Running About

The examination hall fell silent. All the examinees who had previously looked at Moriyue with disdain were stunned as well. What had this guy just said? He had openly provoked the chief examiner? Said he wasn't qualified to be the chief examiner? How did he dare?

"You're young, but you've got quite the mouth on you..."

Some veteran examinees who had taken the Chunin Exams more than once smacked their lips. Going head-to-head with an examiner during the exam—young people really hadn't been beaten down by society yet. Some things weren't as simple as they thought.

It wasn't that these veterans had lost their edge. They had simply learned to hide it. But did they truly still have the courage to voice their opinions? They probably hadn't dared to for a long time.

Shikamaru's expression turned somewhat unpleasant. He was highly intelligent, so of course he knew that what Moriyue had said was indeed correct under these circumstances. But Konoha currently needed to show Sunagakure goodwill, so naturally they couldn't directly eliminate so many Chunin.

He had no choice but to resort to this measure. They couldn't let things become too ugly, could they? If he didn't use this question to pull some people through, more than half of Sunagakure's examinees would be eliminated in the first round. How would Gaara be able to save face then? The ninja world wasn't all fighting and killing; human relationships and social conventions mattered even more.

"Please have all examinees who passed leave in an orderly manner and prepare for the second examination."

Shikamaru said nothing further. He was the chief examiner; what kind of test he chose was his freedom. There was no point in arguing with Moriyue, so it was better to leave things there.

Only after Shikamaru spoke did the examinees who had passed gradually leave the hall. However, the way they looked at Moriyue was no longer the same as before.

After seeing him electrocute himself and openly confront the chief examiner, they realized that this smiling young man was not as easygoing as he appeared. They had to be careful around him.

"Yo, Captain! We're over here! Why did you come out so late?"

Ando and Kazeki had left the examination hall long ago. Things had gone smoothly on their side, and they had been among the first to rush out. Looking at the dejected examinees around them lamenting that they would have to retake the exam next year, the two of them felt an inexplicable delight.

Smiles didn't disappear. They merely moved from those people's faces onto theirs.

"Nothing much. I got delayed for a bit. Really lucky, huh? I bet right." Moriyue laughed and didn't mention what had just happened with Shikamaru, lest those two start worrying about this and that again.

Even with Shikamaru's near miraculous attempt to salvage the situation, the crowded throng had still been reduced by more than half. Shikamaru's intentions had been good, but he had forgotten one thing: Sunagakure and Konoha were somewhat different. This was a village where even fathers could treat their sons as weapons of war, even sending assassins to murder their own sons. Wanting those conservatives to understand "friendship and love" was simply wishful thinking. They had written their teammates' names on the paper without hesitation, and naturally lost their qualifications to participate.

But did that guy calculate even this? By using this method to filter out examinees who accepted his ideals, the other ninjas will inevitably have to accept those ideals as well if they want to pass future exams... Impressive. Truly impressive...

Moriyue began analyzing Shikamaru's decision. As expected of Konoha's future military strategist, every move he made had its own calculation behind it. Moriyue felt that he might not be able to outplay Shikamaru in terms of schemes alone.

Brute force beats masterminds. Who cares what schemes he has? Just go up and hit him. There won't be anything he can do about it. There was no use overthinking it. Moriyue simply wouldn't give Shikamaru time to lay out his plans. Once they became enemies, he would just smash his face in with Lightning Abuse.

Kazeki had hurriedly left the team just now, seemingly remembering something. Before long, she rushed back carrying several items.

"Captain, these are the sacks and ropes you asked us to prepare earlier. I put them directly into the Sealing Scroll. What are these things for?"

Kazeki tossed over two small scrolls. Moriyue caught them, patted Kazeki's shoulder in satisfaction, and shook his head mysteriously.

"You'll find out when the time comes. Do you know Pokémon? I'll take you to catch some later."

The three walked down the street and soon arrived at the plaza where the next examination would gather. There were far fewer people on the streets, but the eliminated Sunagakure examinees had not left. They sat there, watching the examinees with jealousy in their eyes and cursing them to die in the next examination.

Since this exam differed somewhat from the original, the examinees were not taking the exams in Konoha, but in Sunagakure. Therefore, the destination for the second examination had changed from Sunagakure's Desert of Death to Konoha's Forest of Death. Still, it was all more or less the same. Since it was a joint examination, it made no difference where it was held.

Temari, dressed in a fitted kimono, planted her enormous iron fan into the ground. Before her stood the examinees who had passed the first Written Exam. Once all the examinees had arrived, she began explaining the rules of the second examination.

"All examinees who have passed the first examination, the second examination is about to begin. Please prepare yourselves!"

"The content of this examination is simple. Starting now, you will race from Sunagakure to Konoha's Forest of Death. Combat is forbidden along the way. The last fifty examinees to arrive will be eliminated."

Her crisp, decisive voice rang throughout the plaza. Temari stood with her arms crossed, heroic and valiant, her gaze as sharp as a Wind Blade, making every examinee present tense up.

The moment Temari finished speaking, Moriyue grabbed Kazeki and Ando and took off running. The two of them did not react at first, only realizing what was happening after Moriyue had dragged them far away.

"Tch, someone got ahead of us..." Neji had just been about to run when he discovered that someone was already faster than them. After giving Moriyue another look, his team began running as well, second only to Moriyue's group.

Seeing those two teams take off without a word, the other examinees were filled with confusion.

"The examiner hasn't said start yet. Aren't they breaking the rules by running?"

"They jumped the gun! Those guys broke the rules! Hurry up and declare them cheaters—let them join us eliminated people! Hahahaha!"

Some sat to the side making sarcastic remarks, but others caught on and began running as well.

Fu of the Seven Tails was still standing there, grinning carefree as ever. She tilted her head and tapped her own forehead.

"Ahh, I was one step too slow~"

Temari could no longer stand it. Were the people of her own village really this foolish? She had made it so clear, yet they still didn't understand?

"I said starting from 'now'..."

Upon hearing Temari's explanation, the examinees who had been foolishly waiting for an announcement to start were dumbfounded. They had thought the ones who ran first were idiots, but now it turned out that the idiots were themselves.

"What are you waiting for? Run! If we don't go now, we'll be eliminated!" The rest hurriedly set off, but having fallen behind right at the starting line, it would be difficult to catch up later.