While Kaguya was sleeping soundly, she suddenly felt lighter as if her blanket had disappeared. Groggily, she extended her white arm, groping around the bed but couldn't find her blanket.
"When are you planning to wake up?" A voice rang in her ear.
Startled, Kaguya sat up quickly, looking warily at the person in front of her. When she recognized who it was, she sighed in relief.
"Anko-sensei, don't scare me like that," Kaguya complained.
The woman with short ponytail hair, wearing a mesh shirt under a trench coat, could only be Anko Mitarashi.
"Do you even know what time it is?" Anko said irritably, "Do you not want to participate in the Chunin exam?"
"Huh?" Kaguya looked at the alarm clock beside her bed. It was already past eight in the morning. She suddenly remembered that today was the day of the third exam.
Kaguya jumped out of bed, quickly changed out of her pajamas and into her underwear, not caring that Anko was still in the room. Anko, not waiting around, said, "You have ten minutes. If you don't get to the exam site within ten minutes, you forfeit." With that, she left.
Kaguya, even more hurried, clumsily put on her clothes, almost tripping over her stockings, then hopped into the bathroom to wash up. She threw on her coat and rushed to the exam site, forgetting her fox mask in her haste.
Upon arriving at the exam site, she found barely anyone there, leaving her bewildered. Had the location changed?
"Hi, Kaguya-chan, good morning." A voice came from behind.
Kaguya turned to see Rock Lee approaching, his bowl haircut and thick eyebrows unmistakable.
"Mm," Kaguya nodded.
"You passed the exam as expected," Lee said excitedly, "I knew with your abilities, you would."
"Thanks," Kaguya replied, then asked, puzzled, "Where is everyone? Isn't the third exam supposed to start?"
"It is," Lee answered, "But it's not time yet, so no one is here."
"Not time yet?" Kaguya felt something was off, "What time does the exam start?"
"At ten," Lee scratched his head, "Didn't you know, Kaguya-chan?"
Kaguya's face darkened, clenching her fist. That Anko had tricked her.
In her groggy state just after waking up, she hadn't thought to question Anko's words. Now fully awake thanks to the ordeal, she relaxed, knowing she was early rather than late.
"Kaguya-chan," Lee's face reddened slightly, "Did you, um, have breakfast?"
"No," Kaguya's mouth twitched. After being rushed by Anko, there was no chance for breakfast.
"I have a lunchbox here," Lee pulled out a food container from his bag, "If you don't mind."
"Is that okay?" Kaguya asked, "Besides, haven't you had breakfast yet?"
"No, no," Lee waved his hands, "I've already eaten."
"Why are you carrying a lunchbox if you've already eaten?" Kaguya stared at Rock Lee.
"Uh..." Lee's face turned even redder.
Kaguya understood and didn't press further. She smiled and said, "Thank you."
"It's nothing, really," Lee said, scratching his head in embarrassment.
Kaguya sat on a chair, opened the lunchbox, and a fragrant aroma wafted out. Inside was rice with sauce, seemingly curry rice.
She split the disposable chopsticks, picked up a bite, and put it in her mouth. Her face immediately stiffened.
Kaguya put down her chopsticks and nonchalantly closed the lunchbox.
"What's wrong? Don't you like it?" Lee asked, concerned.
"It's nothing," Kaguya replied. "It's delicious, but since the exam is about to start, I don't want it to affect my performance. I'll eat it later."
"I see," Lee nodded in understanding.
But that wasn't the real reason. The real reason was that the curry rice was incredibly spicy.
Kaguya had just taken one bite, and it felt like her mouth was on fire. Her tongue felt numb, her face was turning red, and she was starting to sweat.
She never realized such spicy food existed. If not for maintaining her image, she might have rolled on the ground in pain.
The burning sensation hit her brain in waves. She couldn't understand how Lee could eat such spicy food. Did he have no taste buds?
Unable to endure it any longer, Kaguya grabbed her cup and went to the bathroom to rinse her mouth. It was too painful.
Entering the bathroom, she found a girl inside. A topless girl, no less. Kaguya froze.
The girl had long blonde hair tied in a ponytail, bangs covering half her face, and a well-developed figure. Though still youthful, she already exuded a budding charm.
It was Ino.
Seeing Kaguya, Ino snorted and turned away, ignoring her. She continued changing her underwear. To Ino, Kaguya was a top rival, even more threatening than Sakura.
Unbeknownst to her, her top rival was staring at her body, nearly drooling.
No, don't misunderstand, it was because of the spiciness.
Unfortunately, Ino changed quickly. She finished, grabbed her clothes, and prepared to leave. Passing by Kaguya, she snorted, like a swan.
Kaguya felt a smug satisfaction. Being Kaguya Ōtsutsuki wasn't without its perks. Wasn't this a kind of benefit?
Having legitimate access to the women's bath, cough cough.
Kaguya rinsed most of the spiciness from her mouth and exited the bathroom. Sitting outside for a while, she saw other participants arriving for the exam.
The examinees who passed the second test lined up in sequence. The twelve Konoha rookies were all present, having all passed the second exam.
The Sand Ninjas—Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari—had also passed. Gaara, despite being defeated by Kaguya, showed no signs of injury, as if nothing had happened. His gaze, however, was even colder than before.