Hokage: You Call This Guy the Savior?!

Of course, he was more inclined toward the latter possibility. While stealing the exam papers from Ibiki sounded incredible, it made perfect sense if one added the Transparent Style to the equation.

Gekko Hayate likely played a rather unsavory role in this as well; otherwise, who would have told Keiichi that the first round was a written exam?

One had to remember that he was one of the proctors, one of the few people who knew the examination process!

Even so, stealing the exam papers from Ibiki was far more difficult than cheating in the exam hall. It seemed he felt that the assessment designed by Ibiki was too elementary and insufficient to showcase his own abilities.

Furthermore, he hadn't shared the answers with anyone else, only giving Naruto a blank slip of paper. This was a hint to the higher-ups of the Leaf Village that he knew where to draw the line.

Could Hiruzen not treat such a sensible person well?

However, it was impossible for him to tell Ibiki that Keiichi had mastered the Transparent Style. A Kekkei Genkai concerned a ninja's most core intelligence; how could it be revealed casually, even to someone from the same village?

What's more, the other party was only a twelve-year-old child, the future of the village, so he had to be given a certain degree of protection.

"Alright, I understand the situation. Ibiki, I only ask you this: since you suspect Keiichi stole the exam papers, do you have any evidence?"

"This... I need to interrogate him. Give me time, I will definitely be able to get it out of him..."

"I do not doubt your ability, but do you think it is appropriate to treat a Leaf Village student who has just graduated from the ninja academy this way?"

"This..."

"Remember, the Torture and Interrogation Force is for outsiders. Do not use so many private punishments internally unless you have conclusive evidence."

"Yes, Lord Hokage."

"Release Keiichi and let him continue to participate in the second round of the exam."

"Yes!"

"Gekko Hayate, although Keiichi is your student, you must also be mindful of boundaries. You cannot be overly partial."

Gekko Hayate was left completely bewildered upon hearing this. Why would I be partial to Keiichi? That cocky brat is annoying.

He had no idea that in Hiruzen's mind, he had already become an accomplice who helped Keiichi cheat.

Chapter 36: The First Step to Hoodwinking Sasuke

"Academic genius style: handed in the paper in a very short time, gained 10 Magic Modification Points."

"The 'other people's child' effect: ranked first in the total score among all groups, gained 10 Magic Modification Points."

The pleasant system notification rang out, and Keiichi, having regained his freedom, couldn't help but reveal a smile. Sure enough, behind every risk lay a reward.

"Keiichi, that's great, you're finally out! No, wait, you actually played me!" Naruto was very happy to see Keiichi at first, but after thinking of something, he suddenly became full of resentment.

"Let's get this straight, how did I play you? Do you still not understand my intentions?" Keiichi sighed and spread his hands helplessly.

As soon as the first round ended, the second assessment began immediately. Everyone followed the chief examiner to the outside of the Forest of Death, and Keiichi caught up as fast as he could after gaining his freedom.

Then he was caught red-handed by Naruto.

Seeing that Keiichi had actually managed to escape from Ibiki's clutches, many Leaf Village ninjas who understood the deeper meaning behind it began to look at Keiichi differently.

This guy probably has someone backing him!

Otherwise, how could he offend Ibiki and still be let go so easily?!

However, when the real fighting started, it wouldn't matter what kind of backing you had; it would be useless!

Thinking of this, everyone started to look forward to seeing him make a fool of himself.

"What am I supposed to understand?" Naruto looked confused.

"I ask you, did you hand in a blank paper in the end?"

"You... how did you know?" Naruto widened his eyes, feeling it was unbelievable.

Didn't he just get released? How could he know about something like this?

"Just tell me if it's true or not."

"It is..."

"Then did you pass the assessment successfully?"

"Of course, otherwise why would I be standing here?" Naruto immediately puffed up with pride.

"So, was my hint to you wrong?"

"Uh..." Naruto was stunned; it seemed that was indeed the case.

So, the meaning of you giving me a blank piece of paper was for me to hand in a blank exam?

"If I hadn't given you the blank paper, wouldn't you have been disqualified for cheating? So, tell me, was I playing you or helping you?"

"Ah, this..." Naruto thought for a moment and suddenly felt that it was his own fault for coming to Keiichi in such a rage to demand an explanation.

"You hurt my heart, Naruto. Is this how you distrust your good brother?"

"I'm sorry, it was my fault. Thank you, Keiichi!"

Look, I played him, and in the end, he still had to thank me.

"We're brothers. After the exam is over, I'll treat you to Ichiraku Ramen." Keiichi waved his hand grandly, appearing very generous.

"I want to eat three big bowls!"

"That's not nearly enough; it has to be at least five big bowls to start."

"It's a deal!"

Sasuke and Sakura, watching the two of them go back and forth from the side, felt as if a silent crow were flying over their heads.

This idiot—he'd be counting the money for someone who just sold him!

How did I end up with a teammate like this?

"Keiichi, I have a question for you, and I want you to answer me truthfully." Seeing that the two had finished their chatter, Sasuke suddenly walked over, his face stern, and asked without ceremony.

"Is this about Rock Lee?" Keiichi asked with a smile.

"How did you... fine, yes. Since you've investigated the intel so thoroughly, I want to ask you: why did I lose to him?" Sasuke's expression was filled with unwillingness.

"Do you think your talent is inferior to his?"

"How is that possible?" Sasuke denied it flatly; he possessed the pride of the Uchiha, after all.

"Yet you still lost. That only points to one problem." Keiichi held up a finger.

"What problem?"

"You aren't working hard enough."

"Nonsense! I've worked hard enough, I spend a huge amount of time training every single day!"

"Heh, you call that hard work? Do you know how Rock Lee does it?"

"How does he do it?"

"Aside from eating and sleeping, he spends every remaining moment training. During that training, he constantly increases his load to boost intensity. Plus, he graduated a year earlier than you, so his training time is several times yours. Isn't it normal that you lost to him?"

These words left Sasuke speechless, though he couldn't imagine how someone could be so focused on training to such an extent. Didn't he need to relax?

"There are no shortcuts on the path to power. If you want to surpass others, you have to put in more effort than they do. With your talent, if you worked as hard as Rock Lee, you would leave everyone behind. What you need right now is patience."

Keiichi patted Sasuke on the shoulder, offering earnest advice.

As for how much of it he would actually take to heart, that was up to his own fate.

In his previous life, Sasuke took many shortcuts and grew quickly, but in the end, most of his abilities were tied to those eyes of his.

By the time of Boruto, when his Rinnegan was blinded by a kunai, look at how far his strength plummeted. By the day the Leaf Village fell, he was practically a non-entity, wasn't he?

There are shortcuts to take, but they always come with a price!

Once a person gets used to taking shortcuts, how could they ever be willing to work hard and put in the effort?

"Even if you say that, how long am I supposed to wait..." Sasuke muttered to himself, his eyes filled with a hint of confusion.

"Look at Rock Lee; effort always yields results. Why not make defeating him your goal?"

"I don't need you to tell me that, I'll do it anyway!" Sasuke glanced at Rock Lee, his arrogance instantly returning.

Heh, another simple-minded kid.

Let's leave it at that for now. Once he defeats Rock Lee, I'll find him a new goal next time.

No one noticed that while Keiichi was chatting with Naruto and Sasuke on the surface, his peripheral vision was constantly scanning the surroundings, sweeping across the faces of every examinee.

He remembered clearly that during these exams, Orochimaru would make his first appearance and have a fierce confrontation with the main cast.

It was precisely at this moment that Sasuke was branded with the Cursed Seal of Heaven, the most critical catalyst for his subsequent defection.

If he wanted to change the plot as much as possible, preventing Orochimaru from planting the Cursed Seal on Sasuke was the best point of entry; it really could drastically alter the future trajectory of the story.

Of course, he had only thought about it before. If he actually clashed with Orochimaru, his own meager abilities wouldn't even be enough to fill the gaps in the man's teeth. That was a figure several times more dangerous than Kakashi.

In the current version, the Legendary Sannin were the ceiling of ninja combat power!

Can't beat him, really can't beat him. Sasuke, you'll have to pray for your own luck.

But the moment he opened the Chunin Exams gift pack, his mindset shifted immediately. This time, he would have a proper go at Orochimaru; perhaps he really could turn Sasuke's future around.

That was why he had said those things to Sasuke.

To lock onto his target early, he tried to find traces of Orochimaru.

But he had forgotten which examinee Orochimaru had disguised himself as, so after looking for a long time without success, he had to initiate Plan B.

It was simple: tail the main cast. They were bound to run into Orochimaru sooner or later.

During the conversation, the proctor Mitarashi Anko had already explained the rules of the game: each team would be assigned a scroll, and they had to seize a scroll from others. With both Heaven and Earth scrolls in hand, they would reach the finish line to pass the assessment.

As soon as this rule was announced, everyone's gaze fell upon Keiichi, filled with ill intent.

It couldn't be helped; he was just too unique. He was the only one in his entire team—if they didn't rob him, who would they rob?

Sure, you're a Ken-8, you're smart, and you have connections; you stole the spotlight in the first exam.

Now that it was time for real, live-fire combat to decide who moved on, what kind of waves could a "N-level" player like you possibly make?

Keiichi ignored their gazes as if he hadn't seen them at all.

This was normal. If you set your own target at the level of Orochimaru, you would treat them as nothing, too.

Next came the signing of the death waivers. Perhaps out of consideration for Keiichi, he was the first to sign, and then he walked into the Forest of Death.

Behind him was a chorus of mocking, malicious laughter that sent a chill down one's spine.

However, the very next second, Keiichi vanished in plain sight, and the laughter cut off abruptly, for not a single person had seen where he had gone.

What happened to the easy mark? How could he have just disappeared?

"Woof! Woof! Woof!"

"Akamaru, stop barking, there's no one there!" Inuzuka Kiba patted his ninja hound on the head, sounding quite annoyed.

As far as the eye could see, there wasn't even a shadow of a person, so what was there to bark at?

The real issue was that the humidity here was too high, making his nose feel terrible, and he didn't want to stay in this place a moment longer.

It wasn't until long after Team 8 had departed that Inuzuka Kiba's head suddenly popped out from the bushes, and only after confirming that there was truly no one around did he leave with a hint of confusion.

Could Akamaru have really been mistaken?

Keiichi let out a long breath, yet he had no intention of moving from his spot just because Inuzuka Kiba had left.

Ever since he entered the Forest of Death and leaped onto this tree to activate his Invisibility Technique, he hadn't moved once, not even bothering with the other examinees passing by.

The exam lasted for a full 70 hours, so why bother getting caught up in the life-and-death struggles of those youngsters?

Besides, he had more important things to do; as long as his main body remained undiscovered, that was all that mattered.

He just hadn't expected to be nearly exposed by Akamaru, even though he had specifically chosen a place with high humidity to mask his scent.

At this moment, his attention was entirely focused on controlling his clone—a clone that felt incredibly unfamiliar to him.

A Peak Danzo Clone!

This clone possessed the strength of Danzo at his peak and had a standby time of six hours, making it the most useful item in the Chunin Exams Limited Gift Pack.