The Land of Suspicion

The esteemed special jounin of the Konoha Interrogation Squad was outwitted by a genin from the Hidden Sand. It wasn't about retaliation—Morino Ibiki's breadth of character wasn't so narrow.

However, this time the summary report of the first stage of the joint Chunin Exam would need a thorough explanation of the incident's cause and effect, to serve as a reference for similar future missions.

At this point, measures for remedy were necessary. If left unchecked, there would be no need to reveal the tenth question, nor for the second stage's survival test in the Forest of Death.

A premature individual competition to determine ten solo fighters for the final trial in the arena a month later might wrap things up.

"If only it were that simple, but alas, it's not to be," thought Ibiki, glancing at the clock and estimating the remaining number of examinees before knocking solemnly on the blackboard.

Ibiki's sudden movement caused all the examinees to cease their activities. Sweat-drenched Shikamaru Nara, a flustered Naruto Uzumaki, Rock Lee and Choji Akimichi who couldn't secure support—all future renowned ninjas—now looked upon Ibiki with the hope of salvation, awaiting the proctor's new announcement.

Even the slightly more astute examinees had sensed the anomaly of the written test. Its difficulty exceeded normal bounds, which contradicted the purpose of the Chunin Exam. Without change, this edition would become a farce.

Such a scenario was certainly not what the host, Konoha, desired to see in the joint Chunin Exam!

The awkward situation of the first stage, so difficult to resolve, was undoubtedly the work of that despicable and shameless puppeteer genin from the Sand, Daimaru.

It wasn't that no one wanted to change their plight, but it required all present examinees to cease interfering with others' information gathering.

A scenario akin to the prisoner's dilemma, something senior students at the ninja academy were exposed to—while not in-depth, they understood the basics.

The optimal choice was to set aside differences and collectively overcome the challenge, but unity was elusive.

The best choices for individuals, teams, and the overall interest of all examinees were completely at odds.

Among completely untrustworthy competitors, even if agreements were made in advance, there was no guarantee someone wouldn't hinder others after obtaining their answers.

Teams that had safely completed their papers watched from the sidelines, occasionally stirring the pot.

Genin who hadn't finished were helpless, watching their unfortunate peers, who also realized too late, slowly descend into the abyss.

Self-rescue by the examinees was impossible; only the proctors had the power and authority to amend the exam rules.

Most examinees were like crops longing for rain, except Daimaru, whose face paled.

"Did I overdo it to the point of backfiring?"

The most troubling thought was that Kankuro was not in the examination hall. If he didn't return in time, he would lose his eligibility, affecting Gaara and Temari—especially Gaara, who needed to unleash Shukaku in the third stage of the Chunin Exam for their plan to collapse Konoha.

If such a drastic change occurred, the plan would face significant alterations, sliding toward an uncontrollable direction.

If Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari were all halted in the written test, Daimaru would lead the Sand's genin in this joint Chunin Exam. The tasks originally assigned to Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro would inevitably fall on Daimaru.

Lurking on the fringes of the "Konoha Collapse Plan" was one thing, but deeply engaging in it with his current stature, could he really leave Konoha alive?

Daimaru glanced at the clock—just past four o'clock, with ten minutes until the scheduled revelation of the tenth question. Could Kankuro make it back in time?

"You bunch of failures, you're a disgrace to the ninja profession!"

Ibiki captured the examinees' attention, slamming his hand on the podium,

"I had some expectations for you, but it seems I overestimated you. In light of this, I've decided to announce the tenth question ahead of schedule, and add a rule that will drive you further into despair..."

Ibiki's face darkened ominously,

"What lies ahead for you, pleasure in heaven or pain in hell? I'm quite looking forward to it..."

"This is bad, very bad!" thought Daimaru, signaling Yoru to alert Senza with several signals while his fingers trembled slightly, fully activating the puppetry secret technique—Manipulating Art: Human Puppet Skill.

Senza, fully trusting her teammate, did not hesitate to execute Daimaru's command. She covered her face with a fan, gathered all her chakra, and launched her most dangerous genjutsu. Inhaling a mixture of secret medicine powder and genjutsu chakra, she was immediately enveloped in tremors.

"The irony, to be the first to endure a technique painstakingly developed for others," Senza mused bitterly as she fell victim to her genjutsu.

In the blink of an eye, Senza's eyes cleared, looking like a different person—Ino Yamanaka seized the chance to break free from the trap.

The panic-stricken Leaf kunoichi, not understanding what happened, hastily formed seals, aborting the Mind Body Switch Technique, her spirit rushing back into her body.

Sensing Senza's actions, Daimaru quickly used puppet threads to suppress her genjutsu reaction, isolating some nerves to alleviate her pain.

Ino, who had untangled herself in a hurry, wasn't so lucky. A few seconds later, she screamed in agony and collapsed onto the desk, her body convulsing uncontrollably.

The unexpected turn of events drew the attention of both examinees and proctors.

Ibiki, about to announce the new rule, frowned,

"What's going on?"

A Leaf Chunin proctor sitting next to Ino stepped forward to check her condition,

"Unconscious... is it an acute illness?"

Shikamaru, concerned for Ino, slammed his fist on the desk, shouting,

"That's impossible, Ino's never had any sudden illness. It must be an attack by an examinee. I think we should disqualify those who don't follow the rules!"

"Quiet! Whether there's an issue or not, the proctors here will judge!"

Ibiki scolded the agitated Shikamaru.