Major Incident in Sunagakure.
[Breaking News: Research Institue Deputy Director Tobi Brutally Assaulted! Severely Injured—Perpetrators Unknown. Suspicions Point to a Joint Operation by Iwagakure, Kumogakure, Konohagakure, and Several Small Hidden Villages. A Serious, Malicious Attack.]
[One of the Legendary Sannin, the Toad Sage Jiraiya, Hospitalized for the Second Time. Cause Unknown. Konohagakure Refuses to Comment.]
These were the headlines dominating the village over the past two days.
As for the incident with Tobi… while Rasa had expected some retaliation after the tournament, he hadn't thought it would come so suddenly or so violently.
And now the situation was a mess—one misstep could trigger the Fourth Great Ninja War.
After all, the attackers were suspected to be from multiple villages.
Sunagakure couldn't just start a conflict with half the shinobi world over this.
And truth be told… Tobi really was asking for it.
At this point, Rasa couldn't help but criticize him.
Sure, technically Tobi was an "external contractor"—a temp worker, basically—but that didn't mean he could just mess around however he wanted.
Sunagakure's core values—Will of Sand—emphasized frugality, respect for the elders, integrity, cooperation, and diligent self-improvement. Tobi had been working here for a while now, and yet still hadn't grasped the basics of fairness and professionalism.
Even after being entrusted with the role of host, he'd continued to fool around.
Two words: Serves him right.
Rasa let out a long sigh.
"Looks like we'll need to improve our internal ethics training across departments."
Thankfully, Tobi's White Zetsu brothers were fairly rational—useful tool people. They understood that this whole thing was basically Tobi's fault. Rather than escalating, they'd chosen to de-escalate, focus on the bigger picture, and move on.
Even Black Zetsu had stepped up voluntarily to comfort the "devastated, bed-ridden" Tobi.
Rasa had honestly misjudged them—he'd thought they were all brainless chaos-makers.
Turns out, Black Zetsu actually had some collective sense of duty.
As for Tobi… yeah, he claimed he couldn't get out of bed, but that was just him playing the victim. The White Zetsu recovery rate was insane. Plus, maybe Tobi really did have cells from the God of Shinobi inside him or something.
He'd been up and about the same night he got beaten down. Not only that, he even wrote two whole chapters—4,000 words—of a whiny "grievance letter."
Thankfully, the ever-wise Black Zetsu intercepted it. If that had gone public, it might've turned the whole thing into a diplomatic crisis.
The spark that lit the Fourth Great Ninja War?
A misunderstood, artsy dumbass named Tobi.
Just thinking about it made Rasa sigh again.
He turned to face Elder Chiyo's brother, Ebizō.
"I've signed the paperwork. So, you're really leaving tomorrow? Not staying a few more days?"
"No need," Ebizō said, stroking his beard and smiling.
"I can't rest easy unless I supervise the Rain Country project personally."
"Besides, we're heading into September. The rainy season's easing up, which is perfect for the next phase of construction."
"I'll be taking Shukaku with me too, but I won't be gone long. I'll be back by the end of the year—before the real winter hits."
Ever since stepping down as a political advisor and taking up a back-end role as an engineer and researcher, Ebizō had actually felt more at ease.
Not because the work was lighter—it wasn't—but because his heart felt lighter.
Seeing Sunagakure flourish again filled him with satisfaction and peace.
He was an old man now, a relic of the village's past.
To see it rise again before he died… that was enough.
The First Kazekage had founded the village.
The Second Kazekage had given it structure.
As for the Third…
Well, there wasn't much to say about him. After he took office, he led the village into the Second Great Ninja War, which ended in defeat. The village stagnated again, and then—he was ambushed and killed in what the world considered a "surprise attack" by Konoha. That, in turn, triggered the Third Great Ninja War.
The Third Kazekage hadn't left any impressive accomplishments.
But he had worked hard, stayed diligent, and fulfilled his duty as the leader of the village.
As for the defeat… Ebizō didn't really blame him.
At the time, Sunagakure losing the war was practically a given.
He'd lived through the First, Second, and Third Wars—he knew how things worked.
As for his nephew… well, it wasn't the Third's fault.
Yes, he still mourned his sister's only son who died on the battlefield.
But that was war. No one could control it.
Sasori's parents had died as heroes of the village.
Technically speaking, Hatake Sakumo was the one who'd killed them.
And when Sakumo committed suicide, driven by Konoha's public pressure, Sasori had shifted all his hatred onto the Third Kazekage instead.
So really, Konoha's treatment of Sakumo had indirectly caused the Third's death.
Konoha killed the Third Kazekage.
No lie there.
But now, under the Fourth Kazekage's leadership, Ebizō truly believed that Sunagakure would become prosperous and powerful once again.
No doubt about it.
He didn't even object to the Third's decisions anymore.
He didn't bring up the old "Jinchūriki proposal" either.
He sighed again, his voice tinged with regret.
"It's just Sasori... He still hasn't let go of those dangerous ideas."
Rasa nodded.
"To be fair, you two do bear some responsibility. Back then, you failed to recognize what was going on in his heart. Failed to guide him properly. That's how he ended up so extreme."
He literally didn't want to be human anymore. That was pretty damn extreme.
Sasori was cold, yes. He'd turned his own body into a puppet and planned to do the same to others. Of course he was cold.
But he wasn't truly heartless.
If he were, he wouldn't have died by his grandmother's hands—and he wouldn't have leaked classified intel to Konoha and Suna in his final moments.
Granted, that intel was mostly useless now. Kabuto never became Orochimaru's right-hand man. Without that, he never became a double agent.
And Orochimaru… well, after getting "peeled" twice, probably didn't have the nerve to apply to Akatsuki again.
"I heard you went to see Jiraiya recently."
Ebizō nodded with a small smile.
"Creating a backup identity is a good move—but don't take it too far."
"Don't worry," Ebizō said, "Jiraiya already gave me a great idea."
Rasa narrowed his eyes. "You're talking about Nadeshiko Village?"
"Exactly." Ebizō sighed deeply.
"As far as I'm concerned, Sasori died the day he killed the Third Kazekage."
"He can never appear in public again. If he does, it'll throw Sunagakure into chaos."
Even Konoha would come knocking.
"So instead of hiding him, I'm thinking... just send him to Nadeshiko to have kids. Ten or so. When he's done, we bring them back. I'll personally negotiate with their leader. From what I hear... their living conditions aren't so great~."
"…"
Damn. This old man's ruthless.
He's literally planning to use his nephew as breeding stock.
Rasa silently shook his head.
But seeing the older man, shoulders bent with age, still working for the future of Sunagakure...
He hesitated for a moment.
"Actually... if you really want to clear his name, it's not impossible."
Because in this world—
There's no darkness that can't be cleansed.