The Fastest to Hand in Papers

None of the ninjas present wanted to fail the exam, so naturally, no one was foolish enough to keep making noise after the proctor had called for silence.

"My name is Minato Namikaze. You can just call me Proctor Minato. I am the proctor for the first stage of the Chunin Exams."

As Minato Namikaze introduced himself, he wrote the key points of the Chunin Exams on the blackboard.

Each question was worth one point for a total of ten questions, and one point would be deducted for every wrong answer, with rankings determined by individual total scores.

Uchiha Shimizu rested his chin on one hand, listening to Minato Namikaze's explanation.

"The first stage is a written test. If you cheat—"

Minato Namikaze paused, emphasizing the following words with a firmer tone.

"—and are caught, two points will be deducted. Once you run out of points, you fail..."

Following this, Minato Namikaze distributed the test papers to every candidate. The excessive difficulty of the questions instantly made many ninjas' eyes widen.

The candidates' expressions were exactly as Minato Namikaze had expected; he had worn the same look when he took the Chunin Exams himself.

Much of the content was completely beyond the knowledge range of a genin, and some questions even touched upon the level of a jonin.

This was because the exam wasn't testing whether the candidates could actually solve the problems, but rather testing their ability to gather intelligence.

Among ninjas, the most important battle was the intelligence war.

Once you knew the ninjutsu an enemy used, it was easy to devise countermeasures based on their weaknesses.

"The candidates this year are in for a rough time. The questions are harder than last year's," a proctor with black markings painted on his head remarked gloatingly from behind Minato Namikaze.

"Indeed," Minato Namikaze nodded.

These questions were designed to force them to cheat.

"I hope more of them pass this year."

Minato Namikaze glanced downward. In the center of the exam room, they had pre-arranged two chunin who already knew the answers.

Once a candidate realized the true purpose of this exam, the answers would be easy to write down—at least, the answers to the first nine questions were.

Minato Namikaze kept track of the time, waiting for the clock on the wall to reach the designated mark before announcing the tenth question.

"Hmm?"

Minato Namikaze suddenly noticed one candidate writing as if possessed by a spirit, without a single moment of hesitation. His head remained bowed, focused entirely on the test.

His expression was calm, as if these questions posed no difficulty at all.

"That's someone from the Uchiha Clan," the proctor beside him reminded Minato Namikaze.

"I believe his name is Uchiha Shimizu. He has a unique talent for medical ninjutsu."

"Is that so?"

Minato Namikaze vaguely recalled Kushina Uzumaki mentioning this person's name, though he hadn't paid it much mind at the time.

Uchiha Shimizu was just a genin he wasn't familiar with; he was usually too busy developing new ninjutsu to pay attention to such things.

Now that he saw Qingshui, his only thought was, Well, he's quite handsome.

In the silent exam room, while the other ninjas were still in a state of bewilderment, the sound of a pen scratching against paper could be heard.

Tap, tap, tap.

It struck their hearts like a heavy hammer.

There was such a monster in the Chunin Exams?

He had only just received the paper a few seconds ago, and he was already writing?

Many gazes were cast stealthily toward the source of the sound: Uchiha Shimizu.

Pakura tucked a strand of golden hair that had fallen to her ear behind it, her brown pupils glancing at Qingshui from the corner of her eye.

This guy... he's that Uchiha from yesterday.

At that moment, the only thought in Pakura's mind was, Is the quality of ninjas in the Hidden Leaf Village really this high?

Even she, who considered herself an elite ninja of Sunagakure, was struggling to put pen to paper, yet this Uchiha was just writing away?

Qingshui must be writing nonsense.

Asuma Sarutobi found it hard to believe. Having heard that Kurenai Yuhi was graduating early, he had rushed to graduate as well.

He had done quite a bit of studying at home for the Chunin Exams.

Looking at these questions made his vision go dark; he couldn't answer most of them.

A little further ahead, Kurenai Yuhi was biting her bright lips so hard they were nearly bleeding, her fingers gripping the pen turning white.

She hadn't even had the chance to challenge Qingshui yet, and she was already falling behind.

He's wasted so much time on this theoretical knowledge; he must have slacked off on his practical training. This is my chance.

Kurenai Yuhi took a deep breath and began to work on the questions.

Everyone had limited energy, and she did not believe that Qingshui's energy was inexhaustible.

"Quiet!"

One of the proctors looked at the increasingly noisy examination room and shouted.

"If there is any more noise or whispering to others, you will be considered to have failed the exam."

The noisy examination room finally quieted down once more.

"Proctor, can I hand in my paper early?"

Qingshui raised his hand.

Thanks to the many simulations he had undergone, he had gained a wealth of knowledge, and he found the theoretical questions easy to handle.

"No, the final question has yet to be announced; you must wait a while."

"Oh, then I suppose I don't need that one point."

Qingshui's words left Minato stunned; such a situation had never occurred in all the years this exam had been held.

The exam had only just begun about five minutes ago, and already someone wanted to hand in their paper.

The Chunin who had been arranged in advance probably hadn't even finished writing the standard answers yet; if they wrote too quickly, others would notice, so they had to pace themselves accordingly.

"Are you sure you want to hand in your paper early?"

"I am sure. I believe I can pass this exam, and I will bear all the consequences myself."

Qingshui placed his paper on the desk. The tenth question was nothing more than a test of whether a candidate's will was firm enough.

Wasn't his desire to hand in the paper early proof enough of his resolve?

With that, Qingshui walked straight out of the examination room.

This would certainly cause some trouble, but it was of no consequence.

Sometimes, revealing a bit of talent could lead to better results.

Hiruzen Sarutobi would inevitably try to win him over, and even Danzo would likely extend an olive branch.

In this way, Fugaku would have to weigh whether his suppression was truly necessary.

After Qingshui left, the candidates in the room looked at each other in dismay, wide-eyed and speechless.

The psychological pressure hit its peak. Some had already vaguely sensed that this exam wasn't about solving these questions, but rather testing something else entirely.

Now that Qingshui had finished so easily, didn't that imply their foundations were inadequate and that they simply lacked the knowledge?

"This..."

Since he had put it that way—explicitly stating he would bear the consequences and showing such unwavering determination—that was, in fact, the standard answer to the tenth question.

Minato picked up the paper Qingshui had left behind. It was filled with dense, elegant handwriting; every solution was standard, and for some questions, he had even provided multiple methods.

"Uchiha Shimizu..."

Minato buried this name deep in his heart. Perhaps he was witnessing history in the making?

Was he witnessing the rise of another Kakashi?

Hokage Building.

Hiruzen Sarutobi puffed on his pipe as he spoke with Fugaku, who stood beside him.

The Uchiha Clan was responsible for Konoha's security, while the Anbu handled similar duties.

The two departments often experienced overlapping conflicts, requiring constant coordination.

"Lord Hokage, here is the list of those who passed the first round of the exam."

A Jonin walked in from outside and handed a list of white text on a black background to Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Hiruzen habitually glanced over it; it was much the same as in previous years.

Most of those who passed were ninjas from ninja clans, with very few civilian ninjas.

Suddenly, his brow furrowed, and he called out to the Jonin who was about to leave.

"Is the time recorded here a mistake? Passed the exam in five minutes and thirty seconds?"