Chapter 402: Returning to the Village
Konoha. Hokage's Office.
"...That's the gist of the situation."
Haruno Sakura stood before Tsunade, hands on her hips, and said indifferently.
"So..." The blonde woman sat behind the desk, looking solemnly at the two in front of her, and asked, "The Seven-Tails was taken by the Akatsuki in the end?"
The atmosphere was a bit oppressive.
Having sat in the Hokage's position for these years, Tsunade's authority had gradually grown. Just lowering her voice and narrowing her eyes created a gloomy feeling of an impending storm, making people's hearts tremble.
"Yes," Sakura answered. She nodded regretfully, suppressing the depression in her heart and admitting, "I'm sorry, our mission failed."
Saying this, she secretly glanced back at Sasuke beside her.
The meaning revealed in those eyes seemed to imply: it's all Sasuke's fault.
It really wasn't her shifting responsibility; it was the fact—if not for protecting the injured and unconscious Sasuke, at least the Akatsuki couldn't have taken the Seven-Tails from under her nose.
The taste of failing a major mission for the first time was a fresh bitterness, worth Sakura savoring for a few days; especially when she thought she was strong enough to change many things, reality slapped her first.
So it was inevitable to have such thoughts: sometimes when a mission fails, one always feels that the teammates weren't pulling their weight...
—It was truly similar to the thoughts she had when struggling in low-level matches of a certain game in her previous life.
Sasuke noticed the girl's small movement. Standing slightly behind Sakura, he tilted his head slightly upon seeing this and returned a calm eye roll.
"If I hadn't stalled Uchiha Itachi, you wouldn't have been able to repel the Akatsuki!" His eyes probably meant this.
But the expression on his face remained calm and composed.
The momentary small interaction between the two did not escape Tsunade's eyes. The latter smiled, and the solemn expression on her face instantly dissolved. She laughed: "Alright, no need to apologize, I don't mean to blame you! Success should certainly be pursued in missions, but if the price of success requires sacrificing teammates, then how to execute this mission becomes a matter worth considering."
The blonde woman paused and continued: "Just regarding this mission alone. Facing an Akatsuki duo unprepared, and it's the combination of Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame, being able to retreat safely is already a success. I'm afraid even if I or Jiraiya went personally, we probably couldn't have saved the Seven-Tails... So you don't need to dwell on it."
"What's more, you also killed Hoshigaki Kisame. I estimate that even for an organization like the Akatsuki, the death of a 'Tailed Beast without a Tail' is a severe loss. This should greatly dampen their arrogance that has gradually become unscrupulous recently."
The Fifth Hokage said approvingly.
"If the price of capturing one Tailed Beast is the loss of another 'Tailed Beast'," the Third Hokage sitting by the window interjected, chuckling, "such a price is something the Akatsuki can't afford either, right?"
The Third's hearty laughter immediately eased the atmosphere.
"As for the Seven-Tails..." Speaking of this, Tsunade also frowned and exchanged a look with the Third Hokage.
"I will write a letter to the Waterfall Village to explain. I presume they won't have any extra opinions." The blonde woman waved her hand, "The key lies with the Akatsuki... We still don't know specifically why the Akatsuki is collecting Tailed Beasts, nor do we know what changes will happen to the situation after the Seven-Tails falls into their hands."
"Of course, no matter what they plan to do, whether it's manipulating Tailed Beasts as weapons with powerful genjutsu, sealing Tailed Beasts into themselves to become new Jinchuriki, or other unknown higher methods, in short, it's obvious that the more Jinchuriki they get, the more the Akatsuki's strength will increase, and conversely, the more the strength of us and other countries will be weakened..."
"Anyway, I don't intend to cover up this incident. On the contrary, I want to let the other four countries know immediately that the Seven-Tails was snatched from our hands by the Akatsuki! Although this will lose some face internationally, we can't care about that now. We must let those stubborn old fogies know the danger of the Akatsuki organization!"
The Fifth Hokage said calmly.
Openly snatching a Tailed Beast Jinchuriki from Konoha's hands, and being able to send two 'Kage' level experts at once! The facts were in front of them, leaving no choice for other countries but to become vigilant!
Haruno Sakura added: "Yes, and I now suspect that we actually underestimated the danger of the Akatsuki... If the people of the Akatsuki aren't stupid, they should know that collecting Tailed Beasts will arouse the fear and even hostility of all countries on the continent, and even be jointly annihilated by our Five Great Nations. Then the question arises, why do they dare to openly target Tailed Beasts? And not just one or two, but having designs on all Tailed Beasts!"
Just like in her previous world, the Akatsuki capturing Jinchuriki was like a terrorist organization acquiring nuclear weapons... This would inevitably cause an uproar among the Five Great Powers. If that organization also planned to snatch all the nuclear arsenals of the Five Great Nations, it would inevitably invite a relentless strike from the whole world!
No matter how stupid an organization is, they wouldn't, or rather dared not do such a thing.
Unless—
"Unless," the girl coldly stated the conjecture in her heart, speaking slowly, "they are confident in confronting the whole world."
This possibility immediately moved everyone present.
Tsunade rubbed her temples and said with a headache: "Even if they collect all nine Tailed Beasts, and assuming the Akatsuki has ten or even fifteen 'Kage' level ninja, such strength looks very strong, but to confront the whole world with it is also wishful thinking!"
"Or maybe the Akatsuki really has that strength..." Sakura said with a heavy tone.
Before Shippuden, it was just child's play between Genin. After Shippuden, combat power inflated so severely? Haruno Sakura couldn't believe it. But the fearless actions of the Akatsuki, the implication behind them really made one's heart chill.
"Or could it be like this?" Sasuke interrupted, breaking the heavy atmosphere in the office, "For example, they might think that after collecting a large number of Tailed Beasts, they can make the Five Great Nations fearful with their powerful strength, thereby gaining equal status with the Five Great Nations! After all, they possess the combat power to storm a great nation, and the cooperation between the Five Great Nations cannot be intimate, but rather full of contradictions. So even if they provoke the hostility of the whole world, we might be divided and alienated by the Akatsuki, and eventually defeated one by one, forced to compromise with the Akatsuki!"
Tsunade shook her head.
"Sasuke, you underestimate the Kage of various countries too much. I have dealt with the Tsuchikage, Raikage, and even the Kazekage, and I know what kind of people they are... I can only say that the possibility you mentioned exists, but the probability is relatively small!"
The Third Hokage also nodded: "Tsunade is right. Sasuke, you must believe that in the face of such an enemy, the Five Great Nations have the courage to put aside the hatred between each other and fight side by side against the enemy!"
Haruno Sakura shrugged, expressing noncommittal.
Human beings have both inherent bad roots and glorious points. Since two old veterans—whose combined age exceeded the sum of her two lives—expressed this, she had nothing more to say.
Sasuke opened his mouth, wanted to insist, but didn't know what to say, hesitating for a long time.
Seeing this, Tsunade simply waved her hand, blocking Sasuke's words in his throat: "That's it! Go back and write a mission summary report, hand it to me."
"Mission report?" The two young ninja below widened their eyes, looked at each other, and turned their eyes back to Tsunade at the same time.
"Cough cough, that's right, starting this month, everyone has to write it." Tsunade twirled the pen in her hand and said lightly, ignoring the expressions of her two subordinates as if they had seen a ghost, "No report, no mission payment!"
"By the way, this mission is recorded as S-rank, so the report must be more than three thousand words. That's all, you can go."
"Sakura, you stay."
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