After the Third Kazekage received the letter from'Shindai', he immediately sent a Ninja to call Ebizo and Chiyo for a discussion.
After Ebizo and Chiyo arrived at the Kazekage Building, Chiyo asked, "Sandaime, is there something urgent that you called us so hastily for?"
The Third Kazekage handed the letter from'Shindai' to Chiyo and Ebizo.
After reading the contents of the letter, Chiyo and Ebizo immediately became very serious.
Ebizo asked, "Is this letter from the Ninja you sent to Konoha as an undercover agent, Sandaime?"
The Third Kazekage nodded, "That's right. What do you two Advisors think about this letter?"
Chiyo cautiously asked, "Is there a possibility that this intelligence is false? For example, did your undercover agent hear false information, Sandaime? After all, the possibility of Iwagakure and Konoha cooperating is not very high."
The Third Kazekage took out another letter and handed it to Chiyo and Ebizo: "This letter arrived the day before yesterday. It's from Ōnoki. He wants to use the pretext of Konoha seizing a Magnet Release Bloodline Limit Ninja to make a move against Konoha.
Ōnoki hopes to join forces with our Hidden Sand Village. When he makes his move against Konoha, our Hidden Sand Village should immediately respond, and then jointly attack Konoha. To show his sincerity, Ōnoki will send us a batch of military supplies.
However, I don't quite trust that cunning old fox Ōnoki. I planned to tell you about this after his military supplies arrived at the Hidden Sand Village."
Ebizo picked up both letters and observed them carefully.
Ebizo analyzed gravely, "Based on these two letters alone, we cannot determine which one is true. However, comparatively, I am more inclined to believe the information our undercover agent obtained.
Firstly, the relationship between Iwagakure and the Hidden Cloud Village is very poor. Although Ōnoki covets Konoha's resources greatly, if Hiruzen Sarutobi actively cooperates with Ōnoki and promises benefits, there is indeed a certain possibility of cooperation between them.
And if they cooperate, then our Hidden Sand Village, located behind them, would be a major concern for them. They would worry that we might launch a surprise attack when they send Ninja troops to attack the Hidden Cloud Village.
Therefore, the possibility of luring us out, severely damaging us, and making us withdraw from this war directly is still very high."
The Third Kazekage angrily slammed his hand on the table.
This Ōnoki truly lacks martial virtue; he actually plans to deceive their Hidden Sand Village and wants to ambush them.
Although they had also deceived Iwagakure before, that Magnet Release Bloodline Limit Ninja was not given to them, but if it wasn't discovered, it didn't count as deception!
Just as the Third Kazekage was about to say something, Ebizo interrupted him.
Ebizo continued, "Sandaime, I know you're anxious, but don't be in a hurry, because this is currently just speculation. After all, it's also possible that our undercover agent received incorrect information, and Ōnoki might genuinely want to cooperate with us to attack Konoha."
Ebizo's sudden pause made the Third Kazekage unsure whether to be angry or not about Ōnoki.
In terms of fighting, the Third Kazekage was a professional.
But in terms of strategy, ten of him couldn't compare to Ebizo.
The Third Kazekage, who had a clear understanding of his own intelligence, humbly asked, "Then, in Advisor Ebizo's opinion, what should our Hidden Sand Village do?"
Ebizo pondered in silence, while Chiyo took a sip of tea. Such matters, she thought, could be left to her younger brother to figure out, as she wasn't skilled in them.
After a while, Ebizo spoke, "The war has not officially begun yet, and we absolutely cannot make mistakes. So, whether Ōnoki's intention to cooperate with us is genuine or false, we cannot cooperate with Ōnoki.
If Ōnoki wants to send supplies, we will accept them all. Whatever Ōnoki wants to say, let him say it; he won't send Ninja troops into the Land of Wind to attack us. Ōnoki will just have to swallow this loss.
However, we can't let Konoha be too comfortable either. If our undercover intelligence is wrong and Ōnoki genuinely wants to cooperate with us, then Konoha would have survived a crisis.
Sandaime, write a letter to Konoha now, stating that Iwagakure wants to cooperate with the Hidden Sand Village, but we do not wish to break our alliance treaty with Konoha. Therefore, we refused a batch of promised military supplies from Iwagakure, and then specifically mention the matter of Shindai."
The Third Kazekage immediately understood Ebizo's intention: "Advisor Ebizo, you mean to extort a batch of military supplies from Konoha as well, right?"
Ebizo nodded, "That's right. Because if we cooperate with Iwagakure, it would be a disaster for Konoha. So, Konoha will definitely provide this batch of military supplies, paying a price to resolve a crisis, which is very cost-effective for Konoha.
And if Konoha plans to cooperate with Iwagakure, as long as we don't fall for it, they will have no way to deal with us, and this matter will simply fade away. To prevent us from actively attacking Konoha after learning about this, Konoha will also have to produce a batch of military supplies to silence us.
Moreover, it is a fact that Konoha seized the Magnet Release Bloodline Limit that we had originally promised to Iwagakure, so they are not in the right.
Therefore, no matter what, Konoha must provide us with this batch of military supplies."
At this moment, Chiyo, who had been silent for a long time, spoke, "No matter what Iwagakure and Konoha are planning, we will benefit, and our Hidden Sand Village will be in an absolutely safe position. This is indeed a good method. Since the war has not begun yet, if we make a mistake, we will lose our competitiveness when the war starts.
So, Sandaime, I think Ebizo's proposal is very good, and you should consider it carefully."
The Third Kazekage tapped his fingers on the table, deep in thought.
Ebizo's proposal was indeed excellent. No matter what schemes Iwagakure and Konoha had, they would be safe and receive two sets of supplies for free.
Moreover, the Third Kazekage still largely trusted Shindai's intelligence.
After all, Shindai's last letter said that he had completely gained Minato Namikaze's trust, and Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, also had no doubts about his identity. He was now trying to gain Jiraiya's trust, and his undercover mission was proceeding very smoothly.
Therefore, the intelligence Shindai heard was most likely true.
What a cunning Ōnoki.
And to use Shindai as a pretext to make a move against Konoha?
He didn't even bother to check if Shindai was working for them, just shamelessly clamoring!
The Third Kazekage immediately wrote a letter and sent five Hidden Sand Ninja to deliver it personally.
After the matter was settled, the Third Kazekage let out a long sigh of relief.
Fortunately, Shindai's intelligence arrived in time. Otherwise, if Iwagakure's supplies had arrived, he might really have cooperated with Ōnoki and jointly attacked Konoha.
If Iwagakure and Konoha had truly cooperated and intended to lure them out and severely damage them, then a major disaster would have occurred.
The Third Kazekage now felt more and more that sending Shindai to Konoha as an undercover agent was a very correct choice.
Next, all he had to do was wait for the military supplies from Iwagakure and Konoha to arrive.
Earning something for free was always sweet!