Chapter 347: The Stubborn Old Man Finally Gives In
Even though, in essence, there wasn't much difference between an invitation and a direct notice, sending an invitation at least saved Oonoki some face.
If they had just informed him outright, it would have come off as too arrogant.
Tsunade figured that once Oonoki heard about this, he'd already be furious enough—no need to make it worse.
After all, the old man had spent decades struggling to keep Iwagakure going. You had to show some understanding for his hard work.
So, an official invitation it was.
"An invitation from Konohagakure?"
Oonoki took the letter from his secretary, looking utterly confused.
Isn't Konohagakure busy dealing with Kusagakure right now?
What kind of trick are they trying to pull by sending this invitation at a time like this?
Despite his doubts, Oonoki still opened the letter and scanned through it quickly.
His secretary was surprised to see that Oonoki's grip on the paper was tightening, as if he was about to rip it apart.
Even worse, his already dark face seemed to turn a shade darker—almost as black as the bottom of a pot.
Even his usually flat and stubby nose seemed to puff up a bit.
Anyone familiar with Oonoki would know—he was furious. And not just a little.
"Damn it! What the hell are those two brats thinking? Do they really think they can challenge Uchiha Yan? This is driving me crazy!"
Oonoki might not be as short-tempered as the Raikage, but he wasn't much better.
Furious, he slammed his hand down on the table. With a loud crash, the table shattered into pieces and scattered across the floor.
No way…
In all of Iwagakure, only Deidara and Kurotsuchi had ever received this level of attention from Oonoki. And only those two would make him call them "brats."
They actually went to challenge Uchiha Yan?
What kind of ridiculous joke is this?
The Tsuchikage's assistant was completely stunned.
Wait a minute—this isn't a joke.
It's real.
For all they knew, those two had already been captured and taken to Konohagakure. Otherwise, why would Konohagakure send an invitation?
An invitation?
Yeah, right.
This was a straight-up notification.
*Your two brats didn't know their place and decided to challenge one of our top leaders. They've been captured and brought to Konohagakure. Do you want them back or not?*
*If you do, you'd better get ready and come talk.*
"..."
This was going to be a mess.
The Tsuchikage's assistant could already tell—Oonoki was about to lose a lot of face.
Just a few days ago, he had a heated argument with Yan. Both sides threw out threats, and they even came close to declaring war. But after Yan left, Oonoki dropped the whole thing and ignored what was happening in Kusagakure.
And now, of all times, Deidara and Kurotsuchi just had to throw themselves at Yan?
If they weren't walking straight into trouble, what were they doing?
Iwagakure couldn't even blame Konohagakure for this.
It wasn't like their people had been kidnapped. Those two idiots ran off on their own to pick a fight.
Yan was the Hokage's right-hand man, the second most powerful figure in Konohagakure. Did they really think someone like that could be challenged so easily?
Honestly, Konohagakure had already shown some restraint by even bothering to notify Iwagakure.
If they had just taken Deidara and Kurotsuchi for interrogation without saying a word, Iwagakure wouldn't have been able to do a damn thing about it.
Even if they later found out what happened, they'd just have to suck it up and accept it.
Oonoki was furious—completely losing his cool. The phrase *raging mad* didn't even begin to cover it.
The Tsuchikage's assistant gave a bitter smile.
"Tsuchikage-sama, right now the priority is bringing Deidara and Lady Kurotsuchi back."
"Let's just hope Konohagakure doesn't interrogate them for information about the village."
"If Konohagakure wanted to do that, they wouldn't have bothered sending us a message. Uchiha Yan is clearly waiting for me to swallow my pride and go there myself. Otherwise, they won't let them go so easily.
If we refuse to cooperate, Konohagakure *will* interrogate Deidara and Kurotsuchi. They have the means to do it."
"Damn it! Can't they just behave for once and stay put?!"
"Is there something wrong with Deidara's brain?!"
Oonoki was so angry he could barely get his words out. No doubt about it—Deidara must have run off first, and Kurotsuchi had secretly followed him.
Oonoki knew exactly what kind of troublemakers his student and granddaughter were.
Two headaches, that's what they were.
And now? They'd both ended up captured in Konohagakure.
What a disgrace. Absolutely humiliating.
At that moment, Oonoki regretted ever using Yan as an example to lecture Deidara. He had basically set himself up for disaster.
But there was no medicine for regret. No matter how frustrated he was, the priority now was figuring out how to get them back.
Just imagining Yan's bright, sunny smile as he casually threw out cutting remarks made Oonoki's blood pressure spike.
That brat was an expert at this kind of thing. On the surface, he looked like a harmless, cheerful young man. But in reality? Not a chance!
He could say the most ruthless things, do the most infuriating stuff, and leave you absolutely livid—while you couldn't do a damn thing about it.
"Get things ready. I'll personally head to Konohagakure tomorrow."
No matter what, he had to bring them back—and fast.
If Konohagakure got impatient and decided to take control of Deidara and Kurotsuchi… the consequences would be serious.
If the Uchiha just used Genjutsu to extract some information, that would be one thing. What Oonoki really feared was the Yamanaka clan stepping in, invading their minds, and digging through their memories.
Not only would they lose intel, but that kind of jutsu could cause permanent brain damage.
Deidara was his direct disciple, a rare talent. Kurotsuchi was his granddaughter—the only family he had left after his son passed away.
Oonoki couldn't let anything happen to them.
So he had to go. Even if it meant enduring some humiliation in Konohagakure, he had no choice. And he had to act fast.
"Yes, Tsuchikage-sama. I'll notify the escort team right away to prepare for the trip to Konohagakure."
His secretary left the office, leaving Oonoki alone, mumbling to himself one moment and cursing in frustration the next.
To prevent Konohagakure from doing anything reckless, Oonoki even sent a formal statement ahead using a messenger hawk.
*I, Oonoki, will be arriving in Konohagakure soon. Please treat my student and granddaughter well. Do not do anything rash.*
The hawk would reach Konohagakure the same day. Oonoki was confident that Yan and Tsunade wouldn't harm Deidara or Kurotsuchi.
Unless they actually wanted to go to war with Iwagakure Village.
"Looks like Oonoki values those two even more than we thought."
Reading Oonoki's message, Tsunade couldn't help but chuckle. Wasn't Oonoki supposed to be a stubborn old man?
So even *you* can have a day like this?
How satisfying.
"What do we do with those two kids?"
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