The test was silent except for the occasional scratch of ink on paper. Kakashi leaned against a tree, arms crossed, watching his students carefully.
Naruto was clearly struggling. He had spent most of the time glaring at the scroll as if it had personally insulted him. Every now and then, he would glance over at Sasuke and Sakura, trying to see how they were handling it.
Sasuke, on the other hand, was calm. His writing was smooth, deliberate. He was confident in his answers. Whether he had figured out the hidden lesson of the test was still uncertain.
Sakura was entirely focused, writing at a steady pace. She had taken this just as seriously as she would any exam at the academy. She likely had every technical answer correct—but had she realized the point of the last question?
Kakashi sighed to himself. Let's see if any of them get it.
The last question was simple:
"What is the most important quality a ninja should have?"
There was no single right answer, but there was an answer that mattered most—Teamwork.
Naruto's Struggle
Naruto was sweating. His answers were rushed, barely readable, but he had managed to get something down for each question. Then, he reached the last one.
He tapped his pen against the scroll, frowning.
"The most important quality a ninja should have?"
His first instinct was to write strength, but something about that felt wrong. Sasuke was strong, but that didn't mean he was the best ninja. Was it determination? That felt closer, but still... off.
He thought back to what Kakashi had said earlier about the test not just being about getting answers right. What had he meant by that?
Naruto glanced at Sasuke, then at Sakura. They were both still writing, completely focused.
Then, something clicked.
Naruto grinned to himself, nodded, and scribbled down his final answer.
Time's Up
"Alright," Kakashi said, pushing off from the tree. "Time's up. Hand them in."
Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto each placed their scrolls in front of him. He took them, scanning the last question first.
Sasuke had written: "A ninja must always be strong and never show weakness."
Knew he'd say something like that, Kakashi thought. Sasuke was smart, skilled, but still too focused on power.
Sakura had written: "A ninja must have intelligence, discipline, and precise control."
A good answer, but not quite there. She's still thinking like a student, not a teammate.
Finally, he looked at Naruto's answer. His brows lifted slightly in surprise.
Naruto had scrawled in messy handwriting:
"A ninja never fights alone."
Kakashi glanced at Naruto, who was watching him expectantly, bouncing slightly on his feet.
"Interesting," Kakashi murmured. He placed the scrolls down and looked at them. "Well, I have the results."
Sasuke and Sakura straightened, ready for judgment. Naruto, despite his confidence, still looked a little nervous.
Kakashi took his time, letting the tension build. Then, finally, he spoke.
"Naruto... passes."
Naruto's eyes widened. "Wait, really?!"
Sasuke's expression barely changed, but Sakura's jaw dropped. "How?! There's no way Naruto got better answers than us!"
Kakashi smirked. "Oh, I'm sure Naruto got most of the test wrong. But this wasn't about answering correctly. This was about seeing if you understood what really matters as a ninja."
He tapped Naruto's scroll. "The fact that Naruto wrote this tells me he's starting to get it. A ninja isn't just about strength or intelligence. The most important thing is knowing you can't do it alone. No matter how powerful or skilled you are, you'll always need your team."
Naruto puffed up proudly, while Sasuke frowned slightly, arms crossed.
"So what about us?" Sakura asked.
Kakashi's smirk faded slightly. "You two... are on the edge. You didn't fail outright, but you didn't fully pass either. You have one last chance to prove you understand what being a team means."
Sasuke tensed. "And what exactly does that mean?"
Kakashi tilted his head. "It means tomorrow morning, we're doing one last test. If you fail that one..." His visible eye curved in amusement. "Well, let's just say you'll be back in the academy uniforms by next week."
Sakura swallowed hard. Sasuke's fists clenched.
Naruto, however, just grinned.
"Bring it on, Sensei!"
Kakashi sighed. This is going to be interesting.