"Souma… I didn't expect you to be the one accompanying the Daimyō. With you here, there's nothing to worry about."
"Inoichi-senpai says that, but honestly, having you here puts me at ease."
Souma's smile was genuine.
When it came to mental techniques and perception in Konoha, aside from the anomalous case of Kurama Yakumo, the strongest specialist without question was the man before him—Yamanaka Inoichi.
What Souma hadn't expected was that one of the two protection teams assigned by the Third Hokage would be personally led by Inoichi himself.
With Inoichi present, reconnaissance and sensory duties would be far less stressful.
Inoichi chuckled softly.
"And it's not just me. The Hyūga clan head himself is leading the other team."
Souma's eyebrows lifted slightly.
"Hyūga Hiashi?"
That explained a lot.
The moment the exam hall began filling, two people immediately noticed something unusual.
As long as a summoned creature passed through an area, its observations could be obtained through reverse sensory synchronization, completely bypassing the chakra drain and risk of direct Mind Transfer techniques.
From this alone, it was obvious—
Souma had a deep understanding of Yamanaka clan secret arts.
Inoichi paused, then slowly nodded.
"…I see."
Ibiki's strength aside, his psychological mastery was already at its peak.
Now, paired with Souma's understanding of perception mechanics…
This Chūnin Exam was shaping up to be terrifying.
Behind Inoichi sat Hyūga Neji, with Rock Lee slightly forward and to the side.
Souma spoke calmly.
"Reverse sensory synchronization doesn't apply only to ninja.
It can also be used on docile summons."
Inwardly, Souma couldn't help admiring the setup.
A true insider could see the layers of meaning, but the Daimyō wouldn't understand any of this. He was elderly—overly technical explanations would just bore him to sleep.
"Yes, Daimyō-sama."
Indeed.
Every individual present was part of the protection detail.
Inoichi immediately grasped the value of Souma's proposal.
But—
Daimyō's eyes suddenly lit up.
This lineup was practically the ceiling of intelligence and reconnaissance.
Yamanaka perception.
Hyūga Byakugan.
ANBU coordination.
Then he frowned.
"The candidates are writing far too quickly… Are they guessing?"
"…Or they've already pieced together the information."
The Daimyō hesitated, then asked:
"I recall the Yamanaka clan has techniques to share perception with others?"
"…Me?"
Inoichi scratched his head, momentarily embarrassed.
Even with the Hokage's hints, how many candidates would truly pass?
Half?
Souma was slightly surprised himself.
The seating layout was extremely precise—no flaws to pick at.
Inoichi, despite being clan head and the best in his family, sensed a small gap between himself and what Souma was aiming for.
"Quick—do exactly as Souma said."
With that man involved, the Chūnin Exam was guaranteed to be hellishly difficult.
Inoichi had reviewed Souma's teammates' profiles beforehand—
But he hadn't expected Hiashi himself to step in as a squad leader to protect the Daimyō.
Souma spoke calmly.
"I already have the general framework for the technique. I just need someone to help test it.
If you fully understand your clan's techniques, modifying it shouldn't be difficult."
That explained why Souma had brought it up.
This wasn't idle curiosity.
No Mind Transfer infiltration required.
No possession.
Just observation.
Neji ground his teeth.
"What's even the point of an exam like this…?"
Then—
His eyes widened.
"Inoichi-senpai… would you be willing to cooperate with me in testing a new technique?"
"If I hadn't crammed recently, even seeing the answers wouldn't help me identify the correct information."
Inside the exam hall, Tenten had already taken her seat.
Around her were three chūnin Souma recognized—
Yamanaka Inoichi suddenly understood.
So that's it.
This technique wasn't created for humans.
It was designed to work with Aburame kikaichū.
Souma had already succeeded once.
But to generate feedback, he needed the Yamanaka clan.
Byakugan was unrivaled in reconnaissance.
If its visual data could be shared via sensory synchronization, it would completely bypass verbal communication.
Inoichi quickly made an excuse and moved aside.
Another announcement followed:
"To allow the Daimyō-sama a clearer view of the exam, the Hokage has requested the Yamanaka clan to assist with live synchronization."
Daimyō's interest skyrocketed.
This wasn't simple multiple-choice.
Candidates had to extract fragments from three answers and reconstruct the truth.
Simple Byakugan sharing would be redundant—
But summon-based perception and consciousness synchronization?
That was revolutionary.
Souma's control over difficulty was surgical.
This wasn't something ordinary people could pull off.
"Success. Targets locked. We can switch views instantly on command."
The Daimyō was completely engrossed now.
Neji, after failing multiple questions despite last-minute training, activated his Byakugan.
Souma had previously guided Ino Yamanaka through this concept—
Which was why Ino later combined sensory sync with the Telescope Technique.
Everything had been planned.
The screen shifted.
Inoichi sighed, then turned to Souma.
"You're proposing… reverse application of memory-reading techniques combined with sensory synchronization?"
Souma glanced around.
"Only one team is using the Telescope Technique?"
One Nara.
Two Aburame.
"Split targets. Each squad locks onto different Konoha shinobi.
The moment someone performs something interesting—switch the feed."
The Daimyō was guided into the hall.
From Byakugan to summons.
From summons to shared perception.
Cycle through enough feeds, and the screen would always show something worth watching.
The Daimyō hesitated, but curiosity won.
"If it doesn't take too long… go ahead."
Souma nodded.
The first image that appeared—
Tenten.
Souma's mouth twitched.
Inoichi… you did that on purpose.
Orochimaru calmly wrote his answers.
Then he froze.
Five different versions?
…What?
Naturally, several elite candidates soon grasped the exam's true intent.
Exams and combat were inherently dull—
Which was why this device existed.
Even with effort, intellectual gaps remained.
"You're suggesting using this technique with the Hyūga's Byakugan?"
"Yes."
Souma nodded.
The exam wasn't about copying answers.
Every candidate could obtain information—
But only those who could process and reconstruct it would pass.
"Adjustments complete."
Yamanaka Kō bowed respectfully.
Neji's eyes sparkled.
"So that's it…"
The Daimyō stared in disbelief.
"So… the difficulty exists to test intelligence gathering and analysis?"
Souma inclined his head.
"That's correct."
Daimyō laughed in amazement.
"Brilliant. Far superior to rote testing or cheating."
Then—
The image shifted to Naruto.
The Daimyō didn't recognize him, but watched with great interest.
Inoichi nodded.
From the shadows—
Orochimaru suppressed his chakra, entering a low-activity state akin to hibernation.
A technique he had developed after painful reflection.
Souma may detect many things… but not this.
He wasn't inside the exam hall.
Remote observation alone wouldn't expose him.
At least—
He was confident of that.
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