Starting with rogue ninjas, building the insect kingdom.

Chapter 239 Neither Advancing Nor Retreating

The western border of the Land of Rain.

Kakuzu has been guarding this place for three days.

Three days ago, he led a team of ninja soldiers to the front line in a menacing manner, ready to have a good fight with Onoki.

When they arrived at the location, they found that the 5,000-strong army of Iwagakure Village was indeed encamped on the border, with tents stretching for miles, banners fluttering, and a very impressive display.

But it just won't come in.

They neither advance nor retreat, just quietly lingering there, as if waiting for something.

Kakuzu was initially on high alert, fearing a surprise attack. But after three days, not a single person came out to patrol the opposite camp; it was as quiet as if everyone was fast asleep.

"Lord Kakuzu, what do you think Onoki is planning?"

Negishi Kusanagi, who had come from Amegakure to join them, was standing next to Kakuzu, looking at the Iwagakure camp in the distance with a puzzled expression.

With Hanzo of the Salamander gone to the southwest to oversee things, matters here can only be discussed between him and Kakuzu.

"If I knew, I wouldn't be standing here staring blankly." Kakuzu sat cross-legged on a large rock, holding a string of dumplings in his hand, nibbling on them intermittently.

He's suffered huge losses these past few days.

As for the subway line, since he wasn't there, it had to be left to Ryuji Ida. That guy is also very resilient; once he takes something in, he never tries to get it out.

Besides, there's also the former Rain Country, the loach production base. They recently invested a sum of money to harvest the mature loaches and recoup their losses. He was even thinking of checking on the progress.

As a result of that old fox Onoki's meddling, he could only starve on this godforsaken border.

"Why not just refuse?" Negishi Kusanagi scratched his head. "What does it have to do with us if they want to use our passage to attack Konoha? Why should we let them?"

Kakuzu glanced at him sideways: "What do you know? You definitely have to refuse, but you have to be careful he doesn't use this as an excuse. Five thousand people are blocking your door; if you say no, what if he turns on you and storms in?"

Negishi Kusanagi shrank back: "It can't be that bad... Our Three Kingdoms Alliance isn't going to be trifled with."

"So he didn't make a move." Kakuzu bit off the last dumpling, tossed the bamboo skewer aside, "but he didn't leave either. That's strange."

He stood up, gazing at the distant, sprawling camps, his brow furrowed.

What exactly is that old fox Onoki up to?

They say they want to attack Konoha, but if they really wanted to, they could have just gone around it. Why did they have to borrow a route from the Land of Rain? Isn't this just blatantly telling everyone, "I have ulterior motives"?

They said they wanted to take advantage of the chaos and annex the Rain Kingdom, but in the past three days, there hasn't been a single probing attack. Five thousand people have been sitting there quietly, like it's New Year's Day, without making a sound.

Kakuzu considered a hundred possibilities, but none of them seemed to fit.

"Never mind, let's see how it goes," he muttered, and sat back down on the rock.

Two more days passed.

On the morning of the fifth day, Kakuzu was squatting in his tent calculating his lost wages for the past few days when Naoto's messenger insect suddenly crawled out of his sleeve, buzzing and vibrating.

Naoto's voice came from the insect, tinged with helplessness, "Lord Kakuzu, they've headed towards you."

Kakuzu was taken aback, then realized what was happening. Those three reckless fools, Yahiko and his companions, actually came?

He lifted the tent flap and went outside, where he saw three figures walking along the border towards him.

To his surprise, the three men did not head towards his camp, but instead turned a corner and headed straight for the Iwagakure camp.

Kakuzu stood in front of the tent, staring blankly at the three figures growing smaller and smaller for a long while.

Then he smiled.

"Are they going to negotiate with Onoki?"

The more he thought about it, the more amusing it became, and the smile on his lips grew wider until he finally burst out laughing.

Negishi Kusanagi, standing nearby, was baffled by his laughter: "Lord Kakuzu, what are you laughing at?"

"It's nothing." Kakuzu waved his hand, unable to suppress the smile on his face. "I just think there are quite a few hotheads in this world."

He paused, then said, "That old fox Onoki isn't me. I'm much easier to talk to. At most, I'll make them kneel down. That old bastard Onoki..."

He shook his head and didn't say anything more.

Negishi Kusanagi was even more confused: "Lord Kakuzu, what are you talking about?"

"It's nothing." Kakuzu's smile vanished, replaced by his shrewd demeanor. "I said, we can prepare to leave."

"Withdraw?" Negishi Kusanagi's eyes widened. "The five thousand troops from Iwagakure are still on the other side!"

"Don't worry, they'll be leaving soon." Kakuzu turned and walked back to his tent, his tone so confident that Negishi Kusanagi wondered if he had missed some important information.

"How did you know?"

Kakuzu didn't even turn his head: "Intuition."

Negishi Kusanagi: "..."

His explanation was worse than no explanation at all.

But Kakuzu did start packing his things.

He carefully put away the account book, checked the expenses of the past few days one by one, and finally dusted off non-existent dust from his body, a relieved expression on his face.

"I've been here for five days and haven't been able to do any business. Now that's great, I can go back and make money right away."

Seeing his expression, Negishi Kusanagi finally couldn't help but ask, "Lord Kakuzu, do you know something?"

Seeing that Negishi Kusa seemed completely unaware of the situation, Kakuzu felt a sense of superiority for no apparent reason.

"See those three kids?" Kakuzu pointed to three people in the distance and said, "They are the three kids that your strategist repeatedly warned you not to approach rashly."

"Do you think they might get into a fight with Onoki and the others if they just go there like this?"

Negishi Kusa nodded heavily, "Of course they would, but what use would those three kids be? Even if they were all Jonin-level, they wouldn't be able to cause any trouble."

"Hehe, that's hard to say."

Negishi Kusanagi seemed to understand but not quite, and Kakuzu didn't explain further, only gazing in the direction of the Iwagakure camp with a slight smile on his lips.

That old bastard Ohnoki is probably going to be in trouble soon.

Meanwhile, Yahiko and his two companions had already arrived at the gate of the Iwagakure camp.

The guarding ninjas stopped them, their eyes wary: "Who goes there?"

"I am Yahiko of Dawn Castle in the Land of Rain."

Yahiko took a deep breath, trying to make his voice sound calm and firm.

"I have come to see Lord Onoki of Iwagakure. I have something important to discuss with him."

The guard looked him up and down, then glanced at Konan and Nagato behind him. After a moment of silence, he turned and went inside to report.

Before long, a burly young man with a mature face emerged from the tent.

He glanced at them and said, "Come with me, my father wants to see you."

Yahiko's eyes lit up, and he immediately bowed, saying, "Thank you!"