"And mineral resources are a non-negotiable part of building the Sun Disk."
Baki's eyes lit up.
As Rasa's disciple and one of Sunagakure's inner circle, Baki had access to plenty of classified intel. He knew exactly how valuable the Sun Disk was.
"Don't worry, sensei. I'll hunt down every mineral vein we need."
They reached the Land of Water and met the daimyo first. The man was all smiles and hospitality.
"Kazekage, come sit. Have some tea."
Rasa nodded and took a small sip.
The daimyo leaned forward. "The age of voyages is here. Honestly, I don't know if it's a blessing or a curse for the Land of Water, but there's no stopping it now. The sea is huge and dangerous. Without real power, you can't explore it. Only strong shinobi like you can pull it off. My country has limits, but we've got one thing in abundance—people. Your navigation groups bring back the goods, we'll distribute everything and pay top dollar. No need to haul it halfway across the world."
He slid a thick scroll across the table. "Take a look at our proposal."
Rasa picked it up. It was dressed up as cooperation, but it read more like an exclusive buyout contract. Every type of seafood had a fixed price. Sign it and Sunagakure's entire haul could only be sold to the Land of Water for the next ten years. The numbers weren't terrible, but the lock-in period was long. Still, if the ocean economy boomed, the Land of Water stood to make a killing.
Rasa didn't bite right away. "I'll talk it over with the village."
The daimyo smiled wider. "No rush. We're sincere about this partnership."
Ōnoki, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and the Fourth Raikage filed in next for their own negotiations. Same story—nobody jumped at the first offer. When real money was on the table, everyone played it cagey. The daimyo's opening bid was never going to be the final one.
Kirigakure.
The Fifth Mizukage inauguration was in full swing.
The new Mizukage, Chojuro, looked like an ordinary elite jonin at first glance. But he carried a rare kekkei genkai—Dark Release. He could absorb an enemy's ninjutsu and throw it right back at them. Turn their own power against them.
The whole village was buzzing, trying to drown out the gloom with this ceremony. Rasa felt the hostile stares the second he walked in.
"That's the Fourth Kazekage—Rasa!"
"You can feel how strong he is just looking at him. He's the one who killed Yagura."
Some villagers wanted to rush him on the spot. Others held them back.
"Yagura's death wasn't really Rasa's fault. Yagura went to Sunagakure first, trying to ambush them."
"If he'd stayed home, none of this would've happened. Our village wouldn't be this screwed."
"And Rasa's that strong anyway. Going after him would've been suicide."
The muttering turned into open blame.
"Yagura was too reckless. Why the hell did he go?"
"The village was already in bad shape. He made it worse. Didn't think about consequences at all."
Someone else spoke up. "You think Yagura was behind what happened to the Seven Ninja Swordsmen? If they were still here, we wouldn't be in this mess."
A raised platform held five chairs. Chojuro sat in the center. Ōnoki and Rasa on his left. Hiruzen and the Fourth Raikage on his right. These villages had plenty of bad blood—Raikage's father died to Iwagakure's human wave tactics, Sunagakure got bullied by Rock at the start of the war, Kirigakure got crushed by Sand and lost its Mizukage to Rasa—but right now everyone was playing nice. Everyone knew it was just for show.
Below, two young Kirigakure shinobi stepped onto the stage for a Chunin Exam exhibition match. Chojuro gestured at the spread of local delicacies.
"Tsuchikage, Hokage, Raikage, Kazekage—help yourselves. These are Kirigakure specialties. All fresh."
Rasa glanced at the tables, then looked straight at Chojuro.
"I know you all met the daimyo before coming here. He wants you to form navigation groups. Kirigakure has no problem with that. In fact, we'd like to cooperate. The ocean is big and you've got strong shinobi, but nobody knows these waters better than our Water Style users. Every navigation group is welcome here."
Rasa didn't blink. "Does that include the Taketori Navigation Group and the Ninja Sword Glory Navigation Group?"
Chojuro's face froze.
Rasa kept going, voice calm and loud enough for half the room to hear. "Then those rumors about Yagura persecuting the Seven Ninja Swordsmen were true after all. So the Taketori clan, Jinpachi Munashi, and Fuguki Suikazan—they're all coming back to Kirigakure?"
Every head in the arena snapped toward them. Even the fighters on stage lost the crowd's attention.
Rasa felt it instantly. The points on his system panel were skyrocketing—past three thousand, straight toward four thousand. The fourth rumor had finished spreading completely.
"Thirty consecutive draws—start!"
"Ten consecutive draws—start!"