The Heavens: From Naruto to sign in

The placement for the Rookie Nine had already been finalized.

And tomorrow—

Their Jonin instructors had told them to report to the training ground at five in the morning, sharp.

Oh, and one more thing:

Don't eat breakfast.

The idea behind this ridiculous instruction was to test their coordination and willpower while hungry and drained of energy. Only those who passed would be deemed qualified to become actual teammates.

But—

Yoruha knew his friends better than that.

They didn't need to be put through that kind of manipulation to prove their bond.

So—

To stop them from falling into the trap, Yoruha told them the truth straight up.

And gave them a single order:

Sleep well tonight. Show up at the training ground before ten. And whatever you do—eat a solid breakfast.

After all…

By noon, any lunchboxes brought by those Jonin instructors would be ice-cold.

When the others heard the real reason behind the "bell test," there was a brief silence.

Did their bond still need to be "tested"?

Not in the slightest.

Sure, in the original timeline, the Rookie Nine didn't all get along at first.

But that had all changed now.

Thanks to Yoruha—and maybe also three years of endless barbecue parties—the group had already become tight-knit friends.

As the saying goes—

There's no grudge a barbecue can't fix.

And if one does exist? Then you probably didn't eat enough.

"If that's the case… then I won't hold back!"

Naruto was the first to reach for the sake bottle and took a bold swig.

PFFT!

The instant the fiery liquor hit his throat, he looked like a dragon swallowing napalm. The intense burn tore through his chest like a firestorm.

He immediately spat the rest out, coughing and yelling.

"What the hell, Yoruha?! Is this what you drink every day? It's worse than bitter medicine! What kind of masochist are you?!"

Inuzuka Kiba took the bottle next, curious.

He sipped.

Then clenched his jaw, struggling not to spit it out.

But his face said it all.

Even Akamaru looked concerned.

"…Let's just stick to barbecue," Choji mumbled, grabbing a fist-sized slab of grilled meat and shoving it into his mouth.

Truly spoken wisdom.

Alcohol may be a mystery to children, but grilled meat?

Grilled meat is truth.

With no one else daring to try it, Yoruha could only sigh dramatically.

He weaved a quick hand sign.

Poof.

A shadow clone appeared beside him, identical in every way.

The clone picked up a second bottle of sake.

They clinked their glasses in perfect sync.

Then looked at each other, equally disheartened.

"Sigh… It's so hard to find a proper drinking buddy these days."

Early the next morning.

Uchiha Sasuke arrived at the training ground right on time, exactly as instructed by his assigned Jonin, Hatake Kakashi.

He stood there alone.

Brows furrowed at first.

Then… the corners of his mouth curled up slightly in pride.

Hmph.

So I really am the only one with a sense of discipline?

Teaming up with these slackers?

What a joke.

"And that guy Kakashi… he shows up looking half-asleep and probably naps through his own missions."

"He's obviously a con artist. I'll show him."

"When they get here… I'll make sure they see what a real Uchiha looks like."

Time passed.

One hour.

Two hours.

Three.

Four.

Now it had been five hours.

Sasuke was starving.

His stomach was caving in on itself.

But there was still no sign of his teammates.

By the time it was ten o'clock, he was half-dead from hunger.

Then—

Finally—

Sakura and Naruto strolled up to the training ground, laughing and chatting like they were on a school field trip.

"Yo! Mornin', Sass!" Naruto grinned.

"Good morning, Sasuke-kun~" Sakura chimed in. "Why do you look so sluggish? Didn't sleep well?"

"Today's the team test—you're not gonna drag us down, are you?"

Sasuke's eyelid twitched.

Excuse me?!

"You" think "I'M" going to hold you back?

I'm Uchiha Sasuke.

Future avenger.

Soon-to-be legendary shinobi.

The man who will one day destroy that man.

And you think I'm the weak link here?!