Found Your Secret, Hehe

Naruto's gaze quickly shifted to the others.

He stroked his chin, his thoughts churning.

"It's easy for those using items, but the ones relying on sensing or opening their eyes are trickier. The simplest way is to just take out the Chunin who have the answers," Naruto thought, constantly adjusting the angle of his forehead protector.

"Found him." He finally locked onto a bespectacled examinee diligently writing, who appeared to have no external assistance.

"How should I get him...?" Naruto mused, a bold idea suddenly striking him.

Naruto's eyes turned scarlet once more, and this time, a faint malevolence swirled around him.

Hinata's eyelids twitched. She turned to look at Naruto. Their eyes met, and she turned pale, her mouth agape.

"Shh, it's okay, I'm just doing a little experiment," Naruto whispered reassuringly, transforming the Nine-Tails Chakra into a long, transparent strand that spread outwards.

Examinees it passed over were filled with dread. Some of the more timid ones felt a wetness between their legs, while others found their hands trembling so violently they couldn't write a single word.

Soon, the Nine-Tails Chakra touched the bespectacled examinee. He seemed to freeze as if under a spell, his mind filled with endless malice, his eyes turning somewhat red.

Through his forehead protector, Naruto saw everything behind him.

"It's working!" he rejoiced internally, and began searching for the next examinee with the answers.

Naruto didn't directly cover the entire exam hall with the Nine-Tails Chakra, fearing that if the commotion was too great, it would attract Konoha's higher-ups, which would be ridiculous.

As he searched, he rationalized: "It's not me screwing them over. Many people will die in the Forest of Death anyway. This way, you'll be eliminated early and live a few more years."

"This is all for your own good!" Naruto felt he was doing too much for these Genin.

But soon, he felt a chill down his spine as his gaze met Ibiki's directly in front.

"He found me?" Naruto saw Ibiki looking in his direction with a grave expression.

"But the Nine-Tails Chakra seems to have boosted my perception quite a bit too."

Naruto thought for a moment and retracted the Nine-Tails Chakra.

His recent stunt had caused many examinees in the affected areas to give up on answering.

They suspected they were being targeted by some unspeakable evil.

Over at Sakura's side, she hadn't started writing either. She was contemplating whether she should let Ino find a way to copy her answers.

According to the original story, Ino would obtain Sakura's answers through the Mind Body Switch Technique and then relay them to Shikamaru and Choji.

After much thought, she still didn't pick up her pen.

Perhaps the emotions of the original host influenced her. She didn't want Ino and the others to continue in the subsequent matches, even if it meant Shikamaru would lose his chance to become a Chunin.

Setting Shikamaru aside, Ino and Choji currently had no means of self-defense. If the new Transmigrator was a psychopath, their lives could be in danger.

"I'll leave it to fate," Sakura sighed, deciding to let Ino and the others fend for themselves.

Time quickly ticked down to the final ten minutes.

Ibiki scanned the room, cast another glance in Naruto's direction, and then shouted, "Alright! Now I will announce the tenth question!"

"But I will add a few rules on top of that..."

Ibiki revealed a hint of a twisted smile. "...rules that bring despair..."

Just as he uttered the word "despair," the surrounding environment suddenly became extremely dark, but it was fleeting.

He couldn't help but glance again in Naruto's direction.

Who is it?

Meanwhile, Naruto shook his head helplessly. "Wasn't that just me using the Nine-Tails to add some pressure? Why did he stutter mid-sentence?"

Naruto felt Ibiki was really unprofessional.

Ibiki coughed and continued explaining the rules. This time, he spoke fluently and maintained his composure. After his explanation, the exam hall was filled with an atmosphere of despair.

Naruto, at the opportune moment, added the Nine-Tails' effects again. He even wondered if he should ask Ibiki for hazard pay afterward.

What is this, though? Lighting technician? Atmosphere creator?

"Hmm?" Ibiki sensed something was wrong again. This time, he hesitantly focused on Naruto.

This child... looks a bit familiar... No, how could a brat like this exude such pressure?

However, the atmospheric effect created by Naruto's master was quite good. Seeing waves of people raising their hands, even forming lines at the registration numbers.

Seeing this, Naruto finally completely withdrew the Nine-Tails Chakra.

"Enough, enough. If this continues, something will really happen," Naruto exhaled, suspecting that a few more seconds would have truly summoned Hiruzen.

At the same time, he kept observing his surroundings but found no abnormalities.

The Twelve Ninja, Sound Ninja, Sand Ninja, Kabuto... these people were unaffected, but the number of minor characters had indeed decreased significantly.

"Hope that Transmigrator is among those weaklings... Tsk, if they really get eliminated, will they just wait by the entrance?"

Naruto's expression tensed again. He picked up his forehead protector and began constantly observing the examinees lining up to give up.

Hinata, seeing her beloved looking left and right with a worried expression, felt a pang of heartache. She took several deep breaths, mustered her courage, and patted Naruto's shoulder. "Naruto-kun, are you really okay?"

"I'm fine..." Naruto waved his hand, but quickly changed his tune. "Ahem, actually, I'm not. I've been feeling a bit off lately. How about you use your Byakugan to check me out after the exam?"

Hinata thought for a moment and nodded shyly.

"Yosh, Konoha's girls are the best!"

Naruto smiled and nodded, planning to deepen his relationship with Hinata today.

On the other side, after Ibiki surveyed the classroom, he asked once more if anyone wanted to quit. Receiving a negative answer, he finally solemnly announced:

"Then, everyone present... I declare you all passed the [First Exam]!"

The crowd was shocked, and someone couldn't help but ask. After Ibiki explained in detail, everyone finally understood.

However, as he explained, he kept glancing in Naruto's direction.

This kid isn't simple... He didn't show any surprise from beginning to end, but his gaze was always wary of something. Is he still not out of the exam state?

Sasuke had also been observing Naruto's movements. He hadn't written anything down during the entire exam, yet he had actively created several 'accidents.' When faced with the final life-or-death question, he remained neither humble nor arrogant, as if he had known the answer beforehand.

Naruto, what else are you hiding... Sasuke couldn't help but feel a strong curiosity towards Naruto.

Sakura looked at Ino and the others who had passed the exam and sighed. Oh well, if anything happens later, it can't be said to be related to me, Haruno Sakura.

Ibiki: "You've passed the first stage of the exam, so you need to work harder in the future!"

As he was speaking, Naruto suddenly felt something touch his feet.

He looked down and saw a small, crumpled paper ball.

Naruto picked it up and unfolded it. There was only one short sentence on it:

[I found your secret, hehe]