Deidara rubbed his ears and turned to Konan: "Hey, Senior Konan, is there really nothing wrong with my ears?"
"There shouldn't be."
Konan rubbed her forehead.
"Hahahahaha, are you trying to make me laugh?"
Deidara clutched his stomach, laughing wildly as he slapped the ground: "Those idiots from the Hidden Sand Village and Konoha actually let Uehara help them retrieve the Kazekage. That guy Uehara was the one who directly destroyed the Hidden Sand Village!"
"Shut up, idiot!"
Even Sasori of the Red Sand couldn't help but cover his forehead. The fact that his hometown had such a group of idiotic fools made him feel a bit embarrassed.
"No wonder he's a disciple of Senior Konan!"
Hoshigaki Kisame grinned, revealing his full set of shark teeth, and lightly chuckled as he praised: "To be able to infiltrate the Five Great Countries and even gain their trust."
"Indeed."
Hozuki Mangetsu also chimed in to praise: "It's really terrifying! He's only a year younger than me and yet so outstanding..."
"Yeah! Yeah!"
Ringo Ameyuri also echoed from the side.
Uehara Naraku glanced speechlessly at the three of them. These three were his loyal subordinates, always seizing any opportunity to praise him.
Praise for what?
What do they take him for?
Do they need to praise such a trivial matter?
Konan no longer paid attention to the others, but turned to Uehara Naraku and said: "Naraku, the Copy Ninja Hatake Kakashi from Konoha and Temari from the Hidden Sand Village are still waiting outside the Hidden Rain Village to see you. It seems they are quite anxious."
That's a given.
The Fifth Kazekage was captured. Of course, they'd be anxious. If one day Uehara Naraku were captured, Konan and Nagato would definitely be frantic too!
Uehara Naraku slowly stood up and sighed: "Alright, Lord Pain, could you help tidy up the Fifth Kazekage Gaara's body? We might need it in a few days!"
Gaara's body still had some value.
It could just be used for Uehara Naraku to properly set up what a legitimate Kazekage Retrieval Battle should be. This time, he definitely can't let Sasori go face his grandmother only to die.
Sasori was way too lenient last time.
Last time at the Hidden Sand Village, the puppets controlled by his Hundred Puppeteering were beaten to smithereens by the Chikamatsu Collection of Ten Puppets. He'd have to request extra funding to make new puppets.
He could slack off more than anyone in a fight.
Yet demand more funds than anyone for experiments.
After Uehara Naraku left, Uchiha Sasuke couldn't help but clench his fist and, lowering his head, cursed under his breath: "Damn Kakashi!"
Uchiha Itachi, who had been watching Sasuke closely, couldn't help but furrow his brow; he was genuinely a bit worried.
Even though Uchiha Itachi himself infiltrated the Akatsuki, Uehara Naraku had also infiltrated the Five Great Countries.
This situation...
This is a spy exchange.
The problem is, Uchiha Itachi's superiors are all dead, even Shimura Danzo and Sarutobi Hiruzen, who knew the truth.
As for Uehara Naraku.
He himself is the superior spy.
Outside the Hidden Rain Village.
Ajisai, who was responsible for patrolling and guarding the entrance of the village, prohibited Hatake Kakashi and Temari from entering and only prepared a resting place for them.
When Uehara Naraku arrived at the entrance, Hatake Kakashi and Temari were each holding a cup of hot water, staring blankly at the pouring rain of the Hidden Rain Village.
Uehara Naraku casually walked up to Kakashi and extended his hand, his face showing an awkward smile: "I'm sorry, Mr. Kakashi, recently Lord Hanzo has been frequently attacked by assassins, so he ordered to prohibit outsiders from entering the Hidden Rain Village..."
"..."
Ajisai stared blankly at Uehara Naraku.
How could this guy lie to others so nonchalantly?
Considering the environment of the Hidden Rain Village, Hanzo's remains are probably decomposed, yet Uehara Naraku still kept mentioning Hanzo at every turn...
"Uh, we understand."
Hatake Kakashi nodded to show his understanding.
After all, Hanzo of the Salamander is a long-renowned Ninja Demigod; in his own village, couldn't he issue whatever command he wanted to?
Uehara Naraku turned his head to glance at Temari, a sorrowful expression crossing his face: "Our Hidden Rain Village has always been searching for traces of the Akatsuki. We've received information about the Hidden Sand Village, and we express our sincere condolences over the tragedy in your country.
The Akatsuki is the enemy of the entire Ninja World. We do not collude with the Akatsuki, and we absolutely won't take advantage of others' misfortunes to wage war. In fact, if possible, I personally am willing to go to the Hidden Sand Village to assist in your reconstruction efforts."
"Thank you, we truly appreciate it."
Temari shook Uehara Naraku's hand, and finally, a hint of relaxation appeared on her face.
Temari wasn't too keen on coming to the Hidden Rain Village.
After all, the Hidden Rain Village is a neighbor to the Hidden Sand Village, the most likely enemy to invade the Land of Wind. Moreover, Uehara Naraku was the one who killed her father...
Now, with Uehara Naraku openly acknowledging this in front of Hatake Kakashi, at least it put the Hidden Sand Village's mind at ease, alleviating worries about a potential extra war.
Hatake Kakashi also breathed a sigh of relief.
To track down the Akatsuki and locate the whereabouts of Kazekage Gaara, they were in great need of the knowledge held by the Hidden Rain Village, the village most familiar with the Akatsuki. However, the Hidden Rain Village and the Hidden Sand Village had serious conflicts...
Now, the Hidden Rain Village's willingness to let bygones be bygones, put aside their grudges with the Hidden Sand Village, and even cooperate with them, is undoubtedly good news.