The nations speak out (Part two)
Land of Wind, Sunagakure, Kazekage's Office.
Fourth Kazekage Rasa sat behind his desk, his deep-set eyes shrewd and weary.
Two documents lay spread before him: a copy of Iwagakure's open letter on the left, and a draft of the trade agreement the Land of Wind and the Land of Water were about to sign on the right.
"Father, are we really going to co-sign Ōnoki's letter?"
A boy of around ten stood before the desk, his face covered in paint and a bandage-wrapped object strapped to his back.
Kankuro's voice was tense, and there was a barely perceptible distance in the way he addressed his father.
Ever since his mother died, his father had never smiled again. And because of that monster of a little brother, his father had not slept for two days.
"Kankuro, pay attention and learn. This isn't co-signing."
Rasa raised his eyes to his son. "Sunagakure is going to issue a supporting statement. Co-signing requires a signature. A supporting statement only requires a few words."
"There is a fundamental difference between the two."
Kankuro fell silent for a moment, then nodded. Ever since his father had begun treating him as his successor, he had been exposed to government affairs, and he truly found them irritating.
If only people could be like puppets, without all these complications!
Then Kankuro lowered his eyes and murmured, "That jinchūriki named Utakata... achieved Complete Tailed Beast Transformation?"
Rasa's movements paused. Of course he knew what lay behind his son's question.
Sunagakure's jinchūriki strategy had undoubtedly failed. Shukaku had never acknowledged Gaara, and Gaara had never tamed Shukaku.
Now a Hidden Mist jinchūriki who had once defected had achieved a perfect Tailed Beast Transformation on the battlefield in Kusagakure. To Sunagakure, that was a more dangerous