"Have you finally reached your limit, Lord Kazekage?"
Kawanishi returned to his residence, gazing through the window at the distant areas currently under reconstruction. This compromise from Rasa was almost entirely predictable. After all, the Hidden Sand Village had lost its only Tailed Beast, and its prestige in the Shinobi World had suffered a massive blow.
Under these circumstances, the powers surrounding the Land of Wind—and even certain factions within its borders—would surely be watching with predatory eyes. Coupled with the agitation from the other four Great Shinobi Nations, the Hidden Sand Village was destined to face significant challenges. Even if others did not know the true strength of the Jashin Religion, the loss of a Tailed Beast and the severe decline in war potential were undeniable facts.
With things as they were, it was perfectly normal for others to test the Hidden Sand Village. What Rasa needed to do now was find a way to bolster the village's strength. He needed to deliver a heavy blow when those tests came, declaring to the world that even without a Tailed Beast, the Hidden Sand Village still possessed formidable war capabilities.
Only by doing this could he slightly salvage the village's reputation. Consequently, Rasa's decision to fully implement the Scorpion Jade Project was a matter of course.
"A pity, for all of this was foreseen by my Lord."
Kawanishi slowly removed his gloves, silently praying to the pattern on his palm. Suddenly, the pattern emitted a terrifying wave of heat. Kawanishi's palm turned a scorched red, and a large amount of steam began to rise from it. Facing a pain that would be unbearable for an ordinary person, Kawanishi appeared exceptionally excited.
"It is the Lord! The Lord's gaze has fallen upon me once again!"
To avoid drawing attention, Kawanishi knelt on the floor with a frenzied expression, whispering in a low, demonic murmur. This state lasted for approximately three minutes. These short three minutes were enough to leave Kawanishi collapsed on the ground in exhaustion. However, the excitement on his face was uncontrollable, and his entire body trembled and twitched with fervor.
"The Great Lord has handed down another divine oracle..."
His gaze was fanatical as a vast amount of information flooded his mind. It was a method to further modify the Scorpion Jade. This new method could significantly lower the requirements for the user; now, anyone with Genin-level chakra could easily use it!
This meant that not only the Chunin and Jonin of the Hidden Sand Village, but even the Genin would naturally possess an absolute advantage in Taijutsu without needing to study it! Thus, ten days later, Kawanishi immediately handed the latest research results to Rasa.
"I knew it! I knew I didn't misjudge you!"
Rasa looked at the report in his hands, a smile of excitement spreading across his face.
"If we can equip the Scorpion Jade on a large scale, the combat effectiveness of the Land of Wind's border troops will increase dramatically."
Baki also recognized the importance of this development at a glance. The border troops of the Land of Wind consisted of a vast number of ninja, but the vast majority were Chunin and Genin. If everyone could be equipped with one of these, the casualty rate of Genin and Chunin on the battlefield would surely plummet.
This was because large-scale battlefields differed greatly from small-scale shinobi skirmishes. In small-scale combat, if you were careful, you could observe a person's weaknesses before attacking.
On a large-scale battlefield, however, both sides bombarded each other with Ninjutsu. Once the bombardment ended, it turned into a brutal melee. In the heat of the moment, there was very little time to judge an enemy's weakness. In such a situation, the Scorpion Jade was the best weapon for any Hidden Sand ninja.
Even the strongest enemy could be stabbed to death in a chaotic brawl. A Hidden Sand ninja equipped with the Scorpion Jade effectively gained eight extra weapons, vastly increasing their chances of killing the enemy!
"Can it be mass-produced? This new type of Scorpion Jade?"
Rasa asked the most critical question. Kawanishi nodded without hesitation. "Of course."
"Good, very good!"
An ecstatic Rasa made an immediate decision. "Direct all resources to the Broodmother to produce Wind Scorpions. Manufacture the Scorpion Jade devices and deploy them to the border troops."
"Yes."
Kawanishi immediately accepted the command.
"Furthermore, the village must immediately purchase a large quantity of Food Pills from the Spider Lily Chamber of Commerce to prepare for potential upcoming battles."
Having said this, Rasa suddenly stood up, appearing somewhat high-spirited.
"Although we lost our Tailed Beast, we gained the Scorpion Jade to arm our entire army and special Food Pills that can greatly enhance a ninja's survival and combat power..."
"This time, destiny is on my side!"
In a base half a desert away, Simu—who was seriously researching Yin-Yang Style and Sealing Jutsu with Sasori—finally sensed a peculiar chakra fluctuation from the ring on his hand. He knew his boss was calling. Although he didn't really want to pick up, Simu still answered the call.
As Simu performed the jutsu taught by Nagato, his figure instantly appeared in an underground cavern. He manifested directly atop the finger of the Gedo Mazo that was designated for him.
Simu looked at the Gedo Mazo before him with a burning gaze. He desperately wanted to know what kind of existence the Divine Tree—the one that legendary accounts say split into nine Tailed Beasts—actually was. Pain did not notice the abnormality in Simu's eyes; after all, what stood there was merely a projection.
In addition to Simu and Pain, the projections of Konan and Tobi also appeared.
"Simu, you have already successfully captured the One-Tail, haven't you?" Pain asked directly.
Simu pushed his glasses up. "You could say I caught it."
Before Pain could speak, Konan cut in. "You caused quite a commotion this time. If I remember correctly, your mission was supposed to be recruiting new members, wasn't it?"
It was clear that Konan was not satisfied with Simu's high-profile actions. However, Simu didn't care and replied casually, "Sasori of the Red Sand has agreed to join our organization. As for the One-Tail, we were going to catch it sooner or later anyway. I just did it along the way this time. Besides, I used the name of the Jashin Religion."
His words left Konan's criticism hanging. Her main concern was that Simu's high-profile actions would expose the Akatsuki and bring unnecessary risks. But since he had used the Jashin Religion's name to take the blame, she had nothing left to say.
Tobi, on the other hand, spoke in a tone of pure admiration. "As expected of Simu-senpai! Even capturing a Tailed Beast is just something done 'along the way'."
Simu glanced at the posturing Tobi behind his mask and smiled faintly. "By the way, I used your mask for this mission, Tobi."
"Eh?"
Tobi froze for a moment and scratched his head, beginning to consider if he really ought to change his mask.