A month was neither long nor short.
But for Konoha, that month had been more agonizing and drawn-out than an entire year.
In order to salvage what little dignity he had left, Hiruzen Sarutobi tried every possible method.
He had even shamelessly attempted to force a few Konoha genin who had lost relatively "gracefully" in the preliminaries into the finals under the title of "alternates."
And the result?
The invitations went out, but Sunagakure and Kirigakure did not even bother to reply.
Iwagakure replied quickly enough, with only one sentence: "Rules are rules. If you can't accept losing, don't play."
It slapped his old face right back at him.
There was no choice. The arrow was on the string and had to be fired.
The day of the Chūnin Exams finals arrived as scheduled.
On that day, Konoha finally regained a little of its former liveliness.
The enormous circular arena was packed to the brim.
A sea of heads filled the stands, with tens of thousands of spectators alone.
The Daimyō of the Land of Fire, along with his group of bloated nobles, had taken seats early in the VIP box with the best view.
Wealthy merchants from various countries who had come to negotiate business deals, as well as captains of mercenary groups, had also gathered here.
After all, the Chūnin Exams were not merely an exam.
They were more like a massive exhibition of military strength.
Whose "products" were of better quality and whose fists were harder directly determined their mission commissions and international standing for the coming year.
Only, this year's exhibition had a somewhat strange atmosphere.
Every face bore an indescribable, peculiar smile—the sort worn by people eager to see chaos unfold.
"Hey, did you hear? There isn't a single Konoha contestant in the finals!"
"I