Naruto's biting his lip, but listening intently - and he got everything copied, at least.

"I will now announce the tenth question. But first... anyone who wishes to leave the chunin exams may do so now."

This prompts some confused muttering.

Naruto's scrunching his brow, and trying to fight the urge to glance back at Sasuke. What the hell? Why would they leave?

"Be warned. If you answer the tenth question wrong, you will be forbidden from ever attempting the chunin exams again." Ibiki chuckles.

"What the hell?!" bursts out Kiba. "There's tons of people who have failed the exam before here! What kinda rule is that?"

- How would they even get permission from other villages to do that - Konoha might let them but then that's a shitty decision that Naruto's reversing when he's Hokage - 

But usually the Third is just. Inefficient. Not incompetent, he doesn't think...

Projecting his brain into Ibiki's perspective is hard, since he doesn't know much about the guy, but he starts running through possibilities of 'if true, why and how' and 'if not true, what's being hidden'...

"Other exams were not proctored by me," Ibiki says. "This is my rule. I will say this again. If you are not confident, leave. Now. Before you ruin the rest of your team's chances forever."

...Okay so it's a trick.

The question is if it's a trick to not betray their teams for their own advancement (which's the type of trick Naruto would do) or a trick to continue with the thing even if it might get you or your team killed (which... Honestly sounds like the 'duty before reason' thing shinobi seem to like).

He's not too worried about his actual team, he's pretty sure Sasuke's just humoring the whole concept of ranks and Chihiro's just pretending to be a genin, and he can become Hokage even without getting promoted prior to that, but.

This is a stupid trick if it's the type of trick he thinks it is, and it's mean and promoting bad values.

The atmosphere in the room grows more oppressive.

One of the older-looking genin cracks. His hand shoots up into the air. "I quit! I can't take it!"

"Number fifty, fail," says one of the other proctors. "Number one hundred thirty, number one hundred eleven, also fail." The three file out of the room. This seems to crack the dam. Another follows suit, then a third, fourth, and fifth.

He mulls, and fumes a bit - 

And realizes that if they fail the 'tenth question' it's just them who gets stuck as a genin, not their whole team, and risking their own lives is okay not that bad a lesson...

He doesn't think this is a good way to go about it, and the proctor's annoying him - 

Naruto's also not entirely good at not running his mouth.

"This is a dumb question," he says, softly but angrily.

A pause, and, louder: "It's a trick, even if a sucky one. Even if you'd somehow gotten the other villages to go along with this - without a single one leaking it to their own genin - it'd be a dumb policy. One question, tanking your career? But missions can be like that - you might not know what's gonna happen, just that it might get you killed, and if you back out your team suffers." And, even louder, "Well I don't run away! My team doesn't run away! Even if it's the truth, I'll just drag myself up to the position of Hokage anyways!"

Ibiki's eyes narrow as he glares at Naruto.

"You have one more chance," his words slam down like tombstones. "Your life is riding on this decision."

"I don't back down, or go against my words."

"Hn," says Ibiki. The mood of the room seems to have shifted, those who remain seem more confident in their decision. "Anyone else?"

Seconds pass and Ibiki's face grows grimmer. No one moves. "Those of you who remain..." He pauses, then barks "I congratulate you on passing the first test!"

Knew it.

...Sasuke's gonna do that Look at Naruto for not keeping his mouth shut isn't he.

Sugira's a bit too busy face palming at the moment. It's understandable for a twelve year old, but he should maybe work with Naruto about proper times for outbursts...

"What!" cries a genin, indignant. "What was the point of the other nine questions, then?"

"Their point was simple," Ibiki says, smiling. His demeanor has completely shifted. "To test your individual information gathering skills. That's why we gave you five chances. The last question was testing something different. There will be times in your careers as shinobi when you will have to make a dangerous choice, to advance into the unknown to serve your village and your comrade or to retreat, abandon the mission and your comrades. Being a chunin means being prepared to make that choice."

He rests his elbow on the table and his chin in his hand but doesn't say anything.

"Blah, blah, blah," says a woman sitting in an open window. She's wearing an overcoat, a mesh armor bodysuit, and a pair of short shorts. "You plannin' to talk them to death, Morino? Y'ain't doin' a very good job, there's still what, like ninety of them left? Yeesh." She swings her legs over and steps into the room. "Guess I gotta pick up your slack. Again. Don't worry though, I'll cut them at least in half. Hello kiddos, my name is Mitarashi Anko and I'll be adminstering the second test."

Eh, she seems more straightforward, at least.

"All right, let's get to it. You have twenty minutes to get to Training Ground Forty-Four! Get moving!" she shouts, and throws a flashbang on the floor to punctuate her order. When the smoke clears, she and the other proctors are gone.

Well, that was dramatic.

He wanders over to Naruto, who's stepped to the side, and gives him a 'you know what you did' look.

"Yeah, yeah, I know; I was just annoyed." He glances around for Chihiro.

She joins them quickly enough.

"We will have to move swiftly to make it in time."

"Yeah. I think I know where it is, at least? That one we're not supposed to go in?" He starts heading as he talks.

"The one with the fence, yes."