"Is that so? Well as long as you're not slacking off, I'll be checking your progress. If you can't refine chakra within a week, you'll see what's coming to you."
"I...I...I'll do my best!"
Afraid of the consequences, Naruto quickly grabbed the scroll that had been tossed aside earlier and started reading.
[Patience is key, Naruto! Keep it up! Once I refine chakra, I can go back to slacking off. Damn you, Kakashi! Just wait until I master Sage Mode and unlock Nine Tails Mode--I'll make you call me daddy!]
While Naruto mentally roasted Kakashi again, he obediently began refining chakra on the surface. Kakashi, hearing Naruto's inner thoughts, paid no mind and continued swinging his long sword under the waterfall.
Time passed, and before they knew it, the sun was high in the sky. Naruto had initially approached the chakra refinement with a half-hearted attitude, not expecting any results today. After all, generating chakra from scratch was an incredibly difficult process, and he had never even attempted it before. Success seemed impossible. Yet, the first trace of chakra emerged.
The moment chakra appeared, Naruto's eyes snapped open. With a thought, a faint but unmistakable blue glow emanated from his palm.
[Did I succeed? Holy crap! I actually refined chakra? Am I a genius?]
Naruto's sudden inner exclamation caused Kakashi, who was still swinging his sword under the waterfall, to pause. He looked at Naruto in astonishment. Refining chakra in just half a day? Even among the geniuses of major clans, such talent was rare. Yet, Naruto had done it.
He had never expected Naruto to refine chakra today, let alone succeed within a week. After all, based on Naruto's inner thoughts, Kakashi knew Naruto wasn't genuinely putting in the effort and was likely slacking off.
But he didn't care.
His main goal in keeping Naruto close was to extract more information about Obito and Rin. As for training, as long as Naruto wasn't the dead last in class, it was fine. But now, things were different.
Naruto's ability to refine chakra from nothing in just half a day proved that he was a true prodigy. What's more, he had achieved this while half-slacking. If he put in his full effort, the time needed would likely be even shorter. With such a talent, if he still ended up as the dead last, Kakashi felt he might as well be struck by divine punishment. Especially since this was his teacher's child.
With this in mind, Kakashi's expression grew resolute.
Only then did Naruto notice Kakashi staring at him, startling him. He quickly dispersed the chakra in his hand, sat down properly, and pretended to continue refining chakra, though in reality, he was just resting with his eyes closed.
'Ahhh! So satisfying! So satisfying! Indeed, slacking off is the ultimate productivity booster. Maybe the heavens heard my pleas and let me refine chakra so quickly, allowing me to slack off for six whole days'
Thinking this, Naruto felt quite pleased, and a smile crept onto his face. However, Kakashi had somehow already appeared in front of him, though Naruto, with his eyes closed, was unaware.
"Naruto, how's the training going?"
Kakashi's sudden question startled Naruto, causing him to jolt and open his eyes wide.
"Ah! Huh? Oh! I...I haven't made much progress. Just understanding that scroll is already a struggle. As for refining chakra, I have no idea where to start."
Naruto scratched the back of his head, looking at Kakashi with a pained expression. But Kakashi slowly lifted the forehead protector covering his Sharingan, revealing the crimson eye beneath.
"Oh? Is that so? Then why do I see chakra already forming inside you?"
At these words, Naruto felt as if he'd been struck by lightning. His mouth opened slightly, but no words came out.
[Damn it! How could I forget about this? The Sharingan can see chakra! If I'm labeled as a genius now, I'm totally screwed!]
Naruto was completely panicked. He was terrified that Kakashi would report this to the Third Hokage, who might then inform the teachers at the academy. If that happened, he'd definitely be under extra scrutiny after school, and his days of slacking off and napping during class would be over.
Moreover, there's a fundamental difference between being a dead-last and a genius .
[What do I do, what do I do? This is a big mess now. I need to come up with a plausible excuse!]
On the surface, Naruto remained calm, but inside, he was in complete turmoil. Kakashi, however, looked puzzled. Being a genius should be a good thing, so why was Naruto not only unhappy but also so panicked, as if he'd committed some crime?
"Naruto? Hey! Naruto!"
Kakashi first called out softly, but when he got no response, he raised his voice. Naruto snapped out of his daze and immediately put on an innocent expression, spreading his hands and releasing chakra again.
"So this is chakra, huh? Big bro Kakashi, I didn't even know until you mentioned it. Actually, I've had it for two years now."
Though Kakashi knew Naruto was lying, he didn't call him out. He wanted to see what Naruto was really up to.
"Oh? Two years ago? you started refining chakra two years ago?"
"No, it was after I had a dream."
Kakashi narrowed his eyes, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, though Naruto couldn't see it because of the mask.
"A dream? What kind of dream?"
Naruto tilted his head slightly, pretending to think before answering, "In the dream, there was a huge fox trapped in a cage. Oh, and it had nine tails. It said to me, 'You've finally arrived,' and then I woke up, and I had chakra."
Anyone else might have believed this story, but Kakashi knew it was all a lie. Naruto simply didn't want others to think of him as a genius.
At first, Kakashi thought Naruto would come up with a very weak excuse, especially since Naruto's inner thoughts had been in complete chaos just moments ago. However, he didn't expect Naruto to calm down so quickly and even come up with a reasonable explanation in such a short time.
This meant that Naruto was not only a genius but also possessed an extremely mature mindset and an exceptional ability to adjust his mentality at such a young age—qualities that were truly rare.
As a result, Kakashi grew increasingly satisfied with Naruto. He became even more determined to train Naruto and firmly believed that Naruto would eventually become a powerful ninja.
"Is that so? It seems I was mistaken. Since you already have chakra, there's no need to continue refining it."