Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

Kakashi was also one of the top fighters in the village, and even Uchiha Inaho wasn't entirely confident he could defeat him. Not only Uchiha Inaho, but 99% of the Uchiha clan respected such a strong fighter. The remaining 1% of die-hards who still didn't know how to behave were all assigned by Sogen to guard the clan's territory and not to run around and ruin the clan's reputation.

While they were sitting in Kakashi's living room drinking tea and chatting,

"Kakashi, your students are also participating in this Chunin Exams, right?"

Kurenai Yuhi suddenly asked.

"Huh?"

Kakashi paused for a second.

Immediately,

She blinked and asked, "Red, where did you hear about the Chunin Exams?"

"It was Kiba who told me, Kiba Inuzuka, my student."

Yuhi Hong replied.

"Inuzuka... Could it be that your student heard the news from the Hokage's sister?" Kakashi racked his brains and immediately thought of a possibility. He had never doubted that Guy would leak the information, so if he ruled out Guy, Sakura who had also been warned, and the envoy from Kirigakure, it seemed that only one possibility remained.

"That's right. Hinata heard about it first, and after telling Kiba and Shino, that kid Kiba came to ask me about the Chunin Exams."

Kurenai Yuhi nodded, confirming Kakashi's guess.

"It's the same on my end. Ino heard about it from Fujika and asked me if they could participate in this Chunin Exam. I was stunned by the question. Although I was thinking of letting them practice whenever the Chunin Exam was held, I really didn't expect my students to find out about the Chunin Exam before me."

Uchiha Inahi chimed in at this point.

Kakashi's eyelids twitched.

Goodness!

The news did indeed spread from the Hokage's sister, but it doesn't matter. After all, she's the Hokage's own sister, and whatever happens is a family matter for the Hokage. He probably won't take his anger out on them for leaking information.

"Kakashi, your students are definitely going to participate in the Chunin Exams this year, right? Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha are geniuses whose names we Jonin have all heard of." Kurenai Yuhi was telling the truth; she wasn't playing any tricks to flatter others.

Naruto and Sasuke's generation was indeed extremely famous.

A multitude of geniuses gathered together: Kurama Yakumo, Uchiha Fujika, Tsuchigumo Hotaru, Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke... These young men and women were all considered to be the future pillars of Konoha Village, provided they did not die young.

"Yes, we're considering that, but we'll have to wait until there's an official announcement before making a decision."

Kakashi didn't make any definitive statements.

After all, neither of his two best students had returned to the village. Sakura, the only one left, was diligently studying the scroll the Hokage had given her, and she went to the pharmacist's hospital to consult Nono Uta far more often than she sought his help. He, as a teacher, was truly feeling incredibly idle these days.

Should I participate in the Chunin Exams in the future?

I really don't dare to make a decision on a whim.

"It seems that there will be quite a few people participating in the Chunin Exams this time. But that's not surprising, given that it's an unprecedented event. Not only will our own Konoha ninjas participate, but ninjas from other countries and villages will also be there. It's sure to be a lively event."

"I speak with great interest," said Kurenai Yuhi.

"There will definitely be a lot of people."

Uchiha Inahime nodded.

With such a large event, there's no shortage of people.

"I mean, isn't this... a bit too hasty?"

Ah Kai, who hadn't said much until now, finally spoke up.

Looking at Kurenai and the others with a rather serious expression, he said, "They've only graduated a year ago, and you're already making them participate in the Chunin Exams. Even if they're geniuses, isn't that putting too much pressure on those kids?" He wasn't a genius like Kakashi who showed his talent from a young age. He had endured a lot of hardship and experienced one tribulation after another to achieve what he had today. By the standards of the ninja world, he could be considered a late bloomer.

Therefore,

He disliked the kind of behavior that forced growth, sacrificing one's future prospects for momentary glory; in his view, such a choice was foolish.

"Kai, don't worry."

Kakashi waved his hand. "Don't think of these kids as too fragile. Although they are different from us and haven't experienced the baptism of war, if the Chunin Exams are really held on that scale, it will indeed be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Regardless of whether they pass the Chunin Exams or not, it's an excellent opportunity for them to broaden their horizons."

"...I feel like we're being a bit too hasty."

Ah Kai muttered something to himself and said nothing more.

He accepted Kakashi's explanation, but he also knew that he was ultimately an outsider and had no right to tell others how to teach students.

"Speaking of the Chunin Exams... Inahi-senpai, is it really true that all the ninja villages in the ninja world will be invited to participate?" Kakashi asked. He still felt that this was a bit unreliable, since there had been no official notification yet, and it was just a rumor from a little girl.

"it is true."

Uchiha Inahisa's answer was very affirmative.

"When I went out this morning, I happened to run into Arashiyama and casually asked him if the Hokage was indeed planning to hold an unprecedented Chunin Exam of the largest scale. However, it is still in the preparation stage, and the specific notification will probably not be issued for some time."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

While everyone in Kakashi's household was discussing the Chunin Exams, Uchiha Arashiyama, who had come to the Hokage Building to report on his work, also brought up the matter. He told Sogen about his chance encounter with Uchiha Inahisa that morning and said, "...Judging from Inahisa's tone, it seems that quite a few people already know about this."

“Wisteria... Hmm! This girl.”

Zongxian rubbed his forehead.

When he was talking with Arashiyama and Shisui at home last time, Fujika was indeed wandering around nearby, but he didn't pay much attention to it. After all, they hadn't discussed anything important, and he had only mentioned the Chunin Exams casually.

"We were too careless! This girl needs to be taught a lesson; why does she blurt out everything?"

"Hmph, do you dare? Elder Xuan Shi will skin you alive first!"

"Arashiyama, can't you speak properly?"

"Stop spouting this nonsense that's doomed to fail. Seriously though! This matter has probably already spread. What are you planning to do? If you really want to do it, it's about time to officially put it on the agenda and start preparing. Otherwise, if we keep dragging it out, it might not be until next year."

Uchiha Arashiyama's expression turned serious.

"Then let's do it."

Zongxian answered casually.

"Are we really going to do this?"

Uchiha Arashiyama pressed for an answer.

"It's bound to happen sooner or later, it doesn't matter if it's a little later or a little earlier. Besides, you said that the preparation work alone will take a lot of effort, so we can take it slowly. It doesn't necessarily have to be done this year. If we don't have time, we can do it next spring when the flowers bloom."

Zongxian's attitude remained as lazy as ever.

However, Uchiha Arashiyama couldn't remain indifferent. He stared intently at Sogen, who was sitting behind his desk signing the approved documents, and relentlessly asked, "Sougen, seriously, what exactly are you planning to do by inviting all the ninja villages in the ninja world to participate in our Chunin Exams, and even inviting the Mizukage, Raikage, Tsuchikage, and Kazekage to watch the competition in person?"

He's not stupid.

Kakashi was able to realize that this was not a simple matter.

Of course, he couldn't say that he didn't pay attention to the key points. To be honest, this high-level Chunin Exam doesn't look like an exam at all. The five Kage of the ninja world are gathered together. This looks like the Five Kage Summit that has been held in the past.

So far,

The Five Shadows Conference has been held three times already.

The first Five Kage Summit was convened by the First Hokage to resolve the issue of tailed beast distribution. The summit established a method for distributing the tailed beasts, with the other nations paying money to exchange tailed beasts from Konoha, effectively distributing the tailed beasts equally among the five great nations.

therefore,

This led to the Five Kage establishing the first peace treaty in the ninja world, and the five great nations formed an alliance. However, this peace was merely a facade, built entirely on the First Hokage's immense power, and was immediately broken by the nations, who had no more scruples, after the First Hokage's death.

But at least during Hashirama Senju's lifetime,

The ninja world has entered a period of relative peace, which is quite rare. Small conflicts may not disappear, but no major wars have broken out.

The second and third Five Kage Summits were even more disappointing. While the first Five Kage Summit at least yielded some results, these two summits were purely for the five Kage to argue face-to-face, without any useful outcomes, and the war continued as scheduled.

The fight ended when both sides were exhausted and could no longer continue.

Upon closer examination, the Five Kage Summit reveals that, aside from its hype, it doesn't actually hold much significance. However, the hype alone is enough to attract a lot of attention, especially given Konoha's overwhelming strength. If Sogen were to hold the Five Kage Summit, he might be able to achieve his goals by using his own formidable power as a deterrent, just like the First Hokage.

And now,

The problem is that Uchiha Arashiyama doesn't know what Sogen is planning to do.

Therefore, one's mind is in turmoil and one cannot calm down.

"There are some things... that are hard to say." Zong Xian tapped the table with his fingers. He wouldn't reveal all his thoughts and plans to anyone, but he couldn't keep them completely to himself either. He had to give a reasonable explanation.

after all,

Even Arashiyama came to ask him what he wanted to do.

Then, people like Nara Shikaku and Hyuga Hiashi would inevitably wonder what Sogen was up to. If he didn't give a plausible reason, even if he was the Hokage, he couldn't possibly handle everything by himself.

"Arashiyama, do you think the First Hokage's decision to distribute the nine tailed beasts equally among the five great nations was the right one?"

Zongxian then turned the question back on Uchiha Arashiyama.

Then--

Uchiha Arashiyama fell silent.

Good guy,

That's a difficult question to answer.

Criticizing the deeds of the First Hokage is indeed not very acceptable to people. Moreover, since both Sogen and himself are Uchiha, discussing the merits and demerits of the First Hokage's past inevitably makes people wonder if they are planning to exonerate their ancestor, Madara Uchiha.

and,

Regarding the issue of Zongxian alone,

He clearly did not approve of the First Hokage's decision to distribute the nine tailed beasts equally among the five great nations. Although he also thought it was rather... stupid, it should be noted that at that time, apart from the One-Tailed Beast which was under the control of Sunagakure, the other eight tailed beasts were all captured alive by Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha during their campaign to pacify the ninja world.

If these tailed beasts are not distributed,

Even without the First Hokage and his ancestor Madara Uchiha, probably no one would dare to provoke Konoha, right? The eight Jinchuriki alone could scare many people to death. To be honest, this matter is not as difficult as imagined. Even if the Senju clan is weakened by continuous wars and does not trust the loyalty of the Uchiha clan, they can still absorb the Uzumaki clan into the village!

The Uzumaki clan are natural-born jinchūriki, not to mention that they are the most skilled sealing jutsu clan in the ninja world.

unfortunately,

There aren't that many "what ifs".

The reality is that the nine tailed beasts were distributed equally, with only the Nine-Tails remaining in Konoha.

And now,

It seems that Zongxuan wants to correct the mistakes of the First Hokage?