Naruto opened his apartment door, and created a few Shadow Clones to clean the room, while he himself took off his dirty clothes and walked into the bathroom.
The moment water sprayed from the showerhead and poured over his head, Naruto let out a sigh of relief.
Naruto stood there for a long time with his hands pressed against the wall and his eyes closed.
After showering, he changed into clean loungewear, stood in front of the bathroom mirror, and looked at his reflection.
His hair had grown quite a bit over the month, and the yellow strands on his forehead could now naturally part to the sides, falling just enough to touch the fabric of his headband.
With a thought, the whiskers on his face fell to the ground.
Naruto looked at the face in the mirror, which was becoming more and more like Minato's, smiled slightly, and turned to walk out of the bathroom.
He laid out the white windbreaker he would wear for tomorrow's match on the chair by the bed, placing the headband in the center of the clothes.
Lying on the bed, he sank his head into the pillow and drifted off to sleep.
The next day, Naruto woke up early. He stretched his shoulders and neck, and then went into the bathroom to wash up.
After washing up, he picked up the clothes he had laid out the night before. It was a short white windbreaker with the hem falling just below the waistline, ensuring it wouldn't restrict any wide-ranging movements.
After getting ready, he pushed the door open to leave.
The streets of Konoha were exceptionally lively today. There were not only local villagers from Konoha but also merchants and dignitaries from various countries.
Nobles from the Land of Fire walked toward the exam venue surrounded by servants, ninjas wearing headbands from other villages lined up at street food stalls, and merchant caravans leading pack animals haggled with vendors in foreign accents.
The Chunin Exams were not just a promotion selection for Genin. They were a diplomatic platform for various ninja villages to showcase their strength and exchange intelligence. Many nobles and merchants from small countries took this opportunity to come to Konoha to watch the matches, conduct business, and build connections.
As Naruto passed through the crowd, gazes from all around converged on him.
"Is that... the Fox Demon?" A Konoha vegetable vendor muttered subconsciously.
"Why does he look so much like the Fourth Hokage?"
"Blond hair, blue eyes, this color scheme, this way of walking..."
"Come to think of it, although we call him the Fox Demon, we've never actually seen him hurt anyone, despite all the bullying he's endured from us over the years."
"Not only has he never hurt anyone, but I heard from my nephew that a while ago, when there were pirates in the Land of Waves, it was this kid who went to solve it."
A middle-aged woman selling dried goods lifted her sun hat and squinted in the direction Naruto had walked.
"Now that you mention it, I remember too. My husband fell in the commercial street last time, and it was Naruto who helped him up. I even scolded him for being a busybody at the time." Another woman's voice lowered, carrying a sense of indescribable embarrassment.
"Shh... Don't talk nonsense. The higher-ups don't allow us to mention it."
The merchants from other villages were squeezed into the crowd, listening in confusion, and couldn't help but tug on the sleeve of a Konoha ninja nearby.
"Um, who was that blond boy who just passed by? Why does he seem a bit like your Konoha's legendary Fourth Hokage?"
The Konoha Chunin who had been tugged by his sleeve remained silent for a moment.
Looking at Naruto's receding back, he said, "He is a Konoha Genin."
Then he shut his mouth and refused to say anything more.
The dozen or so Konoha villagers around heard the question from the merchant from another village, but no one answered, and no one uttered the words "Fox Demon" again.
...
At the entrance of the exam venue, a Chunin responsible for guiding the candidates had been waiting there for some time.
Seeing Naruto walk over, he nodded slightly and led Naruto through the special passage for contestants toward the center of the circular arena.
At the end of the passage was an iron gate.
The scale of the circular arena was even larger than in Naruto's memory. The ring-shaped stands, which could accommodate at least thousands of people, were almost full of spectators.
Flags of various countries and the banners of merchant caravans from small countries he couldn't name fluttered all over the stands.
In the VIP seats above the stands, Hiruzen was already seated. There was an empty seat next to him, reserved for the Fourth Kazekage.
In the center of the venue, the other candidates had already arrived.
Gaara stood on the far left with his arms crossed, while Kankuro and Temari stood not far beside him.
Shikamaru stood in the middle of the venue with his hands in his pockets, wearing his usual "too troublesome" expression. When he saw Naruto walk in, his eyes brightened slightly.
Neji stood next to Shikamaru with his arms crossed. The moment he saw Naruto, his lips curled into a cold arc.
Shino stood on the far right of the group, his sunglasses hiding his expression.
Sasuke and Dosu were not there.
***
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