Late reaction

Shortly after leaving Konoha, in the village of Iwagakure...

"Bunch of inept!" Onoki hurled his teacup at one of the ninjas, who didn't dare dodge it and was knocked out immediately. "What do you mean Han has been missing for days?!"

The Tsuchikage felt his blood pressure rising when he was informed of the disappearance of his only manageable jinchuriki, especially since Roshi had decided to take a "vacation" due to personal conflicts with him. At least they knew where Roshi had settled, although the latest update was somewhat delayed...

The worst part was that knowing Han's personality, he likely hadn't slipped past his guards but had probably been kidnapped based on the traces found in his home.

"Thirty people, no less than five jonin and ten sensors guarding the surroundings... and the food delivery man is the first to notice his absence?" The veins on his forehead throbbed visibly. "What is this village paying you for?!"

The ninjas could only bow their heads in shame, feeling powerless in the face of the situation. They hadn't sensed or heard anything—how were they supposed to know something like this happened? It wasn't that they were bad at their job; the other party was just too good!

"Tsuchikage-sama, we've already sent multiple teams to conduct a thorough search in the surroundings," one of the leaders of the surveillance group stepped forward. "We should find some traces by this afternoon at the latest."

Onoki reclined sadly in his chair, feeling that the quality of Iwagakure's ninjas was getting worse and worse. They hadn't noticed anything for days and now wanted to find traces? Were they questioning his intelligence? Any possible traces would have disappeared with the recent rains!

"Is there anything notable besides the damaged wall you've mentioned?" Onoki asked again.

The ninjas remained silent. He had asked that six times already, and the answer was still the same!

"Damn it, the plans to cause trouble in the Land of Fire will have to be delayed again..." Onoki rubbed his bald forehead, feeling his frustration grow. "Alright, does anyone have any idea what might have happened? Anything at all!"

Onoki's son, Kitsuchi, stepped forward while the rest of the room turned to look at him.

"Could it be Otogakure?" he suggested boldly.

The ninjas exchanged whispers at the idea while Onoki frowned, trying to see how the two things could be connected. Soon, a look of realization blossomed on his face.

"Are you suggesting it has something to do with what happened to the Nine-Tails jinchuriki?"

"It's a possibility," Kitsuchi nodded. "They already took a jinchuriki from Konoha, and we haven't heard any news of him being recovered. It's not far-fetched that they'd try to take another."

"No, that's unlikely," Onoki dismissed the idea as soon as it came up. "Otogakure is barely a village in name and doesn't have the capabilities to pull off something like that. Even with Orochimaru behind it, it's entirely different for him to infiltrate Konoha than to enter Iwagakure."

Onoki's words made sense. Orochimaru was a rogue ninja from Konoha and had extensive knowledge of the village, especially considering he had been Sarutobi Hiruzen's student. One only had to look at how he managed to infiltrate the Chunin Exam and kill his former sensei.

On the other hand, Orochimaru had never been in Iwagakure, and both their defense and surveillance systems were entirely different, some unique to them and completely unknown to outsiders.

"Send a hawk to the contact in the village where Roshi has been lounging," Onoki ordered as they intensified the search for Han. "Konoha is about to recover from its period of vulnerability, and I don't plan on missing the opportunity to seize some benefits for the village. If he refuses to return, he'll be treated as a rogue ninja, and the village will begin hunting him actively."

Roshi's situation with Iwa was somewhat similar to Tsunade's with Konoha. They wouldn't really call him a rogue due to his circumstances, but that was as long as he remained obedient.

No one noticed a shadow slipping out of Onoki's office after the meeting ended two hours later and sinking into the ground...

"Tsk, Akatsuki is almost ready to move, and this happens," a Zetsu complained as it moved to report the incident. "We haven't even managed to find traces of Takigakure's jinchuriki yet! They're going to have to work hard."

Simultaneously in Sunagakure...

"That brat seems to have stumbled upon something really big," Chiyo remarked seriously while examining the scroll Temari had given her once more. "There's still no trace of the Six-Tails, but from what we know from historical texts, the chances of it reforming near us are pretty low, if not nil."

At least some time should pass before news surfaces and Kirigakure attempts to reclaim that tailed beast.

"Has Konoha sent the payment for the information about the Land of Snow?" Ebizo asked beside her.

"No, they won't pay anything until they verify the information," Chiyo replied with a click of her tongue. "They're like headless chickens. If it weren't for the state of the village, I'd try to bite a chunk out of them."

"Any responses from Amegakure?"

They had sent a team of chunin to try to negotiate water resources with Hanzo, partly out of necessity and also to verify the information sent by Takara.

"We verified it with the secret technique we implanted in them; they're all dead," Chiyo shook her head, her expression darkening. "It seems Amegakure's isolation policy has more than meets the eye. It's possible someone has turned that place into their playground, and no one has noticed."

Ebizo groaned in frustration, tired of dealing with so many things. He was old and wanted to retire to some tropical island, to drink coconuts on the beach while listening to the sound of the waves and the salty smell of the sea.

"Chiyo-sama!" a ninja interrupted their conversation, entering hastily with a pale face. "We have a big problem!"

"What is it?" Chiyo stood up, and Ebizo did the same.

"It's about the Shukaku..." the man stuttered, unable to find words. "It's gone!"

"Has it escaped the seal again?!" Both were horrified by that fact. The situation could only get worse from there!

"No, Chiyo-sama," the ninja seemed to realize they had misunderstood. "Miss Temari is constantly monitoring the situation with her brother. When I say it's gone, I mean literally!"

"The tailed beast has disappeared without warning from the jinchuriki's seal!"