Konoha was devastated after the Nine-Tails attack. Not only had they suffered in the war, but they also lost thousands of ninjas, a Jinchuriki, and a Hokage in the attack. But even that wasn't the end of Konoha's losses. There was one more thing a ninja village needs besides power: trust. The trust of their people and other countries in their power.
The trust that they were powerful enough to help them was lost.
'A village that can't even protect the people inside their walls—how will they protect us?' This was the general sentiment among people, and it began to spread.
The other four big ninja villages seized this opportunity to spread the agenda as much as they could. And what did Konoha do to retaliate?
Nothing. Nothing at all. They didn't have the strength at that moment to do anything. The result? Konoha lost 40% of their mission revenue every year after the Nine-Tails attack.
Konoha suffered in silence while trying to rebuild its strength. The academy was filled to the brim with students, anyone who even had a shred of potential to become a ninja. Even if they would remain Genin for their entire lives, Konoha desperately needed to rebuild.
If everything had gone according to the original story, they would have needed another year to stabilize enough to address their damaged image. However, recent events changed things.
Initially, Danzo hid the number of ninja Root had under his command—the number of Jonin, and especially the number of talented ninjas that he had almost ruined. Now, Hiruzen had a complete understanding of Konoha's situation. Even though they had lost yet another S-rank ninja and the "Shadow of Konoha," which further reduced Konoha's strength, somehow, the situation looked better than before.
---
"The Chunin Exam?" Shikaku asked.
"Yes."
"… We've now recovered 70% of our strength. Even though the number of ninjas is the same as it was before the Third Great Ninja War, most of them are Genin and would only become cannon fodder if war broke out. But… the number of Jonin we initially thought we had was wrong. By adding the Root ninjas to the Anbu, we've now increased our number of Jonin by 1.5 times, and Chunin by twofold under your command," Shikaku said.
Hiruzen nodded, already knowing these details. There was something else he wanted to hear.
"Even though we've recovered a lot, it still only brings us back to the starting line," Shikaku said.
"Yes, we're now at the same strength as when the Third Great Ninja War ended. Considering how even Tsunade left the village, it's slightly less than at that time," Hiruzen replied.
"And if we go ahead with the Chunin Exam, it will be like showcasing our power to the other ninja villages. Though we may be powerful in one-on-one situations, we can't go against them if they combine forces, like in other ninja wars," Shikaku said.
"They can't do that right now," Hiruzen responded.
"Yes, Hidden Mist is entangled in a civil war, Sunagakure is our ally at the moment, and even if they aren't genuine, they won't be able to join the opposition in a war.
As for Iwagakure and Kumogakure, they're tough, but manageable. Onoki is famously known as a fence-sitter, so we don't need to worry about him initiating a war," Shikaku said but paused.
"I know we don't need to take this risk now. In 3-4 years, we'll be back to peak strength, and it would be most optimal to act then," Hiruzen said, releasing a puff of smoke from his freshly lit pipe.
One major reason they weren't as desperate as in the original timeline was the Root.
Root was an economic black hole for Konoha. Danzo had been siphoning off every last Ryo he could without collapsing the village, claiming it was for training new Root ninjas and maintaining peace. He was also leveraging the other elders to take as much as he could. The result? Konoha often found itself near bankruptcy. If not for other income sources like the Akimichi food businesses, Uchiha mineral mines, and Nara medicine trade, the village wouldn't have survived.
But now, with Danzo dead, that black hole had vanished, and the resources Danzo had hoarded for his grand plan after becoming Hokage were under Hiruzen's control.
This alleviated a lot of pressure from the village's shoulders. If not for that, they would have had to take risks, and like in the anime, Itachi would have demonstrated his talents in the next year's Chunin Exam, crushing his opponents and proving that Konoha was not weak. Because the Chunin Exam isn't just a normal exam; it's also a way for villages to showcase the strength of the next generation, as well as a source of entertainment for nobles. But in the last few years, Konoha had been performing subpar in exams hosted in other villages, trying to remain as unnoticed as possible.
Even now, staying mediocre for a few more years to build strength and then counter with full force was an option.
"Yes, it would be most optimal to do that if we want to regain our strength without any hiccups. Considering the talent in the younger generation, it wouldn't be surprising if we had two or three more S-rank ninjas by then. But…" Shikaku trailed off.
"Yes, it's this 'but' that's affecting my decision," Hiruzen said with a sigh.
"Our ninjas, both old and new, grew up hearing that Konoha is the strongest ninja village. But now, they feel scorned wherever they go, due to our mediocre performance in the Chunin Exams. Not only nobles, but even common people are beginning to underestimate our ninjas. This is seriously affecting their morale, which has led to some incidents already being reported by nobles of various smaller nations," Shikaku said.
He didn't point out how some ninjas had killed their own clients because of the condescending way they spoke, treating Konoha ninjas as mere bodyguards and threatening to choose ninjas from other villages next time. Killing was actually tame, considering some of the heinous crimes committed by others whose pride had been wounded. These ninjas had to be punished by the Hokage himself; some were killed, others had their chakra sealed and were removed from service, depending on the severity of their crimes.
Although these cases were still minimal, they were on the rise. There was no way to stop such incidents. What could they do? Tell their ninjas to accept blows to their egos for the village? No, that wasn't going to happen.
With power comes a fragile ego that starts to control your decisions, but it can be shattered by the slightest blow. And condescending comments from people who a Chunin could kill without even blinking do the most damage to that fragile ego.
"Who are you thinking of sending to the Chunin Exam?" Shikaku asked after considering various scenarios but realizing he needed an answer to this important question.
The next Chunin Exam would not be held in Konoha; Konoha would host the one after that, which would happen next year—the same exam in which Itachi had crushed his opponents in the original timeline. Back then, Konoha had been playing defense.
The Chunin Exam in their own village had been about showcasing Itachi's talent alone, so even though it showed that Konoha was powerful, the other villages hadn't been too alarmed since only one ninja was highlighted. A single ninja couldn't change the course of a battle unless they were at the level of Hashirama, Minato, or the Third Raikage—and Itachi wasn't at that level yet.
But now, the situation was different. They were going to send someone into enemy territory to completely dismantle other teams and demonstrate Konoha's superiority. This could destabilize the peace they had enjoyed thus far and put these young talents at risk. Other villages might take this chance to kill these young ninjas and present it as an "accident."
'What will you do? Start a war?' Thoughts like these were behind the idea. So, doing what they had in the original timeline—using the Chunin Exam to slowly turn the situation around—was still the best move. And since it was just a year away, there was no reason to hurry. They could bear the scorn for one more year.
"Kaida Uchiha, Itachi Uchiha, and Kabuto Yakushi," Hiruzen said.
Shikaku understood completely what Hiruzen was planning.