A Feeling of Yearning, a Flower Full of Hope

is episode 55 of the original Naruto anime.

Synopsis
The episode starts off at a waterfall, where three girls wearing bikinis were playing at the water. Behind the bushes on the shore, Jiraiya was peeking at them with a perverted look on his face and occasionally laughing to himself. Naruto then called for Jiraiya to help him train, but Jiraiya said that he was working on his research and told Naruto to do it by himself. Naruto then said that he was going to summon a toad that was the size of a house. Naruto then bit his thumb and formed hand seals before shouting, "Summoning Technique!" He summoned another tadpole. Jiraiya then looked over at the tadpole. Displeased, he shouted over to Naruto that he had to put all of his chakra into it as if his life was depending on it. Naruto was trying his best, and then commented that the tadpole was bigger than the last time. Jiraiya replied that, despite that, it was still a tadpole. Therefore, Naruto's training wasn't doing very well. The scene changed to where Sakura lived. The view moved to inside Sakura's room, where Sakura was sitting on her bed. She then had a flashback of Sasuke getting bitten by Orochimaru, and seeing Sasuke in his first level of the curse mark. Sakura's mother then called for her to help her with something, with Sakura replying that she was busy. A meeting of all the Jōnin was being held in the Hokage's room, where it was announced that Hayate Gekkō had been murdered and found in the Kikyō Castle. Someone asked if it had been Orochimaru. Kakashi Hatake said that they couldn't make the assumption, but added that it might have been the Sound spy, Kabuto. A Jōnin then demanded that the Chūnin Exams be cancelled so that they could scout for Orochimaru. The Third Hokage immediately refused. Any country would want him now since he had the power to destroy a small country, and also held a grudge at Konoha.

The same Jōnin then asked which of Konoha's allies would betray them and join with Orochimaru. After these words, Anko immediately looked down. Kakashi then said that the alliance agreement had prevented huge wars in the past. The Third Hokage ordered for the Chūnin Exams to continue, before assuring that he trusted every one of them.

The scene went back to Sakura's room. Sakura then thought back on when she had tried to visit Sasuke, but, to her dismay, no visitors were allowed in his room. Sakura had then questioned this, and the nurse had replied that it was a rule for now. Sakura then decided to go visit Sasuke again.

The scene changed to where Sakura was walking along the streets of Konoha and saw a flower shop. Sakura thought to herself that she should get some flowers for Sasuke. Sakura entered the shop and began deciding which flower she should get, before realizing that Ino was the clerk, and that the Yamanaka clan owned the flower shop. Ino then began to taunt her. Sakura ignored her and moved over to the red roses to see which one she should choose. Ino went over next to Sakura and said that she knew the best cuts for when you were visiting a hospital. Sakura blushed and said that she wasn't going anywhere. Ino then retorted not to play smart with her, and announced that Sakura was going to visit Sasuke, and that she was going with Sakura.

Sakura scowled to herself, thinking to herself that "Ino-Pig" just had to butt in. Ino then said that she would get a rose, as it shows true love. Sakura answered that she was going to get two white daffodils, which signified blossoming, just like Sasuke (in Sakura's ideal). Ino then asked if she was going to pay for it, to which Sakura replied that she wanted two flowers. Ino asked why, thinking that Sakura was trying to impress Sasuke. Sakura said that one was for Sasuke, whilst the other one was for Lee. Ino then looked a little sad after hearing what Sakura had said.

The scene changed to the streets again, where Sakura and Ino were walking. They heard the familiar voice of Chōji Akimichi shouting, "More, waiter!" Chōji was shown inside eating pork ribs. Shikamaru and Asuma were also inside the restaurant. Sakura and Ino then passed by the window and asked why they were there, knowing that they were supposed to be training. Shikamaru replied that they were, but that they were just taking a break from training, adding that Asuma was training him like a dog. Chōji was also helping, saying that he got all the barbecue pork he wanted. Shikamaru then questioned why he had to do the Chūnin Exams, to which Asuma answered that he would take it whether he wanted to or not.

The scene moved to the hospital. It showed Sakura and Ino following a nurse; the nurse informed them that Sasuke was in a bad condition, so they would only get a five-minute visit. When they entered Sasuke's room, Sasuke was gone. His clothes were also gone too, implying that Sasuke had left somewhere. The nurse then ran off to fetch the doctor. Sakura then thought of Orochimaru, who had said that Sasuke would seek him for power.

The scene changed to a mountain, where Kakashi was rock-climbing, without a harness and with only one hand. Kakashi commented to himself that the training was harder than it had been before, and wondered if he was getting out of shape. Kakashi lifted his left foot to bring up onto a ledge, but when he tried to put his weight onto it, it immediately broke. Kakashi was still hanging on, but no longer had any support. His right hand was losing its grip. Kakashi then closed his eyes, and inside his brain it shook. Kakashi then shouted in his mind, "OPEN!" Kakashi put his right hand back onto the ledge and used his hand as leverage to jump. He used his right hand again to catch onto a ledge, in which he was successful. Kakashi then continued up the mountain and reached the top of the cliff. On the top, someone was already there, and greeted Kakashi with, "What's up?" Kakashi said that he (Sasuke) had finally come.

The scene moved back to the hospital, where Sakura and Ino were waiting for news. The nurse went up to them and asked that, if they saw Sasuke, they report it to the hospital immediately. Sakura and Ino agreed, and the nurse led them to Lee's room, where they would get an equally short visit. As they opened the door, it was revealed that Lee was gone too. However, Sakura realized that his clothes were still there, implying that Lee was still near the hospital. They then saw Lee outside, doing one-arm push-ups since his other arm was unusable. It was then shown that Lee had already done 191 push-ups, and was saying to himself that, if he didn't do 200 push-ups, he must do 100 leg squats.

The nurse rushed up to him and tried to stop him, but Lee told her to back off. Sakura then thought back to when Ino and Sakura were at the flower shop. Ino noted that Lee's injuries were severe, and that his days as a ninja were over. Lee then thought of Neji, Sasuke, Gaara, and even Naruto, before saying to himself that he musn't be count out. He was on 199 push-ups, before Lee suddenly collapsed. The nurse then hurried off to fetch a stretcher, and asked Sakura and Ino to watch over him while she was gone. Sakura asked irritably why boys were always working themselves too hard, to which Ino responded by retorting that she wasn't a boy.

The scene changed to where everyone was training for the final exam. Shikamaru and Shino were busy training. Nearby, the Sand Genin, Team Baki were discussing something, but their voices were muted. The scene moved again over to the hospital, where Lee was on his bed. He woke up, and glanced to his right, where he noticed the flowers that Sakura had left behind. Ino and Sakura were walking along the streets on their way back home, where they were silent throughout the whole journey.

The scene changed back to the waterfall, where Jiraiya announced that the girls had left and that it was therefore time to pack up. But Naruto protested that Jiraiya hadn't watched him practising his Summoning Technique. Jiraiya told him to shut up, saying that he had already had enough of him. Naruto remarked that Jiraiya was a little cranky, befoe realizing what he needed. Naruto then used his Sexy Technique on Jiraiya again, albeit only for a few seconds. Jiraiya asked, "That was it?" Naruto replied that he had already mastered that jutsu, and that he needed to work on his Summoning Jutsu. Jiraiya then agreed to see it one more time. Naruto performed the technique, and summoned another tadpole. For some unknown reason, Naruto yelled, "VICTORY!" Jiraiya stared at it blankly, before shouting at Naruto that, if he wasn't going to take this seriously then he was through with him. Naruto pointed out that the tadpole had legs, to which Jiraiya snapped back, "Give me two legs and a brain, and maybe I'll even train it!" But Naruto claimed that he was improving, which left an exasperated Jiraiya to grumble to himself.