The Council members agreed with Rasa's analysis. There were two main reasons for this. The first was that Fujin never used any Vacuum jutsu during his time in the Land of Wind.
And secondly, on a subconscious level, they would rather want the damage done to them by someone who had gained fame, was the son of the White Fang and was taught by the Fourth Hokage, rather than someone who had no fame and was merely thirteen years old.
Rasa asked, "Leaving his matter aside, what are your thoughts on the operation in the Land of Fire? Two of our ninjas were killed outside the Land of Fire. Now 27 are presumed dead here. And if Hideyoshi's squad is assumed dead, then our total losses reach 35 ninjas. 1 Elite Jounin, 16 Jounins and 18 Chunins."
The entire room went silent. Such losses would make their hearts ache even if it was wartime.
After some time, Gazo broke the silence by saying, "Adding the previous losses, we have now lost 2 Elite Jounins and over a hundred ninjas in total."
Ryusa sighed and muttered, "At this rate, we might have been better off not acting against Konoha."
Tojuro immediately rebuked him and shouted, "Are you crazy? Even if we didn't, we would have suffered the same losses in the future. Don't forget the stuff that Danzo keeps pulling in the dark!"
Ryusa looked back at him and said, "Stop yelling and tell us a good plan if you think this was such a good idea."
Tojuro snorted and said, "Of course, we have to continue attacking. This time, we should send more Elite Jounins. If the base had 3-4 Elite Jounins, then Konoha's plot would have backfired. And instead, Hatake Kakashi and Suszki Fujin would have died! We need to make Konoha feel the pain for daring to scheme against us!"
Ryusa replied, "We still don't know how Hideyoshi's squad was dealt with. And the base we created this time was destroyed after being attacked by just the Copy Ninja. What if the Sannins attack next time? All 4 Elite Jounins will die if they do. Can you accept the responsibility for such a loss?"
Obviously, Tojuro won't claim responsibility for such a matter. He thought, 'Why is this bastard pushing the matter on me? Besides, even if Konoha killed 4 more Elite Jounins and a few dozen Jounins, so what? It's not like they will dare to invade our country.
The only thing that will happen is that Rasa's position will become very shaky. And with numerous Elite Jounins out of the way, I will have a good chance to become the Fifth Kazekage!'
He replied, "Then do you want to cower and tell Konoha that Suna is weak and they can walk over us any time without any consequences? As for the responsibility, did you forget that we still have Lord Kazekage to protect us?"
Ryusa was about to argue back when Goza said, "That's enough, you two. Don't make a mockery of the council."
Hearing his words, the two stopped arguing. Goza said, "Tojuro is right. We have to retaliate. Otherwise, we will look weak and will invite stronger attacks in the future. But, deploying Elite Jounins is too risky. So is creating another base in the Land of Fire.
We should deploy ninjas individually with specific missions without letting them know about other ninjas and their missions. This way, even if someone is caught, they can't leak intelligence about others. So our losses won't suddenly become very high."
Rasa nodded and asked, "Any objections to it?"
No one said anything. Rasa said, "Alright, we will be deploying ninjas individually to target the Nobles in the Land of Fire. In addition, send a message to our current spies to dig for more information on Suzuki Fujin. If possible, keep track of his movements too, but don't do that if it risks their cover. And, ask Sajo to stop looking for the Copy Ninja and instead focus entirely on rebuilding the citizen's faith into Sunagakure."
Everyone nodded and left the room, leaving Rasa alone in the room. Rasa stayed seated with his hands on the desk while in deep contemplation. After a few minutes, he let out a sigh and thought, 'Konoha ended the Third Great Ninja war in a very strong position, leaving the rest of the villages helpless against their might. Fortunately, they suffered multiple setbacks after the war ended.
Though I wasn't able to take advantage when the Nine Tails attacked and killed the Fourth Hokage or when Orochimaru betrayed them, the Uchiha Massacre provided us with a good opportunity. I began taking steps to break our alliance with Konoha and began preparing for a war against them in secret.
Though I expected Konoha to catch wind of my intentions and retaliate, I didn't expect it to be so strong. It's almost as if the Uchiha Massacre didn't weaken them and instead strengthened them. And despite such extreme actions, they don't seem to be worried about us starting a war. The important question is…'
Rasa became very serious as he contemplated, 'Is Hiruzen thinking that I won't dare to start a war? Or is he so confident in Konoha's younger generation that he doesn't mind a war?'
Thinking about the younger generation, Rasa began getting a headache. He thought, 'Ever since the First Great Ninja War, Konoha always had excellent youngsters who quickly filled the shoes left by their predecessors. In fact, they have had the next generation step up even when their previous generation was still at its peak.
Other nations are lucky to have 1 or 2 S rank ninjas in every generation. In fact, Iwa hasn't had a non-Jinchuriki S rank ninja since Onoki. But Konoha produces S ranks every decade. If Hiruzen's actions are due to his confidence in his younger generation, then should I even be launching a war?'
Rasa had been thinking of starting a short war with Konoha for more than a couple of years. However, the recent losses Suna suffered against Konoha made him rethink his plan. After all, he had already lost one big war in the past. In order to ensure that he maintained his position, he even got rid of the only other rank S ninja in Suna's ranks from his generation.
After thinking for a long time, he concluded, 'No, right now is the best time. The Sannins barely stay in the village. All that leaves is an old Hiruzen and an injured Danzo. Though Hatake Kakashi's fame exceeds even the Sannins at his age, in terms of accomplishments, he is lacking. And if I compare it to Minato or his father, then it's not even comparable. He probably needs another 6-8 years to reach my level. As for this new kid, he is still at the Elite Jounin level. He will need even longer.
As long as I make a move within the next 5 years, I will have a good chance. But, the attack will have to be a sneak attack. And it needs to be done at an accurate time.
If I attack directly, then the Konoha armies will crush us just like the last war. And if I attack when the Sannins are nearby, I will have to face two or more S ranked ninjas by myself. The best time would be to attack Hiruzen when the Sannins aren't in the village.
Once I kill him, we can cause some damage to Konoha and retreat. Then even if the two Sannins return to Konoha, they will be helpless to do anything to me. They won't dare to march in the desert and would need to keep an eye on Kumo. And the Wind Daimyo will be helpless as well. That war will leave him no choice but to give us all the missions.
But… There are two main issues. Can I kill Hiruzen with a sneak attack? And what if the Sannins hide waiting for me to make a move?'
Rasa analyzed the answers to both of his questions. Finally, he decided, 'As long as I catch him by surprise, I can kill Hiruzen! After all, he is far past his prime. But the main issue is Jiraiya and Tsunade. I need someone to keep them in check. An S rank ally!'
Rasa thought for some time, but couldn't think of anyone suitable. He thought, 'The only one that comes to mind is Chiyo. But she is way past her prime. She lost to Tsunade in the last war. This time, she might not be able to even put up a challenge.'
He thought of the remaining Kages but immediately removed that thought. In the end, he decided, 'I need to find a proper ally for the sneak attack. I will wait till I find one. If I don't find any, then I will do my sneak attack after 5 years. I will have to depend on Shukaku to divert the Sanins or other strong fighters.
In the meantime, I need to strengthen a few subordinates that are loyal to me. I will need a few Elite Jounins to block the Clan Leaders in Konoha.'
Unlike the rest of the council, Rasa had given up on the hopes of achieving any success in their current campaign against Konoha. Instead, he directly began preparing for a war against a village that had three times more S rank ninjas!
