Two days later, inside Konoha's Hokage's Office.
The first thing Jiraiya and the others did upon returning to Konoha from Sound Village was report on their negotiations with Sound Village to the Hokage's Office.
"How did it go? Will Sound Village send troops?" Tsunade asked first.
Jiraiya said proudly, "They agreed. Sound Village's leader, Chiba Kishu, will personally lead the force. They set out shortly after we left Konoha. It was all thanks to me! Shikaku and I had to talk ourselves hoarse to convince him to send troops."
"Good. Once the reinforcements arrive, we'll enter the Land of Grass and confront Iwagakure." Ignoring his boasting, Tsunade slammed her palm onto the desk.
Shikaku asked, "Why did Iwagakure suddenly start a war against us? Weren't they recovering and rebuilding?"
At that, Tsunade gritted her teeth. "They claim we killed their Jinchuriki, Roshi. He defected on his own, yet they want to pin it on Konoha. Do they think I'm easy to bully? I had barely taken office, and they already launched a war against Konoha."
Hearing that reason, Shikaku could not help sinking into thought. That should not have been the case... Ōnoki was a shrewd old fox, the type who would never act without profit. Why would he start such a pointless war?
But for now, he could not figure out what was wrong.
Tsunade continued, "How is Sound Village? Is it necessary to maintain our alliance with them?"
Shikaku described everything he had seen and heard in Sound Village. What he had seen was a thriving village full of vitality.
Jiraiya also found a topic he could contribute to and kept going on about how developed the place was.
Jiraiya said wistfully, "It was a shame that everything there was good except there were too few establishments with