The Avengers of the Uzumaki Family

“Yagi-san just said that this was an order issued by your country’s Daimyo. Then why wasn’t this mission directly issued to Konoha? As the largest ninja village in the ninja world today, Konoha has a far greater number of ninjas and intelligence gathering capabilities than our Takigakure. Logically speaking, it would be easier for Konoha to carry out such a mission than for us. Why didn’t your country’s Daimyo do it that way?”

Shuiyan leaned forward slightly, her posture almost interrogative, and asked Menma in a deep voice.

This was a predictable development.

Konoha and the Land of Fire.

The Land of Hidden Rocks and the Land of Earth.

The Hidden Clouds and the Land of Lightning.

The Land of Mist and the Land of Water.

The Hidden Sands and the Land of Wind.

From the outside, the relationship between the five great nations and the five great ninja villages is one of direct entanglement. Every year, the five great ninja villages receive a large amount of material and financial support from the nations behind them. From high-ranking officials and nobles to any ordinary citizen, as long as there is a mission requirement, it is basically only issued to the ninja village of their own country.

This is a practice of aligning interests.

This is also the generally accepted practice.

While ordinary people and some traveling merchants may occasionally make exceptions by hiring ninjas from other ninja villages, it is unlikely that a mission issued by a high-ranking national official would be delivered to a ninja village outside of one's own country.

Because this is a fundamental difference.

This is an act that can easily affect the relationship between the nation and the ninja village.

There are ample reasons to doubt the authenticity of hookah.

"Hehe, so that's what you're wondering. Why do employers need to explain this kind of thing when they come to a ninja village to issue a mission? Or does Takigakure not want to take this mission? No problem, we can find another ninja village. It doesn't have to be Takigakure. Please understand that, Mizuki-san."

Of course, understanding is one aspect.

Whether or not to explain is another matter entirely.

At the very least, you must first have a firm grasp on the other person before you can play.

This deliberate, sudden change in attitude, accompanied by a soft hum, was a mere affectation.

Let's not even mention the younger Shibuki.

Shuiyan's expression changed. He wanted to gain control of the village, which was fine, but the more he wanted to, the less he could afford to cause trouble on key issues. Since he had confirmed that Mianma and the others' identities were not problematic, he naturally did not want to offend Mianma.

This is not just about a large customer; it's about a portion of the country's future workload that might be allocated to them.

However, it was precisely because of this that Shuiyan felt she needed to understand things more clearly, because anything involving Konoha would definitely not be a small matter.

It sounds contradictory, but that's the truth.

"Please don't misunderstand, Mr. Yifang. I was just curious. I'm sorry, Mr. Yifang!"

After apologizing to Ma, Shibuki, who was in the main seat, looked at Mizuki with a rare stern expression and said.

"Ah, um, it was my rudeness. Please forgive me, Mr. Yifang."

After taking a deep breath, the hookah lowered its head slightly in apology.

"However, this is ultimately a matter concerning Konoha, so please give us some pointers, Mr. Ichika, otherwise, it will indeed be difficult for us in Takigakure."

Shibuki may be inexperienced and have a soft personality, but he is by no means a naive fool. Such a person could never become the leader of a village. This is a major issue involving thousands of ninjas, and it is by no means a child's play.

I just didn't react in time.

After the hookah is opened.

Shibuki was naturally aware of this issue as well. After apologizing first, Shibuki restarted the conversation, looking at Menma with a slightly serious expression and asking.

Menma was prepared, but on the surface, he deliberately frowned and gave the two of them a deep look with a displeased expression before slowly nodding and saying, "Alright, since the leader insists, I'll say a little more. His Highness doesn't want Konoha to know about this matter. Do you understand?"

Famous name and shadow.

The nation and the village of Ren.

The relationships involved are incredibly complex.

Shibuki and Mizuki, who were also high-ranking members of the ninja village, would certainly know that the ninjas of these villages were only nominally obeying the country and the daimyo.

The truth is clear to everyone.

Not to mention the Land of Fire and Konoha.

The details of the infighting among the Twelve Guardian Ninja, who were once directly under the Daimyo, were known only to those within the organization. However, outsiders could still obtain some scraps of information, and Takigakure was no exception.

Mianma's words seemed quite vague.

But with just that one sentence, they thought they knew everything.

The two exchanged a glance.

After frowning and thinking for a moment, Shibuki said, "Well, I understand now that you say so, Mr. Ichika. However, could you give me a little time to think about it?"

"Giving me time is certainly possible, but I must remind Lord Shibuki that since I already know more about this matter, I hope to receive a satisfactory answer. I believe you understand what I mean?"

At this moment, Menma changed his previous peaceful demeanor and revealed an aggressive attitude.

There's nothing wrong with the wood.

Hookah's brows were clearly furrowed.

But the tougher Menma's attitude became, the less likely Shibuki and Suien would think about it.

"Yes, I understand."

After giving Menma a deep look, Shibuki turned and walked toward the small door at the back of the reception hall.

Hookah also got up and followed.

Mianma seemed completely unconcerned, picked up the teacup beside him, and began to sip his tea again.

Karin, who had remained silent from the beginning, glanced at Menma briefly, as if she wanted to say something, but ultimately remembered Menma's initial warning and continued to maintain her expressionless demeanor.

Meanwhile, Shibuki and Mizuki returned to the reception hall in less than ten minutes.

One person had a calm expression, while the other looked rather grim.

Just as Menma's gaze shifted to the two of them.

Shibuki let out a soft breath, then nodded and said, "Our Takigakure Village is willing to accept this mission and guarantees to complete Your Highness's request in the shortest possible time."

"Very good, I knew Lord Shibuki would bring me good news. And you should also be aware of the confidentiality of this mission?"

With a smile on his face, Mianma said.

"Yes, I understand. Please rest assured, Mr. Yifang, and please also convey to His Highness the Daimyo and the Minister that Takigakure will not let them down."

"I'm serious," said Shibuki.

"That's good. This is the agreed deposit. We will send people to contact you regularly in the future. Even if your village makes a profit, you don't need to contact us. The reason should be clear to you, Chief."

"Ok!"

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 148 An Incomparably Strong Ambition

"Then, we'll leave the rest to your village. This is the deposit for the mission, so we won't bother you any further."

After confirming the key points of the task one last time and paying the agreed-upon task deposit on the spot, Menma got up satisfied.

"Ah, then let me see you two off."

Then, with Shibuki and Suien seeing them off, they left Takigakure Village by the same route, watching Menma and the other person's departing figures.

The excitement on Shibuki's face was still hard to hide.

This was the first major diplomatic negotiation he had achieved. In the eyes of the young Shibuki, this mission would definitely bring great benefits to Takigakure Village, and even some unseen hidden advantages.

"Leader, is it really appropriate to accept this mission like this? After all, it involves Konoha. If we're not careful, our Takigakure village could very well be dragged into an unpredictable vortex."

The hookah in the corner looked at Shibuki with a gloomy expression and said.

What he said wasn't entirely unreasonable, but in the current ninja world, it's all too common for different countries and ninja villages to compete for mission quotas. Even if such a mission involves some internal issues between the Land of Fire and Konoha, what's a little risk compared to the visible benefits? There's no such thing as a free lunch in this world.

The opposition to hookah is more about opposing for the sake of opposing.

He had always coveted the throne of Takigakure's leader, and now he was determined to overthrow Shibuki's position. How could he possibly want to see Shibuki stabilize his position by achieving various political accomplishments?

“Shuiyan Sang, this is a pre-arranged matter, and didn’t we just ask Elder Qingtuo for his opinion? Now that the task has been accepted, let’s carry it out according to the rules.”

Shibuki also unusually took a hard line, looking at Mizuki in a very serious tone.

This conversation was somewhat unexpected.

This immediately turned the hookah's expression cold.

The conversation inside had already made Mizuki quite unhappy, and now this direct confrontation only fueled her anger. However, this was the main gate of the ninja village, and Shibuki was the village leader.

Shuiyan suppressed her anger, snorted coldly, and turned to leave.

"Don't give me a chance, Shibuki! And you old guys, don't push me too far. If you really anger me, you might as well destroy this whole village!"

As Shuiyan turned around, a cold glint appeared in her eyes, and she thought to herself with murderous intent.

Shibuki watched Mizuki's departing figure with a helpless expression on his face. Given his personality, he didn't want to be so forceful. Moreover, Shibuki was genuinely worried about what Mizuki had just expressed.

In short, Shibuki is the kind of person who hopes everything can proceed smoothly. But this mission, from the current perspective, can indeed bring great benefits to their ninja village and to him. Thinking of the teachings of the deceased old leader and Elder Qingtuo's instructions, Shibuki shook his head and clenched his hands tightly.

'I absolutely can't let them down!'

Without mentioning the problems within Takigakure Village itself.

On the other side, Menma and Karin, who had successfully left through the main entrance path, also released their transformation spells and returned to their original appearances after completely leaving the territory of Takigakure Village.

Thinking about how smoothly this trip had gone, Mianma's lips curled up slightly, revealing a beautiful arc.

"Menma, I still don't understand why we need to go find Takigakure Village?"

Karin, sitting to one side, was still completely bewildered. She couldn't understand Menma's behavior at all. Of course, this was also because Karin was not yet clear about Menma's plan. Therefore, many of Menma's actions seemed to Karin to be meaningless.

"Hehe, the reason for seeking out Takigakure is, of course, for future arrangements. Karin, as I said before, our future requires a stable base. Orochimaru-san is ultimately just a transitional phase. Besides, you don't trust Orochimaru-san, and I don't really trust him either. Our relationship with him is merely one of mutual exploitation. Therefore, I need to make some preparations in advance. This trip to Takigakure is just a preliminary reconnaissance and test."

Menma smiled gently and, without any attempt to hide his intentions, told Karin his true feelings.

"Oh!? I see. Does that mean we'll be joining Takigakure from now on? But we're using the Transformation Jutsu. Will that cause any problems?"

Karin nodded as if she suddenly understood, then frowned and asked with a puzzled look.