Shota trudged through the desert alongside the two other chunin and their jonin leader as they returned to Suna.
The group's faces were grim, no trace of smiles or relief. They'd failed their mission to secure a scroll containing the locations of hidden Iwa bases, critical for Suna's ongoing war against the Land of Earth. Suna who was currently in war with Iwa could use these locations it to attack these bases or avoid them and hit their important bases directly.
The weight of that failure was big, especially since their survival was only due to the mercy of Konoha's Yellow Flash, Minato Namikaze.
Shota, though, felt a flicker of relief. He was alive after facing the future Fourth Hokage, a man who'd once wiped out a thousand Iwa shinobi without breaking a sweat. That was something.
The other Suna shinobi didn't share his sentiment. They muttered under their breath, calling Konoha "tree huggers" and cursing the ceasefire that hadn't stopped Minato from interfering with Suna's affairs.
They reached the heart of Suna, where the Kazekage's building was. The structure was a massive dome of hardened sand, its surface smooth from years of wind erosion.
Tall, narrow windows lined its sides, letting in slivers of light that barely reached the interior. A single tower jutted from the center, topped with a wide platform where the Kazekage sometimes addressed the village.
The team approached the receptionist, sitting behind a desk cluttered with scrolls. The jonin stepped forward. "We've returned. The mission was a failure," he said, his voice flat.
The receptionist nodded, her expression unchanging, and told them to wait for the Kazekage to summon them.
They stood in the waiting area. The two chunin other than Shota shifted uncomfortably, their injuries still fresh. The jonin leaned against the wall, arms crossed, staring at the floor. Shota sat quietly.
After a few minutes, the receptionist called them. "The Kazekage will see you now." They followed her down a wide hallway. The Kazekage's office was at the end. The jonin pushed it open, and they stepped inside.
Shota's eyes scanned the room. Four people stood before them, though he was certain Anbu were hidden in the shadows, watching.
The Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, sat behind his desk. He'd been promoted recently after the mysterious disappearance of the Third.
To his left were two elders, members of Suna's council. Haran Gisei, a former Anbu commander, stood with his arms crossed, his sharp eyes studying the team.
Tōjūrō, the other elder, leaned forward. Shota recognized him or rather his name from his knowledge of Gaara Hiden. He was a schemer who'd later try to overthrow Gaara and fail like every C grade villain does.
The fourth figure was the jonin commander, a man named Kenta Ryoji. He was Suna's equivalent to Konoha's Shikaku Nara, but the resemblance ended there.
Where Shikaku was sharp, lazy, and likable, Kenta was… not. He stood with a scowl, his hair a mess of spikes that looked like he'd stuck his head in a windstorm and called it a style. He carried himself with the energy of a man who'd just bitten into a sour lemon. And his idea of strategy was yelling until someone figured it out for him.
Shota had once overheard him argue with a chunin over whose turn it was to clean the training grounds, only to storm off when he realized he was wrong. It was almost funny, except Kenta's temper made everyone tiptoe around him.
Tōjūrō spoke first, his voice sharp. "I hope you all have a good reason for failing to retrieve a scroll that was essential for our war against Iwa."
The jonin leader stepped forward, head bowed. He explained the mission: how they'd successfully stolen the scroll from an Iwa squad, only to be ambushed by Minato Namikaze and his team.
He described Shota's dojutsu stopping Minato's techniques, the decoy scroll, and how Minato took the original, leaving them alive to avoid escalating tensions with Suna.
Tōjūrō's face twisted. "Damn those tree huggers," he spat. "Even with a ceasefire, they still poke their noses in our plans. What's next, they'll invite us for tea and then steal our teapot?" He slammed a fist on the desk, rattling a stack of scrolls.
Haran Gisei raised a hand, his voice calm but pointed. "Why did he let you live?" His eyes locked onto Shota. "You used your dojutsu on him, correct?"
Shota nodded, keeping his expression neutral.
"And he still let you all live," Haran said, his tone curious, almost impressed.
The jonin nodded. "Yes. He could have killed us, but he said he didn't want to restart tensions between Suna and Konoha. He took the scroll and left."
Rasa, silent until now, leaned forward. His gold dust shimmered faintly in the air around him, a subtle reminder of his power. "You couldn't have faced the Yellow Flash and completed the mission," he said. "At least you came back alive. Your lives are assets to the village." His eyes lingered on Shota as he spoke, and no one in the room missed it.
Everyone knew that he was mainly speaking about Shota. His dojutsuwas a game-changer. Even Kenta, who looked like he'd rather be yelling at someone, gave a grudging nod.
Shota took a breath and stepped forward. "We might not have failed the mission completely, Kazekage-sama."
Rasa raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean, Chunin Shota?"
Shota reached into his vest and pulled out a plain scroll, its edges worn and unremarkable. "This scroll contains the Iwa base locations."
The jonin and the other two chunin looked suprised at him and even had a little betrayed look on their faces. Shota wanted to say surprise but he did not wanted to get reprimanded again for his lack of manners by the elders present in the room.
Haran Gisei leaned forward, eyes narrowing. "Did you have another decoy scroll that the Yellow Flash took?"
Shota shook his head. "No. He took the original and the decoy. But I copied the contents of the original onto this scroll. I didn't tell the team because they might've given it away with their reactions."
"Since The yellow flash took both the decoy scroll and the original scroll, he did not suspect us to having a copied scroll too. And since this scroll looked normal without any seals to unlock it, the yellow flash probably ignored it." Shota continued.
Shota's past life's knowledge of the Naruto world had taught him to always have a backup plan. He'd memorized the scroll's contents and scribbled them onto a plain scroll, one that looked too ordinary to suspect. Minato, sharp as he was, hadn't noticed.
The room went quiet. Kenta blinked, his scowl faltering like he'd forgotten how to be angry. Tōjūrō's mouth opened, then closed. Haran's lips curved into a rare smile. "Good," he said. "Very good. Clever boy. Now we can hit Iwa's bases without wasting resources finding them."
Rasa studied Shota, his expression unreadable. "You've done well," he said. "This changes things."
Shota hesitated, then spoke again. "If I may be presumptuous, Kazekage-sama, elders, I have a suggestion."
Rasa nodded curiously,"Go ahead."
"Konoha wanted the scroll badly if they sent the Yellow Flash after it," Shota said. "That means they're planning to strike Iwa. If they're fighting Iwa, why should we waste our forces and shinobi lives? Let Konoha sacrifice their shinobi."
The room stilled. Kenta's jaw dropped, like he couldn't believe a chunin had just suggested outsmarting Konoha. Tōjūrō's eyes shined, and Haran nodded slowly, impressed. Rasa leaned back, considering.
"And while Konoha is busy with Iwa," Shota continued, "we strike Iwa where and when they least expect us to."