Naruto's bold words drew everyone's attention.
"Who's that?"
"Never seen him before. He's got a Leaf forehead protector, and he looks pretty young... could he be some genius from a clan?"
Naruto had changed so much that the other examinees didn't recognize him.
His hairstyle, his clothes, his eyes, his vibe—everything was different. Anyone who could still recognize him had to be someone who'd been paying close attention to him and knew him well.
"Oh? Sounds tough. But let's see if he can back it up."
Right after he spoke, one of the two Chunin flipped and kicked toward Naruto.
Rock Lee saw this and was just about to step in and stop the guy—maybe even show off a little in front of the girl he liked—but Naruto was faster!
No one even saw Naruto make a move, yet that Chunin was already flying backward in a sorry state, slamming straight into the wooden wall!
"Gōzu Tetsu!"
The other Chunin rushed over to check on his partner.
"You okay?"
"I'm fine."
Gōzu Tetsu clutched his chest and shook his head. "He held back."
What?
Held back?
Everyone at the scene looked at Naruto in disbelief.
He moved that fast and still held back?
"What a scary guy," Neji stared at Naruto with a cautious look.
Even Tenten nearby looked shocked.
Even Neji admitted this guy was strong?
And judging by their faces, they were unfamiliar—they had to be the new recruits this year!
New recruits this strong?
Rock Lee's expression was serious too, and the idea of impressing his crush had totally disappeared from his mind.
Who *was* this guy?
"Can we go now?"
Naruto walked up to the two Chunin and said calmly, "I really don't get what you two Chunin are doing here—using such sloppy genjutsu tricks just to weed out the weak?"
"Well, I guess I'll say this—you've succeeded."
With that, Naruto ignored their stunned expressions, walked past them, and pushed the door open to leave.
The cool-looking Sasuke and the starry-eyed Sakura quickly followed.
"What terrifying rookies!"
"Yeah, looks like those three must be from Kakashi's team. But wasn't the genius from Kakashi's group supposed to be Uchiha Sasuke? Why does it feel like the strongest one is…"
Gōzu Tetsu and Kamizuki Izumo didn't finish Naruto's name, as if they didn't want to say it out loud.
"Hey, you two know that guy's name, right?"
Hyuga Neji had overheard their conversation and walked over to ask, "Who is he?"
Gōzu Tetsu and Kamizuki Izumo glanced at each other, then looked at Neji.
"If you want to know, go ask him yourself. That kid's name…"
And just like that, the two of them stood up and vanished, clearly not wanting to tell him.
Seeing their reaction, Neji and his teammates became even more curious about Naruto's identity.
Who… exactly was he?
...
At this point, Naruto and the others had already gone through the second-floor hallway and stairs, arriving on the third floor.
They were looking for Classroom 301.
"Wait up!"
A voice suddenly called out from behind, making all three of them instinctively turn around.
"Weren't those the people from the second floor?" Sakura looked at Neji and his group with confusion, not understanding why they had called out to them.
"What is it?" Naruto looked at the three and asked calmly.
Rock Lee, Hyuga Neji, and Tenten... Naruto was familiar with all three of them.
Especially since he had already seen them earlier on the second floor.
"What's your name?" the one leading, Hyuga Neji, asked Naruto rudely.
Naruto looked at Neji with a blank face and said calmly, "I don't have to tell you."
"Heh, interesting."
Hyuga Neji gave a cold laugh. "You're the new Genin this year, right? Which one of you is Uchiha Sasuke?"
Even though Naruto was actually the strongest of their graduating class, only a few people knew that.
As for Genin like Neji and his team, all they knew was that the top of this year's class was someone named Uchiha Sasuke.
Naruto and Sasuke completely ignored Neji's question.
Sakura, unable to stand it anymore, pointed at Neji and said angrily, "Aren't you guys taking the exam too? What's your problem?"
Neji glanced at her and sneered again. "Heh, so all you guys can do is hide behind a girl?"
Just as Neji finished talking, a beam of light shot past his hair and blasted a hole in the wall behind him.
He wasn't hurt, but Neji felt like he had just brushed past death.
Rock Lee and Tenten were both stunned.
What kind of jutsu was that?
"Keep talking and I'll kill you."
Naruto said coldly to Neji, then turned and started walking away.
Sasuke looked at the shocked Neji and smirked, "I'm Uchiha Sasuke. I don't know why you're looking for me, but if you're trying to die, I'm happy to help."
With that, Sasuke turned and followed Naruto.
Sakura watched them walk away—both cooler than the other—and couldn't help swooning.
'I'm so lucky to be in the same team as Naruto and Sasuke!' she thought, completely forgetting how annoyed she was at being on Naruto's team earlier.
"Hey, wait a minute!"
Just as Sakura was about to leave too, Rock Lee couldn't hold it in anymore. He stepped in front of her, blushing but serious.
"I... I'm Rock Lee. Can I ask what your name is?"
"Huh? Me?"
Sakura didn't expect someone from the same group as that rude guy to ask for her name.
But this one didn't sound arrogant—just... kind of weird.
"I'm Haruno Sakura. Why do you ask?" she replied politely.
"Haruno Sakura... Sakura... what a lovely name!"
Rock Lee's face lit up. He gave a thumbs up, flashing a huge white grin, and winked at her.
"Please go out with me, Sakura! I'll protect you with my life!"
"..."
Looking at this bowl-cut, bushy-browed boy, Sakura started to doubt her own beauty.
Even... *he* is hitting on me?
"I refuse," she said with a disgusted look.
"Why?" Rock Lee asked sadly.
"Because your eyebrows are too thick." Sakura didn't hold back at all.
"..."
Hit hard by the rejection, Rock Lee sulked off to the side and leaned against the wall.
"Thick eyebrows... thick eyebrows..."
"..."
Naruto looked at him, shook his head, and called Sakura to keep moving.
To be honest, a guy like Rock Lee wasn't bad—straightforward, loyal, and willing to risk his life to protect a girl.
You could tell just by looking that he was someone who'd take responsibility.
But... this is a world where looks matter.
Average-looking guys just can't beat the handsome ones...
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