Chapter 222: Unfamiliar Kindness
"Yo, so you guys passed the exam too," Naruto broke the silence first, greeting the Sand team with a natural tone. "To make it here on the first day—that's really impressive."
Satsuki and Sakura had long grown accustomed to Naruto's personality of maintaining politeness and goodwill toward everyone. They simply shifted their gazes silently toward the three at the door.
That guy...
Kankuro immediately recognized the smiling face he'd seen not long ago. Beyond surprise, intense wariness flooded his mind.
This guy who could easily take my life... he looks about the same age as Gaara. Though his heart brimmed with apprehension, deep down Kankuro stubbornly believed that Naruto couldn't possibly be stronger than his monstrous younger brother.
Gaara's lifeless eyes fixed on Naruto, particularly that smile which seemed far too glaring to him, along with the inexplicably irritating and unsettling feeling emanating from the blonde—all of it made him extremely uncomfortable.
In the end, however, he said nothing. He merely swept his cold gaze across the three members of Team Seven before walking straight toward a corner of the rest room, sitting down far away from them and closing his eyes.
Kankuro fell silent for a moment, as if weighing his words. Finally, in a tone drastically different from his previous arrogance—noticeably restrained—he responded, "No, compared to you guys... I still fall a bit short."
With that, he exchanged a glance with Temari, and the two found seats near Gaara, though not directly beside him, clearly still maintaining a certain distance from their youngest sibling.
This guy... his attitude's improved quite a bit.
Naruto felt somewhat surprised by Kankuro's almost "humble" response. After all, having lived under his brother's constant death threats, Kankuro typically held contempt and disgust for younger children.
It seemed his earlier display of strength had indeed worked, forcing the guy to exercise caution.
Kankuro was thinking that Naruto must be a special case—surely the other Konoha genin couldn't be this strong.
However, what the Sand trio didn't expect was for Naruto to initiate conversation with them again. He somehow produced several clean bento boxes from somewhere, his face still wearing that cloudless smile as he spoke.
"By the way, this exam required candidates to bring their own provisions. Since we've all basically passed now, if you don't mind, please help yourselves. I made these myself."
The expressions on Kankuro and Temari's faces instantly froze, once again caught off guard by Naruto's unexpected gesture.
In truth, the moment they'd stepped into the rest room, they'd been drawn to the enticing food aroma filling the air, even unconsciously swallowing their saliva.
Voluntarily sharing food with competitors? This guy... isn't his kindness a bit excessive? Temari's mind filled with confusion. Even though she and Kankuro had gained some recognition, wariness, and even admiration for Naruto's abilities after their previous confrontation.
But they ultimately weren't here to genuinely participate in the Chunin Exams. Accepting his goodwill now would clearly be inappropriate.
"No need, but thank you for the offer."
Kankuro and Temari exchanged a glance. In the end, Temari stepped forward, declining as tactfully as possible. "We prepared our own food."
As for Gaara, his brow only furrowed tighter. He shot Naruto a cold glance with those shadow-filled eyes before maintaining his suffocating silence.
Faced with the Sand squad's refusal, Naruto didn't insist. He simply nodded with a smile to show understanding before returning to his seat. Satsuki and Sakura, however, couldn't help but cast slightly dissatisfied looks toward Gaara.
What's with that guy's attitude? Naruto kindly offered to share food and he can't even say thank you? So rude. Sakura grumbled internally.
Yet Gaara's inner turmoil was far from the calm his surface suggested. Both Naruto's previous gesture of giving Kankuro a way out during their conflict, and now this unprompted act of goodwill, left him feeling incredibly irritated and confused.
Relationships between people... shouldn't they be filled with hatred, wariness, and mutual slaughter? Why would he do these meaningless things?
This behavior, completely contrary to his understanding, was like needles continuously probing at the defenses he'd sealed away long ago.
Naturally, Naruto understood that in Gaara's current state, any attempt to close the distance might backfire.
It seems anything I say now would be pointless. Perhaps I'll only have a chance to convince him after using my strength to push him to the brink and make him face certain truths.
Just thinking about the potential confrontation and lecturing ahead gave Naruto a headache. Ugh, I know full well that persuading people with words is what I'm worst at...
After that, the rest room's atmosphere fell into silence again. Temari's gaze unconsciously drifted toward that Konoha squad in the distance—Team Seven's three members conversed in low voices, occasionally sharing relaxed laughter, their rapport seeming natural and harmonious.
She quietly glanced at her younger brother Gaara sitting beside her, eyes closed in meditation, his entire being radiating a "keep away" aura. Deep within, she couldn't help but feel a trace of envy.
As time passed, sporadic teams of candidates began arriving at the tower. However, the first few squads to arrive either possessed only one scroll or came empty-handed entirely, clearly having given up on the exam after realizing they had no hope of passing.
It seemed the third team capable of gathering both Heaven and Earth scrolls to successfully pass the second exam had yet to appear.
Not until evening did the rest room door open once more. Three Konoha ninja entered—a stern-faced youth with pure white pupils, an emotional boy with a bowl cut wearing a green jumpsuit, and a girl with her hair in twin buns who wore a rather exasperated expression.
Team Three, composed of Hyuga Neji, Rock Lee, and Tenten, had finally gathered their scrolls and completed the second exam.
The moment Neji and Lee entered, their gazes immediately locked onto Team Seven resting inside. Both their eyes brightened almost simultaneously.
Neji's held the urgency of finding clues, while Lee's face showed excitement at seeing Sakura, looking ready to approach and strike up conversation again.
However, the prepared Tenten reacted quickly. First surprised that Team Seven had passed the exam so swiftly, she immediately extended both hands, firmly blocking her two troublesome teammates.
Naruto didn't yet know how to handle Neji's overly persistent inquiries, while Sakura felt her scalp tingle the moment she saw Lee's burning gaze. Deeply troubled, she immediately stood, and the three quickly left the rest room to avoid potential entanglement.
As night deepened, a question finally presented itself to all candidates who'd reached the tower—where should they spend the night?
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