18 The Calm Before the Storm

The three genin were extremely excited. They knew that they were ready. It was about time they went to the next level. The trio decided to celebrate the good news by meeting back up for dinner that night. They all went home to inform their families of the good news.

When they met at Yakiniku Q, Nawaki noticed that there were a few extra guests than he expected. Minato had brought Kushina with him. Apparently they had been hanging out a lot recently. Nawaki knew exactly what that meant and he was excited that he didn't change that part of the timeline.

On the other hand, Fugaku brought two people with him. Clutching his arm was Mikoto. They also get married in the future so at least Sasuke and Naruto are both guaranteed now. They are important to the future of this world. The other person was someone he didn't recognize. The only thing he knew was that she was beautiful.

The young Uchiha girl was perfect in every way. Her black hair was long and straight. It looked like fine silk. She had a cute face with soft features and the typical black Uchiha eyes. As Nawaki stood there in silence, Kensho said, "Oooooooh, somebody's got a crush!" Hearing this, Nawaki blushed and Kensho laughed.

Fugaku noticed Nawaki's reaction and smirked before saying, "Allow me to introduce my sister, Sara." Sara smiled and said, "It's nice to meet you all. I've heard many stories from Fugaku. It makes me happy that he has friends like you all." The group laughed and they went inside.

Yakiniku Q was now their favorite spot. After the clan head meeting, the Akimichi clan head found out about Nawaki's involvement in taking down Danzo. This, combined with his son Choza vouching for him made it so that Nawaki was a VIP and welcome guest.

Fugaku nodded to Minato and he understood. All but Nawaki quickly took their seats leaving only one seat available. That seat was between Fugaku and Sara. He slowly took his seat. As he did this, Minato and Fugaku made eye contact and grinned. They knew what they had to do. They made it their mission to have Nawaki and Sara become friends.

As they ate and conversed, Fugaku and Minato repeatedly manipulated the conversation to push it towards Nawaki and Sara. After about an hour, their job was done. The two were hitting it off. Once they all ate, Fugaku invited the group back to his house for some desert. They all accepted the invitation and headed there together.

As they walked, the two couples separated. Before Nawaki could even realize what was happening, he found himself isolated with Sara. He sighed as he realized that he'd been set up. Kensho then teased him, "Come on lover boy, say something."

Resolving himself, he turned to Sara and started talking to her. They learned a lot about each other. It turns out that Sara was a year older than Nawaki. She joined the police force when she graduated from the academy but was now a regular ninja just like him. She had already become a chunin so he asked her a lot about that.

The rest of the night flew by and Nawaki found himself with a huge smile on his face as he laid in bed. He felt butterflies in his stomach and he knew that could only mean one thing. He didn't really have much experience with this type of thing in his past life. After some careful thought, he decided that he would take his time with it. If it was meant to be, she would still be available once he was ready. He is only a kid after all so be had plenty of time.

After a while, he went to sleep to prepare himself for what was to come. Over the next few days, be found out that all of his classmates would also be participating in the chunin exams. The next weekend, Nawaki was meditating on the Senju grounds. He was trying to figure out what he should focus on for his training today.

Over the past few weeks, he had been progressing quite well in kenjutsu. Nawaki had managed to convince Sakumo to teach him. Thinking of that, he decided to work on his kenjutsu form for a few hours as some last minute training before the exam begins the next day. As he practiced his move set, a notification popped up.

*Skill Leveled Up! Kenjutsu: Beginner \u003e Intermediate*

Nawaki smiled and decided to take it easy for the rest of the day. During dinner, he bombarded his sister with questions about the exam. She only gave vague answers and said something about not wanting to ruin the experience. It was as if he blinked and he was sitting in the kitchen eating breakfast the next morning.

The first test started in 3 hours. He was supposed to meet up with his teammates in front of the academy an hour before the start time. All of their paperwork was turned in and all they had to do was show up.

Toka came into the kitchen and hugged him from behind before kissing him on the head. He blushed and said "Okaa San, stoooopppppp." Toka laughed and then said, "You're going to do great. I have no doubts that you'll become a chunin."

Nawaki smiled. He knew he was strong. He was confident that his whole team has what it takes to become chunin. All they had to do was what they normally do: kick ass and take names.

He thought back to what the chunin exams were like in the anime. He wondered what his test would be like and how it would compare to the ones he saw. He was eager to see how he compared to the genin from the other villages. There was only one way to find out.

Nawaki said goodbye to his mother and went to pack up his supplies. He had plenty of special kunai, shuriken, ninja wire, paper bombs, food, and water. He kept some fresh meals in his inventory for quick access. He sealed his spare equipment into scrolls and put on his weapon pouches. Lastly, he shifted his focus over to his bed. He smiled as he picked up Hashirama's sword and strapped it onto his back.

He turned around and looked at himself in the mirror. He grasped the necklace that his sister had given him and smiled. It was finally sinking in that he really lived in the world of Naruto. This is his life now. Today would be just another test on his path to greatness.

Nawaki darted out the door and quickly arrived in front of the academy to find Minato and Fugaku already waiting. As the trio made eye contact, they all grinned. Nawaki stepped forward and said, "You guys ready?" Fugaku and Minato both nodded before Nawaki said, "Then, let's do this."