Just as heated argunts filled the Hokage's office in Konoha, far away in the Land of Wind, Sunagakure also received troubling news.
Alongside the information reports ca sothing far more unpleasant, a formal letter of accountability from Kumogakure.
"Impossible! Pakura is already dead. We watched her body be buried with our own eyes! Cloud is just stirring up trouble!"
"That's right! Their losses are so heavy they've lost all reason, and now they want to dump the bla on Sunagakure?"
Inside the council chamber, the elders slamd their fists and angrily rebuked Kumogakure's accusations.
"Impossible…"
The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, sat at the head of the table, frowning as he read through the letter.
When Kirigakure had returned Pakura's body, Rasa had personally examined it. The chakra remnants in the corpse were unmistakable, there was no doubt it was Pakura.
So what was happening now?
According to Kumogakure's descriptions, the shinobi who had attacked them both in appearance and in techniques matched Pakura exactly.
"…If that's true, then there's only one way to be certain." Rasa's eyes narrowed as suspicion flickered across his face.
"We'll know the answer once the coffin is opened and an autopsy is perford."
anwhile, in the Land of Water, inside the Mizukage's office
When Kumogakure's demand arrived, requesting that Kirigakure hunt down the remnants of the Terumi clan, the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, rely gave it a glance before tossing the scroll aside, showing no intention of complying.
Half a day later, at the gates of the Hyūga compound in Konoha
"Please walk slowly, Hokage-sama."
Hyūga Hiashi bowed politely as Hiruzen Sarutobi departed. The mont the Hokage was gone, Hiashi's face darkened.
He hadn't expected Hiruzen to be so spineless, so dismissive of the Hyūga clan.
One Cloud shinobi dead, and he dared to compare it with the life of the Hyūga clan's eldest daughter?
And then to lecture him about "thinking for the sake of the village"...
Of course he could say that, it wasn't his child who had been taken. It wasn't his heart being torn apart.
Using the so-called "righteousness of the village" to pressure the Hyūga into compromise… Hokage, indeed.
Hiashi's jaw clenched tightly.
What made it worse was the elders of the clan. Every single one of them had bowed their heads, submitting without a fight.
Betrayal...that's what it felt like.
It was his daughter who had been stolen away, and only he and his wife felt the pain.
The rest chose to look away.
Rage and unwillingness churned in Hiashi's chest, leaving him unable to calm down.
At the sa ti, back in Sunagakure
"Kazekage-sama, it's confird. The remains inside the coffin… are not Pakura's."
"What?!"
Rasa shot to his feet, his eyes wide in shock as the autopsy report was read aloud.
If the body buried in the tomb wasn't Pakura's… then did that an the scorching envoy who had attacked Kumogakure really was her? That she hadn't died at all?
What the hell had happened?
"Imdiately issue a wanted notice," Rasa ordered coldly after a long pause. "Pakura is to be declared a traitor."
The ssenger blinked, startled, but Rasa's voice grew harsher.
"Her cris are to be written as follows: deceiving the village, faking her death on the battlefield, desertion, and later launching an attack on Kumogakure that caused enormous losses. The charge...heinous beyond forgiveness."
His eyes narrowed.
"Rank it… S-class."
The room fell silent.
"In addition," Rasa continued, "dispatch operatives to infiltrate the Land of Snow. Track her down at all costs."
The decision was ruthless, but in Rasa's heart, there was no hesitation. Pakura had to die.
If the truth of her betrayal ever ca to light that it had been their own village that sold her out, it would tear apart the fragile prestige Sunagakure clung to.
Better to brand her as a traitor first. That way, no matter what she said in the future, her words would carry no weight.
"And make sure the wanted notice highlights her so-called actions in Cloud," he added with a trace of venom.
"Let them choke on it."
"Yes, Kazekage-sama!"
"…And one more thing. Send a letter to Kirigakure. Ask them what they know of Pakura's situation."
"Yes, sir!"
A few days later, the Land of Snow
"Pffft—"
A splash of blood struck the snow as another corpse collapsed to the ground.
Standing amidst the crimson-stained field, Uzuki Yugao flicked her blade, the Purple Moon Saber sending droplets of blood scattering into the snow. She glanced around, her expression calm yet weary.
What was once a pristine white landscape was now marred with rivers of red. The sunlight caught the frozen droplets, turning them into eerie, glimring crystals.
"How many batches is this now?" Yugao muttered helplessly.
"The third," Terumi i answered lightly, a playful smile tugging at her lips.
"And according to that white fellow… these were all Konoha shinobi." Her eyes glead with amusent.
"Your old hotown. How does that make you feel?"
Yugao's lips tightened, her eyes flashing coldly.
"Hmph."
She exhaled through her nose, refusing to show weakness.
Terumi i chuckled. "Don't act so stiff. Besides, it's not like any of this is your fault. Attacking Cloud was too much for them anyway."
Yugao's fingers tightened around her hilt. "Still… to turn things this far…"
Terumi shrugged casually. "He said it was necessary. Make an example of one chicken to warn the whole flock, intimidate the great nations."
Her teasing smile returned. "Or are you still sulking because he didn't bring you along for that part?"
Yugao's cheeks twitched faintly.
Terumi i smirked, vividly recalling Yugao's expression when she caught sight of Obito carrying her in his arms.
"Not really!"
Yugao snapped back, clearly irritated.
Ever since that night, she had beco the constant target of Pakura and Terumi i's teasing.
No matter what she did, the two always found an opening to poke fun at her.
"Alright, alright. Mission's over. Pack up, we're heading back."
Seeing Yugao's rising annoyance, i smoothly shifted the topic with a smile, her expression calm as ever.
anwhile, inside the Research Departnt of the Land of Snow
"How is it?"
Obito's voice echoed lightly as he stood in the workshop, his Mangekyō eyes glinting faintly beneath the dim light.
"Lord," Kazuya Mitsui said respectfully, spreading the blueprints across the table.
"The chakra cannon...we've already deciphered its principle. Reproducing it isn't difficult. However, if you're asking about improving it…"
He trailed off, choosing his words carefully.
"What, is it that hard to improve?" Obito asked.
Mitsui shook his head quickly. "Not exactly difficult. But proper improvents require endless testing."
"We'd need to build multiple prototypes, collect data, and refine it step by step. That ans considerable ti… and a massive budget."
He hesitated, lowering his voice. "Frankly, just looking at these blueprints, it's obvious the chakra cannon alone already bleeds money."
Obito waved a hand impatiently. "And what about making it lightweight?"
Mitsui blinked. "Lightweight…?"
"Yes. Shrink the design. Turn it into a single, portable weapon. A shinobi should be able to carry it into battle and power it directly with their own chakra."
Obito leaned forward, a rare spark of expectation flickering in his eyes.
"If that can be realized… then truly my lord, tis will have changed."
The Land of Snow would no longer just dabble in chakra technology. They would step boldly into the age of thermal weapons.
"This—!" Mitsui's eyes lit up. His mind imdiately began racing through calculations, his fingers trembling slightly as he traced imaginary schematics in the air.
The idea of transforming a fortress-sized cannon into a personal armant… it was madness madness that could work.
"In theory, this can be done," Mitsui finally said after a mont of deep thought.
"As long as the specifications of the parts are reduced and the structure is carefully adjusted…"
"Very good. This project is yours," Obito cut in, his voice brimming with satisfaction.
"Funding won't be a problem. I'll allocate the money imdiately make it happen as soon as possible."
"Yes, sir!"
With that settled, Obito left the research departnt and made his way back to the fortress.
Just as he arrived, he caught sight of Yugao and Terumi i returning from their mission.
"What you wanted."
i's tone was casual as she tossed him a sealed scroll. Inside was the corpse they had retrieved.
"Good work."
Obito took the scroll with a faint smile tugging at his lips.
He had already anticipated that spies and shinobi from all over the world would soon co sniffing around the Land of Snow.
Which was why he had prepared counterasures in advance.
His counterasure was White Zetsu.
Numbering over one hundred thousand, they were an army in themselves. And now, tens of thousands had been deployed to the snowy landscape, hidden in every shadow, every patch of frost.
From this point on, the Land of Snow was under their watchful eyes.
Any stranger who entered would be tracked.
Anyone who harbored ill intentions, whether to sabotage the Snow or steal its technology would be silently jumped by White Zetsu and Tobi.
But Obito's plan wasn't simply to kill every intruder.
If a spy's goal was rely to gather information, then he would let them live.
White Zetsu would shadow them constantly, watching, listening, and when the ti was right feeding them just the information Obito wanted spread.
Batch after batch of spies would co. Slaughtering them all was aningless; the great nations would simply send more.
It was far more useful to leave so alive, turn them into unwitting ssengers.
Through them, Obito could drip-feed carefully chosen truths and half-truths to the Five Great Nations.
What he wanted them to know, they would know.
And what he didn't want them to learn… they would never discover.
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