Chapter 158 Village Hidden by a Waterfall's Choice and Hidden Stone Village's Reaction
After hearing that the Land of Hot Springs and the Land of Earth had signed a treaty, and that Konoha's ninja army had been stationed on the border to help them resist the threat from the Land of Lightning, the discussions between Iwata Sawaki and the Daimyo of Takigakure (Village Hidden by a Waterfall) also concluded.
"So, if we rely solely on Village Hidden by a Waterfall, the possibility of our Land of Village Hidden by a Waterfall being able to withstand the threat from the Land of Earth is zero, right?" The Daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall looked at the map of the "Konoha Pact Plan" brought back by Iwata Sawaki and sighed deeply.
"Yes, given the current situation, our tailed beasts won't be able to fight for at least five years," Iwata Sawaki said helplessly. "Without the tailed beasts, Village Hidden by a Waterfall is no different from an ant in front of the great ninja villages."
"Furthermore, even if we could use the power of the Seven-Tails now, it would only make Hidden Stone Village, which possesses two tailed beasts, slightly wary of us." Iwata Sawaki said helplessly. "After all, the tailed beasts are our only reliance, but they also have that power."
"So, to truly protect the safety of Village Hidden by a Waterfall, we can only rely on the power of Konoha, right?" The Daimyo of Takigakure said bitterly.
"Your Highness, I am incompetent," Iwata Sawaki said, kneeling on one knee.
"Well, it's not your fault. It's too difficult for a small country like ours to produce a truly powerful ninja," the Daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall sighed. "Since the establishment of the ninja village system, in all these years, only the Land of Rain has produced one Hanzo."
He helped Iwata Sawaki to his feet.
"But once this contract is signed, Village Hidden by a Waterfall will never be able to escape the control of the Land of Fire again," the Daimyo said.
"Is it that serious?" Iwata Sawaki asked, somewhat puzzled.
"Iwata, you've received ninja training since childhood, so you don't understand what this contract truly represents.
The part about joint economic development in this contract, although Konoha seems to offer many favorable conditions to small countries like ours, once this contract is signed, our country's future will only be that of a raw material base for the Land of Fire forever.
Furthermore, the money we earn from selling raw materials will ultimately be earned back by them in various forms. It's a slow poison," the Daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall sighed.
Speaking of which, the daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall is somewhat of an anomaly among the daimyo of the ninja world. As the illegitimate son of the previous daimyo, he was originally not qualified to inherit the position.
Therefore, he began to get involved in business at a young age, hoping to make a name for himself in that field. However, coincidentally, his elder brother, the heir apparent, was too reckless.
Despite lacking the talent, he insisted on learning ninjutsu, and not only that, he secretly learned it alone, ultimately dying from a comical case of chakra out of control. Thus, he became the daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall by a twist of fate.
His experiences in his youth made him far more mature than most daimyo in the ninja world who only knew how to eat, drink, and have fun. Therefore, he could clearly see the malice hidden beneath Uchiha Touhuan's seemingly sincere contract.
"This..." Iwata Sawaki was also startled. He finally understood why, even though he had been back from Konoha for a whole month, the daimyo had not yet made up his mind to form an alliance with Konoha.
"Then we won't sign?" Iwata Sawaki hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Do we have a choice?" The Daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall smiled wryly. "I heard that the mission quota for Village Hidden by a Waterfall has been reduced again this month, right? And the number of Hidden Stone Village ninjas on our border with the Land of Earth has almost doubled, right?" "
Yes," Iwata Sawaki said helplessly.
"This Grand Minister of Fire is using a calculated strategy," the Daimyo of Taki Country said with a bitter smile.
"After the Land of Hot Springs and the Land of Rice Fields signed this treaty, no matter what we choose, Onoki will see us as potential enemies, unless we completely side with the Land of Earth. But, as you know, the Land of Earth is in a difficult situation.
Onoki is too old, and the vast Hidden Stone Village can't find anyone to replace him.
But Uchiha Touhuan is not even 20 years old yet. By conventional standards, he has at least 20 more years of peak performance, not to mention he's an Uchiha ninja."
"Yes, we have no choice." At this moment, Iwata Sawaki's face also showed a bitter expression. The lord and minister of Taki Country exchanged a glance, and neither of them spoke.
This is the tragedy of a small country situated between great powers. Unless they can immediately produce a strongman comparable to Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, they can only be pawns in the power struggle between great powers.
"Sign it." After a long silence, the daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall sighed, took out a pen, and heavily signed his name on the document.
After affixing his daimyo seal, he said self-deprecatingly, "Signing this, at least I can still be the daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall peacefully. The Land of Fire looks down on our barren land, which has nothing but a little mineral content."
"Iwata, go to Konoha again. Bring back the garrison as soon as possible. Onoki and Uesugi Hideyoshi won't give us much time," the daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall instructed.
"Yes!" Iwata nodded through gritted teeth.
However, just as Iwata Sawaki left the daimyo's palace with the signed and stamped agreement, a spy from the Land of Earth, lurking in the shadows, relayed the information back to the Land of Earth at top speed.
So, before Iwata Sawaki could even prepare his carriage for the journey to Konoha, an envoy from Village Hidden by Rocks arrived first. Iwata Sawaki reluctantly received the envoy, who immediately questioned him directly about whether he intended to join the Konoha Pact and bring Konoha's troops to their border.
Iwata Sawaki could only deny it, but the envoy continued to press, relaying the message Ōnoki had sent him.
If Village Hidden by a Waterfall intended to join the Konoha Pact, Village Hidden by Rocks would consider it a declaration of war by the Land of Village Hidden by a Waterfall against the Land of Earth and would immediately take military action.
Faced with Onoki's warning, Iwata was practically grinding his teeth to powder, but the situation was beyond his control. He could only say that Village Hidden by a Waterfall had never intended to do so, and politely saw the Village Hidden by Rocks envoy off.
After the envoy left, Iwata had no choice but to return to the capital of Village Hidden by a Waterfall and find the daimyo.
Upon hearing the news, the daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall could only take a deep breath and grit his teeth, saying, "We can't hesitate any longer. Now, only Konoha can make Village Hidden by Rocks wary.
You must immediately go to Konoha, forge an alliance with them, and request that they send troops to garrison there as soon as possible. Travel light and be quick!"
"I understand," Iwata nodded in acceptance.
When leaving the daimyo's palace this time, Iwata deliberately used a water clone technique. His clone returned to Village Hidden by a Waterfall after leaving the palace, while his main body rushed towards Konoha without a moment's rest.
Just as Iwata Sawaki and the Daimyo of Village Hidden by a Waterfall made up their minds, Uchiha Touhuan, in Konoha, received a request from Onoki to connect via video call.
"After laying the bait for so long, the big fish is finally about to bite," Uchiha Touhuan chuckled, changing into his most formal Hokage robes and donning his Hokage hat before answering the video call with Onoki.
On the other side of the screen, Onoki was also dressed in formal attire. After exchanging a glance across the screen, the two simultaneously removed their hats and placed them on the table beside them, signifying openness.
This was something the First Hokage did before pleading for peace at the first Five Kage Summit, and it has been preserved as a traditional etiquette for meetings between Kage ever since.
"Lord Earth Shadow, how have you been?" Uchiha Touhuan greeted Onoki with a smile.
"It's alright, nothing compared to you, Hokage. You've been riding high lately," Onoki said with a forced smile. "Your Konoha Pact, you've made quite a stir, haven't you?"
"Your Majesty the Earth Shadow is too kind. This is merely an attempt by me, as Hokage, to promote peace in the ninja world. After all, only with peace can villages and countries have an environment for development," Uchiha Touhuan said calmly.
"Is this truly for peace?" Onoki said with a sneer. "If Village Hidden by a Waterfall joins your alliance, then your Fire Country's ninjas can be directly stationed on our Earth Country's border. The Hokage has certainly played his cards right."
"Heh, this is merely to make our ally feel secure. I hope Your Majesty the Earth Shadow won't overthink it," Uchiha Touhuan said with a smile. "Our two countries have a non-aggression pact."
"Yes, our two countries have a non-aggression pact, but Hidden village by Waterfall doesn't," Onoki said with a grim face. "I don't care how Hidden Cloud Village views your alliance, but Iwagakure won't stand idly by. If anything untoward happens, I hope the Hokage won't blame us."
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