Sand Hidden Village, Wind Country, Kazekage's Office.
"It's over, it's all over!"
"I disagreed with the Fourth Hokage's radical approach back then. Orochimaru is untrustworthy! Now look, Konoha is sending people to demand an explanation. How can we respond?"
"What's the use of saying this now? Who can't second-guess? They called us here to find a solution, not to shirk responsibility!"
"Easy for you to say. What other options do we have besides surrendering?"
"Surrender? Do you want to admit that we started this, including the war? How will we pay the reparations then?"
"What else? The Kazekage is dead, everyone he took is either dead or captured, and even the Jinchūriki is gone. Okay, tell me, what else can we do now? Fight Konoha? With just your old bones?!"
"You!"
Bang!
"Enough, all of you, shut up!"
Chiyo slammed the table with force, her eyes glaring, and the others instantly quieted down, no longer arguing.
Without the Kazekage, the highest-ranking individuals in Sand Hidden Village at this moment were Chiyo and her brother Ebizō.
The former held the position of advisor and was currently the strongest combatant in Sand Hidden Village.
The latter was not only a high-ranking advisor but also controlled all the spies and hidden lines sent out by Sand Hidden, making him an undisputed intelligence chief.
Although the two had been in seclusion for many years, in this matter concerning the survival of Sand Hidden, it was natural for them to come out of seclusion and take charge.
"I want to know what exactly happened in Konoha, the more detailed, the better."
Her brother Ebizō immediately said, "It will take some time. Our people are trying to find a way to transmit the information."
Chiyo nodded, then asked again, "If we were to go to war with Konoha now, what are our chances of winning?"
"Less than thirty percent."
Even lower.
After all, they had just lost their village head and Jinchūriki.
"What if we just pressured Konoha to give up on reparations?"
Ebizō thought for a moment. "That would depend on how firm the Hokage's attitude is on Konoha's side, and it would also require sacrifice and luck."
"Right, Mist Hidden's stance might also be important. As for the other small ninja villages, they should be able to be appeased without much cost, provided that Sand Hidden still exists as Sand Hidden."
The meaning of this was simple: if Konoha insisted on going to war with Sand Hidden, those small ninja villages would undoubtedly shift their allegiance and completely side with Konoha.
But if they could make Konoha give up on further accountability, then others would naturally not dare to cause trouble and would be easily dealt with.
Chiyo said thoughtfully, "I recall that we recently sent some supplies to Mist Hidden Village. Regardless, this is a point worth leveraging. I will personally write a letter and have it delivered to the Mizukage. I hope there is still room for negotiation."
At this moment, someone couldn't help but ask, "What if Konoha insists on holding us accountable?"
Chiyo immediately glared at the person and said irritably, "What do you think we can do? Are we going to sacrifice the entire village and fight Konoha to the bitter end?"
The choice of mutual destruction had been ruled out from the beginning.
The reason Chiyo had asked about their chances of winning earlier was simply to appease the public and, at the same time, to find a way to save face.
Otherwise, if she had immediately spoken of surrender and despair, wouldn't everyone else have exploded on the spot!
Furthermore, Chiyo also held a sliver of hope, seeing if they could use the attitude of "mutual destruction" to force Konoha to back down.
After all, they were unwilling to gamble with the survival of their entire village, so would Konoha be willing to face an enemy that was ready to go down in flames?
Clearly impossible!
...
A few days later, in the Hokage's office.
Mei Terumī, accompanied by Shinji, was invited.
"This is the list of reparations from Sand Hidden. The Mizukage can take a look first."
Mei Terumī didn't stand on ceremony and took it. Upon seeing it, her brow immediately furrowed.
"I don't think Sand Hidden has a clear understanding of reality. With such a perfunctory reparations list, the Hokage isn't planning to accept it, is he?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi saw Mei Terumī's expression turn cold and felt helpless.
"Of course not. But to be honest, Konoha will not actually launch a war with Sand Hidden. I believe you can understand the reasons. Therefore, for now, we can only create the illusion of war and hope to force Sand Hidden to accept our demands through a tough stance."
"If I may be so bold, perhaps Sand Hidden is thinking the same way. They might be betting that this war won't happen."
Mei Terumī placed a letter on the table and continued, "Perhaps the Hokage can take a look at this letter from Chiyo of Sand Hidden before making a decision."
"In fact, my demands are not that high. If I wanted to, Sand Hidden could even pay a greater price. The reason I didn't agree is that I believe the relationship between Mist Hidden and Konoha is an unbreakable alliance. I cannot harm the interests of my allies for the sake of my own village's interests."
These words were all taught to her by Shinji before they came.
After reading the letter and hearing Mei Terumī's words, Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately began to smoke his pipe.
After a long silence, he slowly said, "It seems I was indeed too naive and merciful. I will remember the Mizukage's help on several occasions. If you have any needs, feel free to state them."
Mei Terumī pretended to think for a moment. "If Sand Hidden is willing to fulfill the original reparations list that we proposed, then so be it. If an agreement cannot be reached, my demand is simple: bring the One-Tails Jinchūriki back to Mist Hidden Village."
Hiruzen Sarutobi was instantly shocked. "You want the Jinchūriki?"
"That's right. In fact, there's no need to hide it anymore. Mist Hidden has completely lost its original Tailed Beasts. The Three-Tails disappeared with the death of the previous Mizukage, and the Six-Tails Jinchūriki has also defected and his whereabouts are still unknown. Therefore, we need a Jinchūriki to counter the coming crisis."
Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately gave Mei Terumī a deep look. He hadn't expected her to ask for so much, actually targeting Sand Hidden's Jinchūriki.
This was almost an impossible feat.
Sand Hidden would undoubtedly pay any price to redeem the Jinchūriki.
And he hadn't intended to keep the Jinchūriki in the first place.
But now, after reading that disgusting letter and considering the Mizukage's help to Konoha and the relationship between allies and outsiders, Hiruzen Sarutobi began to weigh his options.
"Perhaps without the Jinchūriki, Sand Hidden will be more compliant."
As this thought arose, Hiruzen Sarutobi began to lean towards the Mizukage's side.
But he didn't make any promises, only saying, "I understand the Mizukage's intentions. On behalf of Konoha, I will cooperate as much as possible, but the final outcome may not be as you wish."
Mei Terumī smiled.
____________________
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