Chapter 46: The Daimyo's Mediation
The Daimyo of the great nations, especially the five major ones, were mostly related and had close ties, for two main reasons.
First, it was said that the legitimacy of all the Daimyo's rule stemmed from the ancient Land of Ancestors. If you traced their lineage back far enough, they were all one family, perhaps even descended from the same person.
Second, there was a long history of intermarriage between the great nations and the smaller ones. Dana knew that among the current Thunder Daimyo's wives, the ones of higher status were all relatives of other Daimyo.
If you put the five Kage in a room, you'd think they were all mortal enemies. But if you put the five Daimyo in a room, you'd think they were all on the same team.
Dana didn't know what the Fire Daimyo's presence here meant, especially with the Third Hokage in tow, but it smelled like trouble. From a distance, he could see that the Third Raikage's brow was already furrowed.
He also found it strange that the Hokage, such an important figure, had managed to arrive without the Cloud, a major village with excellent border control, knowing about it. There was only one explanation: they had the Thunder Daimyo's help in concealing their movements.
Interestingly, the Third Hokage didn't look too happy either.
The two Daimyo took their seats. The Third Hokage sat to the Fire Daimyo's right, directly across from the Third Raikage. Dana was worried that if a fight broke out here, Asuka Castle would be sent flying into the sky.
"Lord Raikage," the Thunder Daimyo said, "on a whim, I invited the Fire Daimyo to celebrate the New Year with us. Please don't be offended."
The Third Raikage could only nod, his face a mask of indifference.
The Fire Daimyo covered the lower half of his face with a fan. "The roads have become much more dangerous lately," he said. "Thankfully, Lord Hokage was here to protect me. I am most grateful."
Hiruzen's eye twitched.
With a single sentence each, the two Daimyo had explained away the presence of the Fire Daimyo and the Hokage. But the atmosphere of the banquet was ruined. The Twelve Guardian Ninja entered and took their positions behind the Hokage, facing the Raikage. The Nine Samurai of the Thundercloud, who had been hiding somewhere, instantly appeared and formed a silent standoff.
"What are you doing?" Hiruzen snapped without turning his head. "Your job is to protect the Daimyo. Why have you abandoned your post?"
The Third Raikage was more direct. He simply waved his hand, and the Nine Samurai vanished into the corners of the hall. The Twelve Guardian Ninja, however, could not be so blatant. This was the Thunder Daimyo's territory; they were guests. They dispersed and took up positions in plain sight. The Nine Samurai would surely be keeping an eye on them.
The sudden, tense atmosphere had the nobles in the hall breaking out in a cold sweat. Even when the Thunder Daimyo called for dancers to perform, the once-pleasant music now sounded dull and lifeless. Even Lady Oki, who had been so eager to marry her daughter off to Arashi, was now silent, scurrying back to her seat.
Arashi's eyes were fixed on a corner of the room, where one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja, a member of the Aburame clan, was standing. As Arashi was staring at the Konoha ninja, the Konoha ninja was openly staring back at him and Dana. He had been assigned to the Daimyo's guard right after the Twelve Guardian Ninja was formed, so he had only heard about the recent conflict. It seemed to have been started by the smaller boy, and his own cousin had been captured by the Cloud.
In his eyes, the muscular one of the two sons of the Raikage seemed quite strong, probably in his twenties and a good match for himself. He felt the urge to challenge him. The other one was just a kid. He couldn't imagine how he could have caused so much trouble.
On a whim, he secretly sent one of his kikaichū crawling towards the smaller boy. The insect had no chakra and could only be detected visually. It was a common trick for covertly marking an enemy. He sent the menacing-looking insect crawling towards the boy, intending to have it crawl into his food and give him a good scare. He could already imagine the brat screaming and crying.
But to his surprise, Dana casually crushed the insect with one finger before it even revealed itself. He then looked at the Aburame ninja with the eyes of a dead fish. "Playing with bugs at the dinner table is disgusting," he said, his voice cold. "If you try that again, I'll have someone pull every last bug out of your clan members' bodies and feed them to them for dinner."
The Aburame ninja's breath caught in his throat. After a moment, he awkwardly looked away. This is no child, he thought. Even the bullies in the village aren't this vicious.
The banquet continued in a lukewarm fashion. Dana didn't care. He continued to sample the various delicacies, watching the nobles who were too scared to eat, and thinking what a waste of good food it was.
Then, as he had expected, the Thunder Daimyo spoke again, revealing the true purpose of this awkward gathering. "Lord Raikage," he said, "I heard you and Lord Hokage had a misunderstanding. But our two nations have been at peace for many years. Since you are both here, why not take this opportunity to leave the old grievances in the old year?"
The Third Raikage remained impassive. He leisurely took a sip of sake. "So the Hokage came here to beg for mercy, using the Fire Daimyo as a shield? I thought Konoha was a village that accepted its losses. I wasted a lot of breath at the negotiation table."
The Third Hokage crossed his arms and shook his head slightly. "Konoha has no intention of reneging on any of our agreements. I am simply here for the Daimyo's safety."
"Has Konoha fallen so low that it needs its Kage to act as a bodyguard?"
"And I find it strange that you, Lord Raikage, look less like a ninja and more like a wealthy landowner."
Interestingly, Hiruzen was still wearing his Hokage robes, while the Third Raikage was dressed in the lavish robes of a noble.
The verbal sparring continued, but it lacked the ferocity of their previous meeting in the Land of Iron, where they had been banging on the table and glaring at each other. It was as if they were acting, stating their positions for the record, tacitly accepting the Daimyo's mediation.
Dana understood. Hiruzen probably hadn't expected to run into the Third Raikage here. Whatever his original reason for accompanying the Fire Daimyo, this was likely not the outcome he had wanted.
"The matter of compensation has already been settled between the two Kage," the Fire Daimyo said. "I will not interfere. But I hope that in the future, you can live in harmony."
It was clear what was happening. The two Daimyo were brokering a peace. And the reason...
The Daimyo don't want the current balance of power to be upset, Dana guessed.
The Fire Daimyo didn't want Konoha to be weakened, and the Thunder Daimyo didn't want the Cloud to become too strong, at least not in this way, at the expense of the other.
He had been right. The five Daimyo were all on the same team. Was this the invisible hand of the Daimyo, influencing the ninja? He could guess what would happen next. If the Cloud continued to press its advantage, the Thunder Daimyo would likely reduce his support, while the Fire Daimyo would increase his support for Konoha. A brilliant piece of macroeconomic control. It seemed the Daimyo were also a factor in the chaos of the ninja world.
As Dana was pondering this, he heard the Thunder Daimyo, from the far end of the hall, speak again. "Lord Raikage, I heard you had another son a few years ago. Is he here with you today?"