Let's break this down. We're going to add 9996 and 6972 together.

Step 1: We'll start by adding the digits 6 & 2 in column 1 and get 8.

Step 2: We'll start by adding the digits 9 & 7 in column 2 and get 16.
We'll write down the last digit 6 and carry the 1 to the next column.

Step 3: We'll start by adding the digits 9 & 9 in column 3 and get 19.
We'll write down the last digit 9 and carry the 1 to the next column.

Step 4: We'll start by adding the digits 9 & 6 in column 4 and get 16.
We'll write down the last digit 6 and carry the 1 to the next column.

So, 9996 + 6972 = 16968.

