Chapter 82
Iruka stood up; his chair scraped lightly across the floor.
The proctor beside him said nothing, simply reaching out to tidy the last remaining forehead protector on the table.
The meaning was clear: if Uzumaki Naruto didn't arrive soon, this would be put away, and he'd have to wait until next year.
Iruka opened the door and hurried toward the neighboring classroom.
The moment he stepped in, the previously somewhat noisy room fell instantly silent.
Students who had already received their forehead protectors clustered in small groups of three or five.
They were showing off their new Konoha protectors, debating where on their body looked best to wear them.
There was no orange figure in the room.
Sasuke sat at his desk, his own forehead protector placed in front of him.
His fingers tapped unconsciously on the tabletop; though his gaze was directed out the window, his ears were clearly listening.
Hinata had her head buried very low, obviously worried on someone's behalf.
Kiba, hugging Akamaru, muttered: "At this point, that guy still isn't back?"
Shikamaru and Chōji exchanged a glance; both their eyes held the same concern—that Naruto might fail the exam…
Iruka's heart sank.
Although Naruto had matured greatly over the years, the world was unpredictable. Dropping the ball at such a critical moment…
If he really missed the graduation exam, given that boy's personality, he'd probably feel miserable for a long time.
Iruka sighed and turned, about to go back and try to buy a little more time.
The classroom door was suddenly yanked open.
Naruto stood there as casually as if he'd just come back from a stroll—one hand braced on the doorframe, golden short hair swaying slightly in the breeze.
Seeing Iruka standing in front of him, he blinked, then flashed that irreproachable grin.
"Iruka-sensei—I'm not late, right?"
"One more minute and I was about to start thinking about how to write your makeup exam application."
Iruka kept a stern face as he walked over and rapped Naruto on the head: "You even dared forget the afternoon exam time? Come with me right now."
Naruto didn't dodge, just chuckled twice.
After Iruka walked out, Naruto turned and gave a casual wave to all his worried friends in the classroom.
Hinata let out a huge sigh of relief and gave Naruto a soft smile.
Sasuke stopped tapping the desk. He turned his attention back to the forehead protector in front of him, contemplating how to wear it to look the coolest.
Everyone else relaxed too—since he'd made it, the rest of the exam would be no problem.
The room quickly grew lively again.
…
Naruto followed Iruka into the exam room.
Iruka sat back down in his seat. The proctor gave Naruto a glance but said nothing harsh.
He simply spoke in a stiff tone as he began the exam procedure.
"Last examinee, Uzumaki Naruto. If you're ready, you may begin."
"The technique is Clone Technique."
Iruka took over, his tone noticeably gentler: "As long as you can produce three acceptable clones, you pass. This shouldn't be difficult for you—don't be nervous. Do your best."
Clone Technique was different from the solid Shadow Clone.
This was just an illusionary technique that created projected images to deceive enemies—no offensive power, and not very difficult.
As long as one could slightly fine-tune chakra control, it could be performed.
Nervous?
How could he be.
In the corner of Naruto's vision—besides the two examiners—there was another figure sitting cross-legged in mid-air.
Xuanming's fox ears twitched unconsciously.
"Just a formality," his voice rang directly in Naruto's mind.
Naruto stood in the center of the classroom and nodded.
He simply stood there casually and slowly raised both hands.
Ram → Snake → Tiger
He didn't form the seals especially fast—just at normal speed.
But every gesture was textbook-perfect.
Holding the final seal, chakra surged rapidly around his body under precise control.
[Clone Technique]
It was as though ripples appeared on a still lake.
One, two, three… the entire classroom suddenly became crowded.
The proctor's hand—previously twirling a pen—froze. His mouth fell slightly open.
It wasn't just three clones.
In this not-particularly-large classroom, densely packed "Narutos" now stood everywhere.
Each clone had a different expression: some with arms crossed, some scratching their heads, some winking mischievously at the two teachers.
Such quantity wasn't rare—enough chakra could produce it.
What was rare was the quality.
Ordinary students' clones might look fine on the surface, but most had dull, lifeless eyes.
An experienced ninja could easily spot the fake with the right method.
But these… every single clone was so lifelike that even the wrinkles in the clothes and specks of dust on the face were perfectly reproduced.
"There's something here… I can't find any flaws for now!" The proctor next to him regained his composure and didn't skimp on praise.
"That level of chakra control—many chūnin can't even do it."
Iruka's eyes were full of pride, though he still tried hard to suppress the upward curve of his mouth.
He cleared his throat: "Ahem—both quantity and quality are sufficient. Looks like this year's class will have a 100% pass rate."
At that moment, one of the "Narutos" standing at the very front walked forward.
He went straight to the long desk and extended his hand in front of Iruka.
"Sensei—my forehead protector!"
Iruka didn't think twice. Smiling, he picked up the last Konoha forehead protector on the table: "Here you go. Congratulations—you've graduated, Naruto."
He solemnly placed the protector in the "Naruto's" hand.
The moment it touched metal, the weight and coolness felt solid.
The next second—
The "Naruto" holding the protector suddenly grinned.
What happened next left an impression on both teachers that they would remember for the rest of their lives.
With a flick of his wrist, the boy hurled the symbol of ninja identity backward with force!
"What?!"
The proctor beside him changed color instantly.
He had just been thinking this kid had real talent—how could he throw the forehead protector away the moment he got it?
Did he have some grudge against Konoha Village?
"Naruto, what are you doing!" Iruka was also startled.
The "Naruto" in front of the desk froze after the throw, locked in the backward hurling pose.
And a few meters behind him—the real Naruto, who had never moved from his original spot—
calmly raised his hand and caught the flying forehead protector with a clean slap.
"This is… a clone?"
The proctor was completely dumbfounded. He had assumed Naruto used a clone to move his real body to the front during the performance.
But it had been a clone the whole time?
Ordinary E-rank Clone Technique only created intangible illusions—incapable of touching physical objects.
Let alone picking up a metal forehead protector with noticeable weight and throwing it.
If it could interact with real objects, it would at least need to be something like Water Clone or Earth Clone—advanced techniques that incorporated solid mass.
Or Shadow Clone—an advanced, solid clone technique that only jōnin could normally learn.
But the seals Naruto had just formed were clearly the most basic Clone Technique!
"Hehe—thanks, Iruka-sensei!"
At that moment, all the many clones in the classroom suddenly lost support and vanished.
Naruto—now standing alone in the center—played with the forehead protector in his hand, spinning it twice.
He lifted his hand, removed the goggles from his head, and tied the symbol of a ninja firmly to his forehead.
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