Naruto: Cthulhu: Ch. 195

At the other primary seat of the oval conference table sat Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage of Suna, the only Kage among the ninja villages represented here.

He was the only one qualified to have a dialogue on equal terms with the Hokage of Konoha.

Unlike usual, Rasa wasn't wearing his sandstorm-protecting veil, revealing his true face outside of Suna, which was a rare occurrence.

His facial features and hairstyle were almost identical to those of Gaara, except for a few additional wrinkles on his face and at the corners of his eyes. His hair was a darker shade of red, more subdued than Gaara's. The slight furrow of his brow gave him a more solemn appearance than Gaara.

On the table before Rasa was the Kazekage's hat, directly opposing the Hokage's hat in front of Danzō, who was seated across from him.

Amidst the expectant gazes of the various jonin representing their respective villages, Rasa finally began to speak.

"I believe Konoha has faced considerable difficulty in this matter."

"A major incident like this occurring during the Chunin Exams is something none of us here, including Konoha, wished to see."

As his words were spoken, the hopes of the smaller ninja villages' representatives sank.

Because his words were obviously favoring Konoha!

Initially, everyone had assumed that Rasa would take this opportunity to accuse Konoha with a strong stance, pointing out Konoha's mistakes in detail. Especially since there had already been minor conflicts between the two sides, it seemed likely that Suna would use this as leverage to demand compensation or reparations.

If Suna were to take this approach, the other villages could also use it as an excuse to gain something for themselves, at the very least to offset their losses.

But now, Rasa had opened with a statement sympathizing with Konoha's difficulties, defining the deaths of many participants as an "incident" rather than a "mistake" by Konoha.

Wasn't this outright exonerating Konoha of responsibility?

Unlike the sinking hearts of the other villages' representatives, Danzō, who had remained silent until now, felt an unexpected sense of relief upon hearing these words. The heavy expression he had maintained lightened immediately.

Initially, Danzō had thought Suna would be the hardest to placate in this situation. Yet, to his surprise, Rasa had opened by speaking in Konoha's favor.

This significantly reduced the pressure on Danzō.

"Yes, what Rasa says is correct. This incident is something we in Konoha did not wish to see."

"The increased difficulty of the Forest of Death challenge during this Chunin Exam unintentionally raised the mortality rate, something we never expected. However, Konoha has also paid a heavy price. Many of our excellent genin perished in this exam."

Following Rasa's lead, Danzō continued to speak, his words filled with attempts to deflect responsibility.

He framed the sudden inclusion of the Haunter of the Dark as Konoha's effort to increase the difficulty of the exam. The implication was clear: those who died during the test failed due to their own lack of ability, and it had nothing to do with Konoha.

Then Danzō played the sympathy card, emphasizing how Konoha had also lost many people.

But everyone present was no fool. They were well aware that Konoha still had 18 survivors, ranking second in survival rates among all villages, second only to Oto.

As for Konoha's 18 survivors, they included the Konoha 12 and the team led by Kabuto Yakushi.

Kabuto's team aside, as they had concealed their true strength and avoided significant risks, the rest had relied on a mix of skill and fortune.

For instance, Naruto's team, which included Sasuke's fire release techniques, proved highly effective against the Haunter of the Dark. The team later joined forces with Gaara's team to escape the Forest of Death.

Kiba's team had set traps near the tower early on and was rescued by ANBU when the incident occurred.

Shikamaru's team stayed hidden until the Haunter of the Dark was dealt with by the ANBU, emerging only at dawn.

Neji's team had a brief encounter with a Haunter of the Dark but withdrew after realizing taijutsu was ineffective.

The remaining three from Konoha were eliminated by wildlife in the forest before nightfall, technically disqualifying them as survivors.

Thus, the survival of Konoha's 12 genin was not purely a matter of luck. Their strength played a role, and they had already proven their abilities in earlier challenges.

For other participants, however, failure in this round didn't just mean disqualification—it meant death.

Even so, no team managed to secure a complete set of Heaven and Earth scrolls this time.

Initially, one team had managed to collect both scrolls before nightfall, but they were eliminated by Haunter of the Dark after night fell.

As a result, no one advanced from this round of the Chunin Exams.

At the conference table, Danzō continued his rhetoric, employing a mix of persuasion and coercion to pacify the smaller ninja villages.

For villages like Taki and Kusa, which had little influence to begin with, Danzō barely offered them any real reassurances. Instead, his tone remained dismissive.

After addressing them, Danzō moved on to Ame.

Danzō showed some respect to Ame, as its leader, Hanzo of the Salamander, was a figure of significant power in the ninja world, even naming Konoha's Three Legendary Sannin. Hanzo was often referred to as a "Demi-God."

"Hanzo and I share a long-standing relationship, and I trust he will understand this unexpected situation."

"Once Konoha has addressed its internal matters, I will personally visit Hanzo."

Danzō referred to their prior collaboration in undermining the emerging Akatsuki organization as the basis for their relationship.

Ame's representative responded politely, closing his eyes slightly and nodding. "Ame understands the nature of this incident. However, Lord Hanzo is not receiving visitors at the moment. We appreciate your kind intentions."

"Very well, please convey my regards to Lord Hanzo."

Unbeknownst to Danzō, Ame had already undergone significant changes internally.

Having addressed three villages, Danzō turned to Oto.

However, since no representative from Oto attended the meeting, Danzō simply dismissed the matter, considering Oto insignificant.

Finally, Danzō made an official statement.

"All injured and frightened participants are welcome to recover in Konoha. We will do our utmost to treat all wounded."

"Additionally, due to the unforeseen circumstances in this Chunin Exam's second stage, no participants have advanced."

"Hence, I hereby declare this Chunin Exam—"

Just as Danzō was about to conclude the exam, Rasa suddenly raised his hand to interrupt him.

"Yes, Rasa?" Danzō asked.

"I haven't yet stated Suna's conditions," Rasa replied.

Danzō's expression tightened, realizing that Suna would not be so easily placated.

"What conditions do you have?"

"My condition is simple: continue the Chunin Exam."

Rasa's words caused an uproar in the conference room.

"Continue the Chunin Exams? Are you serious?"

Rasa nodded solemnly twice and said, "Yes, this time the Chunin Exams must determine a final victor."

Hearing Rasa's words, Danzō recalled that before this Chunin Exam, Suna and Konoha had agreed to use the exam's results to settle certain ambiguous interests.

Thus, concluding this Chunin Exam was indeed important for these two major ninja villages.

As a staunch hardliner, Danzō certainly wouldn't back down now, so he nodded in agreement.

"If you insist, then the Chunin Exams will proceed."

With Danzō's announcement, it was now the turn of the other ninja village representatives to decide whether they would participate in the remaining part of the Chunin Exams.

However, there was little need for debate, as only 12 candidates remained from the other four villages.

Among these 12 survivors, six had already been disqualified, leaving only six viable participants.

From Oto, only two participants remained. However, their supervising jonin did not attend the meeting, so Danzō unilaterally declared their forfeit.

Ame also had two candidates left, but the representative, deemed the candidates too unfit to continue with the individual matches, so they withdrew.

Taki similarly had two candidates left, but both were recuperating at the Konoha hospital. Due to trauma and witnessing the deaths of their comrades, they were incapable of fighting.

Kusa had no candidates left; their entire team was wiped out. Danzō didn't even bother asking about their status, leaving the Kusa representative's face filled with humiliation.

After summarizing the situation, Rasa turned to Danzō and said, "It seems that only Suna and Konoha can participate in the final rounds."

"In that case, I suggest we skip any preliminary matches. Suna has three participants still capable of fighting. Have your village also select three participants, and we can conduct the final one-on-one battles in front of the feudal lords. Best of three wins."

Danzō pondered briefly. Internally, he noted that Konoha had 15 non-disqualified candidates to choose from, while Suna had only three youngsters.

With such an advantage, there was no need to fear Suna.

"Agreed. We'll proceed as you suggest. Then, one month from now, the Chunin Exams—"

"Wait!" Rasa interrupted Danzō, making him visibly displeased.

"What now?"

"One month is too long. With only six people participating in the finals and no preliminaries, we don't need that much time."

"Then what do you propose?"

"Three days are enough."

At these words, the faces of everyone in the room showed surprise.

The typical duration of a joint Chunin Exam was over a month. This allowed time for finalists to undergo rigorous training after the preliminaries. The purpose was to ensure they performed their best before the feudal lords, leaving a strong impression of their village's strength.

Don't underestimate this month of training. In the standard team structure, where one jonin supervises three genin, it's difficult to fully hone each individual's strengths, as the teacher's attention is divided.

However, finalists would be assigned individual mentors tailored to their needs. With specialized guidance, their talents could improve rapidly.

Moreover, the finalists in the tournament generally possess considerable talent. With the guidance of suitable mentors and intensive training, their strength can grow by leaps and bounds.

Learning some extraordinary new technique within a month's time is not uncommon.

However, Rasa's proposal to cancel this month of specialized training contradicts his insistence on continuing the Chunin Exams.

After all, to the others present, his push to proceed with the exams seemed intended to showcase Suna's combat strength before the feudal lords.

At this point, Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had been silent for a while, finally spoke up.

"Lord Rasa, isn't this a bit rushed?"

"There are still pressing matters in Suna that require my attention. I cannot stay in Konoha for long," Rasa explained in a single sentence.

Though Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded, he remained somewhat skeptical.

At this moment, Danzō interjected.

"Three days it is, then."

"See you in the arena in three days."

With Danzō's unilateral decision, the meeting finally concluded.

The outcome of the meeting was clear: in three days, Konoha and Suna would face off in a 1v1 duel format, consisting of three matches.

The visiting feudal lords expressed little concern about the decision, though some voiced mild complaints about the shortened stay in Konoha, which limited their leisure time.

This decision quickly reached the ears of the Konoha jonin in charge of their genin teams, including the four teachers of the Konoha Twelve.

"What's going on? After so many deaths, they're suddenly continuing the Chunin Exams?"

Asuma was the first to voice his concern, directing his question at his father, Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Hiruzen glanced over at Danzō, who coughed lightly and replied, "This was a request from the Kazekage of Suna."

"If we refuse Suna's demands, they will surely exploit this incident to their advantage."

Kurenai expressed her worry. "But the participants from our side are mostly new graduates from the Ninja Academy. They joined the Chunin Exams just for the experience."

"You don't need to worry about that. I already have suitable candidates in mind," Danzō declared, asserting his usual authority.

At that moment, an unnamed jonin remarked, "By the way, the three from Kabuto's team have withdrawn again, so there are only 12 candidates left for the finals."

Danzō dismissed this indifferently. "That's fine. I never had high expectations for those three anyway."

"Now, I will announce the three representatives who will fight for Konoha in the finals."

"Uchiha Sasuke."

"Hyūga Neji."

"And... Aburame Shino."

"Neji and Shino need no explanation. Both hail from strong ninja clans, and their families can train them intensively over the next three days."

"As for Sasuke, Kakashi, I leave him to you. Both of you possess the Sharingan, so you must ensure he masters its use."

"That's all. Meeting adjourned."

Danzō's selection of Sasuke and Neji was unsurprising. Both had stellar academic records and wielded powerful dōjutsu.

Shino was chosen due to Danzō's trust in the Aburame clan, which had long been one of his key allies.

Watching Danzō leave, Kakashi realized that trying to explain the situation with Sasuke's cursed seal would be futile.

It seemed there was no choice but to move forward one step at a time.