Composing Poems

The float stopped following them after dropping them off at the Botanical Garden, and Madara nodded to Izuna before leaving.

Uchiha Ryo and the other Uchiha clan members in charge of Genjutsu followed him away; they were going to the Hokage Building together to prepare for what was to come.

The Botanical Garden is an open-air area.

Beneath the trellis, dappled light and shadow play; broad Monstera deliciosa grow beside the Stone Lanterns; and further away, medicinal herbs grow quietly.

The wind whistles through the leaves, mingling the fragrance of flowers with the earthy sweetness, creating a delightful and refreshing atmosphere.

Wakako stepped off the float and onto the stone path, her legs went weak. If Yuan Yusheng hadn't been supporting her, she probably would have knelt down on the ground.

The others reacted differently, but all of them were weak and had to be supported by their attendants to stand up before climbing onto the back of the Summoning Beast.

Their fear of Ninjas has reached its peak, yet they are currently in the Shinobi Village, still among the crowd.

This group of people were clearly Ninjas; even though they looked so beautiful and so enthusiastic, they were Ninjas.

They possess the ability to kill themselves.

Previously, they had been thinking contemptuously that these actors' pretense was despicable, trying to please them in such a way; even Ninjas had fallen.

But now they've finally realized it.

Everything that happened before was contrary to common sense.

"Taira no Tokuko" could dance without any burden while wearing Jūnihitoe, and later she was even able to take off her clothes one by one while hanging on a rope.

At the time, they only thought she was beautiful; now, looking back, they wondered how such a strong woman could exist in the world.

There's also wine that rises from the vat and turns into rain in mid-air.

Butterflies that will flutter around people and dance with them.

Even the mounts beneath them, capable of understanding human speech and sharing joy with people.

None of these are truly harmless.

If they harbored murderous intent, these Ordinary People would probably be torn to shreds in no time.

Even with their own country's Ninjas around, they didn't think they could survive.

At this moment, everyone was trembling, afraid of provoking the humanoid monsters around them.

The only one in a particularly good mood here is the Daimyo of the Land of Fire.

He was humming a song as he carried his wife onto the cat's back. It was the same tune the band had played in the parade earlier. He had almost mastered the melody, and even added a few embellishments to the second half.

His smug expression made others dare not speak out against him.

They finally understood: the Konoha Special Administrative Region wasn't a right fought for by the Ninjas; it was clearly Daimyo had found for himself!

With someone like that backing him up, what can't he do?

Force is power!

But then again...

With such Strength, making them disappear on the spot would be a piece of cake; there would be no need to wait until now to demonstrate it.

Conversely, since they are guests, shouldn't those with power do their best to protect them?

Even Madara Uchiha, the Asura of the Ninja World, said he was welcome. Although his way of welcoming was so "shocking" that it made one's heart race, it was still a welcome!

Of course, afterwards... one can't be too reckless...

Those Ninjas who wanted to take advantage of the chaos were now completely disillusioned; they'd have to be alive to get back with any information they wanted.

Besides, what Konoha has shown is enough for their higher-ups to digest.

It would be better to stop here and simply treat this trip as a vacation.

Among the Ninjas of the Land of Lightning, Ai, who had once entered the Tavern and extracted some information, sighed.

The Tavern Keeper was an Ordinary People; she wasn't very good at hearing, but she was very talkative.

After a few drinks, she started rambling on about the children in the village.

Whose son skipped training to catch fish again? Whose daughter set up a stall on the Commercial Street to sell hand-woven ropes? The quiet child from the Shimura Clan often goes to play with his children near that Northwestern Meadow.

The grassland to the northwest, not far from the Training Ground, is surrounded by low hills and bushes, making it suitable for an ambush.

This intelligence is sufficient to launch a precision strike against the next generation on the battlefield.

But it's no longer intelligence.

It was just a casual remark, a casual remark that slipped out of the mouth of a Tavern Keeper wasn't very good at hearing, about where a few kids were going to play.

Ai swallowed it and let it rot inside her stomach.

The Botanical Garden is located halfway up the mountain.

Here you'll find beautiful flowers, trees, Floating Cup Banquet, and fountains.

Simply put, this is a place familiar to the nobility.

They instantly got into the zone and began Composing Poems.

Izuna stood at the edge of the pergola, watching in amazement as the nobles, who had been so timid just moments before, became lively again in the Botanical Garden.

Along the Floating Cup Banquet, several Envoys set up their positions and began playing games with their trusted confidants.

Whoever the wine glass floats to must catch it and recite a line. Those who fail to catch it must drink a penalty shot and then recite another line.

Everyone present, even the seemingly carefree people from the Land of Lightning, were masters of poetry and verse, and the round went surprisingly smoothly.

The group began to appreciate each other.

Wakako sat next to Yuan Yusheng, and neither of them participated in the activity.

She tilted her head to look at them, occasionally whispering something to her husband.

This Botanical Garden was built by an elderly member of the Senju Clan.

He had a white beard and white eyebrows, and a voice so loud you could hear him two streets away. I couldn't stand the sight of him all the time.

He criticized him for building Amusement Parks, he criticized him for designing floats, he criticized him for making promotional brochures, saying he was neglecting his duties, that he was frivolous and impetuous, and that he had disgraced the Uchiha.

Wait a minute, what gives him the right to say that an old man from the Senju Clan is a disgrace to the Uchiha?

Izuna's lips twitched slightly at this thought.

The old man had a temper as foul as a rock in a latrine, even worse than Third Elder would puff up his beard and glare at him, as if the old man owed him eight million taels of silver.

But the older generation's aesthetic sense is truly unparalleled.

The pergola was perfectly positioned, filtering the midday sun and turning it into scattered gold dust on the ground.

The Stone Lanterns were positioned at just the right distance, allowing the water to flow smoothly and at a steady pace, easily pushing the small wooden box containing the wine dish to the next person.

The arrangement of flowers and plants is also very ingenious; different flowers are arranged in a staggered manner, and the colors are harmoniously matched, making it pleasing to the eye.

Moreover, the Botanical Garden is built halfway up the mountain, and the view from this platform is no less impressive than the carefully designed entrance.

Although the old man has a terrible temper, the garden he built is truly impeccable, which reinforces the stereotype that the Senju of the Forest is skilled at farming.

While Izuna was lost in thought, the delegation of Envoys, who had been having a great time, had finished the game of Floating Cup Banquet and began to compose poems about the spring scenery before them.

They were reciting Waka, in a 5-7-5-7-7 tune, with elegant words and allusions readily available.

The Envoy from the Land of Lightning composed a waka Waka, and the Envoy from the Land of Wind immediately responded with a poem about a stone. The two looked at each other and smiled, showing a sense of mutual appreciation.

The civil official of the Land of Water softly recited a poem about flowing water, its melody clear, cold, and aloof.

Even Ishimi spoke up. He squinted at the distant mountain ridge and recited a Waka about distant mountains, its imagery expansive, which drew frequent nods of approval from the crowd.

After finishing his recitation, Ishimi put down his wine cup and turned his gaze to the edge of the pergola.

Seeing Izuna standing there gazing into the distance, lost in thought, he smiled and called out to him, "Lord Izuna, why don't you compose a poem too?"

Izuna turned his head.

"Me?" He pointed to himself, looking somewhat surprised.

"Of course," Ishimi said. "Today's Amusement Park has been filled with wondrous sights. Since Lord Izuna was able to create such a world, he must also have poems in his heart. Why not let us see them as well?"

His tone was gentle and polite, and his smile was just right, but everyone could understand the underlying meaning in his words.

You're a Ninja; putting on a show is one thing, Composing Poems is quite another. Can you handle that?

The Daimyo standing nearby frowned, about to interrupt, but Izuna laughed.

Wow, this even has that classic "face-slapping" trope from novels!

You dare to compete with me, a hard-working liberal arts student who got into a 985 university solely through Chinese language skills? You certainly have the Yūki.

Izuna smiled. "Then I'll offer a poem. However, unlike the Waka you all recited, mine may not have perfect tonal patterns, please forgive me."

Ishimi slightly and gestured for him to proceed. "Of course. Please."

Izuna pondered for a moment, then spoke, his voice neither hurried nor slow.

"On a fine day, I sought out fragrant blossoms by the Sishui; the boundless scenery was all new at once. I easily recognized the face of the east wind; a myriad of colors always herald spring."

This poem was written by Zhu Xi.

On the surface, it is a poem praising Kasuga, but the "Sishui" in the poem is actually an allusion to the Confucian School.

Because during the Spring and Autumn Period, Confucius taught his disciples by playing stringed instruments and singing in the area between the Zhu and Si rivers.

Therefore, the so-called "seeking fragrance" refers to seeking the way of the sage. The "boundless scenery" indicates an extremely vast space, which reveals the poet's original intention of seeking the way of the sage.

However, there is no Confucius or the Sishui River here.

Izuna chose this poem purely because the imagery of other poems did not match the current scenery; either they described things that were not present here, or they were using the scenery to express his feelings.

Only this song sounds like a pure celebration of Kasuga.

Excuse me, Mr. Zhu Xi, but please allow me to borrow your poem to show off a bit.

Everyone fell silent.

Ishimi squinted, mentally going over the four lines twice, unable to find a single word to criticize.

Izuna translated the poem verbatim without any embellishment, and in the context of Japanese, the poem does indeed not conform to the five-seven rhyme scheme at all.

But every image in it is a real Kasuga scene.

Open, bright, and naturally formed.

Especially the last line—"A riot of colors always heralds spring"—he couldn't help but recite it silently again.

Then he burst out laughing.

He placed his wine cup by the winding stream, stood up, and bowed to Izuna, saying, "I utterly admit defeat!"

The other Envoys exchanged bewildered glances.

Ishimi's intentions are clear: even if we are intimidated by your military might, we still have the integrity of scholars and must regain some face.

They thought that even if Izuna couldn't answer, they would still offer a few words of praise, Ishimi would probably smooth things over and let the matter drop.

After all, they had already been through too much fright today, and nobody wanted to cause any more trouble.

To their surprise, this Ninja, whom they thought would surely produce no good lines, actually composed such a beautiful poem.

For a moment, they were at a loss for what to do.

Ishimi ignored the stares of his colleagues.

He refilled his glass, raised it towards Izuna, and then drank it all in one gulp.

He lost, but he wasn't discouraged at all.

Because he had a vague feeling that he was witnessing something that could change the whole world.

He couldn't explain it, but at that moment, he felt the loss was worthwhile.