"That bastard is going too far. I must have been blind back then."
Back in her residence, Chiyo replayed the scene in the Kazekage's office and finally lost her restraint, cursing aloud.
Her voice was so loud that Ebizo, who had just pushed the door open to enter, froze in place.
Seeing the fire practically bursting from his sister's eyes, Ebizo sighed inwardly.
There was no need to ask. She must have suffered another round of anger at Rasa's hands.
But how could he not be angry as well?
Rasa had become Kazekage because they had pushed him forward against widespread opposition, even at the cost of creating distance with Pakura.
And now that his wings had hardened, he no longer listened.
The two elders truly had little they could do. They couldn't very well stage a coup.
"That's enough, Sister."
Ebizo tried to calm her. "Rasa isn't entirely wrong. There's really no need to keep fighting."
As her brother, he understood her thoughts all too well.
It was resentment.
Resentment that Konoha had clearly been on the verge of collapse, only for Minato Namikaze to suddenly appear and single-handedly reverse the tides on the battlefields against Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Kirigakure.
Resentment that after her son and daughter-in-law had died at the hands of Konoha shinobi, she could not personally avenge them.
Resentment…
All of it clouded her judgment, pushing her toward tearing up the defeat treaty and reigniting the war.
If victory were certain, he would support her without hesitation.
But…
Could they truly win?
Hearing her brother's attempt at consolation, Chiyo shook her head.
"I know Rasa is right. That's not what I'm angry about.
Rasa has changed. And he changed far too quickly."
"Before he became Kazekage, he declared that Sunagakure would rise to the top of the Five Great Nations. That no one in the village would starve again.
That this desert would bloom with oases. For that, he was willing to pay any price."
"And at first, he truly did act that way.
When he first took office, he led from the front. How many times did he charge into the thickest fighting, his Magnet Release clashing head-on with Jiraiya?"
At the mention of Rasa's past, Ebizo fell silent and nodded.
Back then, the Kazekage's cloak had been stained with blood, gold dust swirling around him.
He had earned every Sunagakure shinobi's recognition with tangible achievements and sacrifice, cementing his foundation as Kage.
In those days, Rasa had been brimming with ambition.
But…
After negotiations ended and Sunagakure signed that defeat treaty, he seemed to become an entirely different person.
At first he remained steady. Aside from refusing to return to the front lines, he worked diligently refining gold dust to earn money for the village.
But gradually…
He began indulging in extravagant robes. He demanded peculiar honorifics. Even the way he treated Karura had become…
Ebizo didn't dare think further.
How could someone change so drastically? It was as if heaven and earth had turned upside down.
Chiyo's complaints about Rasa finally subsided, and her tone grew firm.
"We have to rein him in."
That didn't mean they had to start a civil war.
As long as Rasa understood that the Council of Elders was not mere decoration—and that the Kazekage's authority had boundaries—that would be enough.
After all, aside from Rasa, there truly was no suitable candidate in Sunagakure at present.
They couldn't possibly choose Pakura.
Chiyo knew very well that Pakura was an absolute hardliner. If she became Kazekage, she would fight Konoha to the bitter end.
That would not serve the village's interests.
Ebizo, however, seemed to misunderstand.
His pupils shrank slightly. "Sister, Sunagakure can't endure a civil war."
Chiyo sighed and was about to explain when a massive surge of chakra suddenly erupted from the Kazekage Tower.
In the next instant, a brilliant streak of golden light shot into the sky, tearing through the night above Sunagakure at astonishing speed.
"It's Rasa!"
Chiyo and Ebizo exchanged a glance, then watched solemnly as the golden radiance approached.
Chiyo thought: Posturing again. I don't believe you dare make a move.
Ebizo thought: Has Sister's plan been exposed? Is Rasa striking first?
Clang—
Before their thoughts settled, a longsword formed from gold dust descended from the sky and embedded itself in the courtyard.
A figure slowly lowered from above, landing with one foot balanced atop the sword's hilt.
The night wind stirred, lifting his white robe trimmed with gold and his flowing hair.
He looked utterly composed, almost transcendent.
In this moment, he truly carried the bearing of an unrivaled sovereign.
"Oh? Isn't this Lord Golden Sand?"
Seeing his flamboyant appearance, Chiyo's anger flared again. She walked to a stone bench in the courtyard, sat down, and turned her head away.
"That's enough, Sister," Ebizo interjected hastily, then addressed Rasa. "Kazekage-sama, what brings you here so late?"
"Must there be a reason for me to visit the two esteemed elders?"
As he spoke, the golden sword silently dissolved into drifting sand, sinking into the earth.
Rasa stepped down lightly and walked straight to the stone bench beside Chiyo. He sat without hesitation, a faint smile on his lips.
"Am I unwelcome?"
"Wouldn't dare," Chiyo snorted. "For Lord Golden Sand to grace us with his presence—how could this mere elder fail to welcome you?"
Ebizo's eyelids twitched as he listened, but he dared not interrupt.
Times were different now.
Because of the war, Rasa held consolidated authority. Within the village, his word was law.
And even among elders, there were differences in standing.
With her seniority and reputation, Chiyo could speak freely without worrying about Rasa's face.
He could not.
At most, he could grumble privately to his sister.
"Elder Chiyo is too modest."
"Though I am Kazekage, I have never forgotten that Sunagakure's present standing rests upon the painstaking efforts and guidance of its past elders."
Rasa appeared unfazed by her undisguised sarcasm.
"Especially you, Elder Chiyo. Your virtue and experience are unparalleled. In many matters, I still require your instruction."
"Instruction?" Chiyo scoffed. "Go on then. I would very much like to know what this old woman could possibly teach Lord Golden Sand."
"There is much, in fact."
As he spoke, Rasa drew a scroll from his sleeve and handed it over.
"Take a look."
Chiyo accepted it suspiciously. After unrolling it, she formed a series of hand seals.
With the final seal, a loud bang echoed through the courtyard.
In an instant, the space around them was filled with stacks upon stacks of banknotes.
A rough estimate placed it at no less than two hundred million ryo.
"This…"
Ebizo stared in shock, unable to believe his eyes. Even Chiyo was briefly stunned.
And it wasn't over.
Rasa calmly produced four more scrolls and placed them on the table he had cleared with Magnet Release.
"A total of one billion ryo."
Chiyo's gaze darted between the money covering the ground, the four scrolls on the table, and the smile on Rasa's face. Her earlier momentum had vanished entirely.
"This… you… where did this come from?"
Rasa's smile widened.
"In any case," he said lightly, "it wasn't stolen."