Chapter 37: The Rescue Plan
"Konoha ninja cross the border and attack my son," A said, resting his head on his hand. "Everyone says the Cloud are the warriors, but it seems Konoha is the one who acts without thinking of the consequences."
"That is not the case, Lord Raikage," Danzo explained. "Our ninja only entered the Land of Hot Water, not the Land of Lightning. And the 'attack' was merely a misunderstanding."
"Whether it was a misunderstanding or not is no longer important. I'm not a man who likes to waste words." With that, the Third Raikage took out a scroll and threw it at Danzo. He put some force into it, and the scroll flew like a shuriken, a clear attempt to intimidate him.
The scroll hurtled towards Danzo with a whoosh. He hadn't expected it and tensed up, thinking it was a surprise attack. By the time he realized what it was, it was too late to catch it. His outstretched hand grasped at empty air.
If the scroll fell to the ground, would he bend over to pick it up, or would he refuse? This was the Third Raikage's power play. Danzo's face turned ashen.
Just before the scroll hit the ground, a sheathed short sword shot out and caught it. The scroll came to a perfect stop on the scabbard, not even wobbling.
Sakumo Hatake handed the scroll to Danzo and then stepped back without a word.
The Third Raikage, A, raised an eyebrow. "Not bad," he said, a hint of interest in his voice.
Danzo felt he had lost face. A look of fury flashed across his features. In Konoha, I am second to none but the Hokage. Countless ninja are at my beck and call. When have I ever been so humiliated? Does he not fear that Konoha will go to war over this? We are the strongest of the hidden villages!
Oh, wait. He wasn't afraid. Well then. Never mind. It was time to endure the humiliation for the good of the village. Ah, the sacrifices I make for Konoha...
Danzo forced himself to calm down, and in a wave of self-pity, he opened the scroll with a straight face. But he only had to read the first line before his composure cracked.
"Pfft!"
It was a list of demands:
One pair of Hyuga Byakugan (main family only).
Two pairs of Uchiha Sharingan (three tomoe).
One pair of Senju clan corpses (must be ninja, one male, one female).
The Second Hokage's secret jutsu scrolls (must be of sufficient value, final interpretation at the sole discretion of the Hidden Cloud).
A public declaration, broadcast to the entire ninja world, that Konoha will never again accept missions in the Land of Hot Water, the Land of Sound, the Land of Waterfalls, or the Land of Iron.
And a list of supplies of an unprecedented quantity and variety, enough to sustain a full-scale war.
Danzo didn't even dare to read the whole thing. At this point, if the scroll had demanded that the Third Hokage come to the Land of Hot Water, bow down three times, and call the Raikage "daddy," he wouldn't have been surprised.
This wasn't a negotiation. This was a provocation. Damn you, Cloud!
Dana secretly watched Danzo's livid face, feeling a thrill of satisfaction. He had personally helped draft that list. Konoha would never agree to a single one of those demands, and he had written over a dozen of them.
"Lord Raikage," Danzo said, his voice trembling with rage, "this is a complete lack of sincerity. Konoha will never agree to these terms."
The Third Raikage's face was a mask of fury. "You are the ones who started this conflict! If you can't accept, then get out! And wait for the Cloud's declaration of war!"
The two sides parted on bad terms. The Konoha delegation returned to their own outpost.
"They're just testing our limits," Danzo said, his face grim. "We can still negotiate. This is typical of the Cloud's warrior mentality."
"Does that mean their threat of war is just a bluff?" one of the accompanying ninja asked.
Danzo shot him a contemptuous look. "They're called the warrior faction, not the bluffing faction, for a reason. They're just crazy enough to actually do it."
The ninja fell silent.
Just then, a man in a high-collared coat spoke up. "Lord Danzo," he said, "my insects tell me that Princess Tsunade is in the Cloud's outpost."
"Show me the location," Danzo said urgently.
A moment later, countless black insects swarmed out from the ground, arranging themselves into a simple map.
Danzo looked at the map. "It seems her identity has not been exposed," he said. "The Cloud has placed her in such a conspicuous location. It seems Hiruzen's plan was a success."
Before they had left, they had decided that Konoha would not make any attempt to ransom the prisoner. The hope was to trick the Cloud into thinking Tsunade was just an ordinary ninja. Then, when a peace agreement was reached, her release would be a minor footnote, and the village wouldn't have to pay a heavy price. Of course, if negotiations failed, another option was to lull the Cloud into a false sense of security and then attempt a rescue. Once they had her back, they could drag out the negotiations with the Cloud for as long as they wanted.
Danzo looked at Sakumo Hatake. "You were with me in the Cloud's outpost today. Are you confident you can rescue her?"
Sakumo closed his eyes and replayed the day's events in his mind. "Based on their current security," he said, "they are not taking special precautions against a rescue attempt. As you said, Lord Danzo, they likely believe she is an ordinary ninja. I can handle the others, but I am not confident I can get past the Third Raikage undetected. To rescue her, someone will have to distract him."
Danzo nodded. Though he disliked Sakumo, he respected his abilities. If he said it could be done, then it was worth a try.
Hiruzen entrusted this important matter to me. I must see it through to a successful conclusion.
The next day, Danzo went to the Cloud's outpost again, stating that there was still room for negotiation and that the Cloud shouldn't be so unreasonable. A replied that since he was being so sincere, he would also take a step back. He offered a fifty percent discount on the list of demands. A single Byakugan would be acceptable. Half a Senju corpse would suffice.
Naturally, the negotiations once again ended in failure.
For the next few days, Danzo would go to the Cloud's outpost and argue, but the negotiations went nowhere. And according to the Aburame ninja, Tsunade's location was being moved almost daily.
Finally, on the seventh day, Danzo received word that the Cloud had lost patience. The Third Raikage was preparing to lead his forces back to the village. Danzo knew he couldn't wait any longer. If Tsunade was taken back to the Hidden Cloud, and they still didn't know who she was, she would likely disappear without a trace. Danzo knew all too well the fate of captured enemy ninja. He himself had used countless prisoners in his own human experiments.
"Sakumo," he said, "tomorrow I will feign agreement to some of their terms to lure the Third Raikage out. I believe any one of the items on that list will be enough to satisfy him. I will arrange to meet him on the west mountain, drawing him away from the camp. You will use that opportunity to rescue Tsunade. Be quick, and try not to make too much noise. Then, retreat towards the Land of Fire border. There will be reinforcements waiting for you."
"And you, my lord?" Sakumo asked, concerned. If the rescue was discovered, Danzo would be the one to face the Third Raikage's wrath.
"We will agree on a signal," Danzo said with a smug smile. "By the time you make your move, I will have already told that brute that I need to return to Konoha to report. It's a simple trick of timing, but for these Cloud simpletons, it will be more than enough."
He couldn't wait to see the looks on their faces when they realized they had been tricked.