Chapter 53: Some Debate

"Izuka . . . reeducated?" thought Gaara as he continued to look at the dark screen with a stoic expression on his face. "They're trying to get her on their side. They're trying to turn her against us."

"Hmm . . . it appears that Amegakure has been very busy lately," muttered Mei as she shook her head. "Busy in a bad way."

"Yep . . . and it appears that the Rain Daimyo is calling the shots this time around." grumbled A as he crossed his arms.

"Hmm . . . it's been a while since I've seen a daimyo really take charge of a village . . ." said Onoki as he closed his eyes. "It's a nice change sometimes, but this is a change that I do not want to see any longer. If we're going to stop this oncoming threat, we need to act fast."

"Those villages that the Rain Daimyo was talking about . . . the ones east and north of them," said Tsunade as she thought it over in her head. "They've probably been taking over by now."

"It's too late to help them now if they've already been overrun. Amegsakure can be a very stingy village . . ." said Mei in agreement as she turned to her fellow female Kage. "But on to the next thing the Rain Daimyo and his council were talking about in that video . . . what do you think Operation Tsunami could be?"

"Not good, I'm guessing . . ." grumbled A as he shook his head. "But I suspect, from what the Rain Daimyo just said, that whatever Operation Tsunami is, it's supposed to cripple our villages . . . slow them down so that we won't be fully ready for Amegakure's onslaught once it happens."

"That's a fair guess . . ." said Gaara as he finally broke out of his thoughts to rejoin the group's conversation. "Amegaukre's plan could range from attacking our trade routes to attacking crucial compounds that help our military forces."

"The problem is that we don't know what exactly they have planned for our villages," said Onoki as he shook his head. "They're expecting us to keep guessing and once we figure it out, it'll already be too late."

"The worst part is, is that Operation Tsunami could be happening right this minute, right under our noses." mumbled Mei as she adjusted the bang that his her eye.

"And then there is Izuka's . . . reeducation," mumbled Tsunade as she crossed her arms over her large chest, saying the word like it was the most vile thing on the planet. "We have an idea on what they're doing to her in that village, and from the sound of it, it appears that they think that they're that much closer to getting the Lady Sage over to their side."

"If we lose her to them, than that will definitely lead to a great big disadvantage for our side," said Mei as she let out a small breath. "Izuka has a strong will, just like her twin brother . . . I'm hoping that those signs her reeducation teachers are seeing are just a fluke."

"It could be just a fluke . . ." said Onoki as he shook his head. "Or it could be very real, and we're only mere days away from calling the Lady Sage our enemy."

"Oh Onoki . . . do you have no faith in our resident Lady Sage?" asked Tsunade, a little bit of hostile bite in her tone as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"I do have faith . . . I have faith in her to be a good vessel to the tailed beasts within her. I have faith that she's a good ninja, superb even," said Onoki as he turned to the Hokage. "What I don't have faith in is her psyche, her mental stability. . . . I've read her file. She's been through a lot in her short life, so much that an old fart like me may not be able to comprehend how she's been able to stay sane all this time. . . . What I'm worried about is how long will it take for her to continue on before she falls apart because right now, we're basically banking on her mental aptitude here. If that's gone, then we're definitely put into a corner."

"You make a good point Onoki . . ." mumbled Tsunade as she noticed Gaara send a quick cold look the old man's way for questioning Izuka's sanity. "But if she's been able to survive months of endless reeducation at the hands of Amegakure, a village known for its very . . . creative and demented methods in torture, then we at least got to believe that she could survive a few more days."

"Hmm . . . you sound like you're suggesting we start a rescue mission in order to get the Lady Sage back." said A as he turned to the blonde woman.

"That's what I'm proposing . . ." said Tsunade as she shook her head. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm treating what was said about Izuka as the real deal. We can either go in now and get her out of there or wait until she becomes Amegakure's puppet and is used against us."

"Hmm . . . this has really become a depressing situation . . ." said Mei as she shook her head. "But I am with you on this one Tsunade. We can't let the Lady Sage stay in Amegakure's clutches any longer. We have to act fast and get her out now."

"Hmm . . . I hate when things get difficult . . ." said A as he shook his head, sarcasm dripping from his voice as he pounded his fist onto the table. "But I hate waiting even more . . . I'm in."

"What say's you Onoki?" asked Tsunade as she turned to the old man.

"I might as well say yes . . . my village has had its problems in the past with Amegakure in the past. It'll be nice to get some long deserved retribution." said Onoki as he lay back in his seat.

"Hmm . . . I don't think I need to ask you the question. The answer is pretty obvious in regards to you Gaara-san." said Tsunade as she turned to the young redhead. Gaara didn't say anything, but silently nodded his head in agreement. "Okay then . . . I guess we're all in agree-."

Tsunade was cut off by a loud rumbling that quickly died away. And then a plume of smoke began to show across the village from the window.

Operation Tsunami was finally in action.

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