Let the Akatsuki investigate

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

Other regions, however, were bustling with activity.

The Land of Birds was situated between the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth, serving as a small buffer state meant to keep the peace.

Today, Sunagakure ninjas disregarded the tacit understanding between the two great nations and wiped out several Iwagakure outposts; reports from the front line even suggested that the Kazekage and Chiyo had arrived in person.

Both nations had only recently emerged from the Third Shinobi World War and should have been focused on recuperating, yet Ōnoki could not fathom what had gotten into Sunagakure, which was biting at everyone like a rabid dog.

Even if we have our differences, we're both broke—why waste your energy attacking me instead of Konoha?

Seeing that the conflict was about to reach the border of the Land of Earth, Ōnoki had no choice but to lead his men to investigate the situation.

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

As leaders of their respective nations, they were at least professional enough not to start hacking at each other like street thugs upon meeting.

Ōnoki took flight with his guards, hovering level with Rasa and Chiyo, who stood atop a platform of sand.

"Old hag Chiyo, what business do you have bringing this little Kazekage brat here!"

As expected of a veteran, his first sentence was designed to sow discord between the two Sunagakure powerhouses by placing Chiyo before the Kazekage.

Rasa's face darkened; he was indeed bothered by the remark.

Chiyo, naturally, would not fall for his trap, and she whispered, "Lord Kazekage, once this matter is resolved, I shall retire. After all these years, I am quite weary."

Rasa disliked the feeling of not having complete control over his power, but he knew full well how vital Chiyo was to the village, so he hurriedly shook his head: "Both I and Sunagakure require your wisdom; I must ask you to endure for a few more years..."

As he spoke, he turned his gaze toward Ōnoki and said coldly: "You old fossil, you know exactly what your Iwagakure has done!"

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

"Sunagakure, full-scale?"

Ōnoki let out a scoff, his mustache twitching: "Last time it was the Third Kazekage who went missing, who is it that you've lost this time?"

"If you let people come and go as they please, you might as well stop calling yourselves Sunagakure and rename the village the Desert Latrine!"

BOOM!!!

A tidal wave of sand erupted within the mountain forest.

At the same time, Roshi, serving as the Tsuchikage's guard, unleashed his aura, his scorching Lava Release chakra distorting the atmosphere.

This kind of chakra...

Rasa stared fixedly at Roshi, gritting his teeth.

He knew that person could not be Roshi, but their chakras were far too similar, possessing a high temperature that surpassed ordinary Fire Style.

There had to be a connection between the two!

It wasn't that Rasa hadn't considered that someone might be framing Iwagakure, but aside from a ninja using Explosion Release, he truly couldn't think of anyone else capable of such a feat.

Coupled with the camouflage stealth techniques Iwagakure had used previously...

Every ninja village's ninjutsu had its own distinct characteristics, much like every major sect had its own unique style, making them extremely difficult to imitate.

If you saw someone use a Leaf Hurricane to knock down your teammate, would you stop to think if they were an impostor from another village?

It was precisely for this reason that Kakashi, who could use the ninjutsu of various villages, had earned the title of Copy Ninja Kakashi.

It's not like the ones setting off fireworks that night were the Uchiha, right?

The two sides were at daggers drawn, looking as if they would start fighting at the slightest disagreement.

At this moment, Chiyo spoke up.

"Ōnoki, half a month ago, a squad of ninjas attacked Sunagakure. One of them was an Explosion Release user who destroyed many important buildings, including the statue of the Second Kazekage."

After deliberation, Sunagakure decided to keep the news of Shukaku's disappearance a secret.

If it turned out that Iwagakure wasn't the culprit, wouldn't they be asking for trouble by voluntarily revealing that their most important weapon had been stolen?

Moreover, by framing it this way, they could gauge Ōnoki's reaction to determine whether they were truly the perpetrators.

As for why they claimed it happened half a month ago...

It was because five days ago, Chiyo had actually gone to the Heaven and Earth Bridge to keep an appointment, hoping to extract some information from Orochimaru.

That day, almost the entire force of Sunagakure had been mobilized, with even the Kazekage hiding among the ordinary Anbu, attempting to subdue Orochimaru the moment he appeared.

And then...

The entire Sunagakure contingent waited in the rain for a whole day, only to end up with nothing.

Realizing they had been played, Sunagakure vented their fury entirely upon the Iwagakure outpost.

"Hand him over and let us verify his identity. As long as it is confirmed to be a misunderstanding, we will withdraw immediately!"

"That thief... is named Deidara!"

When Chiyo spoke this name, she keenly noticed Ōnoki's pupils constrict; this was by no means the reaction of someone hearing a name for the first time!

Chiyo's expression darkened. "Ōnoki, it seems you have heard this name before."

Ōnoki was so angry he laughed.

Pointing at Chiyo's head, his finger trembling, he said, "You old hag, I do know that name."

"Not long ago, I just adopted him..."

"But..."

"He is only three years old, damn it!!"

"If you want to make up a story, at least make it believable!!"

"I don't believe it."

Rasa said in a deep voice, "Since this person truly exists, then let him come out. I can judge the truth for myself!"

His resentment toward Deidara had reached the point where he dreamed of torturing the guy to death every single night.

Taking a deep breath, Ōnoki looked at Rasa with a gloomy expression.

"Fine, send over your daughter and son, and I will give you the chance to meet him."

Ōnoki struck exactly at Rasa's sore spot, and unable to suppress his rage any longer, a massive wave of gold dust surged toward Ōnoki and his men.

For a level like this, there was no need for Ōnoki to take action himself.

Lava Release: Scorching Current Rock Technique!

Roshi spat out a massive ball of magma, suppressing the oncoming wave of gold dust.

He let out a cold snort.

"You aren't willing to part with your own children, yet you want to see Deidara?"

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

This was something he often said; back then, he had told Minato to bring the Nine-Tails as well.

From this, one could see his arrogance regarding his own power, believing that only a Tailed Beast could stand against him.

But to Rasa and Chiyo, these words carried a different meaning...

The two of them were nearly certain that Iwagakure had committed the act. No wonder they had been so fearless at the time; it seemed they viewed Sunagakure as weak and easy to bully, not even bothering to cover their tracks!

Combined with the fact that both of their Jinchūriki were stable combat assets, it was indeed possible they were plotting to seize a third Tailed Beast...

Just as Rasa was about to lash out, Chiyo placed a hand on his shoulder and gave a subtle shake of her head.

Tearing off the mask with Iwagakure right now was not a good choice.

Taking a deep look at Ōnoki, Chiyo said in a low voice, "We will settle this account slowly."

Ōnoki sneered. "How bizarre. It's just that Shamon's statue was blown up—what a trivial matter."

"If you dare to cause trouble again, this old man will erase the First Kazekage's statue with a single Particle Style."

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

"You!!"

Chiyo gripped his arm, pulling Rasa back.

Since it was confirmed that Iwagakure was behind it, the priority was not to engage in a frontal war, but to dispatch spies into the Land of Earth and find an opportunity to reclaim Shukaku.

Having forced back Chiyo and Rasa, Ōnoki's expression was far from pleasant.

He did not believe Sunagakure would mobilize such a force over a mere statue, nor did he understand how they knew of Deidara.

The child was a war orphan who had forgotten his name due to trauma; the name was one he had given him when he adopted him just a few days ago.

Logically, only the few people closest to him should know of Deidara's existence...

Iwagakure had suffered significant losses in the Third Ninja War, and he did not want to engage in such frequent warfare.

Thinking this over, he said to Yellow Earth beside him, "The Akatsuki organization performed well on those previous missions. Go and commission them to investigate what is going on with Sunagakure."