"Whew..."
In Secret Meeting Hall No. 2, Chiba dropped into the high-backed chair at the conference table with a soft plop and let out a long breath.
I'm exhausted...
That was the only thought in his mind.
This day had been, without question, the most demanding and grueling day he had faced since coming to the Naruto World.
He had needed to constantly observe the expressions of the Land of Earth delegation without leaving a trace, gauge their mental state, and come up with effective words to draw their attention back whenever he determined that their focus was beginning to drift.
Honestly, this was the first time Chiba had felt this tired.
Still, tired as he was, the results today should have been fairly good.
He had successfully delayed things by a day.
Moreover, since Iwama intended to deal with them, he must have noticed as well. A whole day should have been enough to put tremendous pressure on them.
However, Iwama was from Iwa, chosen by that old fox, the Third Tsuchikage, to carry out such a critical task at a time like this. It was unlikely that he would be crushed by that pressure and lose his composure.
Still, it should be enough to make them settle down for a while.
They could use this time to further reinforce their arrangements. One or two days was enough for Konoha ninja to set everything up efficiently, but it was only an initial deployment. There were still plenty of loopholes in areas requiring more precise adjustments.
Since the risk was so great, it was always better for their side to be more thorough.
In any case, once this plan was put into action, the outcome would be decided in as little as a week or as much as half a