Have the Akatsuki Investigate

Uchiha Sora had some free time after returning to the Land of Whirlpools.

Things were getting lively elsewhere.

The Land of Birds lay between the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth. It was a small country that served as a buffer between the two nations during wartime.

The Sunagakure shinobi had disregarded the tacit understanding between the two great nations and taken out several Iwagakure outposts. Word had even reached the front lines that the Kazekage and Chiyo had come in person.

The two nations had only recently emerged from the Third Shinobi World War. This should have been a time to recuperate, and Ōnoki had no idea what had gotten into Sunagakure. They were biting at Iwagakure like mad dogs.

Sure, the two of them had their differences, but they were both broke. If Sunagakure had the strength to spare, why not go after Konoha? What did they want with Iwagakure?

With Sunagakure about to reach the border of the Land of Earth, Ōnoki had no choice but to take his people and see what was going on.

The border between the Land of Birds and the Land of Earth.

They were leaders, after all. They weren't going to start hacking at each other the moment they met like street thugs.

Ōnoki flew up with his guards, drawing level with Rasa and Chiyo atop their sand platform.

"Chiyo, you old hag! What do you want with this little Kazekage?"

As expected of an old hand. His first words were meant to drive a wedge between Sunagakure's two leaders, placing Chiyo ahead of the Kazekage.

Rasa's expression darkened. It did bother him a little.

Chiyo wasn't going to fall for it, of course. She said quietly, "Lord Kazekage, once this matter is settled, I'll retire. I've grown tired after all these years."

Rasa didn't like being unable to fully control his power, but he knew just how important Chiyo was to the village. He hurriedly shook his head. "Sunagakure and I both need your wisdom. Please continue to lend us your strength for a few more years..."

As he spoke, he turned to Ōnoki, his voice cold. "You old bastard. You know damn well what Iwagakure has done!"

"If you don't hand him over, then wait for Sunagakure to launch a full-scale invasion of the Land of Earth!"

"Sunagakure? A full-scale invasion?"

Ōnoki let out a laugh, his mustache bristling. "Last time, the Third Kazekage went missing. Who have you lost this time?"

"If you're going to let people come and go as they please, you might as well stop calling yourselves Sunagakure and rename the place the Desert Outhouse!"

Boom!!!

A torrent of sand surged through the forest, like a waterfall.

At the same time, Roshi, the Tsuchikage's guard, unleashed his chakra. The heat of his Lava Release chakra warped the air.

That chakra...

Rasa stared at Roshi, grinding his teeth.

He knew it couldn't have been Roshi, but their chakra was far too similar. Its heat surpassed that of ordinary Fire Style.

There had to be a connection between them!

Rasa had considered that someone might be framing Iwagakure, but aside from an Explosion Release user, he couldn't think of anyone else capable of doing something like that.

And then there was Iwagakure's camouflage invisibility technique...

Every shinobi village had its own distinctive techniques, just as every major school had its own style. They were extremely difficult to imitate.

If you saw someone using Konoha Whirlwind to knock down your teammate, would you really suspect that they were an impostor from another village?

That was exactly why Kakashi, who could use techniques from every village, had earned the name Copy Ninja Kakashi.

There was no way the one who'd set off those fireworks that night was a Uchiha, was there?

The two sides faced off, tension rising as if a single wrong word would start a fight.

Then Chiyo spoke.

"Ōnoki, half a month ago, a group of shinobi attacked Sunagakure. One of them was an Explosion Release user who destroyed many important buildings. The statue of the Second Kazekage was among them."

After discussing it, Sunagakure decided to keep Shukaku's disappearance a secret.

If Iwagakure hadn't really done it, telling them that an important weapon had been stolen would be like asking for trouble.

Besides, this would let them judge from Ōnoki's reaction whether Iwagakure was responsible.

As for why she said it had happened half a month ago...

Five days ago, Chiyo really had gone to the Heaven and Earth Bridge as agreed, hoping to get some information from Orochimaru.

That day, almost all of Sunagakure had mobilized. Even the Kazekage had hidden among the ordinary Anbu, hoping to subdue Orochimaru the moment he appeared.

And then...

The Sunagakure shinobi had waited in the rain all day and gotten nothing.

Realizing they'd been played, Sunagakure had unleashed all its anger on Iwagakure's outposts.

"Hand him over so we can verify his identity. Once we're sure it was a misunderstanding, we'll leave immediately!"

"That thief... his name is Deidara!"

When Chiyo said the name, she keenly noticed Ōnoki's pupils contract. That wasn't the reaction of someone hearing an unfamiliar name!

Chiyo's expression darkened. "Ōnoki, you seem to know that name."

Ōnoki laughed in disbelief.

He pointed at Chiyo's head, his finger trembling as he spoke. "You old hag, I do know that name."

"I just adopted him not long ago..."

"But..."

"He's only three years old!"

"If you're going to make up a story, at least make it believable!"

"I don't believe you."

Rasa's voice was heavy. "Since this person really exists, then bring him out. I can tell whether you're lying!"

His hatred for Deidara had grown so intense that he dreamed every night of torturing the brat to death.

Ōnoki took a deep breath and glowered at Rasa.

"Fine. Send all your sons and daughters over, and I'll let you see him."

Ōnoki had struck Rasa right where it hurt. Rasa could no longer contain his fury, and a vast wave of gold dust surged toward Ōnoki and the others.

This was nothing that required Ōnoki to step in himself.

Lava Release: Scorching Current Rock Technique!

Roshi spat out a massive ball of lava, forcing back the wave of gold dust before it could reach them.

He snorted.

"You can't bear to send your own kids, but you want to see Deidara?"

"If you want to fight us, bring Shukaku here first."

He said that all the time. Back then, he'd told Minato to bring the Nine-Tails, too.

It showed how confident he was in his own strength. He believed only a Tailed Beast could stand against him.

But Rasa and Chiyo didn't hear it that way...

They were almost certain Iwagakure had been behind the attack. No wonder they'd acted so brazenly back then. They must have thought Sunagakure was weak and easy to bully, and hadn't even bothered to hide what they'd done!

Considering both of their Jinchūriki were stable combat assets, it was entirely possible they were plotting to take a third Tailed Beast...

Rasa was about to lash out, but Chiyo placed a hand on his shoulder and subtly shook her head.

This wasn't the time to fall out with Iwagakure.

Chiyo gave Ōnoki a long look, then said in a low voice, "We'll settle this score in time."

Ōnoki sneered. "What are you even talking about? So what if that Shamon fellow's statue got blown up? It's not a big deal."

"Keep causing trouble, and I'll use one Dust Release to shave the statue of the First Hokage down, too."

"Along with the head of you, the Fourth Kazekage!"

"You!"

Chiyo gripped Rasa's arm and pulled him back.

Now that they were sure Iwagakure was responsible, the priority wasn't to start a direct war. They needed to send scouts into the Land of Earth and find a chance to take Shukaku back.

After driving Chiyo and Rasa away, Ōnoki's expression was grim, too.

He didn't believe Sunagakure would make such a fuss over a statue, and he didn't understand how they'd learned about Deidara.

The boy was a war orphan who'd forgotten his name after a traumatic experience. Ōnoki had only given him the name Deidara a few days ago, when he adopted him.

As far as he knew, only a few people close to the boy knew he existed...

Iwagakure had suffered plenty of losses during the Third Shinobi World War, and Ōnoki didn't want to get dragged into another war so soon.

After thinking it over, he said to Kitsuchi beside him, "The Akatsuki did a good job on those previous assignments. Go hire them to investigate what's going on with Sunagakure."