"What? You want to trade earth-style jutsu secrets in exchange for Pakura? Do you have any idea how much trouble I'd be in for privately releasing a prisoner? That violates shinobi regulations!"
Umino Yoru listened to Shakutō Hōjō's proposal, feigning hesitation before suddenly adding:
"You'll have to pay extra."
Shakutō Hōjō: "…???"
So it all came down to haggling, huh? Fine. As long as he could get Pakura back, everything was negotiable.
A Hidden Candidate for Kazekage
"Shakutō Hōjō, I've heard the Third Kazekage isn't entirely satisfied with Satetsu Arashi or Rasa—he thinks both candidates have 'personality flaws' unfit for leadership. But he seems quite impressed with your clan's Pakura, no?"
Thanks to Yamashiro Midori's intelligence network, Yoru had dug up plenty of valuable intel on Suna—especially regarding its Kazekage candidates.
Satetsu Arashi and Rasa were strong, yes, but their personalities were… problematic. The Third Kazekage had privately urged them to improve, but old habits die hard. As insurance, he'd quietly added Pakura to the list of potential successors.
"How do you know all this?!" Hōjō demanded.
"You think Ryūrigyoku only traded wind-style jutsu with us? No intel changed hands?"
"That damned Ryūrigyoku…!"
Hōjō seethed. Trading for a talented clanswoman was one thing—trading for a Kazekage candidate was another. Even if Pakura weren't his daughter, securing a future Kazekage for the Shakutō clan was worth any price.
But with the leaks, Konoha had the upper hand.
The Price of a Future Kazekage
After brutal negotiations, Hōjō caved—not only handing over advanced earth-style techniques but also mid-to-high-level sealing jutsu. And then, Yoru squeezed out one final prize:
"A bloodline limit fusion scroll… researched from Shukaku's powers?"
Though not the Magnet Release scroll he'd hoped for, this was still invaluable. No wonder Iwa had produced so many kekkei genkai—they must've studied the Four-Tails and Five-Tails similarly.
"Now, let's trade intel too," Yoru suggested brightly.
"What?! The Shakutō clan is smuggling with Konoha's Mitarashi clan?!"
Hōjō initially refused to believe it—until Yoru produced ledgers and hard evidence.
"This could cripple the Shakutō clan's rivals… or help Pakura's bid for Kazekage," Yoru mused. "I trust your intel will be equally… enlightening?"
Hōjō obliged—mostly sharing Konoha secrets rather than Suna's. And what Yoru learned turned his blood cold.
Betrayal from Home
"They're already scheming to take my techniques… and I'm not even back yet."
He didn't doubt the intel. Knowing Konoha's clans and elders, this was inevitable.
"I can hand over the puppet techniques—but Sonic Radar stays mine. Time to develop a high-level sound-based genjutsu as a decoy."
Puppetry was expendable; he'd already begun training the Hundred-Man Unit in it anyway. If Konoha fielded its own puppet corps, who better to lead it than its founder?
But powerlessness bred exploitation. Yoru's eyes hardened.
"Maybe disbanding the Hundred-Man Unit would be a mistake. I need leverage."
Even Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage, had been shackled by clan politics. Strength alone wasn't enough—you needed influence.
With that realization, any guilt over releasing Pakura vanished. Compared to Konoha's backroom deals, at least his trades benefited his men.
Now, the Hundred-Man Unit would master not just advanced wind and earth styles but even sealing techniques.
Smooth Extraction, Bitter Farewell
The exchange went flawlessly. That night, a "Suna rescue squad" extracted Pakura without a fight.
By dawn, the Hundred-Man Unit was aboard their stolen Mist ships, sailing home with the Daimyō of Rivers and thousands of displaced civilians in tow.
Satetsu Arashi arrived too late with 500 Suna shinobi, forced to watch helplessly as Konoha's fleet vanished over the horizon.
Seeing the ruined fortress and blocked river, Arashi's fury boiled over—especially since he'd been certain the Hundred-Man Unit was trapped.
His hatred festered.
And Yoru? He sailed on, his ambitions no longer so small.