Rasa smiled.
"Good."
"With this, the rumor Kirigakure spread to drive us apart will collapse on its own. There will be no more internal quarrels in Sunagakure. We will stand united, and Kirigakure will no longer have any way to defeat us from within."
"If they want war, then we will fight to the very end!"
"The news will be announced tomorrow."
"Three days from now, we will hold the wedding officially!"
"That concludes today's meeting. You may all leave."
The meeting came to an end, and everyone filed out one after another.
Some of the pro-war faction gathered together in private.
"It seems we misunderstood Kazekage-sama before. He never intended to surrender to Kirigakure."
"Perhaps Kazekage-sama was waiting for the right moment. After all, many people in the village were wavering. He likely didn't want to rely solely on his title as Kazekage to force a decision."
"Now that Kirigakure has made such outrageous demands, the village's hatred for them has reached its peak. By declaring his stance at this moment, Kazekage-sama will gain even broader support."
"That's right. Striking back forcefully against Kirigakure's harsh terms will let everyone in the village see just how resolute Kazekage-sama truly is."
"And the rumor Kirigakure spread has been shattered in one move."
"Kazekage-sama's move was nothing short of genius."
"Still… one man with two wives. There's no precedent for that."
"What precedent do we need? The daimyo can take several wives. Why shouldn't Kazekage-sama?"
"That's true enough."
But just as most of the crowd had dispersed, an elderly man with graying hair approached Rasa, leaning on a cane.
"You were too hasty, Kazekage-sama. Given our disadvantage against Kirigakure, is stubborn resistance truly the right choice? For the sake of the village's peace, personal sacrifice is not unacceptable. In the end, the village matters most."
"I think… perhaps Kazekage-sama should reconsider."
Rasa's brow furrowed.
"You are questioning me? I cannot do something like selling out a comrade. And Pakura is one of this village's heroes."
"But—"
"Enough. I am the Kazekage."
Rasa's voice turned cold.
"Get out."
The old man left, but as he turned back, he cast Rasa a deep look.
Rasa… you will regret this!
After sitting back down in his chair, Rasa felt slightly reassured by the fact that he had fully inherited the former Rasa's strength.
But even so, he had to admit it—
Sunagakure's situation was still terrible.
Even if the rumor had been resolved…
Even if all of Sunagakure united under his clear declaration…
It would still be extremely difficult to survive the crisis before them.
Rasa thought in silence as he looked over the documents on his desk.
According to Sunagakure's intelligence—
Along the borders of the Land of Wind were shinobi from Kusagakure, shinobi from Amegakure, and even wandering ninja from the Land of Rivers.
But those were not the real problem.
The real problem… was the Konoha forces stationed there.
Konoha was simply too strong.
The Sannin.
The Yellow Flash.
The Uchiha.
The Hyuga.
Ino-Shika-Cho…
If Konoha had stationed shinobi along the border of the Land of Wind, it certainly wasn't just to admire the desert. They were eyeing Sunagakure.
And Kirigakure had clearly seen this, which was why they dared to make such outrageous ceasefire demands.
"Konoha has ill intentions toward Sunagakure."
"So in the end, Kirigakure is borrowing Konoha's strength."
Suddenly, an idea surfaced in Rasa's mind.
"Send for Ebizo."
Not long after, Ebizo arrived.
"Kazekage-sama."
Rasa gave a slight nod.
"Ebizo, this rumor attack from Kirigakure has given me a great deal to think about. Your intelligence operatives are scattered across the nations. If I had them spread rumors… do you think it would be feasible?"
Ebizo froze for a moment.
"You wish to strike back at Kirigakure with rumors? But forgive me for speaking plainly—at a time like this, using rumors against Kirigakure may not achieve much."
Rasa shook his head.
"I know. That is why Kirigakure is not my real target."
"My target… is Konoha."
"Konoha?"
"That's right. The reason Kirigakure dares to demand such harsh ceasefire terms is partly because it is leaning on Konoha's presence. If Konoha runs into trouble, then Kirigakure's threat to us will be greatly reduced."
Ebizo thought for a moment.
"But baseless rumors are unlikely to work on Konoha."
Rasa's eyes flickered.
"Who said they would be baseless? I've heard some highly credible information regarding Konoha."
"It is said that during the Second Great Ninja War, Konoha's Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, led his six disciples to Kumogakure for peace talks, only to be ambushed by Kinkaku and Ginkaku."
"Tobirama stayed behind and died, appointing Hiruzen Sarutobi as the Third Hokage before his death."
Rasa narrowed his eyes slightly.
"But… was that really the truth?"
At those words, Ebizo looked at Rasa, anticipation already rising in his gaze.
That incident had been one of the great events of its time.
The entire shinobi world knew of it.
People praised Senju Tobirama for his noble sacrifice.
And they held Hiruzen Sarutobi in even greater respect.
Because in that story, Hiruzen had been the first among Tobirama's six disciples to volunteer to stay behind.
It was precisely because of that that Tobirama had chosen him as the next Hokage.
"The truth I heard," Rasa said slowly, "is that at the time, only three people were together—Senju Tobirama, Uchiha Kagami, and Hiruzen Sarutobi."
"The other four had already gone ahead."
"And when Kinkaku and Ginkaku caught up to them, the first person to volunteer to stay behind was not Hiruzen Sarutobi…"
"It was Uchiha Kagami."
"Senju Tobirama promised Uchiha Kagami that if he returned alive, he would inherit the position of Hokage."
"But after Uchiha Kagami left, Tobirama immediately turned around and appointed Hiruzen Sarutobi as his successor."
"In the entire incident, Tobirama not only deceived Uchiha Kagami…"
"But Hiruzen Sarutobi also took Kagami's credit for himself, using it to glorify his own name."
"And after they returned to the village, no one ever mentioned Kagami's contribution."
[Ding!]
[The rumor you spread—'The evil Senju Tobirama, the hypocritical Hiruzen Sarutobi, and the tragic Uchiha Kagami'—has begun spreading.]
[Remaining activation points: 1. After activation, the rumor's persuasive effect will increase, and its spread will generate points.]
[Activate this rumor?]
"Activate."
[Activation successful.]
Ebizo stared blankly for a moment.
"Kazekage-sama… is that true?"
Rasa glanced at him.
"Does it matter whether it's true?"
"What matters is whether the Uchiha believe it."
"They don't all have to believe it. As long as even part of them do, it will be enough to create trouble inside Konoha."
"Ebizo… do you think the Uchiha will believe it?"
Ebizo lowered his head and thought seriously.
After a while, he answered:
"Kazekage-sama… based on my understanding of the Uchiha, some of them very well might."
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