Early morning, June 8, Year 54 of Konoha.
The first rays of sunlight crested the outline of Hokage Rock, painting every street in Konoha a warm gold.
Cooking smoke rose from rooftops across the village, and the aroma of breakfast stalls drifted on the morning breeze as the village slowly awakened in the dawn light.
Today, the Leaf Village was different from usual. Genin wearing all sorts of forehead protectors streamed toward the village center from every direction.
Their faces showed nervousness, excitement, or carefully feigned composure.
Some discussed things in hushed voices, some checked their ninja tool pouches, and some simply followed their teammates in silence, without a word.
Among the crowd, Uchiha Itachi, Kabuto Yakushi, and Inuzuka Hana followed the flow through several streets and around a corner.
At last, they arrived at the venue for the first round of the chunin ninja exams-a rather imposing building.
A banner reading "Chunin exams venue" hung above the entrance, where quite a few teams had already gathered.
Strangely, however, they merely lingered outside the main entrance. Some spoke quietly, while others glanced around, seemingly without any purpose.
Inuzuka Hana stopped and tilted her head in confusion.
Haimaru poked a head up from atop her head, dark eyes fixed on the people at the entrance, and let out a low
"Woof?"
"Itachi, Kabuto, what's wrong with them? Why are they staying outside instead of going in?"
Inuzuka Hana's voice was full of confusion.
"There isn't much time before the exam. Aren't they worried?"
The perceptive Itachi and Kabuto exchanged a glance, the corners of their mouths lifting slightly at the same time. They had noticed something was wrong from their very first look.
"Hana, take a closer look! The exam has already begun." Itachi's voice was calm and gentle, his gaze