"Uzumaki Naruto, Clone Technique — Fail!"
Iruka Umino wore a sorrowful expression as he looked at Naruto's single shadow clone lying flat on the ground, as if it might stop breathing at any moment. He was already close to giving up hope.
But this was just the preliminary exam — the official test would be held in two days. If Naruto remained like this, there might be no way to issue him a ninja forehead protector…
Thinking of the Third Hokage's request, Iruka really wanted to grab Naruto and ask him how he could possibly still not master such a basic ninjutsu after all this time.
"Sasuke, Iruka-sensei is so harsh…"
Naruto, knowing he was about to be scolded, immediately turned and ran over to Sasuke after hearing he had failed.
"It's fine. Just practice more when we get back, and try harder next time."
Sasuke raised his hand and gave Naruto a light knock on the head, his tone carrying a hint of fond indulgence.
This scene made the surrounding girls' eyes flash green with envy — they looked at Sasuke as if they wanted to leap on him.
But when they looked at Naruto, their expressions turned ferocious. If Sasuke hadn't forbidden it, someone probably would've already dragged Naruto away.
"The final assessment will be held in three days. As your teacher, I hope all of you can successfully graduate."
Standing on the podium, Iruka ignored the overly dramatic Naruto. Looking out at the students, he earnestly explained the rules for the exam in three days and expressed his expectations for them.
Once he had finished everything, Iruka announced the end of class, telling the students to go home and prepare.
How they trained over the next three days would no longer be up to his supervision — it would depend entirely on their own effort.
Every student seemed fine… except Uzumaki Naruto.
Just thinking about how both his Clone Technique and Transformation Technique were still full of problems, Iruka genuinely felt this upcoming test was… very concerning.
"Sasuke, why do I feel so weird? When Iruka-sensei looks at me, it always feels a bit… off."
Walking on the road home, Naruto looked at Sasuke, scratched his head, and finally voiced the strange feeling he'd been sensing.
"Probably because… you might be the only student currently at risk of not graduating."
Sasuke looked at Naruto's troubled face and let out a helpless chuckle. Then he stopped to buy a bag of vegetables and some meat before continuing on their way home.
As for the change in Iruka's expression, Sasuke had naturally noticed it. For someone like Iruka — known as the "nice guy" teacher — to look that conflicted, it had to mean the Hokage had issued a new directive.
---
[The host has sensed a scheme from the Hokage. Please choose an option:]
1. Have Naruto steal the Scroll of Seals, just like in the original story, in order to graduate.
2. Let Naruto master the Clone Technique and graduate directly.
3. Have Naruto steal the Scroll of Seals before the graduation exam.
4. Do not let Naruto graduate.
---
When the system's four options appeared, Sasuke paused in thought.
The first one — sticking to the original plot — didn't seem necessary. That path would have nothing to do with him.
The last one — not letting Naruto graduate?
Naruto would cry for sure. So that was off the table too.
That left the second and third options. After weighing them briefly, Sasuke ultimately chose the third one.
Naruto still needed to steal the Scroll of Seals — the ninjutsu recorded there were important, especially the Multi Shadow Clone Technique, which was crucial for Naruto.
Even though Sasuke could technically teach it himself, while they were still in Konoha, certain things had to remain in the shadows. The only way for Naruto to learn this justifiably was through a method that had the Third Hokage's tacit approval.