Chapter 25: How Dare You Give Me a Zero! (1/2)

"Monkey, why did you unilaterally change the exam questions I prepared?"

In the Hokage's office, Danzo, who was watching the exam site through the crystal ball alongside the Third Hokage, questioned with irritation.

"I didn't change much, Danzo," the Third Hokage replied calmly, taking a puff of his pipe.

"What kind of information is asking for names and blood types? You even reduced the overall score threshold by half!"

Danzo frowned deeply. "And why didn't you include a penalty for leaking information?"

"This is a Chūnin exam, Danzo," the Third Hokage responded, now showing a hint of displeasure. "Your standards are overly harsh and particularly unfriendly to candidates from prominent clans."

"That's a risk that comes with being a ninja from a prominent clan!" Danzo argued.

"Alright, alright... I'm not going to argue with you," the Third Hokage waved his hand dismissively. "I did shorten the exam time, didn't I? The result should be similar."

"Hmph! This kind of exam is meaningless. We might as well cancel it altogether!"

"..."

The Third Hokage didn't respond, continuing to smoke his pipe while watching the live feed.

Danzo glared coldly at the Third Hokage for a moment, then snorted and fell silent.

A few minutes later...

"You didn't delete my rule about extracting information through interrogation, did you?" Danzo asked in a cold voice.

"There's still such a rule?!" Now it was the Third Hokage's turn to be unsettled. "Why didn't I notice it?"

"Hah! Do I need to explicitly write it down? Under extreme conditions, using harsh interrogation methods to extract information is perfectly normal, isn't it?"

"You're going too far, Danzo... These are all Konoha's children. Are you telling them to interrogate their own comrades!?"

"You're too soft, Monkey! This is the world of ninja—there are no comrades, only the mission!"

"I am the Hokage! Danzo! I do not agree with this!"

"Hmph! You'll regret this sooner or later, Monkey!"

"..."

After a fierce exchange, the two men glared at each other for thirty seconds before silently agreeing to sit down and continue watching the crystal ball.

To the relief of the Third Hokage, none of the candidates were resorting to interrogating each other in the exam room.

In fact, he was pleased to see that some candidates had already started to hand in their papers early.

"These kids are beginning to understand the importance of information... Not bad, not bad..." The Third Hokage smiled as he took a drag from his pipe, the earlier tension seeming to have never existed.

"Hmph!" Danzo snorted coldly.

The Third Hokage then switched the view to another exam room.

And this situation... was a bit peculiar.

"Hmm? Little Wakaho?" The Third Hokage noticed the figure standing at the front of the classroom, feeling a sense of foreboding.

"Hmm? Uchiha?" Danzo also stared intently at the figure, trying to recall the information he had on this young Uchiha.

In the exam room, Wakaho stood with a stern expression, his short-cropped hair practically bristling with defiance.

"How dare you give me a zero!"

"Because I'm the examiner!" The burly examiner roared back. "You wrote down the names of twenty Konoha ninja on your paper—how is that useful information!?"

"Why doesn't that count as information!" Wakaho raised his voice in response. "Aren't they Konoha ninja? Could they possibly be ninja from other villages!?"

Wakaho argued passionately, "In the battlefield, isn't this kind of information crucial? Don't you need to identify the enemy before you make your move?"

"You should give me twenty points!"

"I suggest you go back and rewrite your paper immediately, or your entire team will be disqualified!"

Despite Wakaho's loud voice, the contrast with his young, immature tone as he confronted the examiner created an oddly amusing scene.

"This little rascal..." The Third Hokage chuckled and shook his head, the wrinkles on his face deepening as he smiled like an old chrysanthemum.

It looks like Orochimaru is destined to be disappointed...