At an oasis, a man lazily lay on a hammock. Someone was massaging his back, another kneading his legs, while others handled his hands and arms. Even his mouth was taken care of, as someone fed him water through a straw.
Yet this man receiving nearly royal treatment showed no sign of joy—his face was filled with worry, dark circles under his eyes unusually noticeable, his malnourished appearance giving the immediate impression of weakness.
This man was Yamato, the Peace Envoy who had arrived at Sunagakure two-and-a-half years ago.
He wore a completely defeated expression, silently sobbing inside. When would this cursed mission ever end?
When he first arrived at Sunagakure, he had been flattered—receiving not only Kazekage's audience but also all of the village's top officials, which constituted an extraordinarily grand welcome.
After that came endless busyness—the so-called Oasis Plan proposed by Kazekage, with Yamato serving as its core.
For two and a half years straight, he'd poured himself into the project without rest. Naturally, in return, he enjoyed unparalleled privileges within Sunagakure Village—almost anything he requested was granted, except permission to return to Konoha.
Privately, Yamato had indeed tried different ways to get in touch. He attempted communicating with Kazekage numerous times, but the emotionless gaze behind Kazekage's mask always unnerved him—each time he left without saying a word. Later, he tried sending letters to Konoha requesting a replacement envoy, but these messages vanished like stones dropped into the sea.
By chance, he overheard some Suna ninja talking about the upcoming Chunin Exams, where Konoha would be sending contestants too. That was when a spark of hope ignited in his heart. Once this oasis project finished, he'd head back to Sunagakure and find whoever from Konoha was leading the delegation—he'd beg them to bring him home.
Thinking thus, Yamato immediately regained motivation. Suddenly standing up, he declared loudly: "I've rested enough. Everyone, let's get back to work and finish constructing this oasis as quickly as possible!"
The surrounding Suna ninja looked respectfully toward Yamato, responding in unison: "Yes sir."
Flying overhead, Anya caught sight of the scene below and was completely amazed. She hadn't expected Yamato to work this hard while stationed at Sunagakure. Just for this alone, upon returning to Konoha she must definitely praise him in front of Tsunade, maybe even suggest extending his stay here for a few more years.
If Yamato somehow learned of Anya's inner thoughts right now, he'd probably scream in frustration.
As Anya drew closer to Sunagakure, she couldn't help but marvel at the change. After two-and-a-half years' development, modern-day Sunagakure was nothing like its former dull, lifeless self—it had transformed entirely inside and out. The once sand-covered, drab yellow buildings were now bright white structures, each separated by wide roads arranged neatly and spaciously.
A massive ring-shaped highway encircled the entire village. Bridges and staircases crisscrossed the area, forming the veins and skeleton of the village, while cars slowly rolled along them.
Before Anya stretched this peculiar view—an image almost identical to a bustling city from her past life—which momentarily made her forget where exactly she stood.
"Big Brother Kurotsuchi, I sensed your arrival. Why don't you come inside?"
Scorpio arrived flying with an excited tone, clearly thrilled to reunite with Anya after more than two years.
Ever since sending that letter, Scorpio had been waiting. He knew the time had finally come — Zero Organization's plan was about to begin, and Anya would definitely show up.
Hearing Scorpio's voice, Anya snapped back to reality and let out a deep sigh. "Scorpio, you're truly a genius."
Looking at the current situation, Scorpio didn't seem particularly proud. He shrugged helplessly and said, "It's just money being thrown at it."
Anya shook his head in disagreement. "There are some things money can't buy. Your intellect and leadership are crucial. With enough time, Sunagakure Village could become the most prosperous village among the Five Great Countries."
Hearing Anya's sincere praise, Scorpio smiled. But soon, his expression turned serious. "Big Brother Kurotsuchi, to build the new Sunagakure, within less than three years, half the funds accumulated by the Organization over the years have already been spent. I checked the accounts and found the revenue from the Hot Springs Country stronghold very suspicious. Hanzo must have tampered with them."
Scorpio wasn't as sensitive to money as Kakuzu, but he was far from being easily fooled — especially since Hanzo's actions were too obvious. Over the years, as he aged, Hanzo's decline became increasingly apparent.
Anya spoke in a relaxed tone, "I know about the Hot Springs Country situation. No need to handle it for now. At least he helped me before, so let him be a parasite for a while longer."
Upon hearing this, Scorpio immediately understood. There must be a hidden reason for keeping Hanzo around, so he didn't continue pressing on this issue and instead brought up another matter.
"Yamato, he's indeed the secret weapon. Sunagakure's current development is primarily due to him. Unfortunately, there's only one of him, and his energy is limited. Sometimes when I see him, I even think about turning him into a Puppet."
Anya immediately dismissed this idea. "Don't. The difficulty of the Wood Release Experiment is far beyond your imagination. The Hidden Leaf Village poured tremendous efforts into this forbidden experiment, and in the end only he survived while all other test subjects died. The Wood Release Experiment was put on indefinite hold. Yamato still has potential for growth. I have other plans for him in the future, so I can't let you just turn him into a Puppet."
"Fine."
Seeing how highly Anya valued Yamato, Scorpio could only give up on that tempting idea.
"What about another person, Samiu? Do you still remember her?"
At the mention of this name, Scorpio's voice carried a trace of killing intent.
Anya asked curiously, "Is she that ninja Kumo sent me? What about her?"
"Hmph, ungrateful." Scorpio scoffed. "Since arriving at Sunagakure, she's constantly been gathering intelligence from Mabui. After obtaining this intelligence, she tried to escape multiple times. I've already had Mabui warn her, but it hasn't been very effective."
If Samiu weren't someone personally sent over by Anya, Scorpio would've already dealt with her.
"She's just a low-level ninja — is she even worth getting angry over?"
"Anya didn't really care. 'Even if she really escaped, the intelligence reports she holds won't change anything.'"
Sasori sighed. "Actually, what angers me is Mabui's attitude. I can sense that deep in her heart, she still considers Kumogakure as her own village, which is why she revealed so many secrets to fellow ninjas from her own village. She must realize how important this intelligence is."
Anya's eyes lit up slightly. She paused, then said, "You know, once the Shinobi World is gone and all villages are part of one big family, there won't be any need to draw lines anymore."
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