Chapter 350: A Wretched State
"During your time in Iwagakure, did the Iwa-nin do anything to you?" Rasa asked.
Pakura shook her head. "I was unconscious in the Land of Snow. By the time I woke up, I was already in Iwagakure. Other than my chakra being sealed, the Iwa-nin didn't do anything to me. I don't know what happened while I was unconscious, though."
"When I woke up, my wounds had already been treated. If the Iwa-nin did do something to me, I wouldn't be able to tell."
"Forget it. Even if Iwagakure wants to study the Scorch Release Kekkei Genkai, it's not something that can be done in a short amount of time. What about the four members of Yin Squad who were scouting with you?" Rasa asked about another matter.
Because Pakura was captured and the other Anbu had retreated, Rasa was uncertain about the life or death of the four members of Yin Squad. But as the Kazekage, he had to get a definitive answer about their fate.
Pakura recalled for a moment and said, "I can only confirm that two were killed and two were injured by the Tsuchikage's wind and fire combination ninjutsu. When I used my Great Blazing Heaven technique, the two injured members were still alive."
"After that, my Great Blazing Heaven did its best to avoid them. It's just that I was defeated too quickly to confirm their final status."
Pakura was also unclear whether the two were dead or alive.
"Understood. Tell me the details of your battle with the Tsuchikage," Rasa nodded and said.
According to Pakura, the two might still be alive, but without proof, Ishiro would never release them. Given Ishiro's style, he would surely lie through his teeth.
Pakura recounted the detailed process of her battle with Ishiro, placing heavy emphasis on how Ishiro had used a rain of kunai to target her weakness.
Finally, Pakura said, "My intelligence was leaked. Otherwise, it would be impossible for the Tsuchikage to capture me."
"Mm," Rasa nodded, not dwelling on Pakura's face-saving words.
The group fell silent and continued to advance rapidly. They were getting closer and closer to the border of the Land of Earth. But before they had completely left the country's territory, Rasa suddenly stopped and said, "They're here."
As soon as his voice fell, a gigantic staff came smashing from one side towards Pakura. At the same time, a powerful chakra fluctuation was building up on the other side, ready to be unleashed.
It was Hiruzen Sarutobi's Adamantine Staff and Danzō's Wind Release ninjutsu.
Facing the sudden attack, Rasa's face was impassive. He softly uttered two words: "Make your move."
Then, from within the Suna ranks, two puppet masters suddenly opened the puppet containers on their backs. But what emerged from the containers were not puppets, but two people: Chiyo and Ryosuke. The two had replaced two ninja in the group shortly after Rasa's party left Iwagakure.
Immediately, Rasa's Gold Dust and the Iron Sand from Ryosuke's Third Kazekage puppet launched a defensive counterattack. At the same time, Chiyo directly brought out her trump card, the Ten Puppets of Chikamatsu. The surprise attack by Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzō Shimura achieved no effect whatsoever.
Faced with the dual defense of Iron Sand and Gold Dust, their attacks failed to even break through the barrier.
Immediately after, Sunagakure's counterattack began.
Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzō Shimura had also brought a large group of elite Anbu and Root members with a well-rounded configuration. Although they couldn't deal with a true Kage-level shinobi, their combat power was not much weaker than that of Ryosuke controlling the Third Kazekage puppet.
Thus, the two sides fought to a standstill, with neither able to gain the upper hand. Even with Hiruzen's monkey summons and Danzō summoning Baku, they only managed to gain an advantage, not a decisive victory. Both Gold Dust and Iron Sand were exceptionally good at defense, and they also provided the ability to fly.
So, after a period of entanglement and both sides suffering casualties among a few of their elite ninja, they tacitly chose to disengage.
During the standoff, Rasa said to Hiruzen Sarutobi, "I believe Konoha owes Sunagakure an explanation."
Hiruzen's face was extremely grim. If they could have killed Pakura, then even offending Sunagakure would have been an acceptable price for Konoha to pay. But now, having offended Sunagakure without completing the mission, the loss for Konoha was far too great. Konoha was short on high-end combat power and urgently needed to recuperate. Faced with Rasa's questioning, Hiruzen felt no confidence at all.
"What does Lord Kazekage want?" After a long silence, Hiruzen arduously asked this question.
...
"Lord Tsuchikage, Lord Kazekage's party was ambushed before they reached the border. However, the Kazekage was well-prepared, and the opponent's surprise attack was not effective." An Anbu was reporting to Ishiro and the other high-ranking officials in the Tsuchikage's office.
"The commotion from the battle between the two sides was huge, but the casualties were likely not severe. Neither side fought to the death and ultimately chose to stop. Judging by the time, they had a rather long standoff, so they must have reached some kind of agreement."
"We didn't dare get too close and only observed from a great distance, so we don't know the content of their conversation."
"On the Kazekage's side, besides the Kazekage's Gold Dust, there was also a large amount of Iron Sand, so the Third Kazekage puppet must have been deployed. And also Chiyo's signature jutsu, the Three Treasures Suction Crushing."
"On the other side, Danzō's summoning beast, Baku, appeared, as did the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi's summon, the Adamantine Staff form of Monkey King Enma."
"These are the only ones whose identities could be confirmed. Also, judging from the chakra fluctuations, the ninja controlling the Third Kazekage puppet in the Suna party was not Chiyo."
Ishiro nodded. "Alright, you are dismissed."
The Anbu member responsible for observing the battle between Rasa and Hiruzen's forces immediately left upon hearing this.
After the Anbu left, Ishiro said to Ikura and the others, "What a pity. Both sides were so restrained!"
"I didn't expect Danzō to be so calm either," Saka also commented.
"That's easy to understand. If Konoha had a huge advantage, Danzō wouldn't have been calm. But if the advantage wasn't great, and he would be in danger if Rasa and Chiyo fought desperately, then Danzō would definitely be calm," Ishiro said with a laugh.
"So what do we do next? We don't know what agreement the Kazekage and Konoha reached," Bella said with concern.
"They just had a fight. No matter how magnanimous Rasa is, it's impossible for him to cooperate with Konoha right now. At most, he'll ask Konoha for some compensation to make up for the losses he suffered at our hands, maybe dig a little less from his mines," Ishiro wasn't too concerned about this.
"Then our cooperation with Sunagakure continues?" Megumi asked. She was currently Iwagakure's negotiation representative.
Ishiro nodded. "Continue! It's just an agreement for deeper cooperation. Rasa won't care too much about it. Since he agreed, he won't go back on his word easily. This small loss isn't worth him trading his reputation for."
"With a person like Rasa, bullying him a little here and there isn't a big problem. As long as you don't make him feel hopeless, he won't act rashly. But we can't overdo it, or he will erupt," Ishiro said.
In the original story, after the Third Great Ninja War, Sunagakure was constantly suppressed by Konoha, and the Land of Wind's Daimyo severely cut their funding. In his desperation, Rasa decided to stake everything, which led to Orochimaru's so-called Konoha Crush plan.
Megumi nodded.
Thinking of Orochimaru, Ishiro looked at Saka and asked, "Saka-senpai, is there any news of Orochimaru? I planned to trade with him for a White Zetsu clone last time, but I couldn't find him."
Ishiro knew that Orochimaru had joined the Dark Akatsuki. But the Akatsuki's territory was certainly monitored by a large number of White Zetsu clones, and Ishiro didn't want to be too arrogant as to trade for one of Zetsu's clones right under his nose. Zetsu was cooperating with Nagato, so he could move about semi-openly in the Dark Akatsuki's sphere of influence. Ishiro guessed that the members of the Dark Akatsuki were still under the surveillance of White Zetsu clones.
"No precise whereabouts, but it seems Orochimaru has returned to the Land of Whirlpools. Our people have heard some news on the black market about Orochimaru appearing in the capital of the Land of Whirlpools," Saka said.
"The capital of the Land of Whirlpools? And appearing openly? Is Orochimaru planning to establish a hidden village in the Land of Whirlpools?" Ishiro said.
The others were all stunned. What is this situation? A rogue ninja plans to establish a hidden village? And in the Land of Whirlpools?
There were no rules in the ninja world about who couldn't establish a hidden village, nor were there rules about which small country couldn't have one. But rogue ninja were hunted by their former villages. Who would dare to brazenly establish a hidden village in a country? Weren't they afraid of being besieged?
Moreover, since the fall of Uzushiogakure, the Land of Whirlpools had been a semi-vassal state of the Land of Fire. The Land of Whirlpools didn't even have a Daimyo right now. The former head of the Hyuga clan had once thought of incorporating Uzushiogakure into the Land of Fire's territory. If it weren't for the interference of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, he might have succeeded.
For Orochimaru, a Konoha rogue-nin, to establish a hidden village within a Konoha-affiliated territory, was this complete disregard for Konoha? Or could it be that this matter was actually authorized by Konoha? That this so-called establishment of a hidden village was like Iwagakure opening a branch in the Land of Snow.
The group couldn't figure it out.
Ishiro wasn't sure either. "I don't believe that Orochimaru is establishing a hidden village in the Land of Whirlpools completely under Konoha's instructions."
"But it's very possible that the two sides have reached some kind of understanding. For example, Orochimaru helps Konoha fend off those unpredictable madmen from Kirigakure, and Konoha stops hunting Orochimaru."
"Should we stop him?" Ikura asked.
Ishiro thought for a moment. "No need to stop him, and we can't stop him anyway. Prepare a gift and send it to Orochimaru, wishing him an early establishment of his hidden village."
Just thinking about the Konoha Crush plan from the original story, one would know that Orochimaru could never be on the same side as Konoha. At a critical moment, Orochimaru would use his own methods to let Hiruzen Sarutobi die a "decent" death, which was a good thing.
"By the way, when the Kazekage came to attend the joint Chunin Exams this time, he asked about the Third. He's probably already suspecting that the Third has left the village," Ishiro said.
Kitsuchi became nervous upon hearing this. "Then will father be in danger?"
Ishiro said, "Captain Kitsuchi, don't worry. In terms of safety, he's definitely safest in the village. But the Third has already left the Land of Snow. His whereabouts are uncertain; even we don't know where he's going, let alone anyone else."
"And with Jiraiya's precedent, the Third won't be so careless."
"What's more, he has the Light/Heavy Boulder Technique. Without three Kage-level shinobi ambushing him at the same time, it would be very difficult to capture him."
Kitsuchi breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, though he couldn't help but still worry.
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