The morning haze still clung to Training Ground 11 when Team 1 arrived. A soft breeze rustled the trees, and dew clung to the grass. Ren stood calmly as always, while Kenji adjusted his scroll pouch and Aika tightened the bindings on her gloves.
Their jōnin instructor, Arata, stood waiting beside three wooden posts driven into the ground. He looked them over, his expression unreadable.
"Today is not about bells. Forget that old exercise. You three are different. So the test will be different."
He gestured to a canvas-covered crate nearby.
"Inside are three items. One scroll. One sealed ration pack. One canteen."
Kenji blinked. "Only one of each?"
"Correct. You'll be dropped in a remote training sector with only those items. Your mission is to reach the extraction point together in under three hours. If anyone reaches it alone, the team fails. If the supplies are misused or hoarded, the team fails. If you're caught by my clone patrols—"
He pointed toward the treetops. Several paper tags were visible along the trunks.
"—the mission fails."
Aika narrowed her eyes. "So this is a stealth and cooperation test."
Arata gave a small smile. "Correct. You'll be monitored. No second chances."
He tossed Ren a small scroll.
"Map to the extraction point. Good luck."
Moments later, the three genin were gone — darting into the forest under the cover of branches.
Ren led with natural command. His eyes scanned constantly, not just reading the map but interpreting terrain, angles, and risks. He gave clear, concise hand signals, and his teammates responded with precision.
"Trap on the left, 3 meters," Kenji whispered after a quick survey with chakra threads.
Ren motioned a stop, gave a two-finger flick to reroute, and Kenji nodded. They moved in silence.
Aika maintained a pulse of her sensory field every few minutes, catching flickers of chakra movement just in time to avoid detection.
"Clone patrols—two, southeast," she whispered. "Moving slow."
"We divert east, then cut back north," Ren decided quickly.
No argument. They trusted him.
At one point, a detection seal flared mid-air—too fast to dodge completely.
"Down!" Ren ordered, slamming an explosive tag from his pouch into the earth behind them.
It triggered just as the clone arrived, scattering debris and throwing the scent.
They rolled into cover, breath steady. It passed.
"Nice save," Kenji muttered, wiping grit from his face.
"Not done yet," Ren replied. "We adapt."
At the final stretch — a shallow ravine with two patrol tags guarding the bridge — Ren assessed with narrowed eyes.
"Kenji, prep the smoke tag. Aika, focus your detection toward the north bluff — warn if anything spikes."
They moved in perfect sync.
Smoke flared.
Ren crossed first, using wind chakra subtly to glide low across the bridge without setting off the seal. He signaled.
Kenji followed, then Aika.
Seconds before a clone passed through the smoke… they slipped out of sight.
"Extraction point."
Three hours on the dot.
Arata emerged from behind a tree, arms folded, expression unreadable.
"You rationed right. You stayed together. You dodged every patrol."
He paused, eyes on Ren.
"And your leadership was clean, decisive. You made use of your teammates' strengths instead of carrying them."
Aika nodded, brushing her hair back. "He knew exactly where to place us."
Kenji grinned. "Told you we'd pass."
"You didn't just pass," Arata said, voice low but impressed. "You functioned like a unit. That's rare for genin on day one."
"Training starts tomorrow at dawn. This was the easy part."
Team 1 turned as one and headed back to the village, already walking like a squad — not just students.