Chapter 329: Rainbow Ice Wall
In Chiba City, the largest city in the western Land of Earth.
Inside a small private house, the five-year-old Koyuki Kazahana sat on a bed hugging her knees. Her guard, Sandayū Asama, was preparing food for her on the side.
After a long period of escape, having confirmed they had shaken off their pursuers, Sandayū was preparing to settle down in Chiba City. He planned to raise Koyuki here.
Only after she grew up would it be possible for Koyuki to compete with her uncle for the position of Daimyo of the Land of Snow. Sandayū was even already planning; when the time came, he could ask Iwagakure for help in defeating Dotō Kazahana.
However, Koyuki's thoughts were different from Sandayū's. She didn't like that lifeless country. Her father was dead, and she had no relatives left there. She didn't want to go back to that cold country again.
"Sandayū, I want to be an actress," Koyuki said, remembering the performance she had just seen in Chiba City.
Sandayū turned back, smiled at Koyuki, and said, "Alright, Princess. We will go to the stage tomorrow to have a look."
It just so happened that he had already decided to stay, and Koyuki did indeed need a new identity as a cover. Although it was somewhat cruel to let a princess like Koyuki become an actress, Sandayū had no better choice.
But just then, a knock on the door suddenly sounded.
Sandayū's face tightened. He reached out and grabbed the weapon placed on the side, then quickly ran in front of Koyuki. Koyuki also panicked and shrank back.
"Who is it?" Sandayū tried his best to keep his voice steady as he asked the person outside the door.
"I am the Fourth Tsuchikage of the Village Hidden in the Stones, Ishiro." The voice from outside left Sandayū stunned for several seconds.
"Tsu... Tsuchikage?" Sandayū couldn't quite believe it.
Although the Land of Snow was a remote place, as a guard, Sandayū still knew more or less about the famous powerhouses of the ninja world, let alone the Tsuchikage, who was considered one of the top existences in the ninja world.
On this point, Dotō's and Sandayū's views were different. Dotō was the Daimyo's son; his focus was different from a guard's like Sandayū.
He valued noble statuses like Daimyo. The upper limit of power in his eyes was perhaps the so-called Ice Release he relied on.
That was why Dotō would choose not to give the Third Tsuchikage face, whereas Sandayū was extremely nervous upon hearing "Fourth Tsuchikage."
After a moment of hesitation, Sandayū still cautiously opened the door.
After seeing Sandayū, Ishiro compared him with his memory of the original story. There was a faint impression; it should be correct.
"I want to talk to Princess Koyuki Kazahana," Ishiro said, getting straight to the point.
Sandayū was not surprised why Ishiro knew Koyuki's identity. The esteemed Tsuchikage had personally paid a visit; he certainly wouldn't have come for a mere guard like him. Sandayū nodded, entered the house, and at the same time, cleared a path for Ishiro.
Ishiro followed him into the house.
Inside the small house, Sandayū stood in front of the bed, while Koyuki hid behind him, only revealing one eye from the side.
Ishiro found a stool in the room and sat down, then said to Koyuki, "Princess Koyuki, I have heard about the events in your Land of Snow. Your uncle killed your father and snatched away your position as Daimyo."
"I am willing to help you defeat your uncle and make you the new Daimyo of the Land of Snow." Although Ishiro knew that the current Koyuki was still just a child, and the one who really made the decisions was probably Sandayū, he still looked at her as he spoke.
Koyuki panicked and quickly pulled her head back.
Sandayū was actually somewhat delighted. The Tsuchikage had personally come to say he would help them restore their country; there was great hope in this.
But he also knew that pies don't fall from the sky. Ishiro certainly had conditions, and the conditions would surely not be ordinary. If it were a simple discussion of remuneration, there would be no need for Ishiro to come personally. So he asked, "I wonder what the Tsuchikage's conditions are?"
If Ishiro proposed an unreasonable request like ceding the Land of Snow's territory, he would not agree.
Ishiro smiled and said, "I represent the Village Hidden in the Stones, not the Land of Earth, so I have no designs on the territory of the Land of Snow. I hope to cooperate with the Land of Snow. I have two conditions. First: our Iwagakure is willing to send people to establish a branch in the Land of Snow."
"In the future, the security of the Land of Snow will be handled by our Iwa ninjas. Of course, the Land of Snow must also provide a certain amount of funding. Our Iwa ninjas will protect the Land of Snow just as we protect the Land of Earth."
Hearing Ishiro's words, Sandayū was greatly surprised. Ishiro was planning for one hidden village to manage two countries; he had never heard of such a thing.
In fact, the first to do this was not Ishiro, but the Akatsuki. In the eyes of others in the ninja world now, the Akatsuki controlled both the Land of Rivers and the Land of Rain. If not for being wary of the Akatsuki's two Kage-level individuals, Konoha or Sunagakure would have long since made a move against this ninja organization that didn't know its own limits.
To get back on topic, Ishiro ignored Sandayū's surprise and continued, "The Land of Snow is not prosperous. The proportion of funding provided can be smaller than the Land of Earth's. In addition, the Land of Earth has developed very well these years, and our Iwagakure has contributed a lot. We will help the Land of Snow become prosperous as well."
Sandayū hesitated. He really wanted to agree, but such a major matter was not something he, a guard, could decide. But he also couldn't let Koyuki decide; she was still too young now and didn't understand anything.
This was also why Sandayū hadn't gone to Iwagakure to find the Iwa ninjas at the first opportunity but planned to wait until Koyuki grew up. Because such a major matter concerning the future of the Land of Snow needed to be decided by Koyuki herself.
Ishiro knew what Sandayū was struggling with and said, "If Mr. Sandayū thinks Princess Koyuki is still young, we can hold off on signing a treaty for now. We'll proceed according to this plan first. If in the future, Princess Koyuki feels that Iwa is no longer needed, we can withdraw."
With this concession from Ishiro, Sandayū no longer hesitated and immediately said, "Alright, I will agree on behalf of Princess Koyuki for now. Tell me your other condition."
Ishiro's first condition was truly a cooperation; the Land of Snow was not at a disadvantage. It was a matter of mutual benefit. Sandayū's hesitation was only because he didn't want to overstep his authority.
Ishiro nodded in satisfaction and said, "The second condition is: I need to see your Land of Snow's treasure."
Before Ishiro could finish his sentence, Sandayū became a little anxious. Just as he was about to object, Ishiro quickly said, "Please rest assured, I am not interested in wealth. If that so-called treasure is just property, I will not touch a single bit of it. However, if that thing is useful to a ninja, but not of much use to the Daimyo—that is, Princess Koyuki and her subjects—then I must ask the Princess to hand it over to me."
Sandayū thought for a moment and said, "Alright, I have no objection to this. But we have no way to find the treasure right now. I hope we can wait until Princess Koyuki is older to make a decision."
A glint flashed in Ishiro's eyes. He thought for a moment and said, "Alright, but I can only wait a few years. I will not wait for too long. I don't have time to wait for Princess Koyuki to fully grow up. We can wait until she is a little older and has a certain ability to judge before opening the treasure."
As he spoke, Ishiro's gaze swept over the neck of Koyuki, who had peeked her head out again. Sandayū's face stiffened. He knew that Ishiro probably already knew the key to opening the treasure.
So he could only nod awkwardly.
For Ishiro not to use force to snatch it was already very unusual in the ninja world. Sandayū believed that if their strengths and positions were swapped, he wouldn't be able to do what Ishiro had done.
"Alright, then let's set off," Ishiro said, standing up.
Sandayū was stunned and asked, "Set off now?"
Ishiro nodded and said, "That's right. I've already brought the manpower. They are right outside. Rest assured, a single Dotō Kazahana is not worth our Iwagakure's attention."
Just like that, the bewildered Koyuki, led by the both excited and apprehensive Sandayū, followed Ishiro's group and embarked on the road back to her country.
After reaching an agreement with Koyuki, or rather, Sandayū, Ishiro first sent someone to deliver a letter to Ōnoki, who was still in the Land of Snow, asking him to stay out of sight for a while.
Then Ishiro, with great fanfare and under the banner of avenging Sōsetsu Kazahana and reclaiming the position of Daimyo for Koyuki, led a large group of Anbu and swaggered towards the Land of Snow.
When Ishiro's group was within the Land of Earth, their travel speed was still very fast. But once they entered the territory of the Land of Snow, Ishiro immediately slowed down.
At every place he arrived, Ishiro would have Koyuki and Sandayū come forward to win over the civilians and officials of the various cities.
The purpose of Ishiro doing this was not to deal with Dotō, nor was it for Koyuki or the Land of Snow.
He was doing it for the other great hidden villages of the ninja world to see. Ishiro wanted to tell these potential enemies that their Iwagakure was attacking the traitor of the Land of Snow only at the request of the legitimate Daimyo.
It wasn't that Ishiro had any ambition; he had come to uphold justice at the invitation of the Land of Snow's Daimyo and civilians.
For Iwagakure to cooperate with the Land of Snow was, in a sense, equivalent to an expansion. These people might all come out to cause trouble. Ishiro had to occupy the moral high ground and not give them an excuse.
Even if they couldn't rush over in time now, it was hard to guarantee they wouldn't cause trouble in the future.
Bringing the Land of Snow under Iwagakure's protection was a big step for Ishiro, and he didn't want any accidents. On the contrary, he wanted to make the Land of Snow a template to attract more small and medium-sized countries to join them.
With Ishiro swaggering into the Land of Snow, Dotō naturally received the news at the first opportunity.
Receiving the news that Ishiro, the Fourth Tsuchikage, was personally leading Anbu to attack the Land of Snow, Dotō's anger outweighed his fear.
Ignorance and narrow-mindedness limited his imagination. He believed that no matter how formidable the Tsuchikage was, he would not necessarily be his opponent.
His response was very direct. He took all his trusted subordinates, left the capital of the Land of Snow directly, and went to meet Ishiro. He planned to give Ishiro a head-on blow.
He was confident that in the ice and snow of the Land of Snow, his Ice Release was invincible. If not for the fact that his Ice Release's power would be greatly reduced after leaving the Land of Snow, he might have already led his subordinates to expand his territory by force in the direction of the Land of Earth.
Ishiro, flying in the air, looked at the imposing Dotō leading a group of subordinates rushing to their deaths and felt truly speechless.
"Although I had no intention of letting you go, wouldn't it have been nice to obediently wait for death in the capital of the Land of Snow? Did you have to rush over to die in such a hurry?"
While forming a hand seal with one hand to prepare his Porcelain Release, Ishiro used his chakra to shout loudly at the rushing subordinates of Dotō, "Members of the Snow Ninja! I am the Fourth Tsuchikage of Iwagakure, here to help Princess Koyuki Kazahana reclaim her rightful position as Daimyo!"
"I can forgive your past ignorance, but please remember, as long as you protect your special armor from being destroyed, I will consider sparing your lives later."
After speaking, the Porcelain Release was immediately activated. Under Ishiro's unrestrained urging, more and more mud was generated from thin air around him. In the blink of an eye, a mud barrier that seemed like a heavenly curtain stretched horizontally between the two sides. Then this overwhelming mud barrier moved towards the group of pseudo-Ice Release ninjas of the Land of Snow, airtight.
Because Ishiro's body had been slowly transformed by Porcelain, Storm, and Light Release over the years, his physical strength had improved a lot. In addition, with several increases in his spiritual power, his current chakra amount had far surpassed what it was before.
Although he was still at the bottom among Kage-level individuals, Ishiro firmly believed that once Kakashi also became Kage-level, he could shed this awkward position.
Ishiro, whose chakra amount had increased, was used to being frugal. No matter who he fought, he never dared to squander it too much. After all, those worthy of his action were not ordinary people.
But today, Ishiro planned to squander it to his heart's content. An enemy of Dotō's level was simply not worthy of his serious attention. If not for his special status, Ishiro wouldn't even have wanted to do it himself.
At the same time, Ishiro was also doing this to give the dumbfounded Koyuki and Sandayū below an impression of invincibility.
If he had let the Anbu make a move, and they fought back and forth for an hour or so, and finally won, perhaps even with some casualties, then Koyuki and Sandayū would have much less reverence for Iwagakure. Perhaps under the persuasion of other hidden villages, they would change their minds in the future.
And on the opposite side, when Dotō heard Ishiro's light-hearted and harsh words about considering sparing their lives, he had also wanted to respond with a few words.
After all, they were both people of status. "I, this great villain, have rushed over in a hurry. You should at least let me say a few harsh words, catch up with my dear niece."
But before he could open his mouth, his words were stuck in his throat. Because Ishiro had, from the very beginning, used the move he had prepared to deal with a rampaging complete Tailed Beast.
As that sky-blotting tide of mud rolled towards them, Dotō and his men could only stand with their mouths agape, unable to utter a single word.
Some summoned the flying wings from their armor, wanting to escape. But it was useless. The height and speed of the mud tide both indicated that trying to fly away was futile.
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