Every candidate had taken their seat.
Morino Ibiki stood at the lectern, looked over the room, and said:
"I will now explain the rules for the first phase. Listen carefully —I'll say them only once."
The classroom was silent; only breathing could be heard.
"First, you start with ten points… Second, whether you pass depends on the combined scores of your three-person squad."
The second rule drew gasps from the candidates.
Tejima Shinichi heard Kobayashi Takeshi's breathing grow heavier behind him.
Morino Ibiki continued:
"Third, cheating. If you're caught cheating once, two points will be deducted. In other words, one cheat reduces your squad's total by two. You could be forced to leave before finishing the test."
A low murmur rippled through the room.
Tejima Shinichi saw Uzumaki Naruto's face turn pale; Sakura Haruno covered her mouth.
"Lastly," Ibiki raised his voice, "at forty-five minutes I'll add a special question. It will be scored separately. Total test time is sixty minutes."
The candidates' whispering grew louder.
"Rules announced." Ibiki swept his gaze across them. "Papers will be handed out now. Once you receive yours, wait for my start order. No talking or leaving your seat. Raise your hand for the proctor if you have questions."
Several Konoha Chunin began distributing the papers.
The test reached Tejima Shinichi; he glanced at it.
The questions were hard —most Genin couldn't answer them —but for him every problem was solvable.
Reactions around the room varied.
Uzumaki Naruto scratched his head, sweat beading; Uchiha Sasuke frowned in deep thought; Sakura Haruno's pen flew across her sheet; Hyuga Neji's Byakugan shifted slightly as he scanned the room… Cheating attempts began.
As time passed, more examinees were caught; when deductions hit the limit, entire squads were disqualified.
Those named had to leave under everyone's gaze, their teammates forced to follow.
The atmosphere grew heavy; each elimination added pressure.
Candidates cheated more cautiously while watching the proctors.
After finishing every question, Tejima Shinichi glanced sideways to check his teammates.
Kobayashi Takeshi was wiping sweat; Satō Yū chewed her pen, brows knit.
Seeing this, Shinichi made no move and simply waited for time to tick by.
Soon, forty-five minutes had passed.
Morino Ibiki rose from behind the lectern and swept his eyes over those remaining.
"The trash is about cleared," he said. "Now for the real part. Time's up —question ten."
"For question ten," his voice echoed, "you must first choose: answer… or not."
The room was so quiet breathing sounded like thunder.
"Choose to forfeit and you may leave now; your squad's score is void and your entire team fails." He paused. "But… choose to answer and get question ten wrong, and you're permanently barred from future Chunin Exams."
The statement struck everyone —banned forever!?
Such a rule was naturally hard to accept.
Inuzuka Kiba shot to his feet, incredulous. "What kind of rule is this? It's unfair —some of us have taken this exam again and again!"
Ibiki gave a thin smile. "You can choose not to answer… or try again next year."
Another candidate from Amegakure shouted, "This rule's forcing us to quit!"
"I'm the proctor this year; the rules are mine… meeting me is your bad luck," Ibiki said flatly. "I also said you can refuse and come back next year."
Realizing protest was useless, the candidates could only accept the unfair condition.
A trembling hand rose, then a second, a third… more and more chose to withdraw.
Cold sweat soaked Kobayashi Takeshi's palm; Satō Yū's fingertips trembled.
Both looked at the unmoving back in front of them. Recalling their pre-exam promise, they fought down their fear and kept their hands down.
Just as another squad raised their hands to quit—
Bam!
Uzumaki Naruto slammed his palms on the desk.
The wooden table rang dully, every head turning toward him.