Naruto: Wooing Tsunade from Day One!-Chapter 467: Rasa’s Choice

"Are you okay?"

In the Land of Rice Fields, Yahiko looked at the weakened Kakuzu with concern. He knew what it meant for Kakuzu to have lost two hearts.

"I'm not going to die."

Kakuzu's response was short and to the point. Saying he didn't feel any pain would be a lie—after all, high-quality hearts weren't easy to come by.

"It's just two hearts. I'll help you find new ones later."

Konan's tone was both nonchalant and proud. Kawakaze had no idea how she had developed this personality.

"Heh~"

Kakuzu chuckled. This annoying little girl.

"What's so funny?"

Konan shot him an irritated glare. She was trying to be considerate, but he was treating it like nothing.

She thought Kakuzu was dismissing her words, and it was all Kawakaze's fault for influencing her too much. A simple 'heh' didn't always mean what she assumed.

"Alright, calm down for a bit."

Konan's attitude softened, but Yahiko only felt a growing headache.

"It's not a big deal, don't worry."

Kakuzu had survived all four of his hearts being destroyed and even being thrown into prison. This was nothing.

"That's good."

"This time, we really took a huge loss."

"Is the Perfect Jinchūriki really that strong?"

Yahiko's heart ached as he looked back at the battlefield, littered with Akatsuki corpses. This was the worst casualty rate since the expedition began.

"Perfect Jinchūriki..."

"They're definitely not easy to deal with."

Even Kakuzu couldn't deny it. The reality spoke for itself.

"When Nagato arrives, let him deal with that damn turtle."

Konan pouted, clearly still bitter. If not for Yagura's overwhelming strength, Akatsuki should have won this battle.

"Nagato might not be able to get here anytime soon."

"For now, we should avoid any fights."

"But I doubt the Kiri-nin will launch another attack so soon."

"Even though they won today, it wasn't without cost."

Kakuzu silently agreed with Konan's suggestion—leaving a Perfect Jinchūriki to a monster like Nagato was the smarter choice. He was too old to risk his life for some bounty.

"Yeah, I get it."

"The Mizukage himself is a problem, but the others aren't too hard to handle."

"If we'd had a little more time today, Konan and I definitely could have killed the Six-Tails Jinchūriki."

Yahiko's decisiveness in command didn't mean he wasn't frustrated. If they had managed to take down the Six-Tails, even with a retreat, it would have counted as a small victory.

"If we had actually killed him..."

"Then escaping would have been impossible."

Kakuzu grinned. He was thinking ahead. A fully enraged Perfect Jinchūriki was terrifying enough just to imagine.

"Ugh... yeah, that's true."

Hearing Kakuzu's reasoning, Yahiko realized his point.

"So, are we staying in the Land of Rice Fields?"

Konan's thinking was straightforward—if they were going to avoid battle, they should do it completely. The Land of Rice Fields had been easy to take, and she felt no attachment to it.

As long as Nagato returned, they would settle both old and new grudges in one go. Everything they had lost, they would reclaim.

Besides, Kakuzu's guess that Kiri wouldn't attack again was just that—a guess.

"Why wouldn't we stay?"

"If Kiri really comes, we can still leave in time."

"And Nagato might arrive in just a few days."

Yahiko's thinking was different from Konan's. Even small gains mattered—he didn't want to give up so easily.

After all, it was easy to dismiss things when you weren't the one managing them. He wouldn't blame Konan for that.

"Alright, we'll do it your way."

After saying this, Konan stopped thinking about it altogether. Living carefree was her way of life.

Watching their interaction, Kakuzu shook his head with a smile. Youth really was a wonderful thing.

After finding a place to lay low in the Land of Rice Fields, Yahiko had a video call with Kawakaze that evening.

He reported the day's battle truthfully, and when Kawakaze heard that the Six-Tails Jinchūriki had been involved, he paused for a moment.

It seemed his mere presence had unknowingly caused the ninja world to stray so far from the original timeline.

When Yahiko mentioned that even Kakuzu couldn't break through the defenses of a Perfect Jinchūriki, his tone carried the genuine shock of someone his age.

This was a side of him he never showed to outsiders.

In the end, Kawakaze fully agreed with Kakuzu's suggestion to avoid battle—everything would be decided once Nagato returned.

If the Kiri-nin really came knocking, they could afford to lose the Land of Rice Fields, or even the Land of Grass. It wouldn't matter.

The more Kiri took now, the more they'd have to cough up later.

After the call ended, Yahiko felt reassured, and even the sting of today's defeat seemed to lessen.

A few days passed, and just as expected, Kiri did not make a move.

However, word spread quickly that the Kiri-nin and Akatsuki forces had clashed in the Land of Hot Water.

Another great nation had joined the invasion, signaling that peace was now completely out of reach for the ninja world.

...

Sunagakure, Kazekage Office, Conference Room.

"Lord Kazekage."

"The ninja world is in chaos—wars are breaking out everywhere."

"What should Sunagakure do?"

The one speaking was the elder who had been Rasa's strongest supporter when he rose to power.

Years had passed, and he had grown even older, but his influence in Sunagakure remained strong.

"What are your thoughts?"

"Speak freely."

Rasa didn't give his own opinion right away. His years in politics had long tempered the reckless young man who once only cared about revenge.

The room was filled with Sunagakure's upper echelon. They exchanged glances, yet no one dared to speak first.

"I asked for opinions, so speak up."

"Or did I call you here just to sit and stare at each other?"

Rasa's voice rose slightly, irritation creeping in.

They always had plenty to say on ordinary days, but when it truly mattered, they went silent.

"If no one wants to go first, then I shall."

Bunpuku opened his eyes, his gaze calm and unwavering.

"Please go ahead, Elder."

Rasa maintained a respectful tone toward Bunpuku.

"It is an undeniable fact that war has engulfed the ninja world."

"Since the Second Shinobi World War, Sunagakure has focused on recovery."

"Though we've improved, we are still weaker than we were before the war."

"This, too, is an undeniable fact."

"We are in no position to compete for resources."

"To put it bluntly, I would already be relieved if Sunagakure manages to protect itself in this chaos."

"And one more thing—Konoha has yet to make a move."

After speaking, Bunpuku closed his eyes again, unconcerned with the reactions around him.

To him, Konoha sending aid to the Land of Earth didn't even count as direct involvement.

No one could guess what Konoha was planning.

As for their so-called mission to maintain peace, no sane person would believe that.

"Master Bunpuku has a point."

"Does anyone have a different opinion?"

Rasa's thoughts aligned with Bunpuku's. Now that the village's Perfect Jinchūriki had spoken, he no longer needed to hold back his stance.

"Master Bunpuku isn't wrong."

"But I believe this is also an opportunity."

"War is the fastest way to grow stronger."

"If Sunagakure wants to regain its strength, seizing resources through conflict would be the quickest way."

Every village had its war hawks. Their reasoning wasn't necessarily flawed, but they weren't the ones making the final decisions. ƒгeewebnovёl.com

"Anyone else have a different view?"

Rasa didn't comment on the argument for war, instead allowing the discussion to continue.

Several others voiced their thoughts, most advocating for caution, while only a few supported aggression.

When no more opinions were offered, Rasa made his final decision.

"The majority rules."

"For now, Sunagakure will remain in hiding and continue its recovery."

"Deploy more scouts—we can't afford to fall behind in intelligence gathering."

With that, Rasa set the village's course. His only priority now was to protect Sunagakure's territory.

At this stage, he couldn't even consider expansion.