Kiba, who had been tossing Akamaru playfully, accidentally bumped into an Oto Genin.
"Watch it, mutt-boy!" the Oto Genin snapped.
Kiba turned, ready to throw a punch—but before his fist could land, Naruto casually caught it mid-air.
"Whoa there, easy," Naruto said, calm but firm.
Kiba blinked, realizing what he almost did. "Tch... Sorry," he muttered.
But the Oto Genin wasn't done. He sneered, "What, you're scared now? Thought you had bark but no bite."
The air turned thick. The mood was ready to snap like a kunai wire.
Just then, a figure stepped between them—silver hair, glasses, calm voice.
"Let's not start the Chunin Exams with a disqualification, yeah?" he said.
Everyone paused. His presence wasn't commanding, but oddly… disarming.
"Who are you?" Kiba asked, narrowing his eyes.
The guy adjusted his glasses. "Name's Kabuto Yakushi. Pretty sure Sakura here knows me."
Sakura stepped forward, cautious but familiar. "Yeah. I've seen him at the hospital. He's an Iryō-nin… pretty skilled, from what I've heard."
Kabuto smiled, humble and unbothered. "Just doing my part."
Before anyone could ask more, the giant double doors to the hall creaked open.
Silence fell across the room.
The real Chunin Exams were about to begin.
A tall man entered the hall, flanked by two others in standard Chunin uniforms.
The man in the center was a force of nature—tall, broad-shouldered, and built like he could punch through a wall without breaking a sweat. His bald head gleamed under the light, interrupted only by deep, brutal burn scars that etched across his scalp and face like war medals.
He wore a dark, intimidating uniform with a flak jacket under a long trench coat that swayed like a shadow with every step. His cold, piercing eyes scanned the room like a hawk measuring prey. The moment he stepped in, the entire hall seemed to drop in temperature.
Hgggh.He coughed low and deep—more growl than illness.
"I'm Ibiki Morino," he said, voice gravelly and sharp like a kunai scraping stone. "Jonin of Konoha... and your proctor for the first exam."
Whispers instantly died out. Everyone was listening.
"This exam is written. But make no mistake..." His eyes darted toward the spot where Kiba and the Oto Genin had nearly brawled. "I saw the little scuffle back there. I don't care what you do before the exam... but if you get caught cheating even once, your whole team is disqualified."
A pause.
He stared directly into the soul of half the room.
"No mercy. No excuses."
Then, without waiting for a response, he turned on his heel.
"If there are no questions, follow me to the testing room."
The two Chunin opened the doors behind him.
The real trial was about to begin.
As everyone started to shuffle out of the waiting hall, Kabuto gave his glasses a little push up the bridge of his nose and said with a casual smile, "This year's competition is intense. A lot of top-ranked genin are here—so if you're not sharp, you'll fall behind fast."
He turned with his team and left.
"Show-off," Naruto muttered, sticking his hands in his pockets. "Whatever, let's just get this over with."
One by one, the genin made their way into the exam room.
It was spacious, but the air was heavy with pressure.
At the front stood Ibiki Morino, unmoving, like a boulder of authority.
Rows of desks stretched across the hall. Test papers were already neatly laid out on each one. Around the perimeter, half a dozen Chunin stood like hawks, their eyes sharp and ready to catch anyone slipping.
Naruto walked in with his usual swagger, scanning the room.
His eyes landed on a familiar trio.
"Yo! Suna Siblings!" he called out, waving casually.
Gaara didn't respond—his blank expression colder than the wind of Suna's desert nights.
Kankuro scowled, visibly irritated.
Temari, however, gave a slight nod of acknowledgment.
"At least you're a good sport," Naruto said with a grin, shooting her a wink. "Nice to know someone in your squad has manners."
Temari didn't reply, but her smirk said plenty.
Naruto found his assigned seat and plopped down.
He stretched his arms back dramatically. "Man… I hate paperwork."
Around the room, murmurs faded as Ibiki stepped forward.
The exam was about to begin.
Naruto turned his head to see who was sitting beside him.
On one side, Hinata smiled.
On the other, a genin from another village stared ahead, uninterested.
"Oh hey, Hinata," Naruto whispered. "Lucky! You're beside me. Mind showing me a few answers if I get stuck?"
Hinata's eyes widened, then softened with a quiet resolve."If it's for you, Naruto-kun, I'd write your whole paper."
Naruto blinked. Then grinned."You're too cute, you know that? Honestly, how did your dad never see that adorable face and melt?"
Hinata turned bright red, her gaze immediately dropping to her desk. She fidgeted with her pencil, lips pressed into a shy line.
Up front, Ibiki Morino's cold eyes scanned the room.
He noticed the whispering and stepped forward.
"Quiet."
The word cracked like a whip.
Every murmur in the room died instantly.
The room felt colder.
Ibiki's gravelly voice carried effortlessly.
"Here are the rules."He gestured to the test papers already laid out.
"You have forty-five minutes to answer the first nine questions. At the end of that time, I will give you the tenth question separately."
Murmurs almost rose again, but the intensity in his gaze silenced them.
He paced slowly, hands behind his back.
"You're being watched by Chunin stationed throughout the room. If you're caught cheating five times, your entire team is disqualified. That means, if you mess up—your friends pay the price."
Some genin began to fidget nervously.
Others, like Shikamaru, just sighed.
Sasuke narrowed his eyes, processing every word.
Kiba gritted his teeth, already fired up.
Naruto, on the other hand, leaned back and let out a huge yawn."Man, written tests are the worst…"
Ibiki turned toward him, expression unreadable.
But he didn't say a word.
He let the silence stretch... tense... suffocating.
"Begin."
Naruto flipped the test paper over, pencil twirling lazily in his fingers.
First thing's first—he scrawled his name confidently across the top."Naruto Uzumaki. Yep, that looks about right."
A nearby Chūnin, assigned to catch cheaters, blinked in disbelief. How could this kid be so chill?
Up front, even Ibiki Morino gave Naruto a subtle glance. He didn't smile, but a faint twitch in his scarred brow hinted at interest.'So relaxed under pressure. Must be all those people around him… Tsunade, Jiraiya, Kushina, Kurenai, even Anko. They've molded this kid into steel.'
Naruto glanced at the first question.
"A squad of four shinobi is assigned to travel 40 kilometers in 2 hours, avoiding patrols every 10 kilometers. Each detour adds 15 minutes. What's the minimum time to reach the destination while avoiding all patrols?"
Naruto's eyes narrowed for half a second, then he grinned."Tch. Math. Easy peasy."He scribbled the answer quickly and slammed a confident dot at the end.
"Next!" he muttered, flipping to the second problem—
But was stopped by a soft voice beside him.
"Naruto-kun…" Hinata whispered, barely audible.
He turned with a smile."What's up, Hinata, darling?"
She turned tomato-red, hiding her face behind her test paper and trembling fingers. She pointed subtly to the left.
Naruto followed her gesture and spotted a Chūnin glaring at him. The proctor pressed his index finger to his lips—a universal shut-it sign.
Naruto mirrored the gesture sheepishly."Got it, my bad."
The Chūnin sighed and looked away. Hinata sighed in relief.
The room simmered in tension as the test continued. Half an hour crawled by.
Every so often, chairs screeched as someone was escorted out—caught cheating.
Whispers turned to silence. Sweat formed on brows. Pencils tapped nervously.
Some genin, like Neji, wrote without hesitation. Others, like Choji, looked miserable.
Naruto, meanwhile, calmly worked his way through the questions. His eyes occasionally flicked around—not to cheat, but just to feel the room. The pressure didn't bother him.
Finally, Ibiki raised his hand.
"Time's up."
The rustling stopped. Everyone froze.
The ninth question was done.
Now came the mystery…
The tenth question.