The negotiation issues seemed to have become someone else's problem. Rong lin leaned back in his chair, watching Yagura, who was doing much the samestaring back at him incessantly. The two of them just sat there in the conference room, locked in a staring contest.
What benefits to extract from the Hidden Mist Village or how to bleed them dry was the Third Hokage's concern. It had nothing to do with him; Rong lin was mostly just an observer.
"No way!! Konoha has absolutely no sincerity. This is robbery!!!"
Soon enough, the conditions proposed by Konoha had the Hidden Mist delegation shouting. They felt Konoha was taking advantage of their misfortune, setting the price far too high.
"This time, Konoha was inexplicably attacked by your Hidden Mist Village, forcing us into a war. We lost too many ninjas, and our resource consumption has been severe. I believe you all know in your hearts that, as far as I'm concerned, Konoha's demands are not excessive."
The Hidden Mist delegation felt a headache coming on. It wasn't that Konoha's asking price was astronomical, but if they compensated according to the price set by the Third Hokage, the Hidden Mist would lose a massive amount of funds.
After the war, the Hidden Mist Village needed time to recover and rebuild. If Konoha exploited them so ruthlessly, their recovery period would be extended indefinitely.
The so-called negotiation was nothing more than Konoha trying to carve a pound of flesh from the Hidden Mist, while the Mist felt the cost was too high and refused to agree. Both sides bickered back and forth, each trying to force the other to back down.
Honestly, this kind of negotiation was a bit boringat least, that was how Rong lin felt.
The Third Hokage was far too indecisive. If it were up to him and they complained about the price? Then he would just exchange them one by one and see what they did then. He'd spread word that the Hidden Mist had only traded for the high-ranking officials, ensuring that everyone else felt like discarded pawns.
Let's see what those left behind would do once they were eventually released.
Without a doubt, the first day of negotiations was a failure. Konoha was unwilling to yield, and the Hidden Mist was unwilling to accept such a cost.
"What a boring negotiation."
Unfortunately, that was the nature of negotiations. Even the smallest concession was worth fighting for. If one day didn't work, take two; if two didn't work, take three. Now that the war for the Hidden Mist was over and they were in recovery, they had plenty of time to talk slowly with Konoha.
But the question was, did Konoha have the time?
The front lines were still locked in a chaotic struggle. The Third Hokage naturally didn't have the time to waste on these petty squabbles.
"I hope you will attend in my place tomorrow, representing me and the village in the talks with the other side."
Inside the Hokage's Office, the Third Hokage, after some consideration, chose to delegate some of his authority and hand this matter over to Rong lin.
"Me?"
Rong lin had thought the Third Hokage wanted to say something else, but he never expected the man to toss the power to him, letting him represent the Hokage and the village in the negotiations with the Hidden Mist!!!
His lip twitched violently. Rong lin hadn't expected the Third Hokage to actually dare to delegate such authority. Wasn't he afraid of others becoming suspicious?
"But didn't the other side specifically ask to speak with the Hokage? If I go, I'm afraid I won't be able to keep them in line."
Rong lin wasn't a fool. Why would he take on such a thankless task so easily?
But the Third Hokage wasn't worried about that. He said bluntly, "All they want is for Konoha to back down. For them, the sooner it's over, the better." After speaking, the Third Hokage looked at Rong lin. Rong lin couldn't help but roll his eyes. So, the plan was to have him play the villain.
Still, playing the bad guy seemed like it might be quite fun.
"If the talks stall, then release those people slowlybatch by batch!!!"
Though he was indecisive at times, the Third Hokage was no pushover. When it was time to be ruthless, he could be just as cold-blooded as anyone else!!!
Since they couldn't reach an agreement, there was nothing left to discuss. We'll just slowly release your people, but once they're out, we have no idea if they'll turn into Missing-nin.
You have to realize that these imprisoned Hidden Mist ninjas were counting the days in their cells, waiting for their village to send someone to trade for them. If Konoha were to spread some propaganda at this time,
saying the Hidden Mist didn't value them and refused to give up even a tiny bit of profit, and then embellished the story a bit... just think about what those Mist ninjas would do once they were finally set free?
Becoming a Missing-nin would likely be the best-case scenario; it would be a miracle if they didn't band together to take revenge on the village.
I hope you all are mentally prepared for tomorrow. I'm not the Third Hokage. Next, we'll see who can last longer in this stalemate!!!
Leaving the Hokage's Office, Rong lin pondered how he should torment the Hidden Mist delegation tomorrow.
"Can we talk?"
A figure stood at the corner not far from the Hokage Building. Rong lin turned his head and saw Yagura.
"Didn't anyone tell you that you shouldn't be wandering around right now? If you get spotted, you won't be able to explain yourself even if you had ten mouths."
"I came here openly and honestly. I assume the people of Konoha don't have such a strong desire for revenge, right?"
Yagura spread his palms indifferently. He wasn't worried about anything happening to him unless Konoha wanted to continue the war with the Hidden Mist at a time like this.
You had to realize that their losses were immense. Over two thousand people had been captured by Konoha, and combined with the death of the Third Mizukage, the entire Hidden Mist Village was in a state of turmoil. If something happened to him, the Fourth Mizukage, while in Konoha, it would only cause the recently subsided war to erupt once again.
"Konoha doesn't have such a strong thirst for vengeance. Speak up, what do you want to talk about?"
Rong lin looked at Yagura. This brat was no simple character. Then again, if he were simple, could he have become the Fourth Mizukage?
Without absolute skill and strength, sitting in that position wouldn't be easy.
Yagura pointed at the ground and smiled. "Are you sure you want to talk here?"
"Follow me then." Raising an eyebrow, Rong lin led Yagura toward the outskirts of the village.
"My Lord."
The sealing site of the Three-Tails was generally off-limits. Seeing someone approach, the ANBU ninjas guarding the seal grew alert. Once they recognized it was Rong lin, they relaxed.
"You all may step down. No need to be on duty today. If you have any questions, go find the Hokage." Rong lin waved them off, signaling that they could leave.
"Yes, sir."
The few of them exchanged looks but ultimately left to report to the Hokage. "I didn't realize you had quite a bit of influence within Konoha's ANBU."
Seeing Rong lin wave them away and the ANBU members depart, Yagura sensed the existence of the seal. He understood what was contained within...
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