Three days later.
Sunagakure.
Kazekage's office.
"The mission failed?" The Third Kazekage asked in disbelief.
He looked at Akasuna in front of him. Akasuna was powerful, even capable of taking down a city by himself, yet a mission to assassinate a few Amegakure ninjas actually failed?
"Did Hanzo go to the border himself?"
According to the information he had, Hanzo was clearly not among the Amegakure ninjas who went to the border to sign the contract.
The Third Kazekage could only think of one possibility. That was, Hanzo used a transformation jutsu to deceive the ninja responsible for intel.
Akasuna shook his head and explained, "No, it wasn't Hanzo. A new powerful ninja appeared in Amegakure, and I was not his match."
"What?!" The Third Kazekage's eyes darkened.
"Another powerful ninja has appeared." His fist slammed heavily on the desk.
He immediately looked at Akasuna and said, "Later, you will summarize the information on that ninja."
"Yes." Akasuna nodded.
"Kazekage-sama, Konoha has already signed a contract with Amegakure. So, are we…?" Ebizo tentatively asked.
The Third Kazekage narrowed his eyes, tapping his fingers on the desk.
After a moment of thought, he snorted lightly, "The Land of Rain has been a softie for so many years. Just because a Hanzo appeared, they've become tough. Even if we sign a contract, we can't let them get too complacent."
The Third Kazekage's gaze swept towards Ebizo and he said, "Draft a contract and add conditions to it—Sunagakure ninjas have the right to freely enter and exit the Land of Rain, the right to station troops in the Land of Rain…"
After listening, Ebizo frowned deeply and said with difficulty, "This… Hanzo probably won't sign…"
"Won't sign?"
The Third Kazekage said coldly, "Then we go to war!"
Ebizo glanced at the Third Kazekage, said nothing, and retreated. "Yes."
"You may leave too, Akasuna." The Third Kazekage glanced at Akasuna standing before him.
"Yes." Akasuna turned, a greedy light flashing in his eyes.
The Third Kazekage's body was quite good.
Akasuna left the Kazekage's office and, following the memory of the body, arrived in front of a two-story house. The house was built with a mixture of sand and stone, and a mother and son stood in front of the large floor-to-ceiling window on the second floor.
Akasuna's gaze immediately softened upon seeing the two.
"Akasuna!"
Holding Sasori's hand, Chizuru ran downstairs.
She impatiently opened the door and hugged her husband, "You're finally back."
Akasuna gently stroked her back and said, "Yes, I'm back."
Chizuru let go of her husband and lifted Sasori beside her. "Sasori missed papa too, right?"
"Yes."
Sasori, whose baby fat hadn't faded yet, nodded earnestly, "I missed papa."
Akasuna smiled. He reached out and lifted Sasori into the air, spinning him around, making Sasori laugh heartily.
"Papa missed Sasori too."
Akasuna held Sasori in his arms, took his wife's hand, and walked into the spacious living room on the first floor.
"Akasuna…"
A middle-aged woman wearing an apron walked out of the kitchen. Based on this body's memory, Kenjaku determined that she was this body's mother.
—Chiyo.
"What happened to your forehead?"
Chiyo's eyes narrowed, staring at her son's forehead.
"What's wrong? Could it be an injury?"
Upon hearing this, Chizuru immediately worriedly brushed aside the stray hairs on Akasuna's forehead.
Seeing the stitched wound, she gasped and looked at Akasuna with distress. "Why didn't you tell me about your forehead injury? Such a dangerous place!"
Sasori hugged Akasuna's head and gently blew on it.
"Papa no pain, pain go away…"
Akasuna soothingly rubbed Chizuru's hand and said gently, "I'm fine, aren't I? It's just a small injury."
"Thank you, Sasori." Akasuna turned to Sasori in his arms and said.
Sasori's cheeks were slightly red, his chin resting on Akasuna's shoulder, and his arms wrapped around Akasuna's neck.
"Wasn't this mission to intercept the ninjas sent by Amegakure to sign the contract?"
Chiyo approached Akasuna, staring intently at the wound on his forehead. "Was Hanzo among them? Otherwise, how could they have injured you?"
Akasuna looked at Chiyo, a hint of solemnity in his eyes. "It wasn't Hanzo, it was an unfamiliar ninja. He was very strong. Fortunately, I managed to escape in time, otherwise…"
He didn't need to say the rest. Chizuru and Chiyo could understand.
Chiyo frowned deeply, her attention diverted, "So, Konoha and Amegakure have successfully signed the contract. What is Kazekage-sama thinking? Does he want to go to war with both Konoha and Amegakure at the same time? Although Amegakure is just a small village, the strength of its ninjas should not be underestimated, especially Hanzo, and now there's another powerful ninja…"
"Kazekage-sama has already sent someone to draft the contract to be signed with Amegakure, but Kazekage-sama has proposed quite a few conditions." Akasuna added.
Chiyo looked into his eyes, somewhat lost in thought, and for a long time didn't recall what she wanted to say. "Never mind, as long as he doesn't act recklessly."
Chizuru quickly reminded Chiyo in a low voice, "Mom, you shouldn't speak of Kazekage-sama like that."
"Hmph!" Chiyo snorted coldly, but ultimately did not continue speaking.
"Alright, dinner will be ready soon. You two go wash your hands first." Chiyo walked towards the kitchen.
Akasuna, holding Sasori, went to the bathroom with Chizuru, chatting and laughing, to wash their hands.
Chiyo suddenly turned her head from the kitchen, staring at Akasuna's back for a long time.
"What's wrong?" Chizuru looked at Akasuna, who had suddenly smiled.
Akasuna looked at Chiyo, his intention unclear, "It's good to be back alive. I can't bear to leave you and Sasori."
"I can't bear to leave papa either." Sasori hugged Akasuna.
Chizuru also threw herself into Akasuna's arms and said, "It's good that you know, so you must protect yourself well."
Akasuna nodded gently. "I will."
"Where did this crow come from?" Chiyo's voice came from the living room.
Akasuna walked into the living room holding Sasori and looked at the crow resting on the windowsill. "I brought it back."
Chiyo looked at Akasuna in confusion and asked, "This is just an ordinary crow, why did you think of bringing it back?"
"While on the mission, thanks to its warning, I was able to dodge in time."
Akasuna pointed to the stitches on his forehead and said, "Otherwise, the blade would have gone through my brain."
Upon hearing this, Chiyo quickly stepped forward and gently stroked the crow's feathers. "Thank you for saving Akasuna."
"In that case, let's keep it."
Chizuru glanced at Akasuna beside her and nodded heavily, "We should definitely repay it well."
"It can also play with Sasori…"
Akasuna stroked Sasori's short red hair in his arms. Sasori, in Akasuna's arms, reached out to the crow.
Akasuna held him, and Sasori's tender little hand gently brushed over the crow's smooth feathers.
The crow's dark eyes stared at the four people in the living room.