Konoha Notes

Chapter 76 Ebizo
This time it's almost certainly the Sand Village ninja.

"Shuji, a Jonin of Konoha, is here on the orders of the Hokage to deliver urgent confidential information to our ally, Sunagakure," Shuji replied loudly.

As soon as he finished speaking, he flicked his wrist and threw out the envoy's warrant bearing the seal of the Third Hokage.

After doing all this, he took a few steps back, creating a clear safe distance, with his hands outstretched, his posture open and unassuming, showing no intention of attack.

Machi did not step forward immediately.

From the Sand Village troops standing guard behind him, a ninja silently stepped out. The man did not approach, but instead manipulated a crudely designed, arthropod-like puppet to quickly crawl out from the back of the formation. With a slender metal forelimb, the puppet carefully picked up the command token and swiftly retreated to the back of the formation.

The ninja carefully examined the scroll, his fingers quickly tracing its surface, sensing for possible chakra traps or miniature curse seals.

A moment later, he nodded slightly to Maki, indicating that it was safe. Only then did the puppet step forward again and hand the item to Maki.

Maki took it, glanced at it, and then threw it back.

Shuji did not step forward. He also used a shadow clone to confirm that his belongings had not been marked with any curse at this time before retrieving them.

After completing the procedure, Maki ordered his subordinates to lower their guard. Most of the Sand Village ninjas dispersed, leaving behind five Sand Village ninjas, plus himself, for a total of six people.

Shuji's tense nerves relaxed slightly; Sunagakure's reaction now was normal.

But he hadn't completely let his guard down. He stepped forward himself, and only after he was within attack range and the other side still didn't make any unusual moves did he signal Anko and Itachi to follow.

"Lord Kazekage is not in the village right now. The Iwagakure ninjas have been making a lot of moves these past few days, so he is stationed at the northern fortress."

"Who is currently in charge of affairs in your village? May I ask for an audience?"

Maki said, "This matter needs to be reported. Please come with me, the three of you, to rest for a while and wait for the village's reply."

He turned around and stepped into the enormous fissure that resembled a scar on the earth.

Two Sand Village ninjas led the way, with Maki in the middle, Shuji and his two companions following closely behind, and the remaining three Sand Village ninjas silently bringing up the rear. The group silently entered the narrow passage.

As soon as you step into that narrow crevice, the light suddenly dims. The hundreds of meters high ochre-red rock walls, like two silent giants, compress the sky into a swaying band of light overhead.

Sunlight streamed down sparingly, shrouding most of the area in deep shadows and the dark red of the rock walls themselves. The air carried the unique chill of rocks and the scent of dust, a stark contrast to the scorching dryness of the Gobi Desert outside.

The sound of footsteps was amplified in the narrow space, echoing hollowly.

The passageway is not straight; it meanders and twists, like a giant maze.

The Sand Village had clearly been operating here for some time, carving shallow recesses into the rock face to serve as temporary sentry posts and supply depots. Simple walkways and rope ladders connected observation points at different heights.

Maki led the three to a relatively spacious rock-walled alcove.

The interior of the alcove was polished relatively smooth, with a worn-out straw mat on the floor. Some daily necessities were piled up in the corner, emitting a faint musty and dusty smell.

Several dim oil lamps were fixed to the rock face, their flames flickering uneasily in the breeze that seeped in through the cracks, casting long, distorted shadows onto the rough rock.

"Wait here." Maki said, signaling two Sand Village members to stay and guard the entrance, before turning and leaving with the others.

Itachi quietly walked to the edge of the alcove, his gaze sweeping over the piled-up supplies.

The rations were dark brown, hard as stone, in cake form. The leather sheath of the water pouch beside it was badly worn, with some frayed edges. Shuuji was also observing. He had memories of living on the border of Konoha. Although life there was worse than in the village, it was still quite comfortable compared to Sunagakure.

Because there were people at the door, the three members of the team didn't say anything, but took the opportunity to rest.

When Shuji keeps his eyes open, Anko and Itachi are resting; when Shuji closes his eyes, Anko and Itachi remain on alert.

This process continues for one round.

The ninja at the entrance asked the Konoha team to stand up, as the Sand Village had already granted permission for the Konoha ninja to enter.

In the present world, Konoha Village is considered a large city, but Shuji had seen even larger and more prosperous metropolises in his previous life. Sunagakure Village, however, was different, and it gave him a refreshing feeling.

"This way, Lord Ebizo is waiting for you inside." The Sand Village ninja who led the way brought him into the village, to a building marked with the character "Wind".

The administrative system of the ninja world is mostly modeled after Konoha, or more accurately, it is modeled after the Second Hokage, Tobirama.

In the center of each village, there is the building of the respective film studio, which can be seen at a glance.

They were received by a gaunt old man, dressed in the sand-proof robes commonly seen in Sunagakure, with deep-set eyes. He was Ebizo, the advisor of Sunagakure.

"An envoy from Konoha? A Jonin? As expected of Konoha, outstanding young people emerge one after another." Before Shuji and the others could speak, Ebizo said directly, "So, what did the Hokage send you here for? Do you want to tell us how Konoha couldn't even keep an eye on a few Kumogakure ninjas?"

Red Bean's expression changed slightly; how did Sunagakure find out so quickly?

"No, what Konoha came specifically to warn us about is that Iwagakure has ulterior motives and wants to take advantage of Konoha's predicament to attack Sunagakure," Shuji said calmly. "That's why the Hokage sent us here immediately."

Ebizo glanced at Shuji again.

"Konoha has produced a talent."

It's rare to be so shameless at this age.

Ebizo felt he should be more direct: "I've lived most of my life and seen many alliances. Shinobi clans shake hands and make peace in the morning, only to turn on each other with swords in the afternoon; Tobirama Senju and the Second Raikage had just formed an alliance, and he died at the hands of Kinkaku and Ginkaku in an instant... These are not surprising."

"Covenants mean nothing in the face of survival and interests."

"So, skip the roundabout pleasantries. Just tell me—"

"What is Konoha willing to give to maintain its friendship with Sunagakure this time?"

"Think carefully before you speak, kid."

“The one truly facing a life-or-death crisis right now is not Sunagakure,” Ebizo’s voice was low but clear enough, “but Konoha.”

"Without Sunagakure holding the western front, you'll be attacked from both sides. How long can you hold out?" He shook his head slightly. "For the sake of our current alliance, I'll tell you something else—"

He leaned forward slightly, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his cloudy eyes:
“The messengers from Iwagakure arrived before you.”

“That old fox Onoki,” Ebizo said with a gloating expression, “has prepared a very generous gift for Konoha this time.”

(End of this chapter)