Pakura of the Scorch Release was a valuable asset, no doubt, but she was also an elite jonin fiercely loyal to Sunagakure. Turning her was all but impossible. There was no sense in holding her captive against her will, but that didn't mean her ransom would come cheap.
Besides, Chiyo was still in Konoha's hands. If Rasa dared to renege on their deal, Konoha could simply follow through on their threat. The elder's mind was a trove of Suna's secrets and vital intelligence, even if breaking her seals by force meant losing some of that information, it was far better than getting nothing at all.
Of course, Takeshi had another contingency in place. He had quietly placed a Jutsu on both Pakura and Rasa earlier. If Sunagakure truly went back on their word, he and Minato could work together to slip into the Suna encampment and extract the Fourth Kazekage and his top jonin without anyone being the wiser.
The Flying Thunder God was extremely effective for kidnapping.
"We won't forget," one of the Suna ninja said, his voice strained. They couldn't move fast enough to get their people and leave.
They had no choice. Before the fight, they might have thought the cat was kind of cute, oversized pet. But now? That thing was a monster. They fled as soon as they could. The Suna ninja had been thoroughly beaten into submission. A creature that could single-handedly subdue a Tailed Beast was not something they could ever afford to provoke again.
'Then again,' one of them thought, trying to salvage a sliver of pride, 'that cat is an officially registered Konoha Jonin. He doesn't really count as a ninja beast, does he?'
The idea seemed to offer some small comfort. At least they hadn't lost to a mere animal. They had been properly defeated by a powerful Jonin of the Leaf, which was a far more respectable outcome.
Once they were gone, the immediate crisis on Konoha's side was over. But as Takeshi watched everyone begin the grim task of cleaning up the battlefield, his mood soured. The thought of tallying his own achievements in this war felt hollow.
So many people had died, and some of those deaths felt connected to him. They had died holding back Suna reinforcements, buying him the time he needed. Without them, he never would have been able to fight Shukaku so recklessly or take down Pakura. After all, the Suna ninja were notorious for their poisons, and his Needle Jizo offered no protection against that.
"Takeshi," Rin said softly, tilting her head. "People die in war. That's just how it is. If you hadn't stopped Shukaku, so many more of us would have been lost. You don't need to blame yourself. If you still feel guilty... then the best thing we can do is work together to end this war as quickly as possible."
"Meow..." Logically, he knew she was right. He understood the reasoning perfectly. But understanding something in your head and feeling it in your heart were two very different things.
"Come on," Rin said, gently patting the black cat's head. She forced a bit of cheerfulness into her voice and broke into a light jog toward Tsunade. "Let's go find Tsunade-sama."
War was a heavy burden, but Takeshi's presence had undeniably shortened this conflict. In less than a year, Kumogakure, Kirigakure, and now Sunagakure had all but surrendered. Only Iwagakure remained, still fighting Konoha and Kumo in the north. Once they focused their full strength on Onoki, the war would finally be over.
They found Tsunade on a high bluff just outside the main camp, a position that offered a perfect top-down view of the battlefield. She had been observing the entire engagement from here.
"Hahaha... So? How was my performance just now?" she asked, looking immensely pleased with herself. For that final, desperate act, she had drawn on all the psychological insight she'd gained during her years of hemophobia, combining it with the flawless physical control of her medical ninjutsu. The result had been a perfect deception.
"Meow, meow!" Takeshi had to admit, it was impressive. He applauded with his front paws, and Rin, her eyes wide with admiration, adorably joined in. The gesture greatly satisfied Tsunade's dramatic flair.
Minato couldn't help but smile. He'd never realized Tsunade had such a childish side. Still, a flicker of concern crossed his face. "Tsunade-sama, do you really think Rasa will sell intelligence to Onoki?"
"According to our intel, the Land of Wind is planning to cut Sunagakure's funding," Tsunade explained. "To keep his village from being eliminated, Rasa has to keep the news of Shukaku's 'death' a secret. As long as our demands don't bankrupt him completely, he'll agree. A man that desperate would sell the shirt off his back. Selling out Iwagakure will be easy for him. That bastard has no integrity." She chuckled. "Speaking of which, I have you two to thank for this."
She was right. If Takeshi hadn't made that brilliant play to push Rasa toward Bunpuku at just the right moment, and if Minato hadn't been a fraction too slow in releasing the seal, Suna's losses wouldn't have been nearly so devastating. The situation was now overwhelmingly in Konoha's favor. Sunagakure would be crippled for at least a decade. They wouldn't just be in no position to backstab Konoha, they'd be lucky to maintain their own village's mission quotas.
Takeshi and Minato exchanged a glance, and both sheepishly scratched their heads.
To be honest, Takeshi hadn't been thinking that far ahead. His main goal had been to extort an anxious Rasa and farm some points in the process. He'd only let the Kazekage pass when he heard Minato's sudden shout.
As for the jinchuriki's death... the man had wanted to die. Who was there to blame? A person whose life force was all but gone was sustained by a single, final breath. When Bunpuku chose to let that breath go, death followed instantly. Minato's slight delay had simply been a masterful, if unintentional, touch.
Thinking about it, Takeshi couldn't help but look at Minato. "My only plan was to mess with him," he meowed. "Minato-sensei, you're the truly cunning one here."
"No, I'm not..." Minato started to protest, but neither Takeshi nor Tsunade looked convinced. Their expressions were full of knowing mockery.
"Uh, alright," Minato confessed, unable to keep up the pretense. "I was a bit slow at the end. But it wasn't to screw Rasa over, it was because..."
He explained the truth. Bunpuku's condition had shaken him. For a moment, all he could think about was Kushina, and in that instant of distraction, his hand had slipped. He never expected Bunpuku to die in the very next second.
None of them had had time to think it through as thoroughly as Tsunade was now claiming. It had mostly come down to guts. Tsunade had always been incredibly bold, she was the type to act first and take responsibility later. It was the same reason she never used ninja tactics to pay off her gambling debts. She just ran from them. As for actually paying them back... well, she didn't have the money for that, did she?
"Meow... I'm going to take a nap. I'm exhausted," Takeshi announced with a long stretch. Using the Sage Art: Gate of the Great God at full power had consumed too much of his Sage Chakra. He felt completely drained and wanted nothing more than to curl up and sleep.
But Tsunade wasn't about to let him go just yet. She scooped him up, her voice a mix of seriousness and excitement. "That Sage Art you used... the Gate of the Great God. Have you perfected it?"
"Meow! It seems to work on Shukaku, for now," Takeshi replied with a lazy nod. "I'm not sure if it's perfected, though."
"Take your time with it," Tsunade said, already carrying herself with the authority of a Hokage. "Minato, I want you to have Kushina teach Takeshi everything she knows about the Uzumaki clan's sealing jutsu."
"No problem," Minato agreed. Since Kanna of the Uzumaki was already with Takeshi, teaching him their clan's techniques as well didn't seem like much of a stretch.
"If Takeshi can truly recreate the Sage Art: Gate of the Great God," Tsunade continued, her eyes alight with excitement, "Konoha will once again have the power to deter the other villages jinchuriki. They won't be so quick to move against us then."
Tsunade was thrilled, imagining she had played a part in developing a jutsu worthy of her grandfather. If Takeshi could have read her mind, he probably would have scoffed.
'She thinks she's seeing her grandfather's legacy,' he thought wryly. 'And she has no idea I was acting, too. Now that's a performance.'
"Alright, let's go," Tsunade said, dusting off her clothes. "The show is over. We can't let Konoha's little hero get too tired."
Everything was settled. Now it was time to tend to the wounded. There was no time to linger.
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