Iwagakure Invades

He had been summoned in such a hurry. Something major must have happened.

Rasa pulled out a chair and sat across from the desk. "What happened?"

Chiyo looked grave and worried. "Just now, the ninja we sent out brought back a report.

"Iwagakure claims that their Four-Tails Jinchūriki has gone missing. They've sent a large force of ninja into the Land of Wind, saying they're searching for the missing Jinchūriki.

"They've taken out several of our bases, both inside and outside our borders. The situation is tense."

"Heh."

Rasa couldn't help snorting. "Two Scales Onoki really is something. If he wants to come after us, he should just say so. Why come up with such a flimsy excuse?"

Jinchūriki were important to a village, but not quite as important as people made them out to be.

In the original story, the Jinchūriki from every village except Konohagakure went to the battlefield. Only Konohagakure hid its Jinchūriki away like nuclear weapons. That was probably because Konohagakure was simply too powerful.

Take the Third Shinobi World War, for example. Konohagakure had the Sannin, Minato Namikaze, Danzo, and Hiruzen Sarutobi—six Kage Level powerhouses, each capable of holding their own.

What about the other villages? They had no choice but to bring out their Jinchūriki, or Konohagakure would grind them into the dirt.

Even so, entering the Land of Wind under the pretext of a missing Jinchūriki was a bit of a stretch. Was this some kind of scheme to cross provincial borders and grab people with Red-Hair liquor?

"Mm."

Chiyo nodded, her face looking even more worn. She hadn't expected war to come so soon. "Our recent troop movements must have been too frequent. Iwagakure noticed.

"This group of ninja may have been sent by Ōnoki to gather intelligence.

"If they see through our situation, we can be sure Iwagakure won't pass up the chance to kick us while we're down."

Points +1+1+1...

Rasa lowered his head, deep in thought. Things had already diverged from the original story. Kumogakure hadn't made the first move; instead, Iwagakure had come to test the waters.

But that was only natural. An ordinary transmigrator might have been one thing, but he had started out as a Kage Level powerhouse. He'd kept Sunagakure from falling into disarray, and that had changed a lot.

The butterfly effect was more of a boon than a burden. The hardships were only temporary. If they got through this crisis, the situation would change completely, and the points would come rolling in.

"So what do we do now? Stop preparing for war, or send someone to hold off Iwagakure's forces?"

Ebizo, disguised as the Kazekage, clasped his hands together, inwardly uneasy. Sunagakure wasn't fully prepared yet. If war broke out, they'd be routed across the board.

"Absolutely not!"

Chiyo shot to her feet and slammed the table, rejecting Ebizo's suggestion. "The Kazekage is dead. That's an undeniable fact.

"If word gets out, everyone will come after us. Even if Little Rasa took over right now, war would still be unavoidable.

"His record isn't impressive enough. His own people won't accept him, and the other villages won't believe he can keep Sunagakure standing.

"We mustn't stop preparing for war. Otherwise, once it begins, we'll be completely on the back foot."

Rasa nodded. Chiyo's thinking matched his own.

Becoming Kazekage wasn't as simple as taking a seat. It meant a transfer of power, which would inevitably throw the village into turmoil—and that turmoil would give the other villages an opening.

Even if he headed north right now and cut off Two Scales Onoki's head, people would question his strength. Maybe Ōnoki had thrown out his back and Rasa had just gotten lucky.

People were blind. They only believed what they wanted to believe.

At the root of it, Sunagakure was simply too weak. Weakness was a sin, and the weak got beaten.

"So what do we do now? We can't just let them roam around the Land of Wind if we don't send anyone to hold them off.

"If this goes on too long, they'll figure everything out.

"We can't be too heavy-handed, either. Ōnoki is a hardliner, too. If we really send people to wipe them out, Iwagakure will have a reason to declare war."

Ebizo's brow furrowed, his bloodshot eyes troubled. After impersonating the Kazekage for so long, he'd finally learned how hard the job was. Every last thing needed his attention. It was exhausting.

A weak village meant a lot more to worry about.

What should they do? Obviously, they should go and give the bastards a beating.

Rasa's eagerness for battle stirred. "How many did they send, and where are they?"

Hearing the challenge in Rasa's words, Chiyo fell silent for a moment, then pulled out a map of the Shinobi World.

Pointing to a spot on it, she said, "According to our scouts, they have at least thirty people. They crossed in at this point and are moving farther into the Land of Wind in a zigzag pattern.

"Their leader is Iwagakure's elite jōnin Mahiru. He's moving fast and is skilled with the sword.

"They also have Gari, an Explosion Release ninja with a Kekkei Genkai. They're both troublesome opponents.

"By now, they've probably split into several small teams. After all, their mission is to gather intelligence."

Rasa rested his chin in one hand, looking unimpressed. An elite jōnin named Mahiru? He'd never heard of him. With a name that pretentious, the guy had to be a nobody.

As for the Explosion Release ninja, it seemed he'd been brought back through Impure World Reincarnation during the Fourth Shinobi World War. So he'd been a ninja during the Third Shinobi World War.

But whatever. He'd wipe them all out!

Ebizo thought it over. Making them disappear without anyone knowing seemed like the best approach. He cautioned, "Make sure you're discreet.

"We aren't ready to fight yet, and we don't want this to become a reason for war with Iwagakure.

"You know how Two Scales Onoki is: stubborn, hot-tempered, and fond of taking risks."

Rasa nodded. He was best at chopping people up.

Chiyo wasn't entirely reassured. "How many people are you planning to take? It's best not to bring too many, or you'll draw attention."

There was one thing Chiyo didn't say: he could bring Pakura along. It might help ease the tension between the two of them and unite the village's smaller factions.

"If we're going to be discreet, then let's be discreet all the way."

Rasa smiled, leaned back with his hands behind his head, and spoke casually. "Iwagakure's just had bad luck.

"I heard that a new organization called the Celestial Organization recently set up near the place where they crossed the border.

"The leader of the Celestial Organization is a Kage Level powerhouse with a strong sense of territory. Any enemies who enter his domain get slaughtered to the last.

"Iwagakure sent ninja to search for their missing Four-Tails Jinchūriki, and they accidentally trespassed into the Celestial Organization's territory.

"The two sides clashed, and every Iwagakure ninja was wiped out. Doesn't that sound just right?"

"By that logic, our Sunagakure has nothing to do with it. No matter how much they argue, they can't pin the blame on us."

Chiyo nodded. Redirecting the blame elsewhere was ideal. There was just one thing she couldn't figure out. "Where did you get this information?

"When was the Celestial Organization established? If its leader really is that strong, we'd have heard something about him."

"It was established a minute ago."

Once you started making aliases, it was hard to stop. It was time to create a new one—and find an organization for Himura Kenshin's alias while he was at it.