Chapter 205 : What Is Your Purpose?
When news of Riku's arrival reached her, Chiyo, who had recently come out of seclusion, was stunned.
Over the years, she had largely ignored world affairs. Even the intelligence gathered by spies about the Akatsuki was limited solely to tracking Sasori's whereabouts.
She didn't know Riku at all—which wasn't surprising. She didn't even know who Kakashi was, so how could she be expected to know someone like Riku?
After the village council introduced Riku and explained who he was, Chiyo found it hard to believe that such a powerful shinobi existed in Konoha.
Still, she didn't order the village's defense forces to act.
For someone like Riku, if he meant no harm, there was no need for concern. But if he did intend to attack, Sunagakure, in its current state, couldn't possibly stop him.
So, Chiyo ordered the defense force to stand down and waited with the rest of the Sand's senior officials in the Kazekage Building.
When Kakashi, Naruto, and Sakura heard that Riku had arrived in person, they were overjoyed.
They hadn't been confident in rescuing Gaara before—but now that Riku was here, their chances had skyrocketed.
Especially Kakashi. It had been three years, yet he hadn't had a proper conversation with Riku.
Although he was technically Riku's teacher, in truth, he knew very little about his student. That failure weighed heavily on Kakashi's heart.
Of course, it wasn't entirely his fault. Tsunade had worked him like livestock, assigning nearly every high-level mission to him.
After all, when it came to capable shinobi in the village, only Riku and Kakashi could consistently take on difficult tasks.
Among all the Jonin in Konoha, Riku and Kakashi were considered the most well-rounded and powerful.
Riku had completed four or five S-rank missions in the past three years, along with over a dozen A-rank assignments—tasks far beyond what someone who had only recently become a Jonin should have been expected to handle.
In terms of treatment, Riku and Kakashi were not all that different.
Fortunately, Riku still had some downtime between missions. Kakashi, on the other hand, barely had time to rest and was usually out on assignments.
Lately, though, the workload had eased a bit. With Konoha's manpower gradually recovering, they were no longer stretched so thin.
That meant Kakashi now had some rare free time.
Sakura and Riku were nominally considered siblings in the shinobi world. Sakura was Tsunade's disciple, and Tsunade had personally passed down all her medical ninjutsu to Riku.
Such a level of instruction could only happen between master and disciple.
Tsunade's medical ninjutsu was sought after across the entire shinobi world.
The reason she accepted Sakura as her student was that she saw great potential in her character and talent.
But the way she had taught Riku was entirely different. It wasn't because he was her disciple—it was because Tsunade herself belonged to Riku.
That was why she taught him everything without reservation.
Even so, most of what Riku had mastered was self-taught.
And the truth was, his skill in medical ninjutsu had already surpassed Tsunade's. By contrast, Sakura had yet to reach her master's level.
So when Sakura heard that Riku had arrived, she was genuinely happy.
Naruto, too, was thrilled—because Riku's presence meant their chances of getting Gaara back had drastically improved.
Outside the Kazekage Building, Kakashi, Sakura, and Naruto stood waiting for Riku's arrival.
Beside them stood Chiyo and Ebizō, neither of whom had ever met Riku.
After a short while, Riku arrived with Temari by his side.
When he saw the group waiting for him, Riku smiled. "Kakashi-sensei, Sakura, Naruto. So you haven't left yet?"
Kakashi stepped forward with a smile. "We're planning to leave tomorrow. To neutralize the poison Sasori used, we need an antidote. Sakura is still working on it."
Chiyo observed Riku closely, thinking to herself, So this is another disciple of Tsunade? He's truly unfathomable—I can't even sense his chakra. He doesn't feel like a kid at all.
How did Tsunade manage to find two such incredible disciples?
During the Second Shinobi World War, Chiyo had clashed with Tsunade countless times. No matter what poisons Chiyo created, Tsunade always managed to counter them, earning her the title of the strongest medical ninja in the world.
Tsunade was immune to Chiyo's poisons, and her close-combat abilities completely suppressed Chiyo's puppet techniques.
In their many confrontations, Chiyo had lost more often than she'd won. Their rivalry dated back to that war and had never truly ended—one of the reasons Chiyo initially doubted Sakura.
Looking at Sakura, Riku chuckled. "How's the antidote coming along?"
Sakura nodded. "I've figured out the formulation."
"How about you make it, Riku?" she asked. "You'd be faster."
Sakura was well aware that Riku's medical ninjutsu surpassed even Tsunade's.
But Riku shook his head and smiled. "This is your test. Don't make things difficult for Lady Fifth."
Sakura understood instantly and nodded. "I won't let Master down."
After a brief conversation with Kakashi, Temari introduced the two elders to Riku. "These are Sunagakure's senior advisors. This is Lady Chiyo, and this is Elder Ebizō."
Riku looked at the two with no trace of hostility and smiled politely. "It's an honor. Lord Hokage speaks of you often."
Chiyo narrowed her eyes. "Tsunade speaks of me?"
Riku laughed. "She always said you were her strongest opponent during the Second Shinobi World War. Anyone would remember such a formidable rival."
The moment Riku mentioned the war, Chiyo realized that he truly understood who she was.
It also became clear that his relationship with Tsunade was far deeper than Sakura's.
Sakura hadn't even known who Chiyo was earlier—completely clueless. She didn't even know that Tsunade and Chiyo had fought during the war.
Chiyo stared at Riku and furrowed her brow. "I don't know if I should ask this, but I must—are you really here just to rescue the Kazekage?"
Riku didn't mind. Frankly, it would've been suspicious if a high-ranking figure like Chiyo hadn't asked that question. If someone as dangerous as Riku entered the village and no one questioned him, it would reflect poorly on Sunagakure's leadership.
He answered calmly, "To be honest, I'd just returned from a mission and planned to rest. But the Hokage ordered me to come."
"I'm telling you this because Lady Tsunade doesn't want the Kazekage's disappearance to escalate into something worse—like another shinobi war."
Everyone froze at his words.
It wasn't that Chiyo hadn't considered this before, but the younger ones—Sakura and Temari—had never experienced the horrors of war. They didn't understand how easily conflict could ignite, or how quickly things could spiral out of control.
Chiyo, however, smiled at Riku's words. Finally, she thought, someone who understands.
"If it was Tsunade who sent you, then I believe it. For the first time, I think Kazekage's decision to ally with Konoha was the right one."
Chiyo quietly assessed Konoha's current state and saw that the village genuinely wanted to avoid war.
Riku's sincerity was evident.
And that was why Chiyo believed him.
A veteran of multiple wars, someone like her couldn't be swayed by emotion. Only reason and logic worked on her—and Riku had delivered both.
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