Reborn!

20: The Saintess

"Actually, I've always been curious about this. Naruto, how exactly did you manage to fail the graduation exam twice before being dropped to our year?" Sakura asked curiously.

Naruto smirked.

"I would usually not be willing to tell you that, but I'll make an exception this time since it's your birthday," he replied, causing Sasuke to lean forward in his seat in anticipation.

"The answer isn't that shocking, actually. I was made to join the academy one year early since jiji knew I was capable enough to do it. He'd force me to take the exam every year and I would fail it on purpose despite him glaring at me. I always told him I did not want to stand out as some prodigy but he never did listen. It seems I have become more convincing over the past several years, considering how I managed to convince him to agree to let me join in the same year as my peers and even graduate together. He has tried to reason it out with me so I would take the exam so that I will not waste any more of my time idling away at the academy. I refused every time, though. I'm not sure if he gave up yet. Anyway, this time around he already had me take the test unofficially and even went as far as to prepare all my shinobi identification documents and the paperwork required to graduate from the academy as a legitimate genin. I'm technically a graduate already even though he did not make it public, so he would make up an excuse for me to pass it even if I do choose to fail the graduation examination," Naruto explained, not looking particularly concerned about the content of his words.

Sasuke's eye twitched.

"To think the person I've been calling dobe was actually a closet genius all this time. You must have thought me a fool, 'Ruto. Just how early were you able to obtain the qualifications to graduate in the previous timeline?" the Uchiha demanded.

Naruto shrugged, seemingly unaffected by his comrade's annoyance towards him.

"I wasn't even trying. I accidentally did the test during my first term in the previous timeline and jiji had hounded me to graduate since then. When he realised I'd purposely fail every time he just stopped asking and left me be until the time when I had to take it with the rest of the class I had been placed in. I flunked that one and did not join the following class the semester after that. I had to sit for the exam again and flunked it purposely, thus giving Iruka information about my poor record and creating the impression of a troublemaker. I even played along for fun and always did leave jiji completely exasperated whenever I dragged the whole village into my pranks while subtly picking on Iruka," he admitted, sounding rather smug when he came to the part about how the act of troublemaker had even begun.

Sasuke had started looking like he was having a spasm from just how violently he was twitching.

Honestly, his reaction was perfectly justified. A genius on such a level even made those of past generations who passed the graduation exams early look pitiful in comparison. If he had truly wanted to find someone on the same level as Naruto, just who in which era would be able to match up to those standards? Seriously, that a five-year-old had met the requirements that a seven-year-old Itachi had only just managed to pass with much difficulty without effort was inconceivable even though they both knew that Naruto was not the type to make empty boasts or baseless claims. They simply could not stop themselves from wondering how much higher than themselves Naruto had stood without any of them noticing from the very start.

Sasuke made the connection then and paled a little.

He realised that at the time he had defected, his life had definitely been spared by Naruto.

"As for the thing with Mizuki, that was all just an excuse for me to study the forbidden scroll and even jiji knew that. He had kindly chosen not to point it out, so I also chose to obey and quietly accept the headband he handed over. I framed up the one Iruka gave me to carefully preserve that memory, since it had been the first time I had ever been given anything in my entire life," Naruto added after a moment.