"Does Lord Kazekage really like daughters that much?"
Maki squinted her clear, bright eyes, basking in the comfort of Karura's hand gently stroking her hair.
She looked up with a face full of curiosity and asked softly.
Karura nodded gently, her movements as fluid and tender as silk.
A warm, maternal smile spread across her face, her eyes shimmering with deep affection.
"Yes, he is absolutely obsessed with the idea of a daughter. Whenever he's home, he spends half his time pressed against my belly."
"He says it with such absolute certainty—it's definitely a girl."
Maki blinked her large, fluttering eyes, her porcelain face displaying a look of innocent wonder.
Then, realization dawned on her, and she nodded with a look of pure adoration.
"As expected of Lord Kazekage! He must have realized the village's bias toward sons and decided to set a perfect example himself, right?"
Karura couldn't help but let out a soft, melodic laugh.
The truth was, that man simply had a personal craving for a daughter to spoil.
But Karura saw no reason to shatter the little girl's beautiful illusion.
She continued to stroke Maki's hair with her left hand, while her right hand rested heavily on her nine-month-pregnant stomach.
Her entire being radiated the soft, golden glow of impending motherhood.
Rasa stood silently upon the vast, unending desert, watching a sandstorm rage violently across the dunes.
He shook his head helplessly and turned, stepping into the rippling void of the Kamui dimension.
With his Chakra reserves constantly expanding and his physical constitution reaching new heights of power.
Crossing between worlds no longer drained him to the point of collapse as it once had.
Though the remaining amount wasn't exactly vast.
He had been away from Sunagakure for over six days, and he wondered how the village was faring in his absence.
"The Sand Village is developing so fast these days."
"Every time I look at it, I can hardly believe my own eyes. I almost feel like I'm still trapped in a dream."
The women were gathered around the dining table.
A petite and cute girl, her face still etched with lingering shock, couldn't help but exclaim in wonder.
Akatsuki, who had just returned, was still wearing the Kazekage's ceremonial cloak.
She tossed the cloak aside casually, pulled out a chair, and sat down with an elegant sigh, teasing:
"Karuman, you only return to the village every few days. Of course the changes seem massive to you."
Karuman looked regretful as she spoke slowly:
"I don't enjoy being away all the time, but there's no choice. Trading with those bastards requires my personal presence to keep them in line."
Pakura picked up her chopsticks and placed a choice morsel of food into Maki's bowl.
Then, her eyes flickered with a playful light as she smiled at Karuman.
"Next time, let me handle the trade negotiations. You should stay in the village and rest for a few days, Commander Karuman."
Karuman, who was about to bite into a piece of fish, paused.
She quickly chewed and swallowed, putting down her utensils to wave her hands in a hurried refusal.
"Sister Pakura, how could I possibly trouble you with such a tedious task?"
Pakura waved it off, her smile never wavering.
"It's no big deal. In the end, it just needs someone with high status to sit there and watch them, right?"
"I'll treat it as a vacation, a chance to enjoy the scenery outside the walls for once."
Seeing this, Karuman nodded somewhat embarrassedly.
"Alright then. I'll leave the hard work to you, Sister Pakura."
Akatsuki watched the lively chatter, but then let out a slightly melancholic sigh.
"The number of incoming refugees is dwindling. It used to be thousands every day; now it's barely a hundred or two."
Kagerō, who was still dressed in her alluring kimono and helping with secretarial duties, heard this.
A wry, bitter smile touched her beautiful lips as she spoke softly:
"The war ended six months ago. The other nations have finally realized what we're doing."
Sunagakure had been aggressively absorbing every wandering refugee and willing civilian it could find.
It was a blatant move to bolster its own population and power.
But six months is a long time.
Even the most sluggish Daimyo would notice their workforce disappearing into the desert and start taking countermeasures.
The thinning stream of migrants was proof that the borders were being tightened.
Karura, sitting nearby, interjected:
"The factory positions should be reaching saturation point by now, right?"
Akatsuki nodded, then shook her head.
"They're close to full, but according to the master plan Rasa left behind, we're supposed to open several more plants. We're going to be desperate for labor."
Pakura reached out and gently patted Maki's head, speaking with a reckless air:
"We'll just wait for that guy to come back and figure it out. Let it be his headache."
Akatsuki's voice was filled with absolute, unwavering confidence.
"Of course. Rasa will always find a way to solve it."
"As expected of you, Orochimaru. You solved the body rejection issue so quickly."
In a hidden underground base beneath Konoha.
Danzo lay upon a cold stone bed, slowly opening his eyes. He flexed his pale, unnaturally white arm.
The limb was covered in dozens of spinning Three-Tomoe Sharingan!
The eyes rotated rhythmically in the flesh, looking like a scene pulled from a nightmare.
Orochimaru, sitting nearby, let out a soft, hissed laugh, though deep in his golden eyes, there was a flicker of pure disdain.
"It's merely a temporary equilibrium. I've balanced your body for now."
"But if you use more than half of those eyes at once, that balance will shatter instantly."
Danzo raised the pale arm, staring at the spinning eyes with a look of twisted obsession.
"It doesn't matter. I believe you will have a permanent solution soon enough."
The dark, predatory smile on Orochimaru's face became more pronounced. He flicked his long, slender tongue over his lips.
"I'm running out of 'materials' for my research, Danzo."
Danzo, who was fully focused on his arm, felt his smile vanish. He looked up in surprise.
"I just sent you thirty healthy, strong men a few days ago."
"How can they be gone so soon?"
Orochimaru narrowed his eyes, speaking with a casual indifference.
"Well, I've found a new direction for my research. The consumption rate has... accelerated."
Danzo's brow furrowed, though he kept his face calm as he spoke slowly:
"The Sand Village has sucked up more than half of the surrounding refugees."
"The ones who remain are settling down and making ties with the local populations."
"If we kidnap too many people in such a short window of time, Hiruzen is bound to notice the disappearances."
Orochimaru's smile froze for a split second, then he acted as if he didn't care.
"I can wait a few more days. But when you do send them, I want fifty men next time."
"By the way, have you found those two Uchiha with the Mangekyō Sharingan yet?"
Hearing this, Danzo turned his head away, trying to hide a flash of genuine embarrassment.
"There are no leads yet."
"Root lost too many men six months ago. The new recruits are still in training. I can only spare a few hands for the investigation while keeping the basic operations running."
"Root has its budget, but we still need to take on missions to cover our overhead."
Orochimaru's eyes narrowed, his previous smile vanishing.
His tone remained calm, but it was laced with a venomous threat.
"I don't care about your logistics. Either you send fifty men tomorrow, or you commit every single Root agent to finding those eyes."
He stood up, looking down at Danzo like a predator.
His snake-like pupils were filled with a burning, fanatical hunger.
"The Mangekyō Sharingan... I crave it. I dream of it every waking moment."
His gaze slid back to Danzo's pale arm, looking at the eyes staring back at him.
"You must hurry. Otherwise, if your body fails one day... hehe!"
Bang!
The door was kicked open and then slammed shut with a heavy, echoing thud.
Danzo clenched his fists, his face dark with suppressed rage and humiliation.
That man was getting far too arrogant.
Suddenly, a Root ninja flickered into the room like a ghost, kneeling with his head low.
"Lord Danzo, we have an emergency."
"The Third Hokage... he seems to have discovered Orochimaru's human experimentation."
Danzo stood up abruptly, his voice tinged with genuine shock.
"How? How did he find out so suddenly?"
"It shouldn't be possible. Even though the rate of materials has increased, we've handled the disposals perfectly. We only took statusless refugees. Where did we slip up?"
Danzo paced, muttering to himself with a tight grip on his fists.
Finally, his expression smoothed out into a cold, calculating mask.
"It doesn't matter. If Hiruzen is already suspicious, there is no point in wondering why."
"He likely suspects me as well."
"The only way forward is to sacrifice Orochimaru."
Danzo looked straight ahead and turned to walk out.
He failed to notice the faint red glow in the Root ninja's eyes behind him.
Nor did he see the deep, burning hatred that flared up as the ninja stared at the dozens of stolen Uchiha eyes embedded in his arm.
"Oh my, this little girl is just darling. Is she your apprentice, Pakura?"
Rasa stepped out of the swirling vortex, his eyes landing on the nervous little girl.
Memories of the original timeline—of a slightly older version of her—rushed through his mind.
He crouched down to meet her gaze, a warm, charismatic smile on his lips.
Maki's face was tight with tension, but her eyes were sparkling with a mix of terror and fanatical worship.
"Lord... Lord Kazekage!" she stammered.
Though she had been Pakura's student for six months, she had never actually spoken to Rasa in private.
She had only seen his legendary silhouette from a distance in the streets.
Pakura looked at Rasa, her cool, aloof expression melting into a genuine joy. She nodded.
"Yes. This is the student I told you about."
Rasa reached out and gently pinched Maki's rosy cheek, chuckling.
"A very good girl."
After giving her cheek a soft squeeze, he stroked her hair.
Under his kind, fatherly touch, Maki's anxiety began to dissolve, replaced by a warm sense of belonging.
Lord Kazekage was exactly as she had dreamed—a kind, gentle man!
"Actually, according to the hierarchy, you should call me Grandmaster."
"As your elder, I really ought to give you a welcoming gift, shouldn't I?"
"Let me see what I have..."
Rasa clapped his hands lightly.
He reached into a newly opened Kamui rift, looking as though he were rummaging for a rare treasure.
After a moment of searching, he realized he didn't have anything "innocent" enough for a child.
Finally, he pulled out a small redwood pendant.
"The effects of this thing are quite substantial. I hope you don't mind the material."
Rasa explained the "health benefits" of the redwood to Maki—its ability to purify the body and enhance one's natural talent.
After chatting with her for a few more minutes, he stood up and walked over to the sofa.
He sat down heavily next to Karura, draping an arm over her delicate shoulder.
"Maki, why don't you go downstairs and play with Yashamaru?"
Yashamaru took Maki's hand, leading her out of the room.
Pakura watched them go, a strange, knowing smile playing on her lips.
"You actually gave that to Maki? You're quite generous."
Rasa reached down and began to stroke Karura's massive belly with a tender, possessive touch.
"I didn't have anything else on me. It's a fitting gift for a young girl."
"Besides, she's your student. In a way, that makes her mine to look after as well."
Pakura's smile widened at his words, her eyes glowing with satisfaction.
Rasa felt the roundness of Karura's stomach for a moment, his voice turning urgent and concerned.
"Has our daughter been well this past week? No complications?"
Karura saw the genuine worry on his face.
She reached up with both hands, cupping his face as she spoke with a voice thick with love.
"She has been perfect."
Rasa let out a long, heavy sigh of relief, muttering under his breath:
"That's good... that's very good..."
Seeing that Rasa was finished fussing over his unborn heir, Akatsuki finally spoke up.
"My Lord, news came from Konoha a few days ago. They want to invite you for an official visit."
Rasa blinked, looking at her. "Did they specify a date?"
Akatsuki tossed her hair back, her lavender eyes reflecting his image clearly.
"We didn't know when you'd be back, so we made excuses. We told them you were too busy."
Rasa nodded slowly, the image of Kushina Uzumaki flashing through his mind.
It had been over a month since he had seen her.
And it was the perfect time to coordinate with his mother-in-law, Yoshina, about the investigation into the "Jashin" cult in the Land of Hot Water.
The legendary Sages were still out of his league, but a fake god in a backwater country was a target he could handle.
"Inform Konoha immediately. I will arrive tomorrow morning."
Strictly speaking, Sunagakure had visited Konoha many times.
The Hokage should have made a return trip by now.
But due to a complex web of historical pride and political caution, Konoha had never made the offer.
Minutes later, a Swift roared to life, streaking toward the Land of Fire like a bolt of lightning.
Night fell quickly over the desert.
Inside the Kazekage's office, Rasa sat behind his desk, looking shocked.
"Orochimaru... has defected?"
"Yes, Lord Rasa. The news is spreading like wildfire across Konoha. I've confirmed it with our contacts there."
"Apparently, his human experimentation was discovered by the Third Hokage himself."
A curvaceous, beautiful female ninja knelt before him, her head bowed as she delivered the report.
"Understood. You are dismissed."
"Yes, My Lord!"
Rasa slumped back into his chair, staring up at the ceiling he had recently refurbished with the village's new wealth.
The timeline of Orochimaru's defection didn't quite match the original history, but he didn't care.
Since the snake had fled, he wondered if he should hunt him down.
Killing him would surely bring massive system rewards...
Ultimately, Rasa shook his head.
Orochimaru was a cockroach with a thousand ways to escape death.
Fully killing him was a task almost no one in the world could guarantee.
It was a thankless, high-effort job. There was no need to bother.