Chapter 340: The Kazekage’s Awkward Predicament

Chapter 340: Chapter 340: The Kazekage’s Awkward Predicament

The Fourth Kazekage was leading his forces toward the guesthouse when the figure of the One-Tail, Shukaku, suddenly appeared in his field of vision. His heart sank.

"Has he already lost control this badly?!"

Chiyo, who was traveling alongside him, also let out a sigh.

With the appearance of the One-Tail, there was no longer any doubt that Gaara had failed the Fourth Kazekage’s test.

Now, the problem facing Sunagakure was no longer limited to killing Gaara, then recapturing and sealing the One-Tail several years later. They would also have to explain to Konoha how its envoys had been killed.

That was right. In Chiyo’s eyes, faced with the rampaging One-Tail, the two Konoha envoys staying at the guesthouse were probably doomed. In fact, there might not even be any remains left to recover afterward.

ANBU Captain Pakura, meanwhile, was deeply worried.

Every time Gaara went berserk, the village suffered enormous losses in both lives and property, placing an even greater burden on the already declining Sunagakure.

Tonight would probably be no exception.

"ROAR—!"

Just as everyone from Sunagakure was lost in their own thoughts, the One-Tail not far away suddenly unleashed a furious roar!

Immediately afterward, the One-Tail Shukaku’s enormous body began to shrink, gradually disappearing from the Sunagakure shinobi’s sight.

"What happened?"

Everyone from Sunagakure, including the Fourth Kazekage, was utterly astonished.

However, with numerous buildings obstructing their line of sight, they had no way of knowing exactly what had happened at the guesthouse.

Before long, the Sunagakure group led by the Fourth Kazekage arrived in front of the damaged guesthouse.

Yet the scene before them was completely unexpected.

Gaara was lying quietly on the ground, breathing evenly. From the looks of it, he seemed to be merely asleep.

Nearby, the two Konoha envoys were sitting atop the ruins of the guesthouse, casually chatting with each other. Their expressions were perfectly calm, without the slightest hint that they had just fought a Tailed Beast.

Pakura, who had dealt with Hyuga Kagami and Shisui back in the Land of Demons, recognized them at a glance and exclaimed, "Uchiha Shisui! Hyuga Kagami!"

"Uchiha Shisui!?"

The Sunagakure shinobi reacted in all sorts of ways. Some were surprised, some immediately understood, while others stared curiously.

Throughout the shinobi world, Uchiha Shisui, who possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan, was obviously far more famous than Hyuga Kagami. As a result, everyone from Sunagakure completely overlooked Kagami and turned their gazes toward Shisui.

At that moment, they finally understood why Konoha’s envoys had been able to subdue the One-Tail Shukaku so easily.

But while they were astonished by the ocular power of the Mangekyo Sharingan, they also developed a profound wariness toward the name Uchiha.

The One-Tail Shukaku was Sunagakure’s strategic weapon for deterring the shinobi world, yet such a weapon had been rendered utterly helpless before the Mangekyo Sharingan.

Naturally, this left everyone from Sunagakure deeply uneasy.

The Fourth Kazekage walked over and glanced at Gaara lying on the ground. His gaze lingered briefly on the wound on Gaara’s shoulder before he turned to Hyuga Kagami and Shisui.

"It’s embarrassing to admit, but I never expected our village’s jinchūriki to suddenly lose control. We truly owe you both our thanks this time."

Kagami deliberately replied, "We’re very sorry for accidentally injuring your village’s jinchūriki."

After provoking Gaara into going berserk, Kagami had immediately instructed Shisui to use the genjutsu of his Mangekyo Sharingan to subdue the One-Tail Shukaku.

The entire purpose of Kagami’s scheme was to lower Sunagakure’s evaluation of Gaara, ultimately causing them to abandon him—and with him, abandon their hope for the future.

But right now, Kagami needed Sunagakure’s strength in the coming operation against the Akatsuki. Therefore, he couldn’t allow the One-Tail Shukaku to rampage through Sunagakure and inflict so much damage that the village could no longer spare enough forces to cooperate with Konoha in the campaign against the Akatsuki.

Hearing Kagami’s words, an awkward expression appeared on the Fourth Kazekage’s face, while the Sunagakure shinobi beside him all cast sidelong glances at Gaara.

In the eyes of Sunagakure’s higher-ups, Gaara’s strength had never been in question. Their true concern had always been whether Gaara could control the One-Tail Shukaku sealed within him.

But now, it seemed that Gaara wasn’t quite as strong as they had imagined. After all, he had been injured so easily by Konoha’s two envoys.

Although they all knew that both Hyuga Kagami and Uchiha Shisui were elites from Konoha’s prestigious dōjutsu clans, their evaluation of Gaara still dropped considerably.

To cover up the awkward situation, Sunagakure quickly took the sleeping Gaara away and arranged another guesthouse for Kagami and Shisui.

Later, after finishing the cleanup and handling the aftermath, the Fourth Kazekage personally paid them a visit and met with Kagami and Shisui at their new guesthouse.

After asking the Fourth Kazekage to dismiss his guards, Kagami finally handed him the Third Hokage’s personally written letter.

The Fourth Kazekage took the letter and began reading. Almost immediately, shock appeared on his face.

"What!? Hanzo is dead?"

The Land of Rain, situated at the very heart of the shinobi world, had remained so isolated precisely because of the existence of the "Demigod," Hanzo. His presence had made the other shinobi villages reluctant to casually provoke Amegakure.

Otherwise, given the Land of Rain’s national strength, what right would it have had to close its borders and cut itself off from the outside world?

Therefore, when the Fourth Kazekage learned that the "Demigod" Hanzo was dead—and that he had been killed by the leader of the Akatsuki—his shock was no less than that of the Third Hokage when he first heard the news.

Hyuga Kagami said, "The Akatsuki has already taken control of the Land of Rain. If we don’t act soon, their strength will only continue to grow."

The Fourth Kazekage nodded.

Because of Sasori, there was already no possibility of reconciliation between Sunagakure and the Akatsuki.

If the Fourth Kazekage wanted to firmly secure his position, he had to eliminate Sasori and, at least in name, avenge the former Third Kazekage.

Otherwise, not only would his own position within the village be questioned, but Sunagakure itself would become a laughingstock throughout the shinobi world.

After pondering for a moment, the Fourth Kazekage asked, "Which shinobi villages are participating in this operation?"

Kagami did not conceal anything.

"Only Konoha, your village, and Kumogakure."

The Fourth Kazekage asked in confusion, "Why have Iwagakure and Kirigakure been excluded?"

"We’ve received intelligence that Iwagakure and Kirigakure have been in private contact with the Akatsuki, so they can no longer be trusted." After a brief pause, Kagami dropped another bombshell. "At the same time, we’ve also received intelligence that Sasori has planted a spy among Sunagakure’s higher-ups. Because of that, Lord Hokage hopes your village will maintain the strictest secrecy and refrain from spreading any information about this operation within the village."

"What!?"

The Fourth Kazekage’s expression immediately turned grave.

"Who is it?"

Hyuga Kagami replied, "It seems to be a shinobi named Yūra. As for the specifics, your village will need to investigate them yourselves. However, Lord Hokage hopes that Sunagakure will wait until after cooperating with us in the surprise attack against the Akatsuki before investigating the spy within your ranks, so as not to alert the Akatsuki prematurely."

The Fourth Kazekage read through the Third Hokage’s personally written letter once more before saying, "Please report back to the Hokage that Sunagakure will commit its full strength to this surprise attack against the Akatsuki. I will meet with the Hokage at the time and place specified in the letter to discuss the specific details of the operation."