Rasa walked straight in, grabbed a chair, and sat down. He pointed at the seat across from him.
"Sit. Let's talk, Leaf spy. Yakushi Kabuto."
Kabuto's pupils shrank to dots. Every alarm in his head went off at once. He scrambled for a plan, but his mind came up blank.
This was way beyond anything he'd prepared for.
The Kazekage of Sunagakure had just walked into his little shop, called him out by name, and exposed him as a spy. Completely. No room left to deny it.
Run? Not a chance. This was the man they called the Red Flash of the Desert—the guy who could appear anywhere in an instant, just like Minato. Maybe even faster.
Fight? Laughable. Kabuto was a chunin who'd been exiled to the middle of nowhere. Rasa had wiped out an entire clan in one night, soloed four of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, beaten Danzo bloody, and gone toe-to-toe with the Yellow Flash without breaking a sweat.
So Kabuto did the only thing left. He walked over and sat down.
"Lord Kazekage."
The power gap was so massive he didn't even bother with pride.
"You're a war orphan. Grew up in the Leaf Orphanage under Yakushi Nono. Danzo forced you into Root because you showed promise. I'm right, aren't I?"
Kabuto's eyes widened again. How the hell did Rasa know all that?
He immediately suspected someone in Root had sold him out.
Rasa didn't wait for an answer. He pulled out three photos and slid them across the table.
Kabuto stared.
"These are… my photos?"
"No. Not exactly. This one looks a little like you. This one barely does. And this one's someone else entirely."
"What are you showing me these for?"
Rasa's voice stayed calm.
"Because these are the photos Danzo showed Yakushi Nono."
They weren't. Rasa had grabbed them from somewhere else and faked the whole thing. But the story behind them was real—and Rasa knew exactly how Danzo operated.
Kabuto froze. Then the realization hit him like a kunai to the gut.
Danzo's favorite game. Pit two people who cared about each other against each other. Make them fight to the death. Pure, unfiltered psycho behavior.
"Danzo wants me and Nono to kill each other? Why?"
Rasa didn't answer. He didn't need to. Kabuto was already filling in the blanks.
Rasa continued.
"You were never really a Leaf ninja. They treated you like shit. So I'm giving you a choice."
Kabuto looked up, eyes burning.
"You'd trust me? A spy the Leaf sent to infiltrate your village?"
Rasa chuckled, low and easy.
"You underestimate me, Kabuto. Sunagakure already has Uchiha clansmen. Kisame Hoshigaki, former Mist, works for us now. We even took in a few from Grass Village. We don't care where talent comes from. If you're useful, you're welcome. Betray us and you lose everything—not the other way around. I'll hunt you to the ends of the earth if I have to. And I have the power to do it."
It was mostly true. Mostly. Rasa had the One-Day Loyalty Visualization Card ready for later. High loyalty? Great. Low? Easy to dispose of. The system had given him one already. He could pull more.
Kabuto stared at him like he was seeing something completely new.
"Lord Kazekage… you're different. Really different. No wonder you turned Sunagakure around and crushed the Mist. You're greater than anyone I've ever met."
He hesitated.
"But… please. Let me see Yakushi Nono one more time. Just once."
Rasa nodded.
"Fine. Not right now, though. First you prove your worth. Fair?"
"Fair."
Kabuto thought for a second.
"I'm pretty good at medical ninjutsu. And I've got a talent for research."
Rasa stood up.
"I'll set you up somewhere. Show me what you can do."
"Thank you, Lord Kazekage."
Rasa had barely made it back to the Kazekage Tower when an ANBU rushed in.
"Lord Kazekage. Urgent."
"What is it?"
"Three people from the Taketori clan are here requesting an audience."
Rasa raised an eyebrow.
"Bring them in."
Three figures entered. A middle-aged man and two female kunoichi. Rasa gave the women a quick once-over. Not bad looking. Not bad at all.
The man waved them back. They left without a word.
"Lord Kazekage."
The man bowed deeper and more respectfully than most Sand ninja ever did. He had something to ask for.
"We, the Taketori clan, wish to request your aid, Lord Kazekage. In exchange, we will strike the Hidden Mist with everything we have. We'll punish them for breaking the treaty and betraying Sunagakure. These two kunoichi are proof of our sincerity. They're civilians, but very beautiful."
Rasa's expression shifted to understanding, then annoyance.
These two weren't even real Taketori. The clan was trying to bribe him with pretty women right out the gate—like he was some horny idiot who'd roll over for a couple of hot faces.
What the hell did they take him for?
He wasn't that kind of man. Never had been.
And now they were insulting him by assuming he was.
"Attacking the Mist is your business, not mine. What does Sunagakure get out of this? Why should we hand you aid for free?"