Chiyo's Desperate Gamble

Land of Wind, Medical Department.

Ebizo lay half-reclined on the hospital bed, enduring the pain as he instructed Chiyo.

"Konoha's foundations are still far stronger than ours. Hatake Sakumo poses too great a threat to our Puppet Masters; we cannot continue to confront him head-on. We must preserve the lineage of puppet techniques for the village."

Eyes reddened, Chiyo tightly gripped his hand and merely stared silently at her younger brother.

Ebizo sighed softly and forced himself to comfort her.

"You must keep your emotions under control. Sunagakure still needs your support. The Third Kazekage is not yet mature enough; he cannot grasp the direction Sunagakure Ninja should take."

"My injuries are nothing serious. Being wounded on the battlefield is simply a ninja's duty."

"All right, bring me a map of the current battlefield. We still need to guard against Konoha's counterattack."

Chiyo choked back a sob and said, "There is no need to worry. I have already made arrangements."

But Ebizo merely looked at Chiyo firmly, making it clear that he intended to keep working.

Chiyo sighed, rose to her feet, and quickly left the camp gates.

Watching his sister depart, Ebizo wore a bitter smile.

He took out a cigarette, held it between his lips, and barely managed two puffs, yet he could no longer exhale any smoke.

Dan Katō's Spirit Transformation Jutsu had already gravely injured his soul. In truth, he had been unconscious for two whole days.

His awakening now was merely a final flash before death.

Perhaps the Sage of Six Paths had taken pity on him and granted him one last chance to bid his family farewell.

Ebizo's mind grew increasingly clear. Scenes from his life flashed through his thoughts, finally stopping on the day he had officially joined forces with Hanzo.

Back then, he had still been leisurely smoking, naively imagining that after this war, Sunagakure would possess blue skies and green lands.

Ebizo looked at the cigarette in his hand, feeling his life slowly ebb away, and murmured unwillingly.

"I really want to finish this cigarette."

He had sent Chiyo away because he did not want her to see what he looked like when he died.

In his heart, a ninja's departure should be strong and unrestrained, not something that brought further pain to loved ones.

When Chiyo returned to the barracks and saw Ebizo with his eyes already closed, she was plunged into immense grief.

Chiyo remained silent and apologized to her younger brother in her heart.

"I'm sorry. This is the one and only time I won't listen to you. That damned Konoha must pay the price it deserves."

Chiyo found the Third Kazekage and proposed surrendering all of her authority, serving only as an idle Advisor from then on.

In exchange, she had only one request: deploy Sunagakure's Tailed Beast, Shukaku, and strike back at Konoha.

The Third Kazekage readily agreed. How could he possibly refuse such a good deal?

Ever since the Second Kazekage Shamon had begun researching the weaponization of Tailed Beasts, they had never truly tested its effects.

Not only could they test the military value of a Tailed Beast, they could also clear these troublesome old people out of Sunagakure's upper ranks.

For the Third Kazekage, it was simply killing two birds with one stone.

In fact, this was the first time in the Shinobi World War that the power of a Tailed Beast was about to be deployed. In past wars, it had only been ninja slaughtering one another.

Sunagakure was about to become the first village to open Pandora's box.

Land of Wind, Temple of Wind.

An old monk sat with his hands pressed together, murmuring softly while a young monk listened quietly beside him.

"One day, Tailed Beasts and humans will be able to understand one another. As long as we sincerely accept each other, there is no difference between us."

"One day, someone will appear to protect you, save you, and guide you, Shukaku."

The young monk was unconvinced and secretly curled his lip.

He did not agree with the old monk's view. In his eyes, Tailed Beasts were merely tools for gaining power.

This old monk was Bunpuku, Sunagakure's One-Tail Jinchuriki.

The young monk was his inheritor, Hōichi. In the original timeline, he was a powerful figure who could take on Gaara and the Seven-Tails Jinchuriki Fū alone.

At the old monk's words, a shrill Raccoon Dog voice came from within Bunpuku's body.

"Bunpuku, did you see that? Did you see the look on your disciple's face? He doesn't believe a word of that nonsense!"

Bunpuku merely smiled and shook his head, calmly looking at Shukaku within the spiritual space.

Seeing his tranquil expression, Shukaku snorted heavily and mocked him.

"Old man, your village is at war, isn't it? Do you think no human wants to use my power?"

"They will beg you, won't they? They will force you, won't they? I'll be waiting for you to beg me!"

Just as Shukaku's words fell, Chiyo rushed into the temple in a flurry and knelt heavily before Bunpuku.

Over the past few days, news of Ebizo's death and Chiyo's son's death had spread throughout all of Sunagakure.

Bunpuku remained as calm as an ancient well and said blandly, "I do not have the ability to control Shukaku. If he is unwilling to help Sunagakure, there is nothing I can do."

Chiyo remained kneeling, silently pleading with Bunpuku.

She understood that this old monk, whom barely anyone in Sunagakure even knew, possessed astonishing strength.

She had personally witnessed the shriveled old man before her easily restrain Shukaku with purple chains.

Sunagakure's higher-ups had tested him many times, hoping to determine whether he had completely mastered Shukaku's power.

But as a member of Sunagakure, Bunpuku possessed naive ideals he should not have had.

He wielded the might of a Tailed Beast and possessed exceptional strength himself, yet he was unwilling to go to the battlefield, merely remaining in the temple to guard Shukaku in silence.

Seeing Chiyo in such a humble state, Shukaku burst into wild laughter.

"See? This is human nature!"

"Tailed Beasts and humans can never coexist peacefully. That is just your fantasy! You humans will only use Tailed Beasts as weapons!"

Feeling Shukaku's resistance, Bunpuku sighed, rose to his feet, gave Chiyo a slight bow, and silently left.

Beside them, the monk Hōichi shook his head and complained inwardly.

Master is good in every way except that he does not understand how the ninja world works. Once I see him through his final years, I'll seize the power of these Tailed Beasts myself.

Shukaku watched Bunpuku refuse Chiyo. He fell silent, then revealed a vicious grin.

"Bunpuku, I will lend you my power. Go and kill. Then you will understand how fragile the peace and love humans speak of truly are."

Bunpuku smiled faintly. As an elder of Sunagakure, how could he not want to help the Sunagakure Ninja?

For a long time, a conflict had been tangled in his heart.

He wanted both to convince Shukaku that humans and Tailed Beasts could coexist peacefully and to use his power to protect Sunagakure.

What set Bunpuku apart from other Jinchuriki was that he had a peculiar bottom line: he did not wish to force Shukaku.

But now, although Shukaku did not agree with his beliefs, he had agreed to lend him his power. That was a good beginning.

Bunpuku returned, helped up Chiyo, who was still bowing her head to the ground, and gently nodded at her.

Chiyo looked at Bunpuku joyfully, tears spilling from her eyes without her realizing it.

She had not slept for a long time.

Her son's head had been severed in a single stroke by Hatake Sakumo. Her younger brother had died on a hospital bed, black blood flowing from him. Her grandson had also been crying constantly, searching for his father.

Those memories tore at her heart every moment. Chiyo was now a woman consumed by the flames of vengeance.

The Sunagakure Ninja forces assembled once more, and this time, Shukaku's power would march to war alongside them.