"Ahem!"
Realizing there were still others in the room, the Kaguya Clan Leader straightened up, cleared his throat, and lifted his chin at Yagura, trying to assert his authority.
Unfortunately, it was too late—Yagura had already formed a certain impression of him. And it wasn't a flattering one.
Yagura's dead-fish eyes and impassive face seemed to amuse the Kaguya leader.
Yes, that's the look! That's exactly the look! You're scared of me, aren't you?
"Uh..."
The towering, white-haired man scratched his head, as if struggling to recall something.
"Wait, what was I going to say again?"
Yagura: "..." Unbelievable.
Even Kisame, who had remained silent all this time, couldn't hold back a comment.
"What a special one."
Kisame's tone made it clear that it wasn't a compliment. The Kaguya leader frowned and immediately barked, "Hah? What do you mean by that? You wanna fight?!"
Yagura remained composed and smoothly intervened,
"What he means is, you are an exceptionally rare and unique beast—he was praising you for being one of a kind."
The Kaguya leader hesitated for a moment, but at least he didn't blindly believe whatever Yagura said.
"Oh? Is that so?"
Yagura continued with an earnest expression, "Yes. Even in Konoha, there's a shinobi known as the 'Blue Beast.'"
Hearing this, the Kaguya leader grinned from ear to ear. His gaze toward Kisame softened considerably.
"Hahahaha! So that's what you meant! Shark-face kid, you've got good taste!"
Kisame responded with a small, unreadable smile.
No one knew how to follow up on that exchange.
If the Kaguya Clan had been hostile toward Yagura, Kisame wouldn't have minded using Samehada to carve them up. But now, after this interaction, they just seemed... a bit stupid.
Honestly, it was a miracle that the Kaguya Clan had survived this long.
After laughing heartily, the Kaguya leader wiped a tear from the corner of his eye and turned serious.
"Alright then, since you're not one for all that political nonsense like the Third Mizukage, that's great—I don't like it either. Let's get straight to the point."
He folded his arms and grunted, "I don't like that old man, but I do like the fact that he wanted to start a war."
The Kaguya leader stared directly at Yagura for a moment before adding,
"Whatever. You have your own plans. The war has already begun—there's nothing more to say."
Yagura smiled and nodded. "Mhm."
Negotiation was fine, but war was off the table.
The Kaguya leader tapped his fingers on the table impatiently, eyeing Yagura's unwavering smile. He hesitated for a moment but ultimately held back his frustration.
There's a saying: You don't hit a smiling face.
With one fist clenched and the other hand flat on the table, the Kaguya leader leaned forward slightly, adopting a deliberately nonchalant posture.
"Fine, but you'd better find something for us to do—preferably something involving a good fight."
He dumped the problem on Yagura, washing his hands of it entirely.
If the Kaguyas weren't kept occupied, they'd find ways to stir up trouble instead.
Yagura's mouth twitched. "You guys are that bored? Go take some missions."
Wouldn't it be better for the village to make some money?
"We are, we are. But it's not enough."
"..." Alright then.
Clearly, Yagura had underestimated their initiative.
He took a moment to think about where he might need some extra muscle soon. And as it turned out, there was a place.
The Land of Artisans.
Sending the battle-hungry Kaguya Clan over there would make an excellent show of force. Two-meter-tall warriors packed with muscle—just standing there would be enough to intimidate the Craftsmen's diplomats, most of whom had no shinobi backing.
Decision made, Yagura said efficiently, "Alright. I'll have someone contact you tomorrow."
With that, his meeting with the Kaguya Clan wrapped up much more smoothly than expected.
Given their reputation as battle maniacs, Yagura had half-expected a confrontation similar to the one he had with the previous generation of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
With this, he had now met with most of Kirigakure's major clans.
His mission for this trip was accomplished.
...
It was summer. The sun had yet to set, even though it was past six in the evening.
There was still time.
Yagura wanted to go over everything that had happened today. "Kisame, let's take a walk."
"As you wish."
...
Bloodline limits and the Seven Ninja Swordsmen—these were Kirigakure's two primary military strengths.
After today's meetings, most of the bloodline clans had either taken a neutral stance or openly supported him.
The Hozuki Clan, for instance—their leader was currently serving as Yagura's personal assistant, handling paperwork. They had chosen to back him from the very beginning.
As for the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, once Mangetsu and the others arrived tomorrow, Yagura would have fully reestablished his own generation of the group.
With these two pillars secured, he had stabilized Kirigakure's military forces.
Now, the pressing issue was how to further strengthen Kirigakure's military power.
A shinobi village was, first and foremost, a village of shinobi. Its foundation lay in its ninja.
Economic and internal affairs were important, but military strength was even more critical.
Otherwise, as the saying went: While the enemy stockpiles weapons, you stockpile food.
The Land of Artisans was a perfect example of this flawed approach.
The Third Mizukage's answer to this problem had been the infamous Bloody Mist policy—reducing the number of shinobi to pursue an elite force while suppressing bloodline clans and promoting civilian-born ninjas.
The first approach, aiming for elite forces, had mixed results.
Kirigakure's shinobi were stronger than those from Sunagakure and Iwagakure, but weaker than those from Kumogakure and Konohagakure.
With only twelve thousand ninja, Kirigakure had the smallest force among the Great Villages.
Against Sunagakure, they could hold their own in a three-versus-four fight.
Against Iwagakure, however, the numbers were less favorable—a one-versus-two scenario wasn't great, especially since Earth Release countered Water Release.
So once again, they were stuck competing with Sunagakure for fourth place. Third place wasn't even a contest.
...
The second approach—the shift from bloodline clans to civilian-born ninjas—was even more questionable.
Ever since the First Mizukage founded the village, bloodline limits had been a cornerstone of Kirigakure's strength.
The Third Mizukage had spent decades trying to cultivate elite civilian ninjas. But in the end, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen had only produced six notable figures.
And even they weren't that exceptional.
Apart from their sword techniques, they lacked any truly deadly abilities.
Six in several decades? That was barely a drop in the ocean.
In short, the Bloody Mist policy was a failure.
No offense to the old Third Mizukage, but Yagura was being honest.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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