[Feature] Speed up CI jobs

Problem Statement

As of v1.16, CI jobs can take up to 20 minutes, and retries for flaky tests or rebuilding timed‑out environments further extend total runtime.

We need to shorten CI to accelerate contributor feedback loops. Potential approaches:

• Use envtest for faster integration tests
• Leverage client-go fakes/mocks where appropriate
• Inline resources in Chainsaw tests to reduce setup overhead

Solution Description

See above.

Alternatives

No response

Additional Context

No response

Slack discussion

No response

Research

• I have read and followed the documentation AND the troubleshooting guide.
• I have searched other issues in this repository and mine is not recorded.