"So—what exactly did you do to force him to agree?"
Konoha, Root headquarters.
Danzō stared at the report in his hand in disbelief, then slowly lifted his head to look at Ren.
For a brief moment, he even suspected Ren had lied to him—because this mission had been completed too perfectly.
But he couldn't say that out loud.
Nor did he believe that a clever little fox like Ren would make mistakes in a matter this important.
Still… this was absurd.
The outcome Ren had delivered had completely crushed Sunagakure—and Ebizō along with it.
"Lord Danzō, I strictly followed your instructions," Ren replied calmly.
Internally, he was already annoyed.
What do you mean 'what methods did I use'? This is clearly your style.
The negotiations with Sunagakure were over. Regardless of Ebizō's personal feelings, the matter had been settled.
Ren did feel a bit regretful—Sunagakure showed absolutely no sense of gratitude. He hadn't even been given a chance to interact further with the so-called 'Number One Beautiful Back in the Shinobi World'.
After all, he had saved Pakura's life.
Yet once negotiations ended, they stormed off in anger.
There was nothing he could do about that.
After escorting Yakushi Kabuto to the border of the Land of Iron, Ren returned directly to Konoha.
But now, with Danzō questioning him—and clearly intending to pin responsibility on him—Ren wasn't about to swallow it quietly.
"Lord Danzō, Sunagakure's situation is worse than we initially estimated," Ren said with his head lowered.
"I took the liberty of slightly adjusting the bargaining chips. Please forgive my presumption."
Translation: I'm throwing the blame back to you.
"I deliberately lowered our offer," Ren continued softly.
"My judgment was that Sunagakure is trapped between advance and retreat. Kirigakure's harassment continues, yet they've lost any leverage to negotiate with them.
"Ōnoki's pressure hasn't eased either. But because Kirigakure is involved, the Fourth Kazekage may shout loudly, yet all actual military movements have stopped.
"Unless something drastic happens, they won't dare deploy troops—even if Ōnoki completely occupies those minor nations.
"More importantly, your ally Ebizō is a cautious man. He wouldn't gamble with the village's fate. At present, the only support he can rely on is us.
"And the supplies we provide are, to them, extremely valuable."
"I already know all of this," Danzō said, nodding slowly.
"But it's still not enough."
Ren's expression didn't change, but inwardly he sighed.
Why are you suddenly this sharp now?
I literally traded intelligence on Yura and Sasori!
But Ren had anticipated this response. By now, certain things should already be fermenting.
"Indeed, it wasn't enough," Ren admitted quietly.
"But they've encountered another serious problem."
"What problem?" Danzō asked.
"After the negotiations, we gathered additional information," Ren said.
"It appears Sunagakure's Dragon Vein has suffered an incident."
"The Dragon Vein?"
Danzō froze—then his eyes flickered with understanding.
Sunagakure had long coveted the Dragon Vein, yet internal and external pressures had prevented action.
If something had gone wrong with it now, their anxiety would only worsen.
After all—they were genuinely poor.
"Then we'll need to investigate the Dragon Vein carefully," Danzō said, eyes gleaming.
To him, the Dragon Vein having issues wasn't bad news.
On the contrary—it was beneficial to Konoha.
Neither he nor Hiruzen wanted Sunagakure to ever obtain that power.
"I see," Danzō said after a moment.
"This time, fortune favored you. And you handled the matter well."
He paused, then continued:
"However, exploiting them too harshly isn't good for us either. Ebizō may harbor resentment.
"Let this serve as a warning—to remind them of reality and keep their ambitions in check.
"That said, we can increase the compensation. They're short on money, yes?"
"Anything worth doing costs money," Ren replied, blinking.
Danzō considered briefly, then waved his hand decisively.
"Then give them more. That's within my authority.
"As for the future—we'll talk once I become Hokage."
He spoke with confidence.
Still, he wasn't foolish. Pressing too hard could trigger backlash.
Ren nodded in satisfaction.
His little act of 'thanking nature for its gift' hadn't just benefited him—it could be leveraged politically as well.
That Dragon Vein was truly something special.
"Still, follow-up preparations are necessary," Ren muttered to himself as he left Root headquarters.
A massive tree had appeared in Rōran.
Even if no one had seen who caused it, the tree itself had been witnessed by many.
On top of that, Ren needed a reasonable excuse to openly use Wood Release in the future.
Combine those two facts, and suspicion would inevitably fall on him.
So he needed a scapegoat.
Someone who could logically shoulder all the blame—
and allow Ren to use Wood Release openly and legitimately.
And just so happened—
On his enemy list, there was one individual whose appearance, abilities, and style fit perfectly.
"You really are a good person…" Ren murmured, looking up at the sky.
The sunlight was dazzling, almost blinding.
But his mood had never been better.
For the first time, he was truly hoping—
That person would hurry up and come looking for trouble.
"Strange… why do my ears feel hot?"
Within the Land of Fire, Obito stood atop a tree, gazing into the distance with a faint frown.
Something felt… off.
But he didn't dwell on it.
He had more important matters to handle.
"Obito, are you sure about this?"
The pitcher-plant creature beside him sighed.
"Granted, Uchiha Shisui may have awakened the Mangekyō—but this move is still extremely risky.
"We don't know what he's thinking. Approaching him now could lead to unforeseen consequences."
"Relax. I have my plan," Obito replied coldly.
This time, he was heading to meet Uchiha Shisui.
After being utterly screwed over by Ren and Konoha—and with Akatsuki now even considering making a move against him—Obito's fury was reaching the heavens.
If he didn't retaliate, he wouldn't be Obito anymore.
He had already ordered White Zetsu to investigate extensively.
And what he uncovered was… interesting.
Which was why his gaze had turned toward Shisui.
That boy believed in Konoha.
Believed reconciliation between the clan and the village was possible.
But Konoha's actions?
They weren't exactly inspiring confidence.
"You and I both know what kind of man Danzō is," Obito said quietly, staring at the sky.
"So stop pretending otherwise."
"For an Uchiha… the purer the heart—
the more catastrophic the fall once faith collapses."
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