"Your father says he deeply regrets marrying your mother. He deeply regrets having you as his daughter. He curses the two of you every day, saying you ruined his life."
"He says all Uchiha are monsters. If you and your mother hadn't run so quickly that night, he would have personally cut off both your heads and rid Konoha of a threat."
"And now… it seems he's already preparing to marry a new wife…"
As Rasa spoke, Uchiha Izumi's expression shifted again.
Before, it had merely been complicated.
Izumi had been dissatisfied with her father. She believed that as a father and a husband, no matter the circumstances, he should have protected her and her mother.
But he hadn't.
Even so, despite everything, a trace of familial affection still remained in her heart.
Rasa's words, however, were slowly eroding that last bit of feeling.
It wasn't because Izumi believed him one hundred percent.
Today was her first time meeting Rasa.
Rather, it was because she knew her father really was capable of doing such things.
Just like that night.
Plop.
Her eyes reddened. A moment later, tears welled up and began falling one after another.
"Father is awful."
"If it weren't for him, Mother wouldn't have died."
The instant she said that, something in Izumi's heart lurched. Her expression froze.
She looked up at Rasa, wiped away her tears, and put on the most pitiful face she could manage.
"Kazekage-sama, you're bullying me."
That had been Rasa's purpose in coming here.
Hazuki's earlier reaction had seemed strange to him.
But Hazuki was an adult. Testing her directly would not be easy.
Izumi, however, was much easier. No matter how precocious she was, she was still only a three-year-old child.
"Go on," Rasa said. "What is Uchiha Hazuki's real name? And what exactly is your relationship with her?"
Uchiha Izumi looked frightened, but she still shook her head over and over.
"Auntie told me not to say."
Rasa nodded in sudden understanding.
"So she's your aunt. Then what's her name?"
Uchiha Izumi: "..."
Rasa urged her on.
"You've already said this much. There's no point hiding the name anymore. Uchiha Izumi, surely you don't want your aunt to be punished for refusing to answer, do you?"
Izumi looked at Rasa miserably.
"Kazekage-sama… if I tell you, can you promise not to punish Auntie?"
"That depends on how you behave."
"Auntie's name is Uchiha Hanazuki. We didn't mean to deceive you, Kazekage-sama. We just thought it would make us safer."
Rasa could understand their reasoning.
By disguising herself as Uchiha Hazuki, Hanazuki had gained the identity of a married woman, which made her less likely to be targeted.
After all, many people would disdain someone who had already been married, someone who was no longer untouched.
And by pretending that she and Uchiha Izumi were even closer than they really were, others would accept that relationship as real and use one to restrain the other.
That made others more at ease—and made Hanazuki and Izumi safer.
But Uchiha Hazuki had still underestimated just how strongly others coveted Uchiha blood… and just how low some people were willing to stoop.
"I understand."
Rasa stood and rubbed Uchiha Izumi's head.
"And by the way, what I told you earlier wasn't a lie. Your father really did do those things. Konoha is no longer a place you can return to."
"But Sunagakure is willing to accept you."
"As long as you do not betray Sunagakure, Sunagakure will not betray you."
"If you're willing… then live on as one of Sunagakure's people."
Yashamaru escorted Rasa to the door.
"Brother-in-law."
"Yes, Yashamaru? Is there something else?"
"It's… still about that previous matter."
Yashamaru hesitated before speaking.
"Brother-in-law, could you maybe give me a different task? Looking after two little kids really doesn't have any challenge to it. And honestly… it's too idle."
"Too idle?"
"Yes."
Rasa nodded.
"I understand. I'll solve that problem for you."
"Thank you, brother-in-law."
Yashamaru's face brightened with joy.
But after Rasa left, he vaguely felt that something was not quite right.
"When brother-in-law said 'solve it'… he meant the same thing I'm thinking of, right?"
Back inside the courtyard, Uchiha Hai was off to one side, playing with toys.
Uchiha Izumi walked up to Yashamaru.
"Yashamaru-sensei."
"Yes, Izumi?"
"What Kazekage-sama said… is it true? As long as we don't betray Sunagakure, Sunagakure truly won't betray us?"
Yashamaru fell silent for a while.
"If it were someone else, I wouldn't dare say for sure. But Kazekage-sama…" He looked at her and spoke with certainty. "No matter what happens, he would never abandon his comrades. That much, I can guarantee one hundred percent."
When Rasa returned home, the moment he pushed open the courtyard gate, he found Temari beating Kankuro again.
"Father."
Temari awkwardly tucked her hands behind her back.
Rasa shook his head.
Those two really were troublemakers—both of them.
They might still be young, but their destructive power was already astonishing.
If not for that, Karura wouldn't be so exhausted at home.
Then suddenly, an idea came to Rasa.
Yashamaru had complained that he was too idle, and Rasa had just discovered Yashamaru's natural gift with children.
So he began considering having the village gather a list of orphans, selecting some among those with no one to care for them—preferably those with talent—and sending them to Yashamaru.
Not only would that make Yashamaru less idle—
It would also allow those orphans to be trained more effectively.
"How about sending Temari and Kankuro there too?"
"With Yashamaru watching over them, there'd be nothing to worry about."
"That would also lighten Karura's burden."
"And it could reduce the inferiority those orphans feel. After all, even the Kazekage's own daughter and son would be there with them."
"And when those children grow up, with the bond they formed with Temari and Kankuro, it would be much easier to secure their loyalty."
"In the future, they could become die-hard loyalists of my Kazekage line."
"Something like royal study companions?"
The more Rasa thought about it, the more practical the idea seemed.
"My husband."
Karura's surprised voice rang out.
"You're home early today?"
Rasa nodded.
"There wasn't much to deal with today, so I came back sooner."
Temari, seeing that Rasa wasn't going to scold her, quietly let out a sigh of relief. She shot Kankuro a glance, then ran toward Rasa and Karura, trying to act cute in hopes of being rewarded with snacks.
Rasa pulled out a small packet of sugar pills from his robes.
"Go share them with your brother."
"Okay!"
Temari happily ran off with Kankuro into the room and began dividing them up.
"One for you, one for me."
"One for me, one for you."
The younger Kankuro watched and gradually felt that something was wrong.
Why was it that the more they "shared," the fewer sugar pills there were in front of him?
A second later, he burst into loud tears.
Temari panicked.
The next morning—
A very early one at that—
an intelligence ninja entered the Kazekage Building carrying the information Rasa had requested on six Kirigakure shinobi.