Under a large tent, the core members of the Ashes Organization gathered together and listened to the results of Fūma Kotarō's trip to Kikyo Castle.
"What exactly was the mission?" Yuzhen asked.
"The Daimyo of Kikyo Castle, Date Hōhan, gave us a mission: assassinate the current daimyo of Reitō Castle as soon as possible. He even demanded that we wipe out as much of that daimyo's entire clan as possible."
The mission left everyone silent for a moment.
Hagane Chihori looked at everyone before asking softly, "What's the problem?"
"There is a bit of a problem," Fūma Kotarō said.
Uchiha Nanami immediately offered an explanation:
"A daimyo normally wouldn't give such an order, because it's too outrageous and contrary to common sense. Under normal circumstances, he should order us to crush or exterminate the ninja of Reitō Castle, cutting off the daimyo's wings and claws."
"After disarming the enemy, the Daimyo of Kikyo would send in his secular forces to eliminate the opposing daimyo... The enemy would have no ninja, while Kikyo Castle would have ninja. Naturally, the latter would stand undefeated. After that, no matter what military action followed, even if they failed to win, they wouldn't suffer any major losses."
"Why go around in a circle and complicate things unnecessarily?" Chihori asked again.
"Because it's a kind of political understanding. No daimyo wants to become a direct target of the ninja, so under normal circumstances, rulers won't violate this understanding." Uchiha Nanami spread her hands as she spoke.
Ninja were always cutting off scalps, stabbing people in the kidneys, and digging out hearts. To noble daimyos, that was far too bloody.
Were their lives really no different from the cheap lives of ordinary people?
If one daimyo sent ninja to assassinate another, he would be breaking that understanding.