Chapter 37 – True Genin Test

At precisely five in the morning, Raito opened his eyes and swiped the transparent box in front of him, much like a well-oiled machine. 

Still the same ceiling, same view form the window.

"Hup!"

Then, with his eyes closed, Raito began his daily routine.

Settled into a chair, Naruto hastily devoured his food, while Raito sat opposite to him, leisurely savoring his meal, and reading the book from the Hokage's office. 

"Eat slower." Raito sighed. Looking at the messy Naruto, with rice grains on the table, Raito frowned a little.

Gulping down the lump in his throat, Naruto replied, "No way. We'll be late if we eat any slower." 

"If you're in hurry, go on your own." Raito waved his hand, continued his food, while hiding behind the book. "It's not like anyone's gonna die, if I am late or anything."

"Hey!" Naruto gave a glare to this black tongue Raito then added, "Today is an important day for us, so we should be there a bit earlier."

"Wow, talking like a grown up," Raito eyed Naruto for a second before saying. "How boring."

"You, me and Hinata, its going to be a super cool team." Giddy with his imagination, Naruto went to clean his dishes. "Best team in Konoha,"

"Sure,"

After washing the dishes, Naruto dragged Raito to the academy. Today might very well be the last time they get to walk these hallways. Yesterday, they were academy students, and now, today as Genins.

On the way to the academy, people on the street cast angry and dissatisfied glances towards Naruto, but he, seemingly oblivious, walked with the wind under his feet.

"How could Hokage-sama allow someone like that to become a shinobi?" 

"Killer trying to play the savior, huh?" 

"Damn, damn, damn." 

Raito glanced at those displaying displeasure and anger on their status tabs. He pressed the star button on the status tabs of a few individuals marked with 'Murderous Intent'. 

After buying a few morning snacks, equivalent to about two large bags, Raito entered the academy.

As Raito sat at the end of the room with Shikamaru, Chōji, and Naruto, students looked on. Their bickering and noise quickly attracted attention, and with the addition of the delicious aroma from the snacks, everyone had already taken a few steps towards them. 

"Chōji, chew your food. You should chew, damn it." 

"Hey, that's mine."

"These snacks are good, but not as good as what my clan makes. You should buy from the Shinobi stores. They offer more variety and can be bought at a lower price." 

With a meat bun in his hand, Raito sighed, "As if I can buy from the clan stores." 

"You need a shinobi identity card to make purchases from the clan stores." Shikamaru explained, rummaging through the bags and taking out a bun with green skin. 

"We need to register and get a number soon." Raito replied as he adjusted his forehead protector, which was on his right arm-shoulder, opposite to Shikamaru's left. 

Ino walked in, exclaiming, "Wow, a feast!" She grabbed the meat bun that Raito had just fished out.

"Hey that-" Raito shouted, but Ino had already taken a bite from the bun. "Mine."

Raito grumbled, then grabbed another, quickly biting into it. 

"They sure are taking their time." Raito looked around and, not seeing Iruka-sensei, grew somewhat annoyed. 

The upper floor of the academy featured a small, pleasant garden directly connected to the Hokage tower. Inside the Hokage room, in the training chamber, a group of shinobi stood, some leisurely, others more serious. All eyes were on a crystal ball, glowing and displaying the academy classrooms.

Hiruzen looked at the crystal ball and remarked, "Most of them will have to do it over." 

Nobody spoke, but they all nodded their head. 

"It seems that something has happened with team 7, 8 and 10. We already know that they capable, so I want these three teams to cultivate some competitive spirit." 

"As for others, I will leave it to your decision."

Sighing, Hiruzen surveyed the room, his gaze resting on Kurenai and Asuma. Frowning, he turned towards the door and then the window. "Asuma, Kurenai, work together and help them, and someone gets Kakashi and tell him the same." 

Meanwhile, Kakashi occupied a small room in the attic, observing the students through a hole. Occasionally, he glanced at the students before returning to his book. 

Raito felt an annoying sensation, as if someone were intensely watching him. Using his 'Chakra Sense,' he searched for the source but found no one.

Kakashi chuckled, observing Raito's anguished expression. A small yet intricate barrier seal concealed Kakashi effectively against Raito's Chakra Sense. Similar to the ones in Raito's house designed to repel foreign chakra, this seal was more diverse yet simple.

Minutes later, Sasuke and his group entered the room. Sasuke shot a quick glare at Raito, who simply ignored him. 

With a resounding BANG, the door swung open again as Iruka entered, accompanied by a group of Chūnin teachers. Raito, noticing their arrival, swiftly stashed the bags in his inventory, maintaining a neutral expression. 

The students rose in respect and greeted the academy instructors, who had been teaching them for 6 years.

"Take your seats," Iruka announced, standing prominently at the front.

"I would like to congratulate all of you students who have worked so hard for all these years. Worked so hard to learn all those boring books," he said with a slight chuckle. "You trained your body and mind, and polish you skills, to reach a level that… now it is time for you all to pass on from the academy and become shinobi."

Iruka gave a stern look to the assembled students before continuing. "However, the journey doesn't get easier. You'll now be grouped into teams of three, under the guidance of a Jōnin Instructor, the village's elite. They will teach and mentor you on your journey." 

"We will be dividing you all into groups of three, ensuring each group is balanced to support one another and grow. Now let's begin." 

"Team one…. 

…

"Team Seven will consist Uzumaki Naruto, Hyūga Hinata, and Yoshizawa Raito. Your Jōnin instructor will be Hatake Kakashi." 

"Team Eight comprises Inuzuka Kiba, Aburame Shino, and Uchiha Sasuke. Your Jōnin instructor will be Yūhi Kurenai." 

"Next, Team Ten as Team Nine like Team Four is still there from last semester. Team Ten will be Nara Shikamaru, Yamanaka Ino and Akimichi Chōji, and your Jōnin instructor will be Sarutobi Asuma." 

After teams were made, Chōji eagerly grabbed Raito, wanting to leave the room with him. Ino also encouraged him to go, but Raito ignored them all, sitting in his seat as if glued to it.

"Oi, coward." Sasuke called out. 

Raito frowned slightly, his muscles twitching the slightest. 

"I am going to leave you behind," Sasuke announced and exited the room. 

Exhaling, Raito walked back, retrieved the large bags, and placed them on the table. 

"Thank Kami he left. It would be a pain if we had to go out." Raito joked, opening the packaged foods then a big book, nesting into his seat.

"Raito, just fight with him and get it over with." Naruto urged, but Raito's glare froze him, akin to diving into a river in the middle of the night.

"I don't want to. So who's going to make me?" 

They sat in their seats, not just as students, but as individuals beyond, yet still under.

After the break, students sat in their respective classrooms as one Jōnin instructor after another came to collect their teams.

"Team Ten, meet me at the Yakiniku Q at A5 in an hour." Asuma announced, eyeing the group before walking out.

"Team Eight, follow me" Kurenai signaled as she left. 

"Wow, she's beautiful." Kiba commented, following her. 

Before Sasuke left, he shot Raito a provoking glare. 

The corners of Raito's mouth twitched, recalling Sasuke's super provocation techniques.

Nearly an hour passed, and all other groups had left with their Jōnin instructors. Raito dozed off at the table, and Hinata used her Byakugan to search for Kakashi.

"He's late." Naruto wined. 

"See anything, Hinata?" Raito asked, to which she shook her head. 

A long, oppressive silence filled the room. Rubbing his hair vigorously, Raito shouted, "Naruto, Hinata, let's go. We're heading back home. Kakashi-sensei is a Jōnin, so, maybe he knows where we live." 

Not maybe, but definitely. Someone who has been spying them for the last two months would probably know everything there is to know about them.

"Ugh, better than being here waiting." Naruto jumped. His body was getting restless anyway.

Observing the two, Hinata was slightly horrified by their actions. 

Opening the window, Raito and Naruto prepared. In the end, Naruto grabbed Raito's jacket then looked back. "Hinata, are you coming?" 

"Yes… N-no. I mean- ah… please wait." Hinata fumbled, and after a series of deep breaths, she added, "We should wait for Kakashi-sensei; maybe he… I mean, maybe he is busy with something?"

Raito and Naruto exchanged glances, both wearing distressed expressions.

"Maybe we should ask Jii-chan." Raito voice out his thoughts.

Kakashi, concealed inside a small room above the classroom, was alerted and swiftly used 'Body Flicker' to reach the classroom door.. 

Raito, who had activated his 'Chakra Sense' at all times, detected the invasion of chakra and a figure behind the door. He focused on the door, making Hinata and Naruto look at that direction. 

SWISH! 

"You three, my impression of you guys: definitely a troublesome bunch." Kakashi commented as he opened the door, making the trio roll their eyes. 

"Let's go to the rooftop. The air is much fresher there." Kakashi suggested, starting to walk, his pace making it appear as if he were running. 

"Run!" Raito shouted, and the three followed Kakashi, sprinting to keep up. 

Upon reaching the rooftop, the trio was slightly winded. Kakashi observed them and thought, 'Fifteen seconds, four floors and they are only slightly winded.' 

They sat down, facing Kakashi. None of them spoke, earning a mental thumbs-up from Kakashi. 

While Naruto was eager to jump in with questions, Raito restrained him, anticipating the upcoming conversation.

Kakashi closed his book and, while looking at the three, said. "Well, let's start. First, why don't we begin with introductions? Name, likes, dislikes, and what are your goals for the future… Let's start with you, Hyūga."

"H-Hai! My name is Hinata Hyūga. What I like- I like my family, especially my little sister and…" (Glancing at Naruto) "… and I hate bullies and traditions, bad traditions. When I have time, I love to do flower pressing and… for future, I want…" She looked at Naruto once again, then looked down, a troubled expression on her face, thankfully no one wanted to see her face. She looked at Kakashi with a small smile and said, "I want to be a great Kunoichi, and-."

"Oh." Kakashi paused a bit, many jumbling thoughts making a pathway for him, then pointed at Naruto. 

Naruto looked at Hinata for a long time before looking back at Kakashi, then smiled. 

"My name is Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto. I like ramen and Raito's cooking. I like spending time with Raito and my friends, and of course, with Jii-chan. I hate waiting three minutes for ramen to cook, and I also hate bullies. As for the future, I have only one goal - 'I wanna be the greatest Hokage ever'." 

"Hokage, huh? What about you?" Kakashi faced the last black-haired boy. 

Lazily Raito answered, "Me? Yoshizawa Raito. Like? I have tons of things I like, but if I have to name a few, there's training, making and eating food, playing video games, and reading new books. Dislike? One word right now – Sasuke. As for the future, I don't have many plans, it's a big guess, even for me." 

'Sasuke?' Kakashi tilted his head in thought as he remembered the small conflict in the classroom then said with an eye smile, "You can call me Kakashi-sensei but if you have nicknames you want to call me, feel free to do so. I like to read my books and for my dislike, there is one absolute taboo, which I will tell you later. I don't have much ambition for the future." expression, transitioning from happy and cute to dark, then nonchalant, left the three feeling confused.

"What? Don't you wanna be a Hokage or something else?" Naruto questioned. 

Kakashi shook his head

"Even Sannin?" He added and Raito blushed, did not know whether it was for anticipation or embarrassment.

Kakashi looked at Naruto wanting to say something but in the end, he kept quiet. 

"Nope." 

"That's a lie."

Raito raised his hand, and asked, "Sensei, what about having a girlfriend? Or marrying? Having children?"

Kakashi raised his brows, but still shook his head.

Kakashi clapped his hands and said, "Now, let's talk about something else. Though you have graduated as an academy student… you are still not a Genin." Kakashi watched the blank faces with no surprise, so he continued. 

"Let's go for some special survival mission." Kakashi added. 

"Kakashi-sensei, we already did the survival test. Are we going to do it again?" Naruto inquired. 

"Well, this mission isn't as straightforward, as… you'll be up against me." Kakashi pointed at himself with a big eye smile. "Surviving against nature and surviving against me is a bit different. You can even call this a spar."

"You?" Naruto exclaimed, then promptly received a slap on the back from Raito. 

"Yeah, me. But there's a catch. If you can fulfill the mission criteria, you will be fresh new Genin, ready for missions starting tomorrow. Fail, and you might go back to the academy or even may have to quit." 

"No way, we have come so far. Not now." Naruto protested. The anger in his eyes could even burn the sun.

Kakashi observed Naruto and continued, "Academy exams are for selecting students who have capabilities to become a shinobi, but this small test, popularly called the 'True Genin Test,' is for choosing who will actually become Genin and who might be sent back. In these few years, only about 10% of students have passed from each batch to become Genin. Rest have been either sent back to the academy for a crash course and even kicked out of program entirely." 

"Liar." Raito spoke up, his hands on the knees pressed a little harder as he added, "There are no failed senior students in our class." 

"Why would they keep the old students with new students?" Kakashi shook his head and said. "You may have seen those old students walking at the academy sometime at the upper corner rooms."

"Y-yeah." He remembered a few of them running to the upper floor for a class but the content, he did not know, because there were seals.

Kakashi raised his brows and flexed his waist, looking at Raito. "Sometime they would say, 'Walking these hallways is nostalgic,' or, 'we could have taken the administrative building door, but you had to go through this place,'."

Raito tried to recall and indeed found many of the senior students. "There were many older students, some with forehead protector, and some… without." 

"Then let's meet at the Training ground 7 in an hour. I'll be waiting for you." Kakashi said, disappearing from the rooftop. 

"Raito-san, Naruto-kun. Let's try our best." Hinata tried cheering as she saw that Raito had turned gloomy and that gloominess had impacted Naruto. 

Raito looked at the two who were also looking at him. Taking a deep breath, he nodded and said, "Let's go." 

"We just have to beat him to become Genin." Naruto declared, punching his palm.

"Bakanaru." Raito muttered, glancing at his inventory filled with various items he could use, either to defeat or to kill.

At the end of the hour. Raito, Naruto, and Hinata entered the Training Ground 7 and with the help of Byakugan, found Kakashi. 

"When I said in an hour, you guys took it literally and even dared to come at the last minute." Kakashi remarked, watching the three. 

"Un." 

"So, what are we going to do?" Naruto asked, scanning.

"It'll be you guys against me." Kakashi declared, pulling out two tattered bells, "Your mission is to get these bells from me. The ones who get the bell… stays, as simple as that." 

"Seems easy." Naruto commented as he started stretching. 

Hinata raised her voice, "Sensei, there are only two bells?" 

"Yeah." 

"But… you said that the ones who gets bells stay… that means… " 

"Yeah, Hinata, your thinking is correct. It means that out of you three, only two may pass." Kakashi explained.

Raito, who had already understood the meaning behind the words, had his gears started working. 'Only two?' Even after thinking for a lot of time, the doubt still remained, making Raito's head hurt. 'But there is no way that….'

"Hey, that's not fair." Naruto shouted in anger. 

"You have fifteen minutes to decide then you have to come and take these 'two' bells." 

Naruto and Hinata had a worried expression on their faces. 

Raito took hold of the two and led them away from Kakashi. 

Kakashi glanced up briefly, then retrieved a book from his pocket and began reading. 

Once they had some distance between them, Raito looked at Naruto and Hinata, shaking his head. "Naruto, Hinata… You guys, believed him?" 

"Huh?" 

"Try to remember what Iruka-sensei said about teams in Konoha." 

Hinata eyes again filled with hope, answered, "Fresh Genins are paired with a Jōnin instructor. Its three Genins and one Jōnin instructor." 

"Yes, in an ideal situation, there will always be three members in a team. Remember when we skipped classes a few months ago, pranking the gate guards. There was a team just before we did that" Raito said, looking at Naruto.

Naruto tilted his head, closing his eyes in thought as he answered. "Yea, I remember. One big, stupid guy followed by three like us." 

"Field promotion day. Raito-san, Naruto-kun, you skipped class that day? I remember that someone had spread itching powder that day. Did you do that?" Hinata asked with a bit of anger in her voice. 

"Itching powder?" Raito looked at a distance. 'Yup! Those birds are a cutie.'

"Itching powder? Those stupid…" Naruto growled. 

"Raito-san!" 

Raito raised both of his hands and said, "Let's talk about that later. Right now, let's get those bells. I have an idea of what it really is." 

'Raito-san and Naruto-kun are both very hardworking and they are… but what about me?' 

'Damn, Raito is acting, and I know that he going to do something stupid. Hinata and Raito, both are so talented. Someone stupid like me….'

"Got it!" 

"Come close." Raito signaled everyone, and they huddled together. 

Kakashi stood in the middle of the field, one hand in his pocket, the other holding his book. His eyes followed the text, simultaneously counting down.

SHO!! 

Kakashi swung his arm, catching the kunai and using it to block the shurikens. Observing the kunai closely, he thought, 'Powerful throw.' But with his trained eye, he detected a mix of ink marking a seal on the kunai. 

"Explode!" 

BOOM! 

"He switched! Naruto! 10! Bird!" Raito shouted. 

"On it." Naruto and his clones pursued Kakashi. The clones attacked consecutively, serving as cannon fodder to slowly draw Kakashi to the intended location. 

"You guys are better than other teams. I was considering not using both my hands, but-" 

Unknowingly, Naruto had led Kakashi to an area with stone formations, which. The stones transformed into Naruto, each clone with hands extended.

"Wind Release – Multi Gale Palm."

Five clones executed the Gale Palm technique, directing currents of air to strike Kakashi's body. Then again, Kakashi turned into smoke, leaving behind a wooden log.

"Damn, just how many are there?" 

"Raito-san, below you?" Hinata shouted. 

Startled, Raito jumped on instinct and disappeared into a dungeon. 

"That tactic works almost every time." Kakashi emerged from below and leaped upward, scanning the ground. 

'ID Escape.' 

Raito appeared above Kakashi, his hand covered with rocks, ready to strike Kakashi. 

"Haa!" 

"Not good enough!" With a swift twirl, Kakashi caught Raito's rock-covered hand, then spun and hurled Raito to the ground. 

"Hah!" Hinata struck Kakashi's back with her palm, only to be kicked away. 

Instead of seeing Hinata being kicked away, Kakashi saw her desperately clutching his leg. Her hands stretched towards the bells, chakra coating them. She was just about to release chakra, striving to sever the threads of the bell. 

Before she could succeed, Kakashi spun and kicked her into the tree. The pain caused her to lose her grip.

Raito reappeared, throwing shurikens out of nowhere. In a blink of an eye, Raito grabbed Hinata, and they both had disappeared. Sensing the surge of chakra, Kakashi quickly dispelled the Genjutsu and scanned the surroundings. 

"Uzumaki drop." Naruto and his clones descended, raining blows upon Kakashi one after another, each clone causing pain. 

With a forceful stomp, Kakashi backed away. 

"Hehe." Naruto laughed lightly, which immediately alarmed Kakashi and he used substitution. The wood immediately exploded into pieces, making Raito, who was watching from a distance frown. 

"How many are left?" Raito asked.

"I can see four more string, but I can't find the positions clearly." Hinata answered, signaling Naruto to regroup. 

"Where is he?" Raito inquired, and Hinata pointed in the distance. 

"Tell Naruto to be ready. He must do it. Jōnin is far powerful than that." Then Raito stood up and ran towards Kakashi. 

Facing Kakashi head-on, Raito attempted a gut kick but was swiftly caught, the grip somewhat loose. Twisting his body, Raito used his right leg to deliver a forceful kick at Kakashi's crotch. 

Releasing the leg, Kakashi blocked the other leg, safeguarding his privates. 

Twisting once more, Raito grabbed Kakashi's right leg and with that power kicked at Kakashi's chin. It seemed like a clean hit, or so he thought, before Kakashi transformed into a log and vanished. 

"Hinata!" 

"Naruto-kun!" 

Naruto was trapped in Genjutsu created by Kakashi. 

Hinata tried to dispel the Genjutsu, but she was blocked by Kakashi, who had one hand on the back and other in a knife-hand strike. 

Kakashi rubbed his chin and remarked. "You guys have real combat experience. I should have gone a bit harder." 

"Haa!!" A wave of chakra blast pushed Kakashi backwards, making him stumble. Looking at it, it was Naruto's monstrous chakra.

"Tch, so much chakra." Taking advantage of the opening, Kakashi pursued Hinata with a single hand. 

'Lightning palm.' Raito pushed forward and helped Hinata fight Kakashi off. 

"Taijutsu is good but…" Leaning back, Kakashi dodged the palm and swept with a powerful leg strike. 

When Kakashi had one leg mid-air and the other slightly above the ground, Naruto jumped down rolling and hitting Kakashi but he defended with his hands crossed. He hit the ground but that's it

Raito immediately clapped his hand and used his chakra. "Earth Break"

The ground below Kakashi disappeared and he fell down. 

Kakashi stood in a circular room with an opening on top. He stood there as rolled his shoulder. "These kids are something else. Let's increase-" Just as he was about to do anything, he looked at the walls and found that there were seals, about ten of them? 

"Naruto, now!!" 

"Explode!!" 

The circular room erupted in flames as smoke billowed from the opening. However, neither Kakashi nor Naruto remained. 

Kakashi used 'Earth Escape', barely dodging the hellhole.

He emerged at the surface, worse for wear.

"Kakashi-sensei?" Raito approached, severed the lone bell hanging from Kakashi's pouch, and displayed it triumphantly. 

"A seal?" Kakashi asked. 

"Yup. It's a paralysis seal. It took me quite a while to prompt you to use those substitutions. It was a pain, you know, PAIN!" Raito chuckled happily while examining the bell in his hand. 

"Where is the other bell?" Kakashi asked, still ensnared in the seal. 

"Here," Naruto called out, holding a bell without a string. 

"So, you've got both the bells, huh?" Kakashi said, suddenly moving forward and slumping down

Raito stared at Kakashi and asked how. 

"That? I just overpowered it with my own chakra. The seal is a battle between power and technique." Kakashi replied, glancing at Raito, who held the two bells. 

"So it's time. Who gets the bell and who goes back… to academy?" Kakashi asked. 

Raito walked a step forward and threw the bells back with a bit of force, and waited for a while. 

Naruto and Hinata, thinking that it was their fault not catching the bells, hurried, in search for the bells. 

Raito glanced back at them before looking at Kakashi, and said. "I'm quitting on being a shinobi, I give up." 

When Naruto heard that, he stopped searching for the bells and ran forward, pushing Raito. "No, you aren't."

He stood in between Raito and Kakashi, then looked at Kakashi and said. "If Raito is quitting, then I am quitting too." 

Looking at the bell in her hand, Hinata threw it far away, and with tears building in her eyes, hurried to their side and shouted, "I…I am quitting too." 

Rubbing the tip his nose, Kakashi thought, 'What the Hell!?' 

"What the hell are you two saying?" Raito snapped. 

Pointing at Hinata, he shouted, "You- if you're not a shinobi then you will have no say in what happens to your clan. They'll mark you and sell you as a bride. Is that what you want?" 

Punching at Naruto, with a paralysis tag then again at the Hinata, Raito looked a bit sad, he turned around and continued, "You will train hard, do mission, and do a lot of that shitty work. Your goal is to become a Hokage in the future, Naruto." 

"D-Damn… remove it, remove… it, right now!" 

Raito smiled as he patted Naruto's shoulder. "I always wanted to be a chef and earn a lot of money anyway."

Kakashi asked himself, 'This is… too much? I should stop.' He didn't act before because he didn't want to, he liked this group. After all this drama, he should give them the good news. 

"Listen now-" Before Kakashi could finish, Raito had already disappeared from his spot. 

Unable to find Raito, even after using his Sharingan, Kakashi sighed and looked at the sky. "I am going to get an earful again." 

"Hah!" Hinata destroyed the seal, then the one on Naruto as well. 

"Naruto, Hinata, listen." Kakashi urged. 

"No!! Stay away." Naruto growled, panting heavily, ignoring everything else. Trying to use his brain to find Raito, 'Home? Monument? Tower? Gate? ANBU?' 

One idea after another came and went. 

Hinata used her Byakugan, searching the known places in the village, trying to find the Raito's shadow. Her eyes were turning red and she was dangerously low on chakra. 

"NOW! LISTEN!" Thunder boomed as Kakashi shouted. 

Getting attention, he quickly shouted, "You all passed." 

Naruto still in anger shouted, "Who cares!? I quit." 

Hinata who was calmer asked in hope, "All?" 

"Yeah, but Naruto just quit and Raito he…" 

Ignoring her talking sensei, she slapped Naruto on the face and said, "Naruto-kun, we all passed. Even Raito-san, we pass as a team." 

"EH!? Ehhhh!?" 

"Calm down, you two." Kakashi made some hand signals, wishing that Hokage-sama was watching. 

"Let's find Raito-san." Hinata used Byakugan to her top form. 

"Mm, he must be using that technique." Naruto guessed. 

Buzz! "He will be in the Hokage office." From the earpiece, someone said something. 

"Zero?" Kakashi guessed. 

Zero wasn't someone of Konoha. He was someone from the 'Poison Hall', the reclusive clan. No one had ever seen his face, not even Kakashi, who was in the same group as zero, the masked shinobi.

Silent as a shadow, Kakashi observed the two figures before him for a while before swiftly seizing them and using the 'Body Flicker' technique, vanishing from the training ground. 

Raito walked the empty halls of the Hokage tower, with confusion and sadness, towards the Hokage office. "I'm not sure if I did the right thing, but…"

Ding 

Quest Completed – Team 7

Rewards 

-Formation of Team 7. 

-Bounty System unlocked. 

-Abyss Shop unlocked. 

-Increase in relationship with individuals loyal to Konoha by 200 points. 

-Gain title 'Genin'

-Bonus: 50,000 Ryo, Skill book – Seismic step. 

Raito looked at the list of rewards and made a small dance. Examining the skill book, he opened it to find a series of incomprehensible symbols accompanied by somewhat understandable illustrations. 

"This Seismic Step looks really dangerous." After contemplating for a moment, Raito closed the book and stowed it in his inventory. 

Then the realization hit Raito. "Team Seven is formed, can it be that I passed too?" 

Raito went to the notification and pressed the highlighted words 'Team 7'. Pressing it, he saw that it was all three of them and Kakashi. 

"I am already here, might as well go." Raito thought and exited the Dungeon. 

With a jubilant spirit, Raito reappeared at the damaged bathroom stall. 

Upon reaching the Hokage office, Raito noticed Mariko sat on the chair with a joyful expression, but her mood quickly shifted to anger upon seeing him. 

She glared, "You're finally here." 

"Ah, Mariko-nee, what's wrong?" Raito took a few steps back, sensing trouble. "Oi, you look scary, oi." He attempted to retreat. 

Inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen observed the two Genin, Hinata and Naruto, and Kakashi, who sported a slightly scorched uniform while engrossed in a small orange book. 

"Ow, ow, ow. Stop, stope! My ear! It hurts! Mariko-nee, I am really sorry, pleasee!" 

"CAT." Hiruzen called, and the sounds of shuffling were heard outside. 

Moments later, the door opened and everyone could see, the secretary, Mariko, with a firm grip on Raito's ear. 

"Jii-chan, help me. I can't take it anymore. My ear, it's going to- going to-" 

Hiruzen savored the scene for a while before instructing Mariko to release him. 

Before letting go, she bent down and smoothed his clothes, "If you do anything stupid like this again in future, I am going to tear your ear off." After fixing his clothes, she warned, "Now go, Behave!" 

Holding his right ear, Raito entered the room grumbling. 

"It's good that you joined us, Raito." Hiruzen called out. 

Raito walked slowly and joined Naruto and Hinata. Naruto immediately held onto Raito, refusing to let him go. 

"You all passed, and from now on, you are a part of Team Seven." Kakashi explained. 

"Oh." Raito expressed expressionlessly. 

"Raito." Hiruzen called out, his gaze reflecting his anger. 

"Still like this…" Hiruzen voice his thoughts, and a figure appeared behind him, staring intently. 

Letting out a breath, Hiruzen continued, "For now, go with Kakashi. Tomorrow, get yourself registered." 

"Okay." The three nodded, and Raito nodded extra hard, looking at Hiruzen and the women behind him. 

Later, everyone reconvened at the Training Ground 7 in front of a black stone with names written on it. 

"You three have passed, and from now on, until the very end, you are Team Seven with me, and no one can change that." 

"What about the bells, then?" Raito asked. 

"Bells? They are just bells and nothing else. I don't care if you get bells or if you have skills to take the bells from me. I was looking for you three to work as a team. Even though you all had reasons of your own, you worked in a group as a team, showed sacrifice you can make for each other. Surprisingly, there is someone like you, Raito. That may have been a bit over the top, but it doesn't matter." 

"Before you guys, I have failed six other teams. Some fought among themselves while others back stabbed one member of the team, and some were just too horrible. And I failed them all." 

"Naruto, Hinata, you both trust Raito to hold the bells and you, Raito, sacrificed yourself for them, chaos happened, you quit, then they quit. You paralyzed them then disappeared. If it was possible, I would like to make a drama out of it." Kakashi ended with a warm voice and a hidden smile that could be seen through his eyes. 

"From tomorrow onward, you will start your life as a shinobi, a true shinobi. Following the shinobi code of conduct and representing the Hokage and the village. Don't disappoint us all." 

"There will be situations where you'll be forced to do things that crosses your moral borders, that disgust you, that make you want to go blind or even die. 

The shinobi code of conduct is there for a reason. If you break them, you will be known as scum among the shinobis, worse, you will be stripped of your rank, chakra sealed and even thrown in to a prison… But these rules, they were made by the toughest of shinobis, who have experienced this life.

However, there is something even worse…" He looked at the three in the eye, resting his hand over his chest. "Something that I hate very much, and that is… betraying your comrades, friends. If you betray them, then in my eyes, you will be worse than scum." 

"Read history, it tells us what not to do."