On March 10th, Year 26 of the Leaf Village, the day of the official Chunin Exams had finally arrived. A massive group of freshly graduated Genin stood in line waiting to enter the Ninja Academy's written exam hall.
"Please enter the venue in an orderly fashion. Thank you for your cooperation."
The teaching staff maintaining order at the scene kept reminding the examinees intermittently. Fortunately, these current-day Genin were nothing like the overpowered experts of the future generations.
"These Genin? Total lightweights!"
A small black figure near the Ninja Academy let out a sigh. Oh right, this was the spot where a certain young genius had once hidden away to recover last year.
"Why did you choose such a location?" came a cold voice from the white-clad little figure standing beside him.
"This place? This is where my lost youth used to be!"
The white-clad figure didn't respond immediately, deep in thought.
"What's wrong, Nayou?"
"No wonder I couldn't find you no matter how long I searched back then!"
These two visitors surveying the premises were none other than first-year students from the Ninja Academy—Shen Uchiha and Hyuga Nayou.
"Looking for me? When was that?"
Shen listened in confusion. From what he remembered, besides that one time, he hadn't come here again.
Nayou slowly enunciated five words: "The very first day of enrollment!"
The way she bit out those five words hit Shen like a slap. "So does that mean you started chasing me the moment I left?"
As soon as he finished speaking, he felt the temperature around him drop considerably. After thinking about it, he realized his phrasing had a double meaning. Just as he was about to explain himself, a cold glare forced him to swallow his words.
Nayou's lips curled slightly as she met his gaze. "Yeah," she said calmly, "I chased you for a really long time… but I never caught up."
Was Shen panicking right now? Of course—he wasn't some thick-skinned guy like Nawaki who'd miss the implications entirely. Quick-witted as he was, he tried to play it cool: "Isn't that good? Maybe if you'd caught me back then, we wouldn't have become friends."
"Hmm?"
"Don't 'hmm' me. Hurry up and use your Byakugan to scope things out. Getting inside won't be easy."
Caught off guard by this clever change of subject, Nayou still obediently activated her Byakugan to observe the Ninja Academy. Silently, she added yet another observation about this prodigy to her notes.
"There aren't many guards in the written exam hall—about twenty Jonin or so."
"In that case, let's move!"
As soon as Shen said this, he entered Lightning Nature Chakra Mode and vanished into thin air. It goes without saying their plan absolutely didn't require moving at such speed.
Nayou's Byakugan followed him as he vanished inside the exam hall. Her mouth quirked slightly—another notch on her mental tally. Pulling a small earpiece from her pocket and putting it on, she considered whether to jot these two incidents down lest she forget.
"Echo, Echo—this is Tango. Come in please."
Nayou's lips twitched harder as she listened to the ridiculous code coming through her earpiece. Suppressing her discomfort, she pressed the microphone and replied, "Spud, I got you loud and clear. And could you please use a nicer nickname?"
"No way, Potter! Changing the nickname would ruin the soul!"
"What soul?"
"That's a long story. Anyway, let's focus on the mission now."
Later I'll get a notebook," Nayou muttered to herself before activating her Byakugan to observe the guards' patrol route. After gathering enough intel, she pressed the microphone again to report.
"That's all, Spud. Got it memorized?"
"Copy that, Potter. Stay in touch."
"Roger, Spud."
After ending the communication, Shen began visualizing the guards' patrol route inside his mind. Feeling as if he had gained a third eye, he mused inwardly, "Feels just like playing a game! I can see everything--cough cough, better not overdo it. Time to begin."
Shen threw an imaginary cloak over his shoulders and dashed forward, navigating the Ninja Academy using the mental map in his head.
"Second floor."
"Third floor."
"Fourth floor."
Quickly moving through the stairwell, Shen soon reached the fourth floor—his destination. However, the four Jonin guards stationed at the entrance didn't bother him in the least.
"Potter, Potter, this is Spud. Destination reached."
"Potter copies. Spud, proceed with caution. I've got your six."
After quietly exchanging messages, he ran his hand along the wall at the stair corner, infusing it with Chakra for analysis. Then, shifting his entire body into Earth Chakra Mode, he gradually constructed layers of earth and rock over his body matching the composition of the wall.
[Earth Release: Earth Tunneling]
He activated the technique inside his mind and began walking steadily toward the wall. Surprisingly, he entered it effortlessly and disappeared from sight. Moments later, he emerged inside the room where the guards were stationed. Truly deserving of its name, his "Tunneling" technique lived up to expectations.
"Potter, Potter, this is Spud. How's my Earth Release looking?" Successfully infiltrating the target location, Shen whispered into the microphone smugly.
This Earth Tunneling technique was modified by Shen from Deidara's [Earth Release: Earth Dragon Burrow]. He improved upon the principle of transforming soil into fine sand to move underground, making it far more practical. Unlike the Earth Dragon Burrow, Earth Tunneling wouldn't damage the land structure. While staying in Earth Chakra Mode, the technique automatically patched up any holes in the walls as he passed through. As the move's name implied, it truly looked like he was passing straight through the walls—without leaving a trace.
Nayou replied flatly, "Noted, Spud. Focus on finishing the mission."
"Copy that, Potter."
Once communication was cut again, Shen approached the desk in the room and picked up a document to read. Then, with an amused expression, he opened the microphone channel again.
"Potter, Potter, this is Spud. Guess what comes next after the written exam?"
Of course Nayou didn't know—if the Byakugan could read minds or even see through paper, all the shinobi villages would've stopped wasting time training Anbu agents and just started snatching eyes instead!
Her voice grew increasingly impatient. "I don't know. Just tell me already."
"How many points do you want to score on the written exam?"
Nayou quickly answered through her earpiece, "Of course full marks!"
"Okay then. Just wait for my surprise."
"What surprise?"
"It's a secret. You'll see when the next exam begins."
Nayou went completely still, frozen in place after hearing that. She could only use her Byakugan to observe Shen's movements and figure out what kind of surprise it was.
From her Byakugan's view, Shen grabbed two spare exam papers from the office and immediately began filling them in. After finishing, as if he suddenly remembered something, he picked up a third paper, switched it to his left hand, and started writing again.
"???"
The more Nayou watched, the more confused she became. She knew those two exam papers would definitely have both their names on them, but why there was a third one completely baffled her.
Unsure of what was going on, Nayou continued watching through her Byakugan as Shen finished the third paper. He then walked through the wall toward a staircase and ascended with a speed too fast for her to track.
"Hehe, now I just need to wait for the official competition rounds to begin."
Shen used Earth Release again to tunnel into the Chunin Exams grading room on the fifth floor. After placing the exam papers, he slipped out of the Ninja Academy, where many Jonin were stationed.
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