"Lord Daimyo, I've noticed that the guards at the Daimyo Mansion have increased quite a bit over the past two days. It seems you've taken our conversation to heart."
Sashin from the Hidden Sand Village spoke to the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers. This time, he felt confident in persuading the Daimyo to their side; this way, they could increase their share of resources from the Hidden Sand Village and stockpile war weapons.
"Although Lord Daimyo is related to the Land of Fire Daimyo, the stable annual output of several hundred million ryo from the Cloud River Iron Mine is tempting enough. Furthermore, considering that you have already declined the Land of Fire Daimyo, there's no other choice but to cooperate with us, the Hidden Sand Village."
The Hidden Sand Village had volunteered to join the officials from the Daimyo's Mansion of the Land of Wind in persuading the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers.
If they successfully persuade the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers, not only will they obtain a larger share of the Cloud River Iron Mine, but they will also push their front lines right up to the doorstep of the Land of Fire, directly confronting Kikyo Castle... Ultimately, annexing all metal mine resources in the Land of Rivers!
This was the decision reached through high-level discussions at the Hidden Sand Village.
Initially, even without the whistleblower secretly tipping them off, the high-level members of the Hidden Sand Village planned to falsely accuse Konoha, claiming that they had designs on the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers.
But it turned out to be unnecessary, as it was unexpected that Konoha did indeed have such intentions. When the Hidden Sand Village received this information, they were somewhat skeptical at first, but after multiple verifications, and after deploying a spy embedded within Konoha, they finally confirmed that the information was eighty percent true.
This gave the Hidden Sand Village even more confidence in persuading the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers, and now, it seemed that even the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers was somewhat inclined to believe them.
After a quiet moment inside the room, the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers finally spoke: "Let's discuss this matter later. The Land of Fire has also sent a letter of visitation, and their envoys will visit in half a month, along with the emissary from the Hidden Rain Village. Wouldn't it be better if all four parties discuss together then?"
The Land of Rivers has only three neighboring countries, and exports can't bypass these three countries. However, the Hidden Rain Village is just an appendage, as they often occupy only a small share each year, mainly because Konoha and the Hidden Sand Village give Hanzo some face.
Otherwise, if they truly sealed off the Hidden Rain Village, Hanzo might go mad.
"Lord Daimyo, the emissaries from Konoha are merely a facade. If they truly come, it's likely they're coming with the intent to assassinate you."
Sashin advised gravely, "If you're willing, Lord Daimyo, the Hidden Sand Village is willing to provide three Jonin squads to ensure your safety."
"The current security force at the Daimyo Mansion is sufficient; your kind offer is noted."
The Daimyo of the Land of Rivers folded up his fan and continued: "However, it would be best for all four parties to discuss matters regarding the Cloud River Iron Mine together. The Land of Rivers is weak and can hardly give a definite answer to you unless... the Hidden Sand Village is willing to support the Land of Rivers in establishing its own Ninja Village!"
"That's impossible!"
Sashin's expression changed, blurting out instantly; realizing his tone was inappropriate, especially after seeing the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers' expression turn sour, he quickly added,
"This matter is beyond my authority. I will convey your meaning to Lord Kazekage!"
Regardless of conveying it, it was impossible to agree; the previous rise of the Hidden Rain Village had already given the Hidden Sand Village quite a headache. The Land of Rivers wanting to establish a Ninja Village is absolutely out of the question!
A new Ninja Village in the vicinity would mean fewer missions for the Hidden Sand Village, and it would become troublesome to freely enter and exit the Land of Rivers in the future. On this matter, the Hidden Sand and Konoha had already reached a consensus; it is absolutely impossible to let the Land of Rivers establish a Ninja Village.
Upon hearing this, the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers responded calmly: "In that case, let's wait for the emissaries from the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain to arrive before discussing the matter of the Cloud River Iron Mine."
"In that case, I shall visit another day."
Realizing it was not possible to persuade the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers this time, Sashin requested to take his leave.
The group from the Hidden Sand Village then left the Tenshu Tower, but as they exited the Tenshu Tower, Sashin glanced at Uchiha Yoichi and Kakashi, who were guarding the entrance.
After leaving the Daimyo Mansion, Sashin asked a subordinate beside him: "Have you found out how many new guards the Daimyo Mansion of the Land of Rivers has recruited?"
A ninja from the Hidden Sand Village responded: "So far, we have identified six additional guards. They seem to be hired from the Underground Gold Exchange, but whether there will be more is not yet clear."
"If these six dare to venture outside, notify me immediately."
Sashin had no intentions of being courteous to the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers. Small countries should know their place; just because they've recruited a few wandering ninjas doesn't mean they have the backing to face a great nation.
Not long after Sashin's group left the Daimyo Mansion of the Land of Wind, a guard at the mansion's entrance suddenly collapsed. Another guard hurriedly approached him and asked, "Hey, what's wrong with you?"
"Me? I don't know; why did I suddenly faint?"
The guard, coming back to his senses, said he suddenly felt as though he had fallen asleep, with no memory of it.
Meanwhile, Yamanaka Ryosuke suddenly opened his eyes, took a deep breath, and said, "Good, there are no Perception Ninjas. This makes things easier!"
With that said, he formed a double-handed seal, swiftly performing Perception Ninjutsu to lock onto the group from the Hidden Sand Village.
——————————————
Two days later, Sashin still hadn't found an opportunity to act. He realized those newly arrived guards were likely not going to leave, as they were on assignment, and even wandering ninjas would possess basic task etiquette.
However, he wasn't about to give up. Since he couldn't eliminate the new guards at the Daimyo Mansion of the Land of Rivers, he decided to target the original samurai guards of the Daimyo Mansion.
He remembered that the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers had always been proud of this samurai guard and that it was rumored that several of its leaders were samurai from the Land of Iron, reputedly able to slay Jonin.
Now he wanted to cause some trouble for the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers, to show why the Hidden Sand Village could be one of the Five Great Ninja Villages.
"Sir."
Suddenly, someone pushed the door open and hurried toward him.
"No need to panic, what's going... Who are you?"
Before Sashin could finish asking, he realized something was wrong and quickly drew a kunai, intending to leap back to create distance.
But the person dressed like a Hidden Sand ninja seemed aware of his intentions. As Sashin drew the kunai, the person reached behind, and a white light appeared.
Swish!
An invisible wind blade sliced through, and Sashin immediately felt a sharp pain. Before he could shout, he saw his arm suddenly fall to the ground.
"Ah...."
"Silence!"
A white, glowing short blade pressed against Sashin's throat, and in the reflection of the light, he saw the attacker's features.
White hair and a white short blade that moved almost too fast to see.
"You, you are Konoha White Fang!?"
Hatake Sakumo slightly pressed the short blade into Sashin's neck and then asked, "How many of you came from the Hidden Sand Village? How many more are coming?"
"You think I would tell—"
Bang!
Before Sashin could finish his sentence, he was knocked unconscious by Sakumo with a blow from the hilt of his blade.
Hatake Sakumo knew that it would be difficult to get a Hidden Sand Village ninja to talk. From the start, he planned to divert the opponent's attention with this question, then capture him alive and take him back for Yamanaka Ryosuke to search his mind for information.
Even if Sashin divulged information about their village, Hatake Sakumo wouldn't trust it.