Shinichi paid it no mind and continued.
"First of all, congratulations on surviving. If nothing unexpected happens, there will come a day when you can return to the Land of Water alive."
The moment those words fell, a subtle commotion spread through the crowd. Many prisoners exchanged glances. Some frowned, while others whispered something under their breath.
Before the disturbance could die down on its own, a hot-tempered Kirigakure ninja abruptly sprang to his feet and roared, "Shinichi Higashino, what exactly are you trying to pull? Want us to sell out our village? Keep dreaming! Even if I die, I'll never become Konoha's lapdog!"
"Moriki Yuki! You bastard, show some respect!" Before Shinichi could respond, several Konoha guards shouted sharply, their hands simultaneously moving to their sword hilts.
Shinichi raised a hand and gently pressed it downward, signaling them to calm down, then he looked at the Kirigakure ninja named Moriki Yuki.
"No one is asking you, or any of you, to betray your village."
As he spoke, Shinichi slowly swept his gaze across the assembled Kirigakure ninja once more.
"Over the past few days, you've probably all been entertaining various thoughts. Is Shinichi Higashino going to stand above us and lecture us? Is he going to give some grand speech to persuade us to surrender? Is he planning to pick suitable candidates from among us and turn them into Konoha spies?"
He shook his head slightly.
"None of that. If I wanted to persuade people to defect or recruit spies, I would approach individuals privately, one by one, divide them, and win them over separately. That would actually be effective. I wouldn't gather nearly a thousand of you together like this and discuss it openly in front of everyone. I brought you here for one reason only: To announce this matter itself. It's really that simple."
Hearing this, Moriki Yuki craned his neck as if preparing to argue further, but a Kirigakure Jonin sitting beside him reached out, pulled him back down into his seat, and stood up himself.
"Shinichi-sama, are you telling the truth?"
This Kirigakure Jonin was clearly far more restrained than his companion; he had even used the honorific, sama, when addressing him.
In truth, most of the Kirigakure ninja present did not harbor much hatred toward Shinichi Higashino.
Ninjas fought and killed one another on the battlefield. Life and death were simply part of the profession, and they had accepted that reality on the very first day they put on a forehead protector.
Moreover, the Village Hidden in the Mist was known as the bloody mist. The laws of survival of the fittest and the strong preying upon the weak were engraved into their bones.
Even if Shinichi Higashino was the chief culprit behind their current predicament, he had achieved it through undeniable strength, so no matter how rebellious or unruly a Kirigakure ninja might be, they had to admit one thing: Shinichi Higashino was strong.
"Naturally."
Shinichi replied with a nod.
His straightforward answer stirred another subtle wave of commotion among the crowd.
The Kirigakure Jonin remained silent for a moment before speaking again.
"Shinichi-sama, I have one more question. Why is Konoha doing this?"
Shinichi looked at him and calmly continued.
"Because both you and I are human. Whether you're Kirigakure ninjas or Konoha ninjas, you're all living human beings."
"Since we are human, fighting with all our strength for our respective sides on the battlefield is our duty as ninja, and there is nothing to criticize about that. But when the other side has laid down their weapons, lost the ability to resist, and ceased being an enemy and become a living person once more, then providing basic treatment and care is not for any grand purpose. It is simply for the sake of that part of ourselves that still belongs to humanity and has not yet been completely extinguished."
Human? Living human beings?
The Kirigakure ninjas below were all stunned.
The word felt distant and strangely unfamiliar to them.
There had never been a place for humans in the doctrines of ninja. They were taught to cast aside emotion, erase the self, and become perfect tools.
In Village Hidden in the Mist, students even had to kill a fellow classmate at graduation, a companion who had trained and grown alongside them for years, to prove they had discarded all unnecessary emotions.
Only then were they considered qualified ninja.
"I've heard that Village Hidden in the Mist students must kill a classmate upon graduation before they are recognized as ninja. Is that true?"
Shinichi asked as his gaze swept across the crowd.
After the question was asked, silence briefly filled the yard, then many Kirigakure ninja revealed expressions of dissatisfaction, and some opened their mouths, clearly about to argue, but Shinichi gave them no chance to speak and continued.
"Although I do not agree with this practice of Village Hidden in the Mist, I won't comment on it further here. My personal view is that while ninja may be tools, before becoming tools, we are first human beings. That part of ourselves that is human should not be completely abandoned."
"So I submitted a proposal to the village, and the village approved it."
A proposal?
"To establish a public agreement governing the treatment of enemy wounded and prisoners during wars and missions."
"Any enemy ninja who has lost the ability to fight, laid down their weapons, or declared surrender shall receive timely shelter and treatment. They shall not be killed or abandoned to die. Prisoners, regardless of origin, shall receive basic humane treatment. Necessary medical care must be provided."
"Abuse and public humiliation are prohibited. Inhumane interrogation and experimentation are even more strictly forbidden. After the war ends, or when appropriate opportunities arise, prisoners shall be repatriated according to conditions agreed upon by both sides and shall not continue to be detained without cause."
"This public agreement is what I call the Rinkai City Convention."
As he spoke, Shinichi once again swept his gaze across the Kirigakure prisoners whose expressions varied widely.
Then he said, word by word: "And you are the first group to be protected by this convention."
Upon hearing this, realization dawned across the faces of the Kirigakure prisoners.
No wonder Konoha's treatment of them over the past month had felt so strange.
There had been no public humiliation, no torture, no withholding of food or water. Even when someone fell ill or old injuries flared up, professional Medical Ninjas were sent to treat them.
According to customs that had existed throughout the Shinobi World for centuries, anyone captured during war or missions would never fare well, even if they survived.
They had assumed Konoha was acting on a whim or plotting some scheme. Only now did they understand that all of it stemmed from the proposal of the young man standing before them.
The Kirigakure Jonin remained silent for a moment before asking another question.
"Shinichi-sama, I assume this convention is not intended to apply only to Konoha?"
"Naturally." Shinichi nodded. "Konoha will formally propose this convention in the future and invite the other four great ninja villages to sign it as well. With the Five Great Ninja Villages taking the lead, every nation and village will gradually be brought into it, until it ultimately becomes a standard observed by all ninja."
The Kirigakure Jonin fell silent again, and after a long time, he finally spoke in a bitter tone.
"Shinichi-sama, first of all, thank you for your goodwill. Your idea is a good one. However, it will not be easy. I'm afraid it is too idealistic. The village will never sign it. Not just our village, even the others won't sign it either."
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