A day in the Daimyō's life began with morning grooming.
At noon, he met with his retainers and the nobles of the Capital of Fire.
Most of their discussions revolved around how to develop the Land of Fire, how to elevate the status of the nobility, and how to deal with the commoners—who, in their eyes, were no different from commodities.
Some expressed dissatisfaction with the low taxes collected from civilians and proposed forced taxation.
After all, allowing them to live was already a form of mercy.
The Daimyō rejected the proposal.
He believed the real issue was the lack of civilians.
He subtly implied that most of them had gone to Konoha, which was why their wealth had declined.
The Land of Fire's primary income came from these civilians—and from merchants.
But now, civilians preferred going to Konoha, and merchants preferred trading with the ninja village. Few were willing to come to the Capital of Fire.
After all, taxation here was outrageous.
A merchant entering the Land of Fire could lose half their assets.
Only a fool—or someone with no choice—would come here.
For example, a jōnin who rose through connections with a noble.
As for Konoha—
These nobles were extremely arrogant toward it.
"Make them hand over those civilians! A bunch of ninja, and they don't even allow us to station ourselves there."
"These mud-legged ninja… they deserve to die."
"Why do ninja need so many civilians anyway? Planning a rebellion?"
They criticized Konoha without restraint.
Konoha indeed did not allow nobles to reside within it—but it accepted civilians.
That policy dated back to the Second Hokage.
…
Lunch.
In the afternoon, the Daimyō received lords from various regions.
These individuals were his ministers—the ones who truly governed the Land of Fire.
The Land of Fire was not a centralized monarchy.
Each lord controlled their own territory, ruling it independently. They merely pledged allegiance to the Daimyō.
Because if they didn't—
Konoha ninja might appear at their bedside the next day.
Every month, they paid large sums to the Daimyō to maintain their legitimacy.
This was also why wars in the ninja world happened.
The more territories you conquered, the more wealth and resources would flow to the Daimyō.
…
At dinner—
The Daimyō suddenly spoke:
"The three from Konoha."
Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh.
All three appeared instantly before him.
With a gentle smile, he asked:
"What do you think of the Land of Fire?"
Hatake Sakumo replied solemnly:
"We will defend Lord Daimyō with our lives."
The Daimyō's smile faded slightly.
That wasn't the answer he wanted.
He turned to the youngest.
"And what about you, little brother Hyuga Arin?"
(Your whole family are "little brothers.")
Arin smiled.
"Naturally, I will defend Lord Daimyō with my life."
The Daimyō waved his hand.
"You've worked hard today. Go rest."
Instantly, numerous ninja appeared throughout the room.
"They will protect me."
Arin glanced at them.
All wore Konoha forehead protectors.
So what exactly were they here for?
…
"So where exactly does this guy get the confidence to try and win us over?" Arin asked.
They were soaking in a hot spring.
This had all been arranged by the Daimyō.
Their dinner had been lavish, and afterward came this hot spring.
"Probably… that," Sakumo said, pointing toward the entrance.
A group of women in kimono walked in.
They approached the bath, exposing their shoulders slightly as they spoke softly:
"Honored sirs, we are here to scrub your backs."
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two figures instantly vanished.
The women stood there, confused, staring at the now-empty bath—
where only Kazuma remained.
"…Huh?"
…
"I mean, shouldn't you enjoy something like that? Why run?" Arin nudged Sakumo after getting dressed.
"You're adults. Shouldn't you at least enjoy life a bit?"
Sakumo rolled his eyes.
"You're at the age where your blood runs hottest—why did you run?"
"I'm only fifteen! What kind of beast are you?" Arin said in disgust. "Trying to corrupt a minor—careful, I'll report you."
Sakumo rolled his eyes again.
"I'm a devoted man. And lust is one of the three forbidden traits in the ninja code."
"Still pretending at a time like this?" Arin scoffed. "Closet pervert."
"You're clearly not the loyal type. I'll pretend I didn't see anything—you can go back and try it yourself," Sakumo shot back.
Their eyes met—
Sparks seemed to fly between them.
They had completely forgotten—
There was still a third person.
…
Arin thought that would be the end of it for the day.
But when he returned to his room and opened the door—
A delicate young girl knelt at the entrance.
She bowed deeply.
"I will serve you tonight."
After a long silence—
She raised her head.
Arin was already gone.
On the rooftop—
Arin stared at Sakumo in deep thought.
After a while, he finally spoke:
"Why do I feel like… we're the ones in danger here?"
"Was it always like this before?"
Sakumo sighed helplessly.
"It wasn't."
Who knew it would turn into this.
"This method of recruitment… is really straightforward," Arin muttered.
If Jiraiya were here—
He'd probably already be halfway convinced.
…
The next day—
Arin and Sakumo arrived at the Daimyō's room with dark circles under their eyes.
The Daimyō smiled warmly.
"It seems the two of you don't like such arrangements."
Sakumo knelt on one knee.
"Gambling, lust, and drugs are the three prohibitions for ninja. Thank you for your kindness, Lord Daimyō."
Arin yawned.
He wasn't even in the mood to act anymore.
His figure flickered—
—and vanished.
The Daimyō frowned slightly.
Compared to Sakumo, Arin had no sense of etiquette at all.
It seemed winning them over wouldn't be easy.
…
The following days finally returned to normal.
Nearly a month passed peacefully.
Inside his room, the Daimyō arranged stacks of banknotes.
Then he said softly:
"The three from Konoha."
Whoosh—whoosh—whoosh.
They appeared again.
"This is your salary for this month."
He pushed three piles of money toward them.
"Lord Daimyō has already paid the mission reward. There is no need for additional payment," Sakumo said respectfully.
"You've worked hard," the Daimyō smiled. "That's separate. Besides—hasn't little brother Arin already accepted it?"
Arin silently pocketed the money.
Money not taken is wasted.
Sakumo glared at him.
Arin gestured toward Kazuma.
Kazuma was also quietly putting the money away.
Sakumo slapped his forehead in exasperation.
"These two… have zero resistance to temptation."
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