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The Academy building was a hive of nervous energy. Genin from every major village squeezed past each other in the corridors, their chatter were a low hum of bravado and anxiety. Haku moved through the throng like a ghost, his steps silent on the linoleum floor. He kept his head down, his new Konoha headband gleaming faintly under the hallway lights.
He reached the second floor, where a crowd had gathered outside a set of double doors marked "301." Two older genin blocked the entrance, their arms crossed, sneering at the applicants trying to pass.
"Go home," one of them scoffed, shoving a boy back. "The exams are too tough for the likes of you. We're doing you a favor."
A girl in a pink Chinese-style top stepped forward to argue, but the second guard lashed out, a backhand aimed squarely at her face.
Before the strike could connect, a blur of green intercepted the blow. Rock Lee caught the guard's kick with his forearm, holding it steady. The crowd gasped, impressed by the speed and strength of the boy in the green jumpsuit.
Haku paused, watching from the back of the crowd. He analyzed Lee's stance… solid, balanced, clearly trained in hard style taijutsu. But Haku wasn't impressed. To him, the movement was telegraphed, basic.
He glanced at the room number plate. A subtle distortion in the chakra flow hung over it. 'A genjutsu,' he noted impassively. 'This is only the second floor.'
He spotted Team 7 in the crowd. Sasuke Uchiha seemed to have noticed the illusion as well, but Haku didn't wait to see how they would handle it. He had no interest in these petty tests.
He skirted the edge of the gathering, slipping past the blockade and the drama without a word. Kotetsu and Izumo, disguised as the bullying genin, flicked their eyes toward the quiet boy moving toward the stairs. They recognized him… the special case recommended by the new Jōnin… but let him pass without comment.
Haku ascended the stairs to the real third floor. He pushed open the doors to the actual Room 301 and stepped inside.
The room was cavernous, filled with over a hundred genin. The air was thick with tension, killing intent radiating from different clusters of ninja. Hidden Rain, Sand, Sound, Leaf… they were all eyeing each other like wolves in a pit.
Haku found a spot near a wall and leaned against it, crossing his arms. He was alone, a team of one, but he didn't feel isolated. He felt... ready. Minutes later, the doors swung open again, and the Rookie 9… Team 7, Team 8, and Team 10… spilled into the room, their noisy entrance drawing glares from the older candidates.
Haku watched them, a faint smile touching his lips, but he didn't approach. He was here to work.
"You guys might want to keep it down," a voice cut through the rookies' chatter.
A young man with silver hair and round spectacles approached them. He wore a Konoha headband and a confident, helpful smile. "I'm Kabuto Yakushi. Look around you. Everyone here is tense. You're making yourselves targets."
"Who are you?" Sakura asked, eyeing him.
"Just a veteran," Kabuto shrugged. "This is my seventh time taking the exams."
"Seventh!?" Naruto yelled. "That means you suck!"
"Well, the exams are difficult," Kabuto chuckled, unbothered. He pulled a deck of cards from his pouch. "But, I have gathered some intel over the years. My Ninja Info Cards."
He channeled a small amount of chakra into the deck, and data materialized on a blank card, showing charts and statistics. The rookies gathered around, impressed.
"Do you have info on anyone specific?" Kabuto asked.
"I do," Sasuke stepped forward, his demeanor cool. "Gaara of the Sand. And... Haku Yuki."
Haku's ears perked up across the room. He didn't move, but his focus sharpened.
"Oh? You know their names. That makes it easy," Kabuto sorted through the deck. He pulled out two cards. "Here they are."
He showed the first one. "Gaara. Completed eight C-rank missions and... wow. One B-rank mission as a genin. He has returned from all missions without a single scratch."
The rookies murmured in disbelief. Even Sasuke looked rattled.
"And the next..." Kabuto flipped the second card. "Haku Yuki. This one is... strange." He adjusted his glasses, reading the data. "Formerly associated with the Missing-Nin Zabuza Momochi. Recently granted asylum in Konoha. Mission stat for Konoha is one A-rank mission, and his mercenary record is extensive. Specializes in Ice Release and assassination arts."
Kabuto paused, looking up at the group. "And his sensei is listed as... Jōnin Alaric Jonathan Kenway."
The name rippled through the rookies. Sakura and Naruto exchanged confused looks, while Sasuke narrowed his eyes. Even Haku, leaning against the wall, felt a jolt of surprise. 'How does he have that information? My registration was only finalized days ago.'
"There's more," Kabuto continued, staring at the card with a frown. "It says here his threat level is undetermined, but highly dangerous. It seems he-"
Kabuto stopped. His breath hitched.
A cold, sharp point was pressing against the skin of his neck.
"It seems you know a lot about me," Haku's voice was a whisper, directly behind Kabuto's ear.
The room froze.
Sasuke's Sharingan hadn't even activated. Lee hadn't twitched. Gaara, standing across the room with his arms crossed, narrowed his teal eyes in genuine surprise. No one had seen him move.
Kabuto stood perfectly still, sweat beading on his forehead. He was a spy, a veteran, trained by Danzo and Orochimaru. He had eyes in the back of his head. Yet, this boy had bridged the gap of twenty meters in a blink, completely bypassing his senses.
'Fast...' Kabuto thought, his heart hammering against his ribs. 'My data said he was quick, but this... this is beyond genin level. Even faster than a Chunin, no… Jonin.'
Hidden Observation Room
Behind a one-way mirror high above the main hall, the Jōnin of the participating villages watched the candidates. The room was dark, filled with the smoke of cigarettes and the quiet murmur of assessment.
Alaric stood near the back, his crimson coat draped over his shoulders, a cigar unlit in his hand out of respect for the ventilation. He leaned against the wall, his blue eyes fixed on the scene below.
The other Jōnin cast sidelong glances at him. They sensed the sheer density of his presence, the unnatural calm that radiated off him. A Jōnin from Kumo whispered something to his partner, gesturing at Alaric, but no one dared to approach.
"Your student's quite fierce..."
Alaric didn't remove his eyes from Haku and Kabuto's interaction. He sensed Kakashi standing beside him, the Copy Ninja's visible eye crinkled in a mix of amusement and analysis.
"Yep," Alaric replied simply.
Kakashi didn't say anything more. He just nodded, turning his gaze back to the commotion. He knew firsthand what Alaric was capable of. If Haku had learned even a fraction of that... these exams were going to be chaotic.
Main Hall
"While it's not illegal," Haku continued, his voice devoid of warmth, "I'd prefer if you stay silent."
Kabuto gulped, a nervous smile plastering itself onto his face. "Understood. I was just... sharing information."
Haku lowered the senbon and took a step back. As he did, the light caught his face.
"Ah!" Naruto pointed a shaking finger at Haku, his eyes widening to the size of dinner plates. "You! You're the girl!"
"Huh?" Sakura squinted, then gasped in realization. "Y-Yeah! Aren't you... the one who saved Konohamaru?"
The attention of the entire room snapped to Haku. Whispers broke out among the other candidates. Haku ignored them all. His enhanced perception, honed by the Asura's Crest, swept the room.
Hundreds of chakra signatures. Most were negligible. But a few burned bright.
He noted the Sound genin… a girl with snake-like eyes and a hunched posture. Kabuto, whose chakra felt deceptively calm but hid a dark undercurrent. And the red-haired boy from the Sand, Gaara. His chakra was a roiling, violent storm of sand and bloodlust that made the hair on Haku's arms stand up.
Haku didn't care about the stares. He returned to his spot by the wall, his face impassive.
Kabuto adjusted his glasses, laughing nervously to break the tension. "Anyways, I don't think you guys have to worry about the exams this time."
He turned back to the rookies, shuffling his cards. "Most of them aren't that impressive," Kabuto said lightly, his voice carrying. "Especially them."
He gestured toward the trio of Hidden Sound ninjas huddled in the corner. "They're new. A small village. Not much data on them. Probably just here to fill the numbers."
The Sound ninjas stiffened. The one in the center, a hunchbacked figure with his face almost entirely wrapped in bandages, stepped forward.
"You talk too much," the Sound ninja, Dosu Kinuta, hissed.
He moved. It wasn't fast, not like Haku, but it was deliberate. He blurred toward Kabuto, swinging his arm in a wide backhand.
Kabuto dodged easily, ducking under the blow with a smirk. "Too slow-"
His words cut off. Kabuto's eyes rolled back in his head. He stumbled, clutching his ears, and vomited bile onto the floor before collapsing to his knees, his glasses shattering.
Gasps erupted from the genin. Sasuke frowned, analyzing the movement. 'He dodged. Why did he fall?'
Dosu stood over the retching Kabuto, the strange metal gauntlet on his arm vibrating faintly.
"Don't underestimate Oto," Dosu said, his voice a low rasp.
"Kabuto-san!" Sakura screamed, panic rising in her voice. She rushed forward to help him. "Are you okay!?"
Naruto's face flushed with anger. He stepped forward, pointing at Dosu. "HEY! WHAT WAS THAT!?"
"SILENCE! This is the First Exam! Sit down!"
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