The Disappearance of Lady Sanjo
The daimyo of the Land of Water Ichikawa Haru, replied, "Yu is already an adult, and besides, he's a boy. He has a certain ability to protect himself. After Ichikawa Noboru was assassinated once, I've already deployed a large number of guards. Only Hidden, I think, might be assassinated by someone else."
Shiyu nodded and said, "That makes sense, but I think Lord Daimyo probably suspects that it was the eldest son who assassinated the second son, right?"
The daimyo finally nodded and said, "My eldest son was born to my first wife, Lady Uesugi, but she died in childbirth."
"Now, according to common sense, the position of the next daimyo should definitely be held by the eldest son. Therefore, eliminating the rival might be Yu's doing. Of course, it's also possible that Noboru is orchestrating this himself. The least likely scenario is that he will disappear, because it wouldn't benefit her at all." The daimyo explained this to Shiyu carefully, Shiyu now had a general understanding.
"Hmm, it seems you've already guessed what happened this time. It's because of a succession issue. So, is it really appropriate for me to get involved?" Shiyu asked.
"My guess is just a hypothesis. If someone really only wants to kill our family, it wouldn't be good if we started to suspect each other," Daimyo said.
"Sigh, I don't want you to get involved. I just hope you can protect my daughter, Ichikawa In. You can ignore everything else," the daimyo said earnestly, clearly heartbroken for his daughter.
"Hmm, Shiyu thought about it and decided to help this person to the end. Before signing some important agreements with the Land of Water, accepting a Super S-class commission was not out of the question. Besides, this person also had a certain connection with him."
"Alright! Then I'll try to stay with Princess Ichikawa In for the next few days. If we encounter any assassins, I'll naturally help you capture them," Shiyu said.
"Thank you so much! You are not only Hidden's savior, but also my benefactor!" The Daimyo of the Land of Water also expressed his gratitude to Shiyu with great emotion.
Shiyu immediately sent Orochimaru, Kisame Kimimaro, and the others back to the Shinobi Village. After all, Kisame and Kimimaro needed to familiarize themselves with the entire village, and Orochimaru was naturally the best choice.
After Yagura became the Mizukage, he had nothing else to do. After signing some documents with Shiyu, he left the Daimyo City of the Land of Water with Genji and returned to Kirigakure.
Due to the long-standing warfare in Kirigakure, Yagura and Genji had many other things to do besides rebuilding the Kirigakure and changing Kirigakure policies.
In the end, Shiyu stayed in the fortress of the Daimyo City in the Land of Water, preparing to protect Hidden for a few days.
"I am Shiyu. I have been entrusted by the daimyo to protect Princess Ichikawa," Shiyu announced from behind the screen outside the house.
"Lord Shiyu, you're not an outsider, please come in," Ichikawa In invited.
Shiyu then entered the house and saw Ichikawa In was dressed rather lightly.
"Shiyu, how is Suisen? How did she fare after you rescued her?" Ichikawa In asked.
"I don't know. After she went back, she stayed at the Amamiya Family. Because of the war, she was actually the least safe person around me," Shiyu said.
"Really? Logically speaking, I should be safest by your side. Lord Shiyu, the Light of the Shinobi World, is the strongest in the entire Shinobi World!"
"However, last time, I was worried because Konoha said you had died in battle. I didn't believe it at first, but seeing you this time, their rumors have been disproven. By the way, have you left Konoha yet?" Hidden asked.
For some reason, Shiyu thought of Konoha's Kurenai and then of Yoshiki, the Shinobi Village that governed his village. Shiyu then said, "Yes, I've left Konoha. Now I'm the leader of the Shinobi Village in the Land of Rice. Everyone calls me the Shinobi Kage, but I know I'm not qualified at all."
Shiyu modestly declined, but that made Ichikawa In laugh.
"Haha, in the entire Shinobi World, besides you, who is more qualified to be a Kage? Not only are you the strongest, but you are also first-rate in governing the ninja village! You are too modest." Ichikawa In had a good impression of Shiyu. After all, last time they were surrounded, Shiyu was able to rescue them in time and help them break through the encirclement.
After exchanging pleasantries for a while, the two became much closer, and then Ichikawa In let out a deep sigh.
"Ah, Lord Shiyu, I wonder if you could do me a favor? It's not exactly a request, but just a private matter for my family."
Shiyu was very puzzled. Could it be that Ichikawa In was worried about him being assassinated?
"Princess Yin, please speak freely," Shiyu said directly.
"Then I'll say it," Yin said with a bitter expression.
"Did you know? My birth mother, who was also the second wife of the Ichikawa Haru of the Land of Water, Ikawa Osamu, Lady Sanjo, has recently gone missing."
"But my father wasn't worried at all. When I asked him, he just said that my mother would be back soon. I wanted to go and look for her, but my father stopped me repeatedly. I really don't know why," Yin said bitterly.
"Oh? So that means the daimyo had two wives. His first wife died in childbirth, but she gave birth to Ichikawa Yu, who was his eldest son. His second wife, Lady Sanjo, gave birth to your second Ichikawa Noboru, and you, Ichikawa In. Is that right?" Shiyu went through what she knew.
"Yes." Ichikawa In nodded.
"Lady Sanjo, your birth mother, has disappeared. Logically, your father wouldn't have ignored it, would he? There must be some secret behind this." Shiyu then asked, "What was the state of their relationship?"
"When I was around, their relationship seemed good, but now I can sense my father's indifference. Maybe their relationship isn't so good when I'm not around," Yin said.
"Didn't your brothers notice that Lady Sanjo was missing? Did they go to ask the daimyo about it?" Shiyu continued.
"They all went to ask, of course, but Father always made excuses and turned them away, and in the end, the matter was left unresolved," Yin said.
"Okay, where did your mother appear before she disappeared? Could you take me there?" Shiyu asked.
"Of course! My mother's room is not far away, but my father has sent people to guard it," Yin said.
"It's alright, I'll go in without anyone noticing," Shiyu said confidently. With his abilities, he was naturally not afraid of alerting the enemy.
"Alright!" Yin then immediately led Shiyu to a house not far away. Sure enough, there were many guards at the door of the house.
"This is really suspicious. If it were just guards, there would be no need for so many. The daimyo must be hiding something."