"The total number of participants in this competition is 96."
"The four major countries account for one-third of the total."
"In addition, a total of seven ninja villages are participating in this joint examination."
Simu and the Ino–Shika–Chō trio were sitting in a room at the moment.
On the night of their arrival in the Land of Iron, Lu Jiu had already gathered information about the exam.
He pulled out a map of the Land of Iron and pointed to a snow-covered mountain range.
"If nothing unexpected happens, this Wind and Snow Mountain Range should be the location of our exam."
Simu leaned back in his chair and dozed off.
Minato, on the other hand, was listening intently.
"As expected of you, Lu Jiu. You've already gathered so much information right after arriving," Minato praised.
Lu Jiu smiled.
"Gathering intel is troublesome, but necessary."
"Besides, the information isn't entirely classified. I just asked around in a tavern and pieced things together."
For this competition, the Land of Iron had evacuated all the hunters from the Snowy Mountains in advance.
From that alone, Lu Jiu could easily deduce the exam venue.
"Now, I'll go over the teams we need to keep an eye on."
He took out a stack of photos.
"First, there's Sunagakure. Two individuals stand out. One is Pakura, a ninja who possesses the Bloodline Limit [Scorch Style]. She's extremely powerful."
"Anyone hit by her Scorch Style techniques will have the water in their body instantly evaporated, turning them into mummies!"
"The second one is Baki. It's said that he's already at Jōnin-level strength, but for some reason, he's never been officially promoted."
"He's likely Sunagakure's hidden ace."
As he said this, Minato instinctively glanced at Simu.
The real hidden ace was sitting right next to them.
However, due to Simu's previous battle with multiple Jōnin, Konoha's higher-ups had kept things under wraps.
Even Lu Jiu was unaware.
After a moment of doubt, Lu Jiu continued:
"Next is Iwagakure. There are two notable competitors."
"One is Han, who uses Boil Style to enhance his speed."
"The other is Karyu, a powerful Explosion Style user."
Lu Jiu flipped to another page.
It was densely packed with intel.
Some of it had been obtained through his father, the Jōnin squad leader, before their departure.
The rest had been gathered upon arrival in the Land of Iron.
"Now, let's talk about Kumogakure."
Everyone was already quite familiar with this village—after all, they had just clashed with them.
It was also one of Konoha's strongest competitors this time.
"First, we have Doshi, the one who clashed with Simu earlier. She specializes in Fire Style, so be cautious if you face her."
He didn't bother elaborating further on her.
"The second one is Troy, who possesses the Bloodline Limit [Magnet Style]."
"He can impart magnetism to objects and control them using chakra."
Lu Jiu spoke in detail for an hour.
He covered almost all the powerful opponents they might face.
His intelligence-gathering skills were truly impressive.
Of course, Simu slept through the entire hour.
"Wake up!"
Kushina pinched Simu's ear and dragged him back to his room.
Minato awkwardly apologized to Lu Jiu.
"Sorry about that. Simu's always like this—he doesn't care much about anything."
Lu Jiu waved a hand dismissively.
"It's fine. I know how he is. That guy's like a salted fish, except when it comes to fishing."
"Hahaha, you're spot on," Minato laughed, reaching an understanding with Lu Jiu.
"Anyway, thanks for sharing the intel."
"No problem."
After parting ways, both teams returned to their rooms.
At the same time, Kumogakure's camp was far from calm.
Doshi, still fuming from her humiliation at Simu's hands, spent the entire night sharpening her weapons.
"If I get my hands on that damn Simu tomorrow, I swear I'll kill him!" she growled.
She had never suffered such humiliation before.
Their lead Jōnin, Doi, glanced at her.
"Calm down, Doshi. Tomorrow is just a preliminary round."
"Against someone like Simu, the best strategy is to avoid him and wait until the knockout stages."
Troy, who had been quietly cleaning his oversized shuriken, finally spoke.
"I heard from Lord A that Simu is one of the few people he acknowledges as strong."
"If you're not careful, you'll just end up losing to him again."
Hearing Troy's words, Doshi's expression darkened. She clenched her fists and gritted her teeth.
"Don't worry. I'll definitely kill him!"
Doi sighed as he observed her reaction.
"Remember, this competition is being held in the Land of Iron. Lord Mifune has already stated that no one is allowed to die during the matches."
"If you break that rule, the Land of Lightning will face a huge political crisis. Don't let your emotions jeopardize the interests of our entire nation. Do you understand?"
Doi looked at Doshi's disdainful expression and sighed again.
He wasn't sure if this "no killing" rule was restricting Doshi or actually saving her life.
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