- At least let them do some good by destroying their enemies," said Ai, who had no positive feelings for his brothers because of his straightforward nature and disgust for traitors, "and if they get killed, I won't worry too much about it.
- Shall we not rush into a war just yet? - Dodai suggested softly. - Old Man Oonoki has so far responded negatively to all our proposals for a joint attack, and if Iwagakure decides to sit on the sidelines until the very last moment, then we risk being left alone with the full might of the Leaf, since Mist has no time for external expansion, and Sand won't stay away either.
- Stone can't just stand aside when the fighting starts, or they'll just miss their chance to take revenge for last week's defeat! - The dark-skinned big man cracked his fist irritably on the table, causing the mountain of papers on it to fly up. - There's plenty of people among the Willows who want to try Konoha again and take some of its fertile land.
- I'm not suggesting we call off the attack on Konohagakure, just wait until conditions are more favorable and enlist the support of an ally so we don't have to fight two great villages at once," Dodai held up his hands soothingly, sensing that he had come dangerously close to the Kumo leader's patience and decided to sweeten the pill a bit, knowing full well Ai's dream of increasing the number of kekkei genkai in the village. - In the meantime, one could tweak the Mist a bit and capture at least a few clan members while they were busy mutually destroying each other.
The dark-skinned blond man thought for a few moments, stroking his beard, then nodded in agreement:
- You're right, Kumo - send a dozen elite teams to Misa no Kuni, let them look and act as they see fit, and send an envoy to Tsuchikage and offer a double price for joining the attack on the Leaf. Make sure that our offer is known to the public, rather than breeding secrecy. If he refuses this time, let him sit on his rocky ass - we'll do it on our own! Especially since Frost and the Hot Springs will be on our side this time.
- It will be done, Raikage-sama," the one-eyed shinobi bowed and hurried away, pleased with the delay.
Ai sighed and ran his hand over his short, graying hedgehog and leaned back in his comfortable chair, looking out the window of his office at the cloud-covered mountains.
Another delay was not pleasant, but if it would avoid additional casualties among his own, he was willing to wait, even though some hotheads would have to be cooled down a bit by force. Sometimes, patience was worth it.
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