I, Uchiha: Split Konoha

Chapter 159 finalized

The Land of Wind, Sunagakure Village.

On the morning of the second day, Konoha's envoys, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, appeared calm on the surface, but their hearts were bleeding.

In contrast, the two advisor elders of Sunagakure, Granny Chiyo and Ebizo, looked worried and sighed repeatedly as they entered.

"Oh, Sunagakure, I really don't know how I'm going to get through these next few years."

At this moment, Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado had a "WTF" in their hearts but didn't know whether to say it or not. However, the two of them took a deep breath as they returned to the negotiating table.

Koharu Utatane slowly put down her teacup and decided to be frank, saying in a deep voice, "We don't need to beat around the bush about the battlefield in the Land of Whirlpools."

"After the Third Shinobi World War, Sunagakure and Konoha formed an alliance. Now Konoha needs its ally Sunagakure to restrain Iwagakure."

They didn't give the other side any more chance to stall for time, because time was of the essence and they needed to end the turmoil on the border as quickly as possible.

The Nine-Tails' rampage, along with Orochimaru's actions, have caused severe damage to Konoha and led to turmoil on the border. Konoha urgently needs to end the border unrest as quickly as possible to give the village time to recover.

"Iwagakure? It's not that our Sunagakure is unwilling to fulfill our obligations as allies, but we simply lack the resources. The village has no extra funds, and moreover, our Ninja Academy is preparing to implement an elite program."

Faced with Koharu's directness, Chiyo also spread her hands with a bitter face, "We have no money. The Sand Village is already dirt poor. We can't help you."

Koharu Utatane snorted inwardly, but her face remained calm and unreadable. She spoke in a deep voice, "We are well aware of the plight of the Sand Village, so we are willing to reduce our annual mission quota by five percent."

They didn't mention at all that this was a treaty of defeat, but instead said that they would take five points less from the twenty percent share that you provided to Konoha.

Before Chiyo could say anything upon hearing this, Ebizo, who was standing next to her, immediately showed an excited expression and said directly to his older sister, "Sister, with five points of mission workload, the annual funding will finally be enough to buy the children at the Ninja Academy a decent set of clothes and weapon pouches."

"What a shameless bastard!" Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado cursed inwardly after hearing Ebizo's words. "Isn't this just blatantly saying that this little bit of food is enough to appease a stinking beggar?"

Ebizo sneered inwardly. "You think you can get us to defend against Iwagakure just by returning five percent of our mission load? Dream on."

"The Land of Fire occupies the most fertile land in the ninja world and possesses countless abundant resources, while our Land of Wind is plagued by sandstorms and is extremely short of various resources. We hope that Konoha can be lenient and abandon the war mission treaty. Our Sand Village is willing to form an eternal alliance with Konoha and stand with Konoha through thick and thin."

Granny Chiyo put on a pitiful, old-fashioned look, as if to say, "You're all so rich, why would you need such a small thing from us? Don't bother taking it."

How shameless! They talk so nicely, but all they want is to take back all these tasks. It's practically price gouging.

"Ahem, it's not that Konoha is unwilling, but the losses from the Third Shinobi World War were so great that almost all of these missions were allocated to the major clans in Konoha that suffered the most heavy losses. We have no choice but to accept it."

Mitokado Homura appeared helpless in his explanation, but a hint of toughness emanated from him. These mission shares had already been divided up, and now you want them all? Do you think the major ninja clans of Konoha would agree? Trying to snatch such a lucrative prize from the ninja clans will only provoke them to start another war with you.

Just haggle wildly, as if anyone can't do that.

"Alas, the sandstorms of our Sunagakure village, our children..."

They kept talking back and forth, with Sunagakure constantly complaining about being poor. Both sides were arguing and bickering, and in the end, they both stuck to the same point about the bargaining chips and neither side was willing to back down.

"Twelve percent."

"Only eight percent."

By the end, both sides were red-faced and their necks were thick with anger. Their initial restraint had long since disappeared, and the two old women, Koharu and Chiyo, were staring at each other across the table.

"Koharu Utatane, you want us, the Sand Village, to keep the Iwa Village in check for you? Everyone in the ninja world knows how strong the Iwa Village is. As for an 8% share of the mission, we Sand Village can at most cheer them on. As for sending troops to intimidate them, don't even think about it. The Sand Village is so weak, this small benefit is not worth us taking such a big risk."

Chiyo angrily spread her hands and said, "We've already gotten to the point about interests, so why bother with being reserved? If you get it, you'll be a hero."

Koharu Utatane, seeing Chiyo's shameless demeanor, sneered coldly, "Chiyo, don't put it so harshly. The Sand Village is so weak because you started this war against us without cause. You only have yourself to blame, eight percent! If the Sand Village agrees, we can still be allies."

"If you disagree!" Koharu Utatane feigned weakness and sneered, "Just as you said, Konoha enjoys the greatest resources in the ninja world. We can afford to wear them down, but none of you should sit idly by and watch us and the Mist Ninja wear each other down while you recuperate?"

"Since you're going to drag this out, then let's drag it out together!"

"Do you want war?!" Chiyo's eyes widened, filled with a threatening gaze, while Koharu Utatane scoffed, "Do you dare? Or does Onoki dare?"

Diplomacy between the two countries relies on the deterrence of force. Only under such circumstances can friendship be discussed. Without the support of force, you are just a piece of fat meat, and no one will talk to you; they will just take a bite out of you.

Seeing Koharu's blatant provocation, Chiyo glared angrily and said, "Fine, if that's how it is, then go back. The Sand Village cannot accept Konoha's kindness. But don't worry, under the alliance, the Sand Village will not attack Konoha."

The last sentence is utter nonsense; it's like they don't take action openly, so no one knows what they're doing behind the scenes.

This is just a contest of courage. Anyway, our Sand Village is so poor, who's afraid of who?

Chiyo gritted her teeth and thought, "Damn it, I don't believe Konoha would really dare to fight the Four Great Ninja Villages at the cost of attrition. They'll just end up benefiting the small country."

"Alright, calm down. We represent two great ninja villages."

"Exactly, exactly, why are you still so impulsive, sister?"

Mitomon Homura and Ebizo stepped forward with smiles and began to smooth things over, both playing the good cop and the bad cop in the same way.

"Nine percent, that's the most we can go." Koharu Utatane looked like she was gritting her teeth, as if she were saying that this was the limit for Konoha. It seemed so real. But after the arrival of Iwagakure yesterday, they discussed with the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and relaxed the initial bottom line of ten percent to thirteen percent.

Seeing Koharu Utatane's extremely resentful expression, Chiyo said to Ebizo with a sense of frustration, "Brother, even if we get back 20% of the mission quota, our Sand Village won't be doing well. With the Daimyo cutting funding, we're suffering."

"Twelve percent, that's really the lowest we can go. Your Konoha clan is so powerful, this is nothing to you, but for us Sand Ninja, it's like a life-saving grace."

First, she pleaded poverty, then she acted as if she would be extremely grateful if Chiyo gave in a little more. Both sides were completely disregarding their pride, using every trick in the book.

As they shamelessly argued and complained about being poor, Mitomon Homura and Ebizo eventually took turns bargaining.

"11.5 percent."

"Eleven hundred percent it is. For the sake of our friendship with Konoha, for the sake of our eternal alliance, we, the Sand Village, will do it."

After countless exchanges and heated debates, both sides finally reached a mutually acceptable agreement when the sun was high in the sky.

Chiyo and Ebizo, beneath their smiles of "for the sake of our alliance and friendship," secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed they would have to put on a good show to defend Konoha against Iwagakure. However, the painful part was Iwagakure's demand for 3% of the mission's share. Fortunately, Iwagakure only needed five years; after that, it would all be theirs.

Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, on the Konoha side, secretly breathed a sigh of relief beneath their forced smiles. At least their bottom line of 13% had been breached, and they had managed to salvage 1.5% of their losses. Over time, that adds up to a lot of money.

What they saved was what they earned, and they reduced the village's losses. If the situation hadn't been so urgent, they could have pushed the price even lower.

……

The battlefield in the Land of Whirlpools was extremely brutal. Under the policy of the Mist Ninja's Blood Mist, almost all of them were desperate criminals. Although the Konoha side was on the defensive, due to the dispersed forces, although there were no huge casualties, almost everyone was injured due to the continuous attacks by the Mist Ninja for three days.

"Reinforcements! Our reinforcements have arrived!"

The fighting on the battlefield came to an end with the arrival of Konoha's reinforcements. One by one, Konoha ninjas transferred from the rear charged into the battlefield with high morale. Although the number of reinforcements was not large, their quality was definitely elite.

If someone were to pay close attention, they would notice that the reinforcements this time were almost all elites from Orochimaru's old group. It could be said that the battlefield of the Land of Whirlpools had become a gathering place for Orochimaru's former elite forces.

The advantage of doing this is that, with the arrival of Sarutobi Shinnosuke, he can place his own people everywhere along the border defenses of the Land of Water, and the elites who were once his obstacles are now being sent to the front lines to provide support.

After Konoha's reinforcements landed, they quickly began to rush to the aid of various battlefields.

In the war-torn forest, dazzling ninjutsu danced, explosive tags roared, and countless hidden weapons flashed, turning this place into a veritable forest of death.

"Hey fat pig, something seems off about your Samehada sword."

In the dark and damp forest, Uchiha Yoru, wielding the Kusanagi sword, revealed a mocking smile. At the edge of the blade, one could see tiny fragments of Samehada, the greatsword in the opponent's hand, which had shattered—this was only because he had stopped at the last moment.

As the two clashed with their ninja swords, Suigetsu Hozuki's face turned extremely ugly. He suppressed his anger and said in a low voice, "Kid, you've been keeping this a secret. Just say what you want."

Although Suigetsu Hozuki has a rough appearance, he is a person who is extremely cautious and meticulous on the inside despite his rugged appearance. The fact that he has not publicized the matter of taking his greatsword Samehada, and that he deliberately held back in the clash of weapons during the current battle, clearly indicates that he has a conspiracy.

At Uchiha Yoru's signal, Suigetsu Hobuki let out a cold snort with an extremely ugly expression. Then, as he suddenly appeared to be wounded and transformed into a water clone, a thick white mist immediately rose in the forest.

Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique

Despite the thick fog, the sounds of swords clashing within the forest continued unabated. However, with their vision obscured, the two had shifted from delivering deadly blows to holding back and putting on an act.

"The mistake of losing Samehada is something even you, Suigetsu Fuguki, can't bear."

Upon hearing this, Suigetsu Hobuki's face turned even more ashen. The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were elite ninjas who carried out highly difficult missions for the successive Mizukage. Legend has it that the seven of them could conquer a small country in a single night if they joined forces.

This is an inheritable title in Kirigakure (Hidden Mist Village) of the Land of Water. It can be said to be a title based on a sword, and these seven ninja swords are the symbol of Kirigakure, making it extremely significant.

The responsibility of losing a ninja sword would probably make most people want to defect, but Suigetsu Hozuki, holding a high position, was reluctant to give up his current status and believed there was still a chance to take it back.

When Suigetsu Hozuki saw the other party's sinister smile, although he was filled with anger and resentment, he was also secretly relieved. It seemed that this brat had secretly gone into hiding and had not reported it. There was still a chance for things to turn around. The interests between individuals are different from those between countries.

If this knife is reported and involves the two major ninja villages, then his situation will become very serious, and it will be beyond the control of the two of them.

But this is clearly a private matter between the two of them, driven by nothing more than self-interest. It's far better than letting the village know he lost his ninja sword. Suigetsu Hozuki knows the importance of the ninja sword, and he understands this perfectly well. If his secret is exposed, even if he survives, he'll never be able to shake off this disgrace, and he'll never be able to stay in his position.

"Kid, what do you want? Ninjutsu? Secret techniques?"

He knew the other party's identity clearly. With the Uchiha clan behind them, how could they be short of money? So there were only two possibilities.

Seeing Suigetsu Hobutaki's barely suppressed rage as he questioned him, Uchiha Yoru revealed a sinister smile. He would use this as leverage for the rest of his life.

"Ninjutsu and secret techniques? Do you think I lack them? Or are you looking down on my Orochimaru-sensei, or rather, looking down on the Uchiha clan's heritage?"

With a sarcastic smile and a question, the Watermelon Pufferfish Demon glared angrily and hissed, "So, brat, what exactly do you want?"

"I need people!"

When Uchiha Yoru's voice came, Suigetsu Hobuki's eyes widened. He didn't think the other party wanted him. In the ninja world, the people who were often mentioned were probably either bloodline ninjas or some young geniuses.

"Impossible! You want a genius boy from my Kirigakure village. I would never betray the village. Forget about it!"

Despite the angry rebuke from Suigetsu Hozuki, who seemed to be a loyal and righteous man willing to sacrifice everything for the village, Uchiha Yoru, who was well aware of the original story, revealed a mocking smile.

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(End of this chapter)