Compared to the elimination rate of the first exam, the second one held in the Land of Fire was the real cutthroat stage.
Out of fifty-five teams, at most a third could pass. The entire Land of Fire served as their "battlefield," but that was only the ideal outcome—realistically, only a fourth or even a fifth might remain.
When everyone was an enemy, eliminating more teams meant a greater advantage for the third exam. That was what everyone thought.
"The village is already preparing the ninja battalion. The first unit alone has nearly twelve hundred people. Just coordinating them all is a huge workload."
On the Hokage Rock, Tsunade feigned exhaustion, but Hyuga Mirai completely ignored her.
Trying to use that as an excuse to drink? Not a chance. Until the war ended, Mirai had no intention of letting Tsunade touch a single drop of alcohol. He had even ordered every tavern under his influence in Konoha to remove all premium liquor from their shelves.
"According to the plan, the Four Kage will lead five thousand troops from the direction of Kikyo Castle, launch a one-day assault on Kawasuna Town, and then advance into the Sand Federation. As for the Mist and Cloud troops—nearly three thousand in total—they'll invade Sacha County to push deeper into the Federation."
Mirai asked, "Only eight thousand? Then the other three villages must still be holding back plenty of ninja forces."
The Allied Shinobi Forces numbered eighty thousand. Excluding the samurai of the Land of Iron and Sunagakure's troops, the four great villages still had around forty thousand shinobi.
Tsunade huffed before replying, "Five thousand is plenty. Even though I'd love to send all those disobedient clans straight to the front lines, that would be too obvious. Besides, there's still the matter of the village merger—we'll need a proper excuse for that." Her voice weakened noticeably at the end.
The thought made her want to teach Kushina a lesson—for setting up other people while being single herself—and worse, it involved her supposed superior.
"Let them experience the power of capital first. Without electricity, internet, supplies, or trade contracts, those stubborn old men will give in soon enough," Mirai said thoughtfully.
Ninjas were known for endurance, but common people couldn't live without electricity or internet. And many Konoha clans had business ties with the Hyakusa Trade Association; cutting those ties suddenly would throw them into chaos.
With the civilians below growing even more restless, it was enough to push their sentiments toward the Federation.
Electricity had become essential to daily life, and Mirai's new power plant near Konoha had already replaced the village's original grid.
"With their families at the front and unrest at home, even the most obstinate ones will eventually yield," Mirai said.
Tsunade pursed her lips. "You really are dark, but that still won't make them truly accept the Federation."
"That can't be helped, after all—"
"No, there is a way. Just make them think it's a merger between two nations. I've been considering this carefully—exchange middle and lower-level positions, avoid interfering with top-level appointments for now, and finally, arrange a marriage alliance. As the next Kazekage, if you marry someone from Konoha, it'll symbolize unity. That's how the Senju and Uzumaki alliance was formed; every few decades, there's always another union."
Tsunade cut him off, speaking proudly—she'd give herself a nine out of ten for that idea.
"Not bad—except for the last part. Seems you've studied the Federation's founding policies thoroughly," Mirai said calmly, which made Tsunade uneasy.
Still, she held her ground and rambled, "I'm only doing this for peace, for the Federation's sake. You can't just punish important members for having different opinions. The Federation needs freedom—"
"No, since you're willing, I won't object. Let's go with that," Mirai said, patting her shoulder.
His sudden agreement left Tsunade frozen. She couldn't quite grasp what he meant until he left.
"What did he mean by 'since I'm willing'? Of course I'm willing..."
After muttering to herself a few times, realization hit her—her face turned crimson, and even her words stumbled.
"T-That brat!"
Even though no one else was around, Tsunade's cheeks burned with embarrassment as she recalled his tone.
"That damn blue-eyed brat, making fun of me like that!"
She kicked a nearby boulder, shattering it with a loud crash. After checking that no one had seen her, she quickly lowered her head and left—though her mind was still replaying the conversation.
The Federation already knew about the four nations' joint battle plan, and even Konoha's intention to merge—but the latter was known only to Pakura.
Naturally, she had been shocked when she learned of it, but Mirai had given her a plausible explanation—that he'd had ties with Tsunade before, and after she left Konoha, she'd been secretly aligning with him.
Pakura, hearing his mix of truth and fabrication, had come to believe it. After all, back during the Third Shinobi War, Mirai had already been called the "second medical sage," just one title away from being Tsunade's disciple.
"To think even the Hokage herself was connected to you... Mirai-kun, I'm convinced the position of Kazekage should be yours. Your insight and vision surpass anyone else in the Federation."
Pakura's words carried admiration. For allies, it was "vision and insight." For outsiders, it would have been called ambition.
Looking back, although Sunagakure had been replaced by the Sand Federation, it had grown dozens of times stronger. Now, merging with Konoha marked the beginning of a new era.
Like when Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara ended the Warring States era together—now Hyuga Mirai was reshaping the shinobi world.
"I'm really not suited to be Kazekage. This position should—"
"No, it must be you, Mirai-kun," Pakura interrupted. "For Konoha to integrate peacefully, the Federation's leader has to favor their side. They're not like those small villages of the past—if things destabilize, it'll lead to disaster later."
Seeing Pakura's determined expression, Mirai almost wanted to say, "You're going to ridiculous lengths just to step down."
He changed the topic. "We'll talk about that later. Once Konoha joins, the Federation will need a major restructuring."
A federation, after all, should have multiple administrative governors. A nominal head of state could be added later, but Pakura would need to continue managing the Land of Wind region.
Expanding territories meant greater demand for capable officials. Mirai was already troubled by how to fill government positions after merging with Konoha—there was no way he'd allow Pakura to resign recklessly.
Replacing her without a successor was out of the question.
However, Pakura took his words as implicit approval and stopped pressing the issue. The two then began strategizing how to handle the Allied Forces—or rather, the remaining three nations' armies.
Mirai already had a plan: the Four Red Yang Formation. Trapping eight thousand men would be easy, and it required only four Kage-level shinobi—Ayaka alone could manage it.
The thrilling footage from the first exam had already been broadcast across the shinobi world by the Uzumaki Trade Association. Anywhere with internet access and an Uzumaki computer could watch the grand spectacle.
Large screens in the Sand Federation replayed the highlights for the public, while wealthier citizens simply bought computers to watch at home.
Mirai and Pakura finalized their division of tasks: he and Tsunade would capture the five thousand troops on the main front, while Pakura, along with the Puppet Corps and the Security Division, would handle the three thousand from the Mist and Cloud.
Pakura had just over a thousand people, but with her, Uchiha Tekka, and the aerial and mech puppet units, she had full confidence—they had no top-tier fighters among the enemy.
When Mirai returned home, he found two redheads huddled together watching the replay of the first exam. The screen still showed that blond kid—apparently the same part as when he left. Even now, they were still watching.
"The second exam's already started, and you're still watching this?"
As Mirai spoke, Ayaka Uzumaki abruptly stopped arguing with Kushina and jumped up cheerfully. "Mirai-sama! I'll go make you some tea!"
As she ran off to the kitchen, Kushina suddenly felt a pang of guilt.
"You told Tsunade, didn't you?"
Mirai's sudden words made her flinch. She scratched her head awkwardly, glanced toward the kitchen, and whispered, "It was Ayaka who forced me..."
"Relax, I'm not angry. In fact, I should thank you. If not for your suggestion, my original plan wouldn't have happened for another hundred years."
"Hey, by then you'd be long dead! Or an old man, at least. Then again... with your abilities, maybe not."
Realizing he wasn't blaming her, Kushina relaxed and teased him—but somehow, her heart felt oddly empty.
Tch. When Naruto gets married, she'll be all alone again...
(End of Chapter)