The remaining Genin matches, compared to the battle between Kazekaze and the Third Kazekage, felt rather dull. In fact, they only further emphasized the terrifying strength of both Kazekaze and the Third Kazekage.
For a time, the name "Kazekaze" became everyone's favorite topic of conversation over tea. His fame exploded!
However… As Kazekaze's grandfather, Hashirama was feeling a little dejected. By the time the Chūnin Exams concluded, he slumped in his chair, questioning the meaning of life. Aside from Kazekaze's match, Hashirama had perfectly avoided betting on any winning outcome for the others. In total, he lost a whopping 300,000 ryō!
"Come on, big brother. Now's not the time to be sulking. As the Hokage of Konohagakure, you still need to host the visiting Kage," Tobirama whispered in his ear, reminding him to prioritize.
Besides, 300,000 ryō only sounded like a lot. In reality, an A-rank mission could earn just as much.
"You're right." Hashirama nodded, forcing himself to suppress the disappointment from his gambling losses.
Just like Tobirama said— He was the Hokage. He needed to properly host the Kazekage and the Tsuchikage. However… Just as Hashirama was about to leave the Kage seats, he suddenly seemed to recall something important, and turned to stare at Tobirama.
"Tobirama, did you place any bets?"
Although Tobirama didn't share his love of gambling, he would sometimes place small wagers for fun. More importantly— All the betting for the Chūnin Exams had been organized by Konoha's leadership. It both entertained the people and provided a good boost to the village economy.
For a recently rebuilt Konohagakure, it was an opportunity they couldn't afford to miss. Even the 300,000 ryō Hashirama had lost counted as a contribution to the village. So, of course, Hashirama assumed Tobirama had taken part as well.
"Mm. I bet a little," Tobirama replied.
There was no need to hide it. After all, even the odds had been personally designed by Tobirama himself.
"How much did you win?"
Tobirama did a quick mental calculation based on his bets and the odds he had set, then answered:
"Roughly over six million ryō."
Hashirama: "???"
Other than the first match, where he had bet on Kazekaze like Hashirama, Tobirama had picked the opposite side in every subsequent match. Though Hashirama loved gambling, his luck was… consistently terrible.
"If I'd known, I should've bet more," Tobirama muttered, a little annoyed with himself for being too conservative.
But in any case, Tobirama had no real interest in money.
"Let's just use the winnings to cover the expenses of hosting the Kazekage and Tsuchikage."
He mentally assigned the money as a hospitality budget.
Thud!
Hashirama slumped again. "Eight out of eight? Tobirama, you really have a gift for betting..."
"A gift?" Tobirama shook his head. He didn't see it that way.
"Big brother, maybe you'll never be the light of the gambling world," he said, patting Hashirama on the shoulder. "But you are... the vessel of that light."
With that cryptic remark, Tobirama brushed past him, heading off to entertain the visiting Kage. Hashirama stood there, dazed, repeating Tobirama's words over and over. Eventually, he grasped Tobirama's true meaning.
"You bastard... you deliberately bet against me!"
In the Chūnin Exam rest area— Hiruzen and Sakumo walked in together to congratulate Kazekaze.
"Congratulations, Kazekaze."
Although Kazekaze's promotion to Chūnin still required Lord Tobirama's formal summons and approval, in Hiruzen's opinion, Kazekaze's combat instincts and battlefield experience were already on par with any Chūnin.
He truly couldn't imagine any reason Tobirama would refuse his promotion. What Hiruzen wasn't sure of, however, was—Once Kazekaze officially became a Chūnin, would he remain in Team 7 to carry out missions with them? Or would Tobirama assign him to lead a squad?
"Squad leader?" Sakumo blinked, thinking he must have misheard.
Kazekaze was only… Seven years old, wasn't he?
Sure, his performance in the official match had been incredible, and he certainly deserved to become a Chūnin. But leading a team? That seemed like fantasy.
A seven-year-old team captain?!
"True, Kazekaze is still very young and has a lot to learn," Hiruzen nodded.
But by standard protocol, newly promoted Chūnin would be assigned subordinates and missions. This served both as a test and an evaluation. Only by completing that first assignment would they truly be recognized as full-fledged Chūnin. The reason Hiruzen brought this up early was to help Kazekaze mentally prepare.
"So that's how it is..." Kazekaze immediately understood and recalled the Sasuke Retrieval Mission.
That had been the first mission assigned to Shikamaru after his promotion to Chūnin. He had acted as team leader, responsible for bringing Sasuke back! Back then, Tsunade had justified it as a result of manpower shortages in the village. But looking back, it had clearly been an assessment mission.
"An evaluation mission, huh..." Kazekaze murmured to himself, already looking forward to the challenge Hiruzen had mentioned.
No matter what the mission entailed, he would complete it flawlessly. And then… He would be one step closer to becoming the Third Hokage.
Meanwhile, in a ward at Konoha Hospital— The Third Kazekage slowly opened his eyes. The white ceiling came into focus. Then— A wave of sharp pain stabbed through his head. He tried to raise a hand to his forehead, but quickly realized he couldn't move his limbs.
"You're awake."
A short-haired girl with violet hair noticed his awakening and immediately stepped to his bedside, motioning for him not to move. Fortunately, he hadn't sustained any life-threatening injuries during the Chūnin Exam—he had only been unconscious for a while.
"You need rest now." The girl pulled the blanket over him and gently consoled him, urging him not to blame himself.
His performance had been outstanding. Any shinobi who had witnessed that battle would never underestimate the Third Kazekage again. Especially Reto.
"But I... still lost." The Third Kazekage bit his lip, full of frustration and unwillingness.
For the first time, he truly hated his own weakness.
"If I had completed that jutsu... maybe I could've..."
His gaze focused on the girl beside him. The jutsu he was referring to was Iron Sand: World Method. Unfortunately, he had only just begun experimenting with it. It wasn't ready for combat yet.
"Once we return to the village, let's start practical training, okay?" The girl gave a knowing smile, making a promise to the boy before her.
The Third Kazekage was momentarily stunned. Then, he slowly nodded.
"This time, I'll complete that jutsu... and then challenge Kazekaze again, Chiyo-neesan."