Board Thread:Naruto Discussions/@comment-31278419-20170211023835/@comment-9782468-20170217162136

Either way, Kakashi made the distinction of saying they weren't Iruka's students anymore, but Kakashi's suboordinates. He didn't repeat students because that's not what they were supposed to be for him I guess.

Tbh I think Kakashi put them in the Chunin exams not because he was confident that they'd win, but because it would be an excellent opportunity to into combat with other Shinobi and get experience. Not only that, it was an exam that required they work together as a team.

After all, people like Rock Lee and Gaara were huge surprises; no one could have predicted there being such monsters in the exams, and that someone was as cold-hearted as Gaara who would just kill for fun.