NARUTO: EXPOSED BY THE QUESTION AND ANSWER SYSTEM

Team Assessment? I Abstain! (For Flowers!!)

As Kakashi finally arrived, Naruto couldn't hold back his frustration.

"Ah! Sensei, you're so late! We've been waiting here forever!"

Hearing Naruto's complaint, Sakura turned her head, arms crossed, and added her own grievances.

"Yeah, Kakashi-sensei! We haven't even had breakfast yet! Making us wait this long is just cruel!"

Sasuke, who had been silently observing, shifted his gaze toward Kakashi but remained quiet, his expression unreadable.

Kakashi let out a dry cough before casually scratching the back of his head.

"Sorry, I got lost on the path of life."

Naruto twitched in frustration, while Sakura sighed in exasperation.

Unbothered, Kakashi reached into his pouch and pulled out three small bells, letting them dangle in his hand with a soft jingling sound.

"Alright, since everyone's here, let's get started."

He held up the bells for them to see.

"Your task is simple—take one of these bells from me. Fail, and you'll be tied to a log while I eat my lunch in front of you. Ready? Then let's begin!"

"Wait, Kakashi-sensei, the four of us—why are there only three bells?"

Naruto, standing beside him, pointed at the small silver bells in Kakashi's hand and asked, confused.

Kakashi casually dangled the bells with a smirk. "That's because only three of you can pass. The one who fails to get a bell… gets no lunch."

Hearing this, Naruto's face fell. "What?! That's not fair! I didn't eat breakfast this morning!" He clutched his stomach dramatically, wailing.

Kakashi's eye curved in amusement. "Not only that," he continued, "but if I'm not satisfied with your performance, you'll fail the test and be sent back to the Academy."

At these words, even Sasuke's expression darkened. There was no way he was going back. If he failed here, how could he ever get strong enough to defeat him—his brother? His grip tightened into a fist.

Meanwhile, Naruto's despair deepened. "No way!!" he groaned, clutching his head and swaying back and forth in exaggerated frustration.

"Boom!!"

"Stop arguing, you're so annoying!"

The impatient Haruno Sakura, fed up with Naruto's constant chatter, clenched her fist and landed a powerful punch on his head. Naruto yelped in pain, rubbing the sore spot where he'd been struck.

"Alright! If no one has any objections, let's begin!"

Kakashi Hatake surveyed the three Genin in front of him, shaking his head slightly at their antics. As soon as his voice fell, Sasuke Uchiha wasted no time, swiftly disappearing into the nearby woods.

Upon seeing Sasuke retreat, Sakura hesitated for only a moment before quickly following him, leaving only Naruto and another student, Kaito, standing in the open field.

"Huh? You two seriously plan to take me head-on?" Kakashi asked, his visible eye curving slightly in amusement.

Naruto staying behind didn't surprise him; he already understood the boy's reckless nature. But Kaito's decision was unexpected. While Kaito had been an average student at the Ninja Academy, he wasn't the type to make such an impulsive move.

"Heh! What's the matter, sensei? Are you scared?" Naruto smirked, wiping his nose with his thumb. "If you're scared, just hand over the bells already!"

"Sensei, I forfeit," Kaito suddenly declared.

With a relaxed sigh, he sat down against a tree stump, crossing his arms.

"Huh?! F-Forfeit??"

Kakashi blinked in surprise. In all the years he'd conducted this test, this was the first time he'd ever seen a student simply give up without even trying.

"Bang! Bang!"

The sound of two heavy thuds echoed through the clearing as Kakashi turned toward the source. He spotted Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, who had just entered the woods, now lying sprawled on the ground.

Kakashi's visible eye twitched slightly as he quickly deduced the reason behind their sudden fall. It was likely that Kaito's words had shocked them so much that they lost their balance mid-movement.

Even Naruto Uzumaki was momentarily stunned by Kaito's statement, turning his head to stare at him in disbelief.

"Ahem." Kakashi cleared his throat and addressed Kaito with a helpless expression. "If you give up this test, the entire team will be disqualified."

He sighed inwardly. From the academy records, Kakashi knew that this student was notoriously lazy, often avoiding physical exertion whenever possible. Even during the academy's practical combat assessments, Kaito had only participated when a teacher forced him to.

Because of that, no one really knew how strong he was. Kakashi had initially hoped to gauge Kaito's abilities through this survival test, but he hadn't expected the boy to attempt to forfeit the moment the test began.

Now, left with no choice, Kakashi had to emphasize the consequences for the entire team. He could only hope that Kaito wouldn't insist on quitting—otherwise, this situation would become even more troublesome.