Takuya could understand their concerns.
But understanding aside, it was still amusing. Takuya couldn't help but chuckle.
"Hmph, you handle this yourself, kid. I'm out," Shikashige grumbled, a bit embarrassed as he left the room, which only made Sakumo laugh as well.
Even at his age, Shikashige still acted so stubbornly.
Sakumo gave a small gesture of farewell before heading out as well, leaving Takuya alone in the command center.
The room quieted down, and Takuya enjoyed his tea. Pakura, who had been silently tidying up the teacups, suddenly spoke up.
"You Konoha people are planning to deploy a Jinchuriki into the battlefield. Aren't you worried about her losing control?"
"When has Konoha's tailed beast ever lost control?" Takuya countered.
Pakura frowned slightly. Except for the time Madara Uchiha forcibly controlled the Nine Tails, the beast had never actually gone on a rampage.
On the other hand, Sunagakure had been constantly troubled by Shukaku. It had plagued the First and Second Kazekages repeatedly, and even the Third Kazekage had his hands full trying to deal with it.
It wasn't until Shukaku was sealed inside the monk Bunpuku that it finally settled down.
When it came to the subject of tailed beasts going berserk, Sunagakure simply wasn't on the same level as Konoha.
Pakura sighed, somewhat irritated. She couldn’t help but think Takuya was mocking her.
"Kushina Uzumaki is from the Uzumaki clan. The Uzumaki bloodline is inherently resistant to the influence of tailed beasts. As long as Kushina stays focused, there is no chance of the Nine Tails going berserk.
Besides, the Nine Tails and Kushina coexist peacefully now. A tailed beast going on a rampage is simply not going to happen!"
"A perfect Jinchuriki?" Pakura was shocked.
Kushina was a perfect Jinchuriki?
Takuya didn’t bother hiding the truth.
"She hasn’t reached the level of a perfect Jinchuriki just yet—she’s close, but not quite there. I believe she will eventually get there, and the Nine Tails will come to accept it too."
"Besides, Kushina's reason for coming to the battlefield isn’t the war—it’s because of you."
Sending Kushina as backup?
What kind of joke was that? Even if Tsunade had too much to drink, she would never make such a reckless decision.
The real issue was that Kushina had already left. They needed a reasonable excuse to justify her actions.
Otherwise, her departure from the village would be seen as a defection, which, given her unique position, would be extremely problematic.
"Because of me?" Pakura pointed to herself, feeling bewildered.
She had never even met Kushina before, let alone had any connection to her. Why would Kushina specifically come to the front lines because of her?
"Yes, because of you," Takuya said with a serious expression, as he gave Pakura a warning. "That’s why I asked if you knew how to please people. If you don’t, you’re definitely going to be targeted by Kushina."
She was being singled out for no reason—it didn’t make any sense.
It wasn’t like she had a personal vendetta with Kushina. They didn’t know each other at all, and there was no enmity between them.
Why would Kushina have any issue with her?
Takuya hadn't mentioned any of this to Shikashige or Sakumo.
Is he messing with me? Pakura wondered if Takuya was just making all this up for fun.
"Because you’re a woman—an attractive woman, with a great figure, and you just so happen to be by my side. Alright, now go get me some hot water. I need to wash up."
Pakura left the command center in a daze, fetched the hot water, and only then did she realize what Takuya meant.
"Damn it!" she cursed, despite herself.
No matter how disciplined she was, Pakura couldn’t help but let out some frustration over this situation.
If you have a problem, go deal with Takuya Yagami, not me!
There was nothing inappropriate between her and Takuya.
Although the seal on her had been removed and her strength restored, Pakura had no thoughts of escaping. She obediently did whatever Takuya asked of her.
She knew she couldn’t run. Takuya was always watching.
Meanwhile, Shikashige and Sakumo were quick to spread the news.
Soon, the entire camp was in an uproar.
"The Third Kazekage is dead?"
"No way! Wasn’t he the strongest Kazekage? How did he just die like that?"
"The news came from the command center, so it must be true. Lord Takuya is incredibly strong—he captured Pakura with ease and, along with one of their own, took down the Third Kazekage."
"The people of Sunagakure must be furious right now."
Imagining the chaos in Sunagakure, the Konoha shinobi couldn’t help but laugh.
With no restrictions on information and some discreet encouragement, the news quickly spread through various channels.
"Lady Chiyo, has Lord Kazekage returned yet?"
Hearing the news, Sunagakure’s ANBU couldn't stay silent any longer. They bypassed Ebizō and went straight to Chiyo.
Chiyo frowned, her old, wrinkled face showing nothing but anger.
"Lord Kazekage is carrying out a very important mission. Does he need to report his every action to the ANBU?"
The ANBU captain was sweating. He bowed deeply and said, "We collected some disturbing information about Lord Kazekage in the field, and we thought—"
"Also, this will be noted. How is it that you people in ANBU have gotten so sloppy that you bypass Ebizō and come straight to me?"
Chiyo’s tone was icy, her mood even worse.
Anyone in her position would feel the same, especially given that Ebizō was her brother. Bypassing him was an insult she could not ignore.
The ANBU captain opened his mouth, only to close it again, a bitter smile on his face.
"There are rumors circulating that Konoha’s Takuya Yagami collaborated with Pakura after capturing her. They say they then conspired with your grandson, Sasori, to kill the Kazekage, and that Sasori took the body with him."
Chiyo slammed her hand onto the table in fury.
"Utter nonsense! Even if Pakura was captured and turned traitor, that would be her own failure. The village misjudged her. But what does any of this have to do with Sasori?"
"You should know the strength of the Kazekage yourself, shouldn’t you?"
"Konoha must be spreading this misinformation to shake our morale. How could you be so gullible?"
"Has just a few years reduced ANBU to nothing but rumor-mongers?"
Chiyo was livid, berating the ANBU captain mercilessly.
She and Ebizō had only been away for a few years, but it seemed that was enough time for the ANBU to degrade into this sorry state. It was disappointing.
To come running to her over some baseless rumors—what nonsense.
The two villages were at war. Of course, spreading false rumors to demoralize the other side was a tactic. What was so surprising about that?
After being scolded, the ANBU captain didn’t dare look up and answered meekly.
"But we checked the camp for Sasori. He’s not here, and there’s no record of him being deployed."
"Are you saying Sasori isn’t in the camp, and there’s no record of him being sent out?"