Uchiha Fūi's words clearly carried an implication. Mikoto didn't fully understand at first, but it didn't take long for her to grasp what was hidden between the lines.
On the platform, the examiner responsible for the first stage of the chūnin exams stepped forward.
"My name is Morino Ikō."
"I am the proctor in charge of this stage of the chūnin exams!"
"From this moment on, the exam will begin."
"Under the condition that you do not harm your comrades—answer to your heart's content!"
Baixing rested his chin on one hand, grumbling internally. Why is it this uncle again? Did your clan inherit the rights to proctor the first stage of the chūnin exams or something?!
He glanced sideways at a Hyūga branch-family boy sitting nearby, who had clasped his hands together nervously, as if praying for divine intervention.
"Father, Mother, please bless me so I can pass this exam!"
Baixing's eyes turned into dead fish eyes. You're really that eager to go to the battlefield and die?!
Having seen brutal battlefield footage before, he felt a clear generation gap forming between himself and these kids who'd never experienced real war.
Soon, the exam papers were distributed.
Unsurprisingly—
They were the kind of nightmare test where even with everything learned at the Ninja Academy, getting above ninety was nearly impossible.
—The only viable method was cheating: copying answers from the "fake genin" teams planted in the exam hall who actually knew the answers.
Usually two such teams.
Baixing recognized a few familiar faces that had shown up in the last two years and couldn't stop mentally ranting.
"I'm finished!"
The Hyūga branch boy next to him slumped back in his chair after reading the questions, his soul practically leaving his body.
Baixing: "..."
I really want to roast you.
In the corner of the ceiling, a surveillance camera rotated slightly, observing every candidate's reaction to the absurdly difficult questions.
"That kid Ming… what on earth is he doing?"
In the monitoring room, a Hyūga branch-family jōnin rubbed his temples. Seeing his cousin's son in such a state, he felt this year's chūnin exam was probably already over for him.
The chūnin exams weren't just about strength—they were a comprehensive evaluation of whether someone was fit to be a chūnin.
Moreover, slots were limited. Judging by the number of candidates, at most two teams would pass this exam—six people in total.
"He's probably just too nervous. After all, he only graduated recently and already signed up for the chūnin exams," a jōnin instructor beside him said.
"Still, there are sixteen teams this time. I wonder how many will be eliminated in the first stage alone," Yūhi Shinku suddenly remarked, watching Yūhi Ryu-un smoothly writing her answers on the screen.
"They should've all realized by now that this exam isn't just about answering questions."
"Kehehehe—"
"In any case, my Second Team will definitely pass."
Sarutobi Shinnosuke spoke confidently, completely unaware that the cold voice behind him didn't belong to any team instructor. On the screen, his squad—Ino–Shika–Chō—was already cooperating flawlessly.
Yamanaka Taiji spotted several candidates who were writing confidently. After finishing his own answers, he immediately used Mind Transfer Jutsu, swapped bodies, and began copying from a perfect-score paper. Then he passed the answers to Nara Hanene and Akimichi Yumi…
"Orochimaru. What are you doing here?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't turn around. He merely tilted his head slightly, glancing backward.
Leaning against the wall was a cold-looking man with his arms crossed. His lips curled faintly, his headband gleaming, earrings swaying slightly. When his eyes opened, they resembled venomous pythons lurking in the forest.
"I heard there's a genius girl from the Uchiha clan taking part in this exam, so I came to have a look," Orochimaru said softly.
"And I also heard she happens to be a student under that genin, Baixing…"
"Isn't that rather interesting?"
Uchiha Keishin, the jōnin in charge of Fūi's team, turned his head without the slightest fear of this famed battlefield "Cold Lord." His three-tomoe Sharingan spun open as he met Orochimaru's serpentine gaze.
"The Uchiha clan's genius does not require concern from Jōnin Orochimaru."
"We will raise her properly ourselves."
Orochimaru quickly waved his hands. "Don't misunderstand. I'm just interested in geniuses."
"At the moment, I already have a favored disciple. With missions and research, I simply don't have time to train another."
"Hmph."
Uchiha Keishin closed his three-tomoe eyes and turned back to the exam hall.
The surrounding instructors exchanged awkward looks. The tension between the Hokage's faction and the Uchiha clan clearly hadn't eased at all.
...
"The answers are done. Now it's time to eliminate people, right?"
"How troublesome."
Shinnosuke had instructed his team to demonstrate teamwork—not just in answering questions.
In the fifth row, with an excellent vantage point, Nara Hanene swept his gaze across the proctors monitoring the hall and began forming hand seals.
The proctors pretended not to notice, but smiles were already creeping onto their faces. The internal struggle among genin in the first stage had finally begun—and surprisingly, it was this year's rookies who struck first.
There were six rows of desks. Under the tables, Hane's shadow stretched forward, catching the shadow of a genin seated to the side of the fourth row.
"I—I—I… I can't move!"
"Candidate No. 31! First warning!" a proctor barked.
"No—it's not that! My body suddenly won't move!" the genin shouted.
A nearby proctor expressionlessly made another mark.
"Candidate No. 31! Second warning! One more, and you're out."
Hearing that, the genin fell silent, helplessly watching his body reach toward the exam paper in front of him…
Hane clenched empty air. The shadow-linked genin clenched the paper instead, bitterness in his heart.
Sorry. This is the sensei's order.
Rip—
The exam paper was torn apart right in front of the proctors. The genin stared at his own hands in despair as control returned to his body.
"Candidate No. 10, No. 31, and No. 45—eliminated!"
"What?! He tore the paper—why are we eliminated?!"
"Yeah! I finished everything!"
On the platform, Morino Ikō scanned the three who had stood up, his expression cold and stern.
"You are one team. Are you willing to abandon your comrades and advance alone as a chūnin?!"
"If so, then you are even less worthy of becoming chūnin!"
"T-this…"
The three looked at one another. Under the weight of everyone's gaze, they finally lowered their heads and walked out of the exam hall.
They never imagined this year's chūnin exams would be so brutal—being eliminated before even reaching the second stage.
After they left, it was soon Yamanaka Taiji's turn.
"Sorry about this."
"Mind Transfer Jutsu!"
In an instant, he entered a boy's body. Lowering his head to check the exam paper, he realized the answers were mostly correct…
"Did he swap bodies?"
"I remember that boy's team doesn't have a Yamanaka."
"And there's only one Yamanaka in this exam hall…"
Baixing's voice drifted over.
The Hyūga branch boy stiffened. Taiji—currently occupying Hyūga Ming's body—turned his head slightly toward Baixing, his tone dark.
"Don't meddle."
"I didn't control you only because Sensei Shinnosuke wants us to crush you hard in the second and third stages!"
"Otherwise—"
Baixing yawned. He couldn't care less; this guy wasn't his student or teammate anyway.
Right now, he was just waiting for that Miss Ryu-un in the first row to put him under genjutsu, so he could pretend to scrape by with a sixty-something score and pass.
"I forfeit!"
Next to him, Hyūga Ming suddenly stood up with his hand raised, shock written all over his face—as if he himself didn't understand why those words had come out.
"Candidates No. 7, No. 21, No. 30!"
"Eliminated!"
...
Third row.
After finishing her answers, Uchiha Fūi turned toward the girl beside her.
"Time to send you home, Mikoto."
"Fūi."
Mikoto's eyes opened, revealing the same single-tomoe Sharingan—yet Fūi's face instantly filled with shock and jealousy.
"When did you awaken the Sharingan…?"
Fūi couldn't believe that her own newly awakened Sharingan had already been overshadowed by someone even younger.
In the monitoring room, the observers were equally surprised. Awakening the Sharingan at eleven already counted as genius-level—many Uchiha didn't awaken it until fourteen or fifteen.
"Uh…"
"I got angry at my teacher," Mikoto said awkwardly, scratching her cheek.
"?????" ×N
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