Watching her brother get led around by Teizawa until he was practically walking with a limp, Temari finally couldn't hold it in anymore.
She didn't understand armor, battle suits, any of that.
But she understood one thing.
To make any of this real, it would cost a fortune.
And right now, Sunagakure was about to run out of money.
When Teizawa and Kankurō both looked her way, Temari pressed her lips together and said:
"Putting your so-called mecha aside, just replacing wooden puppets with steel materials is already a huge expense."
"Do you think Suna shinobi never considered switching materials before?"
"But the problem is, Sunagakure doesn't have money!"
"The missions Suna shinobi can take are already limited. Basically every year we barely maintain our shinobi numbers by relying on the daimyo's financial aid."
"Now you want to increase R&D investment. The idea is great, but where does the money come from?"
Kankurō opened his mouth, then couldn't muster a rebuttal.
Because he realized his sister was right.
His excitement deflated on the spot.
"Heh…"
Teizawa let out a low chuckle and said with a smile, "You're right. Sunagakure doesn't have money right now. But it will. Very soon."
"What do you mean?" Temari asked again.
Teizawa didn't answer her. He looked at Kankurō instead.
"Come to the Kazekage Tower tomorrow morning. I'll take you to go make money."
"Huh?"
Kankurō stared, completely lost.
Go make money where?
Thinking of Teizawa's old black history…
A nervous thought crept into his mind.
Don't tell me he's going back to kidnapping and extortion?
Before, sure, but now you're Kazekage.
Is that really something you can do?
Teizawa didn't care what he was thinking.
He waved Kankurō off.
Kankurō glanced at Temari. When she gave a slight nod, he finally left.
Once Kankurō was gone…
Only Teizawa and Temari remained in the Kazekage's office.
After a short silence, Temari took a deep breath and begged in a small voice:
"Ka… Kazekage-sama, can you spare Gaara?"
"I swear he won't act against you again. If you don't feel safe, you can carve a sealing array onto him."
Watching Temari lower her posture like this, Teizawa's mouth curled.
So even the proud, wild Suna princess could end up begging someone.
"Come here."
"Hm?" Temari blinked.
Teizawa had sat back down in the chair.
After hesitating, she walked over.
She stopped about a meter away.
"Closer." Teizawa said, his expression amused.
Temari frowned slightly and took two more steps.
Then…
Teizawa suddenly reached out.
"Ah…"
Temari let out a small cry as Teizawa pulled her straight into his arms.
She tried to struggle free, but her body went embarrassingly soft.
Before she even understood what happened, he had her dragged onto his lap.
In the blink of an eye, Teizawa was seated in the chair, and Temari was sitting on his thigh, cheeks burning red.
"Y-You… what are you doing?" Temari's heart was pounding so hard she couldn't settle down.
Teizawa felt the slim curve of her waist beneath her clothes and asked instead:
"Temari, this is the second time I've held you like this, isn't it?"
Under his scorching gaze, Temari turned her head shyly.
"Yeah…"
She remembered it clearly.
The first time was after the Konoha Crush plan failed.
When Konoha shinobi were chasing them down, this man had carried her, injured, and escaped the pursuit.
From that day on, Temari had started paying attention to everything he did in Sunagakure.
She couldn't explain what kind of feeling it was.
Gratitude, maybe.
"To be honest, I actually like you."
Teizawa suddenly dropped the line.
"What?"
Temari's whole body jolted.
She stared at Teizawa, completely stunned.
Was… this a confession?
"But," Teizawa sighed softly, "even if I like you, with the situation the way it is right now, protecting Gaara is very hard."
It was pure nonsense.
At this point, Sunagakure was his one-man show.
If he wanted to protect someone, it was a single sentence.
But Temari was too worried to think straight, and with the intimacy of their position, she believed him.
"So there's really no way?" Temari's expression dimmed at once.
Truth was, the three siblings had never had a happy childhood.
They'd been born to a political father.
And maybe because of that unhappiness…
After Gaara started changing for the better, Temari clung even tighter to that sibling bond.
"Unless…"
"Unless what?" Temari asked quickly.
Teizawa's eyes deepened. He leaned closer and breathed against her ear.
"Whether it's Gaara's sins as a child, or his status as the Fifth Kazekage, those are the reasons the shinobi in the village want him dead."
"But there is one way to save him."
"What way?" Temari's eyes lit up again.
She didn't notice at all that her belt had already been loosened.
Teizawa lifted his hand and shoved.
"Ah…"
Temari was pushed down flat onto the desk.
The impact made her back sting.
Only then did she realize something was wrong. Her whole body went rigid as she cried out:
"Y-You… what are you doing?!"
Teizawa planted both hands on the desk, leaning over her.
Their eyes met. His breathing grew uneven.
"Become the Kazekage's wife. Then Gaara becomes my brother-in-law. At that point, no one will have a reason to kill him."
Teizawa finally revealed the goal he'd been plotting for a long time.
"T-This…"
Temari's mind went blank.
Her heart felt like it was about to burst out of her chest.
Kazekage's wife?
Be his woman?
This…
"Temari." Teizawa called her name softly.
"Hm?" Temari sounded frightened. "Let me go first."
Teizawa tightened his arm and pinned her down so she couldn't move. "Don't move."
Temari panicked. "G-Give me some time, okay?"
"No."
"But… can this really save Gaara?"
"Of course."
Teizawa said it casually, already moving his hand to find what he wanted…
"Wait!"
Temari suddenly grabbed his restless hand and gritted her teeth.
"Y-You… explain it first. What really happened with the daimyo's concubine?"
"Uh…"
Teizawa froze for a moment, then explained.
"I'm innocent. I didn't touch her."
"Really?"
"Otherwise I'll bring her here and you can ask her yourself."
Temari forced herself to believe him and didn't press it further.
Teizawa reached to pull open his dark coat, ready to continue, but Temari stopped him again.
"Then… what about Kurenai from Konoha? What was that?"
As she spoke, Temari stared straight into Teizawa's eyes.
Trying to see through him.
Kurenai?
Teizawa's eyes flickered.
Memories surged up. Pale skin trembling, red eyes that never stopped tearing…
Back then, after the Konoha Crush plan…
The squad chasing them had been led by Kurenai.
Teizawa had drawn them off alone.
And he'd inevitably run into her.
Hot-blooded and young, Teizawa hadn't resisted the temptation. He'd kept her captive in the forest for nearly a month…
Then he'd patted his own butt and gone home.
Teizawa's explanation to Sunagakure had been that he'd been injured and spent more than a month recovering.
Later, apparently Kurenai never reported the matter to Konoha either.
Was it because she felt ashamed?
Or because she wanted Asuma to be the good, obedient sucker who took her anyway?
Teizawa didn't know what was going on in that woman's head.
He only knew that on the last night, Kurenai had climbed on top of him.
She'd been terrifyingly proactive.
Afterward, she'd even mumbled something about killing him for revenge.
But Teizawa had always kept an eye on Kurenai's movements in Konoha.
From what he heard, she lived reclusively every day.
She didn't even pay much attention to Asuma anymore.
At the time, he'd drawn off Konoha's pursuit so Temari and the others could escape.
Looks like Temari had heard something…
And guessed something.
Women's sixth sense really was ridiculous.
But there was no way he could admit it.
A dozen thoughts flashed through his mind.
Yet Teizawa's expression didn't change at all. His voice was gentle when he spoke.
"Why are you dragging Kurenai into this? I'm completely innocent with her."
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