Chapter 2: Rivals, Bells, and Hidden Jutsu

The moon hung high over Konoha, bathing the training grounds in silver light. Naruto Uzumaki, still buzzing with excitement from his promotion to genin, couldn't bear the thought of sleep. Tomorrow was a big day—the day he'd be assigned a sensei, a powerful jōnin who would instruct him in ancient shinobi arts and help shape his destiny.

But tonight, he had other plans.

Arriving at the training ground, Naruto's grin thinned into a look of determination. This was no time to rest on his laurels. If he wanted to be Hokage, he needed to get stronger, and he needed to start now.

"Okay," he said, forming the familiar cross-seal. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

With a puff of smoke, three identical Narutos appeared, each wearing the same determined expression.

"You know what to do," the original instructed. "Go figure out this Wood Release thing again."

The clones nodded solemnly before darting off to separate corners of the clearing, eager to be the first to replicate their earlier success. Despite their relentless efforts, they'd only managed it once. Naruto was beginning to wonder if the whole ordeal was a fever dream. He sighed, watching them disappear into the shadows.

"Does the old man Hokage even believe me?" he muttered. "Or was he just humoring me?"

As Naruto stood there, pondering his next steps, a faint sound caught his attention—heavy breathing and the rhythmic thud, thud of fists slamming into wood. Curious, he followed the noise until he spotted a strange sight: a boy, slightly older than himself, punching holes into a tree stump with his bare fists.

The boy was dressed in a bright green jumpsuit, his bushy eyebrows and bowl-cut hair glistening with sweat as he delivered another devastating punch. Naruto's eyes bulged.

"Woah," he whispered.

Before Naruto could blink, the boy vanished from the stump and reappeared behind him, his movements almost too fast to register.

"Hello, fellow Shinobi of this great village!" the boy greeted with unnatural cheer, bowing slightly. "I have never met you before, but you appear to be my age. As my class was the previous most recent to graduate, I surmise you must belong to the next class. The one that graduated last week, yes?"

Naruto blinked, still trying to process the boy's sudden appearance. "Woah, you're smart, bushy-brows!"

The boy faltered for a moment, taken aback. His neck tinged with a creeping red. "Uhh... well, yes. But as an older Shinobi, I must inform you that it is considered rude to spy on your fellow villagers while they train in their secret techniques."

Naruto's face fell. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to spy. I didn't even know you were here." He hesitated, scratching the back of his head. "I just graduated yesterday, actually... under special circumstances."

The boy studied him for a moment but didn't press further. Instead, Naruto quickly changed the subject. "Secret techniques? That sounds cool. I've got some of my own. Wanna compare?"

The boy's eyes sparkled with excitement. "A youthful challenge? Yosh! So soon after graduating? You are an inspiration!" He settled into a solid yet flexible stance, one arm outstretched toward Naruto. "I must know your name, friend."

Naruto's grin widened. Friend. He didn't hear that word often. "Naruto Uzumaki. You?"

"My name is Rock Lee," the boy declared, his voice brimming with pride. "My dream is to become the world's foremost expert on Taijutsu!" He gestured dramatically. "Come, Naruto-kun. Let us dance!"

Naruto didn't need to be asked twice. Forming the cross-seal, he summoned a dozen Shadow Clones, all of which charged at Lee with unrelenting enthusiasm. Lee's expression shifted slightly, his surprise evident.

"They leave footprints—solid clones?" Lee muttered, dodging the first attack. "This is no ordinary Clone Jutsu."

Before he could finish the thought, one of the clones landed a solid punch to his cheek. Lee staggered ever so slightly, a red mark forming on his face. His shock melted into enthusiasm.

"Your special technique is truly excellent, Naruto-kun! I will not hold back any longer!"

And then, Lee vanished. His speed was so blinding that Naruto couldn't even comprehend where he'd gone until it was too late. The fight was over before it had even truly begun. One by one, Naruto's clones disappeared in puffs of smoke, and the real Naruto found himself on his back, staring up at the stars. He felt a wave of disappointment damper his earlier optimism. He'd felt like he was really starting to get there.

"You are incredible, Naruto-kun!" Lee exclaimed, helping him to his feet. "Why, when I graduated, I couldn't even form an illusory clone, let alone solid ones like yours!"

"Hehe, yeah I learned it from the Forbidden Scroll of Sealing just last night, actually," Naruto rubbed the back of his head, grinning sheepishly. "And, hey, thanks for the compliment... but you kinda destroyed me."

Lee waved off the comment. "You've already mastered a forbidden technique! To do so in a single night... you are a genius of hard work! With training and dedication, you will surely prove yourself my worthy rival!"

Naruto blinked. A genius of hard work? No one had ever called him a genius before.

Lee leaned closer, his eyes shining with enthusiasm. "You truly have great potential, Naruto-kun. Tell me, would you like some pointers in Taijutsu?"

Naruto hesitated for only a moment before nodding. "Sure. That'd be great! And I could teach you Shadow Clone Jutsu too! I can't make normal clones, either, you know."

"Yosh! I thank you for your generous offer, my friend. However, I cannot use chakra and so your technique would be useless for me," Lee exclaimed, practically glowing with energy despite his words. He motioned for Naruto to settle into a stance, quickly adjusting the boy's limbs with surprising precision. As Lee explained the fundamentals of Taijutsu, Naruto listened intently, absorbing every word.

By the time they finished, the moon was beginning to dip below the horizon. The two boys stood side by side, panting but smiling.

"Let us meet again tomorrow night!" Lee declared, giving Naruto a thumbs-up. "With your Shadow Clone Jutsu and my guidance, we will make you unstoppable!"

Naruto couldn't help but grin. For the first time, he felt like he wasn't training alone. He had a rival—a friend. And that made all the difference.

The morning sun cast long shadows over the training ground as Naruto Uzumaki stood with his teammates, Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, each eyeing their sensei, Kakashi Hatake, with a mix of curiosity and apprehension. He couldn't believe his luck. He was teamed up with his longtime crush. Unfortunately, it meant he would have to tolerate the presence of his nemesis. Naruto shook himself free of his thoughts.

In front of them, two small bells dangled provocatively from Kakashi's belt.

"Alright," Kakashi drawled, his single visible eye crinkling in amusement. "The goal is simple: get one of these bells from me. If you fail, you go back to the Academy."

Naruto grinned, his determination blazing. "Just you wait, sensei! I'm gonna knock those bells right off you!"

"Hmph. This'll be easy." Sasuke smirked, his arms crossed.

Sakura, less confident but eager to prove herself, nodded firmly. "We'll show you, Kakashi-sensei!"

"Alright, then. Begin." Kakashi reached into his pocket, pulling out a small orange book in lieu of a weapon or explosive tag.

If that was odd to Naruto, he didn't waste a second to consider it. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" he shouted, forming the cross-seal.

A dozen clones appeared in a puff of smoke, causing Sakura and Sasuke to gape in astonishment. Even Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

"Solid clones," Kakashi murmured, impressed. "That's no ordinary Clone Jutsu."

"Let's get him!" Naruto yelled, and his clones charged in unison, surrounding Kakashi with a chaotic flurry of attacks. Kakashi dodged effortlessly, weaving between the clones with uncanny precision. One by one, the clones were dispatched with swift but non-lethal strikes, vanishing in puffs of smoke.

"Is that all you've got?" Kakashi taunted, his voice calm despite the onslaught.

Naruto growled, charging forward himself. He threw a punch, his form noticeably more refined than Sakura remembered. Kakashi sidestepped smoothly, catching Naruto's wrist and flipping him over his shoulder. Naruto hit the ground with a grunt, clutching his ribs.

"You've got potential, Naruto," Kakashi said casually, "but you're much too reckless."

Sasuke, watching from the shadows, scowled. "I'm not going to let that idiot show me up."

He darted forward, launching a series of precise strikes at Kakashi. The Jōnin blocked and deflected each one with infuriating ease, his nose still buried in his book.

"Impressive, Sasuke," Kakashi remarked, dodging a high kick. "But predictable."

Sakura, feeling the pressure, leaped into action. "My turn!" she cried, hurling a handful of kunai. Kakashi sidestepped them with minimal effort, his attention seemingly never leaving his book.

One by one, each of them tried to fight Kakashi head-on. One by one, they failed.

Hours later, Naruto found himself tied to a post, his stomach growling loudly as Sasuke and Sakura sat nearby with bentos Kakashi had provided. The Jōnin stood a few feet away, watching them with his ever-present air of nonchalance.

"You failed," Kakashi said bluntly, closing his book. "You didn't work as a team. Worse, Naruto, you left Sakura to be ambushed while you tried to grab a bell for yourself. A ninja who breaks the rules is scum, but a ninja who abandons their comrades is worse than scum."

Naruto squirmed against his bonds, his frustration mounting. "But I was trying my best! I don't need help—I can do this on my own!"

Sakura frowned, looking down at her bento. "Kakashi-sensei," she said hesitantly, "Naruto hasn't eaten anything all day..."

Kakashi's eye narrowed. "Don't even think about it. Feeding him is against the rules. If you do, I'll make sure you can never retake this exam." He disappeared in the swirl of concentric leaves that was the preferred Body Flicker of Konoha-nin.

Naruto's stomach growled again, louder this time. Sakura glanced at Sasuke, who shrugged indifferently, then made up her mind. Quietly, she slid her bento over to Naruto, holding a piece of rice to his mouth.

"Here," she said softly. "Just don't get us caught, you moron."

Naruto blinked in surprise, then smiled gratefully. As he took a bite, Kakashi reappeared in a blur, looming over them.

"Well, well," he said, his tone light but dangerous. "You broke the rules."

Naruto braced himself for a lecture, but instead, Kakashi's eye crinkled with approval.

"Congratulations," he said. "You pass."

Sakura and Sasuke gaped in disbelief. "Wait... what?"

Kakashi crossed his arms, his voice softening. "The purpose of this test wasn't to get the bells. It was to see if you could work as a team. You may not have figured it out right away, but in the end, you showed that you were willing to help each other, even when it meant breaking the rules. That's what being a ninja is all about."

Naruto's grin returned in full force. "Ha! I knew it! Then we're officially Team Seven!"

Kakashi nodded. "Meet here tomorrow for your first mission. Dismissed."

As the team dispersed, Naruto headed straight for the training ground where he had promised to meet Rock Lee. Sasuke watched him leave, his expression unreadable.

"He's going to train," Sasuke muttered to himself. "Right after all of this? Hmph. That dope doesn't know when to quit."

But deep down, Sasuke couldn't help but feel a flicker of irritation—and, perhaps, respect. Naruto, for all his flaws, was relentless. And that made him someone Sasuke couldn't ignore.

At the training ground, Lee was already waiting, his arms crossed and his face lit up with a grin. "Naruto-kun! You are late, but your youthfulness is forgiven. Let us begin immediately!"

Naruto grinned back, his exhaustion forgotten. "You bet, bushy-brows! Let's do this!"

As they squared off, Naruto felt a renewed sense of purpose. He had a lot to learn, but for the first time, he felt like he was truly on the path to becoming Hokage. And nothing—not Sasuke, not Kakashi, not even Lee—was going to stop him.