On March 1st, on the first day of early spring, the Chunin Exams in Konoha officially began.
A large number of Shinobi flooded the Academy. The attire of each village reflected the characteristics of their respective countries. Sunagakure's attire was meant to shield against the hot sun in the desert, while Amegakure's were meant to handle constant rain in Amegakure.
If it were a regular day, having this many Shinobi from other villages in the Academy would surely disrupt classes. Fortunately, the Academy was currently on an extended break and would resume classes in April.
The number of participants in the Chunin Exams this time was unprecedented. Sunagakure brought twenty-five teams of Genin, Iwagakure brought eighteen teams, Kumogakure brought seventeen teams, Amegakure brought seven teams, Kusagakure brought five teams, and Takigakure also brought five teams.
There were a total of 77 teams from other villages, each consisting of three members, totaling 231 Genin.
Since this Chunin Exam was held in Konoha, more Genin from Konoha participated. The newly established Special Combat Division led by Nagasawa sent nine teams of Genin.
Outside of Special Combat Division, Konoha sent a total of 40 teams, so the total number of Genin participating in the Chunin Exams was four 451 Genin.
Although it might seem relatively small compared to a regular middle school in Nagasawa's past life, in this case, the people that gathered here were not ordinary people; they were Shinobi participating in the Chunin Exams. In normal Chunin Exams, there would usually be around 70 to 80 Genin participating, so this was a large number.
Nagasawa was quite experienced in this. After all, for the sake of developing his skill, he had participated in many Chunin Exams before "barely" succeeding.
So, even in terms of numbers, this Chunin Exam, with more than four times the usual participants, was considered a rare event.
With such a large number of participants, they couldn't all fit in one room, so Nagasawa divided them into five exam rooms.
Each exam room had two proctors, while the chief examiner, Shisui, roamed freely among the five classrooms.
Of course, he could choose to stay in one classroom or quietly slouch outside the classrooms. After all, he was the chief examiner, and he had the highest authority in the exam.
By the way, the proctors responsible for monitoring the exam were appointed by the chief examiner.
Though Shisui was kind-hearted, due to some special reasons, his circle of friends wasn't that big. So, he decided to bring his Fourth Team's members to act as proctors.
"I am Uchiha Shisui, the chief examiner for this exam. This is a written test that will last for two hours, starting from 8:00 AM and ending at 10:00 AM. If you have any questions, you can ask the proctors."
At 7:50 AM, Shisui announced the rules in the first exam room and then had the proctors distribute the exam papers.
"May I ask the standards for passing, and what happens if one doesn't pass?" a young Shinobi with a Takigakure forehead protector stood up and asked.
"There are a total of ten questions. If you answer six or more correctly, you pass and are eligible to participate in the next exam. If you don't pass, your entire team will be eliminated," Shisui calmly replied.
The Takigakure Shinobi's eyes widened in disbelief. Eliminating the whole team just because one of them failed seemed too much.
Shinobi from smaller villages began discussing, and some Genin participating in the Chunin Exams for the first time thought the rules were excessively strict.
However, some Konoha Genin who had participated in multiple Chunin Exams sneered at those complaining about the strict rules. Sometimes, the entire team had to get a perfect score to avoid elimination. Passing with just six correct answers was considered lenient.
"Additionally, if you're caught cheating, you will be immediately eliminated, the same as failing. If one person is caught cheating, the entire team is disqualified," Shisui added.
Before the proctors could comment, they felt an exceptionally powerful aura. Shisui activated his Sharingan and went straight into Mangekyō Sharingan.
"If you're confident that you can do it before this Mangekyō Sharingan, feel free to cheat," Shisui casually swept his gaze across the exam room with his Mangekyō Sharingan, and no one dared to lock eyes with him for more than a second.
'The pressure is incredible. Shisui-senpai is so strong, even much stronger than the mentors in Special Combat Division.' Although he knew that Shisui wasn't specifically looking at him, Itachi felt like everything about himself was exposed to Shisui in that brief moment. Shisui could defeat him with just a glance.
Itachi's team was assigned to the first exam room. They were already shaken even before even receiving the exam papers.
"Shisui, you truly live up to your reputation. I wonder when I'll catch up to you," facing Shisui's Mangekyō Sharingan, even Itachi briefly lost focus, marvelling at Shisui's strength.
"This is the might of our Clan. Let's restore the glory of the Uchiha Clan with this exam," Isamu was overwhelmed by Shisui's strength, but it made him even more enthusiastic, ready to showcase his skills in this Chunin Exam.
Both Itachi and Kabuto, who were familiar with Shisui, were shocked by the Mangekyō Sharingan. Other Genin were even more astounded, and many dropped their pens in shock. They couldn't react until the papers were distributed.
"What's Konoha doing? It's just a written exam. Can't they assign a Chunin for this? Why send a terrifying Uchiha to supervise this exam?" a Shinobi whispered.
Shinobi from smaller villages were almost stupefied, questioning their life choices. They had never felt such an aura even from their Kage. Was there such a huge gap between small villages and the Five Great Shinobi Countries?
While Great Shinobi Countries' Shinobi were more experienced, there should be limits to it. Seeing this level of power firsthand was simply shocking.
Some Shinobi who knew a bit about Uchiha Clan were curious about Shisui's eyes. As far as they knew, Uchiha Clan's Mangekyō Sharingan had one, two, or three tomoe, but Shisui's Sharingan didn't have tomoe; they resembled shurikens.
'Shisui of the Body Flicker... I didn't expect him to become so strong after the war. I must inform Lord Raikage about this after the exam ends.' Samui felt Shisui's gaze and shivered. She decided to report this information to the Raikage.
The Genin who planned to cheat just sighed. With a chief examiner this terrifying, cheating was out of the question. They felt like their entire being was being seen through.
Most people chose to answer the questions honestly, but there were always a few who genuinely didn't know how to answer.
"'If I fail, I'll be eliminated; if I'm caught, I'll be eliminated. Either way, I'll be eliminated. Might as well take a chance; who knows, I might succeed.'" A Kusagakure Genin who struggled with a question decided to give cheating a try.
"The third group, fifth seat, you and your team are eliminated. Please leave the exam room immediately." Not long after the Kusagakure Genin attempted to cheat, Shisui saw through it immediately.
The cheating Kusagakure Genin's teammates glared at him. If it weren't for the village's dignity, they might have already confronted him.
The cheating Genin looked embarrassed. His face turned red as he quickly ran out of the exam room.
Although it was quite embarrassing, Kusagakure Genin didn't dare to cause trouble, as Shisui's presence was too terrifying.
The appearance of an eliminated team raised the tension. Some Genin who planned on cheating were now sweating profusely.
However, a turning point occurred when Shisui exited the classroom!
'Right, he's the chief examiner. How could he stay in one classroom all the time? Surely, he has to go check the others.' The Genin who planned to cheat saw this and felt relieved. There was always a way out.
What they didn't expect was that after Shisui left, another Konoha Shinobi walked in. Then, a pair of crimson Sharingan with three tomoe patterns appeared before everyone's eyes.
"Why are you staring at me? Focus on your exam." Tetsu Uchiha said casually.
The relief the examinees felt instantly disappeared.
'Right when that terrifying guy left, another Uchiha with three-tomoe Sharingan shows up? Is Uchiha Clan teaming up for this?' the Genin who planned to cheat was frustrated.
What they didn't anticipate was that the next protctor who sat quietly on the side, also silently activated his Sharingan, and it was also three-tomoe Sharingan.
This was incredible; the Uchiha was indeed teaming up!
Examinees were rendered speechless. Uchiha with three-tomoe Sharingan had at least the strength of a Jōnin. Why were there two in one exam room?
Examinees felt that even if their teachers were here, they would have to answer honestly. Cheating was impossible.
The Sharingan was a renowned Kekkei Genkai, famous for its exceptional vision prowess. Even some Konoha Genin were questioning their life choices. What was this so-called Chunin Exam? Why were there two Uchiha with three-tomoe Sharingan in one exam room?
Shisui was unaware of what the examinees were thinking. He didn't deliberately increase the difficulty of the Chunin Exam. He chose his subordinates to be the proctors simply because he didn't know any suitable candidates, and many of his subordinates happened to be an Uchiha.
In the beginning, aside from him, the Fourth Team had only four Uchiha members, and later, one died during a mission.
However, with the restructuring of Konoha Military Police Force, a large number of Uchiha moved to other departments. Shisui accepted many Uchiha members, resulting in an increase in the number of Uchiha Shinobi in Fourth Team.
Later, Shisui spent some time in each exam room, but he remembered what Nagasawa said and made sure to adhere to it (or at least he thought so).
The two hours quickly passed, and after the exam, many examinees were exhausted and slumped on their desks.
It wasn't that the questions were too difficult, but rather the pressure of the Sharingan watching them.
Being constantly watched by the Three Tomoe Sharingan, occasionally accompanied by a sudden Mangekyō Sharingan, who could endure this? Even without cheating, they felt guilty.
"This is definitely the most heart-pounding written exam I've ever experienced," an examinee said while wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.
He felt that tonight he could dream of those terrifying red eyes; it was too frightening.
"To think that the supposedly easiest first stage was so terrifying. I wonder what the next stage will be like," someone expressed concern about the next exam.
Konoha announced the exam process. Although they didn't specify the details, it was clear that there were three stages, and only the third stage provided an opportunity to become a Chunin.
"Dear examinees, please rest in the classroom for half an hour. After half an hour, the results of the written exam will be announced, and then the second stage of the Chunin Exam will begin," Shisui said after seeing Uchiha Tetsu finished collecting the exam papers.
For Shinobi, a few hundred exam papers were nothing. The Academy teachers responsible for grading the papers were already prepared.
After the exam, Kabuto, Itachi, and Isamu sat together.
"Isamu, any issues with the exam?" Kabuto turned to Isamu Uchiha and asked.
Kabuto knew those questions shouldn't be a problem for Itachi, but he didn't know anything about Isamu Uchiha aside from his strength.
If Isamu Uchiha failed, they would fail too, and Kabuto certainly wouldn't be pleased to hear that.
"Kabuto, don't underestimate me as your formidable rival. Back in the Shinobi Academy, I'm almost always on top-three," Isamu Uchiha said somewhat displeased as he felt like he was being underestimated.
"Sorry, it's my first time participating in the Chunin Exam. I'm a bit nervous," Kabuto breathed a sigh of relief and smiled.
Isamu Uchiha wasn't the type to nitpick, so he didn't continue. Instead, he started talking to the two about Shisui."
"Senior Shisui is truly worthy of being Uchiha's prodigy. He had already made his name at such a young age during the war. He's really strong." Isamu Uchiha praised.
Itachi nodded and felt like Isamu Uchiha was not a bad person.
"We are all basically newcomers that just start our journey," Kabuto sighed.
He had seen more powerful individuals than the two of them. Before entering the Academy, Nagasawa took him to observe battles between Kakashi and the others.
Because of this, Kabuto rarely felt complacent about his own strength. He had encountered too many Shinobi stronger than him, and they were not much older than him.
"I wonder how Shisui-senpai fares against Assistant Nagasawa," Isamu Uchiha pondered, realizing he couldn't quite imagine it.
Both of their strengths far surpassed his, and he couldn't envision a scenario where the two engaged in battle.
"Kabuto and Itachi, both of you were taught by Nagasawa. What do you think?" Isamu Uchiha asked.
"Nagasawa-san/Nagasawa-sensei!" both replied simultaneously.
"Is Assistant Nagasawa really that strong?" Isamu Uchiha expressed mild surprise at their immediate and unanimous responses.
Kabuto and Itachi didn't provide much explanation because it was challenging to articulate. However, they were confident that Nagasawa was stronger than Shisui and significantly so.
Kabuto had a more precise understanding, feeling that Shisui's strength was probably on par with Kakashi's.
And Kakashi, often got pummeled by Nagasawa's shadow clones...