A Promising Talent, Sada Hidemasa

Before long, inside a luxurious residence, Uchiha Feng stood with Uchiha Mikio, looking at the mere four people before them with a slight frown.

"Why are there only four of you? Where are the others? Why didn't they come?"

He suppressed the indignation in his heart as he spoke.

"???" The four of them were utterly bewildered.

"I remember saying at the Daimyo Palace that all captain-level personnel in the capital were to come.

Yet only the four of you are here. What about the others?!

Are they turning a blind eye to the orders of me, the capital's guardian personally appointed by the Daimyo?! Are they dissatisfied with me?! Or with our Daimyo!"

Feng spoke with feigned anger.

But inwardly, he hoped someone would step forward and object, giving him an excuse to kill a few more people and eliminate them.

"...Guardian, all the captain-level personnel in the capital are already here."

A timid voice sounded amid Feng's murderous expression.

"???" Feng was utterly baffled. The entire capital had this few people?

Seeing Feng's confusion, the person who had spoken immediately continued explaining.

"My lord, there were originally four Guard Corps captains in the capital. Two... um... fell at the Daimyo Palace.

The remaining two are the gentlemen beside me.

There was only one chief captain, and he also fell at the Daimyo Palace.

You have met this man at the palace. He is the deputy general of Tea Country.

As for the Samurai Corps, um... I was formerly its captain. Now that you have become its captain, my lord... I have become your deputy."

The quieter he spoke, the more afraid he became of angering Uchiha Feng.

"...So that's how it is. Tea Country's military is this weak??"

After a few awkward seconds, Feng began asking about the specifics.

"??? My lord? Tea Country's military strength isn't weak at all!"

"With so few people, if the Land of Fire casually sent over a ninja squad, Tea Country would be finished. And you call that not weak?"

"Oh, that? You needn't worry, my lord.

We have always been the Land of Fire's loyal little brother, and our Daimyo has close ties with the Land of Fire's Daimyo.

Konoha wouldn't dare attack us. Otherwise, the Daimyos of both nations would not let Konoha off."

The man spoke with great confidence.

Feng had been about to argue, but then he suddenly recalled the setting of the Naruto manga and was left speechless.

Fuck, I nearly forgot this wasn't a China-inspired setting. The ninja world was based on Japan. Here, it wasn't strength that brought the right to rule—it was status.

The strong in the ninja world were all idiots. They only wanted to become Kage, and were even willing to serve Daimyos with nothing but titles and no strength whatsoever as hired muscle.

And in a thousand years, no one had ever thought that they could easily replace them.

Still, it was thanks to this shitty setting that Feng could easily take control of Tea Country bit by bit by controlling its Daimyo, without anyone becoming suspicious.

If this were a China-inspired setting, after what Feng had done at the Daimyo Palace today, someone would have immediately stepped forward and shouted, "My sword is no less sharp."

Then they would turn around and flee to other parts of Tea Country, gather men, and march on the capital to "purge the traitors around the ruler."

Once that happened, the entire world would probably know about it, and Feng's true identity could no longer be concealed. Most likely, Konoha would capture him and turn him into experimental material.

At that thought, Feng silently gave the ninja world's absurd setting of "power does not come from strength, but from title" a thumbs-up.

His mood improved considerably. Looking at the person who had been speaking all along, he asked, "Very good. And who are you?"

The man before him had introduced everyone else, but not himself.

"Guardian, I am Sada Hidemasa, formerly the captain of the Daimyo Palace's Samurai Corps.

After you concurrently assumed the position of Samurai Corps captain, my lord, I was automatically demoted to deputy captain."

Sada Hidemasa looked respectfully at Uchiha Feng and answered.

But when he saw Uchiha Mikio behind Feng, he withdrew his gaze in fear.

Though Sada Hidemasa could not see the faces of Feng and Uchiha Mikio, who were always concealed beneath long robes, and therefore could not know their true identities,

Uchiha Mikio's strength nevertheless commanded Hidemasa's awe.

As the former captain of the Tea Country Daimyo Palace's Samurai Corps, Hidemasa was not weak. His strength lay somewhere between that of a genin and a chunin.

Yet at the Daimyo Palace, he had personally watched Tea Country's general, who was stronger than him, join forces with several others no weaker than himself, only for Uchiha Mikio to dispatch them all in two or three moves.

Under such circumstances, Hidemasa, who valued his life, naturally did not dare harbor the slightest dissatisfaction toward Uchiha Mikio. He was even more respectful toward Feng, Mikio's apparent master.

After all, according to common knowledge in the ninja world, the stronger one's guards were, the more noble their master's status.

As for whether there might be some other reason why Feng possessed a guard as powerful as Uchiha Mikio, Hidemasa had never considered it. Neither had anyone else.

Because such a case had never occurred in the ninja world.

"Sada Hidemasa? Very good. While everyone else was too afraid to speak, you quickly adjusted and took the initiative to clear up my doubts.

I appreciate you. Are you interested in serving me from now on?"

Feng took a liking to his talent and recruited him.

Though Sada Hidemasa before him was not particularly strong and did not seem especially clever,

he had adjusted his emotions quickly and calmed down enough to communicate with Feng, a villain like him.

He also showed sufficient respect toward the strong, which indicated that he valued his life.

For Feng, who was currently little more than a commander without troops, he was someone worth recruiting.

"This... Thank you for your favor, Guardian, but I am truly sorry. I am a samurai and have already sworn loyalty to His Excellency the Daimyo. I cannot serve another."

Hidemasa straightened his body and respectfully bowed to Feng, but his tone was exceedingly firm and earnest as he refused Feng's offer.

"Oh? What if His Excellency the Daimyo were willing to transfer you to me?"

Heh, another virtue—loyalty. This made Feng want him even more.

"...If His Excellency the Daimyo is truly willing to transfer me, then I would naturally be willing to serve you, Guardian."

Hidemasa felt that something was off about his new Guardian's words, but he could not figure out what.

Still, after pondering for a moment, he agreed.

As a samurai, he could not go without a lord to serve.

And in all of Tea Country, the best person to serve was undoubtedly the Daimyo. If not the Daimyo, then the capital's guardian, whose status was only slightly lower, was naturally also a good choice.

"Haha, very good. Then from now on, you are one of mine."

"But His Excellency the Daimyo..."

"It's fine. I'll speak with the Daimyo. There won't be any problem.

Hehe, as a reward for being the first to join my ranks,

the two Guard Corps whose captains died at the Daimyo Palace will both be placed under your command.

Starting today, you will concurrently serve as captain of both Guard Corps. You needn't concern yourself with the Daimyo Palace's Samurai Corps anymore, so you won't have to run back and forth between both sides."

"...Guardian, I am grateful for your regard, but without an order from the Daimyo, forgive me, but I cannot comply."

After falling silent for another moment, Hidemasa decisively refused Feng's arrangement.

Though Feng was his direct superior, his position was not high enough to grant him the right to appoint personnel at will.

Tea Country had no ninja village. There was only one supreme ruler: the Daimyo. Therefore, everything could only proceed according to the Daimyo's orders.

"Fine. Wait here. I'll go ask the Daimyo for a letter of appointment."

As a transmigrator, Feng showed sufficient respect and patience toward talent.

After saying that, he turned and prepared to head to the Daimyo Palace. In any case, the Daimyo was under Uchiha Mikio's genjutsu control, so he would do whatever Feng told him to do.

But as he was about to leave, Feng saw the other three people in his home and remembered that four people had come in total, not just Sada Hidemasa.

Thus, he said, "You three wait here as well. If you obey orders properly, I won't shortchange you either."

Only after saying that did he bring Uchiha Mikio toward the Daimyo Palace.

Feng knew his own situation well. He was still weak, so he had to lie low.

Thus, he would never leave Senior Mikio's side for even half a step. Otherwise, if something unexpected happened, there would be nowhere for him to cry.