Kazuyama Gekkō acted as if nothing had happened. Like Chōsuke, he casually pulled out a chair and sat down, exuding a strong presence that showed no concern for the samurai surrounding him.
"Heh… the general of the Land of Iron cannot simply abandon his post."
"Your Excellency, what brings you to the Land of Iron?"
A deep, resonant voice suddenly came from behind.
Hearing it, Kazuyama Gekkō immediately knew who it was—Mifune, the current general of the Land of Iron.
"Ah, the general."
Kazuyama turned his head with a grin, amused by his own words. In the world of shinobi, it felt oddly novel to address someone as "general."
The man before him, though past fifty, was undeniably a formidable figure, one who could command respect through Kenjutsu alone.
Just as Kazuyama was studying Mifune, Mifune was studying him. Even surrounded by so many armed men, Kazuyama's expression never changed. That alone made him interesting.
"Your Excellency, state your reason for coming to the Land of Iron," Mifune said evenly.
"If your only purpose was to see me, you've already achieved it."
"Or is there something else you want?"
Withdrawing his gaze, Mifune stepped forward from behind and took a seat across from Kazuyama, waiting for his answer.
Now that the man he wanted to meet had arrived, Kazuyama didn't see the point in pretending any longer. He had come to the Land of Iron with a clear purpose.
"General Mifune, are you interested in coming out of seclusion?"
"I understand that the Land of Iron doesn't involve itself in shinobi conflicts. Takigakure is the same. But sometimes, even if you don't seek out trouble, trouble will come to you. Am I wrong?"
Mifune's eyes narrowed slightly. He instantly grasped Kazuyama's meaning—he was asking the Land of Iron to take action against a certain village.
And from the tone and implication, Mifune could tell exactly which one—Amegakure.
"The Land of Iron was drawn into the Second Shinobi World War," Mifune said.
"Amegakure didn't care whether we were samurai or shinobi. To them, a fight is a fight. If I recall, I myself was defeated by Hanzō of the Salamander back then."
"If I gave you the chance now, would you want to cross blades with Hanzō again?" Kazuyama asked directly.
His meaning was clear—he wanted to move against Amegakure.
Mifune's expression grew heavier. He had thought this man merely wanted to borrow the Land of Iron's strength. But it seemed he intended for them to start a war.
And the enemy would be none other than their old adversary.
Back during the Second Shinobi World War, Hanzō had openly waged war on the Land of Iron. Mifune had not yet been general then, merely a samurai fighting in the campaign.
The scar across his forehead was Hanzō's handiwork.
"Do you realize what you're saying?" Mifune's tone sharpened. "The Third Shinobi World War has only just ended. Does Takigakure truly intend to start another?"
Kazuyama shook his head.
"It's not that serious. This is just about collecting a debt from Amegakure."
"Besides, Hanzō is the only real threat they have. Take him down, and the village will change hands. There's no need for a large-scale assault."
But to strike at Hanzō was, in Mifune's eyes, the same as striking at Amegakure.
Seeing Mifune's deepening frown, Kazuyama quickly shifted his approach. If he kept pressing the same way, he might well be shown the door.
"Hey, hey, no need to be so serious—it's just a suggestion.
After all, if General Mifune doesn't seize this opportunity, he might never have the chance to cross blades with Hanzō again in his lifetime. Surely you wouldn't want to pass up the chance to challenge that so-called Demi-God once more?"
Truth be told, Mifune did want to face Hanzō again. His strength now was far beyond what it had been in the past.
But under the current circumstances, he couldn't take action. The Land of Iron never initiated conflicts between ninja, even if the other party was Takigakure—a fellow neutral land.
Seeing that his words weren't shaking Mifune's resolve at all, Kazuyama Gekkō realized the general truly had no intention of making a move.
"All right, all right, forget it."
"But I haven't seen enough of the Land of Iron yet. Surely General Mifune won't just drive me away?"
Plan A had failed. Time to switch to Plan B. Kazuyama had never expected to win the old geezer over with just a few words anyway.
"Of course," Mifune replied. "As long as you don't disturb the Land of Iron's order."
With Mifune's permission, Kazuyama smirked inwardly. Old geezer, it doesn't matter if you refuse the first time—we'll see if you can hold out for long.
...
In the days that followed, Kazuyama settled down in the Land of Iron—not in the castle, of course, but in one of its towns. Every day, he'd make time to use the Flying Thunder God Technique to travel to the Land of Birds or the Land of Hot Water, where he spent the money he'd gotten from Minato to buy all sorts of alcohol.
Then, he'd send it straight to the Land of Iron's castle. When it came to networking and winning people over, Kazuyama was an expert.
He kept this up for a month. Before long, he was on friendly terms with the samurai there.
"Suien, back again?"
"Is today's sake the same as yesterday's? Here, take this snow rabbit I caught the other day—good eating!"
"What's so great about your rabbit? Check out this top-grade venison!"
"Better have fish. I remember Suien's a fish lover!"
When Kazuyama arrived at the castle gates that day, the guards were already old acquaintances. The moment they saw him, they rushed to grab things and stuff them into his arms in exchange for wine.
"Hahaha, it's all good—we're brothers."
"This one's a good vintage. It's from the Land of Fire; I had it brought all the way here just for you."
"Go on, drink up!"
It didn't matter where the wine came from—it was meant as a gift.
That month, Kazuyama had flown back and forth countless times, and for places he couldn't get to himself, he sent Black Mamba with coordinates. After a month of this, Black Mamba had even lost weight.
All the meat Kazuyama got from the Land of Iron—wild game of every kind—he sent home. Not bad at all.
"Brother Suien, the general wants to see you."
In the middle of their cheerful banter, Chōsuke came over, casually picking up a bottle of wine.
"Yo, Chōsuke, didn't you head out a few days ago? You're back?"
Instead of answering right away, Kazuyama chatted idly.
"Just a routine mission," Chōsuke said. "Come on, I'll take you to see General Mifune."
See? Barely a month, and things were already moving.
Sometimes, you just have to play the long game.