Konoha: Uchiha Shisui's Advisor Alliance

Chapter 184 The Strangeness of the Rain Country and Yan Shifan’s Grievances

"Hokage, something happened to the ninja who was going to the Rain Country for the test."

Inside the Hokage Building, Nara Suzaku found Shisui in a panic, holding the information sent back from the Rain Country.

"Land of Rain"

Shisui frowned slightly. As early as the third generation, they had noticed that there were some problems in the Rain Country, otherwise he would not have allowed those ninjas who were taking the assessment to go to the Rain Country.

But now it seems that the problems in the Rain Country are obviously serious, so serious that even the usually calm Nara Suzaku is a little panicked.

Shisui took the intelligence and looked through it carefully. More than 30 Konoha ninjas, divided into eight teams, went to the Rain Country to carry out an exploration mission, but only two-thirds of them returned safely, including those who failed in the mission.

Only a dozen people were lost. It may not seem like a lot, but these people were all put forward by various ninja clans to apply for the Jonin assessment. Their strength is definitely not weak.

"Has Hanzo noticed?"

The Shadow of the Rain Country, Hanzo, who is known as the demigod, once defeated the Three Ninjas single-handedly. The name of the Three Ninjas came from Hanzo's mouth. The strength of such a man is unquestionable.

"According to the assessment mission, three teams infiltrated the Hidden Rain Village to gather intelligence, but only one person came back alive. The ninja who managed to escape was also seriously injured. He fainted after saying only the word 'Akatsuki'. He has now been sent to the Ninja Hospital, and his condition is still not stable.

Not only that, other ninjas who were carrying out missions within the Rain Country also seemed to be affected. Many of them were attacked for no apparent reason and had to abandon their missions and evacuate early."

"Oh?"

Shisui's expression suddenly changed, and he immediately realized something was wrong.

"Only one person escaped from the three teams. The defense of the Hidden Rain Village is so strict."

Even if such a lineup sneaked into Konoha, they would not be wiped out so quickly. Such strength surprised Shisui.

"Any news about Hanzo?"

"There is no news at all. It's as if Hanzo has disappeared. Let's not talk about the people in the Hidden Rain Village for now. They can't get any information about Hanzo from the ninjas outside the village."

"Has Hanzo got into trouble?"

This was Shisui's first reaction, but he quickly denied it. The word demigod was already the highest praise and he was the shadow of a village. Even if their size was not as large as the five major countries, their shadows would not die silently.

"What a shame. They should have been invited to the Chunin Exams."

Since the war had just ended and the hatred among the villages was strong, they were not willing to jointly hold the Chunin Exam, so Shisui did not invite ninjas from other villages to participate.

"What about the Rain Country?" Nara Suzaku asked after hesitating for a moment.

"Temporarily terminate the tasks related to the Rain Country. I will consider it again after those who come back gather the intelligence. As for their assessment, you will give me the list of those who have completed the tasks. For the others, terminate it temporarily and let them rest for a while."

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

After Nara Suzaku left, a trace of worry gradually appeared on Shisui's face.

Something obviously happened in the Land of Rain, which is definitely not good news for Konoha.

"Hanzo is extremely powerful and once provoked the Second Ninja World War. If he wants to do something, it will be very troublesome for Konoha to deal with it."

The Rain Country borders Konoha, and there is no buffer zone when the two sides fight. Whoever is weaker will have his country become the battlefield.

"Hokage-sama."

Suddenly, an ANBU wearing a hawk mask instantly entered the office.

"Eagle, put the exploration of the Hidden Rain Village on hold for now. Inform the ninjas who have entered the Rain Country not to approach the Hidden Rain Village without orders. Try to get all the intelligence outside the village, with Hanzo's information as the main goal. Also, tell them to be extra careful in the next few days."

"Yes."

As the Anbu of the previous Hokage, Hawk was responsible for overseas missions together with others. Although he was a little confused about Shisui's order, as an Anbu he immediately agreed.

After dealing with the incident caused by the Jonin exam, Shisui picked up the messages sent by various departments in recent days.

Basically, one good news and one bad news.

The good news is that under the coordination of Utane Koharu and Mito Kado En, the wounded evacuated from the Yunokoku defense line were well arranged, the funds of the Ninja Hospital seemed to be sufficient, and no trouble occurred, which made Utane Koharu's reputation recover slightly.

The bad news is that, except for the Medical Department, the funding of all forces, including the Police Department, is decreasing. Some funds have even been issued but have been temporarily transferred to the Medical Department.

Not only that, some of the death compensation and war mission remuneration were not paid, which caused dissatisfaction among various departments.

After reading it over and over again, Shisui did not process it, but instead put the document in his arms, as if he had never seen it.

That night, Zhishui returned home and found Yan Shifan.

"teacher."

"What happened in the village?"

Seeing Zhishui coming, Yan Shifan put down his pen, looked up and asked.

"Some minor incidents have occurred in the Rain Country, and the village's financial problems are becoming increasingly serious. I'm afraid it won't be long before they become public knowledge."

Shisui said simply before handing over the detailed documents that documented the finances of the Rain Country and the village.

Yan Shifan only took a quick look and then asked, "How do you plan to solve this problem?"

"The students think that the village is more important right now, and it is not convenient to go into the matter of the Rain Country for the time being, so I asked people to postpone the action and only take some precautionary measures. As for the transfer of the dormitory advisor, I plan to let it go."

"This person should realize that her position won't last long, but she obviously doesn't know why we keep her. You can continue to let her go, but I suggest you meet those people first. You don't have to mention this matter, but you must make your attitude clear. Then go meet the third generation again."

"Three generations?"

Shisui pondered for a moment, and soon figured out the key, and immediately smiled and said: "As expected of a teacher, you are far beyond the reach of a student."

Yan Shifan laughed and didn't take it seriously.

"They are just trivial means and cannot be considered a long-term solution. Since you have decided to focus on the family and civilian ninjas, they are the foundation of our existence."

"That's what the teacher said."

Seeing that Shisui had listened, Yan Shifan said, "You came at the right time. In Kyoto, except for the inner city where the daimyo is, the intelligence about the outer city has basically been explored. I plan to send someone to contact the Minister of Finance, Matsuno Yoshiyuki."

"Sensei plans to influence Daimyo or Taro through Matsuno Keiyuki?"

"During the Chunin Exam this time, I talked with En Ichikyu again. Unlike his father, he hoped that the relationship between the Daimyo and the Hokage could be eased, but his opinion was obviously not important."

"What a shame. I have a pretty good sense of Taro. If he were the daimyo, we might have an easier time."

Yan Shifan's eyes changed slightly, but his face remained expressionless.

"Given Daimyo's current condition, it will definitely not be a problem for him to survive for another ten years. We can't just sit there and wait. We must take the initiative to do something."

Shisui gradually understood Yan Shifan's style of doing things, and immediately understood what he meant. "The daimyo has many guards around him. Even I can't kill him silently, and this is too risky. Once exposed, the entire ninja world will come to kill us."

If a ninja village assassinates a daimyo, it will be hated by all daimyo.

"Hahaha, I'm not that arrogant. Even if I want to kill the daimyo, I won't do it myself." Yan Shifan shook his head and denied with a smile.

However, Zhishui did not relax. He believed that Yan Shifan would definitely do it, but the method he would use would definitely be more secretive than he thought.

"If teachers have any ideas, they might as well discuss them with students so that students can be mentally prepared."

Shisui hesitated for a moment, but still spoke cryptically.

Yan Shifan was stunned. He didn't expect that the guy in front of him didn't believe him.

Even Sima Yi dared to believe it, but you didn't believe him? What a shame!
Yan Shifan was furious, pointing at Zhishui and slapping him in the face.

With a snap, Shisui froze in place, looking at the other person in surprise.

A red slap mark appeared on Yan Shifan's cheek. As if he was not satisfied, Yan Shifan raised his hand to slap again.

Zhishui finally reacted and quickly reached out to stop Yan Shifan.

"Teacher, no, teacher, what are you doing? Stop it now!"

Shisui was startled and looked panicked, he had never seen anything like this before.

Shishui was so strong that no matter how hard Yan Shifan tried, he couldn't break free. He was so angry that he shouted, "Why are you trying to stop me?"

"Why am I doing this? It's all for you, Uchiha, and for Shisui. What good would killing the Daimyo do me? But you are so wary of me. What can I do?"

Yan Shifan had an ugly expression, as if he had suffered a great injustice.

Shisui was panicking and quickly explained, "It's not that I don't trust you, but the Daimyo is involved in a lot of things and you're not good at ninja techniques. I'm afraid there will be some flaws, so I want to know a thing or two to supplement it.

I do not want to doubt the teacher's motives. I apologize for my inappropriate remarks just now."

Zhishui let go of Yan Shifan, quickly got up from his seat, and sincerely asked for forgiveness.

Yan Shifan was moved when he saw this. He didn't expect that Shishui would just get up from his seat.

"Well, I'm just being overly concerned. You should get up first."

"If the teacher does not forgive the student, Shisui will never rise."

Yan Shifan raised his eyebrows. He had never taught Shishui these things.

"Did Sima Yi teach you that?"

"The master forgives you, please get up."

"Yes, thank you, teacher."

Shishui stood up, then approached under Yan Shifan's puzzled gaze.

"Teacher, don't move. I will heal you."

As Shishui spoke, a green fluorescent light lit up in his hands. Yan Shifan suddenly felt a cool sensation and the red marks on his face faded a lot.

"Since you want to know, I'll tell you." Yan Shifan sighed, then sat down again and said, "With the Daimyo's body, he can control the Fire Nation for at least another ten years. Even if I don't take action now, when the internal reforms of the village are completed in the future, we must expand outward, and the Daimyo will be our first enemy.

By then, the daimyo may have already realized that Konoha is gradually becoming less economically dependent on him, and he will definitely not sit idly by and wait for death."

Just like the Daimyo of the Wind Country, he was afraid of the military theories of the Sand Village, so he used various methods to restrict the Sand Village, including but not limited to forcing the Sand Village to reduce its military equipment, significantly reducing the funds allocated to the Sand Village, and even allocating a share of the tasks to Konoha.

"Given the Daimyo's vigilance towards the Shinobi Village, I'm afraid he'll have noticed our reforms before they're complete, and then all kinds of restrictions will follow. As the saying goes, it's better to take precautions before they happen. We must not let him have this opportunity."

Shisui nodded, and once again he gained a deeper understanding of the restrictions that the Daimyo placed on Konoha.

"So, what method does the teacher intend to use?"

Shisui agreed to kill the daimyo, but if he did not participate, Yan Shifan would be easily exposed with the little power he had.

"As the ancients said, the best strategy is to attack the enemy's plans, the next best is to attack their alliances, the next best is to attack their troops, and the worst is to attack their cities. Using the power of my family to assassinate someone directly is the worst strategy, and I will never do that."

Yan Shifan snorted coldly.

Zhishui smiled awkwardly. Sima Yi had taught him Sun Tzu's Art of War, but he felt that what he had learned was very mediocre.

Yan Shifan could tell at a glance that Zhishui didn't understand, so he went on to explain: "Remember, when you have political enemies, you must hide all your intentions carefully. If I want to kill the daimyo, then I can't let anyone see that I want to kill the daimyo. In fact, I can't do it myself from beginning to end.

Although I am not good at military affairs, I know that a strong city is often conquered from the inside."

"internal."

Shisui frowned and thought for a moment, but found that unless he used his Kotoamatsukami, he could not think of any way to kill the daimyo from the inside. Those ninjas who protected the daimyo could never be bribed by conventional means.

"Where in the world are there riverbanks as strong as gold, where are there weirs as strong as gold?"

Yan Shifan fumbled on the table, then found a document and handed it to Zhishui.

After Shisui took it, he found that it contained some information about the daimyo, including his physical condition, hobbies and family information.

"The daimyo has other sons besides Enichikyu. The mother of the second and sixth sons is from the Matsuno family and is the younger sister of Matsuno Yoshiyuki. This is the breakthrough point."

Shisui looked up suddenly, and considering what he had been doing recently, he finally understood why Yan Shifan was confident that he could accomplish this task independently without telling him.

"The teacher has kept it a secret from me!"

In May of the 51st year of Konoha, vicious incidents of wandering ninjas slaughtering local nobles occurred in six regions: Tōkaidō, Nankaidō, Tōzan-dō, Seisan-dō, Nishikawa-dō, and Hokuriku-dō.

The local nobles organized an army to attack the enemy, but only the bandits in Xihedao disappeared after being repelled, while the armies from other places all returned in failure, and some were even completely wiped out.

The nobles were terrified, and the news was quickly sent to Konoha and Kyoto.

Since the massacres in the six places were carried out in sequence and on a small scale, only a few families were wiped out, all of them unrelated people, and the daimyo did not care.

Konoha has received commissions from six local nobles one after another.

"Konoha has just experienced a war and is recuperating. It is temporarily unable to help. In addition, the ninjas in the village are all on other missions. Some mid-level and low-level ninjas may not be able to help. You should wait."

With Shisui's instructions, Nara Suzaku stopped the people sent by the nobles outside the Hokage Building and kept delaying them.

Everyone was anxious, fearing that the bandits' next target would be their family, and they kept complaining and even making threats.

Nara Suzaku pretended not to hear until one of them spoke up, "Our business is urgent. Let Konoha put everything else aside. As long as Konoha is willing to help, we can pay more!"

(End of this chapter)