"I've got one more gift for everyone—cash vouchers from Yuexi Peninsula! Not much, just two hundred thousand ryō per person. You can use these vouchers as cash at any entertainment venue on Yuexi Peninsula, anytime you want. Every expense is on me!"
Jinghang pounded his chest, voice booming with swagger.
The camp erupted. Two hundred thousand ryō was no small sum for a ninja. The army responded with a thunder of applause.
Jinghang just smiled. Compared to what they'd looted from the Land of Fire, this was a drop in the ocean. Besides, once you set foot on Yuexi Peninsula, who knew if you'd actually get to keep that money?
At that moment, the Third Raikage nudged Jinghang, muttering just loud enough for the two of them to hear.
"Little brother, you're not playing fair."
Jinghang grinned. "What? I'm handing out cash. How is that unfair?"
"Cut the act. I know exactly what you're up to. My men go to Yuexi Peninsula, you think they'll walk out whole? They'll get fleeced! If you're really so generous, just give them the cash."
The Third Raikage's tone was utterly serious.
Jinghang just shrugged, not the least bit offended at being called out. "What can I do? I already made the announcement."
"I don't care. I want cash."
"Hey, a man's word is his bond. You want me to go back on it?"
"I don't care. I want cash."
Jinghang relented. "Fine. When we hand out pay, I'll set up an exchange booth. Anyone who wants vouchers can take vouchers. Anyone who wants cash can swap for cash, one-to-one. Happy now?"
The Third Raikage considered, then nodded. "That works."
The soldiers below, oblivious to this little negotiation, were still buzzing over the Kazekage's generosity.
Suddenly, Xuechi Gaojin appeared on stage in a flash, bowing to Jinghang and the Third Raikage.
"Reporting, Lord Kazekage, Lord Raikage! According to intel, Third Takikage Amamiya is leading eight thousand ninja to reinforce Konoha!"
Gaojin's voice was naturally booming, and with Jinghang's mic, every one of the thirty thousand soldiers heard it loud and clear.
Takigakure reinforcements?
What the hell?
Why now, of all times?
Was the rotation still happening or not?
Jinghang's brow furrowed. "Where are the Waterfall ninja now?"
Gaojin answered crisply, "They're inside Konoha City!"
The Third Raikage's disbelief was written all over his face. "Impossible! I posted so many scouts—how did no one spot them?"
Gaojin replied, "Sir, the Takigakure ninja avoided every scout. They took a huge detour and slipped into Konoha."
"Cunning bastards!" the Raikage snarled, teeth grinding.
Jinghang couldn't help thinking: That was some overacting. Why so dramatic? It felt a little forced.
Without another word, Jinghang grabbed the Raikage and headed for the command tent, leaving the camp to stew.
The yeast was in the dough—now it was time to let things rise.
Inside the command tent, not a sound could be heard. Only the flicker of lantern light hinted at two men arguing in silhouette.
The troops outside grew restless, anxiety mounting. Suddenly, a ninja shot to his feet in the crowd.
"Damn it! Those Takigakure bastards are keeping me from going home to my wife! If I see any of them on the battlefield, I'll skin them alive!"
"Yeah! Skin those bastards alive!" someone echoed.
One voice set off a wave. In an instant, the entire camp was swept up in fury—eyes bloodshot, jaws clenched, everyone itching to get their hands on a Takigakure ninja for a little payback. The atmosphere boiled over.
Just then, Jinghang and the Third Raikage emerged from the tent. Their faces gave nothing away—only that the news wasn't good.
Jinghang stepped onto the stage, cleared his throat, and spoke:
"Brothers, thank you for over a year of sacrifice. Thank you for your courage in this war against hegemony and invasion. You all heard it—Takigakure reinforcements have arrived. Konoha's numbers have jumped to twenty thousand… But so what?! As ordered… rotation proceeds!"
The crowd was stunned. Murmurs and disbelief swept through the ranks. The Kazekage was really sticking to his word?
Just then, Kakuzu—the Sand's coastal defense commander—shouted from the front:
"Brothers, rotate out with peace of mind! Go home and rest. Leave the rest to us. What's eight thousand Waterfall ninja? We've beaten worse odds before!"
Easy for him to say. If the rotation went through, the Konoha-Takigakure alliance would nearly match the Wind-Lightning Alliance one-to-one, maybe even tip the scales. And the Wind-Lightning Alliance was supposed to be on the offensive! How were they supposed to attack now?
A Sand ninja stepped forward—judging by his insignia, a battalion commander.
"Commander Kakuzu, what are you talking about? We're all Sand ninja, all brothers-in-arms! You hold the line while we go home? That's an insult!"
"Yeah!"
"Exactly!"
Other Sand shinobi echoed him.
"No, no," Kakuzu protested, waving his hands. "I just meant you've all fought hard for a year—"
"Lord Kakuzu, that's not right either," the battalion commander interrupted. "So what if we've been fighting for a year? Back in the Warring States, wars lasted two, three years. We're ninja—this is what we signed up for! Am I right?"
"Right!"
"Right!"
"Right!"
The Sand ninja's patriotism caught fire.
Jinghang nodded to himself, satisfied. These actors were perfect—way better than the Raikage's hammy routine. Rousing, down-to-earth, and totally believable. This one had real potential.
When the crowd finally quieted, the battalion commander pressed on.
"I may be just a regular battalion commander, but I can see what's happening. The war's at its final stage. Victory is within our grasp."
He bowed deeply to Jinghang.
"Lord Kazekage wants us to rest because he cares. But we need to have backbone—we can't become a burden to victory.
I don't care what anyone else does. I'm not rotating out. I'm staying to beat the hell out of those Takigakure and Konoha bastards. If I survive, I'll earn my reward. If I die, just send my ashes home to my mother, and let the brothers use my reward money to buy a round!"
With that, he ripped his rotation notice to shreds.
"I'm not going home either!"
"I'm fighting to the end!"
"However long the Sand fights, the Cloud fights alongside!"
"It's just a few more days! We'll go home and enjoy peace soon enough! A few days won't make our wives run off!"
"Heh, you sure about that?"
…
One after another, rotation notices were torn to pieces and flung skyward. In the heat of June, it looked like snow was falling.
Jinghang wiped his eyes with his sleeve, tears brimming.
"You guys!... You guys!"
Choked with emotion, he leapt from the stage, the Raikage right behind him.
Jinghang, eyes red, went down the line—shaking hands, clapping shoulders, hugging ninja one by one, repeating, "Thank you," "You've worked hard," over and over.
Finally, he grabbed the megaphone.
"Tonight, the alcohol ban is lifted! All the booze you want, all the meat you want! Girls, get up here! Everybody dance!"
The stage exploded with pounding music.
Three familiar silhouettes appeared once more.
"Here's 'Gokuraku Jōdo'—for all of you!"
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