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NBB Chapter 143: Jonin Exams and Other Bad Life Choices
🕑 Added 2025-08-12 02:37:35 +0000 UTC“You damn bastard…”
While Danzō was quietly cursing his troubles, over on the streets of Konoha, Naruto was wearing a bitter expression as he looked at Kitagawa Gen.
“You’ve really gotten us into trouble this time!”
“How’s it my fault? Clearly, this was your doing, wasn’t it?”
Kitagawa Gen looked at Naruto with clear annoyance.
“Don’t even start. I got chewed out too. You bastard, you got me into trouble!”
“Damn it, why do I feel like you’re smiling?”
“You’re imagining things. Right now, I feel like punching you. Honestly, Konoha’s education has gone downhill. I’m this outstanding, so why are you all so hopeless?”
Gen gave a firm nod as he said it—after all, he really had been dragged in by Hiruzen for a lecture.
Though the reason wasn’t because Naruto and the others had blown up someone’s house. No—the real cause was Naruto’s “Harem Technique” knocking Hiruzen flat.
Fortunately, the matter hadn’t been dwelled on for too long before the conversation shifted to the topic of kekkei genkai and the Jōnin assessment.
Ever since he’d revealed his Ice Release, Hiruzen had taken a particular interest in him.
“You, outstanding?”
Naruto pursed his lips in irritation, but when he thought about it, he couldn’t find a good rebuttal.
This guy was actually about to become a Jōnin.
The thought made Naruto sigh even more deeply.
“It’s over. If the village’s Jōnin are like this, does this place even have a future? Guess I really do have to become Hokage!”
He recalled how, when trouble came knocking, Gen’s first instinct had been to cover his face, turn, and run, leaving them behind to take the scolding.
After that, the Academy had undergone a sweeping reform—rules tightened again and again—making life miserable for all of them.
No one knew how many complaints there were. After all, in just one year, the changes had happened multiple times, each stricter than the last, and the students could barely take it.
Sasuke and Naruto, knowing full well the cause, dared not say a word, afraid of drawing everyone’s wrath.
“You? Hokage? That’s a long way off. You should be thinking about when you’ll graduate first.”
Gen gave a short, dismissive hum. Rubbing his chin, he continued, “If nothing goes wrong, you should be graduating next year. This year, I’ll pass my assessment and make Jōnin. Tsk, tsk.”
“Hey, hey, hey, quit joking around!”
Naruto’s eyes went wide. His biggest regret now was showing the Third Hokage that “Harem Technique.”
If you offended the Hokage, where could you run?
He honestly felt like his future had just gone pitch black.
“Tsk, tsk. Go on, get to class. I’ve got to head to my own assembly.”
Gen gave Naruto a light smack on the head before adding, “I’ll make a request to the Hokage to personally oversee your exam. After all, you got me scolded.”
“…”
Naruto’s face went pale, his pace slowing considerably without him even realizing it.
Seeing this, Gen couldn’t help but chuckle and shake his head.
“Idiot. The graduation exam for Genin is always overseen by Chūnin. Too bad I’m about to become a Jōnin.”
In truth, he felt a bit regretful. Once he became a Jōnin, he wouldn’t have any say over graduation matters. But…
“Once you’re assigned to a team, there’s a good chance you’ll end up with Kakashi. And during the Chūnin Exams, we can have a proper exchange.”
It was almost certain Kakashi would get them.
After all, in the whole of Konoha right now, he was the only one who could teach Sasuke how to use the Sharingan while also having such tangled ties to Naruto.
There was simply no one else who fit the bill.
“Whether I stay in that squad or not is another matter… but giving Kakashi a hand in training his students? That’s no problem at all.”
He was Kakashi’s very first disciple—he had privileges!
With that thought in mind, Kitagawa Gen was already making his way toward a training ground.
September had arrived—the month of his Jōnin exam, and the moment he would finally claim his main storyline reward.
“You’re here.”
As soon as he reached the training hall, he saw Kakashi leaning casually against the gate, book in hand, reading while he waited.
When Kakashi noticed him approaching, he immediately closed his little orange book, smiling.
“Pretty early. I was worried you might be late.”
“Don’t worry, Kakashi-sensei. For something like this, I’d never be late.”
Gen walked over with a grin, then lowered his voice to ask, “So, who’s the examiner this time? Don’t tell me it’s you, Kakashi-sensei. If that’s the case…”
“It’s not me. Though if it were, I wouldn’t mind… but…”
Kakashi shrugged, leading Gen inside as he explained,
“You’re far too well-known. Almost every Jōnin still in the village has shown up for this, so, to avoid any… appearance of bias—”
“Avoid suspicion?”
Gen almost rolled his eyes.
“Hey, hey, Kakashi-sensei, didn’t you say this was just a formality?”
“You idiot, don’t get me in trouble!”
Kakashi immediately grabbed Gen by the arm, glancing around to make sure no one was listening before exhaling in relief.
“I never said that—you just interpreted it that way yourself. The one assessing you this time is actually someone you know well, so relax.”
“Oh? Who is it?”
“Jiraiya-sama.”
“Jiraiya-sama, huh…”
Gen blinked. If it was Jiraiya, then there probably wouldn’t be any issue. In other words… it was still going to be a formality.
“You little punk…”
Seeing the look in Gen’s eyes, Kakashi could easily guess what he was thinking. He raised his book again and spoke lazily.
“Don’t get careless. Even if Jiraiya-sama knows you well and gets along with you, he’ll still take this seriously. So be prepared.”
“Yes, I understand.”
Gen nodded, still confident—after all, he’d crossed fists with Jiraiya plenty of times over the past few months.
“When this is over, we’ll probably have a new mission.”
Kakashi didn’t dwell on the topic any further. He tucked away his novel and spoke quietly, prompting Kitagawa Gen to raise an eyebrow.
“A new mission?”
“That’s right. Next year, the joint Chūnin Exams will begin, so we’ll need to make a trip to Amegakure to deliver their invitation.”
“Amegakure…”
“Mm. And while we’re there, we’ll see if we can investigate the situation in the village. Even though there’s been some word from Hanzō, the Hokage is concerned there might be more going on.”
Kakashi kept his voice low—the first part was just the official task, but the latter was the real objective.
His words immediately brought back a memory for Gen—he really had gone to Amegakure once before to deliver an invitation.
Back then, Akatsuki hadn’t intended to expose themselves, so they let him leave without incident.
'But now… after the trouble I’ve caused them, will Akatsuki still be able to let us walk away calmly?'
The thought stirred his curiosity. Just then, his system interface suddenly flickered.
[New Side Mission Acquired]
[My Style Surpasses Yours]
“…”
Seeing the system’s response, Gen knew this trip was unlikely to be easy.
'Still… maybe this isn’t a bad thing. It’s about time my true body got some exercise.'
While mulling it over, he and Kakashi had already stepped into the training hall.
“You’ve arrived.”
“That’s the kid? I heard he’s only been a graduate for a year.”
“Well, he was trained by both Senior Kakashi and Senior Guy. They say even Jiraiya-sama has high hopes for him—he might have the same talent as the Fourth Hokage.”
“Each generation surpasses the last, huh? Let’s trust the Hokage’s judgment.”
As the two appeared, murmurs rippled through the gathered Jōnin.
When Hiruzen saw Gen and Kakashi had arrived, he rose to his feet and announced, “Since the examinee is here, let’s begin the assessment.”
...
The jōnin exam, naturally, wasn’t just about combat.
Back when Kakashi had forced Kitagawa Gen to read so many books and memorize so much material, it hadn’t been for nothing.
Theoretical assessment was a necessary part of it, but these tests weren’t much of a challenge for him—after all, he had always been a humanities student.
Even so, there wouldn’t be too many of these written components. He had, after all, defeated the Fourth Raikage; a lot of the usual procedures could be skipped.
“Kid, you ready?”
Rolling up his sleeves, Jiraiya walked up to the stage alongside Kitagawa Gen, grinning as he lowered his voice.
“Pretty much. Can’t use Sage Mode anyway—makes no difference to me.”
Gen gave him a quick wink, deliberately rubbing his chin.
“Unless… you were planning to use it? Want me to wait for you?”
“You brat, why are you so damn annoying?”
Jiraiya’s smile faltered; his Sage Mode wasn’t anywhere near as smooth as Gen’s.
“Tch, I’m not gonna use it either. Relax.”
“Or maybe… you just don’t have the chance?”
“You little punk… you’re really asking for it!”
They went along trading jabs, the mood between them still light.
