Inside the Kazekage's office.
After a brief exchange of greetings with the Third Kazekage, Orochimaru began probing, "Kazekage-sama, what are your thoughts on Konoha's prosperity?"
The Third Kazekage's eyes sharpened. He hadn't expected his opponent to come straight at him so quickly.
He shook his head, feigning sadness. "Konoha is a wonderful place—fertile lands, abundant forests. As for us in the Sand… aside from sand, there's nothing worth mentioning."
Seeing this response, Orochimaru—just as scripted by a certain director—quickly replied, "Kazekage-sama, please don't sell yourself short. From my perspective, Wind Country still has many treasures worth appreciating."
"Oh? Mr. Orochimaru, if you have any insights, feel free to share. I'm not some rigid old man," said the Third Kazekage, clearly intrigued.
"Kazekage-sama, do you know what factor limits the development of Wind Country?" Orochimaru continued according to the script.
The Third Kazekage paused briefly before answering, "Is it the land itself? If this nation weren't located in a desert, I believe it would flourish just like Konoha."
Orochimaru started subtly guiding the conversation, "That's both right and wrong. The land does hinder the country's development, but from an economic standpoint, this nation still holds enormous potential."
Frowning deeply, the Third Kazekage expressed confusion. "Economics? And how could a country buried under endless sand have any development prospects?"
Sensing he had hooked the other party, Orochimaru intensified his pitch: "Economics is a discipline that studies all aspects of a national economy. As for Wind Country's development potential…"
He then launched into a detailed explanation for the Third Kazekage—covering rare mineral resources, central irrigation systems capable of transforming deserts—ideas derived from Mole Shen's past life, mirroring development strategies used by a wealthy nation in another world. Applied to Wind Country, which shared similar geographical conditions, these ideas were perfectly suited.
"Really? Is there actually a method capable of turning deserts into oases? Mr. Orochimaru, don't be joking," the Third Kazekage responded excitedly after listening.
He truly couldn't believe such 'magical' methods could exist in this world.
Orochimaru gave a sly, knowing smile, just like a film director watching his plot unfold perfectly. "Kazekage-sama, you already know that water scarcity limits this nation's growth. Our proposal from Konoha involves producing water through chakra, combined with a central irrigation system to uniformly and effectively transform the desert."
The Third Kazekage shot him a sharp glance, interlaced his fingers, placed them before himself, and stared directly at Orochimaru across from him. "Then, Mr. Orochimaru, what's the price?"
Meanwhile, Mole Shen—who had missed that dramatic moment earlier—was now doing his best to 'treasure hunt' beneath Sunagakure.
"This village is way too big… finished only a third and already burned through half my chakra. Maybe I should rest first…"
Mole Shen believed working efficiently required sufficient rest.
So he surfaced—boldly and shamelessly—much to the irritation of whoever had been monitoring him the entire time.
"This kid sure is daring to cause trouble in Sunagakure village. If he gets caught, Madara would definitely be very troubled," muttered the Mole King of the shinobi world, immediately tailing another mole.
He was already mentally prepared to cover for this kid's mistakes at any moment.
"Where am I? Why are there so many guards?"
Mole Shen only revealed half his head while secretly observing, feeling confused.
From what he remembered, it didn't seem like there was anything in Sunagakure that required such tight security.
"Could this possibly be about Shukaku? Have I just hit the jackpot?" Realizing the truth, he immediately wanted to leave.
But some self-sabotaging impulse seemed to take control, paralyzing him as he stood there unable to sneak away.
"No good, I can't do this. I've already hesitated for 10 seconds!"
After finding a suitable excuse, the drama queen burrowed back into the ground.
The direction he headed toward was actually the main gate behind the guards.
Watching from not far away, the Mole King of the shinobi world was terrified by his action: "If anything happens here, Madara will kill me for sure!"
With no overtime benefits or medical insurance, the Mole King had no choice but to accept. He suspected all his white hairs came straight from burnout - that brutal 24/7 work schedule with no time off.
Thus, the Mole King began his miserable job: cleaning up after others!
Inside the heavily guarded gate was pitch dark, except for some light near what looked like jail cells.
Mole Shen cautiously peeked out, scanning back and forth several times before finally noticing a white-bearded old man wearing a long robe sitting cross-legged on the floor within the dim light.
However, despite watching secretly, he showed no intention of greeting the other person.
"So this must be Bunpuku, the first Jinchuriki of Shukaku. Why is he sleeping like Gaara? Then I'll have to try harder!"
After observing for a while and believing the other hadn't noticed anything unusual, he quietly burrowed underground to start preparing his plan.
Unaware that not far from him, a certain Mole King was using chakra to cover his tracks, Mole Shen thought to himself that Jinchuriki weren't as impressive as he'd heard.
"Tired to death! Why does this kid keep watching an old man for so long? Could he have sensed One-Tail's presence?" The nearly drained Mole King pondered silently: "Should I report this to Madara? Maybe not. No matter how talented a child is, they wouldn't know these things. Probably just thinks this person is some Sand Village prisoner."
Having made this judgment, he left without realizing that Bunpuku, the Jinchuriki of Shukaku sitting on the ground, had opened his eyes and was looking in the direction where he had been moments ago.
"Strange. Shukaku, you're sure there was movement beneath the sand over there?"
"Definitely? But I didn't see anything with my own eyes. Of course, I'm not doubting you. Infiltration? Don't underestimate the guards outside, Shukaku. I know you could eliminate them with one slap, but you must understand..."
While muttering to himself, Bunpuku spread his hands. There was the character 'receive' (shou) on his left palm, and the character 'heart/mind' (shin) on his right palm.
"The meaning of these two characters combined is something you should understand very well, Shukaku — this is love." He clasped his hands together again, still speaking to the air.
Yes, just now Bunpuku had been talking to the One-Tail Shukaku sealed inside his body.
Once a tailed beast is sealed inside a jinchuriki, it can communicate with its host within the spiritual space. That's why he appeared to be talking to himself earlier.
"You're so annoying! I've got a perfect memory, okay?" Shukaku's voice echoed like a raccoon dog within Bunpuku's spiritual space.
"Shukaku, you need to calm down and truly feel what this word represents. Let the love in everyone shine bright, and the world shall bloom anew."
"Ahhhh! I can't hear anything!"
"Let the love in everyone shine bright"
"Don't enter my mind!"
Within the spiritual space, Shukaku endured Bunpuku's torturous verbal assault while using his chubby little hands to hug his round head. At that moment, he truly fit the description of "small, pitiful, and helpless."
"Let the love in everyone shine bright"
"Bunpuku, just shut up!"
"Let the love"
"*sigh*"
The tormented Shukaku muttered curses as he stormed out of Bunpuku's 'Live Broadcast Room'—ahem, spiritual space.
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