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———
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"You should leave, Mister Hisasa. I've heard what you have to say, but I must turn you down. The town is going to stand together. I'll not betray my fellow people."
It had been a week, and Hisasa had lost count of how many doors he had knocked on only to get rejected, many of whose occupants had slammed the door in his face before he could even say anything. He had foreseen resistance; it was only natural, but he hadn't expected to make no headway.
Even two rounds of negotiation with Ennotora had resulted in zero progress.
"This is ridiculous. What has that man fed them?" Hisasa fumed. He had promised Baizan results, but it had been a week without anything to show for it, and each day the financial losses piled up.
However, he knew what was happening. Instead of working, those on strike worked communal kitchens for the most vulnerable; so the workers gathered each day and spent time together, making it difficult to pick them off alone one at a time.
Ennotora and the rest of the leadership were transparent and very good at rallying the people, continually inspiring confidence. Everyone was helping each other.
But Hisasa could wait a little longer; each passing day would put more pressure on them, and no amount of unity could prevent a few from cracking. However, he had promised his master quick results, so he needed some progress to report back.
"When are they going to arrive?" he asked one of his subordinates.
"This evening, sir."
"Good, get them ready. We're going tomorrow morning."
———
.
"They're bringing in the substitutes from outside the town to open one of the furnaces."
Tozo, the chief bookkeeper and the inside man, reported to Ennotora, the strike's leader.
"Trying to scare us, huh?" Ennotora frowned, clenching his joined hands. In front of the others, he was a fearless leader because that's what was needed of him, but the weight of hundreds of men and women's livelihoods was on his shoulders. "Fortunately, she foresaw this, and we're prepared," he smiled.
Tozo nodded. The mysterious woman had appeared in their lives a month before they had begun the strike. During that month, she had prepared Ennotora, and by extension, the strike to handle various tactics Baizan's men might try. One of those tactics was bringing in substitutes to work the furnaces; it was a tactic that would cause unrest among the workers because it implied that if they didn't work, the master could bring in outsiders who would.
However, it wasn't that easy to just replace skilled ironworkers with just anybody. It was a scare tactic, but it was effective, so they couldn't allow even one furnace to restart making iron.
"I'll spread the word; have everyone ready in the morning. Thank you, Tozo," Ennotora smiled gratefully, patting the bookkeeper's shoulder.
Tozo nodded with pursed lips. Unlike the ironworkers, he was satisfied with his wages, and his family lived comfortably. While he was putting his job at risk, it was the least he could do when so many of his townsfolk—those who helped him when his family was in need—were being mistreated.
"Is she still not back?" he asked.
The mysterious woman disappeared for a few days each week.
"She'll be back the day after tomorrow. We've got to hold our own while she's away."
"If I may… Who is she?"
Tozo didn't know anything about her. In fact, aside from a couple of folks, no one even knew she existed. The strike leadership had been very open with all the ironworkers and smiths about what they were trying to accomplish and had taken everyone's opinions into account. However, that woman was a secret Ennotora had kept from everyone because she had asked him to.
"I don't know a lot about her." Ennotora gazed at him for a moment before saying, "I think she's a shinobi."
He gasped. "From the Hidden Leaf?!"
"I can't be sure. Maybe she is or maybe not. It's not important."
"How can it not be important?" Tozo couldn't help but stand up from his chair. "What's her motive for helping us? What does she want? I hope you don't think she's doing it out of the goodness of her heart."
"Of course not! I know she has her own motives, but it doesn't matter as long as she's helping us accomplish ours. If our getting our just dues helps her, there's no reason for not taking her help."
Seeing the lines on Ennotora's face gave Tozo pause. By taking help from an outsider with unknown motives, he had decided for the town on his own and bore the weight of that decision.
Tozo closed his mouth, not saying what he wanted to, and instead rested his hand on the young man's shoulder. "Even though I'm cautious about her, I can't deny that her help has been crucial. You made a good decision. You're a good leader, so continue to lead us until all of this is over."
"Yes, it's not over. Our job will only be done when all of us get what we deserve."
Ennotora's slumped shoulders squared as he sat up straighter.
———
.
The next day, a group of ironworkers arrived at one of the town's furnaces owned by Baizan, only to find a group of workers who usually operated the furnace already there, standing with their arms crossed, blocking the entrance. There were more inside as the building held multiple furnaces.
"What is this?" Hisasa asked, eyeing the group. Some of them were holding iron rods, shovels, pickaxes, and other tools that could be used as weapons. "This is the master's property. He can do whatever he wants with it. Move aside and let these men, who are grateful for the work, do it."
"Turn away. These are our furnaces; our place of work. To us, this is sacred land. We aren't going to allow some random outsiders to defile it," said one of the furnace leaders.
Hisasa's eyes narrowed dangerously. They were holding the furnace hostage. These outsider men were from a nearby town and worked for Baizan, which meant they were on the payroll; not getting work would mean more financial loss, and the responsibility fell on Hisasa. But instead of stressing about it, he smiled.
"Call them," he said.
The furnace leader narrowed his eyes at the smile but stood there resolutely with all the other men.
Fifteen minutes later, a trio of shinobi, dressed in Leaf colours, arrived at the furnace along with a group of uniformed men. They were the constabulary responsible for maintaining order in the town. In that time, Ennotora and more ironworkers had arrived after hearing the news of the confrontation.
"These people are disrupting our work. I've tried to convince them peacefully, but they're being stubborn. I'd like them moved, so these people can get to work," Hisasa said to the shinobi in charge before turning to look at Ennotora with a smug smile.
Workers refusing to work wasn't, per se, illegal, and it was the business's purview to fire them if they weren't satisfied. The striking workers had been protesting peacefully, so there was no reason for law enforcement to get involved, but now they were obstructing work, which gave Hisasa a reason to get them involved.
"Are you sure?" The shinobi in charge whispered to him. "If push comes to shove, they might destroy the furnaces rather than letting someone else work with them… "
A damaged furnace would be highly damaging to the business because it would mean not only having to repair it, which would cost money, but also a delay in work for several days until the repairs were done, which they couldn't afford.
"Do it," said Hisasa. The workers wouldn't dare destroy it, because it could very well mean they would get fired, and that wasn't what any worker wanted.
The shinobi nodded and turned to address the workers who blocked the entrance and asked them to vacate the premises if they weren't going to work.
"This isn't your fight, shinobi. Leave," said the furnace leader, but there was a nervousness on his features and those of the workers behind him. Even though there were only three of them against more than three dozen workers, the shinobi were a horrifying threat.
The shinobi turned to Ennotora. "What about you? Want to persuade your people to step aside?" When he got no response, he declared, "So be it. This is the last warning. Move of your own accord, or you will be moved."
The furnace leader and Ennotora exchanged glances and nodded. The shinobi realised that a peaceful resolution wasn't possible and stepped forward with his two companions. It only took a few minutes, but it was a completely one-sided beat down as the trio subdued the workers, who were not only weaker but also had close to no professional experience in fighting.
As the shinobi fought, Hisasa glanced at Ennotora and other striking workers who watched and listened to the cries of their fellow workers who were putting up a futile resistance against the superior force of the shinobi.
Why weren't they interfering? Hisasa thought before scoffing, but understood the reason. He wished Ennotora were part of the workers blocking the furnace, because then he would've been thrown in jail for a couple of days, which Hisasa could've used to put big dents in the strike coalition.
The commotion soon ended as the shinobi rounded up the bruised workers, noting that a couple nights of rest would fix them right up, and had the civilian officers part of the constabulary restrain and take them to the town jail.
"Listen, I'd rather not interfere with this," the shinobi pointed at Hisasa.
Ennotora frowned. "Hey, you can't say that—"
"I can say whatever I want," the shinobi said. Hisasa swallowed and subconsciously stepped back. "But, I'm here to enforce the law, so if you try to do this again, he's in his full rights to demand that I do this each and every time."
Ennotora nodded, his clenched fists trembling as he fought to keep the anger off his face.
———
.
That evening, Ennotora visited the old lady's house to meet with Tozo and gather more information. Tozo hadn't arrived yet, but he found the woman sitting in the dining room eating dinner with the old lady.
"Oh, you're here," she said while eating, but noticed something, "and you're angry."
"I just stood there watching my men get beaten up. Of course, I'm angry!" Ennotora shouted with emotion. His standing by and not interfering was part of the plan. The strike couldn't afford to lose him, so he couldn't put himself in any form of jeopardy. The worst part was that, even if he were to interfere, there was nothing he could do.
In the face of the shinobi, there was nothing a meagre ironworker could accomplish and that, more than anything, frustrated him to his core.
"That's why I chose you," she said while taking her dirty dishes to the kitchen sink.
"What?"
"I considered a couple more people to approach, but in the end, I chose you because you truly felt the plight of the people and not just yourself. You're a great leader, Ennotora. Be proud of the fact that people trust you because you've earned it. Saying that, people have their own jobs. You keep doing your job, and allow me to do mine."
"Send more men to block anyone from working the furnaces? What if the constabulary comes again? Being beaten down over and over just means that someone will crack and go to Hisasa."
He didn't want to see injuries on his men again. Everyone knew the constabulary was under pressure from Baizan's men. Forget pressure, they were under their payroll as well, always willing to do things to seek out favors.
"They won't. This was the last time they will bother you."
"Are you sure? They're from the Hidden Leaf?"
"It's fine, it's fine. This type of work is my wheelhouse. Call it a family speciality," she said bitterly.
He felt there was something really complicated behind her words and smile, and didn't know what to say, so he decided not to probe.
"...Thank you, Tern."
———
.
The next day, the town's ironworkers arrived early at the furnace. There weren't enough outsider men to work a night shift, so nobody noticed when once again, the striking workers had set up a blockade, stopping the outsider workers from getting to work, but this time, there were almost twice as many of them blocking the entrance.
"These peasants don't learn, do they? If they like getting beaten up, then who am I to stop them?" Upon finding out, Hisasa went straight to the constabulary to round up the offenders and toss them in jail, only to be shocked by the response he got.
"We can't help you. Handle it on your own," said the shinobi in charge. He looked like he hadn't slept last night, his skin was a tone paler than the day before, and the way he wore his uniform was all sloppy. It gave a completely different impression from the day before.
"What?"
"They're your employees, making it your matter. If you don't want them there, go fire them."
"You can't do this! Didn't the mayor tell you to help us?!"
Baizan was the town's biggest employer, giving him significant political sway that he used to put the mayor in his pocket. That was why the leader of the people wasn't present at any of the negotiation meetings, as he was firmly in Baizan's corner. The constabulary, which answered to the mayor, was told to cooperate with Baizan's people as much as possible.
"I don't care. Deal with it on your own. If the mayor has a problem, he can come see me himself."
The dull look in the shinobi's eyes made Hisasa's heart flip. He looked at the desks of the other two shinobi stationed in the town as part of the constabulary, but found them empty. There didn't seem to be anything he could say, so he scoffed to save face and turned around to leave.
On his way out, he saw one of the other shinobi smoking outside. There were half a dozen cigarette butts on the ground next to his feet. When the shinobi saw him approach, he clicked his tongue and gave him a look one would give to their mortal enemy before weaving hand seals and disappearing in the wind, kicking up dust.
Hisasa was dumbfounded. As the Iron King's right-hand man, he was respected wherever he went. It had been a while since he had been disrespected so much by so many people below his station. And that somehow only got worse when he got to the mayor's house.
"The mayor has taken sick. Unfortunately, he won't be able to meet you."
Hisasa wasn't a fool. He understood that the mayor, Baizan's little puppet, had just snubbed him. He wanted to rage, but something crept from the back of his mind. The shinobi and mayor, who were supposed to be firmly on his side, had suddenly turned against him in a single night.
"...Tell him I wish him good health. And when he feels better—"
He couldn't tell what it was, but there was something wrong.
"Boss! Boss!" One of his subordinates rushed towards him, waving a telegram and looking distressed. His wrong feeling suddenly got worse when the subordinate said, "Another town has declared a work stoppage and is striking for better wages!"
.
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