Chapter 255: Chapter 252 : Sunagakure makes a move
Sunagakure, Kazekage Building :
A ninja was hurrying inside the Kazekage building. Without waiting to knock and get permission, he opened the door and said loudly, "Lord Rasa, we have an important matter."
Rasa frowned. He was in a meeting. He looked at them and said, "We will continue the talks later."
Everyone nodded and left the meeting. Rasa looked with annoyance and asked, "What is the rush? Didn't you know that I was in an important meeting?"
The ninja replied, "I am sorry but this is important, Lord Rasa. Ten Nobles in the Wind Capital have died. Five Samurais have also died. And we are the prime suspect."
Rasa frowned and asked, "What did you say?"
The ninja handed him a scroll. Rasa opened and began reading. The ninja said, "It is suspected that all were killed using the Blade of Wind jutsu. And since all ten murders happened at the same time, they don't think any other village could have done this."
Rasa's expression became grim. He thought, 'Wind Daimyo's support for us has been decreasing continuously since the end of the third war. I had just managed to stabilize our standing and was about to pull out of the alliance with Konoha, but this happened. It will push the Daimyo even further away from us.'
His mood worsened as he cursed, 'Which bastard is scheming against me? Kiri shouldn't be involved in this. So it should be either Hiruzen or Onoki. But which one?'
He kept analyzing, 'The important matter is that ten ninjas simultaneously used Blade of Wind jutsu. Is one of them building a specialist unit of Wind?'
Rasa thought for a bit and concluded, 'No, Blade of Wind is a Jounin level jutsu. I doubt any of them would be willing to send 10 of them here. The most likely possibility is that Wind Sword jutsu was used. Gathering 10 users of that jutsu wouldn't be difficult for Konoha or Iwa.
Among the two of them, Konoha is the most suspicious. If their number of Wind users increases, their destructiveness on the battlefield will go up a few notches. But, for Hiruzen to do this, did he discover my attempts to break the alliance? If so, this wouldn't be his only move.'
Rasa's analysis was on point. Fujin's clones had all used Wind Sword jutsu to kill or injure their targets. However, Rasa still didn't consider the point of someone using Shadow clones. So he overestimated the number of attackers by a factor of 10!
He looked at the ninja in front of him and said, "Call Baki here."
The ninja nodded and left.
In a few minutes, Baki arrived. Rasa tossed the scroll over to him and said, "Read."
Baki nodded and began reading. His expression became grim. Rasa said, "I want you to lead a squad of 20 ninjas to the Wind Capital. Find who the culprit is and clear our name. If you can't find the culprit, then stay there and ensure that no more incidents occur. At the same time, make sure that our reputation among the Nobles in the Wind Capital improves.
I suspect that Konoha is behind this incident, but we can't rule out Iwagakure either. They may want us to suspect Konoha and break our alliance. So be on guard against both of them."
Baki nodded, "Yes, Lord Kazekage."
He immediately left and began preparations to leave. In a couple of hours, Baki along with 19 ninjas at the rank of Chunin and above left towards the Wind Capital.
Wind Capital :
Fujin was still staying in the same hotel. Due to being one of the most luxurious hotels in the Wind Capital, the impact of the stricter security and frequent checks wasn't felt much there. However, a Samurai still visited to ask him some standard questions before leaving without suspecting anything.
Fujin didn't make any moves in these two days. He thought, 'Though I could still kill some targets irrespective of how much security the Samurais provide, it won't help my mission.
On one hand, the Daimyo will begin considering why Suna is attacking despite being the prime suspect. So their suspicion of Suna will decrease instead of increase. On the other hand, if I overdo it, Daimyo and the other Nobles might get terrified of Suna. They might stop increasing relations with Konoha and obediently support Suna. I am sure Rasa might just go ahead and begin killing the Nobles himself as well until the Daimyo capitulates, taking full opportunity of my blunder.
So my best course of action is to keep striking at regular intervals. Hmm?'
Fujin's attention was suddenly attracted. He got up and went to the balcony and looked at one of the entrances to the city. Though he wasn't actively sensing, he could feel that a group of ninjas with strong chakras were coming towards the city. He wondered, 'Did Rasa send a few ninjas?'
A smile appeared on his face. He thought, 'Good, I was getting bored. Though this mission is quite relaxing, I don't want to do it much longer. After all, I can't train at all while staying here. The longer I stay here, the more time I will be wasting. Unfortunately, this mission requires me to stay here for around 6 months. But, if I can do a great job, I'll be able to leave early.
Not to mention, this city doesn't deserve its name. Wind Capital my ass. I have sent dozens of clones to find and steal any wind crystals here. Unfortunately, they have none! I had planned to steal the entire treasury of it but I never thought they won't have a single one! What a waste.'
Fujin sighed and eliminated that thought. He had felt enough heartache over the last week due to this matter. He turned his attention towards the Suna ninjas and waited in anticipation for them to arrive.
A few minutes later, Baki and his group entered the Wind Capital. His arrival immediately gained everyone's attention. Due to the incidents and the rumors, the common people were quite afraid of them. Even the Samurais and other guards were alert against them. The moods of Suna ninjas became grim on seeing how much the public perception was against them. Seeing the circumstances, they immediately travelled towards the Daimyo's estate.
However, the entrance of the Daimyo's estate was guarded by a dozen samurais led by Hajime. Baki greeted with a smile, "Hajime-san, it's good to meet you again. I am here to deliver a message from Lord Kazekage to Lord Daimyo."
Hajime replied with a smile as well, "It is good to see you as well, Baki. I would have loved to escort you in. Unfortunately, Lord Daimyo is busy with important meetings due to recent events and has asked to not be disturbed. I'll have to politely ask you to wait here until he allows for visitors."
Baki and the Suna ninjas frowned. The Daimyo was trying to humiliate them. Baki said, "Alright, I will wait here until Lord Daimyo sends a message."
The Suna ninjas following Baki knew of the circumstances. So none spoke anything despite the blatant disrespect. Baki analyzed, 'A power play. The Daimyo intends to show his displeasure by making us wait here. The longer we are made to wait, the more he is displeased. Still, he is also disrespecting our Kazekage.'
Baki looked at the ninjas behind him. They had run non-stop from Sunagakure to Wind Capital. He said, "You guys can leave and have some rest. I will meet up after meeting Lord Daimyo."
The ninjas nodded and left. Hajime was surprised. He analyzed, 'Letting the ninjas leave signifies that he isn't here to fight. However, on the other hand, it also could be seen as an insult to the Daimyo as he isn't making his subordinates wait patiently for the Daimyo. Oh well, it is none of my business whether he worships or disrespects the Daimyo as long as he doesn't attack.'
Baki and the rest had arrived in the Wind Capital in the morning. However, despite the Sun being right on top of their heads, the Daimyo still hadn't called Baki in. He kept waiting outside Daimyo's estate until the Sun began setting. Finally, when the Sun was about to set, a messenger came out of the estate and whispered a message to Hajime.
Hajime looked at Baki and said, "Lord Daimyo is finally done with his meetings. You can meet him now, Baki."
Baki's mood was terrible. He was made to wait outside for nearly half a day. They didn't even bother providing him with any food, water or even a chair! He walked in thinking, 'What a terrible mission I accepted. Rasa-sama should have sent a diplomat along with me.'
[A/N : Bonus chapter on next Sunday if the fic gets 1000 Power Stones. Bonus chapter on next week's Saturday if the fic gets 2000 Power Stones.]
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