"Shisui, give me back the scroll! I promise I won't act recklessly again!"
"Shisui, they still haven't made a move yet. Looks like they're determined to fight us till the end. Give it back—I'll blast them again!"
"Shisui... Shisui..."
Shindai followed right behind Shisui, constantly nagging him to return the scroll.
Shisui shot Shindai an exasperated look, clearly at his wits' end.
Normally, Shindai was his senior and could do as he pleased. But this time—absolutely not.
Minato Namikaze chose him not only for his ability but also for his leadership qualities.
Though in terms of leadership, Kakashi might have been more qualified than him. Yet Minato insisted on appointing Shisui precisely because of Shindai's presence.
Because Kakashi couldn't control Shindai. Back when they were all on the same squad, Kakashi was team leader but Shindai actually stripped Kakashi of command and took over leadership himself.
So for this mission, only someone as principled as Shisui could serve as captain.
Like now, no matter how much Shindai begged, he wouldn't hand back the scroll detailing the Chakra Cluster Cannon.
Shisui had been genuinely frightened earlier. Who knew Shindai had such a powerful weapon? It was practically a battlefield game-changer.
However, from Shindai's perspective, the technical aspect wasn't that complicated—it simply converted chakra stored within chakra capacitors into destructive energy.
The difficult part was crafting the actual Chakra Cluster Cannon itself. Orochimaru had already conducted related research; Shindai merely improved upon it.
This weapon was banned in Konoha out of concern it might cause massive destruction. But here, he could use it without restraint.
Of course, the Chakra Cluster Cannon had obvious weaknesses—it required time to convert and store energy. If interrupted by enemies during preparation, it became useless.
Now Shindai was extremely annoyed. He came here specifically to take down Sunagakure!
Not long later, Rasa arrived with his men.
Before Shisui—the official squad leader—could speak, Shindai started mocking them: "Dear Kazekage-sama, did you all enjoy the little present I gave Sunagakure earlier?"
Rasa glared furiously at Shindai: "Was it you?!"
Ebizō said coldly, "Shindai! You used to be a Sunagakure ninja yourself!"
Shindai casually removed the Forehead Protector from his brow, blew on it lightly, then polished it with his sleeve.
"I used to be a Sunagakure ninja? Then why am I now wearing a Konoha Forehead Protector? Oh right—you old bastards betrayed me. That was your choice, wasn't it?"
Putting on his Konoha Forehead Protector once more, Shindai smiled brightly toward Rasa and the others.
Shindai's gaze fell on Chiyo. "Old woman, did you get your tooth fixed? I wonder if it's firmly set. If not, no problem—I can install a titanium alloy tooth for you. I'm super skilled at that, of course—with one condition: I have to knock your tooth out with one slap first."
Chiyo's face turned deathly pale.
In a mocking tone, Shindai continued, "Your grandson Sasori is really doing well, huh? Serving as a lackey in the Akatsuki organization and successfully making Human Puppets! Using the body of the Third Kazekage as a puppet warrior—your Sunagakure is really disgusting. Even your own former Kazekage, Rasa, was manipulated by your precious grandson, yet your village didn't even lift a finger."
Chiyo ignored Shindai and spoke directly to Shisui, who stood at the head of the group. "We want to negotiate with Konoha!"
Before Shisui could speak, Shindai cut in again. "Pfft, just invaded Konoha, and now suddenly you want to negotiate? Are all of you spineless cowards? You guys still call yourselves one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages? What a disgrace! Not the least bit of backbone. If it were me, I'd fight to the bitter end!"
Now it wasn't just Chiyo's party whose faces darkened—Shisui also wore a grim expression.
This guy Shindai seemed to hope for nothing more than to see Sunagakure and Konoha fight until the end!
Rasa said coldly, "Continuing this war will break the balance and benefit nobody!"
Provocatively, Shindai stuck out his neck and retorted, "Bring it on then! At worst, I'll make a few more Chakra Cluster Cannons and flatten Sunagakure entirely! Other villages will surely fear my Chakra Cluster Cannon anyway—the balance remains intact!"
Shisui nodded discreetly at Kakashi and Obito. The two understood immediately and grabbed Shindai's mouth shut.
Only then could Shisui finally speak. "You Sand ninja may negotiate if you wish, but negotiation comes with preconditions. We require the land granted to you by the First Hokage—as a prerequisite before talks can even start!"
"What?"
Rasa, Chiyo, Ebizō, and the other higher-ups behind them all changed expressions simultaneously.
They hadn't expected Konoha to demand that fertile land as a precondition for negotiations.
Rasa frowned as he replied, "We can offer compensation—in fact, we can keep compensating until you're satisfied. But that land is nonnegotiable!"
Shisui remained firm. "No way. As I said, that land is the prerequisite. If you refuse, then...Konoha shall wage total war against Sunagakure until its complete annihilation! This is the consequence for the sins committed by your village. Since you chose to invade Konoha, you must bear the consequences accordingly!"
"Wahhhhh!"
Right now, Shindai really wanted to yell again—but Kakashi and Obito kept a tight grip over his mouth, causing him immense frustration.
Shindai suddenly kicked upward, sending his shoe flying forward.
The shoe accurately hit Rasa's face—who was too lost in indecision to notice. So deep was his dilemma that he failed to react at all.
A footprint embedded with sand marked Rasa's face.
Rasa glared at Shindai with fury.
Shindai furiously gave Rasa the middle finger.
Shisui shot Guy a helpless look.
Guy immediately locked Shindai in an Ironclad Full Nelson.
After wiping the sand from his face with his only remaining hand, Rasa said to Shisui, "I want to talk to the Hokage!"
Shisui shook his head and replied, "Impossible. Let me make this clear—one condition must be met before talks can begin: you agree to hand over that land. There's no room for negotiation on this."
Shindai looked at Rasa with anticipation, silently repeating in his heart: War, war... my puppets are already itching for battle!
Rasa turned his head to look at Chiyo and Ebizō.
Chiyo and Ebizō were clearly troubled as well. That fertile land was Sunagakure's lifeline—if surrendered, the village would face catastrophic consequences. Even with Rasa's Gold Dust to support the economy, the village would still plummet into severe financial ruin.
Konoha was trying to cripple Sunagakure's future development.
But they had no choice now. Rasa's last-ditch gamble had failed, leaving them completely at the mercy of their enemies.
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