of his current situation. From what the Nine-Tails had said, he and that gourd-carrying boy were, strictly speaking, this world's unconventional nuclear weapons.
The First Hokage had distributed the nine Tailed Beasts among the various hidden villages… Why didn't he just unify the ninja world then? Could the hidden depths of the ninja world truly run that deep? How utterly terrifying!
If that was the case, he needed to find ways to improve his strength quickly. His current level was completely inadequate.
All along, he had been using Gekko Hayate as a benchmark. After all, a jonin of Konoha Hidden Village sounded very prestigious. One would think that level of strength would be respectable anywhere in the ninja world. But looking at it now, if Tailed Beasts could be casually distributed, then perhaps jonin weren't quite as…
Tug…
The fishing rod in his hand pulled him back to reality. Looking closely, he had a bite. A pleased expression spread across Naruto's face. Dinner was secured! He wasn't always successful fishing here; his luck today seemed exceptionally good.
Outside the examination hall.
Kaminarimon Etsureki and Izuno Akigiku looked speechlessly at their teammate, who had arrived fashionably late.
"We thought you'd forgotten about the Chunin Exams."
"Not quite that bad," Naruto said, rubbing his nose with an embarrassed smile.
"Where have you been these past two days? I went to your place looking for you several times," Kaminarimon Etsureki asked.
"At the old spot, fishing."
"For two days?"
"That's so you."
Compared to that empty apartment, he still preferred staying in his little den in the wild.
"There shouldn't be anyone here yet, right?" Naruto asked. He had timed his arrival to be early.
"Barring any surprises, we should be the first team to enter the exam hall," Izuno Akigiku said, pushing the door open.
Looking at the empty classroom, the girl wore an "I knew it" expression.
"Etsureki…" Naruto began to explain the dilemma he faced with constructing his Shinobi Prosthetic. Etsureki had an almost obsessive love for mechanical knowledge; perhaps he could offer some advice.
After pondering for a moment, Etsureki looked up and asked, "What's your purpose for creating this Shinobi Prosthetic?"
"To improve my mobility. After all, there are some heights and distances that are hard to reach quickly, no matter how strong a ninja's jumping ability is."
There was another point Naruto didn't mention: he had used the Shinobi Prosthetic for the better part of his previous life. Facing steep environments now and having to walk them honestly felt a bit awkward. Furthermore, his current fighting style hadn't changed much compared to his last life; the main impact chakra had on him was an enhancement of his physical attributes.
"Um…" After hesitating for a moment, Etsureki finally said, "Naruto, there are actually many ways to improve mobility. For flat distances, you can use the Body Flicker Technique. Vertical movement isn't always that crucial. If you really want something for that, contracting a summoning beast might be more practical."
"As for the Shinobi Prosthetic concept, my suggestion is that you treat it as a hobby for your leisure time. There's no need to be so fixated on it."
Naruto's blocked-up mind felt as if it had been thoroughly scrubbed clean with a brush. He finally realized where the problem lay: he had been relying too much on the combat system of his previous life and had given too little consideration to the differences between this life and the last.
"Thank you, Etsureki! Why didn't I ask you sooner!" Naruto exclaimed, gripping Etsureki's hand.
"It's really nothing special…" Etsureki shot a desperate, pleading look towards Akigiku.
Oh, man! Naruto's image in his mind—powerful, cool, and aloof—how could such an image shatter just like that? Good heavens!
Izuno Akigiku watched this scene with amusement, pointedly ignoring her boyfriend's cry for help.
Click!
The classroom door was pushed open again.
The three of them looked towards the sound. Amegakure ninjas, dressed like fish-men, filed in. The two groups glanced at each other briefly before looking away.
[What do you think?] Etsureki sent a look.
[Just small fry.] Naruto returned a reassuring glance.
Izuno Akigiku: "…" Why did she feel like the dynamic between these two was developing in a slightly odd direction?
The arrival of the Amegakure ninjas was like opening the floodgates of a reservoir; ninjas from other hidden villages began to arrive at the exam hall one after another.
"Where are the other Konoha ninjas?" Gradually, the three of them began to realize the gravity of the situation.
"Are there this many people already?" Finally, the appearance of the new generation Ino-Shika-Cho trio broke the deathly awkwardness.
"Their outfits are all so weird, ahaha…" Ino's voice grew progressively weaker until, in the end, only Shikamaru and Choji could hear her.
"This is a bit intimidating," Shikamaru said, scratching his head helplessly as he looked at the murderous glares from the ninjas of other villages.
Seeing the three approach, Naruto asked, "Where are the other Konoha ninjas?"
"They might still be undergoing the test downstairs," Shikamaru replied uncertainly.
"Test?" The three teammates exchanged bewildered glances.
"You guys didn't go through that genjutsu test either?" Ino asked curiously.
"Genjutsu test? What's that?" Kaminarimon Etsureki asked.
"'Either'?" Naruto was the first to catch the significance of her word choice.
"Two seniors set up a fake exam room downstairs using genjutsu to deter some of the overconfident ones," Shikamaru explained, scratching his ear.
"Luckily, Shikamaru's brain suddenly lit up, otherwise we'd also be down there being made fools of," Ino added.
Lit up, indeed… Naruto looked at Shikamaru's exasperated face, suppressing a laugh. Seriously, Shikamaru's brain definitely wasn't for show; he just found everything too troublesome, preferring a state close to that of a salted fish.
"None of you went through the test?" Ino asked again.
"Not just us; they didn't either." The three teammates looked at each other, and finally, Akigiku, as the team leader, spoke up, gesturing towards the ninjas from other villages.
"Why?"
"They're from outside villages, and this is Konoha. The three of us are the exception; we arrived too early," Naruto said, rubbing his chin.
A few minutes later, the other Konoha ninjas also began to arrive.
"It's been a long time since so many of us have gathered like this," Naruto said with a smile.
"Can't be helped; we've all been on missions with our respective teams," the others replied, also smiling.
"Our rookie generation this year seems to be quite bold. In previous years, most genin only participated in the Chunin Exams after skipping a year or two," Shikamaru commented.
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Naruto, Hinata, Shikamaru, Ino, Choji, Kiba, Sasuke, Sakura, an unnamed teammate, and then Etsureki and Akigiku. Apart from Etsureki and Akigiku, the others were all from the same graduating class.
Izuno Akigiku quietly observed the crowd. Besides Naruto and Sakura, it seemed most of them were direct heirs of prominent clans.
"Hm?" Sasuke looked behind him suspiciously.
"What's wrong?" Sakura asked in a low voice.
"…Nothing." Sasuke shook his head. The feeling of being watched had vanished quickly, and he hadn't found the source of the gaze.
Naruto discreetly withdrew his gaze from a white-haired man wearing glasses. Judging by the headband, he was also a Konoha ninja. For some reason, though, the man's attention kept drifting towards their group.
Etsureki and Akigiku, who had been keeping an eye on their teammate's state, also made a mental note of the white-haired man.