Chameleons of five colors live on the island. When one chameleon bites another, the color of bitten chameleon changes to one of these five colors according to some rule, and the new color depends only on the color of the bitten and the color of the bitting. It is known that $2023$ red chameleons can agree on a sequence of bites between themselves, after which they will all turn blue. What is the smallest $k$ that can guarantee that $k$ red chameleons, biting only each other, can turn blue? (For example, the rules might be: if a red chameleon bites a green one, the bitten one changes color to blue; if a green one bites a red one, the bitten one remains red, that is, "changes color to red"; if red bites red, the bitten one changes color to yellow, etc. The rules for changing colors may be different.)
Problem
Source: 44th International Tournament of Towns, Senior A-Level P7, Spring 2023
Tags: combinatorics