The last scroll came from Kirigakure.
They also stated that they would participate in the Chūnin Exams, but between the lines, they repeatedly warned Konoha to stay vigilant against the other three villages.
Because this information had been obtained by the Hidden Mist unintentionally.
In other words—
the other three villages had not informed Kirigakure at all.
Those three villages had delivered their messages to Konoha through secret intelligence channels.
Wen Lan woke Minato and handed him the report.
"It seems they still haven't given up," Minato said quietly after reading it.
"The reason they didn't inform Kirigakure is because the Hidden Mist has grown closer to us recently. They're afraid we'd gain another ally."
"Mm, that's likely the case," Wen Lan replied, tossing the scroll onto the desk.
"Terumi Mei must have sensed something was wrong as well—otherwise she wouldn't have used a covert message to warn us."
He looked at the other two men.
"So, what do you think?"
"I believe we should host the exams," Shikaku said calmly.
"It's the perfect opportunity to let them witness our strength."
Minato nodded in agreement.
"Then it's settled. I'll write the reply immediately."
Wen Lan turned to an ANBU.
"Notify all jōnin to assemble."
"Yes, sir!"
The ANBU quickly departed, heading to the area where messenger hawks were kept.
He tied a special whistle to one hawk's leg and released it into the sky.
The hawk circled the village, its whistle carrying a signal that reached every jōnin.
Meanwhile, Minato wrote four copies of the reply and handed them to four ANBU agents to deliver to the respective villages.
Soon after, the Hokage's office was filled with jōnin.
Shikaku stood and explained the situation.
The room fell into murmurs as the shinobi exchanged uneasy glances.
"Don't worry," Wen Lan said, looking around at them.
"With me here, nothing will go wrong.
Now—anyone who believes their genin team is qualified to participate in the Chūnin Exams may submit an application."
The jōnin looked at one another.
Then Kakashi stood first and bowed respectfully.
"Genin Team Seven—
Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura—
request permission to participate."
Kurenai followed immediately.
"Genin Team Eight—
Hyūga Hinata, Inuzuka Kiba, Aburame Shino—
request permission to participate."
Might Guy stepped forward next.
"Genin Team Three—
Hyūga Neji, Rock Lee, Tenten—
request permission to participate."
Orochimaru spoke in his hoarse voice.
"Genin Team One—
Karin, Kimimaro, Jūgo—
request permission to participate."
Yamanaka Inoichi also stepped forward.
"Genin Team Ten—
Yamanaka Ino, Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Chōji—
request permission to participate."
The original Team Ten was now under Inoichi's leadership.
Wen Lan found nothing surprising about that.
Afterward, more and more jōnin stepped forward to submit applications.
Soon, a total of thirteen genin teams had been approved.
Haku was among them as well, though his teammates were two relatively minor characters.
As the meeting concluded, the jōnin dispersed.
Wen Lan turned to Minato and Shikaku.
"Since they clearly mean trouble, we must prepare accordingly.
An open attack is easy to defend against—
but hidden threats are far more dangerous.
We must set defenses in plain sight while also placing covert surveillance, in case their true targets are civilians."
Minato and Shikaku both nodded.
They understood well—
if civilians were harmed, Konoha's reputation would suffer enormously.
Protecting them was non-negotiable.
Time passed quickly.
Soon, the eve of the Chūnin Exams arrived.
Delegations from each village began to arrive one after another.
Raikage A, accompanied by his guard Darui.
Tsuchikage Ōnoki, accompanied by Kurotsuchi, Kitsuchi, and Akatsuchi.
Mizukage Terumi Mei, accompanied by Chōjūrō and Karatachi Yagura.
Kazekage Rasa, accompanied by Chiyo and Ebizo.
At this moment—
Minato, Wen Lan, and Shikaku sat in the Hokage's conference room alongside the visiting Kage and their escorts.
A sat casually with one foot on a chair, an arm draped over the backrest, looking around the room.
"Who would've thought," he said,
"that after so many years, the Five Kage would gather in Konoha again."
"Heh," Ōnoki chuckled.
"Can't be helped. Konoha has the best living environment."
"The Sand and the Leaf are allies," Rasa said with his arms crossed.
"A friendly competition like the Chūnin Exams naturally deserves our participation."
"The Hidden Mist feels the same," Mei added with a charming smile.
"Everyone," Minato said warmly,
"there are still two days before the exams begin. Please take this time to enjoy Konoha and rest."
"Of course," A replied slowly, his eyes glinting.
"Our village doesn't have weather as pleasant as yours."
Wen Lan sat beside Minato, eyes closed, fingers lightly tapping the sheath of his sword.
Then he spoke calmly:
"Let me make one thing clear.
Our Hokage has a gentle temperament—
but that doesn't mean I do.
If any of you cause trouble during the exams,
I won't care whether you're a Kage or a bodyguard.
I will show no mercy."
His words instantly made the representatives from the Sand, Cloud, and Stone villages frown.
A slammed his hand onto the table and glared at Wen Lan.
"What exactly do you mean by that?"
Wen Lan slowly opened his eyes.
His pupils shifted—
first into the three-tomoe Sharingan,
then the Mangekyō Sharingan,
and finally into a purple Rinnegan with nine tomoe.
"If you don't understand," he said calmly,
"I happen to know a bit about fighting.
Why don't the two of us spar?
Life or death—left to fate."
A was about to stand up in fury—
but Ōnoki quickly intervened.
"Hahaha—Wen Lan, it's been many years, yet your temper hasn't changed at all."
"No choice," Wen Lan replied with a faint smile.
"Though it seems the Tsuchikage has grown much gentler.
What is it—
realizing your time is running out, so you're trying to build up some good karma?"
Ōnoki's smile froze instantly.
His eyes narrowed.
"We came to Konoha with friendly intentions."
"Then stop talking about our territory every day," Wen Lan replied coolly.
"Otherwise, I'll assume you're here to test our strength."
That statement laid everything bare.
Rasa and the others' expressions shifted subtly.
In the end, A snorted coldly and stood up to leave.
The delegations from the Sand and Stone followed suit.
Mei cast Minato a quick glance—
a silent signal.
We should leave too.
At least on the surface, the Hidden Mist could not appear too close to Konoha.
Rather than openly opposing the other three villages, it was better to remain embedded among them as a quiet ally.
Soon, only the three men from Konoha remained in the conference room.
Shikaku spoke softly:
"It seems they truly came with hostile intent."
He pulled out two documents and handed them to Minato and Wen Lan.
"I investigated the participants they're sending to the exams.
A large portion of them are actually chūnin disguised as genin.
Their goal probably isn't war—
but to undermine Konoha's prestige in front of civilians.
If Konoha performs poorly, the number of mission requests from civilians could drop significantly."
Wen Lan flipped through the documents.
Then he let out a quiet scoff.
Aside from Kirigakure—who had sent genuine genin—
the other three villages were almost entirely sending chūnin.
Even Sunagakure had brought Gaara, the One-Tail's jinchūriki.
Not surprising.
Sunagakure had been struggling for years.
After losing the war, the Daimyō of the Land of Wind had drastically reduced the village's funding.
Since then, the Sand Village had been barely scraping by.
—------------------------------
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