The Exam

Shivaroku headed to the training grounds to begin his training for the graduation exam. He took multiple scrolls with him as well. Some of them were jutsu scrolls, some were summoning scrolls, some were normal textbook scrolls. The resources he was given was divided into four sections, just like the exam: Taijutsu, Shurikenjutsu, Genjutsu, and Ninjutsu. These were the four major styles of combat for a Shinobi. According to the exam rules, he only had to be proficient in 2 out of the 4 styles, but that didn't matter to him, because Shivaroku wanted to excel at all of them.

Shivaroku learned a great deal of taijustu from Gohan and Roshi, and he polished his taijutsu during his training with Popo. As a result, he skimmed through all of the taijutsu scrolls within a couple days. Next on the list was Shurikenjutsu. Shivaroku worked with weapons before, but not as much as his taijutsu, so he was a little slow with learning how to throw his kunai and shuriken with the right angle, speed, and power. But with a lot of training and focus, Shivaroku was able to master it within a week.

He had about 22 days left to learn Genjutsu and Ninjutsu. Shivaroku decided to go with Genjutsu, since he felt it was one of the most important things to learn about as a Shinobi, but there were so many scrolls, mostly because there were so many different ways to use Genjutsu. To practice this, Shivaroku had to use special training dummies that responded only when a Genjutsu was successful. The key part about Genjutsu was that it tricks at least one of the five major senses. He tried to learn as much as he could, but when he put it into practice, he was unsuccessful. Even after 12 full days of training, he could never successfully attempt a Genjutsu. At one point, he gave up and cried out in frustration.

"Seems you're having trouble with Genjutsu." Shivaroku turned around in the direction of the voice and he noticed Kurenai standing there watching him.

"Um…uhhh," Shivaroku struggled to say anything until he dropped his head in defeat, "…*sigh* yeah. No matter how much I try, I can't pull of a stupid Genjutsu move."

"That's alright. Here let me see if I can help," said Kurenai. Kurenai then placed her hand on Shivaroku's head and closed her eyes. She seemed to be probing for something in there, but Shivaroku tried to keep silent so she could focus, even though he was confused. After about twenty seconds, Kurenai removed her hand and opened her eyes.

"It's just as I thought," said Kurenai.

"What is it?" asked Shivaroku.

"Well, Genjutsu users usually have an enhanced cerebellum. They have a small extra portion on their cerebellum where they focus chakra to pull off a Genjutsu."

"So what does that mean for me?"

"Well it means that without that extra portion, you won't ever be able to pull off a Genjutsu. You simply weren't born with it."

"Wait really? So, I can never do a Genjutsu?"

"Unfortunately, no. But don't be disheartened, you can still learn to defend yourself against a Genjutsu. Besides, you have enhanced auditory and occipital lobes. This means your hearing and sight are much better than average."

"How does that help me for Genjutsus?"

"It means you are able to figure out whether you are under a genjutsu. Of course, the stronger the Genjutsu, the harder it is to figure it out, but with your enhanced sight and hearing, you should be able to discern reality versus illusion pretty well."

"So how do I actually defend myself against it?"

"The first thing is to be aware of your surroundings. You must know what is around you at all times, otherwise when you are actually under a Genjutsu, you won't see any differences."

"Ah, I see."

"The second thing is figuring out when you are under a Genjutsu. Usually when under a Genjutsu, things will be different. If you can understand that you are not perceiving reality, then you will know that you are a Genjutsu. For example…" Kurenai made a hand signal and the ground began to become soft and bouncy.

Shivaroku felt like he was sinking and panicked a little, but then he realized he was under a Genjutsu. "Wait…this isn't real right?"

"Correct. You were able to notice that the ground shouldn't have the consistency of water. Now this was a much weaker Genjutsu. In battle, if you find yourself unable to discern what is real and what is not, your enemy will be able to take control of the battle and will defeat you easily." Kurenai then undid the genjutsu and everything went back to normal.

"Wow. So I should always stay on my toes, huh?" said Shivaroku.

"Yes, but never panic. Also, only focus on a few details. Trying to remember everything may overload your senses. Usually if you can spot differences in certain details, you can figure out if you are under a Genjutsu."

"Got it."

"The third and final thing is to escape a Genjutsu. To escape a Genjutsu, make this hand signal, raise your chakra or disrupt your chakra flow in any way, and say 'release.' By raising your chakra, you gain more power over the Genjutsu. By disrupting chakra flow, you reduce the Genjutsu's hold on your mind.. The hand signs and saying 'release' will allow you to break the Genjutsu."

"Does that work for all Genjutsus?"

"For most generic Genjutsus it should work. There are some high level and forbidden Genjutsus that can evade the release method. But as long as you have a strong will and are able to discern reality and illusion, you should be able to escape a Genjutsu. Why don't we try it." Kurenai made another hand sign and this time the entire world became fuzzy and blurry.

Shivaroku knew it was a Genjutsu, but the blurriness made it a bit hard to focus. Kurenai urged him to keep a strong will, and so Shivaroku calmed himself and raised his chakra. He then made the hand sign Kurenai told him to make and then shouted "release!" Instantly, the Genjutsu was broken and the world seemed normal again. "I did it!" said Shivaroku in an excited tone.

"You did. Well done! Now keep practicing this. It doesn't matter if you can't pull of a Genjutsu. As long as you can escape it, you should be fine," said Kurenai with a smile.

"Thank you, Kurenai Sensei."

"You're very welcome. Good luck with the rest of your training." Kurenai then left.

Shivaroku continued to practice the release method with training dummies that put him under Genjutsus for 5 minutes. The 5-minute limit was there so that students wouldn't be stuck in an illusion if there was no supervision. He practiced this method for the next couple days, until he became proficient at it.

With 8 days remaining, Shivaroku had one more combat style to learn: Ninjutsu. The first thing he had to do was understand what chakra nature he was. He held a special chakra-sensitive paper in his fingers. Apparently, the way the paper reacted would tell him what his base chakra nature was. After a few seconds, the paper burned up, which indicated his base nature was fire chakra. No wonder he struggled with water-style when he was training with Roshi. He then proceeded to learn fire-style techniques, like the fireball, firewall, and firebomb techniques. He also already knew some Earth-style, so he decided to study some of those jutsus as well. He learned mudwall and boulder hurling techniques. This all took about 3 days to learn.

With 5 days remaining, he had one more jutsu left to learn. This jutsu was required for all Shinobi to know. It was the Shadow Clone jutsu, the one Tsunade demonstrated that day in her office. Apparently this jutsu was forbidden to most students, but ever since Naruto stole the scroll and learned it on his own before even graduating, the Leaf heads decided to allow some students to learn it. Shivaroku raised his chakra and made the appropriate hand-sign. However, when he activated the jutsu, an almost dead clone of himself appeared next to him. Confused, Shivaroku attempted it again. He kept making clones that couldn't even stand up for more than 2 seconds. After a couple hours of failures, he decided to take a break, but before he left the training grounds, he saw Kakashi standing there watching him.

"Oh, hello Kakashi sensei. Didn't know you were there," said Shivaroku to Kakashi.

"So how's your training going?" asked Kakashi as he walked over.

"Well it was going pretty well. My taijutsu and shurikenjutsu is pretty good. I found out that I can't do any Genjutsu, but Kurenai Sensei taught me how to defend myself against Genjutsus. I was able to learn fire and earth style ninjutsus, but right now I'm struggling with the shadow clone technique."

"The shadow clone technique huh? Why don't you show me what you can do right now."

"Well okay, but don't expect much." Shivaroku raised his chakra, did the hand sign and produced a clone…kind of. The clone, like before, looked sickly and collapsed after 2 seconds.

"Hmm…that bad huh," said Kakashi.

"You don't have to be mean about it," said Shivaroku as he pouted.

"Hmm? Oh sorry. Do you need help with it? I know you didn't go to the Academy and learn all these things, so the least I can do is provide some guidance."

"That would be great, Kakashi sensei!"

"Alright. The first thing you need to understand is that if you don't produce the right amount of chakra, you won't be able to successfully create a shadow clone."

"How will I know it's the right amount of chakra?"

"You'll know by feel. Here why don't you just raise your chakra level and I'll tell you when you're there. Remember, too much and you overload your clone. Too little and your clone wont be stable and will collapse almost immediately."

"Oh, so it seems I haven't been using enough chakra. I'm just so used to using as little as possible so I don't hurt anyone."

"Restraint is good, but too much restraint just puts you at risk in a battle."

Shivaroku then started to raise his chakra level slowly, until Kakashi told him to stop and hold it at a specific level. Kakashi then asked Shivaroku to do the hand signs for the shadow clone jutsu. Shivaroku followed Kakashi's directions, which allowed him to create the perfect shadow clone.

"Good job. You're a quick learner. Good thing you got chakra control down already," said Kakashi to both the original and clone Shivaroku. "Now I want you to release the jutsu so your clone goes away. Then create another shadow clone. This time I want to see if you can remember how much chakra you used to make the clone."

Shivaroku did what Kakashi asked and successfully created another perfect shadow clone, which begot praise from Kakashi.

"I want you to know that one of my students used to be terrible at creating Shadow clones. He couldn't even create a normal clone. But now, he's one of the most skilled Genin and he can create well over 1000 of them because of his chakra level," said Kakashi.

"What 1000?!"

"Mhmm. I'm only telling you this because you may be able to do it too."

"I'll be honest Kakashi sensei, I don't see why I would ever need that many shadow clones in a battle. Wouldn't that just exhaust my chakra?"

"Not if you're efficient with it or have enough chakra to spare. You actually have almost the same amount of chakra as the Genin I was talking about."

"Interesting. I guess I have another card to play in battle! Oh, by the way, who is this Genin?"

"His name is Naruto. He's a bit hyper, definitely an idiot sometimes, but he's a fine, determined Shinobi."

"Naruto? Wait I think I met him once at one of the Ramen places."

"Was it Ichiraku Ramen?"

"I think so?"

"Figures. That's basically the only place he eats at."

"…How can someone only eat ramen?"

"I don't know. Ask Naruto the next time you see him. You probably will once you become a Genin."

"Ah right. Speaking of which, I should go get something to eat and then return to my training. I only have a few days left before the exam. Thanks for all your help, Kakashi sensei!" Shivaroku then ran off.

"Good luck with your training! That boy is going to grow to become a powerful Shinobi."

Shivaroku went and got lunch, and then he returned to the training grounds. He continued to practice creating shadow clones. Little by little, he got used to how much chakra was necessary to create the clones. He then slowly practiced making more than one. After a couple days, he was able to make more than 30 perfect clones. Maybe he could make more, but there wouldn't be a point now, since it would put a strain on his chakra. At last, Shivaroku was ready for the exam!

The next day, Shivaroku walked into the Hokage's office and bowed to Tsunade. "I'm ready for my exam, Lady Hokage."

"Good. You will have a few observers if that's okay with you," said Tsunade.

"Yes, that's perfectly fine," replied Shivaroku.

"Alright, follow me."

Tsunade led Shivaroku to a small field where a few other people were standing. She introduced the spectators to Shivaroku. He was able to recognize Kakashi, Asuma, Guy, Kurenai, and Shizune. Even Ino was there watching, and so was Shikamaru. The one's he didn't recognize however were the two elders of the Leaf, a grim looking man with bandages around his right eye and a cane, who was known as Danzo, and a plus-size Genin standing next to Ino. The unknown Genin continuously glared at Shivaroku until Shikamaru said something to him, which seemed to calm him down.

"Good luck, Shivaroku!" yelled Ino. Such words of luck from Ino made Shivaroku all warm inside, and extra confident.

"Right. As you know there are 4 parts to this exam. Each part will test the major combat styles that a Shinobi must know: Taijutsu, Shurikenjutsu, Genjutsu, and Ninjutsu. The first stage is Taijutsu," announced Tsunade.

Shivaroku readied himself and took on a battle stance. He had to go through an obstacle course where multiple dummies would spring out or be launched at him. His goal was to not only knock down the dummies, but also show restraint when pictures of civilians or unharmful animals were shown. As soon as the course started, Shivaroku was almost like a fish in water. He was successfully knocking down the dummies with speed, ferocity, and efficiency. He was easily able to avoid attacking civilian and animal boards. Within about 5 minutes, he finished the obstacle course. As he looked to the spectators, he saw most of them smiling, Guy was ecstatic, but the one with the cane stayed serious. You couldn't tell if Kakashi was smiling, though (since he always had a mask on). Danzo continued to give him bad vibes, but Shivaroku didn't want to worry about that now.

"You have passed the taijutsu stage. The next stage is the shurikenjutsu stage. Here you simply have to be able to hit at least 75% of the targets. At least 50% of them have to be bullseyes," announced Tsunade again.

Shivaroku readied himself once more, this time keeping his arms ready to grab his shuriken and kunai from his pouch. The test began as targets sprung up and began to move around. Shivaroku, without moving, began to hit most of them. He was throwing his shuriken and kunai with ease. He only missed one target, but that didn't throw him off at all. Almost every throw was a bullseye. The last three targets were launched right at him. Shivaroku jumped up to dodge them. While in the air, he twirled and threw 3 shuriken. All 3 of them hit the launched targets perfectly in the middle. He landed, wiped the sweat off his forehead and then looked towards Tsunade. Again, many of them were smiling. This time Asuma was ecstatic, while Ino, Shikamaru, and the unknown Genin were in awe of how skilled Shivaroku was.

"You have passed the Shurikenjutsu stage. Up next is the Genjutsu stage. Before we begin, please let me know if you have the ability to perform Genjutsu," said Tsunade.

"I unfortunately cannot perform any Genjutsus. Sorry," said Shivaroku.

"That's perfectly fine. This means this half of the Genjutsu stage will not count for you. The second half is being able to defend yourself against a Genjutsu. Kurenai, you're up."

Kurenai walked up to Shivaroku. Shivaroku gave a nod, indicating he was ready, and Kurenai made hand signs. Within a second, Shivaroku was being tangled up in vines. This caught him off guard, since he was expecting his surroundings to become all blurry or liquidly like Kurenai did before. He struggled to breathe as the vines were strangling him. Shivaroku then remembered what Kurenai said about having a strong will. He instantly composed himself and tried to hold his breath. He closed his eyes, raised his chakra, and made the special hand sign. "RELEASE!" yelled Shivaroku.

When he opened his eyes, the vines were gone, and Kurenai was still standing in front of him, this time with a big smile on her face. Kurenai then walked back to the rest of the group and Tsunade spoke. "You have passed the Genjutsu stage. The final stage is the Ninjutsu stage. Before we begin, do you know what chakra natures you can use?"

"Yes. My base chakra nature is fire, but I can also use earth-style ninjutsus," answered Shivaroku.

"Two different nature styles already? Impressive. I would like you to perform at least two jutsus for each fire and earth styles."

Shivaroku nodded. He then made the hand signs and demonstrated fireball jutsu and firewall jutsu. For earth style, he demonstrated mudwall and boulder hurling jutsus.

"Your fire style jutsus were good. As for your earth style jutsus, your boulder hurling technique could take a bit less time for efficiency. Also, your mudwall should be sturdier. In any case, you did well."

Shivaroku looked at Tsunade and smiled.

"You have one more thing to do in this test. That is to perform the Shadow Clone Jutsu. The requirement is three, but if you want to demonstrate how many you can make, please do so," said Tsunade.

This was the moment of truth. The entire last few days of training for this one jutsu would finally come into play. Shivaroku raised his chakra, made the correct hand signs, and yelled "Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Within a few seconds, he created a full army of shadow clones. He made well over two hundred of them. As he looked to the spectators, all of them were in shock, even Kakashi, but Kakashi's face soon turned to a look of pride and approval.

"Woah…so many. I've only seen Naruto make that many!" said Shikamaru.

"Yeah you got that right. I think this guy will actually give Naruto a run for his money!" said the unknown Genin.

"YEAH THAT WAS AWESOME, SHIVAROKU!" yelled Ino as she pumped her arms up.

"You have passed the ninjutsu stage. With that, you have completed your graduation exam," said Tsunade. Tsunade then walked up to Shivaroku and handed him his leaf headband. Shivaroku held it in his hands and bowed to Tsunade, as she said "You actually beat the record in taijutsu and shurikenjutsu. You passed your exam with honors."

"Thank you, Lady Hokage. I would also like to thank Kurenai and Kakashi sensei for giving me advice during my training." Shivaroku looked at Kurenai and Kakashi. Kurenai smiled and Kakashi gave a thumbs up.

"You may be wondering why Ino, Choji, and Shikamaru are here as well," said Tsunade.

"Oh, right!"

"Well. Choji and Ino are going to be your new teammates. Asuma will be your Jonin leader."

"Wait what about Shikamaru?"

"Shikamaru became a chunin. Because of that, he will no longer be part of a team of Genin. He will be joining other Chunin and maybe a few Jonin for his missions. You are actually going to be replacing him. You came at the right time too! Otherwise I wouldn't know where to put you!"

The unknown genin, who apparently was named Choji, stared at Shivaroku in anger. Shivaroku then said, "Replacing him? I kinda feel bad."

"Don't feel bad. We all knew this was happening. I know Choji is a bit angry about it, but that's only because Ino, Choji, and I have been a team for over a year now. We formed the InoShikaCho formation, but because I became a chunin, I can't really go on missions with them all the time anymore. Don't worry, you'll be a great teammate for these two."

"I agree. Welcome to team #10, Shivaroku!" said Ino.

Choji was still a bit angry, but he lifted his hand up to Shivaroku. Shivaroku took hold of it and shook hands with him.

"Congrats. Your performance exceeded all of our expectations today. I'll be your Jonin leader. We start tomorrow," said Asuma.