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Onoki's fingers tapped against the desk as he thought aloud. "To eliminate him, we would need a proper team—an entire formation of highly skilled shinobi."
But that was the problem.
Iwagakure lacked true high-level combat power.
And to make things worse, the whereabouts of their two strongest Jinchūriki were still unknown.
A heavy silence hung in the air.
Then, Kitsuchi spoke from the side, his voice low but calculating.
"Then should we give the assassination commission… to the Akatsuki?"
Onoki wasn't surprised by the suggestion. Iwagakure had relied on Akatsuki before—to handle their dirty work, to act where they could not afford to be directly involved.
But this time, he shook his head. "No, we can't do that."
His voice was firm, carrying the weight of experience. "You know as well as I do how steep their prices are. If we hire them to kill Inoiki, they'll demand a sky-high sum—especially after everything he's accomplished. It's not worth it."
He leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping against the desk in thought. "More importantly, we can't justify mobilizing that many resources just to eliminate one person. And even if we did…" He exhaled sharply. "There's no guarantee they could actually deal with Inoiki."
Kitsuchi remained silent, taking in his father's (or father-in-law) reasoning.
Onoki continued, his expression darkening. "And killing Inoiki won't guarantee Kurotsuchi's safety. If she were being held outside Konoha, under his watch, maybe it would be worth considering. But now? No. The risk outweighs the reward."
Kitsuchi gave a reluctant nod. He understood.
After a moment of silence, Onoki straightened and turned to him.
"Take a team of three Jonin," he ordered. "And bring someone important from the Daimyo's court as an envoy. Kurotsuchi must be brought back safely. She is the key to our village's future."
Kitsuchi nodded again, this time with determination, then left the office to begin preparations.
As the door shut behind him, Onoki turned toward the window. His gaze drifted over the village he had dedicated his life to protecting, a flicker of frustration in his weary eyes.
"Why does Konoha always produce such geniuses… while Iwagakure does not?"
He sighed, the weight of his village's shortcomings pressing heavily upon him.
----
By evening, Inoiki woke from his deep sleep, feeling completely refreshed. The exhaustion from his mission had faded, leaving him energized.
Stepping out of his room, he noticed the house was empty.
He glanced around before muttering to himself, "Mom must have gone to the flower shop. And knowing Ino, she's probably there too."
With that thought, he left home and made his way toward the shop.
Upon arrival, he spotted his mother carefully arranging flowers, while Ino tended to customers.
The moment Ino saw him, her eyes lit up. "Brother, you're awake?"
Inoiki raised an eyebrow and pointed to his face. "Do I look asleep to you? Unless I developed a sleepwalking condition overnight, I think I'm very much awake."
Ino rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah."
Then, her expression shifted slightly—more serious.
"By the way, do you have time?" she asked. "We need to talk to you about something important."
Inoiki crossed his arms. "Yeah, why not? I'm totally free. Where are we going?"
"Meet us at Training Ground Three—the place you usually train," she said. "I'll go round up everyone, and we'll meet you there."
Something about her tone made Inoiki pause.
"Alright," he said simply, but his mind was already racing.
As Ino hurried off to gather their friends, Inoiki started walking toward the training ground, his thoughts swirling.
What could be so important?
Then, suddenly, it hit him.
He stopped in his tracks, eyes widening.
"Sasuke."
Yes—this had to be about Sasuke.
In all the tension of his S-Rank mission, he had completely forgotten about the situation with Sasuke.
The realization sent a jolt through him.
Without wasting another second, he quickened his pace toward Training Ground Three.
----
Inoiki arrived at Training Ground Three, but as expected, the clearing was empty—Ino had just left to gather everyone.
So, he leaned against a tree, arms crossed, waiting.
It took about half an hour before they finally arrived, one by one. Soon, Inoiki found himself surrounded by his friends, all wearing serious expressions.
He was the first to break the silence.
"So? What exactly happened that you all needed to gather like this and talk to me?"
Ino stepped forward, her voice tense. "After you left for your mission… Sasuke left the village. Without permission."
A heavy pause followed before she continued. "For now, he hasn't been declared a rogue ninja—thanks to Naruto."
Inoiki nodded, unsurprised.
Of course.
As a reincarnator, he already knew this was bound to happen.
Noticing his lack of reaction, Neji frowned. "You don't seem surprised by this."
Inoiki met his gaze and nodded. "Because I saw this coming."
The moment those words left his mouth, Naruto was in front of him in an instant.
Fury burned in his eyes as he grabbed Inoiki's collar, pulling him forward.
"WHAT!? YOU ALREADY KNEW ABOUT THIS!?" Naruto's voice was raw, laced with anger and disbelief. "You knew Sasuke was going to leave the village—and you STILL didn't stop him!? WHY!?"
His grip was tight, his body trembling with emotion.
Inoiki exhaled and calmly pried Naruto's hands off his collar.
"Calm down, Naruto." His voice was steady, but firm. "I didn't know for certain that Sasuke was going to leave. I just suspected it."
He looked around at their expectant faces before continuing.
"From the way he acted… from his hunger for power… it was clear he was going to do something reckless. Something he'd regret in the future."
He sighed. "And I guess… he did exactly that."
A tense silence followed, the weight of his words settling over them.
Sasuke was gone.
And now, they had to decide what to do next.
...
(A/N: If you like the story please vote power stones.)