The Absurd Distribution

Mitokado Homura stared fixedly at the Daimyo of the Land of Fields, demanding he declare his stance.

"Ah!"

Banda Yiming was startled by Mitokado Homura's gaze and jolted awake. His heart felt as if it had stopped beating, and two beads of sweat the size of soybeans seeped from his forehead, dripping onto the floor.

He stammered, "Princess Tsunade, it is a recognized fact in the Ninja World that the Senju Clan has fallen. The Land of Fields is grateful for the Senju Clan's contributions, but the clan is no longer qualified to remain a partner of our land. As Elder Mitokado Homura said, the five great ninja nations are the best choice. Konoha Village is more suitable for the current Land of Fields."

At the beginning, Banda Yiming had stuttered, but by the end, his words were filled with pride.

He did not consider betrayal a disgrace; instead, he felt he had made the most correct choice.

Banda Yiming's attitude surprised everyone present.

Mitokado Homura was extremely satisfied. To be able to stand firmly on Konoha's side at such a moment, and to speak so righteously while implicating Sunagakure and Kumogakure as well—with the Land of Fields Daimyo's declaration, they would be the ones to decide the future distribution of assets.

A from Kumogakure and Ebizo from Sunagakure also focused their gazes on the Daimyo of the Land of Fields.

Such a man, capable of framing shamelessness as a matter of course, was truly a talent—much like the politicians in their own countries, whom they despised from the bottom of their hearts. Yet, appearing in other nations, such a man could bring them immense benefits.

Tsunade was filled with fury, yet had nowhere to vent it.

He could frame betrayal as something so justified, and though she wanted to rebuke him, she lacked any standing to do so.

She was currently appearing in the Land of Fields as a ninja of Konoha Village.

Her heart was filled with disappointment toward Konoha.

"Banda Yiming, have you forgotten that the Land of Fields owes its current state entirely to the efforts of the Senju Clan? What was the purpose of having me come here this time?"

Tsunade roared in anger, clenching her fists, ready to strike.

However, her words were nowhere near as polished as Banda Yiming's; they carried a tone of self-pity and grievance.

She realized then that she and the Daimyo of the Land of Fields—and Konoha—were not cut from the same cloth; she was only suited to fight as a ninja.

Her gaze inadvertently swept over Ebizo, and a sense of bitterness filled her heart.

On the battlefield of the Land of Rain, Chiyo's poison arts were exerting unimaginable power.

Sarutobi Hiruzen had ordered her to withdraw from the Land of Rain to attend these negotiations in the Land of Fields. She had originally thought it was to ease the conflict with the Senju Clan and play a constructive role, but now it seemed she was merely a sacrificial pawn.

As she spoke, Tsunade's pupils shrank to the size of mung beans, and the whites of her eyes filled her entire sockets; she seemed to understand something.

She was a tool used by Sarutobi Hiruzen to keep Senju Nawaki in check.

The corners of her mouth turned down, revealing a bitter smile.

The fists she held tight finally loosened.

Banda Yiming looked at Tsunade with a gaze of pity and regret, which then turned incomparably firm. He had convinced himself with his own logic.

"Lady Tsunade, the Senju Clan will always be a friend to the Land of Fields. But the Land of Fields cannot accompany the Senju Clan to their deaths. Decades of cooperation and decades of profit are enough to repay the Senju Clan's kindness. The Land of Fields owes the Senju Clan nothing, and you should not continue to pester us. The Senju Clan, having betrayed Konoha, is destined to wither away."

Banda Yiming's words showed no fear of Tsunade; they had turned into a lecture.

He did not believe the Land of Fields owed the Senju Clan any debt of gratitude; the Senju Clan had become a burden.

The former alliance had been a favor bestowed by their Land of Fields upon the Senju Clan.

Now, they had firmly taken their stand with Konoha.

"Good! That is well said; Konoha is the strongest reliance for the Land of Fields. The current changes in the Land of Fields are merely Konoha reclaiming its own assets. The Senju Clan enjoyed too much of Konoha's protection by leveraging Konoha's prestige, yet they never thought to repay Konoha. Since they have betrayed Konoha, these benefits should continue to be enjoyed by Konoha."

Mitokado Homura's face was full of smiles as he praised Banda Yiming's choice.

No wonder Sarutobi Hiruzen had told him before he left to protect Banda Yiming as much as possible; it turned out he was Konoha's most loyal partner.

They also needed a white glove, a legitimate excuse, to secure legal interests for Konoha.

Banda Yiming, whose family had already entered Konoha, was the best choice.

"Heh..."

"..."

A of Kumogakure Village and Ebizo of Sunagakure let out a scoff in unison, exchanged a glance, and shook their heads.

They held nothing but contempt for Banda Yiming, who had sold out his own country's interests.

"I understand."

Tsunade slumped powerlessly into a chair nearby.

As her gaze swept across the conference room, she finally realized that she was the one who understood nothing.

She was the outsider in this room, used to keep the Senju Clan in check, used to keep Senju Nawaki in check.

She needed to reconsider her relationship with Konoha.

"Gentlemen, we can now move on to the real topic. I believe the Daimyo of the Land of Fields will support the outcome we negotiate."

A hint of triumph flashed in Mitokado Homura's eyes as he spoke to A and Ebizo.

Tsunade was merely a tool; now that she had fully recognized her position, his mission could be completed smoothly.

It was just a matter of making the Senju Clan and the Land of Fields suffer a little, sacrificing them to give the Ninja World a chance at peace.

According to what Sarutobi Hiruzen had said, Konoha only needed to secure thirty percent of the grain output to handle any situation.

From the perspective of power, Konoha had the strength to take much more.

Sacrificing some interests—especially those of insignificant people—to appease Kumogakure and Sunagakure, while helping Konoha deal with the Senju Clan, was the best possible outcome.

"Forty percent for Kumogakure, thirty percent for Konoha, twenty percent for Sunagakure, and ten percent for the Land of Fields. Let it be decided as such."

A of Kumogakure, tired of these games, put forward the distribution plan.

Mitokado Homura pondered for a long time before nodding slightly, agreeing to Kumogakure's proposal.

Even if they had lost control over the Land of Fields, their goal had been achieved: excluding the Senju Clan from the distribution of benefits.

Ebizo felt bewildered. Could things really be this easy? He frowned and fell silent, feeling that it wouldn't be that simple.

The Daimyo of the Land of Fields wore a bitter expression.

This method of distribution was extremely unreasonable, and he had not anticipated it.

He had introduced more competitors to help the Land of Fields gain more profit, but it hadn't yielded the expected results; he hadn't expected Konoha to be so weak.

Konoha Village was not as powerful as he had imagined, and the benefits the Land of Fields would receive were even less than when they had cooperated with the Senju Clan.

In a daze, he finally realized that the people before him were representatives of the Five Great Ninja Nations, and he had no qualifications to resist them at all.

The only fortunate thing was that the personal benefits promised to him by Konoha Village were enough to make him sell out his own country.

He masked the guilt he felt toward his country and his apologies to the Senju Clan.

He plastered a fake smile on his face, not daring to offer any resistance to the bandits carving up the Land of Fields.

Beside him, Tsunade, her face ashen, wore a mocking smile, as if asking: Is this the "better choice" you spoke of?

"Let's sign the treaty!"

Mitokado Homura produced a pre-prepared treaty from somewhere; without modifying a single word of its contents, he prepared to sign it.

Tsunade stared at the scene before her in disbelief.

Such harsh terms, presented in such an absurd manner, and yet everyone seemed to have anticipated it all along.

She recalled a phrase from Senju Tobirama.

"Little Tsunade, for anything you wish to accomplish, the effort must be made before the event occurs."

She remembered that back then, it was Senju Tobirama who forced Uchiha Madara to leave Konoha, without a single member of the Uchiha Clan following him.