Trickshot
Chapter 21
-Naruto-
"Alright, pencils down!" the proctor for the exam, Ibiki, clapped his hands with an echoing boom "Yes, that means you in the back, I see you still scribbling!" Naruto quieted a snort at that, tucking away his pencil he'd been using to scribble ideas in a notebook for his latest persona, and admittedly spiteful, project.
"Alright everyone." Ibiki had a wicked smirk on his face that was scaring several of the test takers, "You've had plenty of time to answers questions one through nine. But now, we get to question ten." The man's sadistic grin would have made Naruto feel terrified if he hadn't already known the questions and had to deal with worse growing up.
"Now, I'm sure a lot of you are wondering 'what makes question ten so special?', thinking I'm just being dramatic or stupid." Ibiki smirked at some of the guilty winces and not guilty sneers from the foreign genin.
"Yeah, and what of it, tree fucker?" a cocky Iwa genin sneered before gulping as Naruto pouring out his Kyuubi Killing Intent at the scrub, Ibiki noticing and seeming amused.
"You should care, because this question has its own special rules." Ibiki walked over to the blackboard, sliding one section down to reveal a written rule on the now revealed board.
Rule one: Question ten is optional. If you choose not to attempt to answer the question, then you will automatically fail as will your entire team.
"Then why the hell wouldn't we try the question?" A mist genin scoffed derisively.
"Why indeed?" Ibiki smirked as he lowered blackboard number two.
Rule two: If you fail question ten, then you fail the entire exam regardless of answers to the first nine questions.
There was in instant uproar from most of those assembled, outraged at what they probably felt was being cheated out of the passing grade they'd 'earned'.
"Oh, if that makes you upset then you're going to really hate this." Ibiki's sadistic smirk grew wider as he slid down a third blackboard.
Rule three: If you choose to attempt question ten and fail, then you are never allowed to retake the Chuunin exams in the future.
The silence in the room would have been imposing if Naruto wasn't so focused on not laughing. That was the most overblown scare tactic he'd ever seen and was honestly rather insulted that so many were falling for it. One by one, more and more teams were caving, refusing to try and answer the question. The team members who hadn't cracked almost universally glaring angrily at their weak link.
The exam had started with a massive group. Dozens upon dozens of teams from all over the elemental nations. Every major village and many of the minor ones having sent several hopefuls.
Now maybe twenty teams at most were left.
"To those who remain…congratulations." Ibiki smirked as those who hadn't figured it out and were more balls than brain gaped in confusion.
"Wait what?!" the puppet user who'd tried punching Konohamaru before was, unsurprisingly, one such idiot.
"You mean you didn't figure it out?" Naruto snorted, "The last question was if you'd be willing to risk it all. To throw your own dreams and future out of the way for the sake of the mission if need be. If you can't even have the courage to take a question, you aren't ready to be a Chuunin."
"Oho, you're a cocky little runt." Ibiki smirked, "You didn't even seem nervous as I read the rules?"
"The last one was rather playing your hand." Naruto shrugged with a smirk, "I mean, come one, no foreign Kage would accept a rule like that. Especially if the village already wasn't fond of Konoha." Those from places like Iwa and Kumo who hadn't figured that out suddenly look angrily embarrassed.
"Hah!" Ibiki barked out a laugh, "Most of you runts are typically too terrified of the consequences to think of something like that." As he spoke, Ibiki worked to undo the knot holding his headband together, removing the cloth to show horribly scarred and mutilated skin. More than one weak stomached Genin threw up violently at the sight.
"Consequences are a fact of life in this line of work kids." Ibiki's tone had gone from teasing to serious and somber, "Missions can go wrong. Information can be extracted cruelly. Deaths, yours or those you care for, can be just another fact of life. You have to be prepared to face those consequences, to be able to shoulder that burden. Live with the pain lest the pain control you." Ibiki didn't bother putting his headband back on, leaving the scars clearly visible to emphasize his points "A Ninja must walk hand and hand with death on every missions. But those who fail to take that seriously risk that hand in hand becoming a knife in the back."
Nobody, not even the cocky little shits, dared to comment and break the oppressive silence.
"Glad to see you're taking my words seriously." Ibiki nodded pleased as he put his bandanna back on, "That being said, your second exam is next and the proctor will be soon be here. Less than half of you will even be making it to the third test." Well, that was just cheery.
The uncomfortable silence continued without any sign of the second proctor showing up. Ibiki sent someone out to find them while the oppressive silence became awkward silence. And then bored chatting. Eventually Ibiki decided if they had to wait for the proctor they could at least be doing something practical. Namely going over how everyone cheated on the exam and how they could have improved. If the man wasn't so intolerant of stupidity he'd have made an excellent academy instructor.
"I simply used my Byakugan." Neji smirked smugly when his team was asked how they collected their answers, "It was Fate that I attain the answers so easily." Naruto made a mock gagging expression at the arrogance as Kiba and Haku snickered.
"I used wires manipulated by my chakra." Tenten pointed to the ceiling where a mirror like plate was attached. Naruto vaguely remembered lessons where the mirrors were used to reflect light to simulate a search beam to practice stealth jutsu, "Let me see the answers on other papers and then turn the mirror so Lee could see what I wrote." Naruto nodded, even if Tenten was growing disenfranchised with the situation with Lee she did point out to him that it was more Gai's fault than Lee's. Honestly she was starting to avoid him more because he doesn't have an indoor voice at this point.
Ibiki nodded, "Best advice for you all would be for Lee to find his own way to gather intel. Tenten, see about learning chakra strings. Neji, see about getting a mask to hide your eyes when you use them. Alright, you two next." Ibiki turned to Naruto and Haku.
"Ah, we got our hands on the answers a couple days ago." Naruto shrugged blasé as the room went dead silent.
"…What?" Ibiki deadpanned.
"The chunin exams have always been about testing the things a Chuunin has to be able to do, including intel gathering." Naruto shrugged, "Given that the first test was being held at the academy there wasn't much else this first test could be. So, I managed to get my hands on the questions and look up answers with my teammates. It's still the purpose of the test, I just got proactive." As he spoke he could swear Mo- Tsume sensei was cackling somewhere.
"Fucking damnit all." Ibiki face palmed before the door to the classroom opened and a masked Anbu stepped in.
"Greetings, I am Tenzo." The masked ANBU nodded, "The original overseer for the second exam is presently…indisposed. I shall be taking his place." The man handed Ibiki a missive with the Hokage's seal as proof, the first proctor reading it with a nod.
"Very well. Runts, follow him and listen to what he says. My last order for you all?" the scarred man smirked "Try not to die."
-Sarutobi-
"Yo, Old man, you wanted to see me?" Kakashi lazily strolled into the office, head still buried in his orange book. Given his lackadaisical attitude and current focus, he was unprepared for the seal that Neko slapped onto the man's back.
"You were warned Kakashi." Sarutobi scowled down at the man who'd neglected his duty as proctor for the second exam, "I'd hoped you would have been able to overcome this on your own, but it seems that I asked too much of you."
"W-what the?!" Kakashi struggled in the grip of the two ANBU pinning him down, the seal on the cycloptic Jonin preventing him from using any Chakra.
"As of this moment Kakashi, you are being removed from duty. Until such a time as you are deemed fit and mentally capable then it shall remain that way." Neko, take him to where we discussed."
"Right away, Hokage-Sama." The ANBU nodded before vanishing with Kakashi via Shunshin.
"I really hope you're able to overcome this Kakashi." Sarutobi sighed, feeling drained as he slumped into his chair, "I really do." For now, he supposed he should go check on how the first exam went.
AN: I may or may not update this chapter in the next post group or two. I have a LOT of things planned for the Forest of Death and I want to make sure I have it all planned out and such. Been looking forward to this section for a while now!