The first stage of the Chunin Exams was a written test. However, testing academic knowledge was never the primary goal; the true purpose was to evaluate teamwork and information-gathering capabilities.
Soon, led by a Konoha Jonin, a group of Chunin proctors filed into the room.
The hall was a cacophony of noise until Shikaku Nara furrowed his brow and let out a sharp command.
"Quiet!"
Although Shikaku Nara was a Jonin, the Nara clan was famous for their brilliant minds and peerless strategy rather than raw combat power. Alone, he might not have projected much of a threat.
However, behind him stood over a dozen Chunin. As all their gazes locked onto the rowdy crowd, an invisible, suffocating pressure filled the room, forcing those arrogant and unruly Genin to shut their mouths instantly.
Seeing that silence had finally been established, Shikaku Nara spoke in a low, resonant voice. "I am the chief proctor for the first stage, Shikaku Nara. Submit your information forms in order, collect your numbers, and take your assigned seats. The first exam will begin immediately."
Saiki knew exactly what this test entailed, but he didn't offer a single word of warning to Shizune or Genhai. He wanted them to observe for themselves; they needed the exercise.
Saiki wasn't sure if Shikaku Nara had already become the Commander of the Jonin forces yet, but the fact that Hiruzen Sarutobi had sent him to oversee the first stage showed how much importance was being placed on this exam. After all, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio and the Sarutobi clan were practically joined at the hip.
As the numbers were called out one by one, it was soon Saiki's turn.
Genhai was seated far ahead of him, separated by several rows and columns. Given Genhai's academic track record, Saiki felt a genuine pang of worry for the boy's score.
Shizune, fortunately, was in the same column as Saiki, seated just three rows behind him. He wasn't worried about her performance at all.
While Saiki was contemplating how he would help that idiot Genhai cheat later, a sudden, fragrant breeze drifted toward him. Turning his head, he found a pair of large, emerald-green eyes staring intently at him, her cheeks flushed with a faint, shy crimson.
Before Saiki could even open his mouth, the girl spoke first. "Hello, handsome. My name is Mei Terumi. What's yours?"
Looking at Mei Terumi's blatant "fan-girl" expression, Saiki smiled playfully and replied, "Hello, beautiful young lady. My name is Saiki Shiroya."
Was Mei Terumi truly that boy-crazy?
Perhaps a little.
However, approaching Saiki to strike up a conversation was a move driven by a calculated purpose.
Sometimes, when a person is too outstanding, they become like a bright lamp in the dead of night. No matter how much you try to lay low, you cannot escape notice.
The treatment Saiki's trio received upon entering the room—late arrivals usually drew the scrutinizing stares of every Genin in the hall.
Saiki and his team had arrived early, only to be delayed by Might Guy.
Faced with the hostile, predatory gazes of the other candidates, most people would have either shrunk back in fear like Shizune or glared back with bared teeth.
But Saiki? Faced with those malicious eyes, he had only furrowed his brow slightly before breaking into a smirk. That playful, mocking look in his eyes was like a lion that felt it beneath its dignity to be annoyed by a pack of mice. Those with eyes to see understood the absolute arrogance behind that smile.
Mei Terumi had been captivated by Saiki's face the moment he pushed the door open. Though she hadn't yet developed her dual bloodline limits, she was already a recognized genius. She naturally understood the arrogance dwelling in Saiki's eyes.
She had been monitoring his every move. Hearing Shizune and Genhai occasionally call out his name had only deepened her curiosity.
Upon hearing the name "Saiki Shiroya" and seeing that harmless, innocent smile, Mei's smile became even more radiant and dazzling.
Like a loyal fangirl meeting her idol, she blinked her beautiful eyes and asked with delight, "Are you truly that Saiki Shiroya? The one from the rumors who single-handedly slaughtered a nine-man squad led by a Jonin?"
Faced with Mei's wide-eyed adoration and flattery, Saiki remained entirely unmoved. At school, he was surrounded by girls every single day; he was long since immune. He knew Mei was just probing for intel, but he didn't mind.
Saiki wore a thoughtful expression before flashing her another smile. "If there isn't a second person in the Hidden Leaf with that name, then it's probably me."
Mei hadn't expected him to admit it so easily. Though momentarily stunned, she quickly recovered with a look of thrilled surprise. "Oh! You really are incredible!"
The attraction on her face wasn't entirely faked. Part of it was the genuine joy of looking at a handsome boy, and the other part was the satisfaction of successfully acquiring the intel she wanted.
"I'm even more incredible than you think," Saiki said with a chuckle, throwing out a double entendre that the young Mei couldn't quite grasp yet.
While Mei was still puzzling over his meaning, her entire body suddenly went rigid.
Saiki's speed was simply too high. In a move that Mei couldn't even begin to track—one that looked deceptively slow yet was impossibly fast—his hand reached out toward her face.
With a gentle touch, Saiki's fingers brushed aside the long, reddish-brown bangs covering her eye, revealing the hidden emerald orb behind them.
Her face was flawless—pale skin, a delicate nose, and lips that were perhaps a bit too soft and pink. Although she hadn't fully matured yet, the current Mei Terumi already possessed the seeds of the breathtaking beauty she would become.
Staring at the paralyzed Mei, Saiki wore a soft, gentle smile as he offered a compliment. "You should change your hairstyle. Long bangs don't suit you; they hide your beautiful eyes and your lovely face."
By the time Saiki withdrew his hand, Mei still hadn't recovered her senses. She knew with terrifying clarity that if Saiki had wanted to kill her in that moment, she would already be a corpse.
That paradoxically fast yet slow movement required not just explosive power, but an absolute, masterful level of control.
Attacking quickly is one thing; being able to stop on a dime is quite another.
He had extended his hand with lethal speed, only to halt it perfectly a hair's breadth from her face. In that instant, Saiki's body hadn't shifted an inch; it was as if the laws of inertia simply didn't apply to him. It was a terrifying display of physical precision.
Mei's heart hammered against her ribs. Watching Saiki calmly sort through his ninja tools for a pen and paper like a normal student, she found it impossible to reconcile him with the person who could have ended her life a second ago.
Seated a few rows back, Shizune watched the interaction between Saiki and Mei with eyes that were starting to well up with tears. She could only curse Mei in her heart, labeling her a "vixen" who was far too skilled at seducing men.
Saiki wasn't blind to Shizune's jealousy. Precisely because he could feel it, he chose not to look back and comfort her. She was still young; before she fell completely into the "demon's den" that was his life, she still had a chance to walk away.
Soon, the exam papers were distributed. The difficulty was roughly the same as Naruto's generation: deciphering codes, complex physics calculations, and theory questions regarding ninja protocols.
After scanning the questions once, Saiki's pen began to blur across the page.
Scratch, scratch, scratch!
Saiki wrote his answers with zero hesitation. Meanwhile, most of the candidates in the hall were scratching their heads and biting their pens. Genhai, that idiot, was clumsily trying to flip through his codebook.
As a future Kage, Mei Terumi's talent and intelligence were top-tier. Even without cheating, she could have answered these herself, but Saiki's sudden display of power had left her distracted and prone to daydreaming.
In just ten minutes, Saiki had finished the entire paper.
Lifting his head to scan the room, he saw some people cheating while others relied on their own knowledge. Mei Terumi was only a few questions away from finishing.
Sure enough, looking at Genhai in the front right, the boy was still frantically scratching his head in despair.
Chunin Exams were always the same; the first stage was a test of information gathering. There just wasn't a "final question" gimmick this time; every point mattered.
Saiki briefly considered letting Genhai fail so he could try again in a few years. After all, becoming a Chunin during a war was hardly a blessing.
But in the end, Saiki formed a seal under the table. From the sole of his foot, a thin, invisible thread of chakra snaked across the floor, connecting directly to Genhai.
Saiki didn't know the Mind-Body Switch Technique, but establishing a basic consciousness link through a physical chakra connection was easy enough.
Technically, he could have just used his Flower-Flower powers, but he didn't want the Chunin proctors to notice anything supernatural.
"Dumbass!"
A voice echoed inside Genhai's head, making the boy jump in his seat and look around frantically.
"Don't look back. Just communicate with me using your thoughts."
Genhai, whose code-breaking was a total mess, nodded vigorously. "Boss! I hear you!"
"Which question are you on?"
"Question two!"
Glancing at Saiki, who was holding a one-handed seal, Mei Terumi seemed to realize what was happening and shot a knowing look under the table.
Hearing Genhai's answer, Saiki couldn't help but curse mentally. "You really are an idiot. If I hadn't reminded you, would you have even realized you were allowed to cheat? Fine, shut up and listen. I'm transmitting the answers now."
Amidst the constant sound of proctors calling out numbers and disqualified teams being escorted out, the exam eventually reached its conclusion. More than half of the candidates had been eliminated.
As they left the hall, Saiki whispered a single sentence to Mei Terumi. "I have a feeling we'll be seeing each other again soon."
Watching Saiki depart with Genhai and Shizune, Kisame Hoshigaki turned to Mei. "Well? Did you get anything useful?"
The playful, flirtatious smile had vanished from Mei's face. She spoke with a grim seriousness. "He's bizarre. I can't even sense a flicker of his chakra, yet he's terrifyingly strong. We need to be extremely careful."
Hearing this, a dark, intrigued smirk played on Kisame's lips.
"So the rumors weren't faked after all. This is going to be very interesting."
Exactly like the exam for the "Konoha 11," Saiki's second stage was held at Training Ground 44—the Forest of Death. It was the same classic "Heaven and Earth Scroll" scroll-snatching battle, despite the village having plenty of other training grounds.
"Boss, thank you so much!"
On the way there, Genhai scratched his head in gratitude.
Saiki looked at him, feeling a wave of exhaustion. "Seriously, kid, you need to sharpen up! Pay attention to your surroundings. If you act like this on a real battlefield, you're dead."
Genhai's expression fell as he muttered a quiet "I'm sorry."
Seeing him so dejected, Saiki felt a pang of "tough love." He delivered a sharp slap to the back of Genhai's head. "Get your head in the game! Show some spirit!"
"Yes, Boss! I understand!"
Genhai's face turned bright red as he shouted at the top of his lungs, drawing weird looks from the other candidates heading toward the forest.
The only reason Saiki looked after Genhai so much wasn't because of his mother, Reimi. It was because he saw his own ordinary self in Genhai. Without his genius talent, his Devil Fruit, or his Pre-natal Qi, Saiki knew he might be even worse than Genhai. At least the boy possessed a bright, optimistic heart.
Having Genhai around acted as a constant reminder to Saiki: "Don't get cocky. Without your cheats, you're just an ordinary guy, too."