Naruto: The Ninja World's Life Buyer

Chapter 231 Power Struggle, The Fourth Kazekage

That day, Sunagakure was in an uproar.

The Third Kazekage has disappeared.

The offices on the top floor of the Fengying Building.

Granny Chiyo and Ebizo walked in. Behind them were two fully armed ANBU.

"Don't destroy anything."

Chiyo walked to the desk.

The documents on the table were neatly arranged. The straw hat that belonged only to Fengying hung quietly on the coat rack.

There were no signs of a struggle. Feng Ying simply vanished into thin air.

Ebizo frowned, his gaze sweeping across the surrounding windows.

"The barrier is intact, and there are no signs of external damage to the doors and windows. The person who came in walked in openly and honestly."

Chiyo did not answer.

She crouched down, her gaze falling on the leather chair behind the desk.

There were a few drops of water on the chair, which hadn't had time to evaporate.

She dipped a little in and placed it on the tip of her nose.

A pungent smell entered her nasal cavity.

"Formalin — and high concentrations of neurotoxins —"

Chiyo's pupils contracted slightly.

She looked down along the water stains and saw some pinkish debris in the cracks of the floor.

That's the stratum corneum of human skin.

The skin peeled off like paper because it was instantly dehydrated by a highly acidic preservative. This was definitely not a wound from combat; it was extremely professional and ruthless—live treatment.

Chiyo's fingers trembled uncontrollably.

This is an extremely efficient method of disposing of corpses.

In the entire Sand Village, besides her, there is only one other person who knows it.

You could even say that it was she, as the grandmother, who personally taught that child.

"elder sister----

'

Ebizo noticed Chiyo's unusual behavior.

"What did you discover?"

"It's nothing."

Chiyo stood up, hiding her hands inside her wide sleeves, her nails digging deep into her flesh.

"Lord Sandai—he may have already been murdered."

She closed her eyes, concealing the grief and horror within them.

"How is this possible?!" Ebizo exclaimed in shock. "That was the Kazekage! Who could kill him so silently?"

"Go check."

Chiyo's voice was utterly cold.

"Search the village to see if anyone is missing. Whether they are genin or... jonin."

A few hours later.

The secret service brought back the message.

"Reporting to the Elder—Lord Scorpion—has disappeared. All the puppet materials and scrolls in his workshop have vanished."

Upon hearing this report, Chiyo seemed to age ten years in an instant.

She slumped into the chair.

The truth has been cruelly laid bare before us.

Her grandson turned the village's highest leader into a puppet.

"Block the news."

Ebizo made a decisive decision, his face turning ashen.

"The Kazekage was assassinated by the village's puppeteer—if this scandal gets out, not only will Konoha and Iwagakure laugh their heads off, but the village will immediately fall apart!"

"It was announced that Lord Kazekage is away on a top-secret mission and his return date is uncertain."

Three days later, in the underground meeting room of Sunagakure Village.

A round table. The dim light cast long shadows on the tabletop.

Sitting here are the leaders of Sunagakure.

Chiyo, Ebizo.

There were also two key senior executives who were urgently recalled from the front lines.

Rasa. A disciple of the Third Kazekage, and the master of Magnet Release: Gold Sand. He has heavy dark circles under his eyes and a cold expression.

Yekura. A scorching release user, a commoner hero of Sunagakure, who killed countless enemies on the battlefield and was deeply loved by the lower-ranking ninjas.

"Lord Kazekage has gone missing. More than seventy-two hours have passed."

Ebizo broke the deathly silence.

"We dispatched all our tracking forces, even using the Ninja Hawks, but we found absolutely no leads."

"Based on the evidence left at the scene—we must prepare for the worst."

Ye Cang suddenly stood up.

"The worst-case scenario? You mean the Kazekage is dead?"

She braced herself on the table with both hands, her eyes filled with anger.

"Who did this? Konoha's White Fang? Orochimaru? I'm going to tear them apart!"

"Sit down, Yecang."

Luo Sha spoke coldly.

His voice was hoarse, and he showed little emotion.

"Anger won't solve anything. Lord Kazekage's life or death is no longer important."

"The important thing is, what should be done about the village next?"

"The costs at the front are too high. The Daimyo issued another order last week to cut military spending. Our finances are exhausted."

"Because Konoha invented those damn insulated ceramic swords, our Magnet Release defenses were forced to retreat fifty miles. And now the Kazekage-sama is gone—"

Luo Sha raised his head and looked around at everyone.

"I propose a complete withdrawal of troops. We should relinquish control of the Land of Rivers."

"Are you crazy?!"

Ye Cang slammed his fist on the table.

"We lost thousands of our comrades in the Land of Rivers! It was only with great difficulty that we finally established a base there and secured a stable food supply line!"

"Withdrawing now would be tantamount to handing over the Land of Rivers to Konoha! All the blood shed by our comrades would have been for nothing!"

Yekura represents the civilian ninjas who risked their lives on the front lines. In their eyes, retreating is a betrayal of the dead.

"If we don't withdraw our troops, what will we use to fight?"

Luo Sha's eyes were like knives, showing no sign of backing down.

"Are you going to use your life, Yekura, to pay for it?"

"Do you have the money to buy explosive tags for the front lines? Do you have the money to buy healing potions?"

"The Land of Wind is a desert! We don't have the fertile land of Konoha; we can't even get enough to eat, so what's the point of fighting for the dignity of a great nation?"

Yecang choked.

Her fists were clenched tightly.

She is very strong; her Scorching Release technique can instantly evaporate the moisture from an enemy's body, turning them into a mummy.

But faced with the harsh economic situation, she couldn't conjure up a single grain of rice.

"If you withdraw your troops, the ninjas on the front lines will mutini."

Ye Cang said through gritted teeth.

"You don't need to worry about that."

Luo Sha spread his hands.

"Splash!"

A ball of glittering gold dust emerged from his palm and piled up into a small pyramid on the table.

Under the dim light, the gold glittered, dazzling the eyes.

"I will take over the defense line and personally go to the front to announce the order to withdraw troops."

Looking at the pile of gold dust, Luo Sha spoke with absolute confidence.

"If the daimyo won't give me money, I'll mine for gold myself. As long as I can refine gold dust and exchange it for food on the black market, the village won't go bankrupt. As long as the ninjas on the front lines receive their full withdrawal compensation and military pay, they won't mutini."

This is the absolute power that Rasa wields in Sunagakure.

He is a human money-printing machine.

In the final battles of war, economics becomes the deciding factor. And Rasa is the only person in Sunagakure who can single-handedly support the village's finances.

The elders fell silent.

Chiyo looked at Rasa. She knew that this young man was using money to force them to relinquish their power.

"In that case..."

Chiyo slowly closed her eyes.

"Rasa, you will temporarily assume the duties of the Fourth Kazekage. You will have full authority to handle the withdrawal of troops and the peace negotiations."

"Let's submit a ceasefire agreement to Konoha."

Ye Cang slumped back into his chair.

She felt a deep sense of powerlessness.

In the face of money and politics, the passion of heroes seems so cheap.

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