Naruto Shippuden: The Legendary Team

"This looks like a good spot!"

Naruto collapsed onto a heap of grass, a silly smile painted on his face. The location he found seemed convenient enough; it was reminiscent of a cave, but carefully camouflaged among the large trees. The entrance was small, but it was big enough for them to fit inside.

Sakura, however, felt a little anxious. She started to search around the relatively small space, looking for a makeshift cover for the hole which they slid into.

"Ah, here!" she exclaimed, picking up what appeared to be a part of a tree's trunk which was peeled off. She then proceeded to cover it against the hole when Sasuke's voice suddenly stopped her.

"Wait." He walked past her, intending to go outside. "We won't be able to see much inside if you do that, especially because it's nearing dusk. I'll go and scout around the perimeter in case there are some teams nearby. All three of us have flashlights, so lack of illumination isn't a problem."

Naruto grinned, sending him a thumbs up. "Nice one, Sasuke!"

"Sakura." Sasuke turned to his female teammate, eyeing the slightly crestfallen expression on her face. "You're a Water Type, aren't you?"

She looked at him in surprise. "Y—Yes," she stammered, taken aback by his abrupt remark.

He gave her what seemed to be an encouraging smile. "I'm sure after covering the entrance, it'll get hot inside because of the compressed space. Maybe you and Naruto can work something out. He's a Wind Type."

He left, not noticing the pretty blush staining her cheeks.

"Huh? What did he mean by that?" Naruto inquired, perplexed.

Sakura shook her head, as if trying to will the blush away from her face. "I think… Naruto," she said suddenly, "do you know how to execute a Wind technique?"

Naruto blinked. "Uh… Yeah. Yeah, I do. Why?"

Sakura stepped over to him and kneeled, looking at him straight in the eyes. Naruto turned slightly pink at their proximity, knowing that his crush on her was still evident, though it was fading away little by little, transitioning into something more…

Either romantic or platonic, he didn't know. But she still had an effect on him, whether it may be large or miniscule.

"Can you do a basic kind?"

"…Basic?" Naruto thought back to when his father had time to teach him a few tricks. One of those was knowing at least one basic technique of Wind Release as well as executing it with various styles. Since Minato was an efficient teacher, Naruto grasped it easily. Of course, that was largely due to the fact that he already knew powerful Wind techniques, like Rasenshuriken. "Yeah, I know some."

Naruto held out his hand, palm up, and flawlessly created a small tornado. Sakura stared at it in awe, her eyes dancing around the intricate movements of the wind technique.

"Then… can you alter the wind's temperature?" she asked.

Naruto frowned. "Temperature?" Did wind even have a temperature?

"Yes. Temperature." Sakura eyed him. "Wind, when executed, doesn't normally have a fixed temperature of its own because it doesn't have one, but it can be influenced by external factors. Like, for example, if we're in the Snow Country, the Wind Technique blends in with the surroundings, and thus it even decreases the temperature even more. The same goes if we're in Suna. The winds there are normally very hot, so if you execute a Wind technique there, of course it would feel very warm."

Naruto blinked. "A—Ah!" he exclaimed. He didn't quite get the technical explanation, but he did get the gist of it. "So the temperature of wind kinda depends on the temperature of its surroundings?"

Sakura nodded, a smile on her face. "Yes. That's exactly it. And that's also why I asked you if you can alter the temperature of your wind technique. Because if we hide ourselves in here and cover the entrance hole, it'll undoubtedly become very warm inside."

"Oh!" Naruto stared at her. "So you're asking me to cool down our surroundings?"

"Yes!" Sakura said, proud that he managed to understand.

"Well, why didn't ya say so from the start?" Naruto gleefully went to work, excited on testing out the theory. "Don't worry, Sakura-chan! I can do this!"

"Uh, wait—" Sakura interjected, placing a hand on his wrist. "It's impossible for Wind affinities to do it on their own. Let me help you out." She smiled as she held out her own hand beside his, her palm facing upwards. "I'm a Water Type, and water and wind work well together."

Naruto stared at her, amazed. "Wow… You're so smart, Sakura-chan," he praised.

"Of course," she said smugly, and he noted in amus.e.m.e.nt mixed with pride that her spunky side was finally starting to come out. "Did you know that an Ice Release technique requires both Wind and Water affinities?"

• • •

When Sasuke was about to trudge back to the makeshift cave, he suddenly sensed an unknown chakra rushing his way.

Sasuke broke into a run, hoping to warn his teammates and fend off the attacker together.

However, there was a sudden rush of water coming at him. Sasuke gritted his teeth, then formed a single hand seal.

"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!"

The giant fireball diminished the rushing waves, but there were still more, like a dam broke by the ocean, spilling water like a tide.

'To be able to amass this much water without any source of it nearby...' Sasuke narrowed his eyes. 'He must be very strong...!'

When the water pooled around him, surrounding him, he prepared to conjure a lightning attack from his body and project it into the water.

However, there was something wrong.

'What — ?!' Sasuke's eyes widened immensely. 'This water seems strange...'

'No, it's... draining my chakra...!'

"You feel it now?" a c.o.c.ky voice sounded from nearby. "That feeling of helplessness in the water... with your chakra draining away..."

"Who are you?" Sasuke growled. "Show yourself!"

"Well, since you're so desperate..."

Almost immediately, three figures appeared in the vicinity, their forms hunching by the branches of the trees.

Sasuke stared at them. All three of them looked severely identical; they had the same plain features, along with similar brown hair and black eyes.

They wore the headband of the Hidden Mist Village around their necks.

'Siblings, huh...?' Sasuke could sense above average reserves from them and quickly made a hypothesis of his own. 'Their chakra supply individually could not possibly be capable of conjuring this much water. Perhaps there was a trick to it somehow...'

But for now, he had to get out of the water, and fast. His reserves were starting to seriously deplete. He tried to take out a kunai from his pouch, but failed when the water came up to his neck. Fatigue began to seep into his body.

"Hahaha! Now, if you don't wanna die here, tell us where your teammates are!" one of the boys declared.

"And show us your scrolls!" the others added.

Sasuke ignored them, his eyes darting around, trying to find a possible loophole out of this technique. It was too impossible for the water to reach every inch of the wide forest, so there must be a barrier of some sort that held all the water in place. Like a box, or a sphere.

"Hey!" His opponents began to grow impatient. "I said, tell us where your teammates are, punk!"

Sasuke turned to them slowly.

"I don't need to," he said simply.

"Wha — ?"

Suddenly, the familiar whirring sound of the Rasengan reverberated in the surroundings. The triplets froze in place, startled by the unexpected sound.

"Take this!" Naruto's voice yelled, striking one of them from the back.

"Aniki!" the other two exclaimed.

"Sasuke-kun!"

Sasuke swivelled towards the sound of Sakura's voice. She was standing not too far away from him, making a single hand seal while her other hand gripped a kunai.

"I can sense a small area here where the chakra is concentrated the lowest," she explained, her eyes narrowed in concentration. "If I focus on creating a hole right here using my Water affinity, I'll be able to get you out of there!"

Sasuke nodded, trusting her. He was already starting to run out of energy. 'Damn... This technique is troublesome!'

Naruto proceeded to knock out one of the opponents, then darted his head around, clenching his jaw. "What the — where's the last one?!"

In just a few minutes, Sakura opened a gate for Sasuke to come out of, the water gushing out of the barrier. He got out, panting.

"Thanks," he told her.

She beamed. "I'm glad you're okay, Sasuke-kun —"

Another great wave abruptly interrupted her, sending her careening back towards the barrier. Sasuke instinctively groped for her hand, but she slipped away too fast. He watched in shock as the gate she opened mended closed as quickly as it could.

One of the triplets was hunching by a nearby branch, grinning snarkily. "Got her," he said smugly. "Well, it looks like we didn't count on there being an intelligent Water user in the Exams."

"Release Sakura-chan!" Naruto growled, coming to a stand beside Sasuke.

"I will not release her until you show me your scrolls first." The boy laid a hand on his hip c.o.c.kily, apparently thinking that he had the upper hand. "If you're planning on attacking me, it's useless. If you defeat me, there's no way you can get her out of there. Only someone who can handle their Water affinity well can have a possibility of detecting an opening."

"Ugh..." Naruto looked like he wanted to strangle him. However, Sakura was first priority. Grumbling under his breath, he pushed his hand inside his pouch and took out the scroll.

Sasuke followed reluctantly, taking out their other scroll.

The boy looked at both scrolls, his eyes narrowing. "What the... None of them are what we're looking for! Oh, well..." He shrugged confidently. "Guess I'll have to finish you two off here instead. At least there would be one less competition. Heh!"

"What?!"

"Calm down, Naruto." Sasuke swiftly placed his scroll back inside his pouch, with Naruto grudgingly following suit. "You take care of him. I'm going to try to get Sakura out."

Naruto frowned, conflicted. "But he said—"

"I know what he said," Sasuke responded evenly. "But every technique has its own weakness. Besides, they're only genin. There must be a limit as to how big their barrier is. Here, I'm assuming that all three of cast this Water technique since their individual reserves don't cut."

Naruto nodded. "All right. I trust you. Go save her, Sasuke!"

"Got it." Sasuke hopped up a branch until he was no longer in sight.

"Hey! Where are you going?!" their opponent exclaimed angrily. "Ugh, never mind. He'll never find it, anyway."

'So there is a loophole!' Naruto grinned as he conjured a Rasengan in his hand. 'I'll just finish him off and go help Sasuke afterwards.'

'Heh… I'm glad he finally took his chance.'

• • •

Sasuke perched on the top of a tall tree, scrutinizing the barrier. Since it was transparent, it was a bit difficult to make out.

'There's only one way to do it, then.'

Activating his Sharingan, Sasuke examined the faint outline, discovering the limitations. Apparently, the barrier could only be of a specific size, about five to six metres high and ten inches wide. There was bound to some sort of loophole somewhere. The technique couldn't be so flawless since mere genins wield it.

Sasuke made up his mind and, when he was at a considerable distance, threw an exploding tag at the roof of the barrier. There was a resounding blast before a hole about his size was revealed after the smoke cleared.

'Got it,' Sasuke smirked. 'The weakest part where chakra isn't acc.u.mulating as much is at the apex of the barrier. Sakura can open up a hole at any point because she's a Water Type, but it doesn't mean that those who don't have Water affinities can't create a hole themselves.'

Sasuke immediately swooped down and concentrated chakra on his feet, letting them stick on the barrier's walls as he searched the waters for Sakura. Soon enough, he spotted her, her head bobbing up and down as she tried to stay afloat. However, the waves were too furious for her, and the water was rapidly acc.u.mulating. Sasuke gritted his teeth as he tried to think of a solution. If he went there right now, he would likely get swallowed up as well. Using a strong Fire jutsu would evaporate the liquid, but it would harm Sakura as well, and a Lightning jutsu was definitely out of the question.

Then there was no other choice.

"Sakura!" he called out loudly. "Sakura, can you hear me?!"

Sakura gave no indication that she heard his shout, so Sasuke moved closer to where she was, still restricting himself to the walls so as to not get caught in the turbulent waves.

"Sakura!"

This time, she responded quickly, her head darting around in search for his voice.

"S—Sasuke-kun…!" she managed to cry out. "P—Please… he—help…"

"Sakura, I need you to stop moving," Sasuke said. "Don't move an inch from your position. I'll get you out of there."

Sakura's eyes widened. "B—But…!"

'If I stop moving, I'll drown!' she thought to herself in panic.

"Sakura! Do you trust me?"

Sakura's heart stopped. She liked Sasuke, of course. But she had never really trusted anyone aside from her family with her life before. It was a natural instinct ingrained into her. Her body would always try to defend itself, to make her safety the biggest priority above all else.

But she had never been placed into a situation like this before. This was water itself, and the fear of drowning was too much for her to handle. She didn't know any Water techniques which could allow her to breathe underwater, nor did she know any other ways on how she could get herself out of the mess she brought upon herself.

'I'm still so weak… and relying solely on my teammates…'

She wanted to cry.

"Sakura!" Sasuke yelled once more. "You have to trust me! Don't move!"

And Sakura's heart skipped a beat.

Sasuke sounded… almost desperate.

Something inside her surfaced, and she pressed her lips into a thin line.

"…Okay!" Sakura yelled at the top of her lungs before she finally let herself go. Her arms relaxed and retracted back to her sides and her legs stopped treading water. She shut her eyes as she felt herself rapidly submerging into the water.

'I won't die, I won't die…' she chanted to herself. 'Sasuke-kun will save me.'

'I trust him.'

At that moment, something huge grabbed her and threw her up in the air, causing her eyes to snap open in shock. Then, without any further ado, Sasuke instantly made his Susano'o disappear and caught his teammate before she plummeted back to the waters.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura exclaimed, her eyes the size of saucers. Her tone was a mixture of relief and shock, something which was completely understandable. "H—How…?"

"No time for that," Sasuke responded gruffly. "We gotta get back to Naruto and see how he's doing."

'Not that he'll lose to a mere genin, though.'

When they arrived at where Sasuke left Naruto, they found the latter waving at them excitedly, triumphantly holding up a scroll with black and white stripes.

"Hey, hey!" he called out. "This is our scroll, right?!"

Sakura gasped, running to him after Sasuke released her. "Yes, that's it!" she exclaimed. "I can't believe we managed to complete one our objectives so quickly!"

"Then that means all that's left is…" Sasuke drawled, inconspicuously clutching his arm where he summoned a part of his Susano'o earlier. Using that technique in his current body was starting to take a toll on him despite having at least half of his power from the future.

Naruto nodded, though if he noticed Sasuke's slight discomfort, he did not let anything show on his expression. "We need to find the scroll that matches the same one we have."

"Do you think we should take their other scroll, too?" Sakura inquired, staring at the unconscious forms of their opponents.

"Oh? Look who we have here."

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura immediately swivelled their heads towards the direction of the voice.

There, standing right before them, were three people about twelve or thirteen years old. There were two boys and one girl. The girl at the center had long, dark-orange hair and unsettling dark eyes. She wore a simple white dress accompanied by long sleeves and a brown blazer. The boy to the left was tall for his age, with clean-cut black hair and small, almond-shaped eyes. He wore a dark suit and was gripping what seemed to be a metal staff that was similar to Naruto's. The last boy to the right was a brunette, and he donned simple, casual clothing consisting of brown pants and a beige shirt.

"Looks like Yuka's intuition was right," the brunette remarked with a smirk.

"So these three are our opponents?" the other boy uttered, absently twirling his staff expertly in his hand.

"…" The girl, Yuka, did not say anything.

Naruto stepped forward protectively in front of his teammates.

"If you wanna fight, you'll have to go through me first," he growled.

• • •

"This exam is too scary," Chōji w.h.i.n.ed, fear overtaking him as he and his team trudged deeper into the forest. "It's like we're being made to fight each other as much as possible…"

"Don't worry, don't worry!" Ino said, forcing some exaggerated confidence into her voice. "We'll just find some team weaker than us and see if we have the same scroll!"

'There's no other team weaker than us…' Shikamaru thought to himself absently, still very much unmotivated yet was driven slightly by the need to finish this as soon as possible. It was too troublesome to find a team with the scroll they were looking for, but they had no choice.

Sounds of fighting drifted into their ears, and the three of them froze instantly, instinctively hiding themselves behind a bush. Their eyes peeked out of the leaves, mad curiosity dwelling within them.

There were two teams facing off against each other. One seemed to consist of Grass nin while the other group were the Suna nin back before the first exam started. It seemed like the latter was winning since they all stood calmly and confidently in their place, watching as the Grass nins tried to stand straighter.

"You picked the wrong opponent to fight," Kankuro drawled, not even needing to use his puppet.

"We didn't pick you!" one of the Grass nins retorted hotly. "You have the scroll we need!"

"Nomu!" his teammate exclaimed.

Kankuro shrugged. "Well, too bad. Looks like you'll be failing in this round."

"Kankuro," Gaara said quietly, his arms folded across his c.h.e.s.t as he continued to observe their opponents. "Don't antagonize them."

"Then let's finish them off," Kankuro said.

"They haven't showed us their scrolls yet," Temari said flatly. "Gaara, would you mind…?"

Gaara nodded, letting his sand move towards the Grass nins.

"Riku!" Nomu yelled, seeing that the sand got to her first.

"Nomu…" Riku struggled in the sand's grip. "You and Zato run away!"

"No way!" Nomu protested. "We ain't leaving you behind!"

Zato gritted his teeth, turning towards Gaara. "Hey!" he shouted, running towards them and kneeling before them.

"Zato?!" Nomu said incredulously.

"Please!" Zato begged, planting his face on the ground. "Let our comrade go! We will show you our scrolls and give away what you need and never bother you again!"

"Zato…" Nomu murmured, looking downcast. He glanced at Riku, who was tearing up slightly.

The exams be damned. He wasn't going to come out of this forest dead, and neither would his comrades. If one of their scrolls held the one which the other team had as well, then they would have to accept their defeat right then and there.

Nomu, filled with newfound determination, swept towards Zato's side and mimicked his position.

"Please let us go!" he pleaded.

"Guys…" Riku muttered, aghast.

Gaara stared at them for a brief moment before eventually slackening his sand's hold on Riku, allowing her to land on the ground softly.

"Gaara?!" Kankuro exclaimed in surprise.

"Huh… You actually let her go…" Temari murmured.

When Riku was released, she immediately went towards Gaara and held out her team's two scrolls.

"As promised," she breathed out. "We Grass ninjas don't dishonour our word."

Temari peered at the scrolls. "All right," she said, taking the scroll with white and brown stripes. "Now we've accomplished our one goal."

"Now scram," Kankuro ordered.

The Grass ninjas immediately retreated, their forms disappearing into the trees.

Temari smirked as Gaara and Kankuro began to go on their way.

"Huh… You're too soft, Gaara," she muttered under her breath, attaching her giant fan to her back.

"Damn…" Shikamaru said. "They're strong."

"Hey! Those Grass nins…" Ino's face turned as pale as sheet. "They have the same scroll as ours…!"

Chōji jerked, his eyes wide. "You mean…?"

"So we have to fight them, huh…?" Shikamaru frowned.

'We didn't get to see their abilities since those Sand guys overpowered them easily, but there's a chance that they might really be weak. However… there's also a chance that even if they were weak before the ninjas of the Sand, they might possess skills that could crush us.'

"Th—Then we have to follow them?" Chōji said tentatively.

Shikamaru nodded, heaving a sigh. "We have no choice… If we ever want to pass this Exam, we have to try to fight."

"Well, come on!" Ino urged, though her voice faltered at the last bit. "Let's go after them and observe them for a bit. Then we can devise a strategy to take them down!"

Shikamaru opened his mouth to say something when suddenly, a soft, almost unnatural gust of wind flew at them.

The three of them froze in place.

"Oi… I know you're out there," Temari called out, smirking slightly. "Come on out, Konoha brats."

Chōji swallowed heavily. "Sh—Shikamaru… Wh—Wh—What do we do…?!"

"…Stay calm," Shikamaru said, clenching his jaw. "Let's do what she says first."

When they revealed themselves before the female Sand ninja, Ino couldn't help but glance at the older girl's fan. It looked so heavy, but earlier, she held it so easily as if it were as light as a feather.

That Gaara person was the one who was lenient towards the Grass nin while Kankuro was the one who seemed hell-bent on finishing them. The girl, Temari, on the other hand… Ino couldn't read her.

"So, do you want to fight," Temari drawled, "or do you want to peacefully show your scrolls to me?"

Ino twitched, gritting her teeth. 'What confidence she has…'

Shikamaru sighed, not even hesitating when he took out their scrolls from his pouch.

"Shikamaru!" Ino exclaimed, aghast.

"We don't have any other choice," he said.

"But she's alone!" Ino protested. "We can take her down with the three of us!"

Chōji squeaked slightly in the background.

"O-ho, how awfully confident of you." Temari smiled as she peered at their scrolls. "Well, lucky for you, you don't have the scroll we're searching for."

"Then… you'll let us go?" Chōji spoke up hesitantly.

"Well… I wonder about that." Temari's small smile considerably curved into a malicious smirk. "Should I play with you guys for a while… or let you scurry away?"

Ino couldn't take it anymore and rushed at her, kunai in hand. "You c.o.c.ky little—"

Temari, apparently pleased with this turn of events, opened her fan a bit to reveal a purple circle.

"Ino, don't—!" Shikamaru tried to warn.

It was too late. Ino was blown away, to the point where she tumbled onto the ground due to the force of the wind.

"First star," Temari announced.

"Tch…!" Shikamaru turned to face her. "We're not going to fight you any further. Please go back to your teammates."

Temari raised an eyebrow. "Oh…? You're telling me what to do now?"

It must have been an odd scene for a possible onlooker. A ten-year-old girl carrying a giant fan, facing off against a slouched seven-year-old boy who was standing in front of his teammate protectively.

Temari watched the young boy in front of her, her eyes narrowed slightly.

Shikamaru tensed, preparing to make instant hand seals if necessary.

Then Temari turned her back on them, closing up her giant fan and attaching it to her back.

"I have no use for weaklings like you." Her voice was cold enough to bring slight chills down his spine.

Ino's face lit up in puzzlement, but her eyes were narrowed in suspicion. "What does that mean?" she demanded. "Then you won't fight us?"

Temari snorted as she walked away, her form disappearing into the forest. "Even in a thousand years, you won't be able to land a hit on me, little brat."

"What?!" Ino was quick on her feet, clenching her hands into fists as a giant tic mark appeared on her temple. "Aaargh! That little — she makes me so mad!"

Shikamaru let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Calm down, Ino," he said, annoyed. "You shouldn't have provoked her in the first place."

"Hey!" Ino said, indignant. "She was asking for it!"

Shikamaru looked at her. "I know that you were planning to catch her off-guard and make her think that you're an impulsive fighter, but it wouldn't have worked." He paused uncertainly. "Even her chakra is different from ours. It's much more developed."

"She does look older than we are," Chōji interjected tentatively.

Ino pouted. "How can you see all that just from observing her?"

"Didn't you notice the way she held her fan?" Shikamaru was met by his teammates' confused looks and sighed. "Look, at least it's over now. Let's go search for those Grass ninjas and try to take their scroll."

Ino and Chōji nodded, and then the three of them began running through the trees.

'We're lucky we got out of an unnecessary fight…' Shikamaru thought of the cold voice he heard.

'There's something amiss in this test… Something we're overlooking…'

'I'd better find it out soon.'

• • •

"Hey, it's those kids back in the first exam, wreaking havoc in the hallway," Kyo remarked, fingering the sheath of his sword.

"Show us your scrolls," Sasuke demanded, also gripping his scabbard.

Hatori wordlessly took out two scrolls from his pouch, revealing them easily.

Naruto's jaw clenched slightly. 'Just like that?'

Sakura trembled, sensing that their opponents were not people to be trifled with. Their auras alone spoke of experience and firm confidence. It was enough to make her step back, inconspicuously hiding behind her teammates' backs.

She didn't want to be or even look scared, but she had never really been a good fighter no matter how much she tried.

Sasuke cautiously peered at their scrolls. None of them were what they needed.

"Now, Yuka," Hatori suddenly said before he promptly disappeared in sight.

Sasuke's eyes widened. "Watch out!" he yelled as he ran over to Sakura.

"Doton: Doryūheki."

A large stone wall immediately uprooted from the ground, narrowly missing Sakura's body by mere inches as she was instantly shoved out of the way by Sasuke.

"Sakura-chan! Sasuke!" Naruto yelled in concern. However, his worry was momentarily postponed when he felt an immediate presence behind him.

"Katon: Homuranagase!"

Naruto quickly jumped out of the way of the small fireballs aiming at him, landing on a distance not too far away from his opponent.

"Ah," Kyo said casually, "didn't think you'd dodge that so fast. Looks like you are the Hokage's son, after all."

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura exclaimed in worry. "Are you okay?!"

"I'm not hurt," Sasuke said in a clipped tone. "Be on your guard! There's still no telling what might happen!"

"Y—Yes!" Sakura gave a shaky nod.

At that moment, a metal staff came whirling at their direction. Sasuke, sensing it, immediately leaped out of the way while Sakura did the same, albeit landing on the opposite direction.

As if intentional or even by coincidence, the three members of Team 7 were now facing their own opponents. Naruto's jaw was clenched as he stared at Kyo, who only stared back with an expression almost akin to boredom on his face. Yuka was standing before Sakura, the latter frozen in place. Hatori, on the other hand, was taking his metal staff from the ground, all the while seemingly appraising Sasuke.

It was only now that Sasuke realized something.

'They didn't even ask us what scrolls we have.'

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tbc

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• • •

• •

•

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OMAKE/EXTRA

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"I still can't believe you helped me in planning my test!" Kushina marveled, humming to herself happily. "My husband is so smart…!"

Minato blushed, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. "Because you said you were having a hard time coming up with the perfect test that would only enable two options among all teams."

Kushina nodded, grinning brightly. "Yep! Either they choose war, or they choose peace.

"It's that simple."