The current Haruno Sakura had at least trained at the dōjō from a young age like the others.
In terms of individual strength, she was far stronger than the useless Sakura from the original timeline. At the very least, two years before her graduation, Makoto had already taught her some ninjutsu, especially in the medical field.
But there was no helping it. Children in the shinobi world generally matured early, and at twelve or thirteen, they were at exactly the age where romance filled their heads and affected their intelligence.
All she thought about was that if she could not graduate, she would not be able to be in the same team as Sasuke. She had not considered at all that in a major shinobi village like Konohagakure, information on jōnin, aside from especially famous figures who had made a name for themselves, was classified at a high level. How could Academy students or genin possibly find it out?
An unfamiliar jōnin—that was Higashino Makoto's wording, and it was entirely meant to make things difficult.
The other two members of Team Seven were different from her. With no sour smell of romance in their heads, their intelligence could take the high ground, and after a little thought, they reacted.
Sasuke: "Hmph. Boring."
Naruto covered his face. "I knew it."
Makoto: "Oh? What clever little brats. You've already figured out my true identity this quickly?"
Sakura: "Eh? Sasuke, you know? Naruto, you're the Hokage's son, so you definitely know who this jōnin-sensei is, right?"
Makoto did not wait for the two of them to answer and quickly cut in. "Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, you have passed my test and are qualified to graduate.
"As for Haruno Sakura, I can only say sorry. So, you two, will you come with me now and choose to become genin, or stay behind and repeat a year with her? Make your choice."
Sakura stared at Sasuke with watery eyes. Perhaps feeling that Sasuke alone did not provide enough support, she looked toward Naruto as well.
She did not want to be held back alone. Not only would she be separated from Sasuke, she would also be laughed to death by that girl Ino.
Sasuke: "Sakura, are you an idiot? Information on the village's jōnin is classified. How could we possibly investigate it?"
Naruto: "And besides, don't you think this teacher's personality feels really familiar?"
Sakura blinked, and a light bulb suddenly went on in her head. "You're Makoto-sensei, right? Right? It has to be you."
Makoto: "Although I would also love to be as handsome, dashing, humorous, approachable, powerful, and famous throughout the shinobi world as Makoto-sama, unfortunately, you guessed wrong, Haruno Sakura-san."
After hearing that, the little pink-haired girl immediately put her hands on her hips and pointed at the shameless teacher. "No need to say any more. It's you, Sensei. You're way too shameless. Don't you blush when you praise yourself like that?"
Makoto released the Transformation Technique and announced the result with a smile. "Looks like you're not that stupid after all. That's right. I am your squad leader. Congratulations, you've passed the first stage."
Naruto was not surprised. Although his father had not revealed any information, for someone assigned as the squad leader of him, the Hokage's son, and the second son of the Uchiha clan head, there was no way it would be some unknown nobody.
If it was Higashino Makoto, then he was absolutely the most reassuring choice.
Why reassuring?
Because Naruto had long known that he was the true Nine-Tails jinchūriki. The eight-clawed monster at home was the fake jinchūriki, merely standing in front to draw everyone's attention for him.
Sasuke was secretly delighted. If he could continue training under this man, then surely he would soon surpass his father's expectations.
As the second son of the Uchiha clan head, he was under great pressure. After all, the legendary eyes of the clan had already appeared in two people, and one of them was his beloved older brother.
Because of that, everyone had turned their eyes toward him, as if saying: since your brother is already that incredible, shouldn't the younger brother be taking off too?
"Yeah!" Sakura first celebrated her great victory in love, then finally reacted. "First stage? Makoto-sensei, does that mean there's a second stage, or even a third stage?"
Makoto: "That's right. You've only graduated from the Ninja Academy, but whether you can become genin is decided by me, your squad leader."
"So I can have as many stages as I want. Now then, all of you, follow me."
...
At a training ground inside Konohagakure.
Makoto looked at the three little ones standing before him. "Our Team Seven is a little different from other squads, since all of you have trained at my dōjō since childhood, so we already know each other."
"Still, procedure is procedure. Not doing it would make it feel like we're missing a bit of ceremony, so let's do the usual self-introductions."
"For example, your name, dreams, ninjutsu you're good at, things like that. Now then, who should go first?"
Sakura: "Sensei, why don't you start? Although I grew up hearing your legends, I still feel like I don't know enough about you."
Sasuke and Naruto did not show much curiosity. They already knew quite a bit about their teacher from their families.
"No problem. My name is Higashino Makoto. I'm ten years older than you guys. That's about it."
Sakura pouted. "What the heck? You're so stingy. That's all information I already knew."
"Then what do you want to know?"
Sakura blushed. "I want to know if Sensei has some kind of special method. I saw at the dōjō that Sensei seemed to have two—"
"Sakura-san, do you still want to graduate or not?"
"Fine, fine. We already know Sensei is extremely strong, but exactly how strong are you? And what's your dream?"
Makoto summarized it simply. "How strong? Probably the strongest person openly active in the entire shinobi world. As for my dream, it's to properly enjoy life. So hurry up and grow stronger already. That way, I won't have to personally step in whenever something happens in the future."
Sakura's eyes sparkled. "Sensei is amazing."
Sasuke caught the loophole. "Only openly active?"
Naruto immediately raised another question. "So there are still people hiding in the shadows? Where are they?"
Makoto shrugged. "How would I know? Besides, is that really something tiny little genin like you should be worrying about? Pass my test first. Sakura, you're next."
"Oh! My name is Haruno Sakura, I'm twelve years old, I'm skilled in Water Release, Earth Release, and basic medical ninjutsu. My dream is… ah~~ and in the future I plan to… ah~~"
As she spoke, the little girl's gaze drifted toward Sasuke. Then she shyly covered her face and squealed, who knew how many children she had already imagined having with her dream guy in her fantasies.
Sasuke remained unmoved. "My name is Uchiha Sasuke. I'm twelve years old. I specialize in Fire Release and Lightning Release. My dream is to surpass Itachi and Shisui-nii-san and become the strongest member of the Uchiha Clan."
Naruto followed right after him. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I'm twelve years old. I specialize in Wind Release and Fūinjutsu. My dream is to surpass my father and all the Hokage before him, and become the strongest Hokage."
In Higashino Makoto's world, Itachi had not become a great filial son, so naturally Sasuke held no hatred in his heart and still deeply loved his older brother.
But at the same time, his brother was simply too outstanding. Together with Shisui, the two of them were like a pair of Mangekyō Sharingan hanging over his head. His father and clansmen had also placed enormous expectations on him. The pressure was overwhelming, but it also made him quietly resolve not to disappoint them.
As for Naruto, things were even simpler. As the Hokage's son, he was destined to never allow himself to be mediocre. His dream was not only to surpass the Fourth Hokage, but also challenge the First, Second, and Third Hokage as well.
Just like in the original timeline, he still wanted to become Hokage and surpass every previous Hokage, but his motivation was completely different now. It was no longer about earning everyone's acknowledgment, but a desperate desire to prove himself.
"Haa, what a pain. Can't you guys have simple dreams like mine?"
Makoto scratched his head, then pulled out a bell from his ninja pouch and hung it from his waist.
"The self-introduction process is over. Now, we move on to the third stage."
"The rules are simple. The three of you can use any method you want to snatch this bell from me."
The moment Sasuke and Naruto heard that, they immediately began cracking their knuckles, brimming with fighting spirit. After training at the dōjō for so many years, they had never actually fought their teacher before.
Because they had not even managed to get past Tenten, the senior disciple.
At present, among everyone there, Tenten possessed the highest compatibility with the senjutsu system because she had accidentally absorbed the very first strand of natural energy transformed by Makoto.
On top of that, she had inherited her teacher's initial chakra affinity. After nine years of training, she had basically become a miniature version of Higashino Makoto.
Sakura could not help but complain. "Sensei, I think you're just making things difficult for us. There's no way we can beat you."
"I never said you had to defeat me. You only need to take the bell. Also, I won't use chakra. I won't even use my hands. Only my feet."
"As for you three, you may use any means necessary. Even if you come at me with the intent to kill, that's perfectly acceptable."
Sakura blinked. "Sensei… are you sure?"
"I'm sure. Now then, I'll give you five minutes to discuss your strategy. I'll stand right here and wait for you."
"And remember, during this third-stage test, I am your enemy."
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