Just as the kunai was about to hit Inuzuka Kiba, Shino and Feng An attacked simultaneously.
"Insect Jutsu: Insect Wall." "Wind Style: Great Breakthrough."
Countless insects swarmed over Inuzuka Kiba, forming a protective layer like a bulletproof vest.
Feng An blew a powerful gale from his mouth toward the flying kunai.
The wind force was so strong it even altered the kunai's trajectory!
The kunai with explosive tags attached instantly flew backward toward the three attackers.
"How is this possible?!"
The three were horrified.
They found themselves blown off their feet by the fierce wind, slammed against the classroom wall, and pinned there as if nailed.
The next second, the explosive tags detonated right in front of them!
BOOM!
After a cloud of black smoke dissipated, several large cracks scarred the wall. The three lay motionless on the ground.
From the faint rise and fall of their chests, one could tell they were still breathing.
The people around them quickly changed seats, afraid the wall might collapse at any moment.
Seeing Shino and Feng An step forward, Inuzuka Kiba was so moved he started sniffling.
"Feng An!"
He rushed toward Feng An, tears and snot flowing.
Feng An deftly sidestepped and sat back down next to Hinata. He didn't want snot all over him.
"Shino!"
Inuzuka Kiba pounced on Aburame Shino instead and ended up with a mouthful of bugs.
Shino had already silently appeared on the other side.
The cold-eyed bystanders were all shocked, thinking to themselves they must avoid this person in the team competition.
The noisy classroom suddenly fell unusually quiet, but it didn't last long before the chattering gradually resumed.
Everyone looked at Feng An, comparing him to the geniuses recently famous in Konoha.
"Is he Neji, the Byakugan genius from the Hyūga clan, or Uchiha Sasuke?"
"How could it be Neji? Just look at his eyes—it's obviously not him."
"Then he must be Uchiha Sasuke, right? Everyone says Uchiha Sasuke is handsome, and seeing him today, the rumors are true!"
"Idiot, Uchiha Sasuke has black hair!"
"Then who is he? How come we've never heard of such a powerful figure among Konoha's younger generation?"
…
Hearing everyone's speculation, Feng An felt utterly speechless.
Especially the guess that he was Uchiha Sasuke.
"Am I that edgy?"
The guess was outrageous but understandable. The only two Konoha geniuses people from other villages had heard of were those two.
Most had never seen them, so they might mistake Feng An for Uchiha Sasuke.
Hinata looked at Feng An's embarrassed expression and giggled.
"You're laughing at me, aren't you?"
Feng An pinched Hinata's little nose.
Hinata pouted and rubbed the bridge of her nose.
"Actually, I think you're even better than Neji-nii-san and the others."
Feng An teased, "Oh? Hinata has come around? Even learned to flatter."
Hinata lowered her head helplessly. "I'm serious."
"Feng An, thank you."
Yukime walked over and thanked Feng An.
Just as Feng An was about to say it was nothing, a loud BANG echoed from the teacher's platform, drawing the attention of everyone in the class.
As the smoke cleared, a group of ninjas appeared, standing on the platform.
"Quiet, everyone. I am Morino Ibiki, the proctor for the first round of the Chunin Exams."
When everyone saw the ferocious face of the man in the black trench coat standing at the front, they all gasped. The noisy environment instantly fell dead silent.
Hinata and the others were psychologically much better prepared than the others, thanks to Feng An's advance warning.
This caught Morino Ibiki's attention. This batch seems quite interesting.
After that, Morino Ibiki explained the exam rules and then assigned exam rooms. The ninjas behind him, who had been standing silently, led the students to their respective classrooms for the exam.
Every time he explained a rule, Hinata and the others would look at Feng An in surprise.
Because it wasn't just similar to what Feng An had said—it was basically identical.
If Feng An had wanted to, he could probably have described Morino Ibiki's movements and expressions too.
But he wouldn't do something so unnecessary.
Soon after the rules were explained, everyone went to their assigned exam rooms.
Feng An was lucky; he didn't have to change rooms and could stay in the corner of Room 301.
Hinata was seated right in front of him.
At this moment, Feng An stared at the yellow-haired Naruto next to Hinata.
Though, Hinata probably won't lend her paper to Naruto now, since their storyline has been interrupted by me.
The test papers were distributed.
Feng An was also a little curious about what the questions would be.
After reading through it, he began to question his life.
"First question, calculus..."
What does it mean when a ninja exam paper has calculus on it?
He wasn't the only one with this doubt; others in the exam room felt the same.
Isn't this beyond the scope?
Everyone rubbed their eyes in disbelief.
Some even stuck their eyes closer to the paper.
"Why do I recognize these words individually, but they feel so unfamiliar together?"
"I reviewed the principles of various ninjutsu and basic ninja qualities, and you're telling me not a single question is on that?"
The classroom gradually filled with murmurs.
Ibiki Morino glared fiercely at the candidates below.
"Silence! Anyone who speaks again will be treated as cheating and deducted 2 points."
Some dissatisfied examinees were about to retort, but upon seeing the terrifying scars on his face, they silently lowered their heads again.
"As a diligent, studious, high-quality graduate of the Ninja Academy, it's basic courtesy not to talk back to the teacher."
As time passed, more and more people gradually discovered the real rules of the exam.
They all transformed into cheating gods.
Especially a Sound Ninja covered in bandages, who was cheating by using sound to identify written answers.
Even if you pointed a camera right at his face, he wouldn't flinch.
Feng An lay comfortably on the desk, watching everyone show off their skills.
He shook his head from time to time.
If I were proctoring, at least 90% of these ninjas would be eliminated in the written test.
What made him most speechless was Kankuro's trick of using a puppet to pose as a proctor. Couldn't they even remember the headcount?
It was obvious the proctors were turning a blind eye. As long as you demonstrated you were using various abilities to cheat, they wouldn't catch you unless you blatantly copied.
When he glanced at Naruto, he saw the boy was still in the same dumbfounded state as when the test began.
Feng An held his forehead.
"Has this idiot still not figured out the exam rules?"
At that moment, Naruto was grabbing his hair in extreme agony.
"Time is running out. It'd be fine if I were eliminated alone, but I'd implicate Sasuke and Sakura too."
"Guess... this is the only way? I have to cheat?"
Though unwilling, Naruto decided to cheat, thinking of Sasuke and Sakura possibly being eliminated because of him.
"Luckily, the person sitting next to me is Hinata, the academic genius!"
He was secretly thrilled and relieved that a top student was seated beside him.
"This round is in the bag!"
*****
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