Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

"Haruki, over here!"

On a street inside the Hidden Leaf Village, Ryosuke waved energetically from afar. Standing next to him was Shizuko Mizutani.

Haruki strolled over at a relaxed pace.

As he approached, Ryosuke frowned and grumbled, "Haruki, you're way too slow. We agreed to go shopping together—couldn't you have come earlier?"

Haruki didn't explain. He knew Ryosuke wasn't genuinely annoyed; it was just his usual way of talking. So instead, he simply asked, "Where are we going first?"

Normally, Haruki wouldn't bother wasting time shopping. There wasn't much to see in Konoha anyway.

But considering how tense things had been recently, he hesitated—and eventually agreed to Ryosuke and Shizuko's invitation to unwind for a bit.

It had been half a month since the effectiveness of the Shadow of the Heart Technique began to decline.

In that time, Furukawa had taken them on another C-rank mission—not bandit hunting this time, but escorting a merchant caravan.

They had encountered some minor issues, but nothing outside the expected range of a C-rank task. No real danger at all.

This made Haruki secretly thankful once again that he wasn't the main character. No "disaster magnet" effect.

"Let's head that way," Ryosuke said, pointing. "There's a new dango shop that just opened. It's supposed to be really good."

Haruki followed Ryosuke's finger with his eyes and saw a freshly opened shop bustling with customers. Judging by the line, it probably was worth trying.

Just as he was thinking that, a few very familiar names caught his attention.

"Kakashi, hurry up! We've got to celebrate Rin's missed birthday today!"

"Ah, Obito… Do we really have to?"

"No excuses! We have to make it up to her. I heard there's a great new dango shop up ahead—my treat! And don't you dare fight me for the check, Kakashi!"

Kakashi… Obito… Rin.

Haruki silently repeated the names in his heart and turned toward the voices.

On the far end of the street, he spotted three young figures walking together—one in front, two behind.

The one in front had his back to Haruki and bore the Uchiha clan crest on his clothes—just like Haruki himself. No doubt, that was Uchiha Obito.

Obito seemed to be excitedly chattering about something, completely oblivious to the people around him.

The two behind him—one boy and one girl—were facing Haruki, allowing him to clearly see their faces.

Well, mostly.

One of them was about eleven or twelve years old, had silver hair, carried a short sword on his back, wore a face mask, and had a cold, aloof expression.

It was Kakashi Hatake, still visibly affected by the trauma of losing his father.

Because of the mask, even standing face-to-face, Haruki couldn't fully see his face.

As Haruki studied them, Kakashi looked directly back.

What sharp senses!

Haruki was still marveling at the boy's perception when, in that brief moment their eyes met, a cold chill surged through his chest.

It felt as though some kind of savage beast had locked eyes with him, and his whole body tensed in unease.

Quickly, Haruki averted his gaze.

"Haruki, what's wrong?"

Seeing Haruki suddenly freeze and turn pale, Shizuko asked with concern.

Haruki exhaled slowly and replied, "Nothing."

He resumed walking, his eyes once again meeting Kakashi's—only this time, there was no fear.

Yes, he had been intimidated earlier.

He may have killed people, sure—but only bandits and lowlifes. Weaklings.

Kakashi, on the other hand, had fought on the battlefield, crawling through piles of corpses. They were on completely different levels.

So, feeling fear wasn't shameful—as long as he overcame it.

On the other side...

Obito noticed Kakashi looking past him and asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

Then he turned to look for himself.

In an instant, he recognized who Haruki was.

Hard not to—the "ping-pong paddle" emblem of the Uchiha was unmistakable.

Must be one of the younger clan members, Obito thought, then turned back and asked Kakashi, "What's with him?"

Judging by Haruki's appearance and age, Obito guessed he was likely a recent graduate.

But he couldn't figure out why Kakashi would care about someone like that.

Kakashi didn't respond—just shook his head slightly.

Soon after, both groups arrived at the dango shop.

Obito, Kakashi, and Rin queued up in front, while Haruki, Ryosuke, and Shizuko stood behind them.

While Obito and Ryosuke chatted non-stop and Rin and Shizuko occasionally chimed in, both Kakashi and Haruki remained silent.

A few minutes later, Kakashi's group finished their order and left together.

Haruki watched their backs as they walked away and muttered to himself, "They're probably back for the Chūnin Exams."

Yes—after some thought, he had a rough idea why the three had returned to the village.

The Hidden Leaf held the Chūnin Exams twice a year—once in early January and once in early July.

It was currently the end of November, which meant the next exam was coming up soon.

Considering their ages, it wasn't hard to guess they had returned for that reason.

A month could feel long—or short—depending on the times.

During peace, a month was more than enough to return to the village.

But during war? A month was tight.

Most genin on the battlefield were just cannon fodder—but not the ones personally recommended for the Chūnin Exams by jōnin commanders.

Those genin typically had important battlefield responsibilities.

Reassigning them wasn't as simple as giving a random order—you had to replace their positions and send escorts for their safety.

In many ways, genin like them represented the future of the village. If something happened to them en route, the consequences could be devastating.

That's why they wouldn't be recalled all at once.

So, seeing them back a month early wasn't surprising.

If Haruki's guess was right, Obito, Kakashi, and Rin were probably among the first wave of returning genin—and more would follow in the coming month.

And whether his guess was correct or not... he'd just have to wait and observe how many young genin returned over the next few weeks.

But the words "Chūnin Exams" lingered in Haruki's mind.

He had a gut feeling: after the Chūnin Exams, their group of fresh graduates would be sent to the battlefield.

In other words... his time was running out.

Just thinking about it made Haruki want to rush home and resume training immediately.

But looking at his two teammates ahead of him, he suppressed that urge.

He had decided to relax today—and quitting halfway would defeat the purpose.

As the saying goes: Sharpening the axe won't delay the cutting of firewood.

This brief rest would help him train even harder later.

"Haruki, what flavor do you want?"

Ryosuke called back just as Haruki was lost in thought.

"Spicy," Haruki replied casually.