From the night of genocide, marching towards the strongest.

We really can't count on this guy.

Sakura mentally scoffed, then continued, "I asked my parents and Grandpa Kosuke. Kakashi-sensei is known as Konoha's number one technician, the Copy Ninja, and..."

When the topic of the Copy Ninja came up, Sakura's voice dropped considerably, and she didn't continue speaking, glancing cautiously at Sasuke.

Sasuke nodded slightly and said softly, "It's alright, Sakura, please continue."

"Hmm." Sakura brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and said softly, "Kakashi-sensei used the Sharingan to copy thousands of ninjutsu and was known as the Copy Ninja. Sharingan Kakashi, his name is known all over the world."

"So, based on the intelligence, Kakashi-sensei is a Jonin with no weaknesses, who also masters thousands of ninjutsu and is proficient in genjutsu!"

"Sakura is right!"

Naruto nodded as if he understood, though he had no idea what the Sharingan was.

But he's incredibly skilled, having mastered over a thousand ninjutsu techniques and being an expert in genjutsu!

Are you guys talking about Kakashi Hatake?

At that moment, Miss Ayame brought over three bowls of ramen and, having overheard Sakura's words, chimed in.

"Kakashi Hatake is a very handsome and powerful ninja."

Sakura asked with some surprise, "Sister Ayame, do you also know Kakashi-sensei?"

"Of course, how could I not know such a handsome guy?"

"Is Kakashi your Jonin instructor?"

"Ah."

"I see."

Changpu stroked her chin, her eyes filled with reminiscence.

"I remember when I was very young, when I had just started helping out at the shop, the Fourth Hokage would often bring his students to the shop, one of whom was Kakashi."

"Huh!?"

Sakura and Naruto asked in unison, "Is Kakashi-sensei still the Fourth Hokage's student?"

"Hmm." Ayame nodded. "The other two, one is my older sister whom the Fourth Hokage called Rin, and the other is Sasuke's clansman... um..."

After thinking for a moment, Changpu asked uncertainly, "I think his name was Runtu or Heitu?"

"Anyway..." Ayame laughed, "Back then, Kakashi's expression was very cold, but he would occasionally smile. It seems that he still valued his teacher and teammates quite a bit."

"Later, it seems like right after the Third Shinobi World War ended, I never saw Kakashi's two teammates again. They probably died during the war. Kakashi was also acting very strangely during that time, often getting into fights. The next time I saw Kakashi was in the last two years. He seemed much more cheerful than before, hehe..."

"I see."

Sakura nodded thoughtfully: "Thank you, Ayame-neechan."

"You're welcome, Sakura." Ayame winked and encouraged the three little ones, "Good luck! I believe you will all pass the exam and become excellent ninjas."

After Miss Ayame left, Sakura whispered with a gossipy look on her face, "So it seems that Kakashi-sensei's change is very likely related to the Fourth Hokage, Rin, and that... um... Uchiha Runtu. Sasuke, do you think my analysis is correct?"

Before Sasuke could speak, Naruto interjected, "I think Sakura is right."

"......"

Sasuke had a lot of pent-up frustration he didn't know how to express, so he nodded and said, "It's pretty much true."

"Okay!" Sakura clenched her fist, as if Sasuke's words had given her tremendous encouragement.

"Then let's make a plan for tomorrow's assessment."

After discussing for a while, the three of them went their separate ways. As they were about to part, Sakura seemed to remember something and quickly said, "By the way, I heard from the students who took the exam in the previous two years that Kakashi-sensei is a guy who is always late. He said he would arrive at 8 a.m., but he always arrived at 11 a.m. So tomorrow, let's have breakfast first and get ourselves in good shape before heading to the third training ground at 10:30 a.m.

Chapter 55, the assessment begins.

The next morning, at Konoha's Third Training Ground.

Kakashi's lips twitched as he looked at the three little guys who seemed to have arrived right on time.

Judging from their energetic appearance, it was clear that the three little ones hadn't taken the threat of not eating breakfast to heart.

Kakashi looked at Sasuke with a hint of helplessness, and Sasuke shook his head slightly, indicating that he was not the one who leaked it.

Fine.

Kakashi put on a smiling face, took out two swaying bells, and said, "I have two bells here. Your task is to snatch them from him before noon."

"Only those who obtain the bell are eligible to graduate; those who fail to obtain the bell will..."

"Kakashi-sensei, stop pretending!" Naruto jumped out, looking like he'd seen right through him, and shouted, "Based on the information I've gathered, Kakashi-sensei seems to value his teammates, so the purpose of this assessment is teamwork, right?"

Sakura's forehead veins bulged, and she gave Naruto a sharp rap on the head with a loud thud, then shouted angrily:

"Naruto, you idiot! How could you just say something like that out loud? And what does intelligence gathering have to do with you?!"

"I'm sorry, Sakura." Naruto covered his forehead, apologizing with a wronged expression.

"Humph!"

"..."

Kakashi rolled his eyes inwardly, glanced at Naruto's aggrieved expression and Sakura's seemingly calm but knowing look in her eyes, and said calmly, "It seems you've gathered quite a bit of information about me in the past day. I do value teammates and teamwork, that's true, but the most important rule for a ninja is to complete the mission. Before that goal, no matter what..."

"No!" Sakura interrupted Kakashi, took out her notebook, glanced at it, and replied confidently, "A ninja's mission is indeed to complete missions, but since Kakashi-sensei has admitted that he values ​​his comrades, then why assign a mission that requires abandoning one's comrades to complete?"

"I see!"

Kakashi was taken aback, and was about to say something when Sakura closed her notebook, nodded, raised a finger, and analyzed in a seemingly serious manner:

"Kakashi-sensei must have encountered this dilemma before: choosing between completing the mission and sacrificing his comrades, right?"

Since Naruto had already revealed everything, Sakura simply let her gossip spirit take over.

However, Sakura Haruno didn't continue speaking, which, judging from Kakashi's current purpose for the assessment, is likely to be the case.

Kakashi chose the mission at the time, which led to the death of his comrades. That's why he hopes that the students he leads will be people who value their comrades, rather than ninjas who are only focused on completing the mission.

He's definitely a man with a story.

Sakura sighed inwardly.

Sakura has grown a lot in the past few years through her interactions with Sasuke, and not just in terms of her training.

Sasuke likes strong girls, so Sakura trains diligently. Sasuke likes to read a lot of books, and Sakura is also a frequent visitor to the library, in addition to the books in the ninja academy.

She's just a young girl right now, not mature enough, and her thoughts are rather simple. Sasuke is like her idol. When you like an idol, it's a genuine liking that goes without thinking!

Sasuke is working so hard, I need to work hard too!

Sasuke is amazing! I need to catch up with him!

Sasuke is so pitiful, he only has me left!

This girlish affection, mixed with a fan's worship mentality, unconsciously influences Sakura's daily life.

Sasuke's way of thinking, his words and actions, may not even be of much concern to Sasuke himself, but Sakura has memorized them.

Under such circumstances, apart from showing her infatuation with Sasuke and being lively with a few close friends, Sakura is seen by most people as a mature, calm, and analytical young girl!

"......"

This little girl is very perceptive.

Upon hearing this, a complex look flashed across Kakashi's eyes. The reason Kakashi designed such a test was closely related to his past.

Although he had no direct connection to the deaths of Rin Nohara and Obito, he felt that it was because he was focused on completing the mission and abandoned his teammates that such a tragedy occurred.

"Well done, Sakura." After a moment of silence, Kakashi clapped his hands and praised, "I didn't expect that in just one day you would find so much information about me and make so many inferences based on it. Sakura, you did a very good job in collecting and analyzing information!"

Hey!

Sakura smiled smugly to herself, but remained outwardly calm and composed.

"Kakashi-sensei, you flatter me. Compared to Sasuke, I still have many shortcomings. I have only learned these things from Sasuke."

You learned it from me?

When did I teach you this?

A question mark popped into Sasuke's mind.

"Alright! Let's put aside the discussion about companions and missions for now!" Kakashi Hatake said, lowering his head and glancing at the three eager little ones. He said calmly, "Whether you choose to protect your companions or continue the mission, you must have a certain level of strength to accomplish it. If you don't have enough strength, not only will you fail to complete the mission, but you will also become a burden to your companions, or even cause their deaths."

"So, the next thing to do is the wilderness survival test. This will test your basic skills as ninjas. If you can't meet the standard, you should go back to the ninja academy and study for a few more years. My class doesn't need guys who can't complete missions or protect their comrades!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the expressions of the three of them became serious. Kakashi smiled faintly and continued, "However, the method of the assessment will be slightly changed."

As he spoke, Kakashi took out another bell from his waist.

"This time there are three bells, so you don't need to worry about eliminating your teammates in order to complete the mission. You just need to figure out a way to snatch the bells from me!"

"Come on, now... come and snatch it with the determination to kill me. No matter what ninjutsu you know, feel free to unleash it, otherwise, you'll have a hard time getting past me."

Kakashi shook the three bells in his hand and said with a smile.

Sasuke and the other two exchanged glances. Sasuke asked with a strange expression, "Kakashi-sensei, are you sure?"

Kakashi raised an eyebrow, sensing something was amiss, but still said calmly, "Of course."

If you actually do that, you might get beaten to death.

Sasuke thought to himself, "What do you mean?"

"Alright, let's begin the wilderness survival training!"

As soon as they finished speaking, the three of them turned into several afterimages and disappeared from Kakashi's sight, hiding in the surrounding dense forest.

........

Chapter 56: The First Collaboration of Class 7

'They didn't rush in immediately; it seems they're all quite calm, even Naruto, who seems the most clueless.'

Kakashi secretly praised him.

He knew Sasuke's strength, but as for Sakura and Naruto, regardless of their strength, as ninjas, concealing their presence and observing the enemy's state were the most basic qualities.

The two chose to hide in the dense forest, and Kakashi had already given them an extra point in his mind for their cautious nature and ninja qualities.