"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" Nara Kazuki opened his mouth, a surge of blazing flames erupting toward the opposing ninja, who was stunned for a split second before quickly reacting and dodging the attack.
Kazuki wasn't in a rush. His shadow had already crept around, forcing the enemy into constant evasive maneuvers. Meanwhile, Kazuki began weaving hand signs, preparing to unleash the Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu.
"Pass!" The examiner suddenly raised his hand. Kazuki halted, and nearby proctors jotted down notes on their clipboards.
Kazuki rolled his neck. He was here to take the Jōnin Certification Exam—this part was just a preliminary assessment to determine whether he possessed the power level of a Jōnin. Only after passing this would he be allowed to enter the formal exam stages.
"You did well, Nara Kazuki. You had me in a pretty tight spot there." The proctor, a member of the Akimichi clan, gave a hearty laugh, though Kazuki remained skeptical. He noticed there wasn't even a bead of sweat on the man's forehead.
Was he really pushed into a corner, or just humoring him? Still, it was lucky the guy hadn't activated his infamous Partial Expansion Jutsu, or Kazuki might've been forced to reveal his Flame Demon Form just to keep up.
"Thank you, Akimichi-senpai," Kazuki replied politely. With the preliminary assessment passed, next came the written exam and various other trials. After completing those, there were still three Jōnin-level missions to perform, followed by an interview with the Hokage himself. Only then would he be officially recognized as a Jōnin.
No wonder he envied Kakashi. The guy had bypassed most of this during wartime and was promoted straight to Jōnin. Not that Kazuki thought he was unworthy—it just stung that wartime criteria were so much looser. In this era of peace, everything had gotten stricter.
It made sense why every Jōnin was held in such high regard.
"You passed. Good. Now head to the next phase," the Akimichi ninja patted his shoulder with a grin. Kazuki nodded and headed to the testing room.
The written exam was held at the Ninja Academy. Kazuki found it odd at first—walking through the halls of a place where Iruka was still just a brat—but soon enough it felt like any other big school. He was escorted into a room by a teacher and sat down to take the test.
"This is my first time taking an exam in the world of Naruto..." Kazuki muttered to himself, slightly amused. He hadn't needed to do much for his Chūnin promotion, but here he was now, becoming a Jōnin the hard way.
It was oddly fulfilling—he'd always been curious what kind of exam Konoha would put together.
Then he looked at the stack of complex, densely worded questions. His face slowly dulled.
[Given an enemy proficient in Earth and Water Release with a cautious temperament, list three effective chakra nature combinations or tactical counters.]
Kazuki blinked.
They really went there, huh? And they wanted three plans? Plan A, B, and C?
He scratched his head, but it wasn't too bad. It was a theoretical question based on chakra affinities. No strict answers, just logical reasoning.
He began writing:
[Use Lightning and Wind Style to counter the opponent, combined with terrain manipulation to restrict movement. Feint a retreat to lure them into a trap, then execute a surprise attack. Success hinges on how convincing the retreat appears…]
"Who would've thought being a ninja required exams like this?" Kazuki muttered. His jealousy toward Kakashi only deepened.
Then came the second question:
[What are your views on the Will of Fire proposed by the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi?]
Kazuki scratched his head. So they had to sneak in ideological tests. Made sense—Jōnin were high-level assets. The village had to ensure loyalty. This was basically a thought-check.
Every ninja village had its own ideological framework. Even so, betrayal still happened. Look at Orochimaru—one of Hiruzen's own disciples—and he still defected.
Still, Kazuki had anticipated something like this. He wrote out a model answer, praising the Will of Fire, adding a line like "I hope to become as excellent a ninja as Lord Third one day." Throw in some sparkle in the eyes if it were a face-to-face interview, Naruto-style, and it'd be a full marks answer.
With that done, he glanced at the next question.
[In a mission, you encounter an enemy sensory-type ninja. How do you quickly sever their intel network?]
A practical question. He'd actually chatted with Kakashi about this before. The Fourth Hokage had taught techniques for dealing with it.
[Priority is to eliminate the target, or destroy their summoning beasts or communication scrolls. Use jutsu to disrupt chakra sensing, create auditory or visual noise to interfere…]
Straightforward. For someone like Minato, this was child's play.
[While on a mission, your team encounters a highly dangerous missing-nin, whose strength surpasses a typical Jōnin. What do you do?]
Kazuki raised an eyebrow. Again, not unusual. Every village has missing-nin. He couldn't help but think of Orochimaru again.
Still, no real ninja would charge in blindly against a superior foe.
Minato had once forced enemy villages to issue standing orders: flee on sight if the Yellow Flash appeared. So retreat wasn't shameful.
Next came a multiple-choice question:
[While escorting critical supplies, chakra signatures are detected on both sides of a canyon. Do you:]
A. Force your way through
B. Detour
C. Send a clone to scout
D. Initiate a feint
Kazuki pondered, then quietly circled C.
Whether it was "right" or not, he had no clue—this wasn't a math quiz with an answer key.
[While under enemy attack, you can escape—but staying might yield valuable intel. Do you:]
A. Retreat
B. Stay and probe for intel
C. Kill the enemy
D. Stall and wait for reinforcements
Kazuki twitched. These were… oddly revealing. Especially this one. A thinly veiled allusion to Jiraiya's fate.
"Are they hinting at Lord Jiraiya here?" Kazuki muttered. It was a spoiler in disguise.
Jiraiya had entered Amegakure, and even though Pain let him probe for intel multiple times, he didn't leave. He died uncovering too much.
If he'd chosen to flee earlier, Nagato probably would've let him go. But that wasn't how it played out.
[When a mission objective conflicts with the safety of your teammates, should the mission be abandoned? Support your answer using the Shinobi Code and real-life examples.]
Kazuki winced.
Good thing Kakashi didn't have to answer this one—he'd probably write a damn dissertation.
After Rin and Obito's deaths—and the trauma from Sakumo's demise—Kakashi had come to believe that ninja who abandoned comrades weren't worthy of the title at all. That belief later shaped Naruto and Sasuke's entire path.
Kazuki scribbled down his own thoughts and moved on.
[List the hand seal sequence for Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu.]
He froze.
A freebie? But as he began to recall it, his mind went blank. Damn, muscle memory was messing him up. After a few trial gestures, it came back.
"Too many jutsu, man… I almost forgot how to cast the basics," he muttered, shaking his head.
Good thing they didn't forbid physical demonstration. If it had been written-only, he might've choked.
[Calculate the trajectory correction angle, initial arm position, and applied force for a kunai throw under a 13 m/s crosswind over 120 meters.]
"...?"
Kazuki slowly typed out a question mark in his answer sheet.
Was this for real?
Suddenly it felt like he was back in school—being tortured by math problems.
He rubbed his temple. A little part of him died inside as he scribbled the answer.
Then came a calculus problem.
Kazuki's eyes glazed over.
"You mean to tell me I have to pass advanced math to become a Jōnin? What was the point of reincarnating, then?!"
He wanted to flip the table.
He nearly awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan from rage alone. But math wouldn't yield to emotion. Unless he awakened a dojutsu specialized in solving math... he was screwed.
Still, gritting his teeth, Kazuki trudged through the rest of the test. By the end, he felt more exhausted than sparring with Guy-sensei for hours.
"Shitty world..." Kazuki muttered as he exited the exam room, dragging his feet. Who knew crossing into Naruto's world meant reliving math trauma?
The good news was—he was done. Now all he had to do was wait for the results. If he passed, he'd begin the next phase: performing Jōnin-evaluation missions. They weren't overly deadly—meant to bridge the gap between Chūnin and Jōnin.
"Done with the exam? How'd it feel?" Kakashi tossed him a juice. Kazuki caught it and took a long swig.
"Don't even talk to me right now. I feel like I just transcended mortality."
Kakashi blinked. "That bad?"
Kazuki rolled his eyes. "If I knew Jōnin exams were this brutal, I'd still go through with it—because the pay and benefits are worth it."
He was a corporate drone at heart. Nothing came between him and financial security.
Jōnin meant better missions, higher rank, more jutsu available for exchange. Prestige and wealth. That's why every ninja dreamed of being a Jōnin—or a Kage. Not because the exams were hard, but because of what came after.
"Wanna get yakiniku? My treat. Let's call Guy too." Kazuki stretched.
Kakashi smiled. Finally—he could milk Kazuki for all he was worth.
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