Sasuke relied on his speed and basic techniques, but Lee was able to match and even dominate with his pure taijutsu.
"Sasuke!" Sakura cried out anxiously when she saw Sasuke starting to be pushed back.
Sasuke was shocked.
'He's only using taijutsu? How can he be this fast?'
He was forced to activate his Sharingan. With the Sharingan, he could read Lee's movements, but his body still struggled to keep up with Lee's incredible speed.
Sasuke was thrown back again.
As Lee prepared to launch a finishing blow by unwrapping the bandages on his hands, "I will prove with this move, that hard work can surpass talent!"
Suddenly, a pinwheel-shaped shuriken flew out and pinned Lee's bandages to the wall.
"That's far enough, Lee!" A giant ninja turtle suddenly appeared between them.
Lee immediately stopped his attack, leaped back, and landed beside the turtle.
Sasuke also fell sitting, gasping for breath. He was utterly defeated.
"Ma-Master... You saw everything?" Lee's voice sounded fearful.
"A talking turtle? And Thick Brows calls it Master?" Naruto muttered in disbelief in his mind.
"The ninja world is indeed full of surprises, Naruto-kun," Hana replied, also slightly amused.
The turtle began to scold Lee.
Suddenly, a puff of smoke appeared on top of the turtle's shell.
"YOSH! You truly don't understand the spirit of youth!"
A ninja with an appearance very similar to Lee – even thicker eyebrows, the same tight green jumpsuit, and sparkling teeth – appeared in a strange pose.
"His eyebrows... are even thicker!" Sakura commented in horror.
"A truly unique master and disciple pair," Hana thought.
"Gai-sensei!" Lee exclaimed respectfully.
"LEE! You're such an idiot!" Might Guy threw a punch at Lee's face, sending him flying.
"That move is forbidden, Lee! You!" Guy looked very sad.
"Gai-sensei!" Lee immediately panicked.
"It's alright, never mind, Lee! Youth is full of mistakes!" Guy cried emotionally, hugging Lee.
"Sensei! You're so kind!" Lee also started crying.
"In that case, as punishment, run a hundred laps around the village facing the sunset!"
"Yes, Sensei!"
"Wait!"
Sakura interrupted.
"What about the Chunin Exams? The registration deadline is almost up!"
"Oh, right!"
Guy realized.
"In that case, the punishment is postponed until after the Chunin Exams!"
"Yes, Gai-sensei!"
"LEE! THIS IS THE SPIRIT OF YOUTH!"
"YES, GAI-SENSEI!" The two hugged again while crying.
Sakura couldn't take it anymore.
"I'm going to submit my form now!" She immediately ran off.
"Me too!" Naruto followed.
Sasuke, after staring at the two green figures with a strange look, also walked away.
"Uchiha Sasuke!" Lee called out, stopping Sasuke's steps.
"I was lying earlier. The strongest in my year might be on my own team. I came to defeat him. And you, are one of my targets too. Be prepared."
Lee then leaped away.
Sasuke clenched his fists tightly.
"The Uchiha clan isn't that great after all, huh, a complete defeat," Naruto taunted Sasuke.
"Shut up, Dobe! Next time, I'll definitely beat him!" Sasuke retorted fiercely.
"You saw his hands earlier, right?" Naruto said more seriously, remembering Lee's hands covered in training scars.
"He trains very hard, Naruto-kun. Every day, relentlessly. Harder than you can imagine," Hana added.
After a moment of silence, Sasuke smirked faintly.
"Interesting. These Chunin Exams are getting more and more interesting."
He then looked at Naruto. "You too, don't you dare lose."
"Of course not!"
The three of them finally arrived in front of the real room 301. There, Kakashi-sensei was already waiting.
"Yo," Kakashi greeted. "You finally made it."
"Kakashi-sensei! Why are you here?" Naruto asked.
"Just a little worried about you guys," Kakashi replied with his signature smile.
"We're fine! We're great ninjas! Maybe only Sasuke needs worrying about, Kakashi-sensei!" Naruto provoked Sasuke again, who just snorted indifferently.
"Ah, Sakura's here too, I see. With this, you can officially register for the Chunin Exams," Kakashi said.
"Huh? What do you mean?" Sakura was confused.
"Actually, this exam must be taken as a team of three," Kakashi explained.
"But Kakashi-sensei, you said it was our choice whether to participate or not? So that was a lie?" Sakura asked, looking at Kakashi suspiciously.
"Well, you could say that. If I told you the truth, Sasuke and Naruto would definitely force you to join, right?"
Kakashi said.
"But now, the three of you have come here of your own free will. Sakura, Sasuke, Naruto... welcome to the Chunin Exams." Kakashi spread his arms.
The three looked at each other, then a new determination burned in their eyes.
"Naruto-kun, this is just the beginning. Show them your true strength," Hana whispered enthusiastically.
"Yosh! Chunin Exams, here I come, dattebayo!" Naruto exclaimed.
With firm steps, Team 7 opened the door to room 301, ready to face their first challenge.
.... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...
Pushing open the large door of Room 301, Team 7 stepped inside.
The atmosphere inside the room immediately felt different. Dozens of pairs of Genin eyes from various villages stared at them, some with curious gazes, others with undisguised hostility.
The air felt heavy and full of pressure.
Naruto, as Hana-neechan had told him many times, tried hard to behave well and not be noisy.
"Remember, Naruto-kun," Hana's voice echoed in his mind moments before they entered, "first impressions are important. Don't shout or act silly. Observe your surroundings calmly. These Chunin Exams are not a playground."
Usually, Naruto would immediately shout to find his classmates from the Academy – Shikamaru, Choji, Kiba, Shino, Hinata – and possibly cause a bit of a commotion.
The desire for a brief reunion with his academy friends was there, especially after not seeing them in such an atmosphere for a long time.
However, he knew now was not the right time.
So, he just gave a faint smile and a brief nod to a few familiar faces, then followed Sasuke and Sakura to find a place to await further instructions.
Sasuke, as usual, wore a flat, cold expression, observing his surroundings with a sharp gaze. Sakura looked a little tense but tried to appear confident.
However, it seemed that even without Naruto, who was usually the center of commotion, a young man with glasses, silver hair, and a Konoha forehead protector still approached the crowd of rookies.
He was Kabuto Yakushi.
He greeted Sasuke amicably (who was currently being pestered by Ino trying to get his attention, while Sakura glared back annoyed), and also interacted with Shikamaru's group, Kiba, and the others.
"Yo, you're the new batch, right?"
Kabuto greeted with a friendly smile.
"These Chunin Exams are tough, you know. This is already my seventh time taking them."
He then pulled out a stack of ninja info cards.
"If you need information about other participants, I have the data here."
Naruto observed Kabuto from a distance.
'He said this is his seventh exam?' Naruto thought.
'Hana-neechan said, people who retake exams too many times might be genuinely incapable, or... have other motives.'
Naruto decided to keep his distance and just observe.
Everything proceeded as Hana knew from the anime, until finally, a man with a face full of scars and an intimidating gaze entered the room, followed by several Chunin.
His presence instantly silenced the entire room, which had been somewhat noisy.
He was Morino Ibiki, the proctor for the first stage.
After a brief, suffocating pause, Morino Ibiki continued in his deep voice:
"Alright, the exam will now officially begin. Candidates, please submit your registration forms and find your seats according to the number I give you, then sit down."
As he spoke, he gestured to his assistant beside him to start distributing number plates and collecting the forms.
One by one, the Genin came forward, submitted their forms, and received their seat numbers.
Naruto got his number and looked for his seat.
Coincidentally, he got a seat right next to Hinata Hyuga, who immediately blushed shyly and looked down when Naruto sat beside her.
"Yo, Hinata!" Naruto greeted briefly with a small smile, trying to stay calm as Hana had advised.
Hinata could only mumble a greeting in reply with a soft voice.
After all the candidates were seated neatly, Morino Ibiki spoke again, his voice echoing in the silent room:
"Next, I will distribute the exam papers for this written test."
He waved his hand, and a thick stack of exam papers began to be distributed by the proctors, falling onto each candidate's desk like snowflakes carrying fate.
Sakura glanced worriedly at Naruto.
Usually, written exams were Naruto's biggest weakness.
She was worried Naruto would get a zero and hinder their team's chances of passing.
But, after seeing Naruto's face, which looked so calm and focused, unlike his usual panicked or complaining self, Sakura was a little surprised.
Could it be... Naruto had studied? Or at least, knew what he had to do?
Somehow, seeing Naruto's unusual calmness, Sakura decided to trust her teammate this time.
'Alright, I'll focus on myself. Naruto must have his own way,' Sakura thought, trying to strengthen her resolve.