Just kidding, can China's food heritage really be fake?
Of course not! The flavors crafted over generations of culinary mastery were bound to be delicious.
"Uh... Sakura, give me a piece too. I haven't had breakfast yet."
Sasuke hesitated for a long time before finally stepping forward, feigning arrogance as he walked up to Sakura. Despite his usual composure, curiosity had gotten the better of him—he wanted to taste the stinky tofu.
Naruto watched as the two of them happily ate, feeling a sense of satisfaction himself. With that, he decided to try his luck again and hit the lottery button.
[Anger Points -100]
[Congratulations! You have won a bowl of Chinese gourmet stinky tofu.]
"Stinky tofu again?"
Naruto blinked at the notification.
"Sasuke, this bowl is for you. No need to share."
He grabbed the small bowl that appeared and handed it to Sasuke.
"Oh, really?"
Sasuke's eyes lit up immediately. He took the bowl from Naruto without hesitation and dug in. Earlier, Sakura had only given him a single piece—this time, he wasn't holding back.
[Anger Points -100]
[Congratulations! You have won a bowl of Chinese gourmet stinky tofu.]
"Again? Are you kidding me?"
Naruto felt a little annoyed.
A few bowls of stinky tofu were fine, but getting them over and over again was starting to feel like a scam.
He was saving his anger points in hopes of drawing a powerful ninjutsu, not becoming a food vendor.
Setting the small bowl aside, he continued drawing the lottery.
[Anger Points -100]
[Congratulations! You have obtained Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet Jutsu.]
"Finally, a jutsu!"
Naruto was overjoyed.
Earth Dragon Bullet was a B-rank jutsu—definitely a useful technique.
[Anger Points -100]
[Congratulations! You have won a bowl of Chinese gourmet snail noodles.]
"Oh, come on! What kind of scam is this?!"
Naruto was so frustrated he wanted to flip a table. First, endless stinky tofu, and now snail noodles? Where were his ninjutsu?!
In the next eleven draws, aside from obtaining the Earth Release: Earth Pillar Spear—a C-rank jutsu—the rest were all stinky tofu and snail noodles.
Even though he had somewhat expected this, Naruto couldn't believe his luck was this terrible.
"Naruto, where did you get all this stinky tofu?"
After eating five bowls of stinky tofu and one bowl of snail noodles, Sakura finally noticed something strange.
When Naruto arrived, he was empty-handed. Yet, somehow, an endless supply of food kept appearing.
It was beyond suspicious.
"Hiccup~~"
"That's right, Naruto," Sasuke added, burping as he patted his full stomach. "You didn't have anything with you earlier."
"Uh… Just eat what's in front of you. Why do you have to question everything?"
Naruto hesitated, not sure how to explain it.
Thankfully, at that moment, Kakashi suddenly appeared at the edge of the wooden bridge.
"Good morning, everyone. I accidentally got lost again, so I came a little late."
"Shut up!"
Sasuke and Sakura clenched their fists and roared angrily in unison.
Naruto, however, gave Kakashi an understanding nod. "Ah, I get you, Kakashi-sensei. That happens to me too—sometimes I get lost on the way to my own house!" he said with a completely serious face.
The other two turned to stare at him.
"Naruto… You live alone. In a single-room apartment."
"Exactly! You see how bad it is?!"
Instead of being embarrassed, Kakashi paused. Slowly, his visible eye softened with deep understanding.
For the first time, he truly saw Naruto—not as a student, not as a prankster, but as a kindred spirit.
Someone who, just like him, had mastered the ancient and sacred ninja technique of Bullshitting Your Way Out of Responsibility.
He gave Naruto a solemn nod.
Naruto nodded back.
A bond was formed that day—one beyond words.
Sasuke and Sakura, meanwhile, were just wondering what the hell they were witnessing.
Then, Kakashi's nose wrinkled as he caught a strange smell in the air.
"Huh? What's that awful smell?"
Naruto smirked, picking up the last bowl of stinky tofu from the guardrail and handing it to Kakashi.
"Kakashi-sensei, this is a special delicacy I prepared just for you. Try it."
Kakashi made the same disgusted face that Sakura and Sasuke had earlier.
"Naruto… You're trying to mess with me, aren't you?"
"No way, sensei! This is really delicious. I ate five bowls myself."
Sakura nodded, pointing at the empty bowls on the ground. "He's not lying. I ate some too. If I weren't so full, I'd eat more."
"Is that… really true?"
Kakashi still looked skeptical, but seeing the sincerity in their expressions, he reluctantly picked up a piece of tofu with his chopsticks and took a bite.
After chewing a few times, his eyes widened in surprise.
In the next moment, he snatched the bowl from Naruto's hands and started eating in big mouthfuls.
This stuff was unexpectedly delicious!
Once he finished eating, Kakashi wiped his mouth and got back on topic.
"Alright, I have something important to tell you."
"The annual Chunin Exam is about to begin."
He pulled out three registration forms and handed them to the trio.
"Whether or not you choose to participate is up to you. However, registration must be done in teams of three. If even one of you doesn't want to participate, the other two will have to forfeit."
This was an instruction from the Third Hokage himself. Hiruzen Sarutobi believed that the newly graduated Genin had shown outstanding potential and should be encouraged to take the exam.
"I'm in."
Naruto looked at the registration form in his hands, a confident smirk forming on his lips. With his current strength, passing the exam would be a breeze.
"Me too. Of course, I'm participating."
Sasuke's eyes burned with determination. He wasn't going to miss this opportunity.
"Um… But can I really pass the Chunin Exam?"
Sakura hesitated, feeling uncertain. Compared to Naruto and Sasuke, she was clearly the weakest of the three.
Although she excelled in chakra control, it didn't help much in combat.
"You'll be fine, Sakura. Besides, aren't Sasuke and I here with you?"
Naruto patted her shoulder reassuringly.
"Yeah, we'll help you," Sasuke added, uncharacteristically encouraging. Over the past few months, he had started to develop a better impression of Sakura.
"Mmm! Then I'll trust you two!"
With her teammates' support, Sakura nodded firmly. With Naruto and Sasuke at her side, the exam didn't seem so scary anymore.
The three quickly filled out their registration forms and handed them back to Kakashi.
"Alright, you three can go home now. You won't be taking any missions for the next few days."
"Use this time to improve your strength and prepare for the exam."
Kakashi took the forms, smiling in satisfaction. He had already expected them to participate—Naruto and Sasuke were too competitive to pass up an opportunity like this.
With a swift movement, he disappeared.
Only Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura remained on the bridge, exchanging glances.
"Well, I'm heading home. See you guys later."
Naruto waved and walked off. Now that he had free time, he planned to focus on training his taijutsu.
(End of Chapter)