Kumogakure.
Inside the Raikage's Office.
The Third Raikage sat in his chair, his massive frame like a small mountain.
"Dodai, how are A and Killer B doing?"
A young Kumogakure ninja stood across from him and replied respectfully, "They work very well together. They have a good chance of mastering the Double Lariat."
"Good." The Third Raikage exhaled. "And the Envoy Mission... are they close to Konoha?"
Dodai sighed inwardly at the question.
"Lord Raikage, if everything goes smoothly, they should reach Konoha in five days."
Their pace frustrated him too, but the Envoy Mission included not only ninja, but also ordinary people with ties to the nobility of the Land of Fire.
Unlike ninja traveling at full speed, the Envoy Mission moved considerably slower.
"Hmm."
The Third Raikage's voice remained deep and powerful, but as one of his most trusted men, Dodai could sense his exhaustion.
Even now, he still found it hard to believe.
The invincible Third Raikage had taken a group of the village's finest Jonin and joined forces with Kirigakure and even their longtime adversary, Iwagakure. Their surprise attack on Uzushio Village should have ended in a resounding victory.
He and Kirigakure's Genji had finalized the plan after several rounds of discussion.
Once Kumogakure claimed Uzushio Village's legacy, they would have a chance to resolve the instability of their jinchūriki once and for all.
Instead, it had ended in a crushing defeat that no one had expected.
When the Third Raikage returned to the village with only two men, Dodai felt as though the sky were falling.
More than a dozen of their finest Jonin had been captured by Konoha. The repercussions were devastating; merely appeasing the tangled web of factions behind those ninja had left him overwhelmed.
Some wanted to pay the price to ransom