With the matter settled, Kakuzu, Orochimaru, Kimimaro, and Kabuto Yakushi all gathered.
Orochimaru collected Rasa's body, exchanged a few pleasantries with Pakura, and then left with Kimimaro and Kabuto.
Kakuzu and Pakura didn't linger either. After cleaning up the scene, they also departed.
On the afternoon before the joint Chūnin Exams began, Orochimaru, accompanied by Kimimaro and Kabuto disguised as Suna ANBU guards, arrived in Konoha.
Upon receiving the report from his subordinates, Kageyama Kogetsu went to meet Orochimaru, giving the allied Kage sufficient face.
Back in the Hokage's office, Kageyama Kogetsu had the supervising Jōnin from the eight hidden villages brought to him.
Half an hour later, the supervising Jōnin from the eight villages entered the office in succession.
"Greetings, Lord Hokage." The eight supervising Jōnin bowed in unison.
Kageyama Kogetsu recognized five of the eight Jōnin: the Suna Jōnin Baki, the Iwa Jōnin Akatsuchi, the Kumo Jōnin C, the Kiri Jōnin Jūzō Biwa, and the Oto Jōnin Guren.
The other three, from Kusagakure, Amegakure, and Takigakure, he did not know.
"Mm... you may rise."
"On behalf of Konoha, I thank your leaders for their consideration and welcome your arrival. Konoha will certainly do its best to host you and make you feel at home."
"However, I've heard that your people have had some conflicts with the Police Force, and it wasn't very pleasant."
"Considering your people are new here and each village has different rules, I won't delve into past incidents."
"But if you continue to disregard Konoha's rules, the punishment will not be light."
"For those who don't show respect to Konoha, Konoha has no need to show them respect either!"
"Do you understand?"
Kageyama Kogetsu's expression shifted from pleasant to cold and severe. A terrifying chakra was released, and a strong wind blew in their faces, making their skin sting.
The eight of them were startled, cold sweat beading on their foreheads. It felt as if they had one foot in the abyss of death. Fortunately, the terrifying feeling came and went quickly.
"Understood..." The eight did not dare to delay and quickly stated their compliance.
"Lord Hokage, it's the brats from my village who have caused the most trouble recently. I will definitely restrain them when I get back."
"This gift is for you, as a token of our apology."
Jūzō Biwa, his fierce face wearing a kind and cautious smile, stepped forward, took out a golden Maneki-neko, and presented it.
Isn't that golden Maneki-neko the birthday gift he gave to Kakuzu?
How did it end up in Jūzō Biwa's hands?
Oh... I see. Jūzō Biwa was also persuaded by Kakuzu and the others. He's one of us.
Kakuzu and his group really gave me a little surprise.
How many members does the Akatsuki have in total?
My people probably make up half of them, right?
Heh, an organization where half the members are undercover agents. How is this even supposed to work?
"I won't accept the gift. Acknowledging the mistake is enough. I can feel your sincerity," Kageyama Kogetsu said with a gentle smile.
"Yes." Jūzō Biwa respectfully put the Maneki-neko away.
"You may go. I wish you all a pleasant experience during your stay."
The eight Jōnin bowed and then turned to leave the room one by one.
...
The next morning at eight o'clock, the first round of the joint Chūnin Exams, the written test, officially began.
Since there were over three hundred Genin participating, one large lecture hall was not nearly enough.
They were divided into five examination rooms, each with a different set of questions. However, intelligence gathering and analysis skills were mandatory topics.
This round would eliminate at least half of the Genin.
The second round, in the Forest of Death, would eliminate another half to two-thirds, and only the remaining participants would advance to the third round.
It was worth noting that since the villages had sent their elite Genin, being eliminated did not necessarily mean one could not be promoted to Chūnin.
With the exception of those eliminated in the first round, as long as a participant performed exceptionally well in the second and third rounds and demonstrated the various abilities of a Chūnin, they could be promoted.
Kageyama Kogetsu wasn't concerned with the first and second rounds; he would just listen to a brief report from his subordinates before leaving work.
It wasn't just Kageyama Kogetsu; most of Konoha's high-ranking officials weren't concerned with the first two rounds either, spending most of their time on their own work.
There were too many guests, and the relevant departments in Konoha were going crazy with the workload.
Even the less related departments couldn't stay idle. When other departments were short-staffed, they were inevitably drafted to help.
Four days later, the first two rounds were over.
On the morning of the fifth day, at eight o'clock, the third round began, and Kageyama Kogetsu finally took the time to attend.
In the massive circular arena, the stands were filled to the brim, with not a single empty seat.
The people in the audience were of various statuses: civilians, vendors, ninja, wealthy merchants, officials, nobles, clan heads, daimyō, and more.
Regardless of their status, they could only sit in the stands. Only the Hokage, Kageyama Kogetsu, and the "Kazekage," Rasa, could sit on the balcony outside the private box at the top of the arena.
Hidden villages typically did not arrange separate seating for people of high status, let alone provide private boxes.
Due to the limited seating in the arena, even after expansion, it was still not enough. Therefore, through the use of technology, four large electronic screens were hung outside the arena, broadcasting a live feed of the center of the arena.
As Kageyama Kogetsu took his seat, the third round officially began.
First, the proctors entered the arena. The nine-village joint Chūnin Exams were a grand affair, so a Special Jōnin as a proctor was no longer fitting. Instead, Konoha Jōnin served as proctors.
Given their past as teammates, Kageyama Kogetsu gave Hayama Shirakumo a chance to be in the spotlight. In addition, one Jōnin from the Uchiha clan and one from the Hyūga clan were also arranged.
The electronic screen on the wall began to flicker, and finally, two names were displayed.
Since there was no foul play and the selection was truly random, Kageyama Kogetsu did not recognize them.
One was a kid from Kirigakure, the other a kid from Kumogakure.
The former was ruthless and reckless, the latter was fierce and courageous. For a Genin-level battle, it was quite spectacular.
The final result was a mutual defeat. The Kumogakure Genin, with his stronger physique, managed to stand up, albeit shakily.
However, his injuries were too severe. Unless he had a bug-like recovery ability similar to that of Karin Uzumaki and her mother, it was impossible for him to fight again.
The very first match was so spectacular and brutal that it immediately stirred up the emotions of the audience.
A deafening roar like a tsunami erupted, and the audience eagerly awaited the next match...
Kageyama Kogetsu, sitting calmly on his throne, secretly shook his head. Ninja were perhaps one of the most tragic types of superhumans.
They wielded extraordinary power, yet they were watched by ordinary people like monkeys in a show...
Normal superhumans couldn't avoid arena battles, but the audience consisted only of other superhumans, whether stronger or weaker. Though their strengths differed, their status was the same.
In his opinion, the title of "ninja" was really nothing to be attached to...
One battle after another concluded, and some of the elite among the elite began to stand out.
There were very few outstanding individuals from the smaller villages, only one or two, including Otogakure. The number of outstanding Genin from the major villages was much higher.
Kirigakure had the fewest outstanding Genin. They had been plagued by internal strife even before Obito's interference, and things only got worse after.
Their foundation had been greatly diminished, and there was even a shortage of new talent. Their outstanding Genin were only slightly better than those from the smaller villages.
The number of outstanding Genin from Sunagakure was surprisingly high, only slightly fewer than Kumogakure and even more than Iwagakure.
Some of the Genin from the joint Chūnin Exams held by Sunagakure in the original story had appeared early.
Konoha had the most outstanding Genin. Neji, Sasuke, Naruto, and Rock Lee were particularly stunning!
This left a bad taste in the mouths of many of the supervising Jōnin, and some were even driven mad!
Why was it that every few years, Konoha could produce such a wealth of talent and geniuses?
This time was even more outrageous. There were a full four stunning geniuses and a large number of talented individuals!
I can't figure it out, I really can't figure it out
<><><><><><
Read Advanced Chapters on : patreon.com/Kaizo247
~ Every 150 PS = Bonus Chapter!
~ Push the Story forward with your [Power Stones]