Chunin Exam Part 5

"Menma, what the hell are you doing?" Naruto caught Sasuke in time and evaded Menma's stomp. After that, he turned around and shouted at Menma with dissatisfaction.

Although he knew that there must be a reason why Menma went so heavy on Sasuke, he still didn't want his close friend to be humiliated like this.

Two years have passed and they have grown close. They fought together. They fought against each other. They didn't like each other but still respect each other.

Two years developed their relationship to such an extreme level of friendship. It's just that because of what Menma told him, he didn't consider Sasuke his rival.

Although he was unwilling to accept it, he was envious of Sasuke at the beginning. He didn't accept Sasuke as his equal but got angry because of his strength.

It changed when they became teammates. Naruto got stronger than Sasuke and quickly realized that Sasuke was starting to feel the same way he did when Sasuke was stronger.

In their eyes, they didn't want the other person to be stronger than them. Of course, they had a lot of competitive spirits but it was a rivalry. At least, Menma didn't consider it a rivalry.

Of course, it's just that it was Menma's perspective of rivals but who knew that Naruto would change his mind as well?

Because Menma from the very beginning acknowledged Naruto, understood his talent and strength, and never underestimated him, Naruto also changed his perspective of rivalry.

Instead of making Sasuke his rival, he decided to make Menma his rival because from the beginning they just wanted to surpass each other without caring about the growth of each other.

For Menma, Naruto had an extremely powerful talent so it was only a matter of time and strategy before he could grow stronger.

For Naruto, Menma was extremely intelligent, so it was only a matter of time and strategy before he could remove his weakness.

Naruto had the talent and resources to grow stronger but didn't have the correct strategy.

Menma had the resources and strategy to grow stronger but didn't have the correct talent.

So, it took them two years to finally gain that level of strength.

Seeing Naruto in anger, Menma didn't reply to him. He saw Sakura rushing toward Sasuke and trying to heal him with her medical ninjutsu.

She also raised her head and shouted at Menma.

"Menma, aren't you our friend? Even if it is for the scroll, how could you injure Sasuke like this?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Karin who was standing behind Menma came out and roared.

"Shut up! He was the one who challenged Menma. Even though Menma warned him several times. Why is it Menma's fault?"

Menma was stunned for a moment. Sakura and Naruto froze. Only then they saw Karin standing next to him. But, they got a bit suspicious because Karin was wearing the headband of Village Hidden in the Grass.

"Karin, it's okay. They are his teammates. It's normal to be angry." Menma patted Karin's shoulder and pulled her. At the same time, he walked toward Sasuke.

"Hey, are you conscious?"

His tone was filled with anger.

Hearing his tone, Naruto froze for a moment.

"Menma, what is wrong…" Sakura couldn't understand his tone so she quickly shouted but Naruto cut her off.

"Sakura, don't speak!"

Sakura paused and stared at Naruto in disbelief. She didn't understand why Naruto would support Menma over Sasuke but suddenly remembered their relationship and laughed at herself.

It seemed like only she was standing beside Sasuke. But, she didn't speak because, at this moment, Sasuke had woken up.

After seeing him waking up, Menma stared at him and said.

"Originally, I was trying to pull you into a proper path. Two years ago, I helped you get stronger so that you won't get twisted by it. But, you still didn't understand my intention at all."

"Why do you think I was helping you get stronger? What benefit would I get from helping you get stronger? Nothing! I would absolutely get nothing. No matter what, my own strength is the core fundamental for my survival."

"But, still I want to help you because I wanted to change you, Uchiha Sasuke. I wanted to break the illusion that has been guiding you for years and will continue to guide you."

"This illusion will definitely give you strength. In fact, you could even reach Super Kage Level in the future without my help. But, do you know that you would still remain a trash who begged for strength from others?"

When Menma said that word, Sasuke suddenly froze and his face showed anger. But, his body was more honest as he couldn't even move.

"Don't show me that look! Do you really think you are a Genius? Shisui Uchiha became Jonin at the age of 11. Kakashi Hatake became Jonin at the age of 12. Itachi Uchiha became Anbu Captain at the age of 12."

"Compared to them, your strength is barely Elite Chunin. If I hadn't guided you properly, you wouldn't have reached this close. Do you really think you are a genius now?"

When he asked this question, Sasuke gritted his teeth and couldn't reply. Even Naruto and Sakura were shocked for a moment. Becoming Jonin at the age of 11 was even faster than their Sensei.

They didn't expect there to be a Shinobi like that in Uchiha but they were confused. They haven't heard anything about him.

"Your only talent comes from your so-called bloodline. I, Menma Izuno came from a family that could never even produce a single Jonin. I lacked Chakra so much so that I couldn't even use another Jutsu after using Shadow Clone just two years ago."

"Naruto came from Uzumaki Family but his talent has been stagnant until he met us. He didn't have proper education like you. He didn't have good food or parents to guide him like you."

"But, just in three years, he not only caught up to you but also surpassed you in strength."

Slowly, he lowered his body and crouched down. He looked at Sasuke and said.

"Let me tell you a secret. Uchiha Family was destined to die. It's just that it was your brother who fulfilled this fate."

"Bastard!" When he said that, Sasuke angrily tried to attack Menma but Menma quickly caught his fist and pushed him to the ground.

"Are you getting angry? Yes, this is exactly the reason why Uchiha was destined to fall. Let me ask you a question. Do you know why you are so arrogant?"

When Menma asked this question, Naruto and Sakura who were about to move him stopped. Sasuke suddenly lost his strength and an expression of unwillingness emerged on his face.

He didn't answer though. After a while, Menma finally continued.

"Because you are Uchiha. They have always been fighting maniacs. They love to fight and this always causes war. Nobody wins the war. When you fight in the war, you lose someone close to you."

"That process awakens their Sharingan. Once awakened, they lose their mentality and slowly fall into the darkness. They became extreme just like your brother."

"There are several other reasons why he murdered your entire clan but one of the main reasons is that cursed bloodline of yours."

Slowly, Menma lets go of Sasuke and stands up.

"My original intention was to help you cut off the fate of your cursed bloodline. But, it seems like I was lacking something. Anyway, it doesn't matter anymore."

"You will definitely get stronger, far stronger than your brother, and even achieve strength several times stronger than Kage without my help. So, I don't need to help you."

"But, as a friend and classmate, I will still give you a chance. This chance is not about strength but about your path. It won't be an illusion anymore. You won't be guided by someone but rather by yourself."

"And, you will still get as strong as you would but this time, it won't be because you begged for that strength. This time you will earn that strength."

"But, this help isn't free at least not for you. So, I have a question for you. This question is rather extreme so you don't need to answer me right now."

"Before I ask you a question, let me tell you a story. A long time ago there were two brothers. One of them had an extraordinary talent while the other inherited the kindness and Will of Never Giving up."

"First brother shone brightly with his talent but soon his little brother also started showing off his talent and with the help of people around him, he started becoming stronger."

"When he reached the heights of his elder brother, his elder brother became jealous of his little brother and started fighting him. Both of them fought for generations and even when they die, their Spirit will pass on."

"And, their generations will keep on fighting. Let's say the new generation of those brothers were you and Naruto."

"My question is 'Would you fight Naruto because of this cycle of hatred that has been passed down for generations or would you fight him because you didn't want to lose to him?"

"When the preliminaries end, give me the answer to this question."