Chapter 151: Facing the Same Problem Again

Baki's words left Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara deep in thought.

Although they trusted Ryo, they couldn't deny that Baki's argument made sense.

Meanwhile, Ryo was getting a headache.

Looking back, he regretted running away in the first place.

If he had just let them capture him, he could have explained everything clearly, avoiding this whole mess.

"What's the matter? You don't know how to explain yourself?"

Baki sneered, his gaze sharp and accusing.

Ryo's patience was wearing thin.

If he didn't feel guilty about the treasury incident, he might have already lost his temper.

So this is what it feels like to be falsely accused.

It sucked.

Ryo exhaled, his tone firm.

"I don't know what happened, but I take responsibility for the treasury incident."

"But for this 'sowing discord' nonsense? I had nothing to do with that."

Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara spoke up in unison.

"Baki-sensei, there could be a misunderstanding here. We should investigate first before jumping to conclusions."

"Yeah, let's get to the bottom of this before making any accusations."

Baki's expression darkened as he glared at them in disappointment.

Even the surrounding shinobi looked displeased—it felt like their own people were siding with an outsider.

Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara noticed their reactions, but they could only force a smile.

The others didn't understand—but they did.

Ryo was no pushover.

If this escalated into a fight, things wouldn't end well for anyone.

"Fine," Baki finally said, his voice laced with frustration.

"Then we'll investigate first—so that some people can stop fooling themselves."

He cast one last disappointed glance at Temari and the others before storming off.

Temari sighed in relief and turned back to Ryo.

Kankuro, however, looked at him bitterly.

"Boss… why are you even here in the first place?"

Ryo scratched his head.

"I was just looking around, seeing if there was any interest in Pokémon partners. Didn't expect things to spiral out of control like this."

"Sorry for the trouble."

Temari's eyes lit up, but then she quickly shook her head.

"It's fine! It's fine! But, Boss—are you planning to open a Pokémon House in Sunagakure?"

Ryo shook his head.

"Not exactly. I just came to assess the situation first."

As he chatted with Temari, Hoopa suddenly poked his head out, staring at Gaara with an angry glare.

Hands on his hips, Hoopa huffed.

"Big Tanuki! I finally found you!"

"Come out and face me! Hoopa's gonna teach you a lesson for bullying me!"

Hoopa even pulled out the Prison Bottle, ready for action.

Ryo's heart nearly stopped.

"For the love of—"

"Will you calm down?! We're already in hot water as it is!"

"If you cause more trouble, Sunagakure is gonna ban us permanently!"

His urgent tone caught everyone's attention.

The others turned to look—and when they saw the Prison Bottle, their eyes twitched.

They didn't know what it was, but they could feel the immense energy inside—stronger than what Hoopa had unleashed before.

Temari blinked in confusion.

"Big Tanuki? Wait, is he talking about Gaara?"

Ryo nodded wearily.

"Yeah. More specifically, Shukaku."

"Probably because of what happened last time, Hoopa wants revenge."

The group fell silent.

They weren't sure whether to laugh or feel bad.

Poor Shukaku—one single breath of sandstorm and now he had an unrelenting nemesis.

Gaara's expression grew complicated.

Shukaku was literally part of him—but Hoopa clearly didn't care.

"Humph!" Hoopa pouted.

"Ryo is bad! Ryo is taking Big Tanuki's side!"

"Hoopa is angry!"

Ryo rubbed his temples.

He was so done with this little gremlin.

"Ugh…"

He sighed, then patted Hoopa's head.

"How about this? We'll teach the Big Tanuki a lesson later. You can do whatever you want then."

Hoopa brightened up immediately.

"Really? You promise?"

"Yeah, yeah. Later. Not now."

Hoopa grinned.

"Okay! But Ryo has to help Hoopa teach Big Tanuki a lesson!"

Ryo nodded.

"Sure, sure. Whatever you want."

Gaara's eyelid twitched violently.

Could they not say this in front of him?!

Could they at least pretend to be discreet?!

And why did it feel like they had just made an official pact to torment him?

Temari and Kankuro were speechless.

But instead of arguing, they simply laughed it off and led Ryo back to their residence.

Later that night—

In a Sunagakure guest house, Temari poured a clear glass of water for Ryo.

Ryo looked at it curiously.

Temari noticed his gaze and explained.

"Even though Sunagakure lacks water, shinobi still have access to clean drinking water."

Ryo nodded.

That made sense.

Shinobi had more responsibilities and faced higher risks—some extra privileges were to be expected.

Temari then leaned forward, eyes sharp.

"Boss, tell us—is it possible for ordinary people in Sunagakure to bond with Pokémon, just like in Konoha?"

Kankuro and Gaara immediately turned their attention to Ryo, their curiosity clear in their eyes.

Ryo paused for a moment, then looked at Temari with a questioning gaze.

"You sure about this?"

Temari blinked.

"What do you mean?"

Ryo sighed.

"It's not about whether or not it's possible."

"It's about whether or not your shinobi will accept it."

Because for him—

Helping civilians form bonds with Pokémon?

He was all for it.

The real problem was whether the shinobi would allow it.

Unlike in Konoha, he couldn't just pressure the Sunagakure shinobi into compliance.

What was he supposed to do?

Threaten them?

Tell them a Konoha outsider was demanding that Sunagakure change its ways?

Temari's expression stiffened.

She hadn't really thought about that before.

Back in Konoha, she had seen ordinary people bonding with Pokémon—and assumed it could happen here too.

But now that Ryo put it into perspective…

It was a real problem.

Kankuro, however, waved it off.

"Come on! The shinobi will definitely agree!"

Gaara shook his head.

"No."

"Power determines social status. The shinobi won't necessarily accept this change."

Temari let out a long sigh.

"Yeah… now that I think about it, they probably won't."

Her expression grew serious.

The same issue that had come up in Konoha…

Was happening here, too.

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