In another corner of the classroom, the Hokage's son, Masashige Sarutobi, still sat as straight as his family had taught him, but his brows were furrowed too. His young face bore a gravity and solemnity far beyond his years. As the current Hokage's eldest son, he had inevitably received his family's instruction and preferential access to resources earlier and in greater depth than most of those present. Yet against questions so clearly beyond the syllabus, designed to test potential and adaptability, even his stronger foundation seemed enough only to keep him barely afloat. He struggled at the edge of understanding, unable to make a real breakthrough.
Only Shinji Uchiha, seated diagonally behind him-the boy who had long since become a classroom legend everyone else could only look up to-looked utterly at ease. He even seemed a little bored as he sat with one leg crossed over the other, deftly twirling his pen like an obedient butterfly fluttering between his fingers. His dark eyes slowly swept over his classmates with interest and a hint of amusement, taking in those scratching their heads, those drenched in sweat, and those looking as though they bore some bitter grievance. It was as if this were not an important exam that would determine their term evaluations, but a dazzling stage performance put on just for him. As for the nearly blank exam paper in front of him? Well, it apparently had yet to inspire him to put pen to paper.
Minato gently exhaled the stale air in his lungs, forcibly suppressing the faint stirrings of unease the difficult questions had caused him. From the moment he entered the exam room and felt its unusually oppressive, almost suffocating atmosphere, then noticed the proctor Kakumatsu's sharp gaze scanning the entire room like radar beneath his seemingly casual pacing, he had already grasped the true purpose of this written exam.
This was by no means a simple test of memorized theoretical knowledge. Its core purpose was to assess "intelligence gathering and adaptability under extreme conditions." In short-how to successfully and discreetly "cheat" right under the nose of the proctor, an "enemy reconnaissance unit," and score as highly as possible.
This was not an encouragement to be dishonest. Rather, in an extreme mission environment closely modeled on reality, it tested how a competent ninja could make the fullest use of his own strengths, his surroundings, potential teamwork, and every available resource to obtain vital intelligence-information that could determine a mission's success or failure, or even life and death. Honesty had never been a quality a ninja needed to possess, especially during operations in which the mission took precedence over all else.
Since my current theoretical knowledge won't let me break through these barriers head-on, then... I'll have to resort to unconventional methods. Minato's gaze sharpened, a trace of resolve flashing through his clear blue eyes. Without further hesitation, he began slowly and with exquisite precision gathering his chakra in the fingertips holding his pen. He kept it extraordinarily faint, as natural as breathing, blending it into the surrounding environment without letting the slightest trace leak out. He formed no hand seals. Instead, he quietly attached that finely controlled energy to the very tip of his pen, like the thinnest strand of silk spun by a spider.
Then he began making light strokes in a blank section of his exam paper, at a specific frequency and with movements so minute that ordinary eyes would struggle to notice them. This was no ordinary writing. He was using chakra's distinctive fluctuations to reproduce a simplified code frequency he had devised from the fundamentals of ninja signaling. He had originally practiced this code for simple long-distance communication and organizing his thoughts, never expecting it to prove crucial now. What he "wrote" was not complete answers, but references to key theoretical points, paths for deriving core formulas, and possible openings for solving the questions.
He chose Shikaku Nara as his first "communication" target. He had not chosen Shinji Uchiha, despite being closer to him, because from what Minato Namikaze knew of Shinji's way of doing things, he would already be thanking his lucky stars if the fellow did not stir up some trouble halfway through the exam. Besides, Shinji... did he really need to cheat to pass an exam like this? Rather than count on His Highness to volunteer his help, Minato was better off opening things up himself and establishing an initial "intelligence network"!
The instant Minato's pen tip began trembling in a peculiar, rhythmic pattern, Shikaku's seemingly unfocused, vacant gaze snapped into focus, a sharp gleam flashing through it. He was born with powers of observation and logical association far beyond those of ordinary people, along with an animal-like instinct for patterns and rules. Though he could not immediately understand exactly what method Minato was using, he was absolutely certain those were not meaningless nervous fidgets. He immediately held his breath and concentrated, devoting his full attention to catching the pen tip's exceedingly subtle movements and changes in frequency out of the corner of his eye, like the most precise sensor. Meanwhile, his brain began furiously deciphering the information within them like a decoder running at full speed.
Steady chakra fluctuations... definite intervals and repeating patterns in the frequency changes... this points to the explanation of energy conversion in chapter three, section five of Basic Theory... Hmm? So this complicated energy dissipation formula can be broken down in reverse and approximated from this angle? Shikaku's eyes grew brighter and brighter. His formerly languid expression melted away like ice and snow, replaced by absolute concentration and successive flashes of understanding. He swiftly recorded the decoded key information and pivotal ideas on his paper in handwriting that looked casually scrawled but actually concealed meaning, then drew on his formidable logical reasoning to rapidly supplement, expand, and verify them.
Meanwhile, the strand of chakra "signal" Minato had released also began trying to spread toward Inoichi Yamanaka nearby, as though it had a life of its own. Perhaps the Yamanaka Clan's secret mental techniques could pick up this intangible stream of information, which existed more on the levels of energy and thought. Inoichi did indeed sense it. He had not taken the initiative to forcefully connect to anyone's inner mental world-that would have been tantamount to suicide in the exam room. But his keen mental senses still caught the faint chakra fluctuations rippling outward like a stone dropped into a calm lake, carrying a clear direction and pattern. He immediately focused, trying to "read" and understand the fragments of information those fluctuations sought to convey. At first, they were somewhat blurred, as though seen through frosted glass. But Minato seemed to notice his attempt and deliberately adjusted the pattern and intensity of the fluctuations, bringing them closer to a threshold for mental perception. Inoichi finally managed to pick up several crucial terms and numerical frameworks. His mind jolted. In an instant, he understood Minato's intent and fully grasped the brutal, realistic unspoken rules hidden behind this exam. He turned his head slightly and gave an almost imperceptible nod in Minato's direction to acknowledge receipt, then lowered his head and began writing furiously, combining his own understanding and accumulated knowledge to fill the blanks on his paper.
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