Chapter 92: Survival Training? A Trial? No, a Picnic!

The next day.

Five-thirty in the morning.

A faint glow had just begun to appear on the horizon.

Naruto walked downstairs carrying a small bag.

Sasuke was already waiting downstairs, dressed lightly with a small ninja pouch strapped around his waist.

Naruto walked over to him.

"Did you eat breakfast?"

Sasuke shook his head.

"I’m not hungry yet. I’ll eat after finishing Kakashi’s test."

Naruto slapped his forehead, looking completely exasperated.

"Do you remember how late Kakashi-sensei was yesterday? What if he doesn’t show up until noon?"

Sasuke looked doubtful.

"A Konoha Jonin wouldn’t be that unreliable, would he?"

Naruto continued,

"Maybe this is a test of patience."

Hearing this, Sasuke looked at the sky, seeming somewhat troubled.

"But what can I do? It was already five twenty-five when I left home."

Naruto waved his hand and smiled.

"Don’t worry. If he’s late, we’ll just hunt some game and eat."

Training Ground Seven was only a few kilometers from the Forest of Death.

For shinobi, a few kilometers was only a matter of minutes.

There was also a river nearby, and catching a few fish would be easy for Sasuke.

Besides, Naruto had already eaten and had reminded Hinata as well.

Sasuke could take care of himself.

If he really managed to make something delicious, Naruto wouldn’t mind helping him finish some of it.

"Game?"

The corner of Sasuke’s mouth twitched.

Sometimes, he really couldn’t keep up with Naruto’s train of thought.

The two arrived at Training Ground Seven and waited for a while.

"Good morning, Naruto. Sasuke."

Hinata walked over, also dressed lightly with a ninja pouch strapped around her waist.

Sasuke nodded coldly.

"Hinata, let’s rest over there."

Naruto pulled Hinata along, and the two went to a large tree and leaned against it to rest.

Sasuke didn’t follow them.

He very consciously moved nearly a hundred meters away.

The dawn slowly unveiled its curtain...

Seven o’clock.

Sasuke’s face had become extremely dark.

He looked toward Naruto.

Noticing his gaze, Naruto smiled.

"Go ahead. I brought the seasoning."

Sasuke hesitated.

What if Kakashi arrived while he was gone?

But then he thought about what Naruto had said.

If this really was a test and Kakashi didn’t arrive until noon, then what?

After hesitating for ten minutes, inspiration suddenly struck Sasuke!

Why had Naruto suggested eating game?

Wouldn’t it be much faster to simply go to a ramen shop?

Could it be that eating wasn’t the real reason?

Naruto wanted to annoy Kakashi because he was always late!

Having convinced himself that he had figured it out, Sasuke immediately ran toward the Forest of Death.

"Where is Sasuke going?"

The ANBU hidden nearby looked at Sasuke in confusion.

They weren’t sure whether they should follow him.

After thinking about it, Naruto’s safety took priority.

So they decided against it.

He would probably return soon.

Today was simply the instructor’s usual test, after all. Sasuke couldn’t possibly go anywhere dangerous.

Seven-thirty.

The anxious ANBU finally saw Sasuke return.

They breathed a sigh of relief.

Then they saw him carrying a wild boar weighing more than a hundred pounds and running toward the river.

"What are they planning to do?"

The ANBU froze.

Then he suddenly remembered what Naruto had said earlier.

"Seasoning?"

His mind went blank.

"They aren’t actually here to have a picnic, are they?"

The ANBU felt as though his brain could no longer keep up.

Meanwhile, Naruto’s eyes lit up.

Sasuke was actually pretty reliable.

Naruto turned toward Hinata.

"Hinata, we’re having roast pork later."

Hearing this, Hinata swallowed.

"Would that really be okay? What if Kakashi-sensei..."

Although she said that, the light-purple pupils of her eyes were flickering with unmistakable anticipation.

Nine-thirty.

Smoke curled gently into the air, carrying a rich aroma in every direction.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata sat around a pile of glowing coals.

A golden-brown roasted wild boar was being cooked over the fire.

Even the ANBU watching from a distance could smell the delicious aroma drifting toward them.

Ten-thirty.

Naruto held a cleaned kunai and cut into the roasted boar.

Instantly, the aroma intensified.

Juices dripped onto the hot coals with a sizzling sound.

"All right, time to eat."

Naruto directly cut off one of the tender front legs and handed it to Hinata.

Sasuke’s face immediately darkened again.

The wild boar wasn’t particularly large, but it still weighed more than a hundred pounds.

Even Sasuke couldn’t possibly finish it alone.

The three of them probably couldn’t finish it either.

But at a time like this, couldn’t Naruto at least take care of the great hero who had done all the hard work?

Hinata looked at the pork leg in Naruto’s hands and couldn’t help swallowing.

"Give it to Sasuke first."

Although she really wanted it, she felt a little embarrassed and politely refused.

Hearing this, Sasuke finally felt somewhat better.

But Naruto simply smiled.

"Ladies first. A man as manly as Sasuke wouldn’t be petty about something like this.

"Don’t worry. Take it."

Hinata secretly glanced at Sasuke.

Sasuke wore an expression that said Naruto was absolutely right and nodded.

But inwardly—

My heart hurts!

Seeing this, Hinata finally rolled up her sleeve and accepted the pork leg.

"Thank you, Naruto-kun. Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke nodded calmly.

But inwardly—

Even the order of who she thanks puts me after Naruto? This is so frustrating!

Seeing Sasuke sitting there without doing anything, Naruto had no choice but to cut off a hind leg and hand it to him.

"Here. Thanks for all your hard work, Sasuke."

"Hmph!"

Sasuke gave an arrogant snort before accepting it.

Naruto shook his head with a smile.

He cut off another front leg for himself and immediately started tearing into it.

The ANBU in the distance could smell the mouthwatering aroma drifting toward them.

Watching the three of them feast so happily, they finally couldn’t take it anymore.

They could only sorrowfully pull out military rations from their ninja pouches to fill their empty stomachs.

Eleven-oh-five.

"What’s going on?"

Kakashi finally arrived.

The moment he smelled the delicious aroma from a distance, he assumed some villagers were having a barbecue.

He didn’t think much of it.

He was only thinking about Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata.

He wondered whether the three of them had eaten breakfast.

With this delicious aroma filling the air, they probably couldn’t stand it.

A wicked sense of satisfaction rose in Kakashi’s heart.

Whoever was barbecuing nearby was doing an absolutely fantastic job!

How had he never thought of this?

Kakashi narrowed his eyes and happily whistled as he walked through the woods.

His vision suddenly opened up.

The whistling abruptly stopped.

The happiness in his heart instantly sank.

At the riverside of the training ground, three familiar figures were sitting beside a cloud of smoke.

Kakashi instantly froze.

Even with his unique train of thought, he had never imagined that the people roasting meat would be his own students.

From a distance, Naruto noticed Kakashi.

He waved his hand and shouted,

"Kakashi-sensei, you’re late! We already finished the wild boar!"

Kakashi: "..."

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