Covenant Between the Lands of Wind and Earth

Yichen thought for a moment and said, "Zero, ask the Kazekage. Did Pakura disregard the alliance and launch a preemptive attack on my Iwagakure branch on the orders of the Kazekage? Does the Kazekage want to start a war?"

"If the Kazekage intends to start a war, then we will accept it. If the Kazekage does not intend to break the alliance, then we Iwa ninja are willing to continue to maintain good relations with Sunagakure."

"However, this time, Pakura attacked our Iwagakure with Ninjutsu surpassing S-rank, resulting in the deaths of over a hundred ninjas, including many Elite Jonin and Jonin. We hope that Sunagakure can consider covering the compensation for these ninjas."

"Because Pakura deliberately chose the central area of our branch to unleash her large- Area of Effect Ninjutsu, she destroyed the branch we had just spent a lot of money building. We hope that the Sunagakure can provide some Puppet Technique to help us speed up the reconstruction of our branch."

"Furthermore, tell the Kazekage that the Iwagakure Iwa ninja not break the alliance agreement. To express our stance, we plan to hold another Joint Chunin Exams. Please support us, Kazekage, and remember to send a talented Sunagakure Genin participate."

"We hope that Sunagakure will produce another genius like Ryosuke and win the Ninja Exams again. At that time, we can also discuss matters concerning deeper cooperation between the two villages and the two countries."

"At the same time, to demonstrate our Iwa ninja's determination to uphold the alliance, I suggest that during the breaks in the Chunin Ninja Exams, we hold some reasonable sparring sessions, giving both sides' Chunin and even Jonin an opportunity to compete against ninjas of the same level, so that we can improve together."

"Finally, I've heard that Elder Chiyo of your village possesses a Ninjutsu that can revive the dead. Since Pakura has killed so many of our ninjas, I'd like to try and see if I can bring them back. Please Kazekage, grant me this opportunity."

"As for the suggestion of exchanging Pakura, Lord Kazekage is being too polite. After the Chunin Ninja Exams, Lord Kazekage can simply take her back. Given our alliance, there's no need for such formalities. Let's not mention any exchange conditions again."

Deep:...

Ban:...

Ikura:...

Tomoko:...

Kawakita:...

Zero:...

Two Tsuchikage Assistant:...

Everyone looked at Yichen with disbelief. It turns out I still don't understand Lord Tsuchikage!

We originally lived on the first floor, but they wanted us to live closer, so they practically moved us to the second floor. We thought that way, you could at least hear some of our noise from the third floor. But today we realized that you take the elevator to the upper floors every day, so we have no idea which floor you live on.

Only Kitsuchi opened his mouth, as if everyone's requests had been fulfilled, except for me, who remained silent. Should I have made a request too? Is it too late now? Why do I feel like I've been taken advantage of?

"Is there anything else to add?" Yichen asked. Seeing that no one reacted, he said, "Then let's adjourn the meeting. Ling, thank you for making another trip to the border."

Zero swallowed hard and said, "It's not hard at all, not hard at all!"

Yichen nodded in satisfaction, then leisurely left the office.

Yichen was currently engrossed in practicing Wind Release techniques and had no time to argue with Rasa. After leaving the matter to Zero, he went straight to the Training Ground to train.

Meanwhile, within the Iwa ninja Anbu, a research project was underway, focusing on the Scorch Release Kekkei Genkai. The main researchers were Nakata Hajime, the head of the Medical Department, and several Anbu ninjas specializing in biological experiments.

Another important advisor to the research team was Ogura Saki. As a fellow Bloodline Ninja with both Fenghuo attributes Ogura Saki was the best reference point for studying Pakura's Scorch Release.

Ogura Saki also wanted to accelerate and deepen her development of Flame Release through research on Scorch Release.

Not far from the Scorch Release research group, there was a completely enclosed interrogation room where the Sand shinobi was being Interrogation.

The Sunagakure and the Iwa ninja are now allies, Pakura is to be returned, so Yichen can't go too far; taking advantage of her unconsciousness to draw blood from her tube is enough. However, the two who were captured with Pakura can be treated as dead; even the Sunagakure doesn't know whether they are alive or dead.

So once the two were brought to the Iwa Ninja Anbu, they began to be subjected to various Interrogation. In any case, Yichen had no intention of letting the two return to Sunagakure alive. As long as he could obtain information, he didn't care whether the Anbu maimed or killed them.

The Iwagakure didn't pay much attention to the Earth Release ninja, but this Sand shinobi was different. The Iwagakure didn't have Sand Manipulation Technique; it was a secret technique of the Sunagakure.

Yichen's Porcelain Release is somewhat similar to Sand Manipulation Technique, but that's a bloodline limit and can't be learned. Sand Manipulation Technique, on the other hand, is a secret technique and can be learned.

Of course, this person must have a seal in their mind to protect the secret technique from being leaked, so it is necessary to use methods such as Interrogation and Genjutsu to make the other party despair and become confused, so that they will tell you on their own.

Of course, no one can guarantee whether it will be effective, after all, the other party is also a qualified ninja, an excellent ninja who is willing to take the initiative to cover Pakura's retreat.

Anbu Captain completed his mission smoothly. With his weakness exploited, Rasa readily agreed to Yichen's conditions without any intention of bargaining.

Furthermore, Rasa stated that during the Joint Chunin Exams, he would have the Sunagakure Village teams bring everything they needed.

Of all those who heard the news, Kitsuchi was the most upset, feeling that he had lost at least a small amount of money.

The fact that the Sunagakure are going to participate in the Joint Chunin Exams held by the Iwagakure once again has caused a sensation.

Because those who knew about Pakura's capture were all high-ranking officials or Anbu from Iwagakure and Sunagakure, the other ninja villages were completely unaware of the reasons behind it and were utterly baffled.

In Konoha, even Tsunade, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Koharu Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, and the newly appointed Jonin Squad Leader Shikaku Nara couldn't understand the reason at the High-Level Meeting.

Despite the Sunagakure's growing strength over the past two years and the many policies of the Sunagakure being designed to exclude the Iwa ninja, why did Rasa suddenly change his mind?

Only one person obtained firsthand information that no one else had, and that person was none other than our Lord Danzō.

"Hiruzen, Tsunade, your Anbu are utterly incompetent! So much time has passed, and you haven't even gotten a single piece of information!"

"The Anbu's current training system is flawed, and their performance has been declining in recent years. The Anbu has lost its ability to deter other ninja villages. Let's hand the Anbu over to Root for training; training the Anbu is Root's responsibility."

Snap!

Tsunade on the conference table and roared, "Danzo, what are you saying?"

Danzo stared intently at Hiruzen Sarutobi, not even glancing at Tsunade, and tossed out a scroll, saying, "This is intelligence obtained by Root."

Hiruzen Sarutobi frowned and asked, "How did you obtain this information?"

"Hiruzen, there's no point in discussing these things. A ninja's role is to complete missions. As for the methods and means, we don't need to concern ourselves with them." Danzo didn't give Hiruzen Sarutobi any chance to let his suspicions take root.

Hiruzen Sarutobi a drag of his cigarette and said, "Alright then, let's analyze the intelligence first."

He then opened the intelligence report and read it aloud to everyone.

Tsunade could only grit her teeth and sit down. Danzo had come prepared this Danzo, so she had to suppress all her dissatisfaction.

"The Iwa ninja captured the Scorching Style User Pakura?" Shikaku Nara somewhat surprised after hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's report.

In recent years, due to Yichen's meddling, several Kage Level warriors have died in battle, but as far as Shikaku Nara knows, there haven't been any captured since the ninja village was established.

Tsunade asked Shikaku Nara, "Shikaku, do you think this information is credible?"

This time, she wasn't targeting Danzo, but was genuinely consulting with Shikaku Nara, a strategist with exceptional intelligence.

Shikaku Nara smiled wryly, "If the information were that the Fourth Raikage had captured Pakura, I definitely wouldn't believe it. But if it's the Fourth Tsuchikage, then there's still a certain possibility."

The title "Fox of Stone" is very fitting for him; he has been instigating most of the incredible events that have happened in the Ninja World over the years.

"For example, the Iwa ninja took in members of the Uzumaki Clan and even took away Neji Hyuga Branch Family Kirigakure. I also heard that a child from the Yuki Clan in Kirigakure was kidnapped by the Fourth Tsuchikage. And I've also heard that the Uchiha Clan..."

Shikaku Nara didn't continue, choosing instead to skip ahead. "Before this, who has ever seen someone bring Bloodline Ninja from another village to their own village for training?"

"Besides that, he also invented things like the trade route and the Joint Chunin Exams. He was also the first ninja to propose exchanging Ninjutsu for peace when signing a peace treaty."

"We cannot use common sense to speculate about such a ninja, such a Kage."

Tsunade nodded, which meant she acknowledged both Shikaku Nara's analysis of Yichen and the information provided by Danzo.

"Why don't we send a few teams to Iwagakure to participate in the Joint Chunin Exams, just like how the Iwa ninja harassed us back then? Let's give Iwa ninja a hard time too," Utatane Koharu suggested.

Tsunade and Hiruzen Sarutobi a glance and agreed to the suggestion.

Finally Danzo his cane on the ground and said, "Pakura's capture is a good opportunity to weaken the Sunagakure. When the Iwa ninja release Pakura, she will definitely be weak. Even if Rasa personally escorts her, this is still our chance."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart stirred; Danzo's words made sense. He glanced at the map of the Ninja World, his gaze settling on the two countries of River and Land of Rain, located between the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire.

With Akatsuki Organization around, the Land of Wind can be said to no longer be adjacent to the Land of Fire. Even if Rasa wanted to start a war, he would have to get past Akatsuki Organization first.

If he could take this opportunity to eliminate a Kage Level Sunagakure, Hiruzen Sarutobi felt he could accept offending the Kazekage for it. If he could also eliminate Rasa, the Third Hokage's breathing would become heavier.

Tsunade listened to the suggestion, weighed the pros and cons in her mind, and finally slammed her hand on the table, saying, "Then let's do it this way, Sensei. You and Danzo go together. Take plenty of men and try to achieve great things in one fell swoop."