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Naruto was surprised when Hiruzen appeared. He didn't expect the Old Man to make an entrance, especially at this moment.
But hearing his question, Naruto answered without hesitation. His mind constantly soaked the information that his Shadow Clones were releasing.
Naruto stood up and spoke.
"Team Seven: Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, and Kiba Inuzuka. Two Heavy Hitters + a tracker with a third member acting as the brain of the team."
"Team Eight: Naruto Uzumaki, Hinata Hyuga and Nara Shikamaru. Two Heavy Hitters + a tracker with a third member acting as the brain of the team."
"Team Ten: Choji Akimichi, Ino Yamanaka and Shino Aburame. One Heavy Hitter, One Silent Killer, and one brain as well as Tracker of the Team. Though Shino can also act as a Silent Killer and also a Heavy Hitter."
At this moment, the entire class was silent but also surprised. One silver hair jonin holding a book in his hand asked.
"Two Heavy hitters you say but you are the dead last of the class. Aren't you contracting yourself?"
Naruto didn't say a word instead raised his hands and made Tiger Seal.
Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof!
Suddenly, nearly hundreds of shadow clones appeared, filling the entire classroom.
"Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu, an extremely Chakra taxing A-rank Jutsu that doesn't require Chakra Control but requires Jonin Level Chakra Reserves."
"Suitable for information gathering and distraction. And in my case, one from a hundred shadow clones can release at least Five C-Rank Jutsu including but not limited to higher rank with lower numbers."
Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof!
Suddenly, the entire classroom was filled with smoke as all of those clones disappeared.
Naruto looked at the Third Hokage and said.
"Does my reasoning satisfy you, Old Man?"
"Naruto, show some respect to Lord Hokage." Iruka immediately shouted.
"Respect doesn't need to come from words as long as there is respect in my heart. After that incident, you should know words and behavior can be least trusted in our profession, Iruka Sensei." Naruto spoke and sat down.
"But!" Iruka knew he was right but he still wanted Naruto to show some manners.
"He is right, Iruka. Today's friend can become tomorrow's traitor. But, that shouldn't come in the way of friendship. I believe none of you will let such mentality affect your friendship."
Hiruzen looked at the class and spoke with a stern tone.
"Now, behind me are your Jonin Sensei. Since this matter only concerns Team Seven, Eight, and Ten, I would ask you three to make a decision."
"If you think Naruto's opinion is right, raise your hand. If not, then we will continue with the previous team selection."
After a few seconds of thinking, the lady with red eyes and the smoking man raised their hands.
"Good! With the vote of two to one, we will change the teams as Naruto suggested. I hope you will understand Naruto's reasoning and work with your team proficiently."
"We, the shinobi of Konoha always believe in the Spirit of Friendship and collective power of a Team."
Hiruzen gave his decision and disappeared with a swirl of leaves.
"Ahem! If that's the case, then I think Jonin Sensei can start taking their teams."
"Team one with me!" "Team two with me!"
This continued until Team Seven. Suddenly, everyone turned their heads at him in silence.
"Ahh! Is it already my turn? Team Seven, to the rooftop!"
"Team Eight, with me!" "Team Ten, with me!"
With that, Naruto and his team walked out of the classroom. Team Eight followed Kurenai.
While walking, Naruto noticed Hinata's expression and frowned. Just like he said, she was a powerful girl but also extremely shy.
He didn't know what to do about it but he wasn't going to back down that easily.
"Hinata, you know everything I said in the class is true. You will have no difficulty in defeating Sakura if you just get angered by her. Though in your case, being angry seems highly difficult."
"So, for now, just be confident in your skill. As for motivation, I kinda get the feeling that you already have that."
Hearing his words, Kurenai gently smiled and continued walking while Hinata was furiously blushing.
But she also understood his words. She knew that she was extremely shy and had no confidence.
Suddenly, Naruto's expression got serious as he spoke.
"Because if you don't get confident and serious, failure of the mission and our injuries will be the best-case scenario. In the worst case, someone might even die."
Suddenly, the atmosphere got heavy. Kurenai couldn't help but turn around and glare at Naruto for being so blunt.
"It's such a drag but Naruto is right. You are an extremely strong kunoichi. You just need to be confident in your skills as a ninja."
Shikamaru heavily sighed and spoke.
"Don't worry, Hinata! As we are a team, we will slowly work on your confidence and shyness. But to do that, we have to be a solid genin team which we are not."
Kurenai spoke.
"Why not?" Naruto wasn't aware of the second exam so he simply asked.
"Because there is another exam that you must pass to become a genin. If not, then you will return to the academy or remain as a Genin without any Sensei to help you."
"Every sensei has different kinds of tests. My test is simple. You just have to find the real me within three hours."
Kurenai explained with a gentle smile on her face.
"What do you mean real you? Aren't you in front of us or is it a shadow clone?" Naruto asked.
Shikamaru's mind suddenly snapped as he turned to Hinata and asked.
"Use your Byakugan to see through her!"
Hinata was a bit slow but she still activated her Byakugan and glared hard. The veins near her eyes started to bulge as she spoke with a horrified expression.
"She is not here. This is a Genjutsu."
"What?" Naruto panicked a bit.
"What happened? You don't seem like someone who panics so much." Shikamaru looked at Naruto with a suspicious gaze and asked.
"I am zero at Genjutsu. Do you know what that means? I don't know Genjutsu. I don't even know how to dispel them. My Chakra Control is barely 10%."
Naruto was panicking a lot.
But, Shikamaru simply rested his hand on Naruto's shoulder and said.
"Don't worry, we will pull you out of Genjutsu if you need it. Besides, this is a test to find her, not to dispel Genjutsu."
"H-h-h-he is right, Naruto-kun." Hinata shuttered a bit before agreeing with Shikamaru. She was still blushing furiously.
"Okay, I will depend on you guys to find her. But, how can we find her in the entire village?" Naruto asked.
Shikamaru thought for a moment and said.
"You made those clones before and said that they can be used for information gathering, right?"
Naruto nodded.
"Shadow Clones upon dispelling throw all of their memories into my mind."
"Then, make as many as you can. Spread them around and search for any kind of clue about her. Ask people or anyone who can tell us about her favorite places and where she could be."
"As soon as you get the information, we will rush to that place and use Hinata' Byakugan to find her."
"Alright!" Naruto nodded.
[Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu]
[Transformation Jutsu]
Hundreds and Hundreds of shadow clones appeared and the next moment, they all used Transformation Jutsu.
"I didn't expect you to think of that. With transformation, other Jonin or her friends won't hesitate to answer your questions."
Shikamaru nodded his head when he saw them transform.
Naruto suddenly chuckled with an embarrassed expression.
"I didn't think of that. People of the village do not like so I thought using Transformation Jutsu could help me get information with ease."
Shikamaru and Hinata frowned at this revelation, both knowing this already. They didn't know why others hated Naruto but they didn't care. They would still be Naruto's friend.
But, it didn't mean they would want to remain silent about it.
"It's okay. Now, I know why I am hated and I don't care. I will one day make them respect me and help me become a Hokage."
Naruto patted their shoulders and spoke with a confident tone and that same usual grin on his face.
"You are so troublesome." Shikamaru heavily sighed but still smiled.
"Even so, I am glad that you didn't change that much."
"M-m-m-me too, Naruto-kun." Hinata blushed furiously but still spoke with a less shuttering.
Inside the Hokage's Office,
Hiruzen smiled while looking at the crystal ball. He was able to listen to their conversation and this only made him happier.
"Although you used your logic to separate a team, I believe you got the team that you needed the most."
"And, your teammates got someone they needed the most."
He chuckled while saying so.