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Sasame noticed Terumi Mei's hesitation and could guess what she was thinking.
"You're worried the Hidden Mist Village won't perform well?"
If anyone else had asked that question, Terumi Mei would have instantly blasted them with Lava Release. Although the Hidden Mist Village's younger generation was indeed rather lacking, this was internal business and shouldn't be discussed externally. However, with Sasame, there was no need for secrets. Terumi Mei felt that he probably understood the Hidden Mist Village better than she did, given that it had relied on his support for its development over the past few years. There were no secrets between them.
Terumi Mei sighed and said, "I do have that concern."
"Tell you what, let's hold the second and third stages of the exam in the Land of Water," Sasame said after a moment's thought. "Your Hidden Mist Village knows the terrain, which already gives you a significant advantage."
Terumi Mei's eyes instantly lit up. Most of the Hidden Mist Village's shinobi specialized in Water Release. Holding the exam in the Land of Water, which was surrounded by the sea, would provide a considerable boost to their Water Release jutsu.
"Besides that, hosting such a large-scale Chunin Exam will also generate a certain amount of revenue," Sasame added. The most direct income would come from lodging and food. The participating ninja villages and the attending nobles would all have to pay.
Terumi Mei nodded. However, she wasn't concerned about the money. She valued the publicity more. The Hidden Mist Village had been almost completely isolated from the other nations due to its previous bloody rule. Things had only started to improve after Terumi Mei became Mizukage, but some nations still didn't fully trust them. Hosting a joint Chunin Exam might help to reverse that image.
"Thank you," Terumi Mei said gratefully. Under normal circumstances, there was no way Sasame, as the Hokage, would show this much consideration for the Hidden Mist Village. He was only doing it for her. Terumi Mei was genuinely touched. This guy isn't so bad after all. It would be perfect if he didn't annoy me so often.
"It's no big deal," Sasame said with an indifferent smile. The so-called geographical advantage wasn't much of an edge. The only Hidden Mist shinobi capable of taking on serious tasks were Chōjūrō and Suigetsu Hōzuki. The rest of their Genin would barely make it past the second stage. The Hidden Sand Village was in a similar situation. The only capable ones were Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro. Perhaps Shira could be added, an anime-original character who was conceptually similar to Rock Lee, but with better talent. He had created the Seven Heavenly Breaths technique, which was quite similar to the Eight Gates Formation. The Hidden Leaf Village was slightly better off, with the Konoha 12 as their baseline, and a relatively higher number of geniuses.
"You seem very confident," Terumi Mei remarked, glancing at him.
"I just don't care that much," Sasame said truthfully. "A Chunin Exam doesn't determine much. In the end, what truly matters is the village's overall strength."
Terumi Mei paused, then slowly nodded. "That's true." The Hidden Mist Village was gradually becoming stronger, so there was no rush to prove anything in one Chunin Exam. Although the issue with the younger generation was quite serious.
Terumi Mei exhaled and asked, "When are you planning to hold it?"
"In about a month," Sasame replied after thinking. "That should be enough time to prepare."
"Understood," Terumi Mei replied, then asked, "What about the venues and the exam content?"
"It'll be similar to the previous format," Sasame said, casually outlining his idea. The first stage would be a written, theoretical exam, held in the Hidden Leaf Village. The second stage would be a test for the ninja squads. In the original series, it was about obtaining the Heaven and Earth Scrolls in the Forest of Death, with passing granted upon reaching the designated location with both scrolls. This time, the route would be planned from the Hidden Leaf Village to the Hidden Mist Village, but the rules would remain the same. The third stage would be individual sparring matches, which didn't need much change.
"How about I leave the planning of the second stage route to you?" Sasame asked with a smile.
"Aren't you afraid I'll cheat?" Terumi Mei asked, raising an eyebrow.
"What's there to cheat about?" Sasame shrugged. "Besides, I trust you."
Terumi Mei immediately looked away. She gazed at the files on her desk and softly said, "I'll give it to you in a few days." This was essentially a promise, and she had no reason to refuse. While she wouldn't cheat, she could definitely show some preferential treatment to the Hidden Mist Village, perhaps by finding a familiar route.
"Is there anything else?" Terumi Mei asked, wondering why he hadn't left or spoken yet.
"There is one more thing," Sasame said, hopping off the Mizukage's desk. He walked to the door, locked it, and casually placed a sound-dampening barrier.
"You... you can't do this here!" Terumi Mei realized what he intended, her face flushing crimson.
"Of course, we have to discuss important matters with the Lady Mizukage right here in the office," Sasame said, reaching out to grasp her collar and speaking in a low voice. "Let's talk about the matter of a few hundred million lives."
The sounds of battle soon erupted and did not cease until dusk.
A new day began. Sasame handed the Chunin Exam preparations over to Kurenai Yuhi. With the Anbu running around to spread the word, nearly half of the ninja world was already aware of the news. It wasn't long before he received rejection notices from the Hidden Stone and Hidden Cloud Villages. In the original series, they hadn't participated in either joint Chunin Exam, so their refusal was expected.
The Hidden Stone Village was actually in the same boat as the Hidden Mist, with no capable successors. Only Deidara and Kurotsuchi were noteworthy. But the former had defected to the Akatsuki. In the end, Kurotsuchi took up the mantle, but the results proved underwhelming. She still had to rely on Ōnoki's support, even into the Boruto era. Ōnoki was the longest-reigning Tsuchikage and arguably the one who suffered the most. The Hidden Cloud Village, on the other hand, had many outstanding youths, but they were generally at odds with the Hidden Leaf Village and naturally wouldn't participate.
On the third day, Sasame received news of an Akatsuki meeting. In a dark cave, his illusion appeared via the Projection Technique. Sasame glanced around. Aside from Pain's Deva Path, all the other figures, including Konan, were blurry and colored. Konan was currently in the Land of Fire with Uzumaki Ena for personal protection.
"The Hidden Leaf Village plans to hold a joint Chunin Exam next month," Konan said. "Many ninja villages will likely participate."
"What does that have to do with us?" Deidara yawned. "I'm not interested in Genin."
"There might be Jinchuriki there," Konan said, her tone calm. It was just a guess, so she wasn't certain.
"Why bother with all that trouble?" Zetsu chuckled. "I know the location of most Jinchuriki. We can just go and capture them directly."
"The location of the Two-Tails is still unknown," Konan shook her head. "Even if we capture the others for now, we can't start the plan yet."
"Then what do we do? Just wait?" Deidara suddenly interjected.
"Of course not," Konan replied after a moment's thought. "The Hidden Rain Village will participate in this Chunin Exam. I will have our people confirm if any Jinchuriki are among them. If there are, we will seize the opportunity to capture them."
Sasame was momentarily surprised. This was the same strategy used in the original story, but during the second joint Chunin Exam. The Hidden Rain Village had sent Genin like Ajisai, who ultimately discovered Fū of the Hidden Waterfall Village was a Jinchuriki.
"This joint Chunin Exam will attract the attention of half the ninja world. The Hidden Leaf, Hidden Sand, and Hidden Mist Villages have already confirmed their participation," Konan continued. "The Hidden Stone and Hidden Cloud Villages have not. I have called this meeting to use this opportunity to capture the Four-Tails, Five-Tails, and Eight-Tails."
I see. Sasame had been wondering earlier; if it was only about Ajisai and the others searching for Jinchuriki, there was no reason to call the full group together. The exam hadn't even started, and they didn't know if any Jinchuriki would be there. If there weren't, it would be a wasted trip.
"Rōshi, the Four-Tails Jinchuriki, defected and is not in the Hidden Stone Village, but White Zetsu has confirmed his location," Konan began giving orders. "It will be handled by Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki." Rōshi specialized in Lava Release, and Kisame's Water Release was his natural weakness. Combined with Itachi Uchiha's Mangekyō Sharingan, the capture would be nearly effortless.
"Han, the Five-Tails Jinchuriki, will be handled by Sasori and Deidara." Konan looked at Deidara. "The Hidden Stone Village is surrounded by rocky mountains and has strong defenses, making it difficult to infiltrate under normal circumstances. But you are different, Deidara. You can come and go as you please." Deidara was the student of the Tsuchikage, Ōnoki. Moreover, he hadn't been officially declared a missing-nin. Ōnoki and Kurotsuchi were actually unaware that he had joined the Akatsuki.
"No problem!" Deidara laughed, showing no hesitation despite the target being the Hidden Stone Village. It wasn't that he lacked sentimental attachment, but if someone had to go, he might as well be the one. Perhaps he could minimize the damage. It would be his final act of assistance to the Hidden Stone Village—if the old man was sensible enough.
"Killer B, the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki," Konan said, looking at Sasame. "Will be handled by [Kishi] and Kakuzu." The Eight-Tails was the second strongest tailed beast after the Nine-Tails. The Jinchuriki, Killer B, was also powerful. Together, very few people could take them down. Plus, the Hidden Cloud Village had the Fourth Raikage. Konan concluded that Sasame was the most suitable for the job. He possessed Wood Release, and his strength was unfathomable. Combined with Kakuzu, capturing Killer B should not be a problem.
Sasame casually nodded. As [Kishi], he had no reason to refuse. But should I actually capture him? After thinking it over, he decided to follow Konan's order and capture him. The Hidden Cloud Village was already an enemy anyway. The Hidden Leaf Village couldn't unite the ninja world without going through them. And given the personalities of the Fourth Raikage and Killer B, they would never surrender. They weren't like Yugito Nii, and Sasame wasn't interested in wasting time. Besides, without the Two-Tails, the Akatsuki's plan wouldn't start for a while. The Jinchuriki would likely keep their lives. But even if they died, it wouldn't matter much.
The meeting concluded, and Sasame returned to the Hidden Leaf Village. The captures were scheduled to take place during the joint Chunin Exam. Therefore, there was still plenty of time; no need to rush. Waiting until the most crucial third stage of the matches began before heading to the Hidden Cloud Village wouldn't be too late.
On Sunday, it was time for the Hyuga Clan meeting, scheduled for nine in the morning. Sasame arrived early after breakfast. In the main hall, there were currently only four people: Hiashi Hyuga, Hizashi Hyuga, Hinata Hyuga, and Neji Hyuga. Although Hanabi Hyuga wasn't in school, she was too young to participate. As for Rinka Hyuga, she always deferred to Hiashi Hyuga and didn't get involved in the drama.
"Lord Hokage," Hiashi Hyuga reported. "All the Branch House members have already had the new Caged Bird Seal applied. They are fully supportive of today's matter. Only Hiroyuki Hyuga is unaware of the situation."
"Then there shouldn't be any major problems," Sasame said with a smile. "The only thing you need to guard against is Hiroyuki Hyuga fighting back, which could injure others."
"He is old, and his strength is not what it used to be. He won't be able to cause any trouble," Hiashi Hyuga said with a faint smile. "And with the Lord Hokage here, he stands absolutely no chance."
"I'm just here to watch today," Sasame said casually. "Although I am the Hokage, this is, after all, internal clan business for the Hyuga Clan."
Hiashi Hyuga's heart tightened. The Hyuga Clan used to be that way. Even the Hokage couldn't intervene.
"What are you saying, Lord Hokage?" Hiashi Hyuga quickly said. "Even though it's internal business, as Hanabi's brother, you are certainly qualified to be here."
Sasame raised an eyebrow and laughed. "I didn't mean anything by it." No matter what, he truly didn't care much about the Hyuga Clan. If it weren't for Hinata Hyuga and Hanabi Hyuga, he wouldn't bother. If they were disobedient, a physical persuasion would solve the problem immediately. Why would he be this gentle otherwise?
Hiashi Hyuga didn't know how to respond and remained silent.
"Big Brother Sasame," Hinata Hyuga spoke up just in time, breaking the tension. "Will you be watching from here?"
"No," Sasame said, rubbing her head. "If Hiroyuki Hyuga sees me, he will restrain himself, and that would defeat the purpose." His reputation was soaring right now. When Hiashi Hyuga refused to place the Caged Bird Seal on Hanabi Hyuga, the best course of action for Hiroyuki Hyuga would have been to approach Sasame. But he didn't. This indicated that he wasn't completely foolish. He knew that confronting Sasame would lead to a terrible end. He could only make trouble within the clan.
Hinata Hyuga nodded. She had asked the question because she had thought of this point herself. Sasame's books were indeed working. She now had her own insights into many matters.
"I'll take my leave now." Seeing that the time was right, Sasame disappeared from the spot. Hiashi Hyuga looked left and right, finding no trace of him. He could only marvel at Sasame's immense strength.
Sasame reappeared above them, on the roof. He casually deployed a barrier. This area was deep within the Hyuga Clan compound, and normally, no one would be carelessly scanning with their Byakugan. But it was better to be safe than sorry. After all, Sasame had other things to do. Like petting his cat.
He called out. Black Cat's nimble figure appeared. She walked silently on the rooftop. Seeing Sasame, she licked her lips and settled into his arms.
Not far away, a line of people walked into the hall. Black Cat was startled, her body trembling slightly.
"Don't be afraid. They can't see you," Sasame said, stroking her head with a smile. Black Cat relaxed.
"But don't make a sound," Sasame added after a pause. "If you're too loud, I won't be able to hear what my adorable student has to say."
Black Cat paused. This is going to be difficult. Thinking about it, she took a deep breath, clenched her jaw, and managed not to make a single sound.
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