1:45 PM.
Amber led the Annihilation Army, escorting officials and civilian personnel from the Land of Water to Golin City.
Since the best times for operations in desert areas are dawn, dusk, and late at night, Linto planned to set off at dusk today for Warsha City, the capital of the Land of Wind.
Amber, holding half a biscuit, went to rest. But judging by his excited expression, he was genuinely happy at the thought of fighting alongside Linto.
Linto watched his retreating figure and smiled, shaking his head.
Ever since the Annihilation Army was formed, Linto had been relatively relaxed, even having time to train in Konoha, vacation in DuWang Town, and incidentally take over a city in the Land of Wind.
Amber, however, had been working non-stop, either fighting enemies or on his way to fight them.
The talk of "killing people" was actually Linto's way of giving Amber a bit of a break.
This time, in the operation at Warsha City, Linto was not going to kill the Land of Wind's Daimyo.
If that were the case, he wouldn't need to bring anyone else. He could just fly over, wait for the Land of Wind's Daimyo to be on the toilet or sleeping, and take him out with one stroke.
Linto genuinely needed to have a talk with the Land of Wind's Daimyo.
Golin City had been taken, and Sunagakure Village had also pledged allegiance.
But both Golin City and Sunagakure Village were located in the heartland of the Land of Wind.
Even if the Land of Wind's Daimyo surrendered and didn't send troops to attack or hire ninja to harass them, then what about...
the trade routes?
For basic necessities, Golin City, with its oasis as a base, could sustain itself and Sunagakure Village. But what about more advanced equipment and spare parts?
Even if everyone worked together and could build them themselves.
What about industrial raw materials?
They couldn't just send Sunagakure Village ninja to go and steal them.
Once or twice might be okay, but if it happened too often, the suppliers would just quit altogether.
Therefore, the trade routes had to be maintained. And with trade comes a series of issues like tariffs, dumping of goods, financial fluctuations, talent introduction and loss...
To be honest, Linto hadn't thought about all this before taking the city.
At that time, he just felt that the Land of Wind's Daimyo didn't treat the people of Golin City as human beings. He used beasts like Shinno and gambled with the lives of everyone in the city. If Linto didn't take the city, similar tragedies would inevitably happen again.
So, he did it.
It wasn't until Linto had a remote call with Oda Ieyasu that he realized how many complex issues were involved in the Akatsuki controlling a truly mega-city.
"If I understand you correctly..."
Linto asked on the phone, "Am I being too reckless?"
"Economically, yes."
Oda Ieyasu's voice, deep, tired, yet with a hidden excitement, came through the receiver. "But from a broader perspective, all these problems are not problems."
Your expansion in the Land of Water has been too rapid. Many people in other countries are questioning your ambition, which will make them unconsciously resist you and resist the awakening ideology."
"If you had taken over a city by other means, it would have inevitably caused more neutral parties to defect to the opposition."
"From the perspective of an ordinary person in Golin City, I must condemn Shinno. But -"
Oda Ieyasu chuckled softly.
"From our perspective, I must thank Shinno for paving the way for us."
Three days after the call, on the night before the Land of Wind's envoy arrived, Oda Ieyasu sent over his draft of the proposed treaty via fax.
In simple terms, it was an unequal treaty targeting the Land of Wind and Golin City.
Linto scratched his head.
After all this... had he become a great power?
But Linto immediately let out a laugh and solemnly put away the document.
Unlike the great powers he knew from history, every word in this agreement was for the ordinary people living in this land.
"At least -"
Linto looked back at the people in grey and black cloaks walking on the street.
"This land will no longer have rats living underground."
He thought this as a man walked towards him. The man was tall and stout, wiping sweat as he walked, clearly unaccustomed to the heat of the Land of Wind.
It was Shirokawa, the magistrate of Youma County.
Linto smiled at him. "I was worried that the officials sent over wouldn't be competent. Seeing you here, I'm relieved."
He spoke from the heart.
Under the previous Daimyo's oppressive rule in the Land of Water, the fact that the counties and towns under his jurisdiction could feed and clothe their people was already a remarkable achievement.
Magistrate Shirokawa gave a wry smile and pointed to himself.
"Lord Linto, please don't praise me too much. Since you and Lord Oda trust me, what else can I say, other than..."
"Thank you for your great kindness."
Linto heard the helplessness in Magistrate Shirokawa's tone.
Given the "go with the flow" personality of this old magistrate, he likely wouldn't have wanted to travel to a foreign land to work.
Oda Ieyasu choosing him meant that Magistrate Shirokawa was the best choice.
"No, from now on, you can't call him Magistrate Shirokawa. He's Lord Shirokawa."
Shirokawa gave a dry laugh. "You... do you have anything to eat?"
...
2:30 PM.
Arima Residence.
Kamiya Yui slowly sat up. She was nearing fifty, with a dignified and beautiful appearance and a graceful figure, showing that she must have been a beauty in her youth.
She had only woken up from unconsciousness ten minutes ago. After looking at the newspaper on the table for a while, she had a general idea of what had happened recently.
Kamiya Yui glanced at the small stone bird pendant hanging by her bed and smiled. Just as she was about to get out of bed, she lifted the thin blanket.
There was nothing from her knees down.
After staring for a full half-minute, she slowly exhaled.
"Is that so,"
Kamiya Yui sighed. "I lost my legs in that explosion."
Just then, the blind man Ichishi pushed the door open and came in. He heard the change in his wife's breathing.
"You're awake?"
"Yes, Ichi."
Kamiya Yui patted the side of the bed, signaling for the blind man Ichishi to sit down. Once he sat down, she took her husband's hand and said with a smile,
"I think we need to get a divorce."
"When we got married, we agreed that I would take care of your daily needs, and you would be responsible for earning money to support the family. But now I can't fulfill my promise."
She reached out and gently stroked her husband's face.
"We need to think carefully about this today."
"Fine."
The blind man Ichishi slapped her hand away and shouted,
"If we're going to divorce, we need to settle our accounts clearly. You took care of me for twenty years, so I must take care of you back. Otherwise, my reputation as the blind man Ichishi will be ruined by you, you ugly shrew.
I am following a righteous lord to do something big. If I am disliked by that lord because of you, I won't let you rest even as a ghost!
So, before I take care of you for a full 20 years, don't even think about divorce. When the 20 years are up, even if you beg me, I won't soften my heart and will kick you out."
This was the first time Kamiya Yui had ever seen her husband get angry since they got married. She stared at him in shock, and after a long silence, she wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.
"Okay."
After saying this, Kamiya Yui remembered their previous conversation. "Are you going on a trip?"
"To the capital, Warsha City."
"What for?"
"It's said to be -"
The blind man Ichishi's expression was serious. "Kill the Daimyo, execute the officials, and destroy the royal palace."
"...Huh?"