"Why do you have such deep hostility toward Kumogakure?"
"Are you the enemy of Kumogakure?"
Yugito could sense dissatisfaction and disdain toward Kumogakure in Gekko Chizan's words, which made her very curious. Although she wasn't officially a ninja of Kumogakure yet, that was only because she was still too young. As the Jinchūriki of the Two-Tails, she would definitely become a Kumogakure shinobi in the future—possibly even a central pillar of the village.
"Enemy? Yeah, I'm Kumogakure's enemy."
Just thinking about how the Fourth Raikage pursued him relentlessly—and about everything Gekko Chizan had done in the Land of Lightning—tsk, their relationship had long since frozen over.
"Kid, you're not a shinobi of Kumogakure right now, and you never will be."
"Stay behind me and behave. From now on, you're my student."
"I'll train you well, make you a perfect Jinchūriki. Don't even think about running away."
"Where could you possibly run to anyway?"
After finishing, Gekko Chizan laughed, grabbed Yugito again, and dashed quickly toward the Falls of Truth. Island Turtle also resumed moving.
...
Land of Lightning, Kumogakure.
"Bastards! When the hell did I rack up this much debt?!"
"These bastards must've seen that my old man died and are now trying to stir up trouble for Kumogakure!"
"Bee! Dodai! Don't hold me back—I'm gonna kill them!"
Inside Kumogakure's hospital, A—soon to become the Fourth Raikage—was hooked up to an IV and furious, radiating terrifying anger.
Bee and Dodai quickly held him down to keep him from getting agitated.
"Brother, calm down! There must be some mistake."
"There's no way you owe five hundred million ryō."
Killer Bee couldn't believe his older brother could owe anyone money—much less that much.
As the son of the Raikage, A never lacked money, and he himself was an elite jonin of Kumogakure. He had completed countless high-level missions and had savings he couldn't even finish spending. There was no reason for him to borrow money.
"Calm down first. Something's fishy about this. Judging from the dates on those IOUs, there's no way it was you."
"After all, back then we were fighting Konoha in the Land of Hot Water."
"My guess is someone used your name to borrow money in the Land of Lightning, and now the debt's been pinned on you."
Dodai, using his one remaining arm, pressed A down while analyzing the situation.
Clearly, Dodai's words calmed A slightly—but only slightly.
"Bastard! If I find out who did this, I'll twist their damn head off!"
"Dodai, where are those debt collectors?"
Dodai and Bee exchanged glances and sighed helplessly.
"They're still in the village. We still need to handle this, or it'll seriously damage Kumogakure's reputation."
"But since the Third Raikage just passed away, they won't make any reckless moves. Causing a disturbance now won't do them any good either."
A gradually calmed down, though his face was still trembling with rage.
In the end, he made a decision.
"I still have a hundred million ryō in savings. Go give that to them. As for the rest, we'll deal with it later."
"Let's get through the old man's funeral first!"
"If they dare cause more trouble, even if our reputation gets ruined, I'll still take them out!"
Dodai nodded at that, then gave A an encouraging look.
"I don't have as much money as you, but I've got fifty million ryō. I don't need it—just take it."
"Bee, you're exempt. You haven't been a shinobi for long, so I'm guessing your savings aren't much."
Dodai's comment made Killer Bee a little embarrassed.
But it was true—Bee really didn't have much saved up.
"Bee! Once this is over, head to the Valley of Clouds and Lightning to train. We've already lost the initiative in this war, but next time, I'll make sure Iwagakure and Konoha regret it!"
"Right—Dodai, send Yugito to the Valley of Clouds and Lightning too."
"She's a Jinchūriki—she has to train hard!"
"Also, summon Island Turtle back. Afterward, let Bee and Yugito train there."
Although A hadn't officially become the Raikage yet, the entire village recognized him as the Fourth Raikage. No one would oppose it.
So he was already beginning to handle follow-up matters.
Dodai had no objections and nodded before going to make the arrangements.
Killer Bee furrowed his brow slightly upon hearing all this, but said nothing. He understood the bitterness and anger in his brother's heart, so he didn't refuse.
Besides, this battle had made him realize his own shortcomings. Maybe a period of training really would do him good.
...
At the same time, in Konohagakure, Land of Fire.
Root Headquarters.
"What? You didn't find Chizan-kun?"
"Danzo, are your men slacking off?"
Orochimaru looked very displeased. Across from him, Danzo's expression also changed upon hearing that.
"Hmph, my subordinates are all carefully trained. Every one of them is experienced and capable."
"According to the intel, Gekko Chizan went to the Land of Lightning. He didn't return to the village with Tsunade's forces."
"If you don't believe me, Tsunade's already back. You can go ask her yourself."
With that, Danzo turned and left.
Recently, Orochimaru's experiments had been progressing rapidly. He had gained a preliminary grasp on cultivating and transplanting Hashirama's cells, so Danzo didn't want to fall out with him just yet.
"Hmph!"
Watching Danzo leave, Orochimaru snorted coldly and disappeared using the Body Flicker Technique.
He began searching for Tsunade within the village, and quickly found her at a tavern.
"Oh? Orochimaru?"
"What? Heard I'm back and came to buy me a drink?"
Tsunade had just sat down to eat when Orochimaru appeared, prompting her to tease him.
"Tsunade, where did Chizan-kun go?"
"Why didn't he return with the rest?"
Orochimaru got straight to the point without wasting any time.
"That disciple of yours? He went to the Land of Lightning."
"The situation was intense at the time. The kid was sent to the Land of Fields to scout enemy activity."
"Along the way, he ran into a Kumogakure intel squad that was also heading to the Land of Fields. After successfully intercepting them, he headed straight for the Land of Lightning."
Tsunade casually pulled out a letter that Gekko Chizan had previously sent her. She had kept it all along in case someone asked about his whereabouts.
Orochimaru took it without a word. From the handwriting alone, he could confirm it was indeed Gekko Chizan's.
"That kid… What's he doing in the Land of Lightning..."
"Tsunade, how did he send the letter? Summoning Technique?"
Suddenly, Orochimaru asked how Gekko Chizan had sent the message.
Tsunade looked at him, a teasing smile appearing at the corner of her lips.
"Well, well... Orochimaru."
"Ever since Nawaki died, this is the first time I've seen you care about someone this much..."
"Seems like that brat really does have something special..."
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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