Chapter 117: Driving Away the Dove to Seize the Nest
"Who said anything about making you attack Amegakure?" The Third glanced at Rasa irritably.
Though just probing words, Rasa's spineless appearance still made the Third look down on him greatly.
This kind of person—how could he be ranked alongside him as a nation's Kage?
Rasa felt no shame at being despised. Instead, relieved by the Third's words, he urgently asked:
"Then what does Hokage-sama mean...?"
"Uchiha Yasushi!" The Third directly named him. "This rogue ninja is the root of all evil!"
"The shinobi world's current chaos is all because this rogue ninja is stirring up trouble."
"This person's crimes are heinous and unforgivable!"
"The Land of Wind needs to first kill this Uchiha Yasushi to make a peaceful example."
"I see!" Rasa suddenly understood, but he didn't immediately nod in agreement. Instead, his brow furrowed as he began considering the pros and cons.
Seeing Rasa's indecisive appearance, the Third was also quite displeased, but he still patiently continued:
"We're not asking Sunagakure to attack the Land of Rain. We only want you to hunt down a Konoha rogue ninja."
"Uchiha Yasushi is a rogue ninja. Anyone killing him is perfectly reasonable."
"The shinobi world is like this."
The Third spoke simply and straightforwardly, but Rasa's gaze toward him grew increasingly unfriendly. He said bluntly:
"That Uchiha Yasushi has now joined the Akatsuki organization. He's no longer an ordinary rogue ninja."
"If we hunt him, won't we anger the Akatsuki organization?"
"If this triggers war between our nations, how would that differ from directly attacking the Land of Rain?"
"Is Hokage-sama, skilled in political strategy, digging a pit for us here?"
"You..." The Third was so angry his beard stood up. He gripped his pipe forcefully, finally unable to restrain himself. He slammed the pipe heavily on the table, shouting loudly: "Have you ever seen any shinobi village start war over one shinobi's death?"
"Besides, that Land of Rain is just a tiny place. How could they possibly endure the consumption of two consecutive wars?"
"Um..." Seeing the Third explode, Rasa immediately wilted, awkwardly laughing: "You're right. I didn't think it through."
"Hmph!" The Third snorted coldly, saying: "Uchiha Yasushi only left here last night. There are still several days before he returns to the Land of Rain. You can take the opportunity to send people to intercept and kill him, preventing his return to the Land of Rain."
"As long as you do it cleanly and cover your tracks, who would know you killed him?"
"Moreover, you don't actually need to kill Uchiha Yasushi. As long as you can tie him down and keep him too busy to trouble us, that's already enough."
"Can you at least do this?"
"If Sunagakure can't even do this much, you don't deserve to be called one of the Five Great Nations!"
"Good!" Rasa immediately beamed. "Then it's settled. We'll keep watch on Uchiha Yasushi and absolutely won't let him come to Konoha again to interfere with your operations."
After the two agreed, Rasa immediately wrote a letter. Konoha sent someone to deliver it to Sunagakure's position, waiting for it to reach the Land of Wind where the Land of Wind's daimyo would make the final decision.
Meanwhile, on Uchiha Yasushi's side, the group headed toward the Land of Rain. But as Yasushi walked, he led them astray.
Several days later, Hiruko looked at the huge word "Grass" written on the village gate entrance, his face darkening.
"Didn't you say we were going to the Land of Rain? How did we end up in the Land of Grass?"
"Huh?" Yasushi looked surprised, pressing his hands against his face, flattening it. "Oh my, I'm actually directionally challenged! I led us the wrong way!"
"Hmph!" Hiruko snorted coldly, turning to leave. "Anyway, the Land of Grass borders the Land of Rain—not far. I'll go by myself. If you want to play around, stay here slowly."
"Don't say that! You'll hurt my feelings!" Yasushi stood in place unmoved, waving his arms, shouting dramatically: "To celebrate the Uchiha gaining a new clansman, I specially selected a gift for you."
"This is the target I carefully chose for you!"
"What?" Hiruko's heart jumped. Sure enough, his feet couldn't move. He turned abruptly, coming before Yasushi, growling quietly:
"You'd better not be lying to me, or else..."
"Relax, relax. Whether it's real or not, you'll know when you see." Yasushi smiled cheerfully, not taking Hiruko's anger seriously at all. "Let me tell you, Sage Body generally comes in two types. One is the Senju clan—now extinct."
"The other is the Uzumaki clan..." Saying this, Yasushi held up his palm vertically, the back of his hand blocking his mouth, creating a mysterious appearance as he said quietly: "The same clan as our Akatsuki organization's leader Nagato—the Uzumaki clan!"
"Since Uzushiogakure's destruction, the Uzumaki clan scattered like clouds, wandering who knows where. There shouldn't be many left alive."
"Coincidentally, one Uzumaki clansman ended up in the Land of Grass, where the locals use her as a medical supply."
"Tsk tsk, what a waste!"
Yasushi smacked his lips with a disdainful expression.
Hiruko ignored these details, treating it as another of his neurotic episodes. His full attention focused on the Sage Body as he strode toward the Land of Grass's gate.
"Since the person is here, we just need to sneak in, find their location, and snatch them away tonight, right?"
"Just like with Kakashi."
"No need to be so troublesome." Yasushi bounced along behind Hiruko, smiling cheerfully. "This Land of Grass is much weaker than Konoha. No need to wait for night—we'll just forcibly snatch them directly. I doubt the Land of Grass has anyone who can stop us."
"But let's be clear first—the big one's yours, the small one's mine. One each, fair and reasonable. Don't take more!"
"Hmph!" Hiruko snorted coldly. For the Sage Body's sake, he didn't argue with Yasushi. "As long as I get my share."
The current shinobi world war had engulfed all nations. The Land of Grass was naturally no exception.
Though they weren't qualified to participate in combat, the Land of Earth borrowed passage through their territory. The damage to the Land of Grass was no less than experiencing war directly.
Those Iwagakure shinobi were like a locust plague—plundering wherever they went. Yet this small nation didn't dare even protest, only pretending not to see.
Not only that, as a small nation, they had to provide the Land of Earth with supplies, medicine, and other strategic resources, making the Land of Grass's people suffer even more unbearably.
In this tense environment, two people wearing Akatsuki uniforms suddenly arriving naturally made the guards nervous.
Seeing the two from afar, the guards hastily sent someone to report to their leader, then nervously watched them approach, mustering courage to shout loudly:
"This is Kusagakure. What is the Akatsuki organization doing here?"
Yasushi let out a strange laugh. Without another word, he activated Susanoo, lifting that massive foot and stomping toward Kusagakure's gate.
"What are we doing? It's a Robbery! Hand over the beautiful girls!"
****
70+advance chapters at patreon.com/Eatinpieces