Chuunin Exams Part I - The Test [Group B]

The candidates would be permitted to enter one of the many beach-side school buildings that had been erected specifically for the Exams. Once inside, they'd find a large secondary school classroom consisting of elongated desks and chairs. The classroom was that of a biology-anatomy themed classroom with posters depicting portions of the human body, small models of organs and a human skeleton hoisted on a metal rack. As each entrant entered, they'd be handed a sealed packet and three pencils and told to sit wherever they pleased. There were seven assistant proctors seated at the front of the room with notepads and stern expressions on their faces.  Once the competitors had each received their exam booklet and writing implements, heard a stern warning not to open them yet and taken their seats. The door would be shut definitively. The proctors did not have all day and so once scheduled time to begin had elapsed, they would prevent latecomers from joining. Such tardy shinobi would thus be permanently barred from joining the event of a lifetime.  With the door shut, the assistant proctor would sit down in his seat and cross his arms. It seemed like they were all waiting for someone....or something.

(OOC: This post marks the official beginning of the Chuunin Exams. Entrants must post within 48 Hours of this post in order to participate in this portion and the rest of the Exams. Failure to post within the allotted will result in both OOC and IC disqualification. Upon posting in this thread, your character updates will be considered LOCKED. You will not be permitted to post additional updates nor will you be able to edit an outstanding update (even if it hasn't been approved yet). However, if an update is unapproved and you're just waiting for it to be checked then it will be valid upon staff approval.)

Nao stepped into the beach-side school building, feeling a mix of excitement and nerves coursing through his veins. Accepting the sealed packet and three pencils from one of the proctors, Nao nodded politely and made his way to the center of the room. As Nao sat at the elongated desk, he couldn't help but feel a sense of awe at the meticulous decorations adorning the large classroom. Biology-anatomy themed posters adorned the walls, depicting intricate diagrams of the human body, while small models of organs were strategically placed around the room.

Despite the nerves that threatened to consume him, Nao forced himself to focus on his surroundings, knowing that every detail could potentially provide an advantage during the exam. He observed the other competitors with keen interest, noting their varying levels of confidence and apprehension. A part of him hoped that Hibiki would end up sitting next to him, but he knew better than to try to manipulate the seating arrangements for fear of being accused of cheating. Instead, he remained composed, mentally preparing himself for the challenges that lay ahead.

With the warning not to open the packets yet, Nao resisted the urge to peek inside and took the time to examine the room further. He knew that every moment counted in this crucial exam, and he was determined to make the most of it, noting where everyone was in the room as well as all the details of the room that he could uncover from where he was sat. The stern expressions on the faces of the assistant proctors didn't go unnoticed by Nao, adding to the palpable tension in the room and he couldn't help but wonder what awaited himself and the other contestants in the coming hours.

With a deep breath, Nao reminded himself of the countless hours of preparation he had devoted to reach this very moment, steeling his resolve for whatever challenges this test would hold. As the last of the competitors filed in and the door was shut, Nao felt a sense of finality settle over the room. The assistant proctor took their seat at the front, their watchful eyes scanning the room for any sign of disobedience. Nao felt the weight of their gaze, but he refused to be intimidated. He was here to prove his worth, not only to his village and his clan but also to himself.

With a sense of anticipation building in the air, Nao steeled himself for the challenges that lay ahead. He knew that the next few hours would test not only his knowledge but his worthiness of being a shinobi. Yet, with Hibiki's earlier words of encouragement echoing in his mind, he felt a surge of determination coursing through his veins. He was ready to face whatever obstacles stood in his way and emerge victorious.

Electricity coursed through Sera’s body metaphorically and literally as she walked down the hallway towards the first exam room. The blonde shinobi found herself at what looked to be a normal school building, but knew that looks could be deceiving. She wanted to preserve her chakra, but if the test was starting, that meant it was time to open her senses up and begin to perceive everything. Alright, here we go!

Sera entered the exam room and immediately absorbed as much information as she could. The hunter used her sight, hearing, chakra sensory abilities and even her sense of smell to detect anything abnormal. It seemed like they were in some sort of biology class. She accepted the packet and pencils and sat in the upper back left corner of the classroom. With her keen vision Sera hoped that she would be able to observe everything from up there. The only instructions she had been given were to wait and not open the packet and so that is what she would do. If she needed to be patient, she would do so with ease. Sera sat in her chair with the packet in hand, her elbows resting on the desk; her pencils lay next to them.

Seven proctors sat in the front of the room equipped with what looked to be note-taking equipment. Were they there to secretly evaluate the genin? Sera would smile at them if they ended up making eye contact. She would act as friendly as possible while making sure that her wit and attention was sharp. It seemed like they were about to take a test given the school environment, but anything was possible. She would keep herself on her toes.

—-------------
Techniques Used:

• Sensing Technique (0.5 cost)
  

Total Chakra Remaining: 259.5/260

Kaori entered the examination room and took a seat at the back right of the room. This let her have a view of the entire room from where she sat. Given her level of perceptive ability, she could see, hear, and smell pretty much anything she needed to at any point. Given this was some sort of examination thing, she could only assume at least, Kaori knew she wasn't the best at testing, and so would probably need to rely on someone who was smarter than her.

Setting her pencils down in front of her, she tossed the packet onto the desk and looked around the room to get a feel for the people who entered. Her sensory field began to take in everything from everybody in the room. Paired with her perceptive abilities on top of that, she'd know if someone was hiding their presence or wasn't real. If someone was close to her that she didn't immediately know about, that sort of thing.

Several of the people she'd already met were in this group, and then there were some others who were all drastically less notable than the Konoha crew. She picked up one of her pencils and began to absentmindedly twirl it around. She didn't do it as good as she could, but soon she was tapping a foot impatiently. Then she was tapping a finger on her desk.

As masterful as she was at showing impatience, Kaori just decided to lean into her level of impatience and made it known that she was getting tired of waiting for things to begin as the proctors just sat. She began to (metaphorically) bore holes in him with her eyes as she waited for any sort of indicator that something had changed. None of her tapping was done at her fastest level, restricting herself down to above averagely fast, but not massively insane.

She wanted to make sure that nobody had any reason to think that she was anything other than chuunin level at most. There was little that she could do to disguise her chakra levels other than suppressing, but she wanted to use sensory, so that was that.
-
-0.5 Chakra, Sensory A rank perception

Suddenly, the sensors in the room would apprehend an explosian of chakra activity emanating from the front of the room. The skull of the mock skeleton would stiffen and suddenly snap towards the seated genin.

"A true Chuunin must learn to discern the true from the false. So far you sorry lot have disappointed me and I expect to be even further disappointed when I review your exams."

The collection of delicately arranged bones had no lips and yet the participants could hear it speak. It reached up and lifted itself off of the hook that suspended it from its collar bone allowing it to drop to the ground with a clack. The skeleton would then proceed to walk from the corner of the room to the center standing directly in front of the seated applicants. The skeleton then began to grow more detailed features. Muscle tissue slowly enraptured its bones, blood vessels and nerves snaked along rapidly forming organs, skin and fat tissue covered the biological under-workings and long white hair sprouted from the familiar visage of a woman's head. Soon a stark naked female would pose before them, a far cry from the eerie skeleton that had addressed the group earlier. Her shame was soon covered once the black fabric of a neat suit enveloped her gorgeous form.


"My name is Madame Linh Kaguya and I will be your Division Proctor for this portion of the Exams."

The Headmaster did not approve nor would he ever authorize such a display before the young minds of the Exams, but Linh had never agreed with her boss's philosophy on modesty. She complied well enough at his institution but if she was going to help him proctor the Exams, then she'd be doing it her way. And her way consisted of a rather dramatic entrance meant to hit home a single point: deception and espionage where the trademarks of being a shinobi. Out of nowhere, Linh produced a human skull identical to the one that had looked at them earlier.

"A shinobi needs to weaponize more than their muscle tissues, nerves and bones." She held up the skull to illustrate her point. "They need to weaponize their minds. For those of you that spent time honing your fighting skills while neglecting the foundations that you were taught in the Academy....this is the end of the line for you. Your village has no need for idiots and thus we've opted to weed you out as efficiently as possible. The packets you have received contain an exam booklet which will serve as your first test. It will cover the subjects of organic chakra-chemistry, projectile geometry, celestial mathematics, fuuin-cryptography comprehension and special sections that were selected randomly by the Head Proctor."

Linh set the skull down and a timer appeared on the center of its forehead.

"You have until the timer runs out to complete the exam. Cheating is strictly forbidden. If I or any of the proctors catch you cheating in any shape or form, you will be expelled from the the Exam. There will be no talking nor will we answer questions. If you need to use the restroom, raise your hand and a proctor will escort you to the bathroom and back. One bathroom break per entrant. Use it wisely. Do not begin until I authorize you to do so..."

The skull timer would start ticking. Seconds would go by. Minutes. Linh stared at the group of anxious shinobi with a haughty smirk on her face. She was toying with them. Daring them to defy her explicit order and open their packets before she gave them permission. After a few more minutes, Linh hopped up on the main desk and sat next to the timer.  


The sound of about 30 packets being torn open echoed through the classroom. The first phase of the Chuunin Exams had begun.

(OOC: The Rules of the Exam are as follows:

• This portion of the Exam will run for at least four rounds but may be extended.
  
• There are nine questions on the Exam. All of them are incredibly difficult to answer.
  
• If you have S-Rank Intelligence you may finish the Exam in a single post with a perfect score.
  
• If you have A-Rank Intelligence you may finish the Exam in two posts with a perfect score
  
• If you have B-Rank Intelligence you may finish the Exam in three posts with a perfect score
  
• If you have C-Rank Intelligence you may finish the Exam in three posts with 6/9 correct.
  
• If you have below C-Rank Intelligence you will be unable to get a single question correct.)

Watching as the other contestants slowly filed into the classroom, Nao would make note of each of them and where they sat in comparison to where he was in the center seat of the classroom. There were a lot of unknown faces in the crowd, each with different looks of either anticipation or confidence. A small smile forming when he saw Sera enter the room, the first familiar face in the sea of unfamiliar. Kaori would enter with a look of determination on her face, as if she was sizing up the people she was about to be at up. More people that Nao didn't know would enter and then he finally caught sight of Hibiki entering the room. His face would brighten at the sight of her, his one and only true friend. He had his teammates Sera and Natsuki, and of course their Sensei Tōri, even his Sensei Airi. However, to him they were more comrades and mentors than actual friends, he hadn't spent time with them outside of training or missions like he had with Hibiki.

Nao had to resist the urge to leap up from his seat and wave her over to sit by him, as she starting walking towards where he was a look of relief washed over his face. She saw him and was already moving to sit by him, suddenly thankful that he didn't end up leaping to his feet and embarrassing himself. He had a connection with her that he didn't feel with others, and it was more than just the fact that he found her to be extremely beautiful. He liked everything about her, which was saying something. He usually found at least one thing about a person that would either irritate him or cause him to at least keep them from getting to close. With Hibiki, he couldn't find a single thing, in fact he found himself wanting to be closer to her, to one day be more than just friends.

"Oh no, not at all. Please sit here," Nao finally answered Hibiki after she had already sat down and had begun looking around the room. He had been so lost in his thoughts about her that he hadn't even realized that she had already made it over to where he was and had sat down. He wanted to talk to her more, but knew that the setting wasn't the best for it. He would just have to wait till later, first he had to get through whatever the exam had in store for him. The sudden movement at the front of the classroom would instantly draw his attention to the skeleton as it began talking with a woman's voice, he knew it had to be some kind of jutsu but he didn't have his Byakugan active so he could only speculate if it was some form of Genjutsu or something else entirely.

Nao would watch as the skeleton lifted itself off the rack that held it and drop to the floor, a look of awe on his face as he watched it begin to walk and muscle tissues began to form around it. Instantly looking down at the desk as he saw skin begin to form, whether it was an illusion or not he didn't care anymore. He would keep his head down looking directly at the desk until he heard the woman's voice again, risking a slight upward glance he was relieved to see that the woman had clothes on. 'That had to be a Genjutsu, nobody can actually do something like that.' Nao thought to himself as he lifted his head back up to look to the woman fully. As she spoke, his face would slowly fall. He was the definition of 'those that spent time honing fighting skills', he couldn't even remember the last time he had picked up a book.

He wouldn't say he neglected the foundation he had learned in the academy, but he definitely didn't continue to study after graduation. Not that he had been out of the academy that long, but a large majority of his time was spent training. He had no idea that they were going to make him take a test like this, he hated tests. Even in the academy he failed more test than he passed, at least written tests, the physical tests he did better in especially when it came to Taijutsu. He thought his days of tests were behind him and he just needed to beat the rest of the contestants in a fight, but apparently he was wrong.

As the woman explained the subjects the test would be on, Nao's brow would furrow. He knew he wasn't the best in the academy but he didn't remember any of these types of subjects, he couldn't even spell one of them. He wasn't stupid, if the academy taught things like that he would have remembered them from the names, it was giving him a headache just trying to understand their names let alone anything about them. 'I have to cheat, there's no other choice.' Nao thought as he subtlety shifted his view around the room, and then as though she had read his mind he would hear the woman say that cheating was forbidden. He suddenly felt the urge to use their one bathroom break to go throw up real quickly before they got started, but a brief glance over to Hibiki would calm him. She had faith that he could make it to Chuunin so he couldn't give up on himself, not yet.

As soon as she said begin, Nao would rip open his packet and began reading the questions. If anyone happened to be looking at Nao's face as he read these questions, what they would see is a look that could only be described as dumbfounding confusion. Not a single question was even the slightest bit comprehensible, and the only thing Nao could think was that there was no way he was going to be able to answer any of them. He couldn't even understand what it was asking, let alone think what the answer was to whatever it was asking. He would close his eyes and take a few deep slow breaths, trying to calm himself as he felt his heart rate begin to increase as panic slowly began to overtake him.

If he couldn't pass this test, they wouldn't let him become a chuunin and he would be stuck as a genin forever. As his self-doubt flooded his brain he couldn't help but think that maybe everyone else had been right, he wasn't ready for the exams yet. Hearing the sounds of pencil on paper all around him, he knew that someone out there knew the answers to this test, he couldn't give up even if that meant he had to cheat. After all, it was only cheating if he got caught. As Nao opened his eyes he would activate his byakugan, since he was able to activate it without hand seals there was at least a chance that the proctors would not notice it. His eyes didn't hold the typical white eye that the byakugan was known for, so there was always the chance that they wouldn't even be looking for someone using a byakugan. Even though his last name was Hyūga, there was always a chance that they would assume he was adopted.

With his byakugan active, Nao would scan the room for anyone that looked like they might actually know the answers, his purple eyes locked onto his own paper so that it didn't look like he was looking around. As soon as he found someone with some sense that they knew what they were doing, Nao would zoom in on them and their paper and quickly begin copying their answers as quickly as he could.

---

Technique Used:
Byakugan R3 (0.2 cost)
Chakra: 259.8/260

As Sera got herself settled and steeled her mind for the test, a young man came in to sit next to her. She was able to sense that there was some sort of technique creating an illusion of appearance of some sort? There seemed to be some sort of second skin effect that he was wearing as he walked towards her. Immediately this type of thing grabbed her attention, but she would smile at him nonetheless. He dropped his pencil and apologized as he went to go pick it up, his face turning a light shade of pink. It was alright to be nervous since it was a big event. She would pretend not to notice his embarrassment so as to not make it worse. “No worries. Let's do our best.” she would respond quietly with a smile. The rest of the class soon filled with genin including a couple more people that she recognized. She would give Hibiki a confident grin and nod when they made eye contact as if to silently wish her good luck. As much as she wanted to converse with them, Sera was worried that speaking too much could throw other examinees off their groove. They hadn’t been told that only a select few would pass the exams, so if there was a possibility of them all passing, Sera would encourage it!

Without warning, a large chakra signature appeared in the front of the room and a skeleton would begin to come to life. It lifted itself off its perch and start to walk around as if it were the most natural thing. It spoke and flesh began to bind to the skeletal structure until a human woman stood before them. For a brief moment a woman stood nude before the group, but cloth began to seemingly spawn around her into a full suit. Sera wasn’t exactly used to full nudity, but she wouldn’t avert her eyes. While on a mission, anything and everything could be a trap and nudity was no exception. Although she was “just in an exam” it was a true mission to her and she would treat it as such.

The suited woman introduced herself and began to explain the rules of the first portion of the chuunin exams. There were several topics that the exam covered and Sera was at least relatively aware of all of them. She felt initially confident, but made sure not to get ahead of herself. Who knew what kind of questions they would consist of? Madam Kaguya explained that they had until the skull’s timer went off to finish the test and she set it down on a table. They weren’t to open the packet until she said to, but the timer had begun. Sera tried to contain a bit of a grin to herself. The test had begun and she knew that some other genin might try to open the test and start immediately, but Sera could be patient. She had spent days in the wild hunting her prey and just sat waiting in the brush for the right moment to strike. This was no different. Minutes passed and she could see other genin squirming in anticipation. Sera would wait, and she would wait further until their instructor told them the words; “begin”

Sera ripped open her packet and would immediately read each question over, processing everything before she even thought about answering anything. Once she had read every question, she would begin with the subject she knew the best; projectile geometry. The blonde hunter had spent countless hours practicing her archery and learned a lot about projectiles and angles in the process. Here we go!

—---------------
(OOC: 1/3 posts to perfect score)

Techniques Used:

• Sensing Technique (0.5 cost)
  

Total Chakra Remaining: 259/260

Kaori rolled a pencil onto her lap from the desk, and when she picked it up, she expertly palmed the radio transmitter from her pocket. Holding the pencil in between her index and middle fingers, she brought it and the transmitter up to her ear, cupping her cheek while she rested her head on one hand. The entire motion was smooth and as if she was just holding a pencil in the same hand that she rested her head on.

Just in case she needed to overhear Nao or Hibiki, although Kaori's perceptive abilities were already high enough that she probably didn't even need the device.

Ripping open the packet, Kaori knew very quickly that she didn't know the answers to this test. That was fine. Actually, she was suspecting that it was designed so that it couldn't be answered without abnormally high intelligence. And if you couldn't answer the questions, you'd fail. Which meant that cheating was only discouraged because if you got caught trying to gain information in a mission, you'd be in real trouble.

This test was obviously designed to see how one goes about gathering information without being caught. And for Kaori, that was a simple matter. She was incredibly perceptive, even to the point that she could hear the individual pencil marks of those around her. She could see some of their papers pretty easily. Make out the patterns of their test sheets and compare them to hers.

The questions were the same. Interesting, interesting. So that wasn't a factor. If it was actually about individual smartness, they'd each have different tests and no amount of cheating would get answers. That just confirmed it for her.

She tapped her writing pencil on the desk in frustration. She primarily used the eraser, so that there weren't many noises coming from it, didn't want the proctor to think she was using morse code or anything. She was just thinking. With a plan coming together in her head, Kaori noted that a single bathroom break was permitted. That had to factor into things. She'd need to use that to her advantage somehow.

The beginnings of a plan began to come to her. Sure, she could easily cheat, but why do things easily, when the point of the exams was to demonstrate ingenuity? There had to be some amount of flare. That said, she was still isolating out the more intelligent ones. That could easily answer these questions without having to cheat. Sera was one of those. There were some others. Nao was writing no problem, he'd help Hibiki cheat probably.

Could Kaori get Hibiki to help her get the information? Probably, but would the girl be smart enough to figure out some way to communicate the answers? Kaori had already thought of one, the radio and the bathroom would be easy enough, but would Hibiki even remember the questions and answers if she was to even think of helping Kaori in the first place? No, Hibiki couldn't be relied on in that way. There had to be some other thing she could do.

Bathroom and a shadow clone might work. Leave a shadow clone in the bathroom, have it disguise itself somehow, like a transformation Jutsu. But then it would be able to be sensed, and had her chakra signature. So suppression, but then it would look like her. But at least she could alter appearances without chakra. So that would have to work, if that's the route she went.

But after that, then what? She'd be accompanied there and escorted back. A conundrum.

-
Sensory A perception -0.5

As Hibiki waited to begin the written portion of the Chuunin Exams, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of nervous excitement. This was her chance to prove herself, not just in combat, but also in the realm of knowledge and strategy. However, she knew she needed to be discreet about her abilities, especially with her trump cards.


She grinned as she pulled out a brand-new pair of goggles from her pocket.  She had been drawn to them by their vibrant color and sleek design, and she couldn't resist the urge to bring them along for the Chuunin Exams. With a sense of excitement, she slipped the goggles onto her eyes, the tinted lenses casting everything in a warm, rosy hue. Even though she had only just bought them, they already felt like a lucky charm, a token of optimism for the challenges that lay ahead.

As more people entered the room and the proctors distributed the exam booklets to them and the atmosphere grew tense with anticipation.  Hibiki subtly positioned her hands under the desk, hidden from view ready to enact the plan she had come up with in advance for taking a paper test after much struggling. With practiced ease, she began to form the familiar hand signs for her dragonfly swarm jutsu, her movements careful and deliberate.

But instead of channeling her chakra into the jutsu immediately, she paused, her mind racing as she realized she had a slight issue. If she unleashed the dragonflies all at once now, it would surely draw unwanted attention and potentially jeopardize her chances of passing the exam.

With that in mind Hibiki finished the jutsu.  With her newly acquired ninjutsu skill, reducing the cost to a negligible amount it was doubtful any sensors would even notice the small fluctuation. She spawned a full set of twenty dragonflies from the skin on her thighs.  Discreetly she commanded the dragonflies with her mind to remain hidden within the folds of her clothing, their presence undetectable to anyone but her.  


Hibiki breathed a sigh of relief, confident that her secret was safe. However, just as she was about to relax, she noticed a slight draft coming from an open window nearby where her Pegasus sat watching the proceedings. 


Her heart skipped a beat as she realized the implications. If the dragonflies were to emerge from her clothing, they might be mistaken for native insects that had flown in through the open window. It was the perfect cover, a stroke of luck that she hadn't anticipated. It was a darn good thing she had asked to bring her pet along.


With a silent prayer of gratitude to whatever forces were watching over her, Hibiki subtly adjusted her position, ensuring that the open window was directly in line with her seat. If any of the dragonflies were to make an appearance, the breeze from the window would carry them away, further obscuring their origin.

As she glanced around the room, Hibiki couldn't help but marvel at the serendipity of the situation. It was as if fate itself had conspired to ensure her success, providing her with the perfect alibi to conceal her abilities.

Satisfied that she had successfully concealed her secret weapon, Hibiki turned her attention back to the exam booklet, her mind now focused on the task at hand. With her dragonflies poised and ready for action, she was prepared to tackle whatever challenges the written test had in store, all while keeping her abilities hidden from prying eyes.


As the skeletal figure suddenly came to life, Hibiki's eyes widened in disbelief, her mouth hanging open slightly as she stared in wide-eyed astonishment at the surreal spectacle unfolding before her.

For a brief moment, her brain struggled to process the absurdity of a model skeleton coming to life and strutting around the room. She blinked several times, as if trying to clear her vision and make sense of what she was seeing.  To Hibiki, the concept of death and life were abstract ideas that hadn't quite solidified in her mind yet, but the idea of a walking, talking skeleton was nothing short of amazing.

Instead of fear or confusion, she was filled with wonder and curiosity. She was ready to embrace the unexpected encounter with open arms, eager to see what other surprises the exam had in store for her.

"Whoa, check it out!" she exclaimed, pointing excitedly at the skeleton as it shuffled around. "I didn't know we had living skeletons in the exams! Can they join a team?"  Some of her fellow participants exchanged bemused glances, some chuckling at Hibiki's innocent enthusiasm amidst the competitive atmosphere.


Nevertheless, Hibiki remained undeterred, her curiosity driving her to approach the topic of the skeleton who she hereby dubbed Mr. Bones in her head with genuine interest. "Hey, do you think it knows any ninja tricks?" she mused aloud, a grin spreading across her face. "Maybe we could team up for the next round!" In a world of shinobi battles and strategic maneuvers, Hibiki's lighthearted perspective added a touch of whimsy to the proceedings.

The skeletal figure started growing flesh, It was almost a shame really. The skeletal form had been so cool that turning human almost seemed like a downgrade. She sometimes had trouble telling people’s genders when first meeting them but with Linh’s now nude form before her she realized that it had been a Ms. Bones instead. 


But wait hadn’t the Doctor at the hospital told her that some people were non-bakery or something along those lines?  Better not to think about it too deeply lest she hurt her head. Not when she had more emanate concerns as the classroom erupted into a cacophony of noise as many of the boys began to wolf whistle and make other similarly vulgar remarks.  


Annoyed by their frankly juvenile display Hibiki channeling some charka to her Cosmic boots activating the Monarch's Providence built into them enveloping the area around her and most of the room in silence, coincidently cutting off the sound of Hisha’s F-bomb from reaching anyone’s ears, though notably this would not stop any sensors from noticing the chakra he had produced in the attempt to cast an illusion on the room.  She allowed the effect to linger until all the boys had visibly settled back down before turning it off and restoring sound to the room.


"Um... excuse me,"  one of the random entrants ventured tentatively, his voice tinged with uncertainty. "Is... is there a dress code for the exams? Or did I miss a memo about this becoming a nudist event?"   Hearing this Hibiki’s gaze darted around, half-expecting to see hidden cameras or some elaborate prank unfolding before her eyes.


Not that the nakedness bothered her or anything.  For Hibiki, the concept of shame was like a foreign language she had never bothered to learn.  She moved through life with an unabashed authenticity, oblivious to many societal norms and expectations. Such as speaking her mind with little to no filter as she had been doing earlier, but even she knew it was unusual to run around buck naked. That was one of the first things the Doctors who had rehabilitated her had taught her NOT to do after all.

As the proctor swiftly conjured clothes to cover herself, many in the room couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. The potential bloodbath from nosebleeds was averted, much to everyone's gratitude. While some of the other examinees may have found themselves in a state of hormonal turmoil, Hibiki remained blissfully unaffected, her preferences leaning more towards beefcakes than the female form.


With a casual shrug the man who had voiced his concerns glanced around at his fellow examinees, noting the varying degrees of composure or lack thereof. "Well, that was an unexpected twist," he remarked nonchalantly, his tone betraying his lack of concern. "But hey, at least now we can focus on the exam without any... distractions."


And with that, the Chuunin Exams resumed, the incident with the naked proctor quickly becoming a humorous footnote in the memories of those present. For Hibiki, it was just another day in the unpredictable world of ninja life, where even the most mundane tasks could take an unexpected turn.

Hibiki watched with a mix of fascination and mild apprehension as Linh finished her dramatic entrance, wielding the human skull with a commanding presence. While the proctor may not have agreed with the Headmaster's strict views on modesty, there was no denying the impact of Linh's unorthodox approach.

As the weight of Linh's words settled upon her, Hibiki couldn't shake the feeling of unfairness that gnawed at her. "Weaponize my mind," the phrase echoed in her thoughts, a reminder of the daunting task ahead. She couldn't help but feel a pang of frustration and injustice welling up within her.

"I've been studying as hard as I could," she muttered under her breath, her voice tinged with a hint of bitterness. "Even with... well, you know." The mention of her mental disability hung in the air, a silent reminder of the additional challenges she faced in her journey.


Despite her best efforts, there were times when her disability made certain subjects feel insurmountable, like trying to grasp the intricacies of organic chakra-chemistry or celestial mathematics with a foggy mind. It wasn't for lack of trying or dedication; Hibiki poured her heart and soul into her studies, determined to prove herself despite the odds stacked against her.

And yet, here she was, faced with the daunting task of weaponizing her mind in a way that felt impossibly out of reach. It wasn't fair, she thought bitterly, a sense of resentment simmering beneath the surface. Why should she be judged solely on her intellectual prowess when she had so much more to offer as a shinobi?

"Weaponize my mind?" she repeated under her breath, her voice tinged with uncertainty. "But... what if my mind is more like a... blunt instrument than a sharp weapon?" The thought of having to rely solely on her intellect to navigate the challenges of the exam sent a shiver down her spine. Sure, she was quick on her feet and had a knack for improvisation, but when it came to the complexities of projectile geometry and fuuin-cryptography comprehension she was completely out of her depth.

As the weight of the task ahead settled upon her shoulders, Hibiki's usual confidence wavered for a moment. Could she really rise to the occasion and prove herself capable of mastering these intricate subjects? Or would she be doomed to fall short, labeled as just another "idiot" unworthy of advancing in the exams?

Taking a deep breath, Hibiki shook off her doubts, her determination flickering back to life. "Well, I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed," she muttered to herself under her breath, "but who says I can't still make a dent?" With a renewed sense of purpose, she squared her shoulders and dove into the exam booklet, ready to tackle whatever challenges lay ahead with her trademark blend of perseverance and pluck.

The atmosphere was tense as participants furrowed their brows in concentration, scribbling furiously to answer the array of questions before them. Hibiki, however, remained calm. Obviously she couldn’t make heads or tails of anything on the exam paper.  She could understand the individual letters but not what the complex combinations of them implied.   But there was no reason to panic.  She’d known coming into the exams that written tests like this were a weak spot for her and had come prepared.  All she had to do now was follow the plan.

Without making any gestures or movements, she commanded her swarm of steel dragonflies to emerge from the back of her pant legs one at a time.  Their metallic wings humming softly they took flight and scattered rather than hovered around her. Hidden within the flurry of activity, she directed her dragonflies to scout the room in all directions, their keen eyes scanning the desks and papers of her fellow participants.

As her dragonflies flitted about, Hibiki's gaze darted around the room, searching for any signs of weakness or opportunity. Spotting that Sera had a particularly organized set of notes, she silently directed her dragonflies to discreetly copy the answers, relaying the information back to her with precision and speed.

With each passing minute, Hibiki's confidence grew as her dragonflies worked tirelessly to gather the information she needed. She didn’t need to understand what the words meant to write them down after all.  She started to complete each section of the test with ease, writing them down one by one.  Her answers flowing effortlessly onto the page with the assistance of her metallic allies.  She’d only managed to fill out about one third of the paper by copying off her more intelligent friend that was in the room, but it was still better than nothing.


As the Chunin Exams written test progressed, Hibiki noticed that her friend Kaori seemed to be struggling, not seeming to have written anything down yet. With a quick glance around the room to ensure no proctors were watching, she summoned one of her steel dragonflies, its wings shimmering in the dim light of the exam hall.  Honestly it didn’t really matter if the Proctos spotted it at this point. With the window open it would seem like just a random bug that had wandered into the room by chance.


With a deft flick of her wrist Hibiki acted like she was trying to shoo it away when in reality she had attached a small piece of paper to the dragonfly's leg with the motion. A paper that was inscribed with a few key words to help Kaori with the questions. With a gentle mental command, she sent the dragonfly darting across the room towards Kaori’s desk.


The dragonfly flew low, skimming over the heads of the other participants, its movements swift and silent. As it reached Kaori’s desk, it hovered for a moment, its metallic body glinting in the light, before delicately depositing the note on her desk and fluttering away.

Despite the risk of discovery, Hibiki felt a thrill of excitement coursing through her veins knowing that her dragonfly had played a crucial role in helping her friend succeed. She couldn't help but feel a sense of camaraderie and pride in their teamwork, knowing that together, they were stronger than they could ever be alone.

[2]

Hibiki 160/160 chakra
-3 Dragonfly Swarm  (Ninjutsu perk - Koton) 
157/160 remaining

Stuff used:

There had been a moment when the room had gotten eerily quiet while Nao had his head down, he wasn't sure if it was one of the proctors or one of the Genin but he knew the effect. It was the same thing that he could do when he channeled chakra into his shoes, and it was likely done because of the noises most of the others were making. Once the sound came back and the woman spoke, now dressed, it seemed as though nobody was going to address the silence that had taken over the room. The proctor didn't acknowledge the genin that had questioned her nudity, or say anything other than explaining the exams. Nao could see the eyes of almost everyone around him and Hibiki glaring at the genin that had spoken about distractions, giving him a death glare as the instructions were given. Finally giving them the go ahead to begin after wasting precious minutes, the room was filled with the opening of different packets.

With his Byakugan now active, Nao would scan the room seeing what everyone else was doing. There was a sea of confused faces in the room, with only a few looking as though they had any confidence. One contestant had his pages spread across his area of the desk, while another seemed to have a melt down and run out of the room. He wasn't sure he could trust just anybody for the answers, for all he knew they were guessing and that would look even worse for him if he failed because he cheated off the wrong person and got the answers wrong. Nao would notice Kaori, her focus written on her face but nothing written on her page. She was either extremely confident or at just as much of a loss as he was, that's when he would see small dragonflies of chakra. A small smile forming as he realized what Hibiki was doing, directing his attention to where the dragonflies were moving to and from. Seeing Sera, Nao would focus his attention on her paper. He knew for a fact that Sera was smarter than him, she was probably the smartest on their team. If anyone knew the answers to the nonsense that they call this test, it would be her.

With his Byakugan locked onto Sera's exam, Nao began copying the answers that she had written. He was glad Sera was in his group, otherwise he would have had to try and copy off of someone that he didn't know, and that could have ended badly for him. He would have to be sure to thank Sera later for being so smart, besides isn't that what teammates are for? To help you when you need it, even if they don't know it.

---

Technique Used:
Byakugan R3 (0.2 cost)
Chakra: 259.6/260

Copying off of Sera for Perfect Score: 1/3

Some shenanigans were definitely occurring during these exams, and Sera made sure to constantly be aware of what was happening around her without putting her own test-taking at risk. When the proctor had entered the room, it had grown suspiciously silent for a few seconds, and the young man next to Sera had attempted to use his chakra for something. The silence had faded shortly after, but the disturbance left an impression on Sera’s mind.  With her superhuman perception, the blonde hunter was able to spot several shiny dragonflies appear from Hibiki’s location and begin to fly around the room. Oh interesting!  As Sera worked on her test she would be constantly aware where the metal bugs were going. The dragonflies hovered around Sera as she wrote down her answers and she began to assume that maybe they were being used for some sort of reconnaissance. Deducing that they were being controlled by Hibiki since they spawned from her location, Sera would slightly adjust the position of her test so that the dragonflies had a better viewpoint. Here you go! She thought with a small smile. Sure it was technically cheating on Hibiki’s part to copy Sera’s answers, but that didn’t hurt Sera at all. They were both konoha shinobi, so they should be working together right? If Sera had been able to share her answers with Nao and Kaori as well she would have gladly done so.

Having moved on from the projectile geometry section, Sera would begin working on the organic chakra-chemistry and fuuin-cryptography sections of the test. These were both topics that Sera didn’t have personal experience dealing with firsthand, but her ability to sense chakra had expedited the learning process for. While in the academy they had mentioned fuuinjutsu as a possible avenue one could specialize in, and while Sera hadn’t decided to pursue it at that time, she had done enough research for the future to be able to answer the questions referring to it. Being able to summon her bow wherever she was seemed like a pretty useful skill after all. The chakra chemistry section was almost purely memorization from knowledge Sera had gained from reading, and she would regurgitate the information onto the paper as word for word as she could remember from the textbooks. Sera would continue to work on the test, but make sure to keep her sensory abilities active constantly. Next to her, the young man's chakra had fluctuated earlier in the exams and she wasn’t sure if he would try something. There were several people using sneaky techniques across the classroom, but unless they interfered with her ability to take her own test, Sera would mind her own business.

—---------------
(OOC: 2/3 posts to perfect score)

Techniques Used:

• Sensing Technique (0.5 cost)
  

Total Chakra Remaining: 258.5/260

Kaori noticed the attempted Genjutsu from Hisha, but it didn't stick. Hibiki's subtle alteration of the sound was perfect for blocking the attempted genjutsu's trigger. Dumb luck. Of course, at this point, the test would truly begin, and all talking would be mitigated, or the speaker would be eliminated.

Kaori didn't even have to do all that much, it turned out. Hibiki was willing to cheat on her behalf. Of course, if the girl was conniving, she could have given false information, but she didn't really seem the type. That said, Kaori herself was often putting up an act. Who's to say that Hibiki wasn't also? There had been that 'murderbot.exe' thing when Natsuki had snuck up on them.

That said, events played out as before, undisturbed by Genjutsu. She ignored the dragonfly that came towards her with something folded. Using her high levels of coordination to snatch the paper from the dragonfly as she smacked the little bug away absentmindedly, Kaori's sleight of hand likely was unnoticed by very few. The smack itself had been fairly observable, she wasn't hiding that. The real trickery was the note thieving. A few minutes later, Kaori raised her hand. She needed to use the restroom. She didn't need to cheat really. That wasn't really the important thing. Her perception would let her rather easily figure out the answers from other people, and Hibiki's dragonfly was relaying some information. That said, she needed to help out those that she could as well. Hibiki had proven her willingness to help her allies, so Kaori needed to repay it.

She got taken to the bathroom by one of the assistant proctors, and as soon as she was alone in the private restroom (sensory keeping track of the assistant proctor and assuring they didn't sneak off anywhere), Kaori made two shadow clones. The shadow clones popped into existence and they instantly knew the plan she'd come up with. Using the transformation Jutsu, one clone turned itself into Hisha. Giving Kaori a proper salute, 'he' sank into the ground, Hiding In Surfaces. 'He' began making 'his' way back to the exam room, letting the sensory technique guide 'him'. Hidden underground, 'Hisha' just laid in wait beneath Kaori's desk.

The other clone remained Kaori for the time being, but sank into the bathroom's wall, arriving on the other side of the wall in the adjoining men's room, taking the notes the dragonfly had attached to it with it. Locking this new bathroom door, the notes were read, but she simply stayed there for now. It had the answers to about 2/3 of the test, 6 of 9. Well done Hibiki and Sera. Chakra suppression activated the moment it was safe in the stall, and the clone was unable to be sensed. She didn't want the information to be conveyed just yet. Holding off was key. She began to memorize the answers to the test, while prime Kaori actually went to the bathroom. After having them fully memorized, Kaori's clone tore up the notes into tiny bits and put each of the pieces of paper into the toilet. She'd flush that bit soon enough, but the water and torn up sheets would make the notes illegible at this point even without flushing them.

Wipe, flush, Kaori exited the stall and washed her hands, practicing perfect hygiene during this bathroom visit. She was led back to the exam room by the assistant proctor and took her seat. She hadn't even looked at the notes that Hibiki had slid her yet, so there had been no cheating done there yet, and technically, she'd even disposed of the cheat sheet. If forced to reveal whether she'd cheated, she could honestly say no for now, and any shenanigans that happened while she was out of the classroom wouldn't reflect on her.

With her business done, Kaori was sitting back at her desk and resumed tapping her pencil eraser on the desk. She still hadn't written anything down on her test yet. She had a mental image of what the test looked like before she'd gone, and double checked to make sure it was the same test, same questions, same order. Each of her clones had the same information. Figuring out that Hisha probably used Genjutsu, she wanted to wait until it was closer to the end of the testing zone to get rid of the clone in the bathroom, which would send her the answers and the questions that she thought it would, as well as her recollections of how things had gone. It didn't matter what was in front of her, the unsenseable clone in the bathroom wouldn't be afflicted by any genjutsu while locked there, so she could trust information from it, and it was sent there specifically to wait a certain amount of time before poofing the answers to her. If anyone came to that bathroom in the meantime, she'd slip out a wall. Her perception was high enough to notice someone well ahead of them entering the bathroom she was in.

Genjutsu was honestly something she hadn't really thought much of a way out of. It would be annoying for sure if Hisha used Genjutsu on her, and this was honestly the best thing she could come up with for the time being. And if he tried anything in the meantime, she had the 'Hisha' clone on standby. Now that she was back in her seat, the 'Hisha' began to move around in the ground, sharking through the desk rows. Anyone with sensory would notice the clone underground, and the similar chakra signature to Kaori's, but there wasn't much she could do about that. The clone wouldn't do anything unless it noticed anyone else she cared for getting genjutsu'd though. It was a precautionary measure to get Hisha eliminated if he fucked with anyone, and maybe take a few others down in the process. Protecting her friends.

Kaori was focused a bit on the proctor and assistant proctors, seeing if they were also using Chakra Sensory. She hadn't noticed any as of yet, which led her to believe that they were being intentionally ignorant to allow for some cheating to go by unnoticed. This was absolutely a test, but not of the variety that was on her desk. Anyone who was bad enough to blatantly get caught? Or were they just testing people's resolve to gain information? What was the actual purpose of this test? These questions weren't just for rooting out idiots, that much was for sure. Not all chuunin or jounin were that smart. And if anything, these questions were only solvable by geniuses.

As much as maybe idiots weren't wanted as Chuunin, this was only one factor a Chuunin might need to face. Strength in combat, teamwork, etc. That stuff also mattered, so kicking people out based on them being "not genius" wouldn't make sense.

She leaned back in her seat and looked up at the ceiling, remembering the words that the proctor had said. If Academy training was neglected. That meant that everything that they needed was academy level. Okay, so neglecting that training would be bad. But also that this was definitely a subterfuge thing. No need for idiots. That didn't mean that you needed to be smart, just not dumb. If you were dumb, that would be bad. But these questions weren't answerable to even average intelligence. It took far above Academy intelligence to actually be able to answer them. She had to be onto something there.

And then the way she talked about the bathroom rule. Everyone was given one. And then told to use it... wisely? That had to mean that the bathroom rule was an allowance specifically for the purposes of cheating and setting up. That's what she'd decided to do of course. Get her information gathering set up. And the last bit of information. Cheating was forbidden, and if caught, would result in them being eliminated. That said, what constituted cheating? She hadn't said. In fact, the only actual rules said were about speaking and using the bathroom. Other than that, no questions were going to be answered. Did that mean that the only prerequisite to pass was to complete the exam? Technically that was the goal, but what constituted completion? Full 100% marks? Or just having something written for each question? And if the only rules were no talking and 1 bathroom break to be used wisely, then cheating would be speaking or taking 2 bathroom breaks.

Her clone was in the bathroom still, but from her original bathroom break, so she hadn't actually taken two bathroom breaks. Of course, being caught from something super blatant would probably also result in elimination, but technically the rules were easy enough to avoid breaking. Everyone here was being tested on Chuunin candidacy, not higher. That's the standard she needed to plan for. Chuunin level or higher. Anything less wouldn't count.

-
Shadow Clone Jutsu used (2 clones)
Sensory maintained- 0.5
Chakra: 178.5/180

'Hisha' used Transformation Jutsu (-1), Hidden in Surfaces (-5), and Sensory (-0.5)
Clone Kaori used Hidden in Surfaces (-5), and Chakra Suppression
--
Clone1: 54.5/59.5
'Hisha': 53.5/59.5
Real Kaori: 59.5/59.5

Hibiki bit her lip lightly as she concentrated most of her limited brain power towards copying the letters Sera was writing down as best as she could.  Using the dragonflies this way wasn't something the original inventor had ever planned. They were meant for combat, not for sneaky spying. It's funny how not knowing much about the world can sometimes help you think outside the box. But there are definitely downsides. The dragonflies weren’t perfect for this.  They weren't terribly loud but they weren’t exactly silent either.


They couldn't compare to what a clan specializing in intelligence gathering could bring to the table but they could still be a handy tool to have in her utility belt provided Hibiki could learn to work around their limitations and utilize them properly.  The first and most major issue being their limited range.  30 meters might seem like a lot until you realized that even a normal human could clear that range in under 4 seconds.   Needless to say, as much as Hibiki would have liked to check the other classroom, she didn’t have the means to do so, at least not with her dragonflies. 


Actually speaking of risk, perhaps passing Kaori a note so early on had been a bad play.  That was a method she could only use once.  Any repeats would only draw unnecessary attention to herself.  If you excuse the pun she was still working out the bugs on how to optimize the use of her dragonflies.


Hibiki had managed to copy the first three questions, and that gave her a boost of confidence. Then, Sera did something amazing—she subtly moved her paper to make it easier for Hibiki's dragonfly to see. Hibiki couldn't believe her luck. She managed to copy questions 4 through 6 thanks to Sera's unspoken support.

For Hibiki, using the dragonflies in this way didn't feel like cheating. She had grown up on the battlefield as a child soldier, where survival often depended on using every tool and advantage at her disposal. In her world, success wasn't about following rules but about staying alive and protecting her comrades. The lines between right and wrong were blurred in the chaos of war, and resourcefulness was often the key to survival.

As Hibiki continued to work, a darker thought began to creep into her mind. These dragonflies were designed for combat, after all. What if she used them to eliminate some of the competition? The idea made her uneasy, and she quickly shook her head to clear it. She had to focus on the task at hand. Using the dragonflies for spying was already risky enough. Besides, Sera's act of kindness reminded her of the importance of trust and friendship. Compromising her principles for a shortcut wasn't worth it.

Hibiki vowed silently to herself that she would find a way to return the favor to Sera. Her friend had gone out of her way to help her in a moment of need, and Hibiki was determined to do the same for her, no matter what it took. She would stand by Sera's side just as Sera had stood by hers, not just during this exam, but in all the challenges to come.

As she finished copying the answers and moved on to the remaining questions, Hibiki felt a renewed sense of determination. She would rely on her own skills and the support of her friends to get through this.  Hibiki knew that with friends like Sera, she could face any challenge. And she promised herself that she would be the kind of friend Sera could always count on, no matter what obstacles lay ahead.

[3]


Copying off of Sera for Perfect Score: 2/3

Madame Linh sat on the desk with her legs crossed and a passive expression on her face. She occasionally moved her foot up and down as if to the beat of some silent rhythm. She employed the use of Sensory, her natural perceptive capacities and a few other rare techniques to keep tabs on the various shenanigans that occurred within the room. Several of the genin started cheating right away which caused the barest of smirks to emerge on her face. The Hyuuga utilized his natural talents to surmise the answers. Uninspiring but effective. . The redhead with the silencing boots employed a creative use of dragonflies. It was peculiar though as Madame Linh was fairly positive that the technique did not grant her the ability to see through the eyes of the minions. It was possible she was using a custom version of the technique or perhaps she was merely using the dragonflies as a form of misdirection, thereby allowing her to peek without drawing the notice of the proctors. Either way, Linh was impressed. Clever girl. A handful of students had no need to cheat. They assaulted the Exam with their natural faculties and appeared to engage in no further chicanery aside from allowing their friends to cheat off them. Straightforward and dreadfully boring..

Then there was Kaori. The genin had asked to use the restroom and had been accompanied by an assistant proctor. Madame Linh trusted the man, she had picked him personally and he was one of the top sensors in her Analyst Team. If Kaori decided to try something stupid then he'd certainly make her regret it. The assistant proctor waited outside the bathroom but he could plainly tell Kaori was busy executing a series of jutsu. Some of which had the potential to be so disruptive that they stepped outside of the "tolerance guidelines." The proctor placed a hand on the door and pushed it open, but the sound of actual excretions made him pause. A more fine tuned custom sensory technique alerted him to the truth, Kaori actually was using the bathroom right now. If he tried to accost her now, it would look bad. Well played... the assistant proctor thought. He closed the door and allowed Kaori to continue her machinations unmolested. The man flared his chakra to Linh and communicated the situation via a kind of sensory morse code. Around the same time, Linh apprehended the clone moving about. She didn't do anything about it, but she kept very close tabs on its movements. An application of a refined sensory technique made her realize that the clone was not a precise visage of Kaori herself and the way it moved was curious given she was fairly certain she knew how the Konoha-Nin was cheating. For a moment, Linh was genuinely puzzled as to what Kaori was doing but then it became clear.

Espionage and counter-espionage. Linh chuckled softly to herself and shook her head. Well played indeed Kaori. A few others were running their own silent schemes. Some of these nameless genin impressed her while others not so much. Then of course, there were the true idiots. Those that surmised that cheating was necessary but lacked the skill to do it in a way befitting the rank they sought. These peekers, leaners and mouthers as Linh called them were quickly sniped and ran out of the classroom.

"Hideki Sako, Tako Banzo, Popo Naisu. You're cheating. Leave the classroom."
"Rion Kaguya, Muramanibara, Zalizar Timikanshi. Pack your shit and leave."
"Dai Nagato. Get out cheater"

Linh and even some of the assistant proctors would continue to snipe cheaters and force them to leave the class. As the time continued to whittle down, nearly a third of the class was emptied. Which was good as the Tenth Question was right around the corner. For now, the young cohort that had captured Linh's attention earlier were safe but if they pressed their luck or did anything profoundly stupid, they might find that their epic journey could still come to a rather humiliating end.

Nao continued to use his Byakugan to copy the answers from Sera's test, now two-thirds of the way done. A smile forming on his face as he realized how easy it was to do so, as well as the fact that it seemed to be going unnoticed by the many proctors that were watching for cheaters. While he heard movement around him, from pencils moving across paper to the scraping of a chair on the floor when someone stood and went to the restroom, with his Byakugan focused on Sera's paper he did not see much else of what was actually going on.

It wasn't until the head proctor began calling out names that Nao would return his vision to his full three hundred and sixty degrees. Hearing people getting kicked out for cheating would cause a nervousness to build inside of him, though his face would remain impassive as he prayed that his name would not be called. The fact that his name wasn't called only proving to him that the proctors did not know what he was doing, that his byakugan had gone unnoticed. He became aware of the changes within the room, he could now see Kaori's chakra in three different locations, two within the classroom and a third in the men's restroom. An odd turn of events, but obviously shadow clones, it caused him to wonder what it was that she was doing. Briefly looking at her paper to see that there was still no information written upon it, he was slightly confused, just what was she planning.

Looking towards Hibiki, Nao would smile at the fact that she had filled out about as much as he had of the test, which was a good sign. The man sitting next to Sera seemed to be done with his test, but that didn't mean his answers were correct. Nao didn't know the man, it was possible he just guessed the answers. With a third of the class now dismissed for cheating, Nao would return his attention to Sera's test to get the final answers. Time was running out and he had to ensure to finish before time ran out, he had to pass the test and move on to the next phase of the exams.

---

Technique Used:
Byakugan R3 (0.2 cost)
Chakra: 259.4/260

Copying off of Sera for Perfect Score: 2/3

As time passed in the test, Sera noticed several fluctuations of chakra coming from the other contestants, and even noticed chakra traveling through the floor? The blonde shinobi would smile to herself as she thought of the various ingenious ways her fellow shinobi were using to pass the test. There was a small part of her that wished she had chosen to cheat or do something to show off her skills, but if there was no need to take a risk then she wouldn’t take it. Just like hunting, this was an exercise of patience and observance. The last few questions were a bit harder for Sera to work through, but with the amount of time that she had remaining, she was able to figure out the answers and jot them down in a concise fashion.

With her test done, Sera’s instincts were to look around the classroom and see just how many people had left, but she once again didn’t want to be accused of cheating for looking around. She could sense the absence of chakra in various seats scattered throughout the classroom, but she didn’t remember if they had all been filled when the test started. There had been a good number of people who had been called out recently, but no one that Sera recognized. Hopefully none of her konohagakure brethren were in danger of being kicked out, and that they could get passed this easily. Sera was aware of at least one person cheating off of her at the moment, and hoped that she could help as many people as possible. It was better for more people to become chuunin to make the world a better place right? Maybe that was too optimistic, but Sera thought it would be nice to believe that, at least for now. Philosophy about the world aside, Sera would wait patiently for the next stage of the exam.

—---------------
(OOC: 3/3 posts to perfect score)

Techniques Used:

• Sensing Technique (0.5 cost)
  

Total Chakra Remaining: 258/260

Hisha's lack of commitment to the Genjutsu spared him the clone looking like him. Since she didn't know him and didn't have a reason to single him out, Kaori's clone instead took on the appearance of one Innocence Uchiha, but otherwise continued with its actions 'undiscovered' as per before.

The assistant proctor seemed to hesitate near the bathroom door as Kaori was enacting her set up, no doubt realizing what she was doing. But he didn't enter fully, caught off guard by Kaori using the bathroom. The morse code wasn't lost on her, but she didn't know what was being communicated between the guard and the proctor. Still, if it was truly kick worthy, she'd have been informed.

Entering the classroom, escorted by the assistant who didn't want to risk it all, Kaori took her seat and waited as normal. When the names of those kicked out for cheating were being called out, Kaori found her lack of name being called enough for her to be correct. There were limits on what was and wasn't allowed. There was no reason for her to be too much more troublesome then. If they knew about her clones, then they would know the Innocence clone was hers by sensory, so no fakery to the proctors would work there at least, but it would be enough for an anti-espionage thing and plausible deniability if she only used it for emergencies.

As far as her other clone, still undiscovered, the Chakra Suppression was likely doing its job. Perhaps she could get away with fucking with Innocence's classroom, but she didn't want to deal with that stuff just yet. Besides, she wanted to meet Innocence in a later round and smash her face into the ground a bit. No, there was no need to interfere there. It wasn't a coincidence that they'd been entered in the same exams. This was fate. Just make it to the later rounds. That's all Kaori needed to do. Help her allies if she could, but focus on passing.

Kaori had long since turned off her sensory, not needing to rely on it for now. After she wasn't kicked out herself, she let her clones do the work for her. She had 'Innocence' underground that was handling that stuff, and as much as she enjoyed knowing things herself, she didn't need to double up on the sensory for a fucking exam. That was a little overkill. Especially when she could conserve chakra for a bit.

Focusing on her sheet of paper, Kaori looked at the blank sheet. Her pencil hovered over the paper for a moment as if she was contemplating writing something down, but she shook her head, as if she had thought better of it. Besides her name, there wasn't a single thing written on her paper yet.
--

Kaori in the men's bathroom waited patiently, maintaining her chakra suppression for the time being. Avoid being sensed, avoid being identified. She began to unravel a roll of toilet paper and wrap it around her body and face, to obscure her face. Exiting the stall, she was alone still. She went to the rolls of paper towels, which were much more sturdy than the toilet paper and began to reinforce the disguise with paper towels. It looked stupid, but Mummy Kaori's chakra signature was suppressed and now so was identifying her based on sight. Just in case someone checked this bathroom, it would let her poof without being seen first. She went back into the stall and hid, locking the door.

--

'Innocence' continued her underground traveling, moving between the aisles a few feet under the classroom on loop. There was no doubt in her mind that she'd been sensed by a few people by now, but Kaori prime was seated and hadn't dismissed her, so she hadn't been called out. That meant that this was allowed. Unable to hear what was going on above, she simply stayed alert for anyone trying to mess with Kaori Prime, Sera, Hibiki, or Nao. Any chakra changes their way would be met with swift retaliation somehow. Ideally, she was insurance that didn't need to be utilized. She paused under Nao and began to mimic Innocence from the meeting, silently, almost in mockery, exaggerating her movements. Of course, she didn't want to draw too much attention, and went back to moving around.

-
-
'Innocence' maintained Transformation Jutsu (-1), Hidden in Surfaces (-3), and Sensory (-0.5)
Mummy Kaori , maintained Chakra Suppression
--
Mummy: 54.5/59.5
'Innocence': 49/59.5
Real Kaori: 59.5/59.5

The exam continued on merrily with Hisha, again, having already finished his portion. Or at least he had finished what appeared to be the relevant portion of the exam. Now, he finished thoroughly interrogating the exam while keeping eyes on the surrounding room and people therein. It seemed… a normal test of 9 questions, each of which he had the utmost confidence in his having answered them satisfactorily, if not absolutely perfectly. People were continually exited for cheating, some extremely obviously like looking at other’s tests, some in ways Hisha was not fully aware of. It felt somewhat random in all honesty who was caught, particularly because the general pressure in his head of the sensors had not notably diminished. He assumed that the proctors – or at least some of there – had active sensory. Walking in, he had a rough lay of the building as well, plus he could see out the window; he assumed that at least some participants in the other room had perceptual powers enough such that they could sense him as well. And, of course, there were doubtlessly students in the current room who could.

 

A sudden bolt of purple flashed in the window, incinerating an unseen paper shuriken. What the fuck was going on in that other room. Or was it rooms? No, they had been broken, as far as he could tell, into 2 distinct groups.

 

In any capacity, he figured that the decisions to remove people was twofold: the proctors were, essentially, ignoring people who “performed” well, while a few were exited due to their sheer stupidity in how overt their attempts seemed. The latter made sense to him as a ninja would need at least some degree of subtlety in some missions. He supposed that a village could just designate a specific division to handle more covert operations though. The performance based passes struck him as a bit odd. He could see some value in it, as they were essentially on display to the proctors, but some of the cheating had been… transparent. He could only imagine that if he personally had sensory capabilities that it would prove even more obvious. So the question was: what could he do without being removed from the exams. And whether he should do anything at all. From what he could tell, he did not need to make any particular moves, and his previous had conveniently fizzled. But a little mischief was fun.

 

The nail still occupied a decent mental space of his still as a viable option for a low level disruption, but the moment still felt wrong. Another twist of chakra for some disruption? By this point most people who would have finished the exam or weren’t going to finish it at this point. The hot woman on the opposite end of the table did not seem to have made much progress, but also had not be removed. He simply could not believe for a second that some obvious form of deception had happened in the bathroom, but he also realized that he did not really care that much.

 

The test itself seemed to… still be a test. Nothing particularly special. Made of paper as best he could tell. Unremarkable ink. Beautiful angel of a woman to his left. He anticipated…. Something. Something had not yet dropped. No one had yet collected any tests. No one had yet been allowed to leave. In fact, the proctors seemed entirely unconcerned about the test at all. Lady Kaguya seemed mildly bored, if not slightly displeased, but Hisha had no special reason to think he was not safe. He hadn’t been asked to leave yet. Even so, a piece of him burned to cause a bit of a disruption. But in advance, or wait for the next round? He watched as the dragonflies kept buzzing about. Maybe just a quick test.

 

With the tiniest waft of chakra, he would ensure a random student in a quick genjutsu, ensuring their head was down on their test. For a brief spike, he would make it sound as if the proctor called out the student’s name, telling him he was caught cheating and to leave immediately. He required, of course, no hand signs, and the total expenditure of chakra was nearly identical to sensory abilities. The flash of chakra lasted for a brief moment as well as he need not maintain any aspect of it, and he simply read the kid’s first name off the top of the test. Easy enough. Risky perhaps, but not terribly so.

 

analysis of test complete

Spoiler:

Hibiki sat at her desk in the exam hall, her heart pounding as the grinning skull timer continued its relentless countdown. The Chunin Exams were notoriously difficult, and the pressure was immense. 


Determined to succeed, Hibiki had already employed a clever strategy. Her tiny steel dragonflies had been quietly buzzing back and forth around the classroom for most of the exam. Through one of them she had already copied the first six answers from Sera's paper, ensuring herself a strong start. The dragonflies' wings shimmered with a faint metallic glow as they completed their delicate tasks, blending seamlessly into the background noise of the exam hall.

As the seconds ticked away, Hibiki's eyes darted to her nearly complete paper. She still needed a few more answers to secure her success. With a deep breath, she concentrated on the one dragonfly in particular.   It continued to hover over Sera's paper for a moment, revealing the answers through the mental link. Hibiki quickly transferred the information to her own paper, her hands trembling slightly.


Relief washed over her, but it was quickly replaced by a gnawing anxiety. The skull timer continued its countdown. What would happen when it reached zero? Hibiki tried to steady her breathing, her eyes flicking back and forth between her paper and the timer.

As the seconds ticked away, Hibiki's heart raced even faster. She couldn't help but feel a mix of excitement and dread. She had done what she needed to do, but now all she could do was wait and see what would happen when the timer ran out.

[4]


Copying off of Sera for Perfect Score: 3/3

Madame Linh continued to watch the room as the skull timer continued to tick down. Time was running out and the entrants should be putting the finishing touches on their Exams. She sensed all kind of chicanery within the room, but none of it exceeded the tolerance guidelines so she allowed it to play out. The dragonflies that Hibiki used almost certainly wouldn't yield a correct result as that wasn't how the jutsu worked but fortunately if she used them as elements of misdirection, they might net her a right answer or two without getting popped. The counter-espionage clone that Kaori created continued to lurk underneath the sea of desks. Like a shark in wait, the construct moved about presumably ready to act against any covert retaliation against the clone's creator. Curiously enough, the clone paused and began to act out under the desk of the Hyuuga. Was she mocking him? Signaling answers? Linh wondered. The Dean wasn't sure what the Kaori girl was up to. Even more intriguing, she had opted not to write down any answers just yet. Linh was well-aware that there was still another clone in play, having kept tabs on it since the moment of its creation. The fact that it went dark made her suspicious, but not suspicious enough to act on it. The former Intelligence Analyst scrutinized Kaori for a while longer before looking back at the proctor that had escorted her to the bathroom. A flurry of signals were communicated and the bathroom escort jotted something down on his notepad. Madame Linh then turned her gaze to Hisha.

He's definitely up to something. Linh thought as she sensed a flash of chakra. A moment later, a random student sat up and stared at her with a look of complete misery. She raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.  In response, the young man opened his mouth to protest but one look from her withering gaze caused him to re-consider. He shamefully stood from his seat with tears streaming down his face. "Its not fair..." he mumbled to himself as he began to gather his things.

"Get out of my class talker! Go back to the academy where you belong. You can chat as much as you like there.." Linh cut him off the second he uttered the words. She pointed to the door and the nameless genin increased the haste of his exit. The proctors looked at each other and then all looked at Hisha. They scribbled something down in their notebooks and continued to survey the room.

The last few seconds started to tick down and with it, Linh's patience. These genin had been given more than enough time to figure out the answers or start cheating. Those that had dithered indecisively or failed to recognize the reality of the exam were probably unfit for the rank of Chuunin, but that would be determined decisively by the last question.

"Ten seconds remaining!" Madame Linh announced. Some of the genin increased their pace at the warning. Others grew desperate and their cheating attempts more bold. More audacious. More stupid. "Timia, Silosho, Yingkai. Out! Five seconds remaining." If the genin weren't wrapping up their answers, then they'd risk turning in a partially incomplete exam. Linh did one final scan around the room and for a blissful second, she saw it. A dozen eager eyes. They were hungry. They wanted that crown and many were willing to risk it all in the first portion to get it. Simply beautiful!

If Linh had to deal with any additional shenanigans, she would do as duty commanded but otherwise she'd clap her hands and the skull timer would hit zero. "That's time! Pencils down! I repeat, pencils down! Anyone still writing WILL be disqualified.." Madamne Linh shouted. The sound of more than a dozen pencils being dropped and booklets being closed rang throughout the room. As if on cue, all of the proctors stood and Linh herself hopped off the desk.

It was time for the Tenth Question.

"I bet you all thought that was the hardest exam of your life huh?" Madame Linh said with a smirk. She began to pace up and down the front of the classroom. Each of the proctors were standing at attention, eyes forward and neck stiff. "Of course you did. You're genin. But what you'll soon find is that information like wine is less about the substance and all about the process. Shinobi are expected to have top tier intelligence gathering capabilities and as a former analyst for Kiri's ANBU I can tell you that many world leaders would pay more to know about a shinobi's spying methods than they would for the information itself. Anyone left in this room must have half a brain...which means I'm sure you're aware that some of your peers have been less than honest about the way they've conducted themselves during this portion of the exam."

Madame Linh stopped and made eye contact with Kaori and Hisha. She then continued to walk but this time she moved forwards, walking up the center-ish aisle and looking over the genin as they sat in their seats.

"My proctors and I are curious as to which of you genin were paying attention and what you have to offer us regarding your peers' capabilities and methods. I will thus allow you to speak for the purposes of this exercise. The Tenth Question is as follows....Who has been cheating during this Exam? If you know a shinobi that has broken the rules of this Exam, I want you to stand up and identify the cheater by pointing. If you know them by name, you MUST state their name. If you know which village they hail from, you MUST state their village. You will then explain the precise method of their cheating out loud. If the proctors and I agree with your assessment the cheater will be thrown out of this year's exams and you will be rewarded. You will receive an automatic buy to the third portion of the Exams, or alternatively, if you wish you can partake in the next portion but with a special gift from the Exam Administrators along with a prize at the conclusion of the Exams. However, if you are incorrect...."

Madame Linh would walk down the aisle and return to the front of the classroom. She reached out and a long stalk of flexible bone would protrude from her wrist. She'd pull out the implement and strike it hard against the desk causing a deafening sound to echo across the room. "Proctor #5. Step Forward." The man marched forward by one step. Madame Linh would proceed to then strike his knee with the bone switch. It was hard but flexible due to the cartilage and ligaments placed strategically throughout. If any of the genin present wished to inquire further about Madame Linh's infamous "wild cane of correction" they'd need only ask Kitsuki Kurahasa of the Mist. They would be regarded with stories that would make even the most hardened of ninja shudder. The proctor tried to hold his breath but a gasp of excruciating pain burst from his lips. "Proctor #5. Step back you unlucky bastard." The man tried to step back but his movements were awkward. Pained. The strike had crippled him.

Linh turned back to the class and grinned. She kissed the switch and held it in the air.

"You will be punished for your inaccurate intelligence assessment. One blow with this and you'll find yourself limping into the second portion. It won't be a permanent penalty but you'll regret every second of it, I promise."

Madame Linh then returned to her starting position right in front of the desk. With a blur-like motion, she struck the skull smashing it to splinters and sending bone fragments everywhere. She leaned against the desk and struck the cane against her open palm.

"So who'd like to answer the Tenth Question first?"

Nao hurriedly finished copying the answers from Sera's test, with his Byakugan focused solely on the paper. He would miss Kaori's innocence clone stopping under his desk because of his focus, and would finish writing the last answer setting his pencil down and closing his packet as he returned his vision to the full three hundred and sixty degrees view just as a small flare of chakra would radiate from the man next to Sera. He wasn't sure what it was that the man was doing but when the man sitting at the desk in front of him suddenly bolted out of his seat, Nao guessed it had something to do with the man.

The man that stood started to say something wasn't fair and the proctor quickly dismissed the other man, all the proctors would look towards the man that was sitting next to Sera and wrote in their notebooks but nothing else was said. Nao suddenly began to wonder if they were keeping track of cheaters that they weren't calling out for one reason or another as the head proctor called out that there was only ten seconds remaining. He watched others get called out for their obvious cheating as the seconds continued to tick away, and then when time was up anyone who wasn't already done would quickly stop writing and drop their pencils on command.

The woman hopped off the desk as the other proctors all stood at attention, it was almost as if they had choreographed the whole movement as they all moved as one. The head proctor would pace the room as she spoke, making a stop here or there before continuing to move about the room. The ten question seemed slightly ridiculous, she wanted them to out cheaters yet her other proctors and herself had to agree with the statement if anyone did out them. If they knew others were cheating and how they were cheating, then why did she need them to answer a question like this.

By her own words at the beginning of the test, cheating was forbidden and those caught would be kicked out. If her and her proctors already had the answer of those who cheated, then why did they need one of the Genin to make an announcement about it, more importantly why weren't the cheaters already kicked out. Nao's Byakugan scanned the room, most of them had cheated including himself. From his use of his byakugan to Hibiki's use of her dragonflies, but he wasn't going to put himself or Hibiki. He wasn't sure how Kaori cheated, but the use of clones lead him to believe she was up to something.

Even if he knew what she was up to he wouldn't rat on Kaori, she was a member of his village, a comrade. That would be just as bad as him ratting on Sera for her movement of her paper to allow others to cheat off of her, sure it wasn't exactly cheating but accessory could be viewed just as bad as the act itself in most situations. Then of course there was the man that sat next to Sera who had done something to cause the other Genin to get himself kicked out which could be viewed as cheating. Beyond these key players, other genin employed various forms of cheating. One student had a small mirror hidden in his sleeve, angling it to catch glimpses of his neighbor's answers. Another had nervously glanced at the paper of the student beside him, eyes darting back and forth in a futile attempt to memorize answers.

Nao could see it all, the desperation and cunning of his peers laid bare. He debated fiercely within himself. Revealing the cheaters could grant him a significant edge, possibly even a pass to the third portion of the exam. Yet, it would also label him as someone who betrayed his fellow genin, an act that could have long-lasting repercussions. Trust and reputation were vital in the shinobi world, and breaking that trust could isolate him from potential allies. Furthermore, Nao himself had used his Byakugan to cheat. He had used it to gathered information, using his advanced vision to gain an unfair advantage.

Calling out others while he himself had bent the rules felt hypocritical and dishonorable, not to mention the fact that others could call him out for it if they knew. His sense of integrity and the principles he had been taught weighed heavily on his conscience. He felt as if the head proctors eyes bore into his, filled with expectation and a hint of challenge. Was it possible that she knew his capabilities, understood the weight of his decision. Nao refused to be intimidated, he knew it could be beneficial for him if he were to speak up, but he had made his choice.

Nao deactivated his Byakugan, the veins around his eyes receding as his vision returned to normal. His choice to remain silent was a calculated one, balancing his personal integrity with the complex dynamics of trust and competition among the genin. He knew the Chuunin Exams were far from over. The challenges ahead would test his skills, his resolve, and his ability to navigate the delicate balance of strategy. For now, he was content with his decision, ready to face whatever came next with the same resolve that had guided him to keep silent. Trust and respect, he believed, were worth more than a temporary advantage gained through betrayal.

In the end, becoming a Chuunin was not just about passing the exams, but about becoming a shinobi his peers could respect and rely on. He was confident in his own abilities that he could make it through whatever the next part of the exam held without the need for some advantage.


Technique Used:
Byakugan R3 (0.2 cost)
Chakra: 259.2/260

Copying off of Sera for Perfect Score: 3/3