When Baki saw Kagetsu, a feeling of relief washed over him.
Only the heavens knew what kind of pressure he had been under during this time!
The joint project between two great nations was no small matter.
The nobles were fiercely competing for benefits at the negotiation table, and Sunagakure had its own share of problems.
Aside from mineral exploration and following Kagetsu's custom method to search for the Ryūmyaku vein, there wasn't much else they could do at the moment.
Wood Release, sealing techniques, environmental transformation...
What frustrated the Sand shinobi the most was that, after successfully creating an oasis to prove the project's feasibility, the person in charge of it all suddenly vanished—leaving behind a mountain of tasks.
Not long after, the one responsible for implementing the sealing techniques and controlling the power of the Ryūmyaku vein also disappeared once the initial problems were handled.
As a result, although the project continued to move forward, everyone in Sunagakure—from the top ranks down to the civilian shinobi—as well as the nobles of the Land of Wind, were feeling increasingly uneasy.
After all, the stakes involved were enormous. The nobles practically wished Kagetsu would just settle permanently in the Land of Wind.
Even though the environment of the Land of Wind was harsh, they figured that newly created oasis could be offered to him to live in—surely that would be enough.
Of course, they had no real way to influence Kagetsu, so the pressure naturally fell on Rasa.
When Kagetsu left initially, things were still manageable. He had already dealt with everything that needed handling, and his plans were laid out clearly.
Even without his presence, Sunagakure, under Rasa's leadership, was still capable of carrying things forward.
Although Rasa tried to stay patient, it was hard to ignore the fact that Kagetsu had been gone for far too long.
Other than the occasional update on the project's progress, he hadn't stepped foot inside the Land of Wind again.
Later, there was no news at all.
Even when communicating directly with the Hokage, the only response he received was that both Kagetsu and Kushina were carrying out a top-secret mission.
As a result, Rasa started to feel anxious.
The pressure from the daimyo and the nobles was becoming too much to bear.
Even in its early stages, the project had already consumed a vast amount of manpower and money from the Land of Wind.
Some of the nobles had even made pre-arranged agreements with the Land of Fire to divide the expected profits.
In this situation, even someone like Rasa could do little to change the course of events.
The various shinobi clans in the village, along with its economy, were all relying on the financial gains this project promised to bring.
In the end, Rasa had no choice but to summon Baki back to the village. He appointed him as the official liaison ambassador for the Land of Wind Environmental Reform Plan, stationed in Konoha.
His mission: stay in Konoha for the long term and wait for Kagetsu to appear.
Now that he had finally seen Kagetsu again, Baki felt a bit of the pressure in his heart ease.
"This is a long-term project, one that will take at least a decade to fully develop. I can't stay in the Land of Wind all the time. Kushina-san is in the same situation. The Kazekage should already be aware of this," Kagetsu explained patiently after hearing Baki's report.
"Lord Kazekage is under enormous pressure," Baki replied, speaking on Rasa's behalf with a hint of empathy. As a jōnin, he himself had already endured plenty during this time.
Facing the nobles and the daimyo directly, Rasa must have had it even worse.
"I understand," Kagetsu said with a shrug, "but it only makes sense for me to go if a new Ryūmyaku vein node has been located and confirmed."
"The Kazekage understands that," Baki replied, bowing slightly, "but what he's asking is for Konoha to send someone of significant standing to be stationed in the Land of Wind. A mutual ambassador exchange between our two villages."
If Konoha were to establish a long-term diplomatic mission in Sunagakure, the Sand shinobi could delegate some of their dealings with the nobility to the Konoha envoys.
At the very least, having a diplomatic group led by someone with enough authority would ease some of the political pressure on the Kazekage.
"I see," Kagetsu murmured, pausing for a moment. He gave Baki a curious look. "You didn't ask Lord Orochimaru about this?"
"Lord Hokage didn't reject the idea," Baki quickly explained. "He just put it aside and said it was a matter that should be handled and decided by you."
As he spoke, Baki couldn't help but feel a bit of awe at how highly Orochimaru regarded Kagetsu.
This mission held tremendous political weight.
Anyone leading such an unprecedented undertaking would gain immense experience and influence.
They were clearly grooming Kagetsu to become the Fifth Hokage!
As Baki silently marveled, his respect for Kagetsu only deepened.
"No problem," Kagetsu nodded. "Once I speak with Lord Orochimaru, we'll make sure to send a team of envoys strong enough to represent Konoha properly."
"There's one more thing," Baki added. "As you and the Kazekage discussed before, I brought a few gifted children from Sunagakure along with me."
With Kagetsu's agreement, Baki felt a bit more relaxed.
It was clear Kagetsu's attitude toward the Sand Village hadn't changed. He stepped aside and pointed to a group of children quietly waiting in the corner of the room.
"Sealing techniques, right?" Kagetsu immediately understood what Baki meant.
He had once promised Rasa that he would help train a group of shinobi from the Sand Village—those who could control Ryūmyaku vein energy and specialize in this kind of sealing jutsu.
The children in Baki's team were clearly the first batch of carefully selected candidates. If this proved successful, a second batch might be arranged in the future.
"Yes! Also, as agreed, you may choose a few children from your side to accompany Konoha's diplomatic team to Sunagakure, where they will study the Sand Shinobi's puppet techniques. Under the terms of our cooperation, we will partially open the secrets of Suna's puppet arts to Konoha's exchange students."
Baki nodded seriously.
Puppet techniques were unique to Sunagakure.
While there were a few shinobi across the ninja world who dabbled in puppet-style ninjutsu, no village could compare to Suna's systematic training of puppet users.
Their standing in the puppet arts was just like Konoha's dominance in the field of medical ninjutsu—unmatched.
Even for the Kazekage, Rasa, it had taken a great deal of persuasion and effort to agree to reveal part of the puppet techniques to Konoha's shinobi.
This kind of exchange involving secret techniques between villages—it was the first time since the founding of the hidden villages!
If the mutual interests weren't deeply intertwined, Rasa would have never dared to make such a decision.
"Konoha won't set any traps or hidden barriers when it comes to sealing techniques like the Ryūmyaku vein Seal, either," Kagetsu said, clearly understanding the hidden concerns in Baki's words. He spoke to reassure him.
"In addition, as agreed, we will cooperate with Suna regarding the sealing and control of tailed beasts, when necessary in the future. For example—providing Spirit Suppression Stone."
"Thank you very much!" Baki bowed again in gratitude.
Having participated in the Roran mission with Kagetsu, he naturally knew what Spirit Suppression Stone were.
He had witnessed firsthand how effective they were at subduing and restraining tailed beast chakra.
The only regret was that none of those stones had survived the battle.
****
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