The second exam concluded, leaving some joyful and others dejected.
Naruto belonged to the rather happy group. After all, the Old Man had said that from now until the start of the third exam, they would have a one-month break. And it was a month without having to undertake any missions. Although he wouldn't have mission pay, his reliance on money was minimal to begin with; the month was sure to be very pleasant.
Of course, this was his own interpretation. For other ninjas, this month would be an excellent time to relentlessly address their shortcomings and gather intelligence on their opponents. Ninja combat often followed unconventional paths. A battle with ample preparation and an unprepared encounter were two entirely different scenarios.
"Naruto, where are you going?" Izuno Akigiku asked, puzzled.
"After two busy days, of course I'm going to relax," Naruto said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. One must balance work and rest.
"As the one who advanced, shouldn't you be treating us to a meal?" Etsureki said with a mischievous grin.
Naruto pondered for a moment; it seemed Etsureki had a point. "Alright, where do you want to eat?"
"How about yakiniku?" Izuno Akigiku suggested.
"Sounds good." In moments like these, Etsureki, of course, firmly stood on the same side as his girlfriend.
"Hayate-sensei, you should join us too," Naruto said, looking towards their perpetually sickly teacher.
"Allow me to treat you all," Gekko Hayate said, coughing lightly twice. "Yugao happens to be off these next two days. As your teacher, it's only right that I host Naruto's advancement celebration."
"Okay." "Yay!" "Oh, you shouldn't have." None of the three objected. Who doesn't love an opportunity to have a wealthy patron foot the bill! Ninja remuneration wasn't low, especially for jonin. Gekko Hayate and Uzuki Yugao were both jonin, with one of them even working in ANBU; they were both secretly loaded.
"Are you sure you don't need to go back and clean up first?" Gekko Hayate asked with a smile.
The three looked down at themselves. Indeed. Apart from Naruto, both Akigiku and Etsureki were disheveled from their earlier preliminary matches, their clothes smudged with black and white patches.
"I'll go to the yakiniku place first and wait for you," Naruto said.
Commercial Street, outside the Yakiniku Restaurant.
Naruto pushed aside the curtain and walked into the establishment.
"Naruto?"
Before he could even locate Hayate and Yugao, he heard someone call his name. He turned his head.
"Shikamaru? You guys are out for a meal too?" Naruto said with a slight smile, looking at Choji, who was voraciously eating. Compared to other teams, Team Ten's results were truly brilliant; Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji had all advanced.
"It's such a drag. I was really hoping to go home and get some proper sleep," Shikamaru sighed, his face a mask of exasperation. If any of the eliminated candidates saw him now, it would surely incite a dispute.
"I'm telling you, Shikamaru, don't be such a downer when we're out for a meal," Ino said irritably. "Isn't a month's break enough time for you to sleep?"
"A month? Break time?" Shikamaru sighed again. If only there truly were time to rest.
"You all should focus on training for the next month," Naruto said with a faint smile. He didn't disturb the three any further, as he had already heard a familiar cough.
"How long have you known him?" Team Ten's supervising jonin, the bearded Sarutobi Asuma, asked.
"Childhood playmates," Shikamaru said, clasping his hands behind his head and leaning back slowly against his chair.
"…Hoo." Exhaling a puff of blue smoke, Sarutobi Asuma looked at the boy's retreating back and said, "That kid is strong."
"Yeah," Shikamaru replied softly.
"Sensei, Sister Yugao." Naruto sat down opposite the two. It seemed he was the first to arrive.
Unlike Gekko Hayate, who looked perpetually ill as if suffering from a lung disease, his girlfriend, Uzuki Yugao, was an absolute beauty. With waist-long purple hair, a lovely face, and a graceful figure, she was the kind of woman who would make heads turn ten times over if she walked down the street.
"The way you kids address us…" Gekko Hayate said resignedly. He and Yugao were the same age, yet these youngsters insisted on calling him 'Sensei' and Yugao 'Sister.' It made him feel like an old man robbing the cradle.
"I think it's quite nice," Yugao said, covering her smile with her hand.
It wasn't every time his girlfriend took leave that Gekko Hayate also skipped his duties. Occasionally, he would bring her along to help guide the three youngsters, so they were all quite familiar with each other.
"Naruto, have you thought about your training focus for this month?" Uzuki Yugao asked. She also used a sword, and among the three genin, she had guided Naruto the most.
"Does Sister Yugao have any suggestions?" Naruto shook his head slightly. Knowledge in this world was heavily restricted. Genin had their sphere of understanding, and jonin had theirs. But a jonin's sphere of knowledge definitely encompassed that of a genin. It wasn't absolute, of course; for example, ninjas from prominent clans, or those whose elders held high positions, might gain access to knowledge beyond their rank. Coincidentally, he belonged to neither category.
"Your chakra nature is Wind, isn't it?" Yugao asked.
"Yes." Naruto recalled the test Gekko Hayate had helped them with some time ago and nodded slightly.
"Naruto, did you know that for sword-wielding ninjas, Wind and Lightning affinities are considered the best attributes?" As she spoke, Uzuki Yugao sighed faintly.
Noticing Naruto's uncomprehending gaze, Gekko Hayate explained, "Yugao's primary attribute is Water. She cultivated her Wind affinity later on her own, so relatively speaking, it's lacking something."
"Because the most prominent characteristic of Wind nature transformation is cutting, like this…" Hayate picked up a chopstick. With a soft 'weng' sound, the chopstick was enveloped in a pale blue chakra.
Naruto's brow furrowed, because he sensed a feeling of 'sharpness' emanating from that single chopstick.
[So this is the kind of skill a jonin possesses…]
"Sensei, can you elaborate on that?" Naruto asked.
"Certainly. The reason why chakra nature and shape transformation aren't openly taught to genin is actually for your own good," Gekko Hayate nodded. Imparting knowledge and resolving doubts was, after all, part of his duty.
"Why is that?" Naruto asked, puzzled. Just a single Wind nature transformation could greatly enhance a ninja's strength. An improvement in fundamental abilities would be entirely beneficial for a village.
"Two reasons," Uzuki Yugao said, holding up two slender fingers. "First, a genin's chakra reserves are very limited. Training either nature or shape transformation requires a large amount of chakra as support."
"Additionally, the ninjutsu you normally use already incorporate, to varying degrees, some form of chakra transformation. It's just a matter of proportion and extent."
"Starting with simple ninjutsu and progressing step-by-step, once you reach a certain stage, mastering both transformations will come naturally."
Naruto nodded slightly. This highlighted the importance of knowledge. Perhaps for these two, this was all common sense, but for him, it was information that might have taken a lifetime of fumbling, or treading down certain wrong paths, to eventually understand.
"They're here. After we eat, I'll take you for some practice!" Yugao said with keen interest. Perhaps it was a woman's innate disposition; compared to her ANBU work, she much preferred the feeling of nurturing and teaching the younger generation.
Naruto turned his head to see Izuno Akigiku and Kaminarimon Etsureki walking over side-by-side.
"You're late."
"Sorry, sorry, hehe…" Etsureki apologized, pulling his girlfriend to an empty seat.