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"No!"
Shin's proposal was directly rejected by the Land of Earth daimyo. "Lord Shin, are you trying to make our three countries your servants?"
"This is the Four Countries' Inspection Team, not your Land of Fire's Guardian Shinobi Twelve! The position of leader must not be controlled by your country alone!"
"This move is indeed not right," the Land of Wind daimyo also said at the right moment. "If the Land of Fire takes the lead, the nature of the Inspection Team will change, and we will not be able to explain it to our country."
"I propose that the position of leader be rotated among our four countries, changing every season, to show fairness!"
"I agree to the rotation system!" the Land of Water daimyo immediately echoed. "Otherwise, we would rather not join!"
In an instant, an alliance against the Land of Fire's control was firmly formed in the face of self-interest.
Shin frowned slightly, seemingly displeased by their strong reaction, and argued back. "A rotation system will only lead to poor command and independent actions, which is making a joke of the success or failure of the entire inspection operation!"
"That's still better than your Land of Fire controlling everything!" The Land of Earth daimyo refused to back down.
"If the leader's position belongs to the Land of Fire, then the Inspection Team's base must be located near the Land of Earth, as a check and balance!"
The Land of Earth daimyo's proposal was immediately rejected by the Land of Wind and Land of Water daimyo.
"No!"
"Absolutely not!"
"Since it is to inspect Kumogakure, the base must be located in the village!"
"Otherwise, with the advantage of your Land of Earth's location, who knows what you might do!"
"It can be set up at a port, it must be a port!"
The meeting room instantly became noisy.
The focus of the argument quickly grew from the choice of leader to the selection of the base's location.
Everyone wanted to place the center of power where they could control it, while also strongly preventing others from getting benefits.
Shin also argued fiercely with them, his face red with anger.
He perfectly played the role of a leader who thought about the bigger picture but was held back by the selfish motives of small-minded individuals.
Just as it seemed no one could convince anyone else, and the entire plan had reached a dead end, Shin finally waved his hand tiredly and said, "Enough! Enough!"
His face showed deep disappointment and helplessness, and he let out a long sigh, as if weary of the endless argument.
"It seems, gentlemen, that you only see the immediate benefits and completely ignore the bigger picture... Unified command is impossible."
His heartfelt statement of pain made the other three pause their argument and look at him together.
Shin, with an expression of forced compromise, slowly said, "Since that is the case, there is only one way."
"To avoid disputes and to make sure the inspection operation can be done as soon as possible... we will cancel the joint inspection and the leader's position!"
"The Land of Lightning will be divided into four defense zones."
"Our four countries will each be responsible for the inspection mission of one defense zone."
"Each governs its own military and government, without interfering with each other!"
As soon as this backup proposal was made, the breathing of the three daimyo immediately became heavier.
The kage and shinobi standing behind the daimyo felt a completely different kind of shock at this moment.
Onoki's back, usually hunched from chronic back pain, straightened at this moment. His cloudy old eyes filled with horror.
He was witnessing a great nation being torn apart in casual conversation!
This was the most complete destruction of the five great nations system!
Rasa's face, hidden in the shadow of his straw hat, was tense, and the Sunagakure shinobi behind him held their breath.
As the village with the most limited resources, this proposal held a deadly temptation for them.
But reason told Rasa that if they could carve up the Land of Lightning like this today, tomorrow, when the Land of Fire no longer needed allies, who would be the next to be put on the table?
His hands, hidden in his sleeves, were clenched into tight fists.
Behind Shin, the Guardian Shinobi Twelve showed a completely different scene.
Their eyes were filled with almost wild respect for their daimyo, as well as confusion!
As early as their first meeting with the daimyo, he had shared his thoughts with them.
At this moment, in their eyes, their ruler was, by his own strength, taking apart the Land of Lightning and reshaping the entire world's balance of power!
But why did the daimyo give up the position of leader?
Nara Shikato was completely puzzled.
In this mixed atmosphere, Shin moved. His finger slowly traced a line on the map.
Finally, it landed heavily on the core area of the Land of Lightning.
On Kumogakure and its surrounding most fertile plains.
"Since it's divided responsibility, naturally, whoever has the greatest achievement gets to choose first." Shin's voice was even more forceful than before. "My Land of Fire has made huge contributions and the greatest sacrifices in this war."
"The heartland of the Land of Lightning, which is Kumogakure and its surrounding areas, should rightfully be assigned to my Land of Fire's defense zone, to stop villains and uphold justice!"
As he spoke these righteous words, a thought flashed through his mind about the escort team that had left two days late.
By now, probably, the blood of three thousand Kumogakure shinobi had already soaked a certain piece of land in the Land of Fire.
Kumogakure was his bait to turn away Kumogakure's anger.
Whoever took it would have to prepare to face Kumogakure's nonstop, until-death, mad revenge!
"What?!" As expected, the Land of Earth daimyo was the first to jump out, roaring in anger. "Lord Shin, are you trying to swallow the biggest and best piece of meat yourself, leaving us to chew on bones?"
"No! Absolutely not!"
"Lord Shin, you are far too greedy!" The Land of Wind daimyo also grew angry, snapping his fan shut. "Kumogakure is the symbol of the Land of Lightning. If your country controls it alone, how is that different from the Inspection Team?"
"I propose that Kumogakure be jointly managed by the four countries!" The Land of Water daimyo snorted coldly, then joined the fight.
The meeting room once again turned into a marketplace.
Shin stood his ground, arguing fiercely with the three.
He clearly showed the image of a greedy ruler fighting for the maximum benefit for the Land of Fire.
The more fiercely he argued, the more the other three firmly believed that Kumogakure was the true main prize of this feast.
As the four sides remained in a stalemate, and negotiations were about to break down, Shin finally flung his sleeve in anger. His face showed disappointment and anger at being betrayed by his allies.
"Good! Good! Good!"
He said 'good' three times in a row, his tone filled with grief and anger. "Since you all believe my Land of Fire is endlessly greedy, then I give up!"
He slammed his hand on the table, making the teacups rattle. "This tough bone, Kumogakure, my Land of Fire will not chew on anymore!"
His eyes were fixed on the map, as if bearing the pain of giving up something precious, hesitating for a long time.
Finally, he pointed to the southern part of the Land of Lightning, a fertile plain area near the Land of Fire's border, but far less important in strategy than Kumogakure.
"This area, surely no one will fight with me for it!" He almost roared it out, filled with the helplessness of being pushed into a corner.
At these words, the meeting room once again fell into a strange silence.
The Land of Earth, Land of Wind, and Land of Water daimyo were all stunned.
Looking at Shin's hurt expression, as if he had suffered a great loss, and then at the Kumogakure defense zone he had given up on the map, three hearts beat wildly at the same time!
He... he actually gave it up?
Doesn't that mean...
In an instant, the three daimyo looked at each other, no longer with any allied understanding, only naked competition!
Just moments ago, they were allies united against the Land of Fire.
Now, they had become fierce enemies fighting for that unclaimed piece of rich land!
"Ahem! Since Lord Shin is so noble and good, then this place, Kumogakure..." The Land of Earth daimyo's eyes gleamed.
"Wait!" The Land of Water daimyo immediately interrupted him. "When it comes to geographical location, our Land of Water..."
"None of you should even think about it! Kumogakure must be managed by our Land of Wind..."
A new round of fierce arguments began.
Meanwhile, Shin slowly sat back in his chair, picked up the now cold tea, and took a small sip.
He watched the three old foxes tear at each other over the poisoned bait he had thrown out, a cold glint in the depths of his eyes.