"Captain, same as yesterday—nothing unusual. Konoha's defenses are truly impregnable."
Inside Iwama's room, the guard stood ramrod straight as he delivered his report to Iwama, who sat at the desk.
"Is that so?"
At this, Iwama rubbed his eyes and nodded slightly. Then, noticing the exhaustion and faint dark circles beneath the guard's eyes, he waved a hand and said, "Then that's enough. You don't need to go out and gather information tomorrow. Take a proper day off and rest."
"Yes!"
The guard answered crisply, then turned, opened the door, and left.
Not a single flaw? Not even the slightest opportunity?
Did truly perfect defenses exist in this world?
After the guard left, a trace of helplessness crossed Iwama's face. He took a deep breath, covered his face with both hands, and rubbed gently as a bitter thought passed through his mind.
Ten days had passed since the first meeting. During those ten days, he had sent the guards out every day to gather intelligence. Sometimes, he had even used shopping as an excuse to personally observe Konoha's terrain and defenses.
After sending word on the day following the first meeting that they needed to "seek the Third Tsuchikage's approval," ten days had gone by without Konoha showing the slightest impatience. Not only had they not convened further talks, but aside from the ninja who delivered their three meals each day, Konoha had not sent anyone else. Nor had they urged them to respond quickly. Over these ten days, Konoha seemed to have forgotten about them entirely.
To be honest, Konoha's actions had exceeded Iwama's expectations.
His daily intelligence gathering, as well as his earlier spur-of-the-moment proposal to seek the Third Tsuchikage's opinion, skip the preliminary negotiations, and directly sign a ceasefire agreement, had all been deliberate. Even bypassing the