Chapter 240: How Could a Raikage Possibly Farm the Land?
"Lord Hokage, I'd ask that you take this seriously."
Ōnoki looked at the Hokage before him, who seemed indifferent to everything, his tone hardening slightly.
Did she not understand the threat Mōryō posed?
Impossible. That much was certain.
This Hokage might be young, but her methods were the most ruthless Ōnoki had ever encountered.
Three years ago, when Han's mission report from the Land of Snow had come in, it had singled out this Hokage specifically — noting how dangerously she seemed to regard the nobility.
Three years later, the Land of Fire's Daimyo dropped dead in the middle of the Seven-Tails incident.
And then this young woman swept through and eliminated Danzō Shimura in record time, seamlessly ascending to the seat of Hokage right after. Ōnoki refused to believe there was nothing suspicious going on there.
But with Konoha holding Iwagakure's lifeline in its grip, attacking this Hokage over such matters would only bring trouble down on his own head.
"Mm, go on. I'm listening."
Sakura tilted her body slightly, propping her cheek on one hand, watching the old man on the screen.
Kakashi, standing behind her, had nothing to say to that.
"A thousand years ago, the Sage of the Six Paths sealed away a demon called Mōryō. Even the Sage himself feared its power greatly — enough to seal its body and soul apart, at opposite ends of the earth, specifically to prevent the two from ever reuniting and bringing it back to life."
"Now..."
Ōnoki was about to continue, but Sakura scoffed.
"The Sage of the Six Paths?"
"You actually believe in fairy tales, old man?"
Sakura feigned ignorance.
"..."
"Lord Hokage, this isn't funny."
"Everyone else might not know whether the Sage of the Six Paths was real or myth. But surely we do."
Ōnoki's voice hardened.
The existence of the Sage of the Six Paths had long circulated through the shinobi world as legend — but only those at the very top truly knew.
This was no myth!
"I don't know anything about it. My old man never told me."
Sakura shook her head, a flicker of contempt in her eyes.
You want cooperation?
Then show some sincerity!
What good is running your mouth?
And where was that same energy when you were sitting on the fence, coasting through the war, watching from the sidelines while others bled?
Now that trouble's found you, suddenly you're eager?
If you want to pull me into this, show me you mean it first!
"Lord Hokage. I think there's some misunderstanding between us."
Faced with the girl's stubborn nonsense, Ōnoki felt a wave of helplessness.
This Hokage was leaning on Iwagakure's distant, noncommittal relationship with Konoha, playing dumb behind her youth, answering every question with feigned ignorance — how was he even supposed to address that?
"Misunderstanding?"
"What misunderstanding?"
"You're not wrong, old man. And I'm not wrong either."
Sakura shook her head, dismissing the very idea of a "misunderstanding."
And truthfully, she wasn't wrong. If she'd been in Ōnoki's position, she probably would have made the exact same choices he had.
But Sakura wasn't the Tsuchikage. She was the Hokage.
The one who could bring the Tsuchikage to heel whenever she pleased.
Right now, playing dumb instead of directly calling Ōnoki out on his conduct was already more courtesy than he deserved.
Still, faced with Sakura's stonewalling, Ōnoki only sighed and said:
"Mōryō is immensely powerful. If he is revived, the entire shinobi world will be endangered."
"At that point, as one of the Five Great Villages, we must shoulder the responsibility that comes with that title."
"And Lord Hokage — as the head of the foremost shinobi village — should be the one to set the example."
Ōnoki spoke like an elder patiently guiding a child, trying to pressure Sakura into agreeing to send troops against Mōryō through sheer moral weight.
"Old man, I'm young. Don't try to fool me."
"You're already this old — if you ever sold me out, I'd probably help you count the money."
Sakura simply ignored Ōnoki's attempt at guilt-tripping.
Seeing this, Ōnoki understood exactly what kind of person he was dealing with — someone who wouldn't lift a finger without seeing the reward first.
If he wanted her to actually commit troops against Mōryō, it looked like he'd have to bleed for it...
"I would be willing to offer—"
Just as Ōnoki was about to name some terms to persuade Sakura, a hand landed on his shoulder.
It was Han, the Five-Tails jinchūriki.
"Your Excellency the Hokage. Do you recall the Land of Snow, three years ago?"
Just as Sakura was waiting eagerly to hear what terms Ōnoki might offer, Han cut the Tsuchikage off.
"You and I carried out that mission in the Land of Snow together. To capture Doto Kazahana, you owed me a favor."
Han's expression was grave as he looked at the pink-haired girl on the screen.
He'd assumed, back then, that he was simply doing a favor for Konoha's Witch.
He hadn't expected it to actually come in useful someday.
Sakura's expression darkened slightly at his words.
If he hadn't brought it up, she'd have nearly forgotten.
Three years ago, in exchange for Doto Kazahana's chakra armor technology, she'd specifically told Han that she "owed him one."
Sakura's actual mission at the time had only been to escort the filming of Snow Princess: Ninja Scroll to completion.
All she'd needed to do was protect the film crew.
Forcibly bringing Doto Kazahana back to Konoha had gone well beyond the scope of that mission entirely.
To secure Doto, Sakura had promised Han "a favor owed" — and never imagined it would surface here, of all places.
And there'd been quite a crowd present at the time, too.
Kurotsuchi and Akatsuchi of Iwagakure.
Konoha's own Sasuke, Karin, and Hikaru.
Koyuki Kazahana and Sandayū of the Land of Snow.
The film crew's director, and a whole host of others.
Ōnoki glanced at Han in surprise — he'd had no idea this had happened.
But his expression quickly soured.
He's spending the Hokage's favor on this?
Even without the favor, Ōnoki had been confident he could get this Hokage to agree to the coalition anyway.
But the words were already out, and there was no taking them back now.
"Now, I — the Five-Tails jinchūriki — formally request that you send troops."
"To join the Land of Earth in dismantling Mōryō's plot to revive."
Han, not noticing Ōnoki's expression, looked earnestly at the calm face on the screen.
"Fine."
Sakura nodded, her expression calm.
If she could get this favor off her books here, all the better.
Going back on her word wasn't something Sakura wanted to do, and honestly couldn't be bothered to do.
A man's word, once given, could not be taken back by a team of horses.
"But Konoha and Iwagakure alone can't hope to stop a hundred thousand terracotta warriors."
Sakura leaned back in her chair, arms crossed.
The meaning was obvious enough.
If she'd already decided to commit troops to help the Land of Earth deal with Mōryō, then the more people she could drag down with her, the better.
Wind, Water, Lightning — none of the three would be getting off easy.
And Amegakure in the Land of Rain, Takigakure in the Land of Waterfalls, Hoshigakure in the Land of Bears, Otogakure in the Land of Rice Fields.
None of them would get to sit this one out.
Yugakure in the Land of Hot Water, though — that bunch of useless clowns could be skipped.
They'd be nothing but rations for Mōryō anyway.
"Understood. I'll inform the Kazekage, Raikage, and Mizukage myself."
Ōnoki understood exactly what Sakura meant.
Though he had no choice but to swallow his frustration with how Han had handled things.
"I'll convene an online Five Kage Summit tonight at eight o'clock."
"I trust the Hokage won't be late."
With that, Ōnoki's screen flickered and cut out — clearly off to contact the other Kage.
Sakura frowned at the darkened screen, saying nothing.
"Try not to hand out favors so carelessly next time."
Kakashi's voice came from behind her.
"Yeah yeah yeah, I know."
Sakura replied, mildly irritated.
Sure, she could've pretended the whole thing never happened.
But she was Sakura Haruno. Her word was worth its weight in gold.
A real man didn't go back on what he said.
"Chalk it up as a lesson learned this time. Let's get ready to deploy."
Kakashi looked at the somewhat ruffled pink-haired girl, faintly exasperated.
"Got it. Send word down — tell Senior Tsunade to hold at the border for now, don't come back yet."
"And dispatch another twenty-five hundred shinobi to the Land of Rain border. Have them ready to move at a moment's notice."
Hearing the order, Kakashi's brow furrowed slightly.
There were already three thousand shinobi stationed at the border. Add twenty-five hundred more, and that made fifty-five hundred.
Subtract the original thousand-man garrison, and that left forty-five hundred.
"Forty-five hundred troops — isn't that a bit thin?"
Kakashi asked, somewhat hesitant.
"What, you want to go throw your life away helping that old man Ōnoki?"
Sakura rose from her seat and headed for the door, her voice trailing behind her.
"If I had my way, I wouldn't even send these forty-five hundred."
"I alone would be more than enough."
If it weren't for how bad it would look — for Han calling her out to her face — Sakura wouldn't have wanted to commit even these forty-five hundred troops.
She'd rather just bring Hikaru Uchiha along and wipe out Mōryō herself.
In truth, these forty-five hundred shinobi were being sent purely to make good on that one careless favor.
Not a large force. But not a small one, either.
That night, at eight o'clock sharp, Sakura appeared once more, logging on right on time.
All four screens before her lit up, showing the faces of the four other Kage.
The Fifth Raikage, Killer Bee.
The Fifth Kazekage, Gaara.
The Fifth Mizukage, Utakata.
The Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki of the Two Scales.
Looking at these familiar faces, an unreadable smile crossed Sakura's lips.
"Everyone. It's been a while — not since we parted three years ago."
Her words made the youngest among them, Gaara, tense visibly.
Parted three years ago? Parted how? Under what circumstances?
"Hokage—"
Gaara was about to speak, but Ōnoki's expression shifted, and he cut in quickly:
"The past is past, like smoke on the wind. The shinobi world stands on the brink of ruin now. We must set aside our grudges — all of them — and face this crisis together."
Sakura offered only a faint, careless smile, and said nothing further.
She hadn't lost anything in that war, three years ago.
If anything, quite a few of them had served as stepping stones for her along the way. Giving the old man a little face here cost her nothing.
"Now that Mōryō's revival draws near, we must unite our strength and face this enemy together."
"Lest the shinobi world face annihilation."
Ōnoki understood full well how old and deep the grudges between the villages ran — a single plea to "let it go" would never be enough. Only a common enemy like Mōryō could hope to bind the shinobi world's full strength together.
"The Land of Demons lies ten thousand miles from my Land of Water. What business is it of mine?"
The moment Ōnoki finished, Utakata, the Fifth Mizukage, spoke up with open indifference.
He'd never wanted to be Mizukage in the first place. If not for Genshi forcing the position on him despite his own advanced age, anyone who actually wanted the seat was welcome to it.
"That's mistaken thinking, Mizukage. Though the Land of Water and the Land of Demons lie worlds apart, if we cannot hold Mōryō back, the day will surely come when he invades the Land of Water as well."
Ōnoki's voice was grave.
"If someone has to die first, let it be you."
Utakata gave Ōnoki precious little deference.
"Wrong. Everyone dies."
"First or last, sooner or later, death comes for all. The only question is how."
Killer Bee, the Raikage, spoke up now, his eyes unreadable behind his sunglasses.
"Three years ago, my brother fought for the Land of Lightning..."
Killer Bee bringing up the war himself made Ōnoki's expression flicker slightly. Sakura, meanwhile, wore a look of genuine interest, curious what this current Raikage was about to say.
"...and gave his life for the Land of Lightning..."
Before Killer Bee could finish, Sakura cut him off.
"Wrong."
"You were the ones invading the Land of Fire. I stopped your plot."
"Don't dress yourself up as some noble hero."
Sakura wagged a finger, and Gaara's brow furrowed tightly.
"That was also because you took our food supplies—"
Sakura's gaze swept over, her tone turning cold.
"And whose land was that food grown on?"
Gaara's words caught in his throat. He had no answer.
Ōnoki sighed inwardly.
Still so young. Not just in raw power — even in simple debate, the Kazekage was no match for this Hokage.
In Ōnoki's eyes, Gaara was the only genuinely honest one among the current Five Kage.
And it was precisely the honest ones who got bullied.
"But for the sake of the people behind me, this decision had to be made."
"If there is blame to be laid, if there is punishment to be paid — let it fall on me alone."
"Let every sin rest on my shoulders. Let me carry the infamy — so long as my people never go hungry or without."
As Gaara fell silent, Killer Bee spoke up instead.
In his three years as Raikage, he'd changed a great deal.
Changed in more ways than one.
He was no longer that Eight-Tails jinchūriki who'd spent his days singing and dancing in his brother's shadow, thinking of nothing else.
Killer Bee's words made Sakura glance at him with mild interest.
"Heh. So you're here to take from me, is that it?"
"Couldn't take what you wanted, so now you're playing the victim, using my resources to build your own legend."
"You really have grown."
"And it fits exactly what I've always thought of Kumogakure."
Sakura gave a cold laugh at that.
"So what would you have me do, then?"
"If not by taking, how am I supposed to feed a starving people!"
"What are we supposed to do about that?!"
Killer Bee's jaw clenched hard as he growled the words.
Only after becoming Raikage had he truly come to understand what life in the Land of Lightning had been like before the war.
And it was only through that understanding that he'd finally grasped why his brother had started the war in the first place.
"Heh heh. You've got the strength of a shinobi, and you can't even manage to clear land for farming."
"What, you want me to teach you how to grow crops?"
Sakura looked at the Raikage with undisguised mockery.
The nobility of this world really had raised their shinobi to be fools. All that power at their fingertips, and they still let themselves be shackled by something as simple as food.
The Land of Lightning's covered in mountains, isn't it?
You've got an Eight-Tails — just release the tailed beast and blow the mountains apart, no?
Blast the mountains, then have your water-style and earth-style shinobi reclaim the land. Give it a year, and the crops will be growing on their own.
"You—!"
Killer Bee genuinely had no idea how to farm — but how could something like farming possibly be his job to do?
He was the Raikage!
The mighty Fifth Raikage!
Watching the pink-haired girl take on the assembled Kage single-handedly, Ōnoki couldn't help but sigh.
Getting everyone to lay down their grudges and unite against a common enemy... this is going to be a long road.
(End of chapter)
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