Chapter 132: The Mizukage Is Far Too Weak!
The Mist ninja diplomatic delegation dispatched to Konoha naturally didn't possess authority equal to the Mizukage. They merely served as channels for contact and liaison with Konoha.
For minor matters, they could make decisions independently. But major issues required transmission via summoning jutsu. Before departure, four members of the diplomatic delegation—including Chief Envoy Hyakubei and Vice Envoy Yaku—had signed summoning contracts with albatrosses raised in the village.
At this moment, after Yaku returned to his room, he first ordered subordinates to collect and prepare Hyakubei's remains. Then he approached the writing desk, retrieved paper and brush, and transcribed the previous conversation as accurately as possible onto the page. He also added his own speculations.
Afterward, he immediately performed the Summoning Jutsu. He sealed the letter and stuffed it into the cylinder on the albatross's back before releasing the summoning, sending the bird back to the village.
Hidden Mist Village.
In the albatross cages, the summoned bird immediately released a sharp cry. Three Mist ninja responsible for raising and guarding these albatrosses rushed over at the sound. They approached the bird—one person calmed it while the other two opened the cylinder on its back and retrieved the sealed letter. Seeing the words "For Mizukage-sama's Eyes Only" written on the outer layer, they immediately grabbed the envelope and rushed toward the Mizukage building.
Soon, this letter was delivered before Fourth Mizukage Yagura Karatachi. He opened the letter and scanned through it rapidly. By the time he finished, his brow was tightly furrowed.
He opened his mouth. "Someone, summon the Elder Master... No, I'll go there myself!"
The so-called Elder Master wasn't a personal name but an honorific.
It referred to a venerable elder of profound seniority in Hidden Mist Village—someone who had been the First Mizukage's most capable assistant, rendering tremendous service during the village's founding.
To this day, this elder had become Hidden Mist Village's living fossil. Starting from the Second Mizukage, each had treated him with great courtesy. By the time of the Fourth, that respect had only deepened.
Considering the Elder Master's advanced age made walking slow and difficult, summoning him to the Mizukage building would inevitably invite criticism from certain people. Better to make the trip himself and visit the Elder Master personally.
In moments, he arrived before a modest residence located barely five hundred meters from the Mizukage building. He stepped to the door and knocked gently.
After several seconds, rapid footsteps approached from inside. A brown-haired man opened the door and bowed his head in greeting. "Mizukage-sama."
Yagura asked, "Gonbei, is the Elder Master inside?"
"The Elder Master is in the tea room. Mizukage-sama, please enter."
Gonbei stepped aside.
Yagura entered and navigated the familiar path to the tea room. At the entrance, he removed his shoes, slid open the door, and stepped into this six-mat room.
The tatami mats were swept clean and spotless.
A low table stood in the room's center with a plum vase placed upon it. A bald old man with a withered face—his eyebrows and beard long since fallen out, wearing a loose gray robe—was holding pruning shears and studying the plum blossoms in the vase.
"Elder Master."
Yagura sat across from the table.
This old man was the Elder Master.
"Fourth, what brings you here?"
The Elder Master set down his pruning shears and looked across at Yagura.
Yagura pushed the letter in his hand before the Elder Master. "This is a letter Yaku sent from Konoha. Elder Master, please read it first."
Hearing this, the Elder Master lowered his gaze, picked up the letter, and read carefully word by word. After a moment, he released a sigh. "So young Hyakubei has also departed!"
"What?"
Gonbei, who was bringing tea and water, stared with shocked, widened eyes. "Elder Master, Hyakubei—he was dispatched to Konoha as envoy, wasn't he? How could something happen?"
Hyakubei had previously served the Elder Master just like Gonbei, and was Gonbei's senior. He'd taught Gonbei many things. In Gonbei's heart, Hyakubei held a position like an elder brother. Suddenly hearing this devastating news left him genuinely unable to accept it.
But the Elder Master shook his head. "We'll discuss Hyakubei's matter afterward. That boy Yaku is still in Konoha awaiting a reply."
"My apologies, Elder Master, Mizukage-sama. I was discourteous."
Gonbei forcibly suppressed the grief in his heart and bowed his head in apology.
Yagura didn't say much and showed no concern about Gonbei placing the Elder Master before himself. He merely waved his hand to indicate it was fine. His gaze remained fixed on the Elder Master as he asked aloud, "Elder Master, do you think Yaku's speculation is accurate?"
The Elder Master fell silent, considering for quite some time before slowly speaking. "Yaku's speculation cannot serve as the basis for Mizukage-sama's decision. It contains too much conjecture. He never witnessed firsthand how severe Konoha's internal strife was. He only saw the appearance of the Wood Human and inferred from that Hokage Advisor's forceful attitude that Konoha might have suffered grievous losses and is therefore bluffing. But he didn't consider that Konoha might have sustained no significant damage, and that Hokage Advisor's confidence is justified!"
Yagura asked, "So Elder Master, you believe we should accept Konoha's reparation demands?"
The Elder Master's eyelids twitched. "Though what that Hokage Advisor said in this letter is harsh to hear, I find one phrase quite reasonable—losers must have losers' awareness. If Konoha were still controlled by that Third Hokage, we could exploit Konoha's internal contradictions to deflect our responsibility. But now Konoha has a young, vigorous Fourth Hokage. Setting aside their capabilities, I believe they certainly possess the courage to continue waging war against us Mist ninja!"
Yagura frowned, falling into contemplation.
This old man had said much but hadn't stated his position on what should be done. Truly slippery. No wonder his hair, eyebrows, and beard had all fallen out—his scalp looked polished smooth.
After the Elder Master paused briefly, he continued. "All of this is merely this decrepit old man's personal opinion. In the end, the village's decisions rest with the Fourth. How to proceed must be the Fourth's decision!"
Yagura couldn't suppress his urge to roll his eyes. He spoke without courtesy. "Elder Master, I'm currently torn between choices. Konoha's demands are far too harsh. The village's finances are already strained. I've even been considering negotiating with the Daimyo for assistance. If we shoulder these reparations as well, the village's recovery period will extend dramatically. Without ten or twenty years, we won't catch our breath."
"But refusing Konoha's harsh demands means Konoha might truly attack. If Konoha really comes knocking, Elder Master, do you think we can withstand Konoha's assault?"
He stared at the Elder Master and asked again.
But the Elder Master shook his head. "I don't know."
Yagura fell speechless.
Seeing this, the Elder Master sighed. "If Konoha mobilized their entire village's forces, our Hidden Mist Village definitely couldn't withstand them. Konoha's strength far surpasses ours Mist ninja. But the problem is Konoha cannot possibly mobilize their entire village to attack. Compared to dispatching a massive army for distant expedition, they're more likely to send small elite units including their jinchuriki for sudden raids."
"If it's only Konoha's small elite force, Fourth, do you think you can lead the village's ninja to defend against them?"
Hearing the Elder Master's question, Yagura murmured, "Small elite forces including the Nine-Tails jinchuriki?"
He felt the Elder Master's judgment was quite reliable. Indeed, Konoha ninja couldn't possibly mobilize a massive army to cross the sea and attack Hidden Mist Village under current circumstances. More likely, they'd form an elite squad centered on the now-Fourth Hokage Yellow Flash and launch a direct raid.
After all, that Yellow Flash possessed the space-time jutsu created by the Second Hokage—Flying Thunder God.
"Let me think... Currently in the village besides myself, there's Six-Tails Jinchuriki Hayama-senpai, Hozuki Kugatsu from the Hozuki clan, and Kirishima Rento from the Kirishima clan. What a pity about the Three-Tails being squandered by that Kirishima brat and now in Konoha's hands, impossible to retrieve. Otherwise we could create another Three-Tails jinchuriki."
After calculating, Yagura found Hidden Mist Village still possessed some trump cards.
The Six-Tails jinchuriki needed no explanation. This forty-something-year-old veteran had controlled the Six-Tails for many years and could maintain conscious control during partial tailed beast transformation. Unfortunately, his luck was poor—he'd encountered that Uchiha Shisui on the front lines. Due to momentary carelessness, the Six-Tails inside him was confused by Uchiha Shisui's genjutsu and went berserk. He'd been forced to retreat from the front lines and return to the village. These past days, he'd been struggling to suppress the agitated Six-Tails.
Then there were Hozuki Kugatsu and Kirishima Rento—both genuine powerhouses qualified to compete for the Mizukage position. However, both were somewhat advanced in years and too embarrassed to compete for Fourth Hokage. Both were around sixty. Precisely because of their age, they hadn't gone to the front lines but remained in the village for defense, which posed no problems.
Beyond these seniors, the village's capable young elites besides Yagura himself had almost none. The Seven Ninja Swordsmen had been nearly wiped out in battles with Konoha. Currently, only two —Mangetsu Hozuki and Ringo Ameyuri—held up appearances.
Fortunately, the younger generation had plenty of promising seedlings. Besides Mangetsu Hozuki and Ringo Ameyuri, there were Kisame Hoshigaki and Zabuza Momochi.
The former was Suikazan Fuguki's trusted subordinate who'd proven himself in mission after mission. Yagura felt Suikazan Fuguki's former weapon, the greatsword Samehada, suited Kisame Hoshigaki perfectly. Unfortunately, that waste Suikazan Fuguki not only got himself captured but let both the greatsword Samehada and the cleaver sword Kubikiribocho fall into Konoha's hands.
The latter had single-handedly slaughtered all his classmates during the graduation exam, forcing Yagura to modify the ninja academy's graduation exam format. Previously on the battlefield, his perfectly mastered Silent Killing technique had claimed quite a few Konoha ninja lives.
"I believe if Konoha only sends small elite forces to attack, we should be able to withstand them."
Yagura first offered a conclusion.
Then he analyzed further. "The Cloud ninja and Konoha are still facing off at the border between Yu no Kuni and Shimo no Kuni. Konoha doesn't dare mobilize forces from there. And after experiencing internal strife, claiming Konoha suffered no losses whatsoever is impossible."
"Therefore, besides the Yellow Flash and Nine-Tails jinchuriki, Konoha can deploy only Orochimaru, the White Yaksha Hyuga Ritsu, and Shisui of the Body Flicker—those few we've fought on the Fire Country's eastern coast."
"When the time comes, I'll intercept Orochimaru. The Nine-Tails jinchuriki will be handled by Hayama-senpai as Six-Tails jinchuriki. Konoha's Yellow Flash can be countered by either Hozuki Kugatsu-senpai or Kirishima Rento-senpai. One is immune to physical attacks, the other equally skilled in extreme speed—both can exchange blows with that Yellow Flash. The remaining one can intercept Shisui of the Body Flicker. As for that White Yaksha... we'll send Hozuki clan jonin to surround and kill him."
After calculating and weighing both sides' strength comparison, Yagura felt they could fight.
He looked again toward the Elder Master and asked, "Elder Master, what do you think? Are there any problems with my calculations?"
The Elder Master remained silent for a long moment before sighing. "Viewed purely on paper, if Konoha deploys forces as you've arranged, we can indeed withstand them. However, Fourth, my suggestion is to negotiate if possible. Unless absolutely necessary, try to avoid letting the fires of war burn into the village. Even if we ultimately repel the Konoha ninja, this would still severely damage your prestige as Fourth."
Not to mention if they failed to withstand Konoha ninja's assault—then the situation would deteriorate beyond measure. Of course, the Elder Master didn't voice this possibility, as speaking it would be truly inauspicious. Besides, the Fourth probably wouldn't listen anyway.
"I understand this reasoning as well. But the problem is Konoha is now aggressively pressing. Four billion ryo in reparations isn't just cutting our flesh—it's directly severing both our Hidden Mist Village's legs!"
"Have Yaku try his best to negotiate! Four billion ryo truly is extortion. If it can be reduced to one billion—no, two billion ryo—I think that's acceptable."
"Two billion ryo, honestly, I also feel is somewhat excessive... However, I'll send word to Yaku telling him to attempt further negotiations with Konoha."
Having said this, Yagura picked up his cup and sipped the warm tea before standing. "Elder Master, since that's settled, I'll go send word to Yaku first. If there's new intelligence afterward, I'll have someone relay it to you!"
The Elder Master replied, "Fourth, please do as you see fit. Don't waste time on this old relic."
Yagura said nothing more, turned, and walked out of the tea room. He put on his shoes and swiftly departed the Elder Master's residence. Upon returning to the Mizukage building, he took up his brush and wrote decisively. Then he ordered the document delivered to the messenger bird breeding grounds, where the sealed letter was loaded into the cylinder on the back of the albatross that had signed a contract with Yaku.
Then, one hour after the albatross delivered the message, it was once again summoned via Summoning Jutsu and appeared within Konoha's embassy.
Yaku moved swiftly. He opened the cylinder on the albatross's back, retrieved the reply, and opened it eagerly. His brow immediately furrowed. "Still insisting on trying to negotiate? The bottom line is two billion ryo in reparations? The Mizukage-sama is far too weak!"
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