It had been a hectic month for Chad.
After finishing all the accumulated work and taking a quick trip to the Land of Snow to check on Koyuki's situation and bring her up to date on everything, he returned just in time for the double wedding to take place.
The Raikage "equalizing" his wedding with that of the former Mizukage had excellent results, but the most important part for the former Kiri ninjas was that the deal was finally sealed, allowing them to breathe much more easily.
Their integration into the Kumo village hadn't been easy, but compared to their pessimistic expectations—which in some cases bordered on slavery—they had received considerably better treatment than they would have given themselves had they been in the opposite position.
Some of them even shared how they had heard Terumi's heated argument with the Raikage from outside the building, deeply moved to see that their leader was still fighting to improve their conditions without stopping, even after the wedding.
"Why can't you accept my request?!" Terumi shouted, slamming her palms against the Raikage's desk. "I've bled for this village!"
"For the last time, no means no!" the Raikage stood firm, arms crossed. "The situation is far from being calm and under control." He had to make a great effort not to point out the flaw in Terumi's argument.
You bled for the village, you say?
Your wedding night doesn't count, woman!
"But I want to accompany my husband to Konoha along with the others!" Terumi protested without backing down. "I'm a Kage-level kunoichi, and my strength would be a great help to the delegation you're sending to negotiate with that village. Besides, as the former leader of Kiri, my political insight is very valuable," she said, listing the benefits of her joining the delegation. "Do you really think anyone will be able to do anything to us if we're together?"
"That's not the point, and you know it!" the Raikage replied, tapping the desk with his finger. "Besides, Hibui is in charge of the negotiations, while Chad and Kiyui are acting as bodyguards."
The issue here wasn't strength or cunning—it was identity!
Didn't Terumi realize the problem her participation would cause in this delegation?
No, she definitely did understand it. She just didn't care.
Apparently it was true what they said: love makes people stupid…
"So—"
"Terumi, I am the Raikage!"
"You'll regret this, A!"
BAAAM!
A long crack spread like roots across the Raikage's wooden office door.
"Mabui, send the bill for the door to your brother!"
The secretary sighed. She had thought that after the wedding or the news of his imminent fatherhood, the Raikage would try to act more conservatively.
How could she have been so naive?
"Mabui," the Raikage called once he had calmed down, his voice serious. "Have two ANBU stay alert near the special orphanage these days."
"Is it necessary, Raikage-sama?" Mabui asked, though she already understood the underlying reasons. "After all, she is now one of my brother's wives."
"Better to be cautious," he replied, rubbing his temple with two fingers. "Even if having a Kage-level individual in charge of the place while Chad is away might seem like a waste, we need to free up enough personnel to continue properly taking control of the former Land of Water."
Even after winning the war for the Lightning Daimyo, the number of deployed ninjas "digesting" the gains was giving him a headache.
Even with missions issued and former Kiri ninjas being used—since they were most familiar with the areas—they had only fully secured the capital, the most important ports, key resource zones like chakra metal mines, and about a third of the border regions.
The inner areas still had many bandits due to the recent chaos, and as expected, ninja groups of unknown affiliation had appeared, like wolves scavenging in the shadows.
It was fortunate that the Lightning Daimyo had sent a true army to secure key points and routes. Even if the Raikage had ten times more ninjas than he currently had, he still wouldn't be able to fully control all the new territory on his own.
There simply weren't enough people.
Of course, none of this had anything to do with Terumi.
Knowing her true condition, as Raikage, he was simply acting for appearances.
If he didn't even set up surveillance like this at such an early stage of the absorption process, that would be the real problem.
"As you command, Raikage-sama."
…
"So, what exactly do we have to negotiate with Konoha?" Chad asked as they moved through the dense foliage marking their entry into the Land of Fire.
This time, the mission leader was Hibui, so she had been given all the details.
"Konoha (and by that I mean the Land of Fire) has entered into an alliance with the Land of Stars, the Land of Forests, the Land of Waves, and the Land of Tea regarding the new borders of the newly expanded Land of Lightning," Hibui explained. "Although this is technically something our Daimyo will have to handle, we can't ignore the fact that Konoha sent the Uchiha group, the Hyuga, and that strange Uchiha assassin you defeated. Officially, this was a conflict between Kiri and Kumo, and Konoha's interference is considered a blatant provocation. They must answer for it." She leapt to another branch. "Basically, we're going to intimidate them a bit, slap their hands for reaching where they shouldn't, and demand compensation for emotional damage."
"As for the bodies of the ninjas they sent? Sorry, they were lost in the chaos of war."
"It would be ideal if we can use this situation as leverage to stir internal trouble in Konoha," Hibui added.
"To me, it sounds like they're just going to try to hit us back," Kiyui said, rolling her eyes.
Despite Hibui's technical wording, wasn't this basically extortion?
If the Raikage heard her thoughts, he would nod vigorously and say:
"Why do you think I picked her of all people?"
You have to squeeze every last ryo out of them!
Hearing that, Chad almost felt bad for sending Black Zetsu and his army to make copies of the secret ninjutsu of every Konoha clan from children "recovered" at the Kumo orphanage.
Almost—but then he remembered he didn't care.
Though he was curious whether Naruto had followed any of his advice.
By the time they arrived at Konoha later, something felt off.
Everything seemed normal, and yet…
"Kiyui?" Hibui murmured, staring at the village entrance.
"Yes, I feel it too," the blonde nodded, observing the people coming and going. "Darling?"
"It's not your imagination," Chad said. He didn't even need to extend his surveillance inside Konoha to notice it. "Something definitely happened, but we haven't received any information. It must be recent."
Merchants and civilians acted normally, but the ninjas stationed at the gates—despite trying to hide it—were clearly tense to those paying attention.
Not tense enough to start attacking people, but tense enough that something had happened to unsettle or disturb them.
Something civilians didn't yet know—or were not meant to know.
Strange. Black Zetsu hadn't reported anything about this.
"I have a bad feeling about this," Kiyui said.
"Let's be ready for anything, but don't start anything, alright?" Hibui said as she approached the group.
A moment later, a jonin arrived smiling to escort them to the Hokage Tower.
The three exchanged glances.
Sending a regular ninja—even a jonin—to receive them was definitely unusual given the importance of the negotiation.
Either they were trying to disrespect them and lower their status to gain an advantage, or the higher-ups couldn't appear publicly for some serious reason.
As they walked toward the tower, Chad quietly deployed eyes and ears throughout the area.
By the time they began climbing the stairs, he had a rough idea of what was going on.
The Third Hokage had collapsed many days ago and still had not regained consciousness, despite the efforts of the medical ninja.
"That explains why the civilians don't know anything. Panic would spread like wildfire if they knew their Hokage is in a coma," Chad thought. "Meanwhile, the ninja are afraid something will break the illusion that everything is fine, and the news will spread both inside and outside the village."
To avoid the appearance of his disappearance, some ninja had transformed into the Third Hokage and were acting in his place in several locations.
But this was only a temporary measure. They needed someone to take command. So who…?
They stopped in front of the Hokage office door, and Chad's expression changed abruptly.
"Girls, I think the food didn't sit well with me," Chad said, placing a hand on his stomach just as it loudly protested. "I need to go to the bathroom. If I don't feel better later, I'll wait for you at the hotel."
Kiyui and Hibui looked at him in surprise. This hadn't been planned, but they both understood Chad had realized something and was using an excuse. And judging by the use of medical ninjutsu to create a plausible but embarrassing situation, he needed to leave immediately.
"Excuse me, where is the nearest bathroom I can use?" Chad asked the jonin quickly. "It's urgent!"
"Oh," the jonin blinked in understanding. Lately, many people had stomach issues, probably due to seasonal changes—it happened every year. "Go down the stairs we came from, second door on the right in the left hallway. There's extra toilet paper in the cabinet under the sink if you need it."
"Thanks!" Chad rushed off.
The jonin turned to the two kunoichi.
"We're fine, we ate separately," Hibui lied. "Don't keep your Hokage waiting."
The jonin stiffened slightly at the word "Hokage," but knocked on the door as if nothing had happened.
"Lord Hokage, the Kumo envoys for negotiations have arrived."
"Enter."
Kiyui and Hibui widened their eyes at the voice that came from inside—one that did not belong to an elderly, cigarette-addicted man.
The door opened, revealing a blonde woman seated in the Hokage's chair.
Tsunade Senju.
Both kunoichi immediately understood why Chad had rushed to leave to avoid this meeting. If he had faced her directly…
He would not have been able to control his killing intent, and it would have escalated into a battle that would turn into a massacre in the middle of Konoha without regard for collateral damage.
And them?
They would have helped.
…
That would have complicated negotiations a little.