Dawn broke, and the morning sun streamed in.
Arashi awoke in his soft bed.
There had been no urgent matters during the night, so he had a rare, uninterrupted sleep.
"Dress me."
As soon as he got up, the waiting maids outside heard the movement and entered in an orderly manner, serving him as he washed and changed.
Just as he finished breakfast and was about to take a walk in the garden to aid digestion, Gen hurried over.
His face was filled with barely suppressed joy, almost jogging as he entered. "Your Excellency!"
"Great news!" Gen bowed, his voice trembling with excitement. "The Land of Lightning has backed down!"
He handed over an urgent report. "They've sent an envoy delegation. They entered the Fire Capital before dawn this morning, saying they wish to conduct peace talks and end all border conflicts!"
Arashi took the report, scanned it, then casually set it aside. "They arrived quite quickly."
"Yes!"
"Tanaka-sama is already waiting in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' conference hall. The envoys from the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth are also present, just awaiting your orders!" Gen's tone barely concealed his excitement.
Arashi looked up. "Send someone to inform Nara Enmaru. Tell him to go to the negotiation site immediately and observe. Have him listen and watch carefully."
In his view, the wisdom of the Nara clan shouldn't be confined only to the battlefield. That would be too much of a waste.
Diplomacy was also a battlefield without smoke or fire, and such large-scale international games were the best stage for sharpening their minds.
"Nara Enmaru?" Gen paused briefly, then immediately bowed. "Yes, I'll attend to it at once!"
With that, he quickly withdrew.
"Prepare the carriage. We're going to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs." Having dealt with this matter, Arashi gave his instruction, ready to watch the show.
"Yes!" The attendant respectfully complied.
At the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in the highest-level conference hall.
Around the long negotiation table, all parties had already taken their seats. The atmosphere was solemn.
Minister of Finance Tanaka Shigeru leaned back in his chair with the composure of a victor.
Behind him, a row of young officials from both the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Finance, including Enmaru, sat quietly, all present to observe.
Enmaru had chosen a position that allowed him to take in the entire scene.
To Tanaka's left and right, the envoys from the Land of Earth and the Land of Wind whispered to each other, wearing expressions that showed they were enjoying the spectacle without concern for consequences.
Across from them, the Land of Lightning's delegation appeared somewhat outnumbered and outmatched.
The leading civil official, named Ram, had his hair meticulously combed.
Tanaka cleared his throat, his voice echoing through the hall. "Lord Ram, I don't think we need to waste time on pleasantries."
"Regarding your country's former envoy, Doro, who openly advocated war, and your country's repeated unfriendly actions along the border…"
"On behalf of the Land of Fire, the Land of Earth, and the Land of Wind, I hereby express our strongest protest and condemnation."
Ram immediately straightened, forcing composure.
"Lord Tanaka, the so-called threat of war was likely a misunderstanding of diplomatic rhetoric."
"That was merely our side's… somewhat intense emotional reaction to your unfair trade policies."
"As for the border skirmishes, I believe there were misunderstandings involved."
"Emotional reaction?" The Land of Earth's envoy slammed the table, sneering. "What kind of 'emotional reaction' is that?"
"Lord Ram, we all heard with our own ears that your Lord Doro was clamoring for war!"
"Is this how the Land of Lightning expresses emotions? By holding a knife to our throats and forcing us to concede interests?"
Ram silently cursed Doro.
The Land of Wind's envoy joined in, twisting the knife further, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
"Indeed, we'd prefer not to worry about Kumogakure shinobi bringing war to our doorstep while we're enjoying Fire Crystal."
"After all, your country's style has always been… overbearing."
The three parties, perfectly synchronized, instantly backed Ram into a corner.
Beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. He could only seize upon one point to defend himself.
"The cause of the friction, I'm sure the three of you are clear on!"
"Your joint trade blockade, excluding the Land of Lightning, is itself an unfriendly economic declaration of war!"
"Our reaction is simply a reasonable response to such unfair treatment!"
A fierce war of words erupted.
In the lounge adjacent to the conference hall, Arashi leaned back on the sofa, quietly listening to the sounds of argument coming through the audio device, even a hint of boredom appearing in his eyes.
He had already written the script for this performance.
Just as he was feeling drowsy, a Shadow Guard entered. "Your Excellency, an urgent report from Konoha."
"Oh?" Arashi's eyes opened instantly. He took the scroll and unrolled it.
The letter was from Namikaze Minato. The content was brief:
The Land of Lightning's border troops launched another probing harassment last night, but the intensity was low and they were repelled by our forces. The situation remains under control.
After reading the letter, Arashi smiled, his eyes full of mockery. "Heh, at the end of their rope."
In his opinion, such tactics were crude.
On one hand, they were arguing at the negotiation table; on the other, they were creating tension at the border, hoping to use it as leverage to gain advantages in the talks.
This approach perfectly matched the Land of Lightning's reputation for brawny hotheads.
"Pass this message to Tanaka." Arashi casually tossed the scroll to the Shadow Guard.
"Yes."
The Shadow Guard accepted the order and left.
After that, Arashi fully relaxed.
The Land of Lightning's cards were all on the table. There was nothing more to see.
Inside the conference hall, Ram was still struggling to defend himself, his face flushed red with anger.
Just then, an attendant hurried to Tanaka and handed him a note.
Tanaka opened it, glanced at the contents, and his expression turned strange.
He cleared his throat, interrupting the heated argument.
Looking at the sweating Ram, Tanaka tossed the note across the table. "Lord Ram, I have a question I'm very curious about."
"You send an envoy delegation to negotiate peace, yet on the other hand, you engage in underhanded tricks at the border…"
"Is this your so-called sincerity?"
"Or does your Raikage-sama think we can't see through such a crude ploy?"
The room fell silent.
Ram's brows furrowed as he read the note.
The envoys from the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth also looked stunned, then burst into laughter filled with ridicule.
"So that's it! This is the Land of Lightning's peace negotiation?"
"Truly enlightening! Hahaha!"
Ram's lips trembled. "This… there must be some misunderstanding!"
"Misunderstanding…"
Hearing this, Arashi knew the negotiation was already finished. It had entered garbage time.
Since the show was over, he was too lazy to continue listening to the pointless arguments.
He stood and walked out.
Instead of wasting time there, it was better to handle more matters concerning people's livelihoods.
As he opened the door to the lounge, the furious sounds from the adjacent hall became clearer.
Tanaka's voice roared in righteous anger.
The envoys of the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth added sarcastic support.
Mixed among them were the anxious and futile explanations of Ram from the Land of Lightning.
Arashi left with a smile, not looking back.
Outside, the sun was bright, and the Fire Capital was peaceful and harmonious.
(To be continued.)