The days of being a puppeteer in Konoha

Chapter 222 Negotiation
At noon the next day, in the lobby of the orphanage.

At this time, almost everyone gathered here, watching Hideki reading a letter with a nervous look on their faces.

This letter was delivered to the orphanage by a man in black this morning. After delivering it, the man disappeared in a puff of white smoke.

The child who received the letter informed the adults, which led to the current situation.

Hideki read the letter three times before putting it down, then smiled and said:

"It seems that the other party has finally given in and said that they will return the remaining children to us..."

"Great!"

"Atra and the others are finally coming back!"

The hall then erupted into deafening cheers from the children.

Especially those children who were rescued first, they have been feeling a sense of survivor’s guilt these days.

Now they can finally smile with relief.

Matt Dai and Aunt Kelly were also wiping their tears with joy.

Only Nono looked relieved on the surface, but he was full of doubts in his heart:

Are things...really going so smoothly?

Indeed, there are no irreconcilable contradictions between the two sides.

It is normal for Yinhu to give in a little for the survival of the organization.

But just as Yinhu knew her nature, she also knew Yinhu's character well.

Would he, who has always been cautious and petty, really give in willingly?

Isn't this really a cheap trick?

More importantly, will Hideki Kimura, who has devoted a lot of time and energy to this, really let Tora and the others go so easily?
It is probably not that easy to reach a result that satisfies both parties.

In this case, those children who are still in the enemy camp may not be truly out of danger...

……

Not long after, in Hideki's office, Fugaku shook his head after reading the letter:

"The other party is really calculating."

"You already knew that your real body was near the children, and you used their return as a bargaining chip."

"Isn't this too cheap for them?"

Hideki smiled and said:
"You definitely can't throw all your chips out at once."

"In addition to returning the child, the other party should also propose conditions such as not to attack the area around Konoha in the future..."

"Otherwise, the other party wouldn't let me pick someone up at the location they designated. There will definitely be specific negotiations at that time."

Fugaku raised his eyebrows and said:
"Hideki, you don't really want to agree to them, do you?"

"We have such a huge advantage now, we should take the opportunity to root them out."

"Advantages... If the opponent is just the human trafficking organization, then it is indeed the case."

Hideki spread his hands and smiled bitterly.

"But the problem is the power behind it..."

"Don't forget that we have attacked so many dens these days, and all we caught were random people. We still haven't found any clues to catch the leader of the other side."

"And this negotiation is a good opportunity."

"Should we quit while we are ahead or take this opportunity to catch them all at once? We will have to decide when the time comes."

"Otherwise, if the other party plays a game of life and death with us, it will not be worth it for us."

Apparently, Fugaku was a little too eager for quick success because of the recent surge in the reputation of the police department.

Now that he had calmed down, he nodded in agreement:
"It seems that this is the only way. Do you need me and the Flying Tigers to go with you?"

Hideki shook his head and said:
"The letter stated that the other party wanted to meet with me alone."

"Obviously, the other party knew that he was at a greater disadvantage, so he used me as bait to lure me over for negotiation."

"If they discover your presence, they will definitely not show up."

"Of course, both sides will most likely use shadow clones to meet, so traps and ambushes are actually meaningless."

"But just in case, I still have to ask you, Fugaku, for something first..."

……

The next morning, Hideki drove alone to a remote manor outside Konoha according to the address on the letter.

As soon as he arrived nearby, he felt a chakra fluctuation from a perception array, and the coverage area was quite large.

It seems that the other party decided to stay here just to prevent Hideki from bringing the Flying Tigers to encircle and suppress them.

Hideki had a smooth journey and finally arrived at a beautiful courtyard.

A burly man bowed and said:
"Mr. Kimura, please wait a moment. Our leader will be here soon."

Are you sure there is no encirclement before you dare to come here?
Could it be that that guy doesn't know the Shadow Clone Technique?

Hideki grumbled a few words in his heart, then nodded to indicate that he had no objection.

Then he looked to the east of the courtyard, where there was a secret base of human traffickers not far from here.

And the children from the orphanage were sent there yesterday.

Because he was afraid of touching the other party's sensitive nerves and was unwilling to show up, Hideki still did not rescue the remaining children, as a way to give the other party courage.

A moment later, a man wearing gold-rimmed glasses walked into the courtyard. He extended his hand to Hideki in a familiar manner, as if he was meeting a business partner. He said,
"Teacher Kimura, I have heard of your name for a long time. I finally meet you today."

Seeing that Hideki didn't move, he withdrew his hand without embarrassment and said:

"Please sit down, would you like something to drink?"

Hideki said calmly:

"No need, let's get to the point."

"But before that, how do you prove that you are the leader of the organization?"

The other party's face froze slightly, then he adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and smiled bitterly:

“This question is really difficult for me.”

"For the time being, I can't find any witnesses or physical evidence that can convince you."

"I'm afraid that will depend on your own eyesight, Mr. Kimura."

"I see."

Hideki smiled slightly, then turned his head to look at the burly man still standing at the gate of the yard and said,
"Then it seems to me that the one guarding the door looks more like the boss of your organization."

clap clap clap...

The guy that Hideki was talking about suddenly changed his demeanor, and walked over leisurely while clapping his hands and smiling.

The man with gold-rimmed glasses quickly moved aside and was respectful.

"I admire you so much. I didn't expect you to see through me so quickly, Mr. Kimura."

The man said with interest,

"Can you tell me where we have let ourselves down?"

Hideki shrugged and said:
"You probably graduated from a professional school, so your acting skills are not a problem."

"But this gentleman's acting is too exaggerated, especially the obvious restraint when he was greeted by you when he entered the door, which shows the true status of yours."

"Besides, your organization is loosely structured and your personnel are of low quality. It is not something that a gentleman with gold-rimmed glasses like him can control."

"It seems that this gentleman has a deep prejudice against people who wear gold-rimmed glasses."

The man with gold-rimmed glasses smiled bitterly.

The burly man, Yinhu, laughed when he saw this, then waved his hand and asked him to leave.

Seeing this, Hideki seemed to be thinking about something.

Judging from this guy's attitude, it is very likely that he is the leader of this organization.

In fact, Hideki had always been skeptical about the other party's promise in the letter that he would come in person.

He even had the awareness that he was only meeting a cadre.

At least this would save him a lot of effort in following the clues, and it would be much easier to track him later.

But at first glance, Hideki knew that the guy in front of him was quite powerful.

As the boss of a human trafficking organization, it was already a bit condescending.

Moreover, he has a domineering temperament that is rarely seen in ordinary ninjas.

This kind of temperament can only be developed by someone who has been in a superior position for a long time and often gives orders.

That's why Hideki strongly suspected that he was the leader.

But why would he come here in person?

To show sincerity? Curiosity? Unsure about others handling the matter?

The sense of security brought by the Shadow Clone Technique?
No matter what, the other party's status must be extraordinary, which means that the plan can be advanced.

Just as Hideki's mind was spinning at high speed, Tora also spoke:

"Since you are so quick to speak, Mr. Kimura, I won't beat around the bush."

"I want you to publish the truth in the Konoha News."

"Tell everyone that the Ninja Turtles are just a legend you and the police department made up to fight human traffickers."

Yinhu said with emotion:

"I have to admit that the Ninja Turtles and the legend of revenge of the vengeful spirits are indeed a stroke of genius."

"Coupled with Konoha News's brand new propaganda method, the speed at which this legend spreads and its influence completely exceeds my imagination."

"In just two weeks, my organization lost one-tenth of its staff."

"Others are also worried all day, fearing that the evil spirits will come to find them."

"This is indeed much more effective than asking the police to arrest people directly."

"You are indeed Konoha's most popular invention genius. Your ideas are just out of this world."

However, Hideki listened to the other party's praise and just said with a puzzled look:

"Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles?"

"I have nothing to do with that thing, please don't frame me."

"And Konoha News has always adhered to the spirit of seeking truth from facts and will not make false reports."

(End of this chapter)