"Why is there so much snow? It doesn't make sense. We're in the middle of the Land of Waterfalls and the Land of Rice; it doesn't snow there, but it does here," I complained as we walked through the snow.
"From this, we can say there are like two more countries between here and the Land of Snow," Yamato added from behind me.
"Hokage-sama, is it really necessary to travel on foot?" Kurenai asked beside me as she pulled her fleece coat tighter around her.
"This isn't a country of ninjas, but of samurai. To have a good relationship with these people and for everything to go smoothly, you have to follow the saying: if you're in the Land of Iron, you have to act like people from the Land of Iron," I explained, without stopping walking or looking ahead.
"Hmm, that's not what I meant," Kurenai muttered.
"Do you see anything?" I asked Katsuki, who was on my other side.
"I see a village a few meters from here," he replied, activating his Byakugan.
At this, I took the opportunity to look back and see several Iron Land merchants, and among them, someone from my secret company who would be in charge of carrying out the plan he had devised.
Thanks to my great charisma and eloquence, I was able to convince the daimyo to begin a friendly relationship with the Iron Land. Obviously, this required money and profits, so the leader of the country sent some men with me on this journey, along with some merchants, which qualifies as an A-rank mission due to its importance.
The idea is to establish a trade route and agreements with this country, since it is one of the few that is technically neutral with the Land of Fire, or in other words, they don't hate us.
After checking that everything was in place, I adjusted my coat and continued onward, blazing a trail through this blizzard.
...
"Thank you so much for receiving us, Mifune-dono," I said to the man before me, who could be considered the current leader of the samurai of the Land of Iron.
"Nothing to worry about. The daimyo of the country informed me of your imminent arrival," the old samurai said, handing me a simple cup of tea. "I'm just surprised that someone of your stature came here directly."
"It was my idea, so I have to get straight to the point to make sure everything goes well the first time," I replied as I began to drink the tea, which was quite good for my taste buds accustomed to tea worth millions of ryos.
Like other countries, the Land of Iron is led and governed by a daimyo, so even though Mifune is the general of the samurai of this country, it doesn't mean he rules it. Mifune is only in charge of military matters and commanding troops, but that doesn't diminish his status as the highest authority in this area.
Something like a kage, but not actually one, since he doesn't have a village or military hamlet to govern; he simply follows the orders of his daimyo, living in the capital of his country.
"But it still surprises me. I thought that when someone became the leader of a hidden village, they stopped doing mundane missions," Mifune couldn't help but notice.
"Well, it's because I'm here that the mission went so well, since these decrepit men who only think about money kept quiet just because it was me," I complained a little about the situation.
"I can imagine, but I imagine you didn't come here just for this, since a woman of your status must be very busy," he said, hitting the nail on the head.
"You're a very assertive man," I said, smiling at him.
"Thanks to that, I've been able to survive multiple confrontations that not just anyone could have survived, but getting back to the point, the Land of Iron is known for being a neutral nation, so if you come here with the idea of us becoming allies, I'd appreciate it if you could try and erase any such attempt, please," Mifune suggested, his tone somewhere between polite and threatening.
I simply ignored him as I finished my tea.
"It doesn't have sake or anything like that, since that warms the stomach more than plain tea," I said, simply handing him my cup.
At this, Mifune just looked at me, puzzled, before smiling.
"I expected nothing less from the woman who managed to face a Kage and his army and emerge victorious; she has a stomach of steel," the old samurai said, taking my cup.
"You're exaggerating; as much as I'd like to say it was me, in reality it was four Kage-level forces against one and his army. I might have been able to defeat them alone, but without them I wouldn't have been able to get out as unscathed as I did with them," I said, a little melancholic, remembering that of the four of us, now only the perverted sage and I remain.
"Humility," Mifune said, bringing sake to my cup as I sat back down. "I thought the Kage were more arrogant than I expected."
"The truth always comes out sooner or later; sometimes there's no point in lying or exaggerating things to make yourself look good. Minato himself is a perfect example; he didn't lie about himself, but the people around him always exaggerate his feats, and they still do today. If you saw him in person, you'd realize he was just a very talented ninja with an incredibly overpowered technique, nothing more," I explained, taking a sip of sake.
"A new perspective on the Leaf Village hero; if you say so, then I guess I'll have to believe it," Mifune remarked, also taking a sip of sake. "But back to the point."
I simply stopped her with my hand to silence her.
"Don't worry, Grandpa, I came here to forge a trade alliance, nothing more. No sharing of military secrets or military cooperation. I just want to move resources and money to grow the country's economy, nothing more. And speaking of my other motives, I have them, but not for the Iron Kingdom, so don't worry," I clarified, lowering my hand.
Mifune just sighed.
"I have no choice but to believe you," he said, taking another sip of sake. "But if you don't mind, may I ask what those plans are?"
"If I told you, I'd have to be part of this, and then we would have to share military information between our two countries," I told him.
At this, Mifune looked at me incredulously, then chuckled a little.
"Then I'll be left wondering for the rest of my life."
...
Once the snowstorm ended, negotiations between the land of fire and the land of iron began. For three days, they discussed diplomacy, deals, and agreements, always trying to benefit one side more than the other.
To expedite things, I had to be present to speed up these meetings and prevent them from dragging on. In the end, they reached a purely commercial agreement, just as I had told Mifune.
"You kept your word," Mifune remarked to me as he watched several young samurai training.
"I told you there was no point in lying, didn't I?" I reminded him.
"That's true, I apologize for being so distrustful," the old samurai said, about to bow, but I stopped him.
"It doesn't matter; it's not like I'm missing the rest or anything; having knowledge is crucial in this world; it can make or break your life, so I don't see it as a problem," I said, reassuring him.
"Understood," Mifune declared, walking over to the armory to retrieve two katanas. "I don't know if he minds asking me a favor."
...
In the training field, Mifune and I stood with our katanas drawn, ready to engage in a brief, purely sword-fighting exercise—or, from a more ninja-like perspective, kenjutsu.
The situation spread like wildfire, and nearly every samurai present, including Kurenai, Yamato, and Katsuki, was watching the exchange.
"I see flies are annoying," I said, looking at everyone who was watching.
"I see you do have a bit of arrogance in you," Mifune remarked.
"It's not arrogance when what I say is true," I replied, mimicking his gesture.
For a few seconds, none of the flies moved; the place was silent, and even the spectators seemed to hold their breath.
Out of nowhere, Mifune moved, and in less than a second, he was at my guard, making a horizontal cut to my neck. But I reacted quickly, bending my sword and blocking it, causing both katanas to clash, creating the characteristic clang of metal.
"Oh, not bad," he commented, taking a step back, dodging the cut I had made.
I won't openly admit that I was never very good at kenjutsu; I may be at the level of a jonin, but that doesn't mean I know how to use a sword properly.
After all, a ninja uses a sword to kill, not for head-on confrontations with an enemy; that's something even some seem to have forgotten.
An example of this is Sakumo himself; he was known for his swift and precise killing. He almost never engaged in sword combat, not because he couldn't, but simply because by the time the enemy realized he was there, he was already dead.
If the enemy discovers you on a ninja mission, the mission can be considered a failure, as it gives the opponent time to prepare and counterattack, creating potentially disadvantageous situations.
Mifune lunged, trying to cut me down in one way or another, but thanks to my quick reaction, I was able to block practically all of his attacks. I then took a step forward and executed a vertical slash from top to bottom, which he could only defend.
But to my surprise, Mifune bent his sword so that mine traveled to the tip of his katana, then moved, making a diagonal cut.
In response, I could only bend my body, causing his katana to graze my face, before taking a step back.
The old samurai didn't stop there. He spun his weapon and made another cut, but I, being more alert, moved my katana and deflected it with a parry, sending him flying backward.
"Excellent, let's increase the difficulty," I said, smiling.
"I thought we were just having a simple sword fight," I remarked, shifting into a more defensive stance.
"It would be disrespectful to do only that, since I don't know when I'll face someone like you again," he said, his thoughts trailing off at a speed almost blinding to the human eye.
The moment he attacked, I was ready. I spun around, held my sword diagonally above my head, and deflected Mifune's slash.
This old man is faster than me but slower than Minato, so I can react to his blows without much trouble. But where I am superior is in strength, so no matter how much he hits me, if we exchange blows, he'll always be the one thrown back.
Mifune moved like the wind, slashing from side to side without stopping, while I tried to find an opening to counter, and the moment I saw one, I didn't hesitate.
Without thinking, I made a vertical cut to my opponent, but to my surprise, Mifune, using his sword, slid mine to deflect it to my left side, my non-dominant side, to deflect it, move his body quickly, and leave his sword at my neck.
"Training over," he said, looking at me.
Seeing the katana at my neck, I hesitated for a moment.
In a real fight, this wouldn't have stopped me; I could have used some jutsu or something, but this was a pure sword fight, so I only had one option left.
"I surrender," I said simply with resignation, raising both hands in defeat.
"Incredible, General Mifune won," someone said.
"I didn't expect him to beat a Hokage," someone else said.
For some reason, I felt irritated, since it made it seem like Mifune had beaten me in a fight. First of all, this was training; second, this was just sword fighting, an area where my opponent was an expert; third, if I had been able to use ninjutsu, I would have destroyed him in seconds.
"Don't pay them any attention; they don't know what they're saying," Mifune reassured me.
"But you don't correct them," I complained, looking at him.
"You can blame this old man for wanting a little more respect and prestige in front of my men," he replied with a smile very similar to Minato's, a sincere one, but with a hint of apology.
At this, I could only pout as I crossed my arms, walking briskly back to my inn to leave as soon as possible.
"Are you going to say goodbye?" Mifune asked.
"I already gave you the victory; what more do you want from me?" I retorted, to which the old man could only laugh as I walked past the samurai, wielding their weapons without a word of apology or concern for them.
At this point, I just wanted to get out of there.