"N-N... Nine-Tails?" The Assistant's mouth fell open as she said in disbelief, "Why? Why would the Nine-Tails appear in the Land of Whirlpools?"
"The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is in the Land of Whirlpools?"
"Hmph!" The Raikage snorted and said thoughtfully, "I heard Konoha's Nine-Tails Jinchuriki is the wife of the God of Shinobi, Hashirama Senju, and a princess of the Uzumaki Clan!"
"She probably learned that the Uzumaki Clan was in trouble and sneaked out!" A hint of mockery crept into the Raikage's voice.
"Now that the Nine-Tails is right before my eyes, I must bring it firmly under my control!"
"The Nine-Tails will belong to Kumogakure!"
"Is that so?" The Assistant nodded, then thought of something else and asked, "Lord Raikage, aren't you afraid of retaliation from Konoha?"
"Retaliation?" The Raikage laughed scornfully. "Konoha is weak and incompetent now. They can't amount to anything. Even if we destroy the Land of Whirlpools right under their noses, they probably won't react!"
The Raikage propped up his chin and sank deep into thought. After a long while, he beckoned to the Assistant. "Assistant, come here first. I have a brilliant plan for you to carry out!"
"Huh?" The Assistant looked puzzled. Has Lord Raikage come up with another terrible idea?
"Ahem!" The Raikage coughed a few times, leaned close to her ear, and said, "You no longer need to carry out the mission to kill those Sand shinobi!"
The Assistant was a little confused. What is the Raikage plotting now? As she recalled, Lord Raikage didn't usually change a plan once he had settled on it.
"Hmph! Those brainless Sand shinobi happen to be useful now!" The Raikage snorted. "Let them test the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's capabilities first."
He gazed at the dark red chakra gradually dissipating in the distance, looking thoughtful. "We