https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-706-Son-Ryouka-s-Assassination-Squad/12946435/
Chapter 705: Refusal
Chapter 705: Refusal
In the Rain Country, within the Six Paths City, various discussions were ongoing after the announcement and arrival of ninjas from Iwagakure and Sunagakure.
"The Shinshu Sect is really developing well. By hosting the exchange event in Six Paths City, are Iwagakure and Sunagakure trying to show their support for the Shinshu Sect?"
"But didn't Iwagakure and Sunagakure just sign a peace treaty with Konohagakure a few months ago? Are they planning to start another war?"
"Who knows when the Five Great Ninja Villages have ever truly been at peace."
After the news broke and ninjas from Iwagakure and Sunagakure entered Six Paths City, the city was abuzz with speculation.
Most people believed that Iwagakure and Sunagakure were showing their support for the Shinshu Sect, thinking that the two great villages wanted to ally with the Shinshu Sect to counter Konoha and Kirigakure.
At first, some thought that the Shinshu Sect was a bit insignificant, but upon closer inspection, they realized that the Shinshu Sect was not as simple as it seemed.
On the surface, apart from their powerful leader, the Shinshu Sect didn't have any other outstanding features.
However, after careful consideration, the recently deceased Hanzou, the deepening cooperation with the Rain Ninja Village, and the newly established Shinshu Sect branch in the Land of Birds, all added up to something more.
Perhaps the Shinshu Sect could mobilize more ninjas than small but strong villages like Kusagakure.
Moreover, the strength of the Shinshu Sect's leader was a significant advantage; even the Third Hokage was defeated, making the Shinshu Sect the strongest force in the ninja world at present.
Of course, these were just speculations.
In reality, neither the Shinshu Sect nor Iwagakure and Sunagakure had any intentions of forming a deep alliance.
For the Shinshu Sect, it was simple: according to Mu Yue's plan, unless all five great ninja villages agreed to peace, there would be no cooperation.
Until then, the Shinshu Sect would remain neutral.
The situation with Iwagakure and Sunagakure was a bit more complicated. They chose Six Paths City as the location for the exchange event to draw attention.
In truth, they had already secretly sent ninjas to the Land of Lightning.
It was indeed a three-way alliance, but not between Iwagakure, Sunagakure, and the Shinshu Sect; instead, it was among Iwagakure, Sunagakure, and Kumogakure.
Compared to the Shinshu Sect, which might take their cake, Iwagakure and Sunagakure leaned more towards Kumogakure.
During the Third Shinobi World War, they had attacked each other, but even the strongest Konoha was strengthening its alliances, so the three villages had to temporarily put aside their past grudges.
To avoid raising Konoha's alertness, Iwagakure and Sunagakure intentionally arranged this event.
However, they went all out, sending many talented ninjas from their villages, and the team leaders were also well-known ninjas in their respective villages.
After arriving in Six Paths City, Chiyo handed over all the work to her deputy and went to meet Scorpion, as she had no intention of actually working.
On her first day in the Shinshu Sect, Chiyo inquired about Scorpion's whereabouts from a Shinshu ninja.
To her surprise, the ninja she asked didn't know Scorpion.
Chiyo found this strange; with Scorpion's abilities, how could he be unknown within the Shinshu Sect?
However, Chiyo didn't overthink it. She thought that Scorpion might be worried about Sunagakure's pursuit due to his status as a missing-nin from Sunagakure.
So, using her identity, Chiyo expressed her desire to meet Scorpion to the higher-ups of the Shinshu Sect, and this time, there were no unexpected twists.
After confirming Scorpion's thoughts, the Shinshu Sect quickly responded and arranged a specific time for the meeting.
On the day of the meeting, Chiyo deliberately chose the clothes Scorpion wore most often in Sunagakure during his time there, carefully preparing herself before heading to the Shinshu Sect's reception room.
For Chiyo, this meeting was crucial; if she failed, she would lose her last bloodline.
She even considered knocking Scorpion unconscious and taking him away, but she quickly abandoned the idea.
Knowing Scorpion as she did, she understood that this wouldn't solve the problem unless she imprisoned him forever, and such an action would only make the situation worse.
As she entered the reception room, Chiyo stared at the familiar yet slightly unfamiliar red-haired youth, feeling a bit dazed.
What was familiar was that Scorpion's appearance hadn't changed much; he was still her beloved grandson.
What was unfamiliar was that Scorpion, usually cold and distant, was chatting like friends with someone she didn't know.
"Scorpion, did you learn puppetry from your grandmother?"
"Yes, and what, do you want to say, 'No wonder your puppetry is so powerful because you're the grandson of a legendary puppeteer'?"
"Not at all, but your grandmother is indeed famous, even someone like me who doesn't understand puppetry has heard of her."
"What's the use of fame? Will enemies spare you because of your teacher's reputation?"
As Scorpion spoke these words, the light in Chiyo's eyes dimmed.
Chiyo knew that her chances of success today were slim.
"Scorpion, how have you been lately? Is there anything you're not used to in the Rain Country?" Chiyo asked with a kind smile, trying to keep her emotions in check.
"It's okay, I've adapted well," Scorpion replied, turning to look at Chiyo.
With his abilities, it was impossible for him not to sense Chiyo's arrival, and he had intentionally spoken those words for her to hear.
Scorpion wasn't surprised that Chiyo knew he was in the Shinshu Sect and Six Paths City; either he hadn't hidden his identity, or it was because of his puppet prosthetic.
However, Chiyo's sudden visit was worth pondering.
After thinking carefully, Scorpion believed that Chiyo might want him to return to Sunagakure.
But Scorpion had no intention of going back with Chiyo. He didn't blame her for his parents' deaths, as it wasn't directly related to Chiyo.
It was because of the Third Kazekage; Scorpion had killed the Third Kazekage and turned him into a human puppet.
If Sunagakure found out, Scorpion wouldn't just be unable to return to the village; he would immediately become their most wanted criminal.
Without this incident, Scorpion might have considered returning, but with it, he would never go back.
If things went wrong, Chiyo would also be implicated because of him.
"Can you please step out for a moment? I have some private matters to discuss with Scorpion," Chiyo said, looking at Chojiro.
Even though she was Scorpion's grandmother, it was too much to try to convince him to leave in front of Chojiro.
"Sure," Chojiro nodded and left the reception room, leaving the space for the grandmother and grandson.
After Chojiro left, Chiyo quickly formed hand seals, gathering chakra and setting up a simple, small barrier. Then, she turned to Scorpion and said, "Scorpion, let's go back to Sunagakure. Staying in the Shinshu Sect is too dangerous."
"Even if you don't want to go back to Sunagakure, that's fine. Just don't stay in the Shinshu Sect anymore. The Shinshu Sect is heading towards an abyss, and this is a path that won't lead anywhere."
Chiyo genuinely didn't have high hopes for the Shinshu Sect. During the Second Shinobi World War, the Rain Ninja Village had already proven how difficult it was to become the sixth great ninja power.
The Shinshu Sect wasn't facing a single great ninja village but all the great villages around it.
In other words, the Shinshu Sect hadn't yet reached that critical point, but when it did, Chiyo had no doubt that Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure would take action together.
They might not form a coalition, but they would undoubtedly send ninja forces.
"Is there a completely safe ninja village?"
Scorpion asked in return.
The very nature of being a ninja is to live on the edge of danger.
"You know, it's not the same," Chiyo shook her head.
How could the risks ninjas face on missions be compared to the dangers of a full-scale war?
"In my opinion, they are the same, and staying in Shinshu is even more meaningful," Scorpion replied calmly.
"Do you know that Shinshu's goal is actually peace in the Ninja World, not becoming the strongest ninja force or dominating the ninja world."
"Many ninja organizations in the Ninja World have that goal," Chiyo said.
"But Shinshu is actually doing it," Scorpion said, his expression turning serious.
"Under Shinshu's governance, the Rain Country has truly become peaceful, and its domestic security is even better than that of the Wind Country."
Scorpion listed the changes that Shinshu had brought to the Rain Country since its establishment.
"Because it's their own country," Chiyo refuted.
She didn't believe there were that many true pacifists in the world, and if there were, the Ninja World wouldn't be in constant turmoil.
"They're doing the same thing in the Bird Country."
"That's an expansion of power."
It was Shinshu's actions in the Bird Country that had put Sunagakure on high alert. If they let Shinshu do the same in every small country, their power would grow exponentially.
"Since you've said that, there's no need to continue this conversation. You can't convince me to return to Sunagakure, and I can't convince you to understand the uniqueness of Shinshu," Scorpion replied calmly.
During his time in Shinshu, Scorpion, as an outsider, had clearly observed what Shinshu was truly up to.
Not only Chiyo, but even some ordinary Shinshu ninjas might not have the same understanding of Shinshu as Scorpion.
Chiyo was speechless.
She had originally thought that Scorpion had a special reason for joining Shinshu, but it turned out that he simply acknowledged Shinshu.
"Can we talk again in a couple of days?" Chiyo felt that there wouldn't be a conclusion today.
"I don't think it's necessary."
"Please, just accompany me, an old and lonely woman."
"I may not have the time."
Hearing Scorpion's last words, Chiyo temporarily breathed a sigh of relief and bid farewell to Scorpion.
Twenty seconds after Chiyo left, Chojiro returned to the reception room.
"What's wrong?" Chojiro asked with concern.
He saw that Chiyo's expression wasn't good, and it didn't seem like they had just had a pleasant conversation after a long separation.
"What else can I say? If your relative was captured by a ninja force, would you be happy?" Scorpion asked.
"According to the conditions given by Yu Sheng Mu Yue, Scorpion, your sentence is almost up," Chojiro said after some thought.
Mu Yue's condition was that if Scorpion could help Shinshu master puppet limb technology, his sentence would be reduced by five years, and Chojiro had the authority to reduce Scorpion's sentence by up to four years.
Chojiro was very satisfied with Scorpion's performance and had already maxed out the sentence reduction he could offer.
Scorpion only needed to successfully teach a Shinshu ninja puppet limb technology, and his sentence would be immediately terminated.
"Do you think teaching those puppet ninjas is easy?" Scorpion complained, then stood up and walked towards the laboratory alone.
Chojiro looked puzzled, unsure of what he had just said to upset Scorpion.
...
In the Land of Lightning, at the western port town.
Taking advantage of the entire Ninja World's attention being focused on Six Paths City, Sunagakure and Stone Hide Village sent ninjas to the Land of Lightning.
To reduce the risk of exposure, they didn't choose any of the major ninja villages as the meeting place but instead selected the western port of the Land of Lightning.
"Shinshu has ambitious plans, and Konoha and Kirigakure have great ambitions. I'm afraid a new war is coming soon," Nokami Sphere said first.
As he spoke, Nokami Sphere carefully observed the expressions of the representatives of Stone Hide Village and Cloud Hide Village with his peripheral vision, especially focusing on the Cloud Hide representative.
The Land of Lightning is not like the Wind Country and the Earth Country, which border the Rain Country. Even if the Rain Village becomes the sixth major ninja force, the impact on Cloud Hide Village won't be as significant as on Stone Hide Village and Sunagakure.
Most importantly, Shinshu won't be able to become a true sixth major ninja force in the short term, so Nokami Sphere brought up Konoha and Kirigakure.
Shinshu won't be able to influence Cloud Hide Village for a long time, but Konoha can. Nokami Sphere didn't believe that Cloud Hide Village wasn't concerned about Konoha becoming a super ninja village.
As Nokami Sphere expected, the Cloud Hide representative's expression turned somewhat unpleasant.
"Yes, at this critical moment, our three great ninja villages must work together and not let Konoha succeed," Earth Platform said.
Cloud Hide Village was actually aware of Shinshu's potential, but they generally believed that Shinshu's potential couldn't be realized.
If Konoha received full assistance from Kirigakure, the outcome of the three great ninja villages working together would be unpredictable.
"Recently, our Tsuchikage personally ventured out and obtained a very important piece of information," Stone Splitter said, immediately silencing the room.
Nokami Sphere and Earth Platform were both surprised and curious as they looked at Stone Splitter.
If what Stone Splitter said was true, the fact that the Tsuchikage personally ventured out was already important information.
And if the Tsuchikage had to take risks to obtain this information, it must be of a high level.
"Son Ryouka has been underestimated."
Nokami Sphere and Earth Platform looked confused, as Son Ryouka was already considered the strongest ninja in the Ninja World. How could he be underestimated?
"Son Ryouka has strength far beyond the Kage. If I have to describe his strength, he is another Ninja God," Stone Splitter said solemnly.
Originally, Stone Hide Village had intended to hide this information to trick Sunagakure, but Sunagakure didn't fall for it right away, and the changing situation in the Ninja World also played a role.
After carefully weighing the pros and cons, Stone Hide Village still decided to reveal the information they had discovered about Shinshu.
After all, Sunagakure hadn't been tricked yet, and they couldn't abandon Stone Hide Village just because they might be tricked by them.
"Ninja God!" Earth Platform exclaimed in shock.
Defeating Enma and the Ninja God were two different concepts.
For example, the Third Raikage might be considered stronger than the Third Hokage by some Cloud Hide ninjas, but no one would think that the Third Raikage's strength could rival that of the Ninja God.
Even Mu Yue, who had shone brightly during the Great Ninja War, was only considered to have the potential of the Ninja God, not equal to the Ninja God.
Nokami Sphere's expression became even more interesting, with a mix of surprise and relief.
It was known that Sunagakure had been discussing how to deal with Shinshu.
If a fight were to break out, Sunagakure would undoubtedly be able to eliminate Shinshu, but if Son Ryouka were to seek full revenge, Sunagakure would surely suffer.
This would be revenge from the Ninja God.
As for the authenticity of the information, Nokami Sphere couldn't think of a reason why Stone Hide Village would provide false intelligence.
To make Sunagakure and Cloud Hide Village temporarily put aside their focus on Konoha's opposition to Shinshu?
Sunagakure already had a conflict of interest with Shinshu, and as for Cloud Hide Village, if this information were false, there would be no need for them. Sunagakure and Stone Hide Village could easily deal with Shinshu without any unexpected incidents.
(End of Chapter)
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