---Room 301---
The atmosphere in the room shifted instantly as a plume of smoke exploded at the front of the hall. Out of the haze stepped a large, scarred man wearing a trench coat and a sadistic grin. Behind him, a phalanx of proctors lined up, clipboards in hand, their eyes scanning the room like hawks.
"I am Ibiki Morino, your proctor for the first test of the Chunin Selection Exams," he announced, his voice a gravelly baritone that demanded silence. "From this moment on, your lives are in my hands. Stop your chatting and take your seats."
Haku moved silently to his assigned seat. He sat straight, his hands resting on the desk, his expression unreadable. To his left was a nervous-looking boy from the Hidden Rain; to his right, an empty seat.
"The rules are simple," Ibiki barked, tapping a piece of chalk against the blackboard. "You have one hour. There are nine questions on the test paper in front of you. The tenth question will be given fifteen minutes before the end."
He turned, his eyes narrowing. "And one more thing. If you are caught cheating... you will be deducted two points for every offense. Get caught five times, and you're out. And if you reach zero... your entire team fails."
A ripple of panic went through the room. Haku, however, didn't flinch. He picked up the test paper and scanned the questions.
Question 1: Decrypt the following code using the rotational cipher based on the movements of the moon... Question 2: Calculate the trajectory of a shuriken thrown at a 45-degree angle with a wind resistance of...
'Impossible,' Haku thought calmly. 'These questions require knowledge far beyond the Genin level. No standard academy curriculum covers this.'
He glanced up, his eyes sweeping over the proctors stationed around the room. They weren't watching the papers; they were watching the students.
'I see,' Haku mused, a faint smile touching his lips beneath his mask. 'The test isn't about knowing the answers. It's about gathering intelligence under pressure. It's about cheating without getting caught.'
---Hidden Observation Room---
High above the exam hall, the darkened observation room was filled with the smoke of cigarettes and the tension of high-stakes gambling.
"There are some interesting faces this year," Asuma commented, blowing a smoke ring as he watched the monitors. "That Hyuga kid... Neji. And your team, Kakashi."
Kakashi stood near the glass, his arms crossed, his visible eye fixed on the screen showing Sasuke. "They're doing alright. Sasuke has already realized the purpose of the test."
"What about your student, Alaric?" Kurenai asked, turning to the crimson-coated Jonin leaning against the back wall.
Alaric was relaxing in a chair he had seemingly pulled out of nowhere, a fresh cigar in his hand , unlit, out of courtesy for the ventilation system, though he chewed on the end. He looked at the monitor displaying Haku's motionless form.
"Haku?" Alaric chuckled. "He's probably bored."
"Bored?" Anko Mitarashi, who was eagerly waiting for her turn as the second proctor, raised an eyebrow. "He hasn't written a single thing yet. He's just sitting there. Is he giving up?"
"Just watch," Alaric said, gesturing vaguely at the screen.
Kakashi narrowed his eye. He watched as Sasuke activated his Sharingan, copying the movements of a student in the front row. He saw Neji's veins bulge as he used the Byakugan. He saw Gaara create a third eye of sand.
"He's not using any hand signs," Kakashi muttered, his gaze shifting back to Haku. "He's not looking around. He's just... staring at his desk."
---Room 301---
Haku took a slow, deep breath. He didn't need the Byakugan. He didn't need the Sharingan.
Since Alaric had applied the Ashura no Mon seal to his back, Haku's senses had been dialed up to a level that was almost overwhelming. He could hear the heartbeat of the proctor standing ten feet away. He could smell the ink drying on the paper of the girl three rows ahead.
He focused his hearing.
Scritch... scratch... scritch...
He isolated the sound. Three rows forward, two seats to the right. A boy with thick glasses and a confident posture. His pen was moving rhythmically, confidently.
Haku closed his eyes for a second. He could hear the specific friction of the graphite against the paper. He could hear the pauses, the loops, the sharp dots.
'Question one... B... dash... four...' Haku interpreted the sound into letters and numbers. It was a skill he had developed while tracking targets in the mist with Zabuza—identifying movement by sound alone. Now, applied to writing, it was almost too easy.
But sound wasn't enough for the diagrams.
Haku slowly opened his eyes. He didn't turn his head. Instead, he channeled a microscopic amount of chakra into the air above his desk.
Hidden Observation Room
"Wait," Kakashi stepped closer to the glass, his eye widening. "What is he doing?"
"I don't see anything," Asuma squinted. "He's just staring at his pencil."
"Look closer," Alaric said, a smirk audible in his voice. "At the air above his desk."
Kakashi focused his chakra into his eye. There, hovering just inches above Haku's desk, was a tiny, almost invisible distortion. It looked like a heat haze, but it was too controlled.
"Is that... ice?" Kakashi breathed.
"Condensed moisture," Alaric explained lazily. "He cooled the air temperature in a concentrated sphere, creating a lens of ice no larger than a coin. It's reflecting the paper of the Chunin plant sitting three rows ahead."
"He made a telescope out of ice?" Anko looked impressed. "That's... actually pretty creative."
"It's not just creative," Kakashi analyzed, his voice serious. "To maintain a structure that small, that perfect, without alerting the proctors or letting it melt... his chakra control is monstrous. It's better than Sasuke's. Maybe even better than Sakura's."
On the screen, Haku began to write. His hand moved fluidly, transcribing the answers he was seeing in the reflection of his tiny, floating ice mirror.
"He's gathering intel from multiple sources," Kakashi noted. "He's checking the reflection against what I assume he's hearing. He's cross-referencing."
"That's my student," Alaric said, crossing his legs. "Work smarter, not harder."
---Room 301---
Haku finished the ninth question with five minutes to spare. He dispelled the tiny ice lens, the moisture evaporating instantly into the air without leaving a trace. He set his pencil down and looked up, his face the picture of serenity.
Around him, panic was setting in. Naruto was vibrating with anxiety. Sakura was looking smug. Sasuke looked relieved.
"Time's up!" Ibiki announced. "Pencils down! Now... for the tenth question."
The atmosphere in the room grew heavy, oppressive. Ibiki's scars seemed to writhe in the dim light.
"Before I give you the tenth question... you have a choice."
"A choice?" Temari asked, confused.
"You can choose not to take the tenth question," Ibiki said, his voice dropping to a whisper that carried to every corner of the room. "If you choose not to take it, your score will be zero. You fail. And your teammates fail with you."
"That's stupid!" Kiba yelled. "Of course we'll take it!"
"However," Ibiki interrupted, a cruel smile spreading across his face. "If you choose to take it... and you answer incorrectly... you will be barred from taking the Chunin Exams ever again. You will remain a Genin for the rest of your life."
Silence. Absolute, terrified silence.
Haku watched as hands began to go up. Students, broken by the psychological pressure, chose to leave rather than risk their futures. One by one, teams were escorted out.
Haku didn't move. He didn't even blink.
'Stay a Genin?' he thought, amused. 'Zabuza-sama was a missing-nin. Alaric-sensei is... whatever he is. Rank means nothing. Loyalty and capability are everything.'
He glanced at Naruto. The blonde boy was trembling, his hand half-raised. Haku felt a flicker of pity.
SLAM!
Naruto slammed his hand down on the desk, not to raise it, but to declare his resolve. "Don't underestimate me! I don't care if I stay a Genin for the rest of my life! I'll still become Hokage! Bring it on!"
Haku's eyes widened slightly. 'He has spirit.'
Ibiki stared at Naruto for a long moment, then swept his gaze across the remaining students. The fear in the room had evaporated, replaced by the blonde idiot's infectious confidence.
"Very well," Ibiki smiled, a genuine look of respect crossing his features. "Those of you remaining... I have only one thing to tell you."
He ripped the curtains off the window behind him, revealing the exam logo.
"You pass!"
---Hidden Observation Room---
"Heh," Alaric stood up, stretching his arms. "Looks like the drama is over."
"Naruto..." Kakashi sighed, scratching the back of his head. "He really is the number one unpredictable ninja."
"But Haku," Asuma noted, looking at the monitor where Haku was calmly packing his pencils. "He didn't even hesitate. He didn't look at the others. He was ready to take that risk alone."
"Because he trusts his strength," Alaric said, walking toward the door. "And he knows that titles like 'Chunin' are just words. He's been living in the real world of shinobi far longer than these kids."
Suddenly, the glass of the window in the exam room shattered. A dark blur shot through, unfurling a banner.
"The second proctor is here!" Anko shouted from the screen, striking a pose.
Alaric winced. "Loud woman. Well, I'm heading out. The Forest of Death is going to be... entertaining."
He paused at the door, looking back at Kakashi.
"By the way, Kakashi. Tell your Uchiha to watch his back. My student isn't the only predator in that forest."
Kakashi's eye narrowed. "What do you mean?"
"Just a hunch," Alaric smirked, tapping his temple. "Just a hunch."
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