In the classroom for the first written exam, the commotion had already died down, leaving only Morino Ibiki and a few examiners organizing the collected test papers. He casually flipped through a few papers, seeing the dense answers on them, and nodded slightly.
Most of the examinees had managed to answer the questions fairly well by relying on their respective information-gathering abilities. Indeed, those who remained were all quite capable.
In fact, almost all the examinees' cheating methods had not escaped his and the proctoring team's eyes—whether it was the Hyuga's Byakugan, the Uchiha's Sharingan, the Aburame clan's insects, or even Sunagakure's Sand Eye and that Puppet. Only those whose methods were too clumsy and lacked restraint were caught on the spot and disqualified.
After organizing for a moment, Ibiki specifically pulled out the one test paper he was most interested in from a pile.
"Uzumaki Naruto..."
He murmured the name on the test paper, his gaze becoming complex. This Genin's name was now almost the focus of all Konoha's Jonin's private discussions—Kakashi Hatake's proud student, the one the Third Hokage personally acknowledged as the definite future Hokage... Ibiki carefully scrutinized the neat handwriting and clear answers on the paper, unconsciously nodding slightly.
All answers were correct, and the reasoning was clear... What an incredible kid. How exactly did he detect the standard answers?
Naruto's "cheating" method was the only one Ibiki couldn't see through the entire time. He was certain Naruto had used some special method to obtain information, but he could never determine the specific means.
However, when his gaze lingered on the second major question—the one about calculating the maximum range of a shuriken in flat combat and analyzing the characteristics of enemy Ninja—his brows gradually furrowed, and then he showed an expression of disbelief.
Wait... This is a bit off.
The answer itself was correct, no problem. But... the calculation basis and derivation process written next to it were actually much more detailed and rigorous than the standard answers formulated internally by the examiners!
It not only listed the complete oblique projectile motion formula but also meticulously analyzed the probability of hitting targets of different heights under a parabolic trajectory, even considering the minute effects of wind speed and shuriken weight!
This depth of analysis... Could it be that he didn't copy this question through cheating at all, but deduced it step by step himself?!
This discovery left Ibiki in a brief silence.
Truly... a terrifyingly formidable kid.
Just like his father... — — — — — —
In the damp and oppressive air of the Death Forest, Naruto took a deep breath. After calming down, he turned to his two teammates and said,
"For the next actions, I will keep all the scrolls we have. This is the safest way. Satsuki, you are responsible for flank vigilance and primary firepower output. Sakura, your task is to constantly pay attention to the surrounding environment and protect yourself. The goal is to finish quickly and avoid unnecessary prolonged fights."
For some reason, Sakura felt that Naruto at this moment seemed more energetic than usual, and his entire aura had become sharper. Was it an illusion? She felt as if Naruto's eyes were a little moist... At this moment, only Naruto could see the Gold Experience, which had quietly appeared. It slowly placed its hand on the moss-covered ground, and an invisible life energy perception spread out like ripples. The life signatures of every animal and every examinee in the forest were clearly visible in Naruto's perception.
This Stand ability was too practical; just the range and accuracy of this life energy detection were enough to rival the Byakugan's X-ray vision and the Kagura Mind's Eye.
After hearing Satsuki's almost confessional and firm response, Naruto's determination and confidence reached an unprecedented height.
Orochimaru, you're disguised as a Chunin to fish here, aren't you? Well, I'll let you experience firsthand what it feels like to fish when someone is cheating.
Just then, he clearly sensed two special Chakras. One was Gaara's familiar aura, mixed with violence and pain. The Kurama in his heart immediately became restless, constantly urging him to go teach that tanuki a lesson right now and snatch the scroll.
But Naruto immediately rejected this action. Firstly, it was not the time to confront Gaara, and another reason was that he sensed Orochimaru's cold and viscous life signature rapidly approaching their direction.
Kurama, calm down. It's not time yet. He soothed his restless partner in his mind.
At this point, Sakura raised a question. "Naruto, which direction should we head now?"
"Directly to the Central Tower," Naruto pointed into the depths of the forest without hesitation.
"Huh? But," Sakura was a bit puzzled, "the condition to pass the exam is to collect both Heaven and Earth scrolls, aren't we going to snatch the missing one first?"
Satsuki, who was beside them, heard this question and couldn't help but feel a bit speechless. Although his theoretical knowledge was perfect, his tactical thinking was not flexible enough. Wouldn't it be much more efficient to arrive near the tower in advance and wait to intercept the teams that had already collected the scrolls and were ready to pass? The teams that could reach there would inevitably have both scrolls.
"As for the missing scroll... we can solve that on the way using this method."
As soon as he finished speaking, under Satsuki and Sakura's slightly puzzled gazes, Naruto took out a specially crafted, triangular Kunai—it was a Flying Thunder God Technique Formula marking Kunai.
Under their astonished gazes, he seemingly casually tossed the Kunai gently upwards.
Just as the Kunai left his fingertips and reached its highest point.
"Whoosh!"
A blurry figure plummeted from the dense tree canopy. In the reflection of Satsuki's suddenly constricted pupils, the attacker had already approached Naruto's back with astonishing speed, a sharp Kunai in his hand pointing directly at Naruto's neck, his intention clear—hostage-taking!
Got him!
The Kirigakure Ninja who launched the sneak attack looked at the defenseless blond back so close, and a smug, sinister smile irrepressibly spread across his lips.
Sure enough, he's just a kid, too inexperienced! To discuss tactics so openly in a place like this, he deserves to be my prey!
However, just an instant before the blade of his Kunai was about to touch Naruto's skin—
"Swish!"
Naruto's figure vanished from where he stood!
All of this happened in a flash. The smug expression on the attacker's face hadn't even had time to change to astonishment before it completely froze.
"Bang!"
A dull thud came from above! Naruto, who should have been in front of him, now appeared as if teleported above his head. One hand steadily caught the special Kunai he had just tossed, while the other hand slammed down hard on the back of the attacker's head, smashing his face into the ground!
The immense impact instantly made the Kirigakure Ninja lose his balance, pinning him firmly to the ground. Immediately after, the cold Kunai was reversed and precisely placed against his throat.
"Don't move."
Naruto's calm voice came from above him, "Now, answer my question—is your team's scroll kept by you?"
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