Naruto: I became a super shadow in the Anbu.

Chapter 159 The Cost of Diplomacy
After leaving the camp, the five-person negotiation team from Konoha headed towards an oasis in the north.

Upon entering the oasis, the Sand Village had already emptied the area around the oasis of residents from the Land of Wind.

Under the scorching sun, three large umbrellas were set up, and under the umbrellas were the three parties negotiating.

Under the umbrella at the front is the special envoy of the Daimyo of the Land of Wind, serving as a witness to this negotiation.

Under the umbrella on the west side, the people of Sunagakure were already in place.

Looking through the light, one could see Ebizo, Rasa, Matsu, two assistants, and a member of the Sunagakure ANBU.

Ebizo stared intently at the bronze fox, watching it take its seat.

Within Sunagakure, Sakumo Hatake is referred to as the White Fang, but it's unclear why he didn't come.

The title "White Fang" will gradually spread, just like "Bronze Fox," and will be remembered by every Sand Ninja.

Ebizo's facial muscles twitched as he suppressed his anger.

Originally, Chiyo, the older sister, was supposed to come to this negotiation, but Ebizo went to great lengths to appease her and prevent her from doing so.

He was afraid that if he encountered White Fang or Copper Fox here, his sister would turn the meeting into a revenge session.

My nephew is dead. His puppetry skills were so superb that even his sister wouldn't dare say she could beat him.

Seated in the main seat was the envoy of the Daimyo of the Land of Wind, Ashikaga Sadakaze, the Left Minister of the Taishoin of the Land of Wind. He put down his fan and said to the people from Konoha:

"Chief Deer Antlers, you've come a long way and must be tired."

Chief Shikagami, the Konoha Commander-in-Chief, please have a good talk with Sunagakure.

On behalf of the daimyo, I would like to state that the daimyo believes the war should end.

After saying this, Minister of the Left Ashikaga Sakka remained silent.

Judging from his subtle praise of those in Konoha, the Daimyo of the Land of Wind was extremely dissatisfied with the Sand Village's performance in the war.

Training a puppeteer consumes far more resources than training a ninja.

The Land of Wind sent steel and expensive yellow ebony to Sunagakure, but the puppeteers they trained were no match for the strongmen of Konoha.

Camelthorn, the genius puppeteer praised by Sunagakure, died, leading to White Fang leading a team to support the main battlefield.

How could the Daimyo of the Land of Wind not be furious?

I've given you all the support you wanted from Sunagakure, so what are you going to give me in return?
Was Shapo Harbor destroyed? Was the battlefield a crushing defeat?

No wonder the Daimyo of the Land of Wind was disappointed; in the war between ninja villages, being bad was the original sin.

The Nara deer antlers opened and said:
"Lord Ashikaga Sadakaze, Special Envoy of the Daimyo of the Land of Wind, and Advisor to Ebizo."

Today, I represent Konoha in postwar negotiations.

Our demands are as follows.

First, end the war and return to the situation before the war.

The Land of Rivers is under the protection of the Land of Fire. Sand ninjas must obtain permission from Konoha, complete the necessary procedures, and pay taxes before entering the Land of Rivers to carry out missions.

Ebizo lowered his head slightly and looked at the table.

During the more than six months of war, nearly 2000 ninjas from Sunagakure died, and in the end, they gained nothing.

He had no choice but to agree to Konoha's request.

Nara Deer Antlers continued:
"Second, no one shall tamper with the Jishui River."

Yoshimizu River is an important river that runs through Kyoto, the land of rivers. The Sand Village is not allowed to divert water from the caves into the northern part of the Land of Wind, so as not to damage the Yoshimizu River section within the Land of Rain.

At this time, a hydroelectric power station was built on the Yoshino River, which was even more important.

The Sand Village's destruction of the Yoshimizu River will directly trigger a declaration of war between the Land of Fire and Konoha.

Ashikaga Sakka suddenly spoke, saying:
"Chief Deer Antlers, there's no need to be so absolute about this."

The daimyo of the Land of Wind has already sent a delegation to visit the daimyo of the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers.

The Yoshimizu River has abundant water, and a planned, small-scale diversion of water from the Yoshioka Mountains would not have a significant impact on Kyoto, the land of rivers.

The Land of Wind desires more oases in the north, a need that cannot be met through war. The Land of Wind is willing to sacrifice some resources and diplomatic resources to resolve this through negotiations with the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers.

Luo Sha then spoke:

"Lord Ashikaga Sakka, the total resources of the Land of Wind are finite, and we absolutely cannot cede too much in negotiations. Otherwise, how does Your Majesty plan to make up for the losses?"

Ashikaga Sadakazu glanced at Rasa again; this Jonin was quite intelligent. He asked the crucial question. Ashikaga Sadakazu said:

“Jonin Rasa, I’m just a pot-bellied nobleman. It won’t take you three seconds to kill me.”

However, I hope you will also take the interests of the Wind Kingdom seriously.

Upon hearing the news that a large oasis was on the horizon in the northern part of the Land of Wind, the daimyo and all the nobles of Kyoto discussed it excitedly throughout the night.

Once completed, the large oasis at the foot of the Jigang Mountains will bring abundant food, population, and wealth.

That way, we can better support Sunagakure.

However, until that oasis is completed, they will have to make do with the hardships of Sunagakure and live frugally with us.

Ebizo then understood that the Daimyo wanted to reduce funding for Sunagakure in order to make use of the funds to pay reparations to the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers for the sake of the oasis under the Yoshioka Mountains.

Noticing Ebizo's unfriendly gaze, Ashikaga Sadakaze continued:
"Advisor Ebizo, our Wind Kingdom has given its full support to this war."

The government has even decided to supply 2% more steel than you requested.

We will supply all the yellow privet wood you need, and its price is six times that before the war.

The extra procurement costs were all borne by the Kingdom of Wind.

The Land of Wind wants to establish an oasis in the north, and we have done everything we can.

Even with the destruction of Shapo Port and the sinking of 20 of the Daimyo's ships, the Land of Wind was prepared to silently bear the losses.

We have a clear conscience; we have done everything in our power to support Sunagakure.

Having lost the war, we now have to find other ways to change the dire situation in the northern desert.

Therefore, I formally explained to Advisor Ebizo that we will have to cut all funding.

The main hall of the Daimyo's castle, the construction of Kyoto, the paving of the main roads in the Land of Wind, and even the funding for Sunagakure will all be reduced.

I will then officially travel to Sunagakure to explain my decision regarding the Daimyo to the Kazekage.

"We had no choice, don't you think, Advisor Ebizo?"

Ye Guang traveled through time and met two great nobles: one was Date Haneda, the lord of the Land of Fire, and the other was Ashikaga Sadakaze, who was standing before him.

These two nobles are not bad at all.

Ashikaga Sadao was pot-bellied, but his thinking was clear and his explanations were logically connected.

Even after careful consideration, Ye Guang couldn't come up with a good solution that would allow Sunagakure to rightfully refuse the Daimyo of the Land of Wind's decision.

The Sand Village could kill both the daimyo and Ashikaga Sakka.

However, in that case, the Land of Wind would collapse first.

The relationship between the country and the village is a cooperative one; if one side collapses, it is not good for the other.

With his eyes closed and brows slightly furrowed, Ebizo had no choice but to accept the situation after a mental struggle.

Luo Sha, who was standing to the side, was also there.

He could indeed kill Ashikaga Sadafu with ease; he had killed many of these nobles who defied Sunagakure.

However, Sunagakure is really in the wrong in this matter.

It's because they lost the war.

If they can defeat Konoha and take over the Land of Rivers, then the problem of Yoshimizu River will not be a problem at all.

If the daimyo of the Land of Rivers dares to utter a single extra word, the Rain Ninja will use puppets to kill him.

Killing nobles can solve some problems, but not all of them.

When the Daimyo of the Land of Wind is resolute and has a valid reason, the Sand Village has no choice but to back down.

The funding cuts weren't targeted at Sunagakure; the entire Land of Wind was suffering together.

After sighing, Ebizo said, "Lord Ashikaga Sakka, I understand. I will apologize to Lord Kazekage and to the Daimyo."

Ashikaga Sadakaze turned his head and said, "Chief Shikanobu, please continue."

(End of this chapter)