In Naruto: Reborn with a Chat Group-Chapter 177 - 175: Temari And Kankuro

After everyone had their fill of drinks, they hung around for a bit before heading home in the evening.

The next few days were pretty uneventful.

There weren't any major missions to take on, and even when there were tasks, they were just minor errands that could be wrapped up in no time.

With so much free time, the group spent most of their days training together.

———

Days passed one after another.

A bunch of kids, all dressed in matching outfits, strolled down the street like a little parade.

"Hey, did you hear? The Chunin Exam is coming up soon," Ino said as she walked beside Makoto.

"Lately, I've been seeing more and more ninjas from other villages around here."

"Yeah, I heard we're all supposed to take part this time, right?" Kiba chimed in.

"That's right! Kakashi-sensei already told us that Team 7 is in!" Naruto said, practically bouncing with excitement.

"Same here, our Team 8 is joining too."

"And so is Team 10," added Shikamaru with a sigh, already looking exhausted just thinking about it.

Hinata turned to Makoto, glancing at him shyly.

"What about you, Makoto-kun? Did the Hokage say you could take part?"

Makoto laced his hands behind his head, looking relaxed. "Yeah, I'm in. But since all of you are in teams of three, I'm going solo."

"The difficulty level's definitely higher, but hey, with my skills, I'll be fine."

As he said that, a thought popped into his head. 'So it's finally time for the Chunin Exam, huh? The big event is about to begin.'

Just then, a loud commotion caught everyone's attention.

They turned to see a man with face paint holding Konohamaru up in the air like a cat that had misbehaved. Standing next to him was a stunning blonde girl, watching the scene unfold.

Makoto took one look at them and smirked. 'Well, well, if it isn't Kankuro and Temari. What a coincidence.'

Naruto, having known Konohamaru for a while, considered himself the kid's big brother.

So the moment he saw Konohamaru getting pushed around, he didn't hesitate and rushed in headfirst.

But this wasn't the same Naruto from the original timeline.

Likewise, Kankuro, being the hot-headed guy he was, wasn't about to back down either. The two clashed almost immediately, but to Kankuro's shock, he was actually losing, to a knucklehead who barely looked like he had a brain cell to spare.

Naruto had improved drastically over the past few months. His control over chakra had skyrocketed, his ninjutsu had sharpened, and he could even pull off the Rasengan with the help of his shadow clones.

On top of that, he'd dived into sealing techniques, and whatever had gone down between him and Kurama during that time, the fox had stopped messing with his chakra and even helping him sometimes.

Shikamaru watched the unfolding fight and muttered, "They look like Sand Village ninjas... and from the way they carry themselves, they're not weak."

Sasuke, as usual, walked up with his signature aloof expression. "Doesn't matter where they're from. They're looking for trouble, right?"

With that, the Konoha rookies all stepped forward, surrounding Kankuro and Temari like a bunch of delinquents ready to throw down.

Temari's eye twitched as she glanced around at them. 'Wait... isn't this the Leaf Village?'

'Why do these guys look like a street gang?'

'And they're all wearing Leaf headbands... Has Konoha turned into some kind of underground syndicate?'

"Hey! Kankuro, knock it off!" she yelled, feeling uneasy about the situation.

Kankuro turned his head toward her, but he wasn't looking so confident anymore. He was too busy getting his ass kicked.

Kankuro wanted to stop, but he physically couldn't.

"Hey, you guys are from the Sand Village, right?"

Temari snapped out of her daze when Makoto casually walked up to her.

She gave him a once-over, taking in his appearance. 'D-damn... he's kinda handsome.'

Before she could respond, she suddenly felt two sharp glares directed at her.

Ino and Hinata were both eyeing her like she was a potential enemy.

It didn't take a genius to see why.

Temari was just as attractive as they were, and now Makoto was the one making the first move.

Ino studied her closely and felt an immediate sense of danger. Hinata, though more subtle, was also visibly cautious.

"Hello?" Makoto waved a hand in front of Temari's face. "You still haven't answered me."

"You are from the Sand Village, right? I mean, the headband kind of gives it away."

Temari finally snapped back to her senses. "Ah? Ah! Kankuro, quit messing around!"

Kankuro groaned. "It's not like I want to keep going! But this damn knucklehead is too strong! If I stop now, I'm just gonna get beaten worse!"

Makoto sighed and turned to Naruto. "Alright, Naruto, that's enough!"

"They're guests from another village. Let's not bully them too much."

Naruto, who was mid-air about to land another hit, did a full spin, somersaulted, and gracefully landed on his feet.

Konohamaru watched him in admiration, his eyes sparkling. "Big Bro Naruto! That was so cool!"

Naruto scratched the back of his head, looking bashful at the praise.

[Uchiha Madara: Konoha has really gone downhill. Since when can a bunch of Sand brats act arrogant in our village? Where the hell are the Anbu? Where's Root? Where are our shinobi?]

[Senju Tobirama: Makoto, why did you stop Naruto? He should've kept going! The Sand Village has the nerve to act tough in Konoha? Have you forgotten who their boss is?]

[Uchiha Izuna: Do you think... maybe Makoto has a thing for that blonde girl? That's why he stopped the fight?]

[Senju Tobirama: Damn it! I wouldn't have noticed if you hadn't said anything! That girl isn't any worse than Hizashi's niece or the Yamanaka girl.]

[Uchiha Madara: With Makoto's personality, it's definitely possible.]

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