Means of Cheating

Inside the examination hall, the atmosphere was so heavy it felt as if it could drip water.

Orochimaru flipped open the test paper, his gaze sweeping across it rapidly.

The first question: code-breaking.

Tobirama Code.

Heh, something left behind by the Second Hokage.

This code used an obscure, convoluted ancient poem written by Tobirama Senju as a cipher table; by using the row and column numbers provided in the question, one had to locate the corresponding characters in the poem to decipher the message.

For Konoha ninjas, this was essentially a mandatory course at the Ninja Academy, and anyone who had put in even a little effort should be able to answer it.

A faint, almost imperceptible arc curled the corner of Orochimaru's mouth.

It seemed this was a question specifically designed to hand out points to Konoha ninjas—were they trying to establish a Konoha advantage from the very first round?

A bit interesting.

His gaze continued to drift downward.

The second question: Ninja A stands on a seven-meter-tall tree and throws a Shuriken at an enemy fifty meters away; please calculate the initial velocity of the Shuriken, ignoring air resistance.

A simple projectile motion model.

Orochimaru performed a quick mental calculation and arrived at the answer.

The third question concerned the application of Water Style ninjutsu in specific environments, involving a key formula derivation that required differential calculus to solve Bernoulli's Equation.

The fourth question, organic chemistry: if an aromatic compound is dissolved, stirred with dilute hydrochloric acid, and then subjected to fractional extraction using ether, what compound remains in the water?

Isn't this difficulty gap a bit too wide?

Seeing this, Orochimaru couldn't help but offer a wry smile.

Aside from the first question, which was a "gift" for Konoha, the remaining questions were clearly not intended for anyone to actually pass.

The technology tree of this world was somewhat skewed; due to the existence of Chakra, biotechnology had in some aspects even surpassed his previous life.

For instance, the Delicate Illness Extraction Technique could directly extract viruses, bacteria, and diseased tissue cells from a patient's body.

Simply put, even if one had cancer, it was just a matter of casting this one ninjutsu...

Yet in other areas, such as mechanics and materials, they were only at the level of the late eighteenth or early nineteenth century of his past life.

Moreover, most of these research findings were concentrated among non-ninja populations.

Ninjas didn't have enough time in the day for training, and their research focus was basically limited to ninjutsu development and medical ninjutsu.

Expecting them to delve into these fundamental theories?

It was simply a fantasy, so aside from him, he estimated no one else would be able to answer.

Thinking of this, Orochimaru was in no rush to pick up his pen.

Instead, he looked up, observing the reactions of everyone in the hall with great interest.

Sure enough, most of the examinees were currently wearing expressions of utter confusion, scratching their heads and breaking out in cold sweat.

Clearly, these questions were like heavenly scriptures to them.

But, there were always exceptions.

Orochimaru noticed that five examinees had buried their heads and were writing furiously the moment the exam began, their expressions calm and composed.

These five people were seated quite far apart, distributed in different corners of the hall.

If he wasn't mistaken, these five were likely the personnel specifically planted to provide the "standard answers."

Heh, they really went to great lengths.

Soon, some of the quicker-witted examinees also sensed that something was wrong and began to show off their own unique skills.

The kid from the Hyuga Clan had veins bulging at his temples; clearly, he had activated his Byakugan, his gaze scanning the hall frantically.

The few from the Uchiha Clan were even less subtle; the tomoe in their scarlet eyes spun rapidly, as if they were afraid others wouldn't know they had activated their Sharingan.

The boy from the Nara Clan extended his shadow silently, connecting it like a thin snake to the feet of the nearest "information provider," seemingly using this method to sense and mimic the other person's writing movements.

The methods of the other small clan ninjas were mostly inseparable from their respective secret family techniques—a diverse and colorful display that could be considered quite spectacular.

However, two people truly caught Orochimaru's attention.

The first was that little redhead from Sunagakure who carried a giant puppet on his back.

At this moment, his ten fingers were flying, and several nearly invisible Chakra threads were connected at one end to an "information provider" writing furiously, while the other end connected to his five Sand Ninja companions beside him.

As that "information provider" wrote, the redhead's fingers trembled slightly, seemingly sensing the vibration frequency and trajectory of the other's pen tip through the Chakra threads, then precisely controlling the arms of his five companions to make them write the answers in synchronization.

Multitasking, and with such precise control.

This meant that this guy could control at least five puppets to perform quite complex operations simultaneously.

He was indeed a genius.

The other was a young girl in the Kirigakure line.

She formed hand seals with both hands, and a faint mist began to permeate around her body.

Soon, this water vapor condensed into several extremely thin ice mirrors before her. Through clever angular refraction, the content on the test paper of an "informant" in the distance was clearly reflected.

Her control over Chakra was also quite impressive.

And she was even using the Kekkei Genkai of Ice Style...

A faint smile played on the corner of Orochimaru's mouth as he turned his gaze toward Jiraiya on the other side.

That kid was scratching his head and ears over his test paper, his face pale and sweat dripping from his forehead like rain. It was clear he couldn't understand a single question and hadn't even realized he needed to cheat.

"Tsk."

Tsunade was also frowning nearby. Although she could understand some of it, the complex calculations and derivations that followed gave her a massive headache.

As for cheating, she couldn't think of any good methods for the moment...

Now, she could only pin her hopes on Orochimaru...

Thinking of this, Tsunade touched the earring on her ear, though she didn't know what this thing was for.

Just then, as if suddenly remembering something, Jiraiya scrambled to take the earring Orochimaru had given him out of his pocket and clumsily put it on.

Seeing that the two were ready, Orochimaru withdrew his focus.

It seemed it was time to do some "real work."

A trace of electricity flashed imperceptibly at his fingertips, and the [Lightning Style: Electromagnetic Communication Technique] was quietly activated.

This technique was a byproduct he had accidentally obtained while researching the nature transformation of Lightning Style Chakra.

He discovered that the lightning simulated by the Chakra in this world had very peculiar properties; it seemed to retain only the characteristics of an electric current while lacking the properties of magnetism.

Simply put, no matter how he increased the current output, he could not effectively produce an observable magnetic field.

Later, he remembered that in the Naruto world, Magnet Style was a specialized Kekkei Genkai. Its users included Gaara's family from Sunagakure and the current, strongest Kazekage—whose name he didn't know—and it was a Kekkei Genkai formed by combining Wind and Earth Chakra natures.

Thinking about it this way, it was quite reasonable.

If ordinary Lightning Style ninjutsu could easily produce a strong magnetic field, then during the Chunin Exams, when Sasuke's Chidori faced Gaara's sand, the sand should have been disturbed or even countered by the magnetic field effect.

But in reality, Gaara's sand showed no signs of chaos in the face of Chidori.

Orochimaru had also tried mixing Wind and Earth Chakra. After long periods of preparation and precise control, he could produce a weak magnetic field at a specific frequency, but the intensity was low and the consumption high, making it of little research or practical value.

According to his teacher Hiruzen Sarutobi, as long as one cultivated Chakra nature transformation to the extreme, one could theoretically use Kekkei Genkai or even Kekkei Tōta.

But for an average ninja, such an operation was an extremely energy-consuming task.

The reason a Kekkei Genkai is called a Kekkei Genkai is that the user's family, through long-term accumulation, has adapted to this change and can instinctively complete the mixing of different Chakra attributes.

Simply put, their constitution is better adapted to the performance of these special techniques, and they can pass this constitution down through bloodline inheritance.

Theoretically, it is the same as Sage Mode; the difficulty for a ninja without such a constitution to use it increases geometrically...

However, it was useful in a situation like the Chunin Exams...

The principle of this technique was quite simple and crude.

It was to generate electromagnetic waves of a specific frequency through Chakra.

And the earrings he gave to Jiraiya and Tsunade were actually simple artificial cochleae.

The materials used were also very common, mainly extremely thin copper coils and a few Rochelle Salt crystals.

Rochelle Salt has a piezoelectric effect, which can convert received electromagnetic waves of a specific frequency into weak mechanical vibrations, which are then amplified by the cochlear structure and converted into sound signals to be captured by the human ear.

Although it was a one-way communication and both the communication distance and anti-interference ability were limited, it was more than enough to pass answers in this kind of setting.

"Hello? Can you hear me?"

Orochimaru's slightly playful voice clearly reached the ears of Jiraiya and Tsunade.

"Whoa!"

Hearing Orochimaru's voice, Jiraiya was startled and almost jumped out of his seat, then a look of wild joy appeared on his face.

A savior! That guy Orochimaru was truly reliable!

He really couldn't do a single one of these talisman-like questions in front of him!

Tsunade was also full of surprise.

She furrowed her delicate brows and touched the accessory on her ear.

"Orochimaru? Is this... radio? Isn't the exam hall forbidden from carrying communication equipment?"

She whispered, asking through her lip movements, but there was no response from the other end of the earpiece.

"Just listen, this is my one-way communication."

"Time is precious, I'm starting to read the answers, pay attention to the question numbers yourself."

Orochimaru's voice sounded again.

As he spoke, Orochimaru wrote rapidly on his own test paper while transmitting the answers to the two of them via the [Lightning Style: Electromagnetic Communication Technique].

At the same time, in the Sunagakure queue.

A young man with short black hair and sharp eyes raised his eyebrows slightly.

He keenly sensed an extremely faint and peculiar electromagnetic fluctuation in the air.

"Hmm?"

The youth felt a flicker of surprise in his heart.

An electromagnetic wave of this intensity and directionality did not seem like a natural occurrence.

Within the examination hall, all conventional communication devices were theoretically supposed to be blocked.

Who was it?

He calmly focused his mind, relying on his unique talent for electromagnetic induction to begin tracking the source of the fluctuation.

Soon, his gaze locked onto Orochimaru, who was writing his exam paper with a calm and composed demeanor.

"A ninja from Konoha... interesting..."

A meaningful smile curled the corners of the black-haired youth's lips.

To think he could apply Magnet Style in a place like this...

He really was an interesting fellow.