Chiyo arrived in Otogakure with an arrogant mindset, but when she entered through the large gates, dozens of meters high and looked out at the gigantic city with civilians strolling around with smiles on their faces, for a moment she thought she had arrived in Konoha. If it weren't for the absence of the Hokage Monument, she would have said that this was Konoha 100%.
The group behind her wasn't much better off, staring at the place in shock.
-Chiyo-sama, this is...- Temari couldn't help but swallow hard.
Chiyo looked around, trying to remain calm, but couldn't help but let out a soft sigh.
The gatekeepers didn't move when they saw Dosu, they simply glanced at Suna's group and let them pass.
Chiyo was old and had fought in three ninja wars. As they walked through the village, she saw several ninjas, although not strong, each one was at least as good as a Chunin!
The closer she got to the center, the stronger the ninjas she encountered became, when she came face to face with Jugo, Chiyo's face was already heavy, though it was difficult to tell with all those wrinkles.
Jugo's clone looked unhappy, dealing with the paperwork, but when he saw Chiyo, he smiled at her, happy to be able to take a break. -Ah, Chiyo-sama came in person, what an honor, please, have a seat.
Chiyo narrowed her eyes and didn't refuse, after so much time in nature, Chiyo, who had been semi-retired for a long time, really wanted to rest her legs.
The group behind her stood up.
Jugo glanced at Dosu's group, with Kin smiling and winking at him. He shook his head slightly with an exasperated look, Kin would probably have to wait a while, the Original was busy again.
-You guys can go first, pick up your reward on the way out, you can take a week off, especially you, Guren.- Jugo smiled at the group.
Dosu nodded, but he thought he would continue training. Kin wanted to go find the original body and Guren nodded slightly, leaving soon after. The woman's closeness still left something to be desired.
Chiyo simply watched as the group left, she sensed her surroundings and didn't sense any ANBU nearby, she raised an eyebrow.
Either the brat is crazy or overconfident, but she hadn't planned on starting a fight here, so she didn't care.
-You brat Jugo, let's be direct, why do you want that old woman's jutsu?- Chiyo said as soon as the three left, there was no decorum in her voice, this was a test, to test Jugo's limits.
Jugo didn't care about that in the slightest, he didn't have a huge ego to kill anyone who dared to speak loudly to him. He simply smiled and said. -Chiyo-sama, I'm sorry, it's a secret.
Sure, he might not care, but he wouldn't tell that kind of secret to the old woman.
Chiyo narrowed her eyes, but seeing Jugo's amused look, she already had an idea of what kind of personality he had.
A smiling tiger.
You can joke around with him, talk nonsense and even curse at him, but if you step on his tail...
Chiyo felt freer when she realized this, as long as she didn't cross certain boundaries, she could act normally.
-Really? Well, the old woman isn't giving in! You want a deal, you might get one, but don't expect that old woman to give up her things!- Chiyo said, pursing her lips.
-Well? That's fine, thank you for the trip, Chiyo-sama. You can explore Otogakure while you're here. Although we're a new village, there are already many established industries. We have bathhouses and gambling establishments, you can find something to enjoy.- Jugo nodded and spoke lightly, implying that they could go out.
Chiyo paused slightly, her lips pursed. She was a little wrong, that wasn't a smiling tiger, it was a smiling fox!
Taking a deep breath, the woman narrowed her eyes. She saw no playfulness in Jugo's eyes, this wasn't an attempt to retreat in order to advance, it simply meant that from the beginning, Jugo's objective was the Kisho Tensei.
-Kid, you never wanted to negotiate with Suna, did you? This is just the icing on the cake, what you really want is my jutsu.- Chiyo narrowed her eyes, annoyed but also intrigued, trying to understand why Jugo was so interested in this jutsu.
-You can say that, but at the same time it's not entirely correct. My goal is your Jutsu, but among the five great villages, yours is the easiest to befriend. Your dependence makes our bond stronger than the others could be.- Jugo explained calmly.
Chiyo's lips pursed. -So you want to use some food to gain Suna's support?
-Exactly.- Jugo didn't hide it. -But 'support' is a very broad word. You've seen out there, in terms of economy and military power, do you think we're worse than you? Our number of ninjas may be smaller, but the quality more than makes up for it. Besides, with our constant supply, in a few years the number of ninjas in Otogakure won't be any different from Konoha's.
Chiyo clicked her tongue, but didn't disagree.
-Well... Suna's support is good, but I don't see it as different from one large village allying with another. It's useful, but not necessary. In the short term, trade is good for both sides. In the long term, allies are better than enemies. But it's not like Oto is lacking anything. Even if the other nations aren't as friendly as you can be due to mutual benefits, they're still a valid option. I heard the new Mizukage ended the Blood Mist, perhaps that would be a good alliance target.- Jugo shrugged.
Chiyo's lips were pulling more and more, her irritation becoming evident even on her old face.
She couldn't deny it, his reasoning made sense. Otogakure was growing rapidly. She didn't know how strong Jugo was, but just being in his presence seemed to cause her this kind of pressure. The last person she'd seen who put that kind of pressure on her was Senju Hashirama.
This frightened Chiyo, the wood style, the weight, the calm and strategic mind... this boy was even more dangerous than Hashirama, if his power was similar...
The old woman fell into deep thought and the ninjas behind her looked like they were searching for a hole to hide in, they had overheard the entire conversation and were hoping the deal could be finalized.
Jugo didn't rush her, he picked up a pencil and slowly twirled it on his finger.
Finally, Chiyo sighed. -Alright, brat, I accept your deal. Now let's talk about something else, how much do you want to transform Sunagakure into a giant oasis?
Jugo smiled at the woman's question, he had expected it, but he simply shrugged. -How big?
-Not much, just a few hundred kilometers in radius.- Chiyo said without blinking or appearing embarrassed.
Jugo rolled his eyes at her. -Do you think I'm an idiot? You want me to sell you the chicken instead of making more money selling the eggs?
Chiyo's lips trembled, not from shame, the old woman had lost all shame long ago, but from irritation.
-So, what do you want? We can pay more!- Chiyo didn't give up easily.
-Nothing, that's not on the table.- Jugo explained, crossing his fingers and leaning back calmly in his chair.
Chiyo muttered irritably, but she wasn't ready to give up yet.
//-//
Utakata wasn't happy at all, well, he wasn't usually happy, but these days were particularly unhappy.
First he was kidnapped, then his chakra was drained until it was almost dry and now he was under house arrest.
Well, he could leave the house and walk around the village, but the moment he tried to leave the village, he was caught and dragged back. He tried several times using various methods.
But there was always someone behind him, none of them were weak, the fat one was easy to deal with, the guy with the six arms played cards with him, the two-headed guy seemed to want him to escape just so he could beat him up, he even facilitated his escapes for that reason, it was on the third time that he realized his intention, lastly, the girl, she was the most annoying.
-What the hell are you looking at?! You idiot! Do you want me to rip your eyes out?!- Tayuya yelled angrily.
Utakata's eyes twitched, yes, she was the most annoying, without a doubt. He'd rather be beaten up by the two-headed guy.
At first he ignored them, but he soon realized that running away wasn't an option, not when his chakra network was a mess.
Utakata looked away, sitting on the wooden floor in front of the yard. He lightly blew bubbles, at first he used them to escape, but by this point he understood that doing so only guaranteed being beaten harder, so he gave up.
He would simply stand there and await what awaited him, perhaps they were preparing the ceremony to remove his six tails.
Tayuya, of course, couldn't stay quiet. -Stop blowing that garbage!
Utakata narrowed his eyes and glanced to the side, seeing the Girl sitting not far from him with her legs crossed, watching his every move intently.
Utakata just stared for a moment, then brought the blower to his mouth, almost as a challenge, blew a large number of bubbles, making them swirl around Tayuya.
She became extremely angry and jumped, bursting them.
Utakata realized that as long as he didn't run away or attack, they wouldn't attack him.
So, he simply mocked the woman, blowing bubbles to annoy her.
Tayuya swore she'd never hated anyone so much, not even Jirobo or that brat Nara. She wanted to shove that blower somewhere where the light couldn't reach in him!
While the pair were getting annoyed, Utakata stopped, looking over the fence, he saw a group of ninjas with different headbands.
Sand Village.
They glanced at Utakata and Tayuya as they passed, but quickly looked away and continued on their way, it was just a brief encounter.
Tayuya also looked at them, frowning, wondering why the Sand People were there, but seeing a Sound ninja guiding them, Tayuya did not interfere.
-Will the Chunin Exams be held in the village?- Tayuya wondered.
-Chunin exam...- Utakata repeated softly, making Tayuya realize she had said it aloud.
Giving Utakata another irritated look, she ignored the bubbles and sat down, glaring at the guy with obvious annoyance.
Utakata found it funny, but he didn't have the energy to laugh. He hadn't had the energy to laugh since... he remembered his master trying to kill him and a look of hatred returned to his face, a hatred heavier than what he felt for Kimimaro or Jugo.
For Utakata, it was normal for ninjas to fight and kill each other, but his trust in his master was a true betrayal, worse than being killed by an enemy, much worse.
Tayuya observed Utakata's hate-filled eyes with evident curiosity.