Chapter 110: The Dilemma of Sunagakure

Temari and Kankuro were currently having a meal at a barbeque restaurant. Yes, despite being captives, they were free to roam around Konoha, even able to eat outside. However, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio was constantly watching over them.

Shikamaru looked helpless, unsure why his superiors were being so lenient with these two. Originally, he thought they'd be thrown into an interrogation room and subjected to harsh questioning.

Temari and Kankuro appeared calm but were actually nervous. Over the past few days, they had privately discussed what Konoha's intentions might be.

Kankuro felt as if they were about to be executed at any moment, while Temari thought differently. She suspected Konoha was showing off its strength.

"More precisely, they're boasting. Just look around. The war ended only a few days ago, yet Konoha has already returned to normal economic operations. If it were our Sunagakure, there's no way we could recover this quickly."

Kankuro felt indignant but had to admit that Konoha's resources ran deep. Even with Sunagakure's alliance with the Sound Village and the death of Konoha's Hokage, they had still lost the war.

The key issue was that Konoha, despite being attacked, had already started to recover.

As for Sunagakure? Although they hadn't returned home, they knew their village well enough to predict that their leaders were likely still debating who to blame.

Kankuro could only stuff himself with barbeque, as if he could bankrupt Konoha by eating enough.

Just then, he noticed Temari's expression change.

"What's wrong?"

"Behind us," Temari replied tersely. Kankuro turned and saw Gaara.

Wait, why was he seeing Gaara? It made sense for him and Temari to have a bit of freedom since Konoha had plenty of high-ranking shinobi to keep them in line, but Gaara? He was a jinchuriki, how could Konoha possibly allow him to roam freely?

And yet, there was Gaara, sitting down at their table.

"Please bring me a set of utensils."

Not only were Temari and Kankuro stunned; Shikamaru and the others were too. Although they hadn't fought Gaara directly, they'd seen him transform into a monster during the battle. As heirs of prominent clans, they knew Gaara was a jinchuriki. How could such an important prisoner be allowed to roam freely?

Watching Gaara start eating the barbeque as if nothing were amiss, everyone at the table fell silent.

Temari and Kankuro, especially, couldn't believe it. Gaara, eating barbeque with them? Were they under a genjutsu?

Gaara's expression seemed different too. He still looked indifferent, but there was a certain gentleness that hadn't been there before.

"Gaara, you…" After a long silence, Temari hesitantly spoke up.

"Don't worry," Gaara replied between bites. Internally, he felt conflicted as well. He had heard the entire conversation between Aoba and Shukaku. Yet much of it had gone over his head.

One thing was clear, though: there were terrifying enemies in the shinobi world, and Konoha, or rather, Aoba, was secretly preparing to face them.

Revealing this information to him was essentially an invitation to join them. Gaara wasn't sure if it was true, but Shukaku's attitude suggested it likely was. This complicated the situation.

Shikamaru leaned back in his chair, looking contemplative. He was beginning to understand Konoha's intentions.

Granting freedom to the three most important captives could mean only one thing—Konoha wanted an alliance with Sunagakure. No, perhaps not an alliance.

Given Sunagakure's current strength, it was more accurate to say Konoha wanted Sunagakure as a subordinate.

From a strategic perspective, it was a wise choice. After the recent battle, both Konoha and Sunagakure had suffered significant losses. In this weakened state, both Kumogakure and Iwagakure were likely eager to make a move.

An alliance was the best way to counteract the other villages.

What puzzled Shikamaru was why Konoha would bother with a "subordinate" at all, especially since Aoba's recent victory over the Raikage had made Konoha's power clear to everyone in the shinobi world.

Meanwhile, in Konoha's administrative building, the Sunagakure delegation was anxiously waiting.

Leading the group was Baki. He was one of the few high-ranking Sunagakure shinobi who had managed to retreat from Konoha, not because of his own skill but because Aoba had allowed him to leave.

Aoba had even allowed him to bring back a few Sunagakure ninjas as a show of goodwill.

This leniency was intended for today's negotiations, as Aoba knew well that Sunagakure was short on capable leaders.

Baki was one of the few solid, reliable figures they had. While he had fought to a draw with Shiranui Genma in the original storyline, he still held popularity and status in Sunagakure. He was also the teacher of the Sand Siblings, making him ideal to lead the delegation.

If Baki hadn't returned, Sunagakure would have had to send their elders, who, considering the grudges from the Third Shinobi War, would likely have caused trouble during negotiations.

Yet, ever since Baki's arrival, Konoha had been giving excuses to avoid meeting with him, keeping him waiting day after day.

Baki, more experienced, had a feeling about Konoha's intentions.

"If I'm not mistaken, they're waiting for the new Hokage to assume office before beginning official negotiations with us."

"Why go to such trouble?"

"It's not about trouble; it's a mature political strategy. Konoha truly has a wealth of talent; our Sunagakure falls short."

What Baki called a "mature political strategy" was, in Aoba's mind, just basic political theater.

Delegating the negotiations to the new Hokage allowed Konoha to extract benefits from Sunagakure. As long as the new Hokage wasn't as foolish as the Third, who won battles only to pay reparations, this would be a win. The new Hokage would immediately gain prestige and stabilize their position while boosting village morale and public confidence, a multi-win situation.

The rest of the delegation didn't understand this, and Baki didn't bother to explain. He was more worried about his three students. He could only imagine what kind of treatment they had endured in Konoha.

But there was no choice; this was the price of defeat. While they had told their village it was a "tactical retreat," every shinobi who had fought knew the truth, they had been defeated.

By that time, Konoha had even begun a counterattack. If Sunagakure hadn't retreated, they would have been completely wiped out.

While Sunagakure agonized over the situation, Jiraiya was facing his own set of worries.

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Currently on Chapter 150 - Konoha's Counterattack