The War Was Postponed

Qingguang calmly tossed the two jokers onto the coffee table. Tsunade's smile froze, and her eyes locked onto the cards still in Qingguang's hand.

"Seventeen cards. I've only got fifteen left. There's no way I'm losing this."

"Unless you can somehow finish me off in one turn?"

Tsunade sat down, brimming with confidence as she folded her arms, though inside she was a bundle of nerves.

No way. Absolutely no way. What kind of luck would it take to play all fifteen cards at once?

I refuse to believe it!

Orochimaru and Jiraiya also lowered their heads and sighed.

It seemed Qingguang was even less lucky at gambling than Tsunade. Tsunade only had two cards left, so she was probably holding a pair.

This game was as good as lost.

"Plane."

Under the three of their watchful eyes, Qingguang played all fifteen of his remaining cards at once.

Tsunade froze like a statue, unable to believe it. She checked the cards three or four times before gritting her teeth and demanding, "If you had those cards, why didn't you play them earlier?"

What a devious little brat. Was he doing it on purpose?

Qingguang clasped his hands together, looking apologetic. "Sorry, sorry. But once you'd played most of your cards, wouldn't the stakes go up?"

"Tch. You sly little brat."

"Take it, take it." Tsunade pushed the remaining banknotes in front of her across the table to Qingguang.

"That's all I have left. I'll pay you the rest when I've got some money."

Although Tsunade lost every time she gambled, she was good about paying her debts and never left them unpaid. At most, it took her a while to pay them back.

Just as Qingguang was about to take the money, Orochimaru grabbed his wrist, smiling broadly. "Qingguang-kun, if I remember correctly, you're not an adult yet, are you?"

Qingguang paused, then nodded. "Not quite. I'll be an adult in about half a year."

A bad feeling immediately crept over him.

Tsunade, who had been looking dejected after losing all her money, swiftly swept it into her pocket.

"Ahem. Since he's underage, he can't gamble. If Teacher Sarutobi finds out, he'll definitely say we're setting a bad example for a kid."

Jiraiya wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. At the stakes in that last round, he would have lost a good chunk of money too.

Just then, a knock sounded at the door.

"Guest, the noodles and minced meat you ordered are here."

Qingguang went to open the door. It was the same person who had greeted him downstairs earlier.

As he took the tray, the visitor slipped him a note.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

Once the visitor had left and the door was shut, Tsunade snatched the noodles and started wolfing them down.

"You really are as thoughtful as ever, Qingguang. How did you know I was hungry?"

Qingguang nodded and unfolded the note in his hand.

"Qingguang, what does the note say?" Jiraiya asked curiously.

"Lord Hokage wants you to go to Kusagakure and do what you can to secure an alliance. Looks like there's nothing for us to do." Qingguang passed the note to Jiraiya.

After reading it, Jiraiya held the paper to the candle flame and grumbled, "Why am I always the one stuck with the difficult, exhausting jobs?"

Despite his complaints, Jiraiya knew he was the best person for the task.

He had always handled dealings with Kusagakure. Tsunade was a capable fighter, but her specialty was medical ninjutsu.

As for Orochimaru, the village probably had plenty of research work for him to do.

Jiraiya then got up and walked to the window. "In that case, I'll be off."

"See ya!"

He crouched on the windowsill, waved goodbye in what he thought was a cool manner, and leaped down.

Tsunade was still eating. Jiraiya's greasy farewell expression nearly ruined her appetite, so she hurriedly shoveled the rest of the noodles into her mouth and wiped it clean.

"If there are no other missions, we should head back to the village as soon as possible."

Two days later, the three of them arrived in Konoha.

In the Hokage Office, Hiruzen Sarutobi listened to Orochimaru's mission report, his expression easing considerably.

Combined with the news the Uchiha had received from Qingguang's Summoning Beast a few days earlier, he had formed a general idea of what was happening in Amegakure. Still, he turned to Orochimaru and Tsunade.

"What do you two think Amegakure is plotting?"

At the question, Tsunade's mouth turned down. She turned to leave. "Don't ask me about things like that. I have work to get back to."

Her plan to reform the Medical Ninja system was still unfinished, with nearly a third of the final work left. She needed to write it up, and she also had to consult other medical ninjas in the village for their opinions.

It was an extremely time-consuming and exhausting task.

Seeing Tsunade leave without hesitation, Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head helplessly.

Tsunade had always been like this. She never cared about his questions. How could she be so different from Nawaki when they were both descendants of Lord Hashirama?

Did she really have no interest in becoming Hokage?

"Orochimaru, what do you think?"

Orochimaru's eyes shifted slightly, reminding Hiruzen Sarutobi that Qingguang was still there.

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled and stroked the small tuft of hair on his chin. "Go ahead. Qingguang is here too, so it'll be a good opportunity for him to learn from you."

Qingguang listened attentively and turned to Orochimaru.

Only then did Orochimaru speak. "There are two possibilities. Either Amegakure is stockpiling food to guard against Sunagakure starting a war, buying time and gathering as many supplies as possible."

"Or Amegakure has something bigger in mind."

Sunagakure was the only village that had not participated in the First Shinobi World War. Under the diligent leadership of the First Hokage and Second Kazekage, it had not only established a puppet-user system but had also developed the Magnet Release kekkei genkai by studying Shukaku's Chakra.

The Third Kazekage, who was in power now, had mastered this ability.

Kirigakure, Iwagakure, and Kumogakure had yet to recover fully from the losses caused by the First Shinobi World War. They could not possibly start a war on their own.

That left Amegakure and Sunagakure as the only possible instigators. Either one could be behind it.

Hiruzen Sarutobi clearly agreed with that assessment.

"You're right. But Hanzō's letter of apology has at least put a temporary damper on the prospect of war and delayed its arrival."

"That gives Konoha more time to prepare."

"Qingguang, I'm counting on you to handle the Uchiha. Ideally, resolve the situation within the clan before war breaks out."

Qingguang immediately answered Hiruzen Sarutobi's order. "Don't worry, Lord Hokage. I've already earned the trust of Fugaku, the head of the Police Department. The clan elders also unanimously chose me for this intelligence mission in the Land of Rain."

"I should be able to reconcile the clan and the village within six months."