Shiba Seika's scheme wasn't complicated once you got down to it. It was simply a case of Lure the Tiger Away.
Pakura was the strongest member of the Sunagakure squad!
As long as they lured Pakura out, the other two wouldn't stand a chance against Konan and the others.
Taking advantage of the friction within the Sunagakure squad, and Pakura's eagerness to learn the truth behind the Third Kazekage's death, Shiba Seika had managed to lure her out without lifting a finger!
Then he'd used all sorts of intelligence and secrets to keep her occupied for nearly a minute!
By the time Pakura realized what was happening, it was too late.
When a Shadow Clone disappeared, it sent all the memories of its experiences back to its original. Pakura now knew that all her teammates were finished!
Even worse, when her teammates had come under sudden attack and discovered that the Pakura with them was only a Shadow Clone, the looks the Sunagakure Captain and her other companion had given her had made her blood run cold.
From those venomous glares, Pakura had no doubt they would report her "betrayal" to the village at the first opportunity!
They might be dead, but there were plenty of ways for ninja to send messages. A common one was the Summoning Technique.
As if to shatter the last of her hopes, Shiba Seika spoke up at just that moment.
"There's a girl on our team who's pretty good at the Summoning Technique. She confirmed that your teammates sent a total of three Summoning Beasts to the border with messages before they died.
Miss Pakura, why don't you guess the odds that they kept the news of your betrayal from reaching the village?"
Pakura pressed her lips together, her hands trembling with anger. Her beautiful eyes reddened, but she stubbornly lifted her chin and declared, one word at a time, "I, Pakura, have never betrayed my village!"
Shiba Seika let out a delighted laugh. "Good! Then go back and tell Kazekage Rasa. Let's see if he believes you."
"So you're forcing me to die?"
"Sorry, I'm a Rain ninja."
"You bastard!!"
Pakura could no longer hold back. She rapidly formed Hand Seals and summoned a Fireball of Scorch Release, then charged at him with a Kunai in hand, throwing caution to the wind.
Shiba Seika, however, remained calm.
The next moment, a deafening BOOM!
The violent explosion sent the ground all around them sinking several inches!
"What?!" Caught off guard, Pakura was instantly swallowed by flames and thick smoke!
Shiba Seika smiled faintly. As a cautious schemer, how could he possibly meet a dangerous enemy without making any preparations?
He had chosen the location, after all. Naturally, he'd arranged and rigged everything around it in advance.
The benefit of getting along with Konan became clear at that moment—she had plenty of Exploding Tags to spare.
Covered in soot from the blast, Pakura finally leaped out of the smoke and landed several meters away.
Her hair tie had come loose, and her chestnut hair hung down. Blood streamed from her forehead, partly hidden by her hair, and nearly covered one eye.
She still glared viciously at Shiba Seika with her other eye, but most of the reason had returned to her gaze.
She had no idea how many traps and Exploding Tags this despicable Rain brat had planted around them. That blast had cleared her head considerably.
"Have you calmed down now, Miss Pakura? Don't get so worked up. Why not think back to what I said when I threw you that Paper Shuriken?"
Pakura shouted, "How much longer are you going to toy with me, you naturally evil Rain brat?!"
Shiba Seika spread his hands, looking completely sincere. "No, no, I'm not toying with you, Miss Pakura. I haven't lied to you once. I told you then: I'm the only one who can offer you a way out.
"If you go back to the village now, you'll only be walking to your death. You know how the Kazekage sees you. Even without me nudging things along, sooner or later he'll discard you as a sacrifice.
"But why not hear me out first?"
Pakura refused without a second thought. "I would never betray my village! And I'd never join your evil organization!"
But Shiba Seika's next words took her completely by surprise.
"Fine, Miss Pakura. There's no need to abandon the darkness and join the light just yet. But you obviously can't go back to the village as things stand. In Kazekage Rasa's eyes, your 'betrayal' is already a foregone conclusion.
"Let me point you toward a way to survive—go find Sasori of the Red Sands.
"Only by bringing back this real traitor can you turn your current disadvantage around and gain the leverage to speak to the elders as an equal."
Shiba Seika's words left the furious Pakura stunned.
It was a path she'd never considered. But the more she thought about it, the more reasonable it seemed.
Sasori was a genuine rogue ninja. Whatever his reasons or background, he had killed a village's Kage and deeply harmed Sunagakure.
If Pakura could bring him back, that achievement would be enough to make up for everything.
And since Sasori was the elders' own kin, bringing him back would also give Pakura a tremendous advantage when dealing with them.
She hadn't expected the Rain boy before her, after screwing her over so badly, to actually point her toward what seemed like a viable way out.
"You'd be that kind? Do you know where Sasori is?"
"I don't. But I know there's a ninja from Konoha with him. His name is Yakushi Kabuto. That might be an important clue."
In truth, Shiba Seika wasn't sure whether Kabuto was traveling with Sasori at this point in time, but that didn't matter.
What he was about to say was the real purpose of today's scheme!
"According to our investigation, this ninja named Yakushi Kabuto came from a secret organization in Konoha called Root.
"As a Sunagakure Jonin and a hero who personally fought in the last Great Ninja War, you're surely familiar with this organization, Miss Pakura!
"Your village's traitor, Sasori, has a member of Konoha's Root with him. You may have to look into what that information means for yourself.
"My request is simple: as long as you're willing to help us deal with Konoha's Root, we'll be friends forever."
The most sophisticated lies were never a string of falsehoods. They used the truth to deceive!
So far, not a single thing Shiba Seika had told Pakura was false!
He didn't mind if it took her weeks, months, or even years to verify the information.
But those truths, cleverly woven together, formed a flawless, self-consistent lie that Pakura found completely convincing—
"Konoha! Root! Damn it! So they really were behind Lord Third Kazekage's death!
"Heh, hahaha, hahahahaha! What a joke! So we really hadn't wronged Konoha! They all deserve to die!"
By now, Pakura's hatred had fully turned toward Konoha's Root!
Shiba Seika merely smiled, keeping his contribution to himself.
His strategic goal had never changed: for now, he needed to keep Hanzō steady and strike at Shimura Danzō hard!
So today, he would send a splendid gift to Comrade Shimura Danzō, far away in Konoha—
A beautiful Scorch Release big sister, desperate for revenge and fighting to survive. He hoped Root would like her.
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