The teams quickly finished selecting who would wear the black tag. While some seemed to take this as a logical collective decision, others simply chose sacrifices, such as selecting the weakest member of the group to sacrifice.
The candidates' moods varied, but the Jonins observed it all with a range of emotions.
Shikamaru clicked his tongue, drawing the attention of Temari beside him. -What was that?- she couldn't help but ask, curious.
-This type of exam is a real pain. From the outside, it seems fair, with each team receiving the same starting points, but it's far from that. Leaving aside the amount of points each participant receives, the real problem is that this type of competition clearly seems designed to exclude one member of the group so that the rest can pass. - He said.
-Isn't that it?- Temari asked, confused.
-That's what it seems like, but knowing Jugo-sama, this examination is clearly far from simple, however, I don't have enough information to put together the overall picture. - Shikamaru concluded.
-Oh? I thought you could decipher anything.- Temari said with a slight smile.
-That's not how it works. What I do is imagine a goal and the means to achieve it, the most likely ones are usually the right ones. The problem is, I have no idea what Jugo-sama wants to test. Besides, based on the last 'Pre-exam,' he seems like the playful type, but his statement that the Pre-exam is a hint for the next exam made me think.- Shikamaru explained, staring intently at the TVs showing the candidates.
-What got you thinking?- Temari rolled her eyes, feeling that the way Shikamaru spoke was really annoying, going around in circles without answering anything.
-What I mean is that the last exam was clearly a situation of team synergy, the knowledge between them was what determined victory. Leaving aside the fact that they could eliminate other teams, which seems more like a bad thing, it's strange that the next exam wants to do the exact opposite.- Shikamaru said, finally looking directly at Temari, his worries showing in his furrowed brows.
Temari also paused for a moment, looking at the TVs, she felt that what Shikamaru said seemed correct.
-The strangest thing is that the last exam practically chose the teams based on camaraderie, so much so that in this exam most seem to choose who gets the Black Tag through logic, only a small part chooses "sacrifices" and these are exactly those who passed by excluding other teams, this leads me to suppose that choosing a "sacrifice" is the incorrect way to pass, but then why choose this type of exam? - Shikamaru couldn't understand the contradiction between the two situations.
Asuma approached slowly as he spoke. -Something about this exam just doesn't make sense to me.
The pair looked at him as he took a drag of his cigarette and continued. -Why would the examiner block the view of the other candidates? Leaving the view only of their own team?
Shikamaru's eyes widened at that moment. - I understand!
(Pov Jugo)
Jugo was in a separate room having a meeting with Terumi Mei.
Behind Jugo, Guren remained with a serious look and behind Mei, Ao and Utakata stood patiently.
-An alliance?- Jugo asked, raising an eyebrow.
-Yes, Jugo-kun, I hope that our villages, as well as Suna and Oto, can form an alliance, not only military, but also commercial.- Mei spoke with a calm look.
Terumi Mei looked very different from the first time Jugo saw her, she no longer freely exuded her chakra, demonstrating strength, but instead, her body language seemed to want to flatter Jugo.
Jugo smiled softly as he rested his hands on the table and brought his face closer. -Really? But Kiri doesn't seem to need anything from Oto, so why would you want to ally with us?
-On the contrary, Jugo-kun, our village has a great demand for all kinds of products. We usually buy them from merchants, but we could eliminate the middleman and negotiate directly. Due to the climate of the Land of Water, few vegetable crops can survive, apart from general-use products.- Terumi Mei also leaned closer, giving him a soft, seductive smile, making Jugo stifle a laugh and Guren behind him grip the clipboard she was holding so tightly she almost broke it.
-Yes, and what do we get out of it?- Jugo asked, curiously. -Suna has a large production of minerals, including precious metals like gold and silver, but also a large quantity of iron.
-Seafood, iron ore and we have the best blacksmiths from the five nations.- Mei said, slightly pushing her hair aside and tucking it behind her ear, a faint smile on her full lips.
Jugo wouldn't lie and admit he wasn't tempted, not by the business aspect—that was unnecessary—but because the woman in front of him seemed to exude a strong femininity. Unlike the assertive posture she had used before, her current seductive demeanor was much more pleasing to Jugo's eyes.
If Jugo didn't have extreme self-control, he would already be looking at her ample cleavage with obvious interest.
Sensing Guren's growing irritation beside him, he glanced slightly at her with a playful look evident in his eyes.
His eyes seemed to ask: "Are you jealous?"
This made Guren want to punch Jugo in the face with all her might, her body even trembled. Jugo felt he shouldn't provoke the woman too much and looked back at Mei. - And what about the military aspect?
-Mutual assistance, non-aggression pact, permission for commercial and residential access... - Mei began to list a series of things, normally, a small village receiving these kinds of equal rights would be very pleased with the generosity.
For example, permission to access, whether commercial or residential, meant that both sides could send ninjas to the other side, allowing them to maintain a permanent residence or open their own business.
This kind of thing would normally be impossible between large villages.
Selling weapons, for example, if the other side started selling them cheaper than the locals, wouldn't that be the same as weakening one's own economy to improve that of the adversary?
Or perhaps the residence was the same as keeping a "spy" in plain sight?
Sure, both villages, Kiri and Oto, can be considered closed off, so it seems even fairer, but in reality it isn't. Jugo is the stronger side, even if territory, number of ninjas, or any other factor besides trade is still inferior to Kiri's, Jugo's own strength makes it the biggest obstacle.
Pain nearly destroyed Konoha, and Jugo could do the same and much more, that's his confidence. He asked for something like mutual assistance, which was possible, but there would have to be severe limitations.
Not only that, but in terms of high-level strength, Jugo had Kimimaro and Orochimaru, both of whom were strong enough to serve as Kages. Even Sasuke wasn't far behind at that level, once he unlocked his Mangekyo Sharingan he might even become stronger than Kimimaro and Orochimaru.
Of course, Jugo wasn't interested in going into details about it and just looked at Guren before speaking. -Well, it's your turn, you two can discuss it from here.
Jugo stood up, under the surprised gaze of Kiri's group and the exasperated gaze of Guren, he put his hands in his pockets and strode away.
Just kidding, why would he waste his time here talking about politics? In any case, this kind of agreement is just for show. Didn't you see that the Raikage tried to kidnap Hinata during the signing of the peace agreement between the Leaf Village and the Cloud Village?
Ultimately, ninjas are about trickery, whether overt or covert.
Jugo wouldn't trust a piece of paper, his strength was the only thing that made him comfortable, so instead of wasting time here, he wanted to get back quickly and continue watching the Chunin Exams.
Terumi Mei watched Jugo leave with slight surprise in her eyes, then turned her gaze to Guren, who was holding her clipboard as if she were about to break it in two at any moment.
For a moment, the two women stared at each other with "silent" eyes.