In the Hokage Building, as senior advisors to the Hokage, Homura and Koharu sat in the office, dealing with documents.
The audacious act of declaring war on the Land of Wind by Hanzo diverted most of Konoha's attention to the battlefield in the Amegakure.
"This Hanzo guy is not to be underestimated!" After reading the battle reports about the Amegakure, Homura sighed and put down the documents.
"Homura, what happened?" Koharu, responsible for logistics, asked curiously, lifting her head.
"Hanzo repelled the first wave of attacks launched by Sunagakure! According to the intelligence, Sunagakure suffered significant losses." Homura adjusted his glasses and spoke.
"Sunagakure was repelled?" Koharu was somewhat surprised to hear that Sunagakure, one of the Five Great Countries, was defeated by Amegakure's Hanzo.
"Hanzo summoned his summoning beast Ibuse, releasing poison gas to repel Sunagakure."
"Poison! It seems Chiyo has met a worthy opponent." Koharu, as a female ninja from the same era, took pleasure in the setbacks of Sunagakure and Chiyo, expressing a hint of schadenfreude.
"With Chiyo's methods, he should soon be able to counter Hanzo's poison. Sunagakure's defeat is only temporary." As the strategic advisor to the Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen, Homura made his judgment.
Nodding in agreement with Homura's assessment, Koharu shifted the topic and expressed deeper concerns.
"Compared to Hanzo, I'm more worried about the situation in the Land of Lightning."
"The Land of Lightning, huh!" Recalling the Third Raikage, who possessed the strongest physical qualities in the ninja world, holding titles like "Strongest Shield" and "Strongest Spear," Homura's tone also carried a trace of worry.
"Raikage and Kumogakure are our true enemies!" Homura said earnestly.
"That boy Kizaru is still young. I can't help but worry about him defending against the ninjas from Kumogakure alone." Koharu expressed her concern.
"Don't worry, Koharu! I'm keeping an eye on the information at the border, and for now, there's nothing to be concerned about." Homura reassured her.
"We can only hope so." After saying that, Koharu lowered her head again to review the statistics on logistics reserves in her hands.
"Report!"
Just as the two of them had just stopped their conversation, the wooden door of the office was pulled open by an ANBU ninja.
Exchanging a glance, Homura spoke, "Speak quickly!"
"A squad returning from the border has reported that the Third Raikage led a ninja force and launched an attack against us."
"What?"
"Does the Hokage know?"
Homura and Koharu instantly stood up excitedly.
"The Hokage ordered me to inform both of you to gather in the conference room."
"We'll go immediately!"
Saying that, Homura and Koharu hurriedly walked out from behind their desks, preparing to rush to the conference room.
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"Then, I'll leave it to you, brother!" With his hands in his pockets, Kizaru spoke to Matatabi in front of him.
"Don't worry!" Standing beside the sealed and bandaged Third Raikage, Matatabi, Matatabi replied coldly.
Compared to Matatabi's calm demeanor, Nagayasu's expression was not so good.
"Kizaru, you better escort the Raikage back to the village with us!" Looking at Kizaru, Nagayasu advised.
"Do you not trust my strength? Ninja from the Hyuga clan?" Kizaru, who had been displeased with Nagayasu for always disrupting his business, wasn't holding back.
If it weren't for knowing that Nagayasu was from the branch family of the Hyuga clan, Kizaru would have dug out his eyes and sold them for money.
"The matter is significant, and we must be cautious!" Faced with the bounty hunter Matatabi, Nagayasu changed his expression to a more serious tone.
Ignoring Nagayasu, Kizaru looked directly at Matatabi.
"Uncle Nagayasu isn't wanted on the black market." Kizaru answered.
"I know, so he's still alive." Matatabi coldly replied.
Nagayasu: ???
Looking at Kizaru and then at the cold-faced Matatabi, Nagayasu inexplicably felt a bit uneasy.
"Don't worry, Uncle Nagayasu! This mission is straightforward, and the Raikage will cooperate well."
Speaking, Kizaru looked at the Third Raikage and continued, "Right! Uncle?"
"I have never broken my word!" The Third Raikage proudly declared.
"Ooh! Worthy of being the Raikage!" Smiling, Kizaru looked at Nagayasu.
Seeing that even the Raikage said so, Nagayasu had nothing to say and could only nod, saying, "I understand, Lord Kizaru!"
"Then leave it to you three. I'll count on you!" Waving his hand to the three in front of him, Kizaru said with a grin.
Maintaining his smile, Kizaru watched as the three and a squad of ninja left the border stronghold, heading to a nearby town to start the "Raikage in the Land of Fire" touring exhibition.
As for why Kizaru didn't voluntarily join the team for the tour?
The reason is simple. Self-bragging, harvesting fame on his own, is better than letting others praise him.
Moreover, nationwide tours and such were too troublesome. Kizaru planned to return to the village early and continue his carefree life.
"Matatabi, we should set off!" Standing in the open space in front of the stronghold, Kizaru called out to Matatabi, who was lying on the fence outside the wooden house.
"Damn it, don't be so casual with me!" Standing up, the Two-Tails, roared discontentedly.
"So scary!"
"Speak properly, you damn idiot!"
Another roar, and Matatabi walked in front of Kizaru, raising its head.
Understanding Matatabi's meaning, Kizaru bent down and reached out, lifting it into his arms.
"Humph!" Held in Kizaru's arms, Matatabi, acting displeased, let out a snort, adjusted its posture, and comfortably lay down.
Holding Matatabi, Kizaru couldn't use the Flying Thunder God Technique to travel quickly, so he had to rely on the improved Body Flicker and modified Soru to travel.
Kizaru, who couldn't fly at the speed of light, moved much slower. It took most of the day for him to return from the border to the outskirts of Konoha.
Standing on Kizaru's shoulder, Matatabi, who had been held for a long time, followed Kizaru and arrived at the gate of Konoha.
"Oh ho ho! Finally, back home." Standing at the gate, Kizaru with hands in his pockets said cheerfully.
"Kizaru, why are you back? How is it at the border?" The two ninja guarding the gate, upon seeing the prominent figure of Kizaru, one of them hurriedly asked.
As the gatekeepers of the village, both of them were not weak; they were elite chuunin. If they joined forces against an enemy, they could even contend with jounin.
"Things at the border have been resolved." Kizaru smiled in response.
Looking at each other, the two men, who had seen the returning border team in the morning, guessed that there might be a conflict near the border with the Land of Lightning.
Now that Kizaru suddenly returned and claimed that things were resolved, the two could only think of two possibilities: either Kizaru was scared and lied about it, or Kizaru persuaded the ninja from Kumogakure to retreat.
"Kizaru, did they attack us from the Land of Lightning? Did you bring any intelligence back?" One of the gatekeepers, a sensory-type ninja, noticed the powerful chakra from the blue-flamed cat on Kizaru's shoulder.
Ooh! Those Kumogakure ninjas, they're monsters! Especially the Third Raikage, a monster among monsters!" Rubbing his chin, Kizaru recalled and said, "He's truly a monster!"
"Did you engage with them?"
"Just had a little exchange!" Kizaru smiled in response.
"They retreated?"
"After my friendly communication, they withdrew." Kizaru continued to answer.
After this exchange, the two guards admired Kizaru immensely in their hearts!
Alone, he deterred an attack from Kumogakure, preventing a war from breaking out! Kizaru truly deserved to be the village's super genius!
Looking respectfully at Kizaru, one of the guards noticed the Two-Tails standing on Kizaru's shoulder.
"Kizaru, what... what is that cat on your shoulder?" As a sensory-type ninja, the guard sensed an extremely powerful chakra from the blue-flamed cat.
Turning his head to look at the figure on his shoulder, Kizaru, with a casual expression, asked and answered.
"Oh, it! It's a gift from Kumogakure, Matatabi the Two-Tails!"
"Oh! The Two-Tails!" Halfway through, the guard finally reacted, pointing trembling hands at Kizaru's shoulder, becoming agitated. "This is a Tailed Beast?"
Nodding, Kizaru smiled and said, "It's so cute!"
"Damn it, who are you calling cute?" Hearing Kizaru's description of it, Matatabi spoke discontentedly.
The two guards standing in front of Kizaru at the gate were already too shocked to speak.
"How can you describe a bijuu as cute?"
At this moment, the two experienced elite chuunin felt their minds go blank.
For seven or eight years of guarding, it was the first time they had seen someone bring an unsealed Tailed Beast back to the village.
Truly a sight to behold!