"In other words, this B-rank mission only requires us to make a trip to Sunagakure?" Yagoromo asked the Third Hokage.
This kind of official dispatch mission was not very difficult, but its importance level was fairly high. Its destination was Sunagakure.
Sunagakure… Yagoromo felt a long-lost sense of nostalgia.
If one were to make a ranking of how hated Yagoromo was, the first village to make the list and sit firmly at the top would undoubtedly be Sunagakure. After all, when Yagoromo was still a little brat, he had already bombed their home base.
But what became rather strange later was that this degree of hatred gradually began to weaken. It had even weakened from "hatred" to merely "not welcome."
First, as time passed, the scars left by war had more or less been repaired. People would deliberately and habitually forget those wounds.
Second… without comparison, there was no harm. After the war between Konoha and Sunagakure ended, Sunagakure saw what White Yaksha did to Kirigakure, what he did to Iwagakure, and more importantly, what he did to Kumogakure… They even saw what Konoha's White Yaksha did to Konoha itself…
After watching that whole round, Sunagakure discovered…
Huh? White Yaksha had actually treated our village pretty well. He knew when to stop.
Looking at what the other large and small hidden villages had suffered, Sunagakure's mood became balanced. The Fourth Kazekage's waist no longer ached, and his legs no longer hurt.
There were even times when they could hypocritically exchange polite words with Yagoromo, saying things like, "Come visit our place sometime." Unfortunately, Yagoromo was truly not the type to stand on ceremony. Even before such false politeness, he had already wanted to travel to Sunagakure.
Moreover, with this kind of publicly funded business trip carrying a strong official color, Sunagakure could not do anything to Yagoromo, even if they still harbored hatred toward him.
Because if Yagoromo went to Sunagakure, then he would represent Konoha. Now, only a few years after peace had finally arrived, would the Kazekage openly slap Konoha in the face like that? Did he not want the alliance anymore? Or did he not want to be allies, but wanted to become comrades instead?
"There's nothing wrong with understanding it that way," the Hokage said.
Then he placed his already lit pipe into his mouth… Considering it carefully, if Yagoromo really went to Sunagakure, would that be too stimulating for the other party?
The current Yagoromo was absolutely one of Konoha's strongest combat forces. Sending him to Sunagakure just to deliver a letter—was it really that simple?
Would Sunagakure believe that?
A philosopher six feet one inch tall, weighing two hundred and forty pounds, with a fifty-four-inch chest, a thirty-two-inch waist, and the halo of a "Forest Fairy" above his head walked into the home of a certain fresh-faced young man. And his purpose was merely to look around?
Who would believe that? Would he leave without starting a wrestling match?
They might even interpret it as intimidation and threat. Was Konoha warning Sunagakure to behave itself?
"Still, there's quite some time before the Chūnin Exams begin. Is it necessary to notify Sunagakure this early?"
Yagoromo did not mind visiting Sunagakure, nor was he worried about safety. However, he still had to clarify the situation first.
But after hearing that there was an opportunity to leave the village, Mirai became rather happy. Speaking of which, she had never been to another hidden village before. However, now was not the time for her to interrupt. Everything depended on Yagoromo's decision.
"This is a change in the system between villages in recent years…" the Hokage said.
Naturally, Yagoromo had paid no attention to such policy changes. It was already good enough that he knew the Chūnin Exams were jointly held by everyone. Therefore, the Hokage roughly explained it to him.
"Our Chūnin Exams have already formed a joint system led in rotation by the allied Lands of Fire and Wind, with the surrounding small affiliated countries participating together. It carries the meaning of strengthening ties, while also serving as a comparison of strength and a contest between each other…"
"And this year's exam will be held in Konoha. Aside from Sunagakure, other hidden villages such as Amegakure and Kusagakure will also participate."
This was a joint exam with political implications. With that, Yagoromo understood.
Although the countries the Hokage had just listed were all "allies," that alliance only existed in the literal sense. In reality, whether it was Sunagakure or Amegakure, their relationship with Konoha remained that of hostile forces—potential enemies.
Holding the joint Chūnin Exams in Konoha meant that the ones coming could not possibly be only genin from each village. There would definitely be team-leading jōnin as well. And with so many "potential enemies" entering the village all at once, Konoha naturally had to make preparations and coordinate matters in advance.
This was also true for the other villages, so notice had to be given ahead of time. Sunagakure was a heavyweight partner, so the notification had to be somewhat formal.
"Besides notifying them of the date of the Chūnin Exams, does the mission have any other requirements?"
The Hokage did not realize that Yagoromo had already picked up the mission document, so he continued, "Invite the Kazekage to come to Konoha as much as possible. He does not need to stay the entire time; it will be enough if he attends only the final stage of the exam."
If the Kazekage came to Konoha and sat together with the Hokage, then the meaning of displaying friendly allied relations would be extremely strong.
This kind of "show" served as a warning to the other villages, as though Konoha and Sunagakure had truly formed an intimate and seamless cooperative relationship.
"Is that the full content of the mission?"
"Yes."
Then the Hokage saw Yagoromo toss the mission document upward, catch it, and stuff it into the ninja tool pouch behind him. After that, he waved his hand and left with the three members of Team Six.
The Hokage blinked.
All right… Yagoromo really was going to bring disaster to Sunagakure.
Then… let this guy go.
Next, the Third Hokage arranged for the Communications Team to send a message to Sunagakure, notifying them in advance that Konoha's envoy would arrive unexpectedly.
Of course, he would not possibly tell the other side this early exactly who was going.
"Yagoromo, are we setting out immediately?"
After leaving the Hokage's side, Mirai immediately asked.
"Of course," Yagoromo replied.
Before going to see the Hokage, they had already prepared for an outside mission. Now they had merely confirmed the destination. Thus, the group of four headed straight toward Konoha's main gate.
On the way, the four of them even ran into Team Seven, who were still miserably carrying out low-level missions. Mirai very kindly greeted them… This left Naruto utterly baffled. Since when had Big Sister become so friendly?
Could there be some new conspiracy?
If Naruto knew that Mirai was about to leave the village to carry out a mission, then he would understand why she was so happy.
Interregional missions were something Naruto longed for too.
However, Kakashi had always been controlling the difficulty level of Team Seven's missions, slowly training these little companions according to his own pace.
Although Naruto's displayed strength during a certain test had surprised Kakashi, this would not affect his education plan. At this stage, he was still emphasizing the importance of teamwork, and the current strength of Naruto's three-person team was extremely uneven.
Team Seven continued to suffer, while Team Six had already left Konoha and advanced toward the direction of Sunagakure.
"Happy?"
After leaving the village, Yagoromo tilted his head and asked Mirai, who was following on his right.
It could be seen that she was in a very good mood. After all, it had been a long time since she had left the village. This was a kind of freedom known as being let out for some air…
"..."
Mirai raised her head and glanced at Yagoromo. Was her happiness really that obvious?
Kimimaro and Haku could testify that yes, it was exactly that obvious.
"Then let's head to Sunagakure like this. No need to rush there by flying," Yagoromo said with a light laugh.
"That's great!"
Yagoromo's decision was undoubtedly very much in line with the child's mood, so her happiness became even more obvious… She softly hummed a tune that Yagoromo had once hummed, looking forward to the time that was about to come.
If lyrics were added to it, then what she was humming would be…
Every girl wants to become cute and charming.
Even when passing by strangers, she cannot help but care.
Forcing herself to put on unfamiliar makeup, her heart pounding nervously,
You absolutely cannot fail to notice my changes.
Who likes whom, and who is dating whom?
What clothes are popular now, and what should I do about the final exam?
Every day is made so busy by things like these.
Because I'm a girl, there's just no helping it.
...
However, unexpected situations always happened.
Several days later, when Sunagakure came into distant view, what the group discovered was a village filled with smoke and flames…
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