The Chunin Exams were broken up into equal parts fighting and traditional test taking. Naruto struggled most with the written portion of the test, but why did Naruto cheat in the Chunin Exams?
Naruto had to cheat in the Chunin Exams because the test questions were intentionally difficult. The test proctor secretly wanted students to realize the questions were above their grade-level and begin cheating.
The written portion of the Chunin Exam was a test within a test. Chunin are expected to gather information quietly and efficiently, even under difficult circumstances. Watchers on the ends of each row of students began to observe those cheating and punished them for being caught.
Plot Behind Why Naruto Had to Cheat In The Chunin Exams
In chapter #41, students hoping to pass the Chunin Exams sat down for their first portion. The initial part of the exam required a passing grade on a written test. The proctor explained to students that watchers would sit on the ends of each individual row and mark down those who are cheating, eventually failing the student after a certain amount of mess-ups.
Each student begins with a perfect score of 10 points. Any incorrect answers will reduce the total score by 1, and anyone caught attempting to cheat or help someone else cheat will lose 2 points. Anyone with no points left, whether that be through cheating reductions or answering every question incorrectly, will cause their teammates to fail alongside them.
Sakura and Sasuke Realize The Point of The Test
Sakura picks up the test and quickly realizes the intensity of the questions. The initial question involves math calculations far above the expectations of a ninja with only a Genin level education.
This… This is… To solve this, you need to hypothesize under very certain conditions and then apply the laws of kinetics to whatever you come up with! There’s no way Naruto could solve something like this. Of course, neither can most of the people here. It’s a killer.
Sakura Discussing The Test | Chapter #41
Naruto is in a panic. He realizes that if he can not answer even a single question correctly, his entire team will fail. It’s obvious that the only answer is to cheat, but he has not picked up that cheating is the entire point of the questions being difficult.
Sasuke picks up on this. He realizes that Shinobi are expected to learn important information under extreme conditions and this test reflects that expectation.
Look at how they set up the “perfect score, minus penalties” scenario! With two points deducted every time you get caught cheating, the real message is that you can be caught 4 times before you face disqualification! What we’re being tested on is not whether we know the answers, but how skillfully we can discover them!
Sasuke Discussing The Test | Chapter #41
So that’s the answer. Naruto had to cheat in the Chunin Exams because the test questions were made intentionally difficult. Cheating successfully was the true objective of the test. In order to pass the test, Naruto needed to cheat.