"No reprisals?"
Xuandou felt like laughing.
"Does Sunagakure... still have the ability to take reprisals?"
He leisurely folded his arms, sweeping his gaze over the Sunagakure ninja opposite him.
"You say you came to negotiate peace, but why don't I see a shred of sincerity? You expect us to withdraw on empty words alone?"
His voice abruptly turned cold:
"If you won't give it to us, we'll take it ourselves!"
"If you have any objections, you're welcome to fight us!"
With that, the three Jōnin—Shisui, Yuhi Shinku, and Hizashi Hyuga—stepped forward together.
The hundreds of Konoha ninja behind them also gathered in unison, weapons in hand, facing off against the other side.
Both sides looked ready to come to blows at the slightest disagreement.
Chiyo looked at their formation and sighed inwardly.
Konoha had never been like this before.
In the past, Sunagakure had always broken their treaties first and raided the Land of Fire's borders. When Konoha's reinforcements arrived, the two sides would face off and fight for a while, then Sunagakure would propose peace talks, which Konoha would often hasten to accept.
When turmoil next swept the shinobi world, Sunagakure would break the treaty and invade again, repeating the cycle.
But now...
Since when had Konoha ninja learned to make demands?
More troubling still, she dared not refuse.
The other side surpassed them in both the number of Jōnin and overall fighting strength.
If a fight really broke out, Sunagakure would definitely come off worse.
Rasa had clearly recognized the situation too.
He drew a deep breath and took half a step forward, his tone restrained:
"Konoha may state its terms. So long as they're reasonable, Sunagakure can accept them. On the condition that you immediately stop pillaging and withdraw to the Land of Fire."
Xuandou raised his eyebrows slightly:
"We want war reparations."
He extended his fingers, counting things off one by one:
"Konoha expended enormous amounts of manpower and resources to fight you. Leaving everything else aside, I alone used a hundred thousand explosive tags."
"At a market price of five thousand ryo each, a hundred thousand comes to five hundred million ryo!"
At this point, Xuandou spread his hands, his tone almost mocking:
"All you lost were cold teammates. What we in Konoha lost was warm money!"
Rasa's chest heaved.
For an instant, he even wanted to give the order to attack.
But reason ultimately pulled him back.
One more defeat, and Sunagakure would completely lose the daimyo's trust.
A budget cut would be the least of his worries. Even his position as the prospective Kazekage would likely be in jeopardy.
He forced himself to calm down and asked in a low voice:
"How much do you want?"
Xuandou raised one index finger.
Rasa inwardly sighed in relief. "If it's one billion ryo..."
"One billion?"
Xuandou interrupted with a sneer.
"Do you take me for a beggar? I could plunder any city and get more than that!"
"I want ten billion!"
Both sides immediately fell silent.
Even the Konoha ninja felt their commander-in-chief was demanding far too much.
Chiyo stepped forward outright, anger rising on her aged face:
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
"Ten billion is four full years of Sunagakure's revenue! Absolutely not!"
"Four years of your revenue is exactly what I want!"
Xuandou's smile turned cold:
"What else? Given how shameless Sunagakure is, should we wait for you to catch your breath, tear up the treaty four years later, and invade the Land of Fire again?"
He swept his gaze over the Sunagakure group:
"Better to stall your development for a few years outright, so everyone can have some peace."
The Sunagakure ninja were left rather speechless.
Argue back?
It seemed Sunagakure really had always done exactly that.
In the end, Rasa spoke:
"Ten billion is truly beyond what we can afford... could you reduce it somewhat?"
Xuandou shook his head mercilessly.
"Don't even think about it!"
"If you can't provide it, we'll plunder it ourselves. We promise to stop as soon as we've collected ten billion. How does that sound?"
Rasa's expression darkened completely.
They absolutely could not let Konoha keep pillaging.
Otherwise, if the Daimyo of the Land of Wind became enraged, Sunagakure would face consequences it could not bear.
Just then, Pakura, who had remained silent all this time, suddenly raised her head and fixed Xuandou with a burning gaze:
"Uchiha Xuantou, treating the civilians of the Land of Wind like this... don't you feel you've disgraced the ancestors of the Uchiha Clan?!"
Xuandou turned his gaze to her, looked her over, and suddenly laughed:
"Oh? Trying to guilt-trip me?"
Xuandou shook his head and said:
"Unfortunately, I have no morals, so you can't guilt-trip me."
For a time, the situation reached a stalemate.
A moment later, Xuandou suddenly spoke again:
"Actually, reducing the amount isn't out of the question. It's just..."
Rasa's eyes lit up at his words:
"Just what?"
All the Sunagakure ninja looked at him.
Xuandou's gaze settled on Pakura, a half smile on his face:
"I could ask for just five billion ryo!"
The Sunagakure group all breathed sighs of relief.
Although five billion ryo was still a great deal, it was a full half less than ten billion.
And five billion ryo was exactly the limit Rasa had in mind.
Xuandou continued:
"But Pakura has to come back to Konoha with us."
Pakura's pupils abruptly contracted:
"...What?"
"What's wrong? Aren't you all about morality? Trading one kunoichi like you for five billion ryo is a very profitable deal."
"Countless people in the Land of Wind could escape disaster because of you."
Chiyo immediately fell silent beside her.
Rasa even looked tempted.
He suddenly turned, walked up to Pakura, and lowered his voice:
"Pakura, the village really can't come up with that much money. Why don't you... agree?"
Pakura stared blankly at him, disappointment appearing on her face.
She had shed blood for Sunagakure and carried out countless dangerous missions.
How many enemies had once trembled at the mere mention of her Scorch Release?
Now she was to be traded as a bargaining chip?
Chiyo also slowly walked up to her.
"Pakura, this is the village's decision... and a mission."
A mission!
That's right. Wasn't a ninja's duty to carry out missions?
How many missions would a kunoichi like her, even a Jōnin, have to complete to earn five billion ryo?
Pakura's lips trembled. Her gaze moved from Chiyo's face to Rasa's, then to the silent Sunagakure ninja behind them.
She suddenly felt very cold.
Resist?
But where could she go if she left Sunagakure?
If she refused a mission, what kind of ninja would she be?
In the end, she lowered her head, her voice so soft it was almost inaudible:
"...Yes."
She walked toward Konoha's ranks, step by step.
Hizashi Hyuga stepped forward and struck several points in succession with Gentle Fist, sealing off her chakra flow.
The familiar flow of chakra was cut off in an instant.
She had just been abandoned by her village, and now even the chakra she had relied on ever since becoming a ninja was beyond her control.
A feeling of helplessness immediately rose within her.
Xuandou beamed as he watched Pakura come to his side.
This meant that after dual cultivation with her, he could claim an S-rank Luxury Treasure Chest!
He turned to Rasa:
"Then gather the remaining five billion within three days. Once the money arrives, we'll leave."
Rasa looked at Chiyo, who slowly nodded.
"...All right."
He turned and left with over a hundred ninja.
Three days later, Rasa returned and handed Xuandou a sealing scroll.
Xuandou had his people count it and confirm everything was in order.
Five billion ryo, down to the last coin.
He put away the scroll and called out:
"All Konoha forces-withdraw!"
"Raaah!!!"
A deafening cheer erupted behind him.
"Walk slowly."
"Make the entire Land of Wind remember the sight of us victors!"
Afterward, Xuandou also ordered someone to find a camel-drawn carriage with an enclosed compartment and climbed aboard.
The procession slowly set off, leaving the Sunagakure group's furious, humiliated gazes behind.
After traveling several miles, Xuandou knocked on the carriage wall and called outside:
"Someone, bring Pakura in. I'll interrogate her myself!"