Naruto half-crouched on the ground, panting. His hands were aching.
After hours of practice, he still couldn't get the rubber ball in his hands to explode.
"Damn it!" Naruto gritted his teeth, his face filled with resentment. "It didn't seem so difficult in my dream!"
He took a deep breath, placed the ball in his left palm again, and covered it tightly with his right hand.
The newly generated chakra in his body gathered in his palm with his thoughts. Naruto tried to recall the key points he learned last night, trying to make the chakra swirl like a vortex.
One second, two seconds... The faint ripples of chakra in his palm made the surface of the rubber ball dent and wobble.
But soon, the chakra dissipated uncontrollably.
The ball snapped back to its original shape and bounced in Naruto's hands, showing no sign of exploding.
Frustrated, Naruto slumped to the ground, his hands numb and almost unable to lift.
He panted, staring at the still-perfect ball in his hands, and couldn't help but mutter, "What's going on... Controlling chakra in real life is so much harder than in dreams!"
He recalled the dream, where he had seemingly completed the first stage of training effortlessly, but now, after working on the second stage for a long time, he saw no progress.
Nearby, Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke had already stopped what they were doing and watched Naruto's embarrassment intently.
Sakura looked at the frustrated Naruto and couldn't help laughing: "Pfft... Naruto, don't waste your energy."
Naruto's old face turned red when he heard Sakura's laughter, and he shouted unconvincedly, "I am practicing a super powerful secret technique! When I learn it... Sakura-chan will know how powerful it is."
Sakura curled her lips in disdain: "Tsk, what super powerful secret technique—didn't you learn it in a dream? Wake up, Naruto; dreams are just dreams, don't take them seriously."
Naruto was anxious and defended with a red face: "In the dream... the person who taught me ninjutsu, he is, but..."
He suddenly fell silent halfway and changed the words: "Anyway, I will definitely learn it!"
Just when Naruto's voice fell, a lazy voice came from a distance: "Yo~~ everyone, sorry, sorry, I kept you waiting."
Everyone looked up, only to see Kakashi with his hands in his trouser pockets, staggering towards him in the midday sunlight. His signature forehead protector was tilted, covering his left eye.
Half his face was buried beneath a black mask, and the one visible right eye was a crescent of a smile.
"Sorry everyone, I ran into a little trouble along the way, so I'm late."
"Kakashi-sensei!!"
Haruno Sakura was instantly furious.
"Do you know what time it is?!"
She pointed a finger at the glaring sun in the sky. "It's okay to be late every time, but this time you're late until noon! Are you kidding—"
"Yeah, yeah!" Naruto jumped up and agreed. "We're starving waiting!"
Kakashi scratched the back of his head and chuckled nonchalantly. "Ahaha, sorry, sorry. It's not what I could do... I got lost on the way here and wasted a lot of time."
At this, Naruto and Sakura were both stunned. "Huh??"
Lost on the way?
What a lame excuse!
They stared at each other, momentarily forgetting to even continue their anger.
Sasuke, however, snorted and turned away, muttering, "You're trying to put us off with this nonsense again."
Seeing the "I don't believe it" written all over the little guys' faces, Kakashi gave a dry laugh and waved his hand, saying, "Anyway, lunch is my treat! You can have whatever you want."
"Really?"
Naruto's eyes lit up at that, all his resentment vanishing. He raised his hands and cheered, "Great! Then I'm going to have Ichiraku Ramen! Lots and lots of chashu ramen!"
With that, he seemed to have all the strength back in him, and he bolted towards the village, as if afraid Kakashi would change his mind. "Let's go! I'm going to order a few more bowls this time!"
Sakura was about to complain about Kakashi again, but Naruto disappeared at the mention of a treat. She held her forehead and sighed, "That idiot, there's really nothing I can do about him..."
Kakashi smiled as he watched Naruto walk away, seemingly unfazed by his disciples' complaints.
But as Naruto disappeared around the corner of the forest path, the smile on his face gradually faded.
Kakashi slowly turned around and faced Sasuke and Sakura, who remained behind. His previously lazy expression was gone, replaced by an unprecedented solemnity and seriousness.
"Sasuke, Sakura,"
Kakashi said in a low voice, his right eye the only one exposed, looking directly at the two students. "Let me ask you something—have you told anyone about your dream last night?"
Sasuke and Sakura were both stunned. Kakashi's sudden seriousness caught them off guard. They exchanged glances, each seeing a hint of surprise and unease in the other's eyes.
"No," Sasuke shook his head firmly, saying, "I live alone and have no one to tell."
Sakura nodded quickly, "Me too! My parents are civilians, and I...even if I wanted to, I wouldn't know how to say it. Besides, didn't Kakashi-sensei tell us not to spread the news? How could I dare to say anything?"
Hearing the two confirm that nothing had leaked, Kakashi was visibly relieved. He nodded, his voice lowered, "Very good. Remember, you must continue to keep this secret. Never mention this to anyone, especially the specific details of what happened in the dream."
Sakura nodded. She didn't understand why it was just a dream, but it was treated like an S-class secret.
Sasuke didn't say anything, but his expression had grown noticeably serious.
Looking at the two students before him, their faces shifting from nervous to pensive, Kakashi nodded. "I can't tell you too many details, but I can tell you this was no ordinary dream. Anyway, this matter is not to be spread outside. Understood?"
"Yes!" Sasuke and Sakura exchanged glances, each seeing confusion and curiosity in the other's eyes, but they nodded in agreement.
This was the first time they had heard Kakashi speak so seriously since they had been with him, clearly indicating a deeper level of gravity than they had anticipated.
"Okay,"
Kakashi smiled again, seeing the two understood. He raised his hand to rub the tops of their heads, then resumed his usual casual demeanor. "Let's go. Don't let Naruto finish everythinh in the shop."
With that, he turned and took the lead, leisurely walking in the direction Naruto had left.
Sakura was still a little confused, but after hearing Kakashi's complaints, she couldn't help but shake her head with a laugh and hurried to catch up.
Sasuke was a little slow to start.
After taking a few steps, he couldn't help but look back at the empty training ground. Kakashi's words were still echoing in his mind.
"If the contents of the dream are all false, then there will be no harm in telling it... Since Kakashi-sensei wants to silence us, then it means..."
It means that those outrageous scenes in the dream may not be Naruto's personal fantasy, but there is a real hidden story!
Sasuke's fists clenched unconsciously in his pockets.
"Sasuke? What are you daydreaming about? Let's go!"
Sakura called from the front.
Sasuke looked up and saw Sakura standing not far away, waving at him, while Kakashi and Naruto had disappeared.
"I'm coming."
Sasuke gathered his thoughts, temporarily suppressed his doubts, and hurried to catch up.
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