In Sunagakure, one of the five great ninja villages of the world—renowned for its poisons, puppets, and mining born from poverty—an emergency meeting was underway.
"What do you all think about this matter?" Rasa asked, looking at his advisers as he sought their opinions while maintaining a stoic expression.
"It seems too good to be true," Ebizō said, lifting his gaze from the scroll he was holding—the same one the Kumo delegation had brought barely an hour earlier, with whom they had only interacted on a handful of occasions. "It's almost as if it were designed specifically for our needs."
Rasa nodded. He too found it hard to believe that the Dance Powder was real.
What village would spend even a single ryō researching something that would only benefit another village?
None!
"But if the contents are real, we can't afford not to buy it," Chiyo said with a frown.
Kumo had brought an initial batch of the powder at a discount to demonstrate goodwill—at a price supposedly close to cost—which Suna could afford even in its precarious situation.
Moreover, due to their geographical positions, Suna and Kumo had never had a major conflict—at most, clashes over interests and resources. More often than not, they had cooperated, with satisfactory results for both sides.
"Chiyo, are you confident you could reverse-engineer the formula if it turns out to be real?" the Kazekage asked his expert in medicine and poisons.
To Rasa's surprise, Chiyo shook her head with a frustrated expression.
"I already had a small sample stolen for analysis. Setting aside the fact that it uses raw materials found only in the Land of Lightning, the formula is absurdly complex—almost paranoid in its design," she said. Though her voice carried irritation, there was also a faint, nearly imperceptible trace of admiration. "I suspect its creator is Kumo's Dodomeki."
The room fell silent at the mention of the title.
"That man again!" Ebizō pinched the bridge of his nose in weariness. "I wouldn't be surprised if the formula was deliberately designed this way. We all know one of the things that man hates most is poison. Remember the Scorpion Valley incident—he won't give Suna the chance to steal his work."
Rasa clenched his jaw but did not let his anger show as he recalled the incident in which six of their finest poison masters—all valuable jōnin—had died, believing they could take Chad down by ambushing him along a route he had to travel to collect the bounty on his head in the underground market.
As a village famous for its poisons, it was obvious this deal was not that man's idea. The only reason they had received this offer had to be the Raikage pushing for research.
As for the true objective, Rasa doubted it was money. There had to be something more…
"I propose we conduct a test with a small amount in the desert," Chiyo said as she stood up from the table. "If it works as described, we'll have to conceal its use from the daimyo, or he'll cut off our supply of Dance Powder."
The same daimyo who commissioned missions from a village that wasn't his own and denied them the funds they desperately needed, forcing the village into its current state. If he invested even a third of what he squandered on vices, Suna would have surpassed Kiri long ago.
"Proceed," Rasa allowed. "As for the rest—none of this must leak. If the deal is sealed, it will be considered a village secret."
…
The purchase of the first batch of Dance Powder went smoothly, but for obvious reasons, Suna invited the Kumo delegation to stay a few extra days.
"Sister, you didn't need to prod Rasa like that," Ebizō said to Chiyo as they moved to a more remote area of the village to confirm the powder's effects. "You know he's been tense lately because of… that plan."
"Drop the act, brother," Chiyo waved her hand dismissively. "We both know Rasa only sits in that chair because he's the toy they want in exchange for quietly mining gold in the desert. If it weren't for his ability to prop up the village's strained finances, I'd have kicked him out myself for thinking he's a qualified Kazekage."
Ebizō didn't deny it. Ever since they had learned—too late—that Rasa had sent Pakura to die in Kiri under the pretense of a peace agreement (which was the only thing it could be called, regardless of the man's excuses), both of them had wanted to confront him.
They had restrained themselves for the sake of the village.
Ironically, Rasa didn't realize that if the Dance Powder worked as described and they secured enough water, within less than two years he would lose his position as Kazekage one way or another—the village would no longer need him to survive.
Sending a kunoichi with Kage-level potential to her death out of paranoia—what kind of capable leader does that?
"This is far enough," Chiyo said as she set the bag of Dance Powder on the ground. "According to the instructions, this amount should be enough to create a temporary rainfall. We're far enough to avoid causing problems for the village, but close enough to collect the water." Forming a series of rapid hand seals, she produced a small flame and ignited the sack as they moved away from the smoke rising into the sky.
Minutes later…
"Incredible!" Chiyo stared at the droplets falling from the sky, her hands trembling.
Clean, fresh water—an amount equivalent to years of rainfall in Suna—all produced by a single small sack of Dance Powder.
Around them, Suna's ninja rushed about frantically, setting down barrels, tubs, and any container they could find, knowing how precious every drop was. Some even pulled out sealing scrolls and began drawing the falling water inside.
For those unaware of the powder's burning, this rain was nothing short of a miracle.
"Sister…"
"I know," Chiyo turned to Ebizō. "We need to meet with the Kumo delegation and secure a supply at all costs!"
Chiyo was already doing the calculations in her head.
Forget the Wind Daimyo—the village's civilians and many of its ninja could not be allowed to learn of the Dance Powder's existence under any circumstances. If its effects leaked, their village would face retaliation on multiple fronts.
No—they needed to find a "reasonable" excuse for the rain!
…
Kumogakure, Central Hospital.
Chad finished a five-hour operation, setting down the scalpel he had been holding and deactivating the medical chakra illuminating his gloved hand.
"You may suture the wound now," he ordered the assistant as he left the operating room at a measured pace.
Outside, a man pacing anxiously back and forth was holding a small girl no older than three. When he saw Chad, he hurried over.
"Chad-sama, how is my wife?"
He had only just learned that his wife, Tamago—a chūnin who had left on an escort mission barely three days earlier—had returned after being ambushed by rogue ninja during the final leg, losing her arm in the process.
Given the village's proximity and the clean cut, her teammates had administered first aid and recovered the arm, hoping it could be reattached.
The Sage must have been on their side, as the director learned of the circumstances just as he was about to leave and took on the role of chief surgeon himself.
"For the next twelve hours, we'll keep her sedated—she must not move her left arm under any circumstances. In two weeks, the stitches can be removed, and she'll begin rehabilitation exercises for mobility and muscle strength. She'll only be allowed to return to duty—if she still wishes to—after four months of therapy and passing a medical certification exam," Chad said. "It was fortunate that the cut was so clean."
The man took a breath—did that mean…?
"By the time Tamago recovers, she won't even have a scar," Chad assured him. "I reconnected the bone, nerves, blood vessels, muscles—everything—without issue. For now, the best thing you can do is be there for her."
The man wanted to cry with relief, but his pride wouldn't allow him to shed tears in front of his daughter. He didn't know how to thank Chad. First, he had introduced him to Tamago, then helped bring their daughter into the world during childbirth, and now he had saved Tamago's future as a ninja.
After reassuring both father and daughter, Chad went to inquire about the situation with the rogue ninja. It wasn't normal for so many to be so close to the village—especially when they were weak enough for a chūnin team to handle them.
"We don't know much," Mabui told him. "At first, we thought they were fugitives from Kiri, but their slashed headbands identify them as ninja from Takigakure."
"Any information extracted from the bodies?"
"Not much. It's suspected they've been fleeing bounty hunters from the underground market and that their encounter with Tamago's team was pure coincidence. It seems they intended to pass through and head toward an island in the east." She flipped through a document on the desk. "For now, that's all."
"Alright. I'll return to the hospital then."
"Wait," Mabui said, handing him a scroll she pulled from a desk drawer.
"What's this?" Chad asked as he took it and opened it.
"Something you're not going to like."
Chad read the contents and tossed the scroll into the trash.
"I'm not going."
"Even if it's labeled an 'invitation,' you can't refuse, and you know it."
"But—!"
"Listen. The Raikage has postponed this for as long as possible," Mabui said, retrieving the scroll from the bin and practically forcing it back into his hands. "But he can't delay it indefinitely."
Chad stared at her.
"Go with Hibui and Kiyui—the invitation allows companions," Mabui added after a moment's thought. "Someone has to make sure you don't kill the host of the event. That would look very bad."
Chad took a deep breath.
"I'm going to want a month of vacation when this is over."
"Done!" Mabui nodded as she returned to work. "I was going to give you two."
Chad shot his older sister a look of betrayal.
"You want to leave things unsupervised for more than a month?"
The real question was whether she dared. The Council would be more than happy with his absence to alter many things.
"You'll regret this, Mabui."
"Chad, I'm the Raikage's secretary!"
A door slammed as Chad stormed out of the office.
Once Mabui made sure his footsteps had faded, she pulled out another information scroll, biting her lower lip as she read it—detailing the presence of a certain individual in the Lightning Capital.
"The capital is big enough… with so many streets and places, they shouldn't run into each other and recognize one another, right?"
The Raikage had ordered her not to reveal this information to Chad—and not without reason.
One of those responsible for Inazuri's death—their mother—was currently in the capital. If Chad learned of it, he would stop at nothing to kill them, regardless of location or collateral damage.
Even if the daimyo ordered Chad to stop, the only result would be the monarch's death—probably from a single slap.
The idea of an unrestrained Chad in the capital made the Raikage dizzy just thinking about the consequences, and Mabui didn't want innocents caught up in his vengeance if it could be avoided. But deep down, she still hoped her brother would encounter that person and put an end to them—ideally somewhere far from the capital…