The desert winds howled, endless yellow sands blotted out the sky and sun, and raging gales ravaged every corner of the desert.
This was a land blanketed in yellow sand, widely acknowledged as the poorest of the great nations in the Shinobi World. Although its territory was the largest among the great nations, its resources amounted to less than a quarter of the Land of Fire's, and eighty percent of its land was desert unfit for human habitation.
Yet it was upon such barren land that a powerful ninja village had been established: Sunagakure.
Sunagakure's Kazekage Building was a circular structure built from yellow stone. Inside the Kazekage's office sat a stern-faced middle-aged man. He wore a pale blue Kazekage robe, with a windproof scarf wrapped around his shoulders, and was currently reading the letter in his hand with great interest.
"What do you think Konoha means by this?"
Behind the middle-aged man stood a burly bald man. He wore a yellow cloak, and tattoos of an azure dragon and a black dragon claw coiled around his head and right eye. Two brown braids hung from the back of his head. Hearing his leader's question, he fell into thought before replying,
"Lord Reto, I believe there is no such thing as a free lunch. Naruto has taken the initiative to offer up the Tailed Beasts, so there may be some kind of scheme behind it."
The First Kazekage, Reto, set down the letter and smiled as he pointed at his trusted general. "You. Being cautious isn't a bad thing, but being overly cautious will make you miss many opportunities."
"Then what do you mean, my lord...?"
Reto's tone was brimming with confidence. "Since Senju Hashirama dares to invite five ninja villages at once, the possibility of a scheme is low.