Third Person POV
Just a few minutes after Team 7 arrived at the exam registration hall, the jounin in charge of the test appeared, accompanied by a few chunnins. All the genins' attention turned to the man with a relaxed expression standing in front of the blackboard.
– Good morning... – The man instantly transformed his relaxed expression into a wicked smile – Or should I say, terrible day to you, brats – His eyes quickly scanned the genins – My name is Tanaka, and I'll be your instructor for this 'wonderful' first stage – He made sure to emphasize the irony in the word "wonderful" – Hand your authorizations to my colleagues so we can begin the explanations regarding your written exam.
Some murmuring started among the present genins: "A written test?", "Are they kidding us?!", "Where's the test that would challenge our skills?".
The chunnins present in the room to assist the instructor, as well as the instructor himself, had to hide their amusement at the students' frustration and confusion. There were still a few genins who showed no reaction to the newly given information.
After handing their authorizations to the proctors, each student received a number indicating where they should sit in the hall to take the test.
The desks were arranged in orderly pairs throughout the room, with four students occupying the rows on each side at a time.
Amaya was assigned to the second row on the right side of the room, next to one of the large windows. Her number was 16. In the third row on the left side, located next to the aisle dividing the double rows, was Shisui, his number being 20. And in the fourth row on the right side, in the second desk from the hall's aisle, was Hatake. His number was 30.
The three teammates noted where each member of the team was seated before the test supervisor continued with the instructions.
– I hope you're all comfortably settled – Tanaka said, regaining the genins' attention – Now let's move on to the test rules, and pay attention because there will be no opportunity to ask questions during the evaluation.
– What? – A genin near Shisui asked.
– What do you mean "no opportunity to ask questions"? – Another boy, this time in the row behind Amaya, asked.
– Are you having trouble understanding a simple instruction like that? – The instructor mocked with a cynical smile on his lips – Then you'd better quit now, because you certainly won't be able to pass the test...
And with that, silence fell over the room.
– Great, it seems you're starting to understand your reality in this situation – Tanaka continued and started scribbling on the blackboard that was previously behind him – The written part of the test will consist of six essay questions, plus one question that will be dictated to you later. To put your minds at ease, I'll tell you that some of the questions you'll write about were made exclusively by your jounin senseis. It will be up to you to identify them among the others... – Some students took on worried expressions with that information.
The genins already imagined they would have to answer difficult questions at that moment, but knowing there were questions made by their senseis only added to the nervousness of many present.
With his back to the genins, none of them could see the amused smile on his face. Tanaka knew that information was a double-edged sword: On one hand, it brought important information, and on the other, it could take away all mental peace from a young person.
The second option, as expected, was what prevailed in the hall.
– The test will be conducted under a scheme where... – Tanaka continued explaining his rules for the test – For each wrong question, you will lose one point – He stopped for a moment, turning towards the genins and indicating his assistants present in the room – The chunnins spread throughout the room are here to prevent cheating during the test. Anyone caught cheating will lose two points – He stared at the young people for a moment – If your score becomes negative, you will be automatically eliminated – The jounin went back to writing the explained topics on the board – Your approval will depend on the results of all three team members. And if anyone on the team scores zero on their test, or as I said before, has a negative score, all three will be automatically eliminated, regardless of the others' scores.
Again, the indignant and confused voices of the genins filled the environment.
– That's not fair! – Shouted one of the students further back in the hall.
– We'll be taking the test alone, not as a team! Who decided this rule?!
– I did – Tanaka announced nonchalantly and turned to the genins – Because in here, I control everything, and you can't do anything about it.
Expressions of irritation and overflowing anger filled the crowd of genins present in that hall.
– Continuing... – The instructor turned back to the blackboard – You and your team will also need to correctly answer the same number of questions, with two questions being the minimum required. Let me give you a simple example so you understand: If one member of your team correctly answers questions 1 and 2, you and your other teammate will need to have answered them correctly by the end as well.
– This is insane! – A genin sitting in the row in front of Amaya said angrily and stood up – How are we supposed to guess what our teammates will choose and if they'll answer correctly? – Tanaka stared at him for a moment and crossed his arms over his chest.
– You are a team, aren't you? – The jounin asked, still in his calm tone – The minimum expected is that you have some idea of what your comrades are capable of – The boy sat down again, and Tanaka turned his attention to the others in the room – All of you will have one hour to finish the test, and not a second more. In the last five minutes, the seventh question will be given, and you must answer it in the remaining time. And the last rule: – He smiled perversely for a moment – There are questions that won't be worth any points mixed in with those that are. Use your developing brains to figure it out – And before any student could complain, Tanaka announced – You may begin!
Amaya Uzumaki POV
As soon as the jounin instructor announced, I turned my test over to finally read the questions. Probably Shisui and Kakashi were doing the same at that moment: They would look for the easiest questions to solve them and ensure we answered the same ones.
"Question 01
Having knowledge about fragments of the code below, decode it."
Deciphering a code is complicated, especially when you don't know the pattern used or have very little information to assist in its translation, I thought. In the case of this question, both problems are here...
I quickly moved on to the next question, not dwelling on the first before checking all the test questions.
"Question 02
Considering the information related to the chart below, determine the trajectory and speed of two ninja weapons of your choice."
The second question was also complex and required very precise knowledge. It doesn't seem like the kind of question a genin could easily solve. And this question is more difficult than the first, I noted.
I continued reading the other questions, understanding that they became more difficult as they progressed towards the end of the test. They were complicated for a normal genin, but not for me, and I knew they wouldn't be for Kakashi and Shisui either.
Our team, besides having great practical combat skills, also had extensive theoretical knowledge. We can basically solve all these questions, even without knowing which ones have value or not, I thought excitedly.
I set about solving those questions, but my brain kept thinking at the same time about some things regarding the test that were bothering me:
The first involved two particular questions on the test.
The test got harder as it approached the sixth question, but questions number 03 and 05 didn't seem to follow this pattern. They were questions requiring longer explanations and on very specific subjects, with identical statements.
"Question 03/05
In a combat situation, you and your team need to choose one of your members to serve as bait to attract the enemy. One of you must, obligatorily, remain out of combat to discover the enemy's formation strategy.
Based on the theoretical situation above, solve it and discuss, complementing it with the following questions:
Having one team member as a user of Earth and Lightning Style, in which position should he act with the greatest efficiency for the mission's success?
Knowing there is a member with a visual jutsu on your team, in which position should he act?"
Those two questions were the only ones bothering me because I didn't know how to answer them. Well, it wasn't exactly that I didn't know how to answer them, but rather that there were many answer options to consider for those questions.
For example:
In question 03, the user of Earth and Lightning Style could act in any of the combat positions, either attacking, using Lightning Style, or staying in the rear to analyze the enemy's attack pattern, defending himself with Earth Style.
The same situation applied to question 05. Taking into account the visual jutsus that exist in Konoha, besides the sharingan, I knew that members of the Hyuuga clan have access to the Byakugan, another doujutsu as powerful as the Uchihas'.
To attack, the visual jutsu user would have an advantage against the enemy, but if used in the rear, there would also be an advantage because they could follow the battle and analyze it more precisely than a teammate without the doujutsu.
Furthermore, teams for analyzing enemy formations are usually made up of three members, to avoid attracting too many adversaries to the mission's objective, I pondered. And in both questions, there is no information about this third member.
There are many options to consider for these questions, but there must be only one definitive answer. What could it be?
– Number 33, out! – One of the chunnins in the room suddenly announced, gaining everyone's attention.
– What?! – The boy asked angrily.
– You managed to negative your test – The chunnin pointed out calmly – You and your team are eliminated.
The murmurs that had ceased at the start of the test returned.
"So it's really possible to negative the test?"
"How are we going to get through this like this?"
"How can these chunnins be watching all of us?"
Even against their will, boy number 33 and his teammates stood up and left the room. Other numbers were called soon after, and more teams began to leave the room. There were those who tried to resist, but the supervisors forcibly removed them.
I ignored their voices. Time was still running for the test. I directed my eyes towards the blackboard in the room, where the rule topics were scribbled. I was also starting to be bothered by some points of those rules.
The fact that the test had only seven questions, with this last one being dictated to the students only at the end of the test. The Academy tests, for the most part, always had 10 questions as a standard number and never less than that.
Another point was the attention they gave to information that could negative the test: -1 point per wrong question, -2 for cheating... If someone is caught cheating, they are normally eliminated on the spot, but here it seems they want that.
I brought my eyes back to my test, finishing the last questions and leaving only the third and fifth questions blank. I stopped for a moment to think about the questions that could negative the test.
Other teams continued to be removed from the hall. There were still thirty-seven minutes of test time ahead.
What if they want us to cheat?, I pondered. It would make sense, even because of the concern to make it clear that someone would only be eliminated if caught until their test was negatived. It would also justify the more complex questions, which were definitely not made for genins to solve alone.
I finished answering the questions and stopped for a moment to concentrate on my thoughts. There's still something that doesn't fit in this story..., I thought worriedly.
If their goal is to make us cheat, why announce that the scores will be considered for the whole team? Or rather, what's the need for the whole team to answer the same questions?, I asked myself mentally. What's the purpose of that?
I took off my glasses for a moment and closed my eyes. I needed to organize my mind and think calmly.
I mentally searched for what I remembered of the Chunin Exam regulations I had read a few months ago. I recalled the specification that one of the phases consisted of testing our knowledge, as well as the ability to take and run risks.
Would the first stage be related to this requirement?
If it's as I think, the knowledge testing seems to be relative to the questions asked on the test. The ability to take risks involves us managing to answer all the questions so that among them are the ones that are worth some points.
And the part about running risks... Perhaps it involves the fact that we have to try to cheat to answer the questions we don't know, or even manage to communicate with our team to answer the same questions.
But still..., I sighed softly. I opened my eyes again but didn't put my glasses back on.
"You and your team will still need to correctly answer the same number of questions, with two questions being the minimum required."
That phrase from Tanaka echoed in my mind. Why are two questions the minimum required for the team to answer in the same way?, I asked myself.
Most here won't be able to answer the questions without cheating, and if they can, there's no way to accurately guess which questions their comrades will choose and also whether they will get them right.
And there are still questions made by a jounin here..., I thought, looking at my test. I'm sure the two questions with the same statements are the ones Shikaku-sensei formulated. And that makes sense as to why I haven't been able to answer them yet.
I read the test questions again, this time with my mind calmer than when I had started the test. Six questions, two different ones, team scoring, questions formulated by the team's sensei..., I carefully reviewed all the points.
And it was at that moment that something became clear in my mind.
I went back to the third question and read it calmly, then moved on to the fifth, recognizing what my brain had just alerted me to. How did I not understand this before?!, I surprised myself. I wonder if Kakashi and Shisui have already noticed?
I discreetly looked around. There were almost no genins near me anymore. The chunnins continued to watch those present in the room like hawks. Thirty minutes remaining. Twenty-five, if you discount the five minutes for the final question, I corrected myself.
How many in this room have noticed this?, I thought a little faster. Has anyone, besides me, actually noticed this? And more importantly, have those two understood this? Whatever the case, I need to warn them, this will ensure they know the logic behind questions 03 and 05...
Now the point was: How to warn them without drawing the chunnins' attention and explain the situation?
I picked up my glasses to put them back on, when I noticed the faint rays of sun coming through the window next to me hitting the lenses. I raised my gaze to the ceiling, noticing the faint light reflected there. I lowered my eyes and smiled slightly.
Third Person POV
Going crazy.
That's the best word to define Kakashi and Shisui's mental state at that moment in the test.
They weren't going crazy because they couldn't answer the test questions, quite the opposite. Like Amaya, both had answered questions one through six without much difficulty.
The big problem was questions three and five.
Like their teammate earlier, they hadn't been able to answer them. The variables for possible answers in those two questions were taking away their calm and leading them to a state of frustration.
Kakashi was the one farthest from his team. He was on the same side of the rows as Amaya and could still see the Uchiha in the opposite row, right in his left diagonal in the hall.
The Hatake had noticed, even if minimally, that Shisui also seemed restless. It seems he hasn't answered the two either..., he deduced and brought his eyes to the red hair further ahead in the room.
Shisui was the one in the middle of his teammates. From this position, he had a better view of his sister than Hatake. In his opinion, the girl still maintained the same serene posture. So calm..., he observed briefly and smiled mentally. Not even this situation takes her out of her usual state.
The Uchiha sighed heavily and brought his eyes back to his test. He reread question three, which in his test was about the user of Earth and Lightning Style, then moved on to the other question.
"Question 05
In a combat situation, you and your team need to choose one of your members to serve as bait to attract the enemy. One of you must, obligatorily, remain out of combat to discover the enemy's formation strategy.
Based on the theoretical situation above, solve it and discuss, complementing it with the following questions:
Knowing there is a girl on the formed team, what is the main function associated with her for the team's balance?"
This was the same question that was on Hatake's test, with the difference that in the platinum-haired boy's test, question 03 was about the visual jutsu user.
Before he started trying to understand the intention of those two questions again, Kakashi had to blink a few times because of the light that suddenly hit his eyes. What was that...?, he thought confused.
He looked towards the front of the room, where he saw Amaya with her glasses in her hands, apparently cleaning the lenses with the sleeve of her dress. Is she really just cleaning or..., he began his thought, but soon stopped, discreetly directing his eyes to where Shisui was.
A few moments later, the same reflection caused by the Uzumaki's glasses hit the Uchiha's eyes. Bingo!, Hatake thought. She really is trying to talk to us!
Shisui had the same initial reaction as Kakashi and directed his attention to the redhead sitting further forward in the room. The two boys, now aware that Amaya wanted to talk to them, kept their attention on her to try to discover what she would communicate.
Hoping the two boys had understood her "call," the small redhead calmly put her glasses back on.
She could warn them about the questions still using the light signals, but that could attract the attention of the chunnins who were getting more attentive every minute, thanks to the test's end approaching.
Amaya adjusted herself in her chair and rested her arms on the desk, taking in her left hand the pencil she had for solving the test. Her left hand wasn't her dominant hand for writing, but for her teammates to receive the message, she needed to pass the message through that side.
She held the pencil between her index and middle fingers and rested it for a moment against her temple, staying like that for a while so Kakashi and Shisui would have time to understand what she would do next.
And they understood quickly.
To an outside observer, it seemed the girl was thinking while lightly tapping, without making any sound, the pencil against her temple. But for her and her teammates, that was her communication.
A message to her comrades through a code.
There are many types of codes, like light and sound, as well as written ones like the first question on the test. At that moment, the Uzumaki was using the pattern from the first question's code, transforming the information into rhythmic taps.
The code was made for situations of quick understanding, meaning short and not very complex phrases.
"Tests identical, two different questions."
That had been the first part of the message. It was something simple that the redhead deduced her comrades already knew, but it served as a method for them to understand the type of code she was using. Then the Uzumaki continued.
"Relation with sensei's trainings."
Amaya was going to continue giving hints to her comrades, but noticed that one of the chunnins' attention was on her at that moment – now it was better not to try to continue the communication. Please, she mentally pleaded, understand quickly!
The emerald gaze looked once more at the clock in the hall. Fifteen minutes. Ten if you discount the time for the final question. She returned her eyes to her test once more. This time to definitively finish those two remaining questions.
The boys quickly realized why their teammate had stopped communicating. The chunnins were observing the genins remaining in the hall more and more attentively.
The first part of the message was easily understood by them. She was alerting them about the two questions different from the rest of the test and, it seemed, the others were the same for all students.
The second message made them think a bit about its meaning. "Relation with sensei's trainings"... That was what left them confused for a few minutes.
Both the Uchiha and the Hatake searched their minds for something that could make that phrase make sense. The only thing that came to them was the intense training conducted by Shikaku in the weeks preceding the Exam.
Team trainings, individual ones... Until the day the new team 7 had been announced. And at that moment, the boys' penny dropped.
They directed their attention to their tests, quickly rereading questions 03 and 05, finally understanding what Amaya had wanted to tell them:
The objective of the test wasn't specifically to test the genins' theoretical knowledge, but rather how much each one knew about their teammates. The two differentiated questions were the ones formulated by each team's jounin sensei, dealing with the specialties each member exercised within the team.
Each genin member received a test relative to the specialties of their two other teammates, thus having to recognize and discuss them in the situation proposed in the questions.
"She's a genius!". That was the thought that permeated the boys' minds as they looked for a moment at the figure with red hair in the second row on the right.
Noting there were just under six minutes until the seventh question was presented to them, the two set about solving the remaining questions. Understanding their meaning made everything simpler to answer.
"Question 03/05 (answers)
With the team composed of three members, two boys and one girl, the formation with the highest success rate would be:
Amaya/Kakashi: The advanced visual jutsu user would advance on the front line, serving as bait. Although he may seem the best person to monitor the enemy's formation strategy from outside, he will be more efficient in combat so that everyone on the team emerges with minimal damage.
Amaya/Shisui: The user of Earth and Lightning Style should act alongside the visual jutsu user on the front line. Thanks to his mastery over the two chakra natures, he can serve both as support for the fighting comrade (using Earth Style for the colleague's and his own defense) and as an attacker to take turns in the clash with the enemy (resorting to Lightning Style).
Kakashi/Shisui: And the girl on the team would serve as support outside of combat, whether analyzing the enemy's strategies or coordinating the team for maximum efficiency. If necessary, she could enter the combat and assist her comrades in the fight."
– Time's up! – Tanaka announced seconds after the boys finished writing their answers – Everyone drop your pencils and take your hands off the tests – The jounin nodded, and the chunnins present in the room stood up.
The tests of the genins still present in the hall were collected and quickly analyzed with the answer keys, both for the general questions and the specific ones for the team members.
– Numbers 55, 33, 89, 49, and 66 are also eliminated, along with their teams – The jounin announced, receiving confused looks from the students.
Although they had answered the questions, some teams hadn't answered the same ones or hadn't correctly solved those linked to their team members.
The genins were removed from the hall, leaving only 21 teams. 63 remaining genins. And the first phase hadn't ended yet.
– Now let's move on to the question that will decide which of you proceed to the next stage – Tanaka announced with a lewd smile on his expression – Gather with your teammates to answer the seventh question.
The genins looked at each other for a moment. "Gather with your team to answer a question?", was what permeated the others' minds. But they did it anyway.
Shisui and Kakashi shot a grateful look at Amaya when she sat down near them, thanks to the hints about the questions she had given them.
– Very well – The jounin instructor resumed, and the genins turned their attention to him – The seventh question is simple, so I don't need to explain it. You will have five minutes to answer it from the moment I finish dictating it, understood? – Everyone nodded – Great. Then here it is... – He stared at the young people for a moment, noticing some looks more attentive than others – Which member of your team do you choose not to proceed to the second phase of the Exam?
* Present *
Kakashi Hatake POV
– Just a moment, Kakashi-sensei... – Naruto asked, a bit disconcerted, and looked at me.
He had his elbows on the table and held his head between his hands, keeping his hair tied back.
– What happened? – I asked calmly.
– First: Nee-chan was a genius! – He expressed, extremely animated – Her managing to perceive the whole intention of the test at that moment, answering all the questions as if it were the most natural thing in the world, and still warning you and Shisui...! – The boy smiled proudly – Nee-chan was so incredible, dattebayo!
– Yes, Amaya was always incredible – I said in agreement, smiling slightly under my mask – Her ability to remain calm even in the most tense situations always gave her the advantage.
– And the second thing... – The Uzumaki spoke quickly again, this time with a more worried expression – What do you mean the final question of the Exam was to choose someone from the team not to continue the test? How did you choose? And who was left behind?
– If you had let me finish telling the story, you would already know the answer – I pointed out calmly, and the blonde laughed, scratching the back of his neck, slightly embarrassed – Well... – I continued and turned my attention to the final papers on my desk – We were also caught by surprise by that question at the moment – I explained – But when we thought carefully about the question and what had been asked in the first part of the theoretical test, we soon understood what the correct answer was...
– And what was it? – Naruto questioned eagerly, making me smile weakly as I remembered the test.
– To choose not to leave anyone behind – I told him and looked at the boy – They were testing which teams had the ability to stay united even in situations where they could pit one member against another – I quickly elucidated.
– Incredible... – He said, surprised – And how many more teams managed to understand that, like you?
– If I'm not mistaken, only 12 teams advanced to the second phase – I commented with my hand resting under my chin, trying to recall most of the information.
– And when was the second phase? Like when I took the Exam, was it on the same day?
– Yes. As soon as the first phase approvals were defined, we were instructed to proceed to the Forty-Fourth Training Zone.
– Wait! – The blonde raised his tone – Isn't that... – I nodded before he finished.
– Exactly, the Forest of Death.