22 Chapter 22 - Paper Exam is Over

A - Help your teammates by using Genjutsu. Show them the answers by using Genjutsu to create a test paper with the answers you know in front of them.

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Chapter 22 - Paper Exam is Over

…

Shinji, seeing that the exam might be a little difficult for Kota, thought up an idea to help his friend. Going through some hand signs, he looked at his teammates and saw them looking right back at him. A wisp of chakra, too small for anyone to notice, flew towards his teammates.

[Demonic Illusion: False Surroundings]

Both Sayuri and Kota's eyes turned dull for a split second, as they entered the Genjutsu. But it didn't take long for them to start writing in their exams papers. Every now and then staring in front of them, as if an exam paper was laid there.

Shinji made sure that none of the instructors noticed him. Even if a Jonin was here, he doubted they would notice a Genjutsu being cast on someone else if the victim didn't exhibit any abnormal behavior.

Suddenly, Shinji got images sent back by Sayuri, using Genjutsu. In front of him, something was written, the first couple of paragraphs were about the test, but the rest was different. He could dispel the Genjutsu easily, but this was meant as a mode of communication.

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Kabuto is a spy for Orochimaru. Be careful, he should be about as strong as an Elite Jonin. Think of him at around Yamato -sensei's level. But if he does something, he is a medical ninja, I don't know a lot about his fighting style. Though his Chakra amount is quite low, use that how you will in case of a confrontation.

P.S: Good idea with the Genjutsu. Never thought of sending messages like this before.

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Orochimaru. That name came up again and it sent a chill down Shinji's spine. He didn't want to get involved in whatever was happening behind the scenes. He was a simple Genin, his power was nothing compared to one of Sannin. Whatever interest Orochimaru had on him, it was a bad idea to get involved with someone you had no leverage over, and couldn't even meet on equal grounds.

Just thinking about Orochimaru having an interest in him made Shinji have a heart attack, metaphorically of course. As in reality, he wouldn't let his fear overpower him so easily.

'Why can't I just train in peace and not get involved with some super strong Ninja right off the bat. Also having a jonin-level person taking part in the same exam sucks.'

Still, even though he was complaining internally about his bad luck. Shinji's mind was working at its best capability, trying to somehow offset and plan around a situation in which he might encounter someone that dangerous.

If Kabuto was as strong as Sayuri said, then there isn't a lot Shinji could do against a Jonin in a head-on fight. But a ninja rarely fought head-on, especially against someone stronger than you.

…

Forty-five minutes passed quickly. During most of the exam, Shinji spent it thinking of the possible encounters against the Genin here and how he would go about it. Countless hypothetical situations played in his mind.

With him and Sayuri communicating through Genjutsu, they were easily able to solve the questions in the sheet. So their only priority was Kota, who also easily answered the questions and ended up with a huge smile on his face.

While other Genins were panicking, Shinji and his team were relatively relaxed. Well, Sayuri seemed to have her worries. But he doubted her worries were due to the exam.

…

It didn't take long for students to start dropping like flies as they were caught cheating. Some refuted the Chunin, but after some show of power, they were put back in their places.

There was one of the Sand Genin that went out with the extra Chunin inspector to go to the bathroom.

As the exam came to an end, there were many people panicky looking around, clearly, they hadn't had too much of a success in the exam and were panicking.

Amongst them, was Naruto. Shinji had already expected to not be able to solve a paper exam.

"Okay, that's enough," said Ibiki, his harsh cold voice making many people who weren't sure of their answers feel panic crawl up their hearts. "Now the 10th question will be revealed."

Unlike many of the people here, Shinji was as calm as he could be. If he succeeds then that's good, if he fails, then he is okay with that too. It just meant that he wasn't good enough to be a Chunin yet. He hasn't disillusioned himself to think that during his life there won't be some obstacles. He just has to work harder to overcome them.

"But keep this in mind, if you decide to take this last question and fail. You'll lose your chance to ever become a Chunin," though Ibiki talked calmly. His words brought anxiety within a lot of the Genin. "So, do you dare continue?!"

His gaze sharpened as a pressuring aura came out of him. The pressure increased soundlessly and it made the decision even harder. Many saw their ninja carers flash in front of their eyes, no matter how hard they tried it would never be enough.

'What bullshit. As if he has the authority to decide who becomes a Chunin in other villages.'

Shinji immediately saw through his act.

Ibiki was a Jonin, at best. Or maybe a Special Jonin, one specialized in torture and interrogation. Why would that guy have the authority to have someone from another village become an eternal genin? That didn't make sense. Even if they're allied with Konoha, other villages allowing that would just show that they're under Konoha, no worse than slaves.

Also even within the village, to have a ninja's career fail in just such a simple question. It was illogical in every single way.

'As if someone will believe something like that.' - Shinji almost chuckled. Knowing that you would have to be stupid to fall for something like this. Just thinking about it for a second would make the whole thing fall-

"There's no way that's true!" Kiba stood up in anger. "It's unfair to have a whole ninja's career based on this one decision."

Shinji didn't know whether to laugh or cry at this. He couldn't believe someone fell for it, looking around he noticed that many had fallen for the same scheme too. Even Kota seemed a little nervous, but unlike most others, he wasn't shaking in his boots and didn't seem like he would give up.

"What?!" The blonde-haired girl, from the Hidden Sand Village, panicked and stood up. "I know for a fact that there were people from the previous exam who still took the exam this year too."

'Seems like there's someone with a brain. Blonde hair that is tied up in four bundles, she is from the Hidden Sand Village. I will make note of her too. If I am not mistaken, she's in the same team as the creepy red-haired guy.'

"Heh," Ibiki smirked coldly. "So what? It's just your rotten luck that I am your exam proctor this year. I didn't make the rules last time."

In the end, she had no choice but to sit down worriedly. Shinji on the other hand leaned back on his chair, confident with 99% certainty that this was a false threat and a bluff.

"Anyway, if you want to leave, do so now," the smirk on Ibiki's face widened in an almost sadistic manner.

Unable to handle the pressure, one by one, dozens of students started leaving. Teams only needed one member to fall out and they would go down with them too. So just like that, people left in the dozens.

By how crowded the exam room was now, compared to before, Shinji could tell that around 35-40% of the Genin have been disqualified during the exam, and this was only the first part.

"Don't underestimate me!" Suddenly, a yell from Naruto startled everyone, even Shinji, as it came out of nowhere.

*Baam!*

The orange-wearing ninja slammed his hand onto the table. "I don't quit and I don't run! You can act tough all you want! You're not gonna scare me off! No way! I don't care if I do get stuck as a Genin for the rest of my life! I'll still be Hokage someday!"

'Oh okay, that's cool and all. But why did you have to announce it to everyone out of nowhere? That startled me.'

Shinji still didn't quite understand why Naruto acted the way he did. After all, he could have just kept quiet and not quit, there was no need to declare it out loud. Nonetheless, actions like this were entertaining. Even some of the observers that are here to check in case anyone cheated during the exam, were bewildered by the sudden declaration.

'No wonder everyone thought of him as a bragging loudmouth. He talks the talk, but can't walk the walk. Still amusing to see other people's reactions to him though.'

Shinji wasn't bothered by Naruto for long. But he did notice that the speech seemed to have encouraged some Genin to stay. Which might work in his favor during the next exam. So that made his mood a little better, as the ones who decided to still stay were a little weak and not ready for the exam yet.

Seeing that quite a lot of people had stayed, Ibiki smirked, calmly stating. "Well then, you've passed the First Phase of the Chunin Exam."

"""""WHAT?!!!!"""""

Many people exclaimed in shock, surprised at the outcome. Ibiki shrugged nonchalantly at their expressions. "The 10th question was whether you were willing to take the question or not. Anyone who is still here has passed."

"So this whole exam was for nothing then? What's the point of answering the other questions if we were going to pass like this?" Inquired the blond-haired girl, catching a glimpse of her paper, since she was seated close by he saw that her name was Temari.

"No, information sometimes can be more valuable than life. We put in a couple of decoy Chunins that knew all the right answers. Your job was to find out who they were and cheat off of them without being found." Ibiki then took off his bandana, showing a horrific sight that left everyone stunned.

Even Shinji was surprised by the degree of scars. Burning, cutting, and even screw holes made in his skull. This man had gone through excruciating torture. While to others this might just prove a point about how important information is and how far some are willing to go to get it.

'That… I must make sure I never end up like that. The only way someone can guarantee that they don't end up that way is by being strong enough to not get captured like this. Because not only I might not be able to survive, but it would be a horrible death.'

*BREAK!*

Suddenly, another startling event happened, as Shinji almost flinched at the sound of the exam room window breaking. And in came the female version of a loud-mouth ninja, just by the smile on her face one could tell she was trouble. Especially with the draped cloth that she had nailed to the wall behind her.

The clothes she wore were very risque. With only a mesh shirt that left little to the imagination, and a light-brown coat to cover her. "Hey there you rats! My name is Anko, and I will be your new and sexy examiner for the next part."

"Anko… I still haven't finished telling them the exact results of the exam," Ibiki responded, emotionlessly. "Anyway," but he turned back toward the rest of the Genin and nodded. "You've also gained the ability to participate in the second exam. My colleague might have-"

"Yeah, yeah, it was all about courage and all that," Anko interrupted him again, blushing in embarrassment. Ibiki likely was going to make it clear in front of everyone just how lame her entrance was as she was off-time. But Anko was in a hurry to stop that, so she pointed towards the broken window. "Follow me, I will take you to the next part of the exam."

Shinji couldn't help but silently chuckle at her behavior, which even Ibiki seemed entertained by. That made Shinji understand that while to Genin, this exam might seem important and something that will determine the waves of their lives. The examiners weren't that worried about it. Instead, they were playing around a little, it was too dull for them.

"Anyway, if you can't keep up with me. Meet at the Forest of Death, also known as training ground 44."

*Fwish!*

Everyone followed after Anko, as she jumped out of the broken window. Shinji and his team stood together as they jumped from roof to roof of the

...

After a while, they arrived at the corner of Konoha where the Forest of Death stood, with its giant trees making one feel like an ant while standing there. Shinji remembered that the First Hokage's specialty was Wood Style Jutsu and that maybe he was the one who created the forest of death as it was quite an unnatural place. With just one look, anyone would be able to tell that much. How could a forest like that grow in this place when the village's vegetation was normal.

Anko explained all of what would happen in detail, saying that many ninjas could die here and that they needed to sign a waiver before entering. So neither the examiners nor Konoha are held responsible for their lives.

"Heh, you're just trying to psyche me out! And I won't fall for it!" Declaring Naruto, he then imitated her explanation by ridiculing gestures of Anko.

*Fwish!*

Suddenly a kunai was thrown at Naruto, cutting his cheek before he could react. Within an instant, Anko was behind him and she licked his blood. "Arrogant fools like you are the first ones to drop dead."

Shinji's eyes widened as he saw a Genin sneak up behind Anko, he had long hair, a bamboo hat, and his tongue elongated, holding onto the kunai she had thrown at Naruto before.

"You dropped your kunai," he offered it back to Anko. Shinji was able to tell that while the man sounded feminine. But the body posture as he stood and walked was likely a man.

Still, none of that mattered as Shinji felt chills go down his spine when he recalled the speed the man had moved at. He couldn't even sense his move, which was strange as Shinji even against a Jonin like Yamato could somewhat sense when he was moving.

'That guy is another one of the dangerous people. It seems like even Sayuri doesn't seem to know who he is. Hidden Grass Village seems like they have their own monstrous Genin too.'

Shinji was on edge, it felt like dangerous people kept appearing from out of nowhere. He swallowed as his eyes turned sharp, his senses fully ready, just in case.

Sayuri on the other hand went and offered Naruto a band-aid. "Here you go," she smiled politely. "Make sure no animals in the forest can smell the blood."

"OOh," Naruto blushed. "Thank you. You aren't so bad after all."

Sayuri only smiled and walked off, but as soon as she turned her back on Naruto, her gaze turned cold and she smirked at me. Once she got close, she whispered. "That band-aid has a small storage seal that releases a certain pollen that my summons can smell."

"You have summons?" He knew about the subject a little but never thought Sayuri could already summon living creatures. "I never knew that."

"It's less impressive than it sounds," he sighed as if disappointed by her summons. "Also I believe I don't have to tell you. But don't mention this to anyone."

"Obviously," summoning wasn't something that just any Genin could know, and one thing is for sure: Yamato didn't teach her summoning. If he had taught her, then Shinji would already know it too. "Also that was a good choice since they're the weakest team here."

Well, there was Shikamaru's team too. But they had Shikamaru and they were all part of Clans, so they likely had some secret techniques that Shinji didn't want to try and figure out in the middle of battle.

..

Each team was given one scroll, Shinji had the Heaven Scroll and made sure to put it in a secure place. Now they needed an Earth Scroll, and they would have to safely go to the middle of the forest to pass the exam.

"START!!" The gates opened and all of the genin entered the Forest Of Death.

Trees became a blur as Shinji and his team dashed away from the entrance, making sure to not leave any traces behind.

"Where should we go now?" Sayuri asked Shinji, both she and Kota were expecting a decision from him as the team leader. Whatever he chose, they both would agree with his decision. They were a close team that didn't see a need to fight against each other for things like these.

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A - Go North. Towards the tower, you're bound to meet some teams along the way. Shinji doesn't want to spend a second more than he needs in this forest.

B - Go East. That's where Naruto and his team are. Shinji already knows their strengths and they're easy pickings. In his eyes, they're the easiest team to deal with, and likely the weakest. With how well he knows them, they can even do a stealth approach by transforming as Naruto, or Sakura.

C - Go West. You have a week to complete this part of the exam. Take things slowly, and search for other teams. Learn, adapt, overcome.

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A/N: Join discord where I post the dice rolls of the chapter and their effects. And discuss with other readers about plans for Shinji:

https://discord.gg/wbwRTqd7jr

P.S: For every 100 Power Stones, Shinji gets a re-roll in a bad dice roll. (which determines luck-related events).