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Creak.
The door slid open.
Inside the classroom, all three of them held their breath and looked toward the entrance.
But…
Time passed, and the person outside still didn't come in.
Who does that?
What kind of weird sense of humor is this?
Leo couldn't help complaining in his head.
The next moment—
A figure finally stepped inside.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
White hair. A bold "oil" character on the forehead protector. Hard to miss.
And the clothes…
Unmistakable.
Kurenai's eyes widened.
Kakashi stared like he'd been struck dumb.
Leo was shocked too.
Why was Jiraiya here?
One of the Legendary Sannin—yet he'd never heard anything about Kakashi being assigned to Jiraiya of all people.
But…
Soon, he understood.
The world was unpredictable.
Maybe he was thinking too much, but who knew—maybe his butterfly wings really had changed something.
He sucked in a breath, unable to hide his excitement.
"A-Are you Lord Jiraiya?"
Leo knew he couldn't act indifferent.
This man was one of the Sannin. Plenty of ninja in Konoha idolized them. As a nobody civilian-born genin, the proper reaction in front of him was shock, awe… at least a little starstruck.
Jiraiya grinned. "Hahaha, for now you're under my command. Come on, let's go somewhere with more space."
"Yes!"
...
Academy Rooftop
Jiraiya sat on the edge of the roof while the three of them stood obediently in front of him.
His eyes swept across the group.
"You already know who I am, so I'll skip introductions. You three introduce yourselves. Likes, dislikes, whatever."
"Kakashi Hatake. Chunin. Good with kenjutsu and Lightning Release. I don't have anything I like. I dislike people who break the rules."
Kakashi spoke coldly, straight to the point.
Kurenai fidgeted with her sleeve and stammered, "L-Lord Jiraiya… my name is Kurenai Yūhi. I'm good at genjutsu. I like wasabi octopus, and I hate cake."
"Leo. Right now I'm best at taijutsu. I like training and getting stronger. I dislike… war."
Leo answered.
He'd thought carefully about this.
Liking training and disliking war fit perfectly with his backstory. It didn't reveal unnecessary personal preferences that might someday contradict something and raise suspicion.
And he had spent most of the past year training alone… it made sense.
Jiraiya paused for a split second.
"Alright. Got it."
His smile faded and his expression turned serious. "Now that we've introduced ourselves, I'll get straight to the point. The Hokage thinks you three have potential, so he asked me to take you on. But…"
Jiraiya's gaze swept over them.
"I don't think you're ready to serve under me. Tomorrow morning, meet me at Training Ground Seven. I'll run a full evaluation of your abilities. If you fail…"
His tone turned cold. "You'll be sent back to the Academy. As for you—" His eyes moved to Kakashi. "You're a chunin. You can always join another team. If you think these fresh grads aren't strong enough to work with you, you can walk away right now."
Kakashi looked at the other two.
Leo and Kurenai stayed silent.
But for different reasons.
Leo had a feeling this was part of the exam. Jiraiya showing up like this probably had more to do with Kakashi than with them. Why the timeline had shifted, though…
He had no idea.
Kurenai, meanwhile, was simply worried.
Kakashi was a chunin, after all…
Kakashi didn't answer immediately. He stared at them for a long while before finally saying, "I don't think they have what it takes to pass."
Jiraiya's face didn't change.
"You withdrawing?"
"No. I want to try."
Jiraiya nodded. "Alright. What about you two? If you quit now, the village will assign you other instructors. My test will be harder, but you might pass under someone else."
"I'm in," Leo said without hesitation.
Becoming a student of a Sannin was not an opportunity you passed up.
Kurenai also had no reason to back out.
"Good. You've got the whole afternoon to prepare. Oh, and tomorrow morning—don't eat breakfast. Otherwise… hehehe."
Jiraiya vanished.
The rooftop was silent except for the three of them.
Leo spoke first. "Let's go check out Training Ground Seven together. We can practice as a team and get used to each other's abilities."
"The test is a mission. If you hold me back, I won't hesitate to abandon you."
Kakashi snorted.
Then flickered away.
Kurenai frowned. "Why is he like that…"
"He's heading toward the training grounds. Let's go."
Leo vanished too.
Kurenai rushed after him.
Ahead of them, Kakashi glanced back and saw they were following. He kept an eye on them.
Leo…
He was fast. His Body Flicker Technique was clearly well-trained. Maybe he really was strong.
But the girl struggled to keep up.
Well, she specialized in genjutsu—still useful.
Kakashi kept running.
He didn't notice—
Someone was tailing them from the shadows.
Jiraiya.
"That silver-haired brat really doesn't think about his teammates at all. But that kid… even though he can go faster, he's been matching Kurenai's pace the whole time."
The longer Jiraiya watched Leo, the more he liked him.
Smart, observant, considerate of his teammates.
With the right guidance… he could become another Minato.
With the wrong guidance…
Jiraiya's heart tightened as another teammate's face flashed through his mind.
Sigh.
Who knew what Orochimaru was up to these days?
Ever since Nawaki died and Tsunade left, Orochimaru had only grown stranger.
"But in this kind of situation, teamwork alone isn't enough."
...
"Red, Training Ground Seven is dangerous. I'll stop him first, then the three of us go in together."
"Stop him?"
Kurenai blinked.
Then Leo suddenly vanished.
In the next moment, she spotted him chasing after Kakashi. Within a few blinks, he was closing in behind him.
Kakashi was stunned.
He prided himself on being the fastest of his generation. Only Might Guy, with his insane work ethic, came close.
As for Leo…
Sure, they'd been classmates for a year, but he barely remembered him.
Yet that speed…
His Body Flicker was that strong?
Kakashi sped up, using the technique at full power, faster than before.
But—
Leo instantly overtook him and placed a hand on his shoulder.
Incredible.
Kakashi's eyes widened.
Even going all out, he couldn't outrun him—
Unless he used Lightning Release to stimulate his body. But he hadn't mastered that yet; using it incorrectly could injure him.
"Kakashi, the Forest of Death is dangerous. The three of us should go in together."
Leo paused for a moment.
"Even though you're a chunin, the Hokage said a team mission is never a one-man battle. You have to think about the others."
Kakashi stayed silent.
So he'd slowed down earlier… to wait for Kurenai?
He stopped and studied Leo seriously.
Leo.
Who would've thought a classmate could be this strong…
"S-Sorry!"
Kurenai finally caught up, her forehead beaded with sweat. Drops slid from her temples and dripped onto the ground.
Leo said, "It's fine. We're a team. We go together."
Kakashi said nothing, then dropped down into the forest.
"Come on. Any later and the forest gets darker. It'll be harder to spot traps."
"....."