The Furious Ōnoki

Rasa had been keeping an eye on what was happening in the Land of Lightning.

Ōnoki had a temper to match his reputation. He led several hundred men on a furious forced march, reaching the Land of Lightning's border in no time.

But waiting for him was the Third Raikage, who had also brought several hundred men. Ōnoki's movements had been so conspicuous, and his target so clearly the Land of Lightning, that the Raikage could hardly have missed it.

Ōnoki first demanded to know why the Third Raikage had sent his son and disciple to ambush Iwagakure's special operations squad.

The Raikage naturally refused to admit it. The whole thing had been made up in the first place.

"The evidence is conclusive!" When the Raikage still tried to deny it, Ōnoki lost his temper. The two sides lined up and fought a major battle, but neither gained the upper hand, and each lost some men.

Only then did Ōnoki's anger finally subside. At least his actions had restored some face for the village.

Often, there was no need to get to the bottom of things. Find a scapegoat, pin the blame on him, then beat him soundly to make a show of it—that was enough to quickly stabilize the troops and the public.

Having suffered an undeserved calamity, the Raikage was also deeply frustrated. He wondered if Ōnoki was trying to start a war with the Land of Lightning.

The two sides returned to their respective villages, each reacting differently. But the matter was far from over.

Kicking open the door to the Tsuchikage's office, Ōnoki strode inside, feeling thoroughly pleased with himself. He had just dealt with another potential crisis, all thanks to his decisive action.

Inside the office, Ōnoki's son, Kitsuchi, looked troubled and grim. The moment he saw Ōnoki return, he hastily hid the object in his hands behind his back.

"What's wrong, Kitsuchi? Why so glum? I put the Land of Lightning in its place. Isn't that worth celebrating?"

Ōnoki said with slight displeasure. I just fought the Raikage, and you're wearing that long face as if your father had died?

Kitsuchi hesitated for a long while, unable to make up his mind. In the end, he gritted his teeth, handed the envelope behind his back to Ōnoki, and said angrily, "Father, you'd better see for yourself.

"You're the only one who can make a decision about this."

Ōnoki was puzzled. As soon as he took the envelope, something fell out with a clatter.

A finger—a little finger—radiating Roshi's chakra.

Ōnoki immediately sobered up. His expression turned grave as he opened the envelope. Inside were a photograph and two sheets of paper.

In the photograph, the Four-Tails Jinchūriki, Roshi, was restrained by Sealing Jutsu and bound to a bed. His right little finger was missing, and a red-haired young man stood beside the bed.

His heart gave a sudden lurch!

His hands trembling, he turned the photograph facedown and skimmed the letter in a flash.

"To whom it may concern:

"Not long ago, the promising young jōnin of our village, Rasa, captured your village's Four-Tails Jinchūriki within the Land of Wind. He had been attempting to assassinate our village's Kazekage.

"Our village is magnanimous and willing to forgive your Jinchūriki's transgression. In the spirit of friendship with our neighbors, we would like to return him.

"However, the incident has left the Kazekage badly shaken and distressed.

"We therefore cordially invite Ōnoki, the Tsuchikage of your village, to meet with us in the Land of Birds seven days from now to discuss the Four-Tails Jinchūriki and compensation for the Kazekage's emotional distress.

"We hope Mr. Ōnoki will not bring too many guards. Otherwise, your village's Jinchūriki may suffer a second injury."

The letter was signed at the bottom.

He turned to the second sheet. It was densely packed with a list of supplies and quantities, along with the precise location for the negotiations.

"Sunagakure! Roshi!"

Ōnoki threw his head back and roared. His rage aggravated the old injuries from his fight with the Raikage, and he spat out a mouthful of blood!

All I did was say something in anger! Why did you have to go and investigate the Land of Wind for real?

Fine, you went—but then you got captured! What a disgrace! You've brought shame on the Jinchūriki!

And that list—the supplies, or rather, the ransom it demanded—was enough to make even him, the Tsuchikage, blanch. Emotional distress compensation, my ass.

Even Roshi wouldn't be reckless enough to charge straight into Sunagakure. At most, he would have gone along the border and wandered around the area where Luo Yongxin had been spotted.

And then he got captured.

The timing was so suspicious that Ōnoki couldn't help wondering if Sunagakure and the Land of Lightning had planned this together to take advantage of him.

He pulled out the photograph again. Ōnoki glared at the young redhead in the corner, wishing he could stare him to death through the picture.

Rasa—he must be the Third Kazekage's disciple. Impressive. Who would have thought that this unassuming young man already had the strength to defeat a Jinchūriki?

What should he do now? Ōnoki suppressed his anger and began to think.

His first instinct was to lead his men into the Land of Wind, but he quickly reconsidered. The timing wasn't right. He had just fought the Land of Lightning; if he went and started cutting down people in the Land of Wind too—

You didn't provoke everyone's wrath that way. He could only give in for now, then look for a chance to get the supplies back.

The Jinchūriki was of the utmost importance. The sooner he was brought back, the better. If too much time passed and word got out, all sorts of trouble could arise.

For one thing, that brute of a Raikage, whom he had just fought, might well take advantage of the situation.

A Jinchūriki was the equivalent of a nuclear weapon, a powerful deterrent. With the Land of Earth having lost an arm, it had to be prepared for sharks to catch the scent of blood and tear into it.

Picking up the finger from the floor, he confirmed that it carried Roshi's chakra—the Four-Tails' chakra, too. Ōnoki's doubts vanished, and he growled, "Take this list and prepare the supplies to exchange for the hostage.

"Also, keep this under wraps. I don't want a third person finding out. In a few days, you and I will take the supplies to the Land of Birds.

"Now, under the pretext of a military exercise, mobilize the village's shinobi and have them stand by at the border of the Land of Birds. I don't want any surprises."

What if it was a trap to lure him in? The Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, had been killed that way by the Land of Lightning's Ginkaku and Kinkaku.

Even now, Ōnoki still couldn't understand why Tobirama Senju, who was rumored to have stayed behind to cover the retreat with the Flying Thunder God Slash, hadn't escaped.

Kitsuchi took the list and left. His father was furious right now, so it was best to get out of there quickly.

"Clatter... crash... crash!"

After the door closed, the sound of Ōnoki smashing things soon came from inside.

Losing that batch of supplies wasn't enough to cripple the Land of Earth, but anyone would be furious after being extorted like this.

A few days later.

In the capital of the Land of Birds, inside a meeting hall called Backbone.

Rasa, dressed in black, sat on one side of the table with his eyes closed, resting.

Beside him sat the beautiful Shamate Hairdresser, Pakura, looking awkward and inwardly conflicted.

Chiyo had already spoken to her about the matter. For the stability and harmony of the village, Pakura had agreed. Her heart was a tangle of emotions, but she wasn't the least bit resentful.

Rasa had been appointed the negotiation envoy, while Pakura served as his bodyguard. Much like the guards of a Kage, they were actually the ones being protected.

The atmosphere had grown awkward. Finally, Pakura fidgeted with the hem of her clothes and asked, "Are you really so sure Ōnoki will come to negotiate?

"I heard he's a very stubborn man. What if he doesn't care whether the Jinchūriki lives or dies and just brings his people to surround and wipe us out?"

"He doesn't have the nerve. I've got him right where I want him."

Rasa slowly opened his eyes and withdrew his Microwave Radar. Smiling, he said, "He's here now. Just the two of them."

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