Chapter 37: The First Meeting
In terms of a ninja's first battle, Naruto's performance was undoubtedly outstanding. His calm and composed demeanor in dangerous situations, his decisiveness and directness in seizing opportunities—these were all qualities that an excellent ninja must possess. Kakashi could easily discern these qualities in Naruto.
"Well, my first impression of you all is quite good. How about this, let's head to the rooftop first. We need to get to know each other," Kakashi said, glancing at the three of them. A faint smile appeared in his exposed right eye as he looked at them.
As soon as he spoke, without waiting for the three of them to respond, Kakashi turned and left the classroom, heading towards the rooftop. He seemed completely unconcerned, as if he was sure that the three of them would follow. There was no sign of him acknowledging that he was over three hours late.
This left Sakura, who had been about to say something when their teacher arrived, feeling frustrated. She had initially thought that having their mentor arrive would bring some relief, but she was caught off guard by this seemingly unreliable instructor's attitude.
"Is he even a mentor? He seems so untrustworthy. He didn't even explain the reason for being late…" Sakura couldn't help but vent her frustrations inwardly.
Her teammates already appeared unusual, and now their team leader was equally unpredictable. Sakura felt like her ninja career was taking a gloomy turn before it even began.
However, complaints aside, when she saw Naruto and Sasuke both stand up and calmly follow Kakashi, Sakura had no choice but to quickly catch up with them. She didn't want to be left behind.
As the three of them reached the rooftop, Kakashi leaned against the railing, crossing his arms in front of his chest. He still maintained a casual demeanor.
"Well, for our first meeting, let's start with some introductions. We'll be working together as a team for the next few years, so it's important for us to get to know each other," Kakashi said with a slight cough.
However, as Kakashi's words fell, he awkwardly noticed that none of the three of them spoke up. Naruto maintained his calm smile, Sasuke had a somewhat impatient expression, and Sakura simply hadn't reacted in time to speak.
Kakashi hadn't expected this collective silence as the initial response. It was a bit perplexing.
Most importantly, he could sense a certain level of wariness in Naruto's gaze and impatience in Sasuke's expression. These were obviously problem children.
However, Kakashi's understanding of their reactions was slightly skewed. Naruto's wariness stemmed from the fact that he knew Kakashi was one of the Third Hokage's most trusted subordinates and a potential future Sixth Hokage. Kakashi's presence could significantly impact Naruto's future plans. Sasuke, on the other hand, saw Kakashi as an opportunity to become stronger, not just as a mentor but also as someone who could help him achieve his goals.
Kakashi assumed that their wariness and impatience were due to their traumatic pasts. He didn't realize that their reactions were more complex and related to their individual goals.
Despite their initial silence, Sakura decided to speak up. She appeared a bit nervous, raised her right hand, and asked softly, "Um, sensei? You mentioned self-introductions. What should we say?"
Finally, someone spoke up. Kakashi raised an eyebrow and then nonchalantly nodded.
"Sure, why not? My name is Kakashi Hatake, a jonin from Konoha. As for what I like, I don't think it's suitable to tell you right now. I don't really dislike anything, and as for my dreams... well, that's a secret!"
Sakura couldn't help but think, "He's only told us his name? And he's keeping everything else a secret? What kind of adult is he?"
Sakura couldn't help but complain inwardly.
However, she kept her thoughts to herself. In the meantime, Kakashi had successfully broken the initial silence, and his seemingly friendly attitude made Sakura feel a bit more at ease.
But, complaints aside.
Among the three present,
excluding Naruto,
both Sasuke and Sakura showed subtle changes in their expressions when Kakashi mentioned that he was a jonin. In a world like this, the status of a jonin from a major ninja village carried a significant meaning, and almost everyone knew what it entailed. This was especially true for Sasuke and Sakura, who were originally from Konoha and had become genin under the leadership of Kakashi, a renowned jonin.
Sasuke's gaze became more serious at this moment.
It wasn't what he initially assumed, that Kakashi was just a chuunin, but rather, Kakashi was a jonin from the Village Hidden in the Leaves.
Jonin equaled strength.
In Sasuke's eyes, this was the simplest categorization.
In other words, the man before him had the ability to make him stronger.
This finally piqued Sasuke's interest and attention.
(End of this chapter)
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
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