Chapter 349: Epilogue: Tailed Beasts
In the original story of Shippuden, where Haruno Sakura didn't know the plot, the Three-Tails Isobu disappeared after the death of the Fourth Mizukage. Later, it was revived in the wild and was never discovered by the Mist, but was discovered by the Akatsuki first.
It was indeed very strange that the power of an entire village couldn't find a Tailed Beast, but an underground organization operating in the dark found it first; however, considering that there was a big traitor like the Suikazan clan in the Mist Village, this situation was also normal.
It was just that the current development of events had completely deviated from the world line of the original story.
It must be repeated, a phrase often mentioned in the prologue, the Butterfly Effect. As Haruno Sakura's strength grew stronger and stronger, her influence on the surroundings also grew greater and greater, and there were more and more changes to the so-called "plot," so much so that the current development of Konoha was completely different from the original story.
And now, she, this big butterfly, or even Butterfree, had fanned a storm that had greatly affected even the previously closed Mist Village.
"Supposedly," Mei Terumī spent a lot of time and energy fighting wits and courage with these hidden enemies, sacrificing many people to completely stabilize the situation in the Mist, and finally established the policy of peace and openness.
Now, everything had changed drastically.
Haruno Sakura's arrival accelerated the plans of both sides. In the end, with the help of the Ice Style girl's power, Mei Terumī's faction wiped out the rebels with minimal damage, won the final victory, and completely controlled the Mist in the hands of the Mizukage line.
After clearing out this batch of demons and monsters, the Mist Village was now peaceful and prosperous.
In return, the Mist Village also leaned towards Konoha's camp and became a pro-Konoha village.
Of course, this didn't mean that the Mist and Konoha were already so close that they wore the same pair of pants. Regarding sensitive matters like Tailed Beasts, ninja villages, no matter how good their relationship was, would not discuss them easily.
In her letter, Tsunade actually mentioned the specific resurrection time and possible resurrection location of Isobu.
That was the absolute secret of the Mist Village.
The Mist was an independent village after all. Although they had decided to establish diplomatic relations with Konoha, if Konoha demanded repayment for kindness, the Mist would not agree to such excessive demands.
She finished reading the entire paragraph before understanding Tsunade's meaning.
Tsunade's words meant to remind the Mist that they must recapture Isobu as quickly as possible, otherwise the Akatsuki organization might get there first!
The letter also mentioned that Konoha could send troops to assist the Mist in capturing the Tailed Beast in this matter.
Seeing this, the first thought in Mei Terumī's mind was to reject it without hesitation.
If Konoha comes to help catch the Tailed Beast, will the captured Isobu belong to Konoha or the Mist?
Mei Terumī's trust in Konoha was not that high!
In the eyes of the Fifth Mizukage, Konoha was just like the girl in front of her, looking pretty, gentle, amiable, weak and harmless, but in reality, possessing high strength; when it was time to act, they would absolutely not be soft-hearted, a ruthless character who could wipe out the opponent in one move!
"Capturing Isobu is the Mist's own business and does not require outside help. This suggestion you made... is too absurd, forgive us for not being able to accept it." Mei Terumī shook her head and said seriously.
Her firm tone indicated that there was no room for negotiation on this matter.
"Sorry, this statement sounds absurd," Haruno Sakura took a step closer and said, "but with all due respect, in the current situation, any Tailed Beast is no longer just a matter for a single ninja village."
Mei Terumī looked at her with a dark face, the gentle smile on her face gone, signaling her to continue with her eyes.
"The 'Akatsuki' is now preparing to collect Tailed Beasts. We don't know what their purpose is, but this organization has gathered nearly ten 'Kage'-level ninja, and there are even ninja a level higher than ordinary 'Kage'-level who can control a village's Kage. This power is appalling. It is no exaggeration to say that they are strong enough to confront one or two great ninja villages head-on, or even defeat them! If they gain the power of the Tailed Beasts, then no matter what they want to do, they can do whatever they want..."
Haruno Sakura's expression was solemn for the first time: "At that time, even if the entire ninja world unites, they may not be their opponent!"
"So we must act to protect the Jinchuriki and Tailed Beasts, and destroy their plan! And Isobu, which has just broken away from your village's control, is the weakest link in the Tailed Beast protection chain! With just your own strength, it is very likely that the capture of Isobu will fail!"
Mei Terumī's face was very ugly.
She frowned, thought carefully, and felt that the seriousness of the problem was not exaggerated by Haruno Sakura and Konoha.
Isobu was really dangerous!
The Three-Tails Isobu should have been in the Akatsuki's bag, but after the Fourth Mizukage was defeated by her, the Tailed Beast died, and Isobu unexpectedly broke away from the Akatsuki's control. Obviously, when Isobu revived, the Akatsuki would definitely come to recover this Tailed Beast.
However, the Akatsuki had controlled the Mist. Thinking with one's knees, one would know that the village had long been infiltrated by them and was full of loopholes. Even if the Suikazan clan was eradicated, it was impossible to ensure whether there were other spies in the village; the work of clearing spies would take at least a year or two, and before that, Isobu would have already revived...
Moreover, the Akatsuki's understanding of Isobu was even deeper than the village's! They knew the exact date of Isobu's resurrection, understood its habits in the wild state, the waters it might appear in, its ninjutsu, and its power.
In terms of intelligence, the Mist Village lagged behind the Akatsuki in all aspects.
What was even more terrifying was that the Akatsuki could send two Kage-level ninja at any time to carry out the task of recovering the Tailed Beast!
And what about the Mist?
Could she, a Mizukage, go out with the only remaining Six-Tails Jinchuriki?
That would leave the village's defense too empty.
As the Fifth Mizukage, Mei Terumī could not do such a risky thing. Even if the Three-Tails was lost, they still had the Six-Tails Jinchuriki. If the village was sneak-attacked by the Akatsuki, with the current bunch of old, weak, sick, and disabled in the Mist Village, they probably wouldn't be able to stop them!
But sending ordinary ninja would probably just be delivering food to the Akatsuki?
Mei Terumī's eyes flickered a few times.
"If only the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were still here..." she sighed, whispering to herself.
Unfortunately, the only ninja swords remaining in the village now were the Hiramekarei twin swords. Chōkurō had just obtained them, but Isobu was about to revive, so his combat power couldn't be counted on either.
Seeing the Mizukage's eyes moving constantly but not refuting her, Haruno Sakura knew that Mei Terumī had realized the seriousness of the problem.
She struck while the iron was hot and continued, "Konoha does not covet your Tailed Beast. To be honest, our Jinchuriki is very stable, and there is no need to covet other Tailed Beasts! Compared to adding the combat power of a Tailed Beast or a Three-Tails Jinchuriki, pulling your village into our alliance against the 'Akatsuki' is the matter concerning Konoha's core interests!"
"Please trust us, trust Konoha's credibility. Konoha has never been a short-sighted ninja village that picks up sesame seeds and loses watermelons!"
Mei Terumī frowned, thinking quickly.
Konoha's credibility... was indeed well-known when facing mission employers, but when the object was another ninja village, who could guarantee that they would keep their promises?
Of course, historically, Konoha rarely failed to fulfill its promises, and its credibility was indeed good; but involving Tailed Beasts required extreme caution, and decisions could not be made lightly.
Mei Terumī was somewhat moved.
From the current situation, intelligence and combat power were both disadvantageous. Contending with the Akatsuki to capture the Three-Tails Isobu, the Mist had the will but not the strength.
However, if Konoha had ulterior motives and took the opportunity to snatch Isobu, what then?
To put it bluntly, Konoha and the Mist had only established diplomatic relations for less than an hour, and Tsunade talked about such a sensitive topic, which was really abrupt and reckless.
However, from Haruno Sakura's point of view, Isobu's resurrection was imminent, and the Mist did not have the ability to solve this problem alone. If it were normal times, the Mist would still have time to arrange slowly, and Konoha would still have time to slowly build mutual trust with the Mist, but now they must race against time with the Akatsuki, and delay was absolutely not allowed!
"If we cooperate to capture Isobu, how exactly will we cooperate?" Mei Terumī said while unconsciously fiddling with her bright red lips with her fingers.
Seeing her tone soften, Haruno Sakura breathed a huge sigh of relief and said quickly, "Of course, everything will still be led by your Mist. We will only provide personnel assistance, such as sending a reconnaissance squad plus an elite combat team."
She looked at Mei Terumī's face and added, "Forces including the Sharingan can come to help!"
"Uchiha Sasuke..." Mei Terumī's heart moved, and she asked again, "What about 'Kage'-level combat power? Can they also come to help?"
When she said this, she stared at Haruno Sakura intently. It was self-evident who the so-called "Kage"-level combat power referred to.
Sakura nodded.
For missions that would face Tailed Beasts or even possibly the Akatsuki, as long as possible, the village would try to send out the highest level of combat power.
However, in this case, should Team 7 be sent out?
Naruto would probably return to Konoha at the end of this year or the beginning of next year... time might allow it.
In addition, she heard that Kakashi had made a breakthrough recently, his strength surpassing the stage of elite Jonin and stepping into the threshold of "Kage" level.
If so, the combat power had expanded a bit too much!
Mei Terumī didn't agree to this matter in the end, only saying that it was a big matter, and even as the Mizukage, she couldn't decide on it. It had to go through internal discussion and research in the Mist.
"We understand, but please be quick. Isobu's resurrection should be in the near future, right? A decision must be made before that, and personnel deployment and arrangement also take time." Haruno Sakura said this.
The Konoha side was already overjoyed that Mei Terumī was willing to relent.
Before the mission, Tsunade had discussed some issues in this letter with Haruno Sakura. Regarding the Tailed Beast matter, if the Mist side didn't reject it outright on the spot, it would be considered a success.
As long as the Mist was willing to talk about this matter, everything would be fine. After all, both villages had been personally hurt by the Akatsuki and hated them to the bone. They sincerely wanted to fight against the Akatsuki; with this foundation, many things were easy to discuss.
Most of the dozen or so big and small matters mentioned in the letter could be agreed to by the Mizukage on behalf of the Mist, but some core matters required further negotiation.
"Just right, we are also going to Konoha to participate in the Chunin Exams. Let's solve these matters together on that occasion!" Mei Terumī concluded finally.
She put away the letter into her bosom and reached out her hand for the second time to hold Haruno Sakura's hand tightly.
"Happy cooperation!"
In this way, Haruno Sakura's mission to the Mist, and the goals, both open and secret, that Tsunade hoped she would complete, were declared fully achieved.
Then, it was time for Team Haruno Sakura to return.
Volume 11, End.
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