"Two of them? Even I went on the mission with them." Yami said. He didn't understand why Tsunade just asked the two of them if they were ready for the next mission and not him.
Tsunade snickered as she heard that and said "Why would I ask you? For them this mission is voluntary but for you it's mandatory so don't even think that you have a chance to reject this mission."
"That sounds like discrimination to me Lady Tsunade. I think I will take a break after saving the Hidden Sand village along with their Kage." Yami said as he stretched his back and neck to show how tired he was.
Tsunade chuckled and said "Hmph...they have been doing mission while you were missing for the past 3 years. Seeing your body right now I don't think that it took you this long to heal your body. You should be thankful that I didn't declare you a missing shinobi."
Sasuke and Kakashi looked away from Yami so that they could laugh. Yami cough hear the small giggles.
'I know you want to stay in the village so that you can be here when the Chinoike clan comes but for the sake of the village I need you to do this mission.' Tsunade thought. No matter how much she joked, she knew that the Hidden Sand and the Kazekage would have been in a bad situation if it wasn't for Yami. The intelligence that the Akatsuki is going to attack the Hidden Sand is also provided by Yami to both villages.
"Lady Tsunade...all three of us are ready for any mission you give us." Sasuke said with confidence. Yami just glanced at his brother when he heard that. He looked and behaved so differently as compared to the anime. He didn't have that emo vibe around him. And since Itachi was declared dead, the matter of revenge had also died down in Sasuke's mind.
"Good...That is what I expect from you Sasuke. I hope you will teach your younger brother the same manners. Now coming back to the mission." Tsunade said as she pulled out three envelopes from her pocket and laid them on the table. The three letters had one word each written on them.
Mizukage
Raikage
Tsuchikage
"I don't think I will need to explain much in this matter. You three know that the meeting is going to be held next month and I want the three of you to be the messengers. Firstly Sasuke I want you to have this." Tsunade said as she picked up the first envelope and handed it over to Sasuke.
Sasuke looked at the envelope and back at Tsunade who continued "Yours will be the easiest of them all. I want you to go to the Hidden Mist Village and give this envelope to the Mizukage. It contains all the information we have and the details of the meeting. Since Yami has literally saved their village from being wiped out of existence, I don't think they will deny our request and you being his elder brother will give them more assurance."
"That sounds like an extremely easy task. The Hidden Mist Village is an ally of ours. Why didn't we just send them a letter by our birds?" Sasuke asked. He was relieved that he didn't have to do much in this mission but now it sounded too easy for him.
"That is because I don't want only the Mizukage to be here. I also want their Jinchuriki to come as well and I don't think it will be easy to convince them." Tsunade said.
'Why would she need the Jinchuriki as well? The new Jinchuriki may not have the ability to control the tailed beast's power yet since he became one recently.' Yami thought.
Yami was about to ask the same to Tsunade but she had already guessed it.
"I know what you want to ask Yami but we can't trust the Akatsuki to keep their promise and not cause any conflict until the meeting. What if they already have one of the Kages on their side before the meeting by using means of Blackmail or by kidnapping the Jinchuriki? I want everyone who matters in the deal to be present at the location of the meeting."
"That is quite a bold move Lady Tsunade. But I think it will be harder to convince them since they will think it's our plot to steal the tailed beast. I am not talking just about the Hidden Mist but the other two villages as well. Not everyone will trust us blindly like the Kazekage." Kakashi said.
"Then you guys better be convincing because there isn't much we can do here. Let them know that the actual meeting will take on the mountains behind the village so that they won't have to worry about any sinister plots brewing around them. They are free to bring a few of their shinobis to secure the mountain." Tsunade said and then picked up the 2nd envelope which read Raikage and stretched her hand toward Kakashi.
Kakashi took the letter from her hand and said "I guess I am going to the Hidden Cloud then. I hope to return with a head on my shoulders."
Yami looked at the letter in Kakashi's hand and said "I thought you would send me to the Hidden Cloud since we have a long rivalry with them."
Kakashi smirked as he looked to the side and said "I guess you aren't as tough as me. I hope you won't feel bad now." Yami didn't say anything and just chuckled. Sasuke and Tsunade had noticed the changes in Yami's behavior since he had left 3 years ago. The Yami they knew would hardly joke around with others especially when he is receiving a mission.
'He is behaving like a regular kid now. We all were worried about him for no reason.' Kakashi thought.
Tsunade handed the last letter to Yami and said "No I want you to go to the Hidden Stone village. As you know the old Tsuchikage is a tough nut to crack. You killed a few cloud shinobis when you went to the hidden sand the first time and 3 years ago you killed many stone shinobis in the Hidden mist."
"Why would the Tsuchikage listen to Yami when he knows Yami killed his men? Wouldn't it be more easy to send him to the Hidden cloud where no one knows that it was him who killed those shinobis in the valley?" Sasuke asked.
"The Tsuchikage now knows how dangerous Yami is so he will take him seriously. He might seem like an impulsive Kage but in reality, that old man thinks everything through. We have received information that the hidden stone had employed the Akatsuki a few times when they were just a bunch of mercenaries. He knows full well that if someone as strong as Yami had to become a messenger, how big the threat must be." Tsunade said to which Sasuke nodded. She then looked at Kakashi and smiled to which Kakashi also smiled and said
"You want me to tell the Hidden Cloud that it was Yami who killed his people in the valley and then turn his anger into motivation to come here." Tsunade nodded indicating that this was her plan.
"This is a tactic that could work but Yami would be under the threat of being attacked by the Raikage or the 8 tails Jinchuriki when they come here." Sasuke said.
Yami just patted his brother's shoulder and said "That's something I can handle. I like the plan it sounds more feasible than just pleading to them."
"What do you mean you can handle it? The 8-tails Jinchuriki is a perfect Jinchuriki. He can harness the power of the tailed beast and use it effectively and that it why the Akatsuki has never set foot in the Hidden Cloud village." Sasuke said. As an older brother, it was obvious for him to be worried.
Tsunade stood up as she heard that and the expression on her face became serious "This entire meeting is a risky endeavor from the start. Do you think none of us know that? Having all the Kages together when no one trusts each other and then having those tails beasts here. And all of this to meet the leader of a terrorist organization whom we know nothing about. There are a million things that can go wrong during that meeting and the majority of them will result in the destruction of the Hidden Leaf village and the start of a new war. So stop thinking that it is impossible and think how you can make sure that the Mizukage comes as a strong ally of the Hidden Leaf like the Kazekage has."
Tsunade's words were firm and that's how they needed to be in such a situation. Sasuke immediately gave a small bow and said "I apologize Tsunade-sama for doubting your decisions. I will leave for the Hidden Mist tonight and will definitely come back with them."
"Good....Now the three of you have your missions." Tsunade said as the three Jonins in front of her turned around and left the office.
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