Luffy never took these external things to heart. Of course, he was also a pirate, and the strongest pirate at that. For treasure, what was more important was the adventure during the process of acquiring it he naturally still had pursuits. But what Konoha gave him, this honorary elder's allowance, was meaningless.
"Alright, alright!" Naruto also didn't think too much. He wasn't the type to care about money. As for Sasuke, he was even more indifferent.
...
Now, in Konoha Village, everyone seemed to be bustling about, as if preparing for something. Although Luffy didn't understand the reasoning behind it, he loved such a lively atmosphere. It was just that going out for a bowl of ramen, he actually encountered many unfamiliar faces.
Even Luffy could tell that "different ninja villages" "537" meant that ninjas who cultivated different elemental chakras had vastly different outward appearances.
"Because the Chunin Exams are about to begin, the number of new faces in the village has increased." Naruto specifically reminded him, seeing that Luffy didn't understand.
Actually, the Chunin Exams were a system established during the time of the Second Hokage. It wasn't just Konoha Village conducting the exams. After all, what would be the point of taking an exam in one's own village? The Chunin who passed would probably not be recognized by other villages.
It would be difficult to receive missions or gain respect in other villages. Therefore, the Chunin Exams were generally attended by several allied villages. As for the exam location, it rotated among the different villages. For example, this time, the Chunin Exams were held in Konoha. As one of the strongest ninja villages in the current ninja world,
Konoha indeed had the strength to assemble the necessary materials for the Chunin Exams. If it were a ninja village with weak strength, such as Amegakure or Kusagakure, even if they were given this opportunity, they probably wouldn't be able to grasp it and simply couldn't organize proper Chunin Exams.
"Will your Chunin Exams be held with many villages participating?" Luffy seemed very interested in everything in the ninja world. After all, this was a brand new adventure he had never encountered before.
"Then won't you make many different companions?" From Luffy's perspective, this was exactly right. Although Luffy was adventuring and exploring in the dangerous sea area of the Grand Line, he was very passionate about people. He basically wouldn't treat strangers as enemies from the start, unless the other party did so first.
"Companions, huh... Not quite." Although Naruto and Sasuke were also young, compared to Luffy, they seemed more mature. After all, even if they lived in a "peaceful era," they had all experienced the intrigues and struggles of the ninja world.
Now, these so-called "allied villages," in the not-too-distant future, might not necessarily turn against each other. Naruto and the others were already prepared for these things; that's just how the ninja world is. Naruto was already relatively optimistic in the ninja world.
But after meeting Luffy, he realized that he was indeed still too naive. There's always someone stronger, indeed...
"Among all the villages, the only one worth noting is Sunagakure." It was rare for Sasuke to take the initiative to speak. "Other villages are nothing, but Sunagakure should not be underestimated." Sasuke, among the Konoha Genin, had the strongest talent and highest strength.
His words were not without basis. And Sunagakure was indeed, like Konoha, one of the five great ninja villages in the current ninja world. Sunagakure's ninjas were indeed relatively stronger than those of other smaller ninja villages.
They were strong enough to cause trouble for Konoha ninjas. They were probably the "enemies" of the Sunagakure ninjas during these exams. That's right, enemies.
In the Chunin Exams, ninjas from different villages and different teams were inherently in an adversarial relationship. Only by defeating their enemies could they pass the final exam and become a proper Chunin.
After all, the number of people who passed the exam was restricted based on the total number of participants. This also meant that the Chunin Exam activity, at the same time, was a window for the various ninja villages to understand the strength of their allies.
"Hmm..." Luffy blinked.
"So after you become a 'Chunin,' what... what benefits will there be?" Luffy felt that when his own strength improved most obviously, it was actually when his bounty from the Navy and World Government increased. So, becoming a Chunin was also like this?
"After becoming a Chunin, we'll get more missions in the village! We can also act as Chunin to outsiders. Even if they are ninjas from other villages, they will treat us with respect as Chunin!" Naruto seemed to have prepared for this Chunin Exam for a long time. These things simply came out of his mouth effortlessly.
"Whoa—!" Luffy clearly didn't understand anything, but he pretended to suddenly realize. Naruto and Sasuke, who were roughly as familiar with Luffy as he was, immediately saw that Luffy's attitude was problematic. However... this guy didn't need to participate in the Chunin Exams anyway, so he didn't care much about these things. It didn't matter.
Just as Luffy noticed before, there were more and more outsiders in Konoha Village now. Among them, it was inevitable that some scoundrels were mixed in. Perhaps some people harbored evil intentions. After all, although the ninja world seemed peaceful and stable overall, beneath the calm surface of the lake,
waves surged and currents flowed. This was also why, when the Third Hokage decided to let Luffy stay in the village, he was the only one who seemed to object. After all, this period of the Chunin Exams was truly too sensitive. One more outsider who didn't understand the system meant one more danger.
However, in the end, things were still handled according to the Hokage's wishes. The old Hokage was now holding power for the second time. His authority and oppressive force were top-notch.
"The Kazekage is here!"
"Lord Kazekage has arrived!" This Chunin Exam, of course, also received strong support from other villages. Especially those ninja villages allied with Konoha. Among them, Sunagakure and Iwagakure,
which were relatively close to Konoha in the Land of Fire, even had their Kazekage personally attend. Coming to the Chunin Exams with the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was naturally a matter of great importance.
Even Naruto, Sasuke, and Luffy had postponed their dinner plans. Speaking of which, Luffy had only recently arrived in this ninja world. He was actually about to meet the second Kage besides the Hokage.
In the ninja world, the Kage of each major village were the highest-ranking combatants in their villages. Many times, they were also the wisest beings. Was it really that easy to meet them there?
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