Kageyama Kogetsu took the Hokage's official seal, stamped it, and signed his name. The treaty was made in duplicate, and each party kept a copy.
"Alright, it's settled. If you wish to leave, you may," Kageyama Kogetsu said, sitting back in a relaxed manner.
Chiyo was somewhat surprised. Half-joking, half-probing, she asked, "Are you so confident? Aren't you afraid we'll go back on our word later?"
Kageyama Kogetsu smiled. "Hehe... go back on your word?"
"Then don't blame me for being ruthless."
"I have already learned the Flying Thunder God Technique. I'll first infiltrate your Sunagakure and leave Flying Thunder God markings everywhere."
"Then, from time to time, I'll bring our village's Nine-Tails Jinchūriki to Sunagakure to drop a few Tailed Beast Bombs. I'd like to see how long your Sunagakure can hold out..."
Hearing this, the five of them's faces changed drastically, and their hearts trembled.
"To think the Flying Thunder God Technique would reappear in the ninja world. Konoha is truly fortunate," Chiyo said, her face displeased.
"Haha, I think so too," Kageyama Kogetsu laughed heartily.
Chiyo: "..."
What an arrogant fellow!
"One last question. I want to know who killed Rasa. Was it Orochimaru?" Chiyo asked seriously after taking a deep breath.
Baki, Temari, and Kankurō's attention was captured by this. Even Gaara glanced over from the corner of his eye.
"Oh, looking for revenge?" Kageyama Kogetsu asked with a half-smile.
"For the sake of the alliance between our two villages, Sunagakure dares not, nor will they, seek revenge."
"We just want to know the truth of our defeat," Chiyo said, suppressing the humiliation in her heart.
Hmm... it's not that they don't want to, or that they don't dare, but that they can't. Just like in the original story, when Uzuki Yūgao and the others had no way to seek revenge.
"It doesn't matter if you dare or not, or if you want to or not. If you dare to make a move, I'll just crush you."
"It's no harm in telling you. The one who did it was my woman, Pakura," Kageyama Kogetsu said casually, putting down his teacup, placing his hands on the back of the chair, and crossing his legs.
"It seems Konoha doesn't have a person by that name," Chiyo said with a frown.
"Who said she was from Konoha? The Scorch Release user Pakura. Has your Sunagakure forgotten its hero so quickly?" Kageyama Kogetsu mocked.
"How could that be? Pakura has been dead for over ten years, killed by Iwagakure," Chiyo said with a deep frown, half-believing, half-doubting.
"Is that so? Then why was she near Kirigakure when I saved her?"
"She was critically injured and dying at the time. If I hadn't saved her, she would have certainly died."
"Later, she told me that she was on a secret mission from the village to sign a peace treaty with Kirigakure, but was ambushed by them."
"That foolish head of hers thought for a long time before she finally understood Rasa's purpose."
"With her dead, Rasa not only consolidated his own power, avoiding the risk of being replaced, but also appeased Kirigakure, successfully signing a peace treaty and securing the political prestige to solidify his position as Kazekage."
"A good plan that kills multiple birds with one stone, just utterly despicable."
"Elder Chiyo, do you think it was right for Pakura to endure for over a decade before seeking revenge on Rasa?"
Chiyo's face was filled with sorrow, and her heart was filled with indignation.
Could she say it was wrong?
Choosing Rasa as the Fourth Kazekage back then was truly a mistake made by them old folks, leading to the two most outstanding individuals of Sunagakure at the time killing each other.
Now, one was killed, and the other had left. Sunagakure had gained nothing.
No, they had reaped retribution, bitter fruit, and decline.
"Father wouldn't be that kind of person..." Temari's face was pale as she muttered to herself.
Kankurō's pupils widened in disbelief, but he didn't dare to speak carelessly.
Gaara's brow furrowed, his dislike for his father growing a few degrees.
Although Baki was shocked, he didn't lose his composure, because he felt that given Rasa's character, he was capable of such a thing.
Kageyama Kogetsu's face was full of contempt. "What wouldn't a shadow who turns his own child into a tool and raises them with such a personality be capable of?"
"I... forget it, let's leave it at that."
Damn it, I almost let it slip that Naruto is also a Jinchūriki, a top secret...
"Sigh..." Chiyo let out a long sigh, then asked solemnly, "Lord Hokage, what do you think of making Pakura the Fifth Kazekage of Sunagakure?"
Kageyama Kogetsu gave a thumbs-up in praise. "As expected of the old and cunning Elder Chiyo. The older the ginger, the spicier it is. Your mind works fast."
"But I've already asked her. She is very satisfied with her current life and has no interest in being a Kazekage."
Chiyo still didn't give up. "But she still has students in the village. Her students look up to her as a role model and are very outstanding."
Hmm... no matter what the real situation is, just praise them.
"Just students, not her own children. If they can live, they live. If not, they can just die," Kageyama Kogetsu said with a slight frown.
This was unexpected for Chiyo. Logically, shouldn't he love the students for the teacher's sake?
Why did it seem like he was annoyed with Pakura's students?
"That's all. I have to deal with administrative affairs now. I won't see you out."
Kageyama Kogetsu ignored their reactions and stood up to walk to his desk.
Chiyo was in a bind. Helpless, she could only lead her people away.
Outside the Hokage Tower, Jiraiya was responsible for escorting Chiyo away.
Baki and the other three headed to the arena, because Temari had not yet been eliminated.
After her match was over, or if they were all eliminated, they would go to the prison. They would have to wait at least until Sunagakure issued a statement to the ninja world before they could be released.
...
That evening, Chiyo returned to Sunagakure and conveyed the results of the negotiations.
The high-ranking officials of Sunagakure's various departments were in an uproar. Chiyo debated with them all, criticizing the agitated officials until they were as meek as quails.
At her advanced age, she still had to come out and work. And the work involved humbling herself and being at the mercy of others.
The person she was bowing to was from Konoha, the village where Sakumo Hatake, the man who killed her son and daughter-in-law, was from.
If it weren't for the sake of Sunagakure's continuation, who would be willing to wade into these muddy waters?
The high-ranking officials of Sunagakure's various departments signed their names on the humiliating treaty and handed one of the copies to Jiraiya.
After finishing her business, Chiyo temporarily went into hiding, taking her brother Ebizō with her.
The two planned to wait until the Suna high-ranking officials had more or less appeased the emotions of the village's ninja before coming out to work again.
Otherwise, her lifetime of fame would not only be ruined, but she would also be nailed to the pillar of shame!
The Suna high-ranking officials braced themselves and announced the new treaty with Konoha, which naturally caused dissatisfaction among countless Suna ninja.
They released the grim news of the Fourth Kazekage's death, Sunagakure's heavy losses after infiltrating Konoha, the capture of Suna ninja, and the massing of Konoha's army on the border.
Then they promoted theories like "admit your mistakes and stand up straight to take your punishment," followed by the theory of "enduring humiliation for a greater purpose," and finally, they gave out various levels of mission subsidies.
The Suna high-ranking officials used every means at their disposal, racking their brains, to barely dissipate most of the dissatisfaction among the countless Suna ninja.
As Sunagakure announced the new treaty, the other hidden villages received the news one after another, and the entire ninja world was in an uproar.
Due to the information asymmetry, everyone felt that the Suna high-ranking officials had gone mad!
The high-ranking officials of the various villages racked their brains but couldn't figure out what Sunagakure could have possibly done to sign such a sovereign-stripping and humiliating treaty, and to have the audacity to announce its contents...
From now on, the ninja of the other four great villages would surely look down on the Suna ninja, and even the ninja of the smaller villages would look at them with strange eyes.
The most important thing was that this treaty would have a huge impact on the quantity and quality of their missions.
If the Land of Wind's government didn't fully support them, the already impoverished Sunagakure would go bankrupt before long.
At that point, they would either have to start a war to fight for a way out, or drastically reduce the number of ninja they trained.
If this continued for a long time, it was almost certain that Sunagakure would fall from the ranks of the five great ninja villages.
It wasn't until Konoha, after receiving the news, released the personnel from the various villages they had detained, and the other great villages received the news one after another, that they finally understood...
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