Mist Envoy

"Ow, I'm finally back. Once I lay down, I don't want to get up again." Jing Hang sprawled recklessly across his bed in the Hidden Sand Village, burying his head deep in the goose-down pillow and refusing to emerge for a long while.

Jing Hang was in his own home now—his own home. Not one of the cheap ninja apartments assigned by the village, nor the lounge in the Kazekage's building, but a house he had bought with hard cash back when he was still a Jonin—a luxurious three-story villa!

Of course, the money had not come from corruption. He had been Kazekage for less than a year; he had not even had time to embezzle anything if he wanted to. Jing Hang had never been poor as a ninja. He became a Jonin at sixteen, and it had been exactly ten years since then. During that time, he had completed sixteen S-rank missions and 107 A-rank missions. A single man who neither gambled nor visited prostitutes, he had naturally saved up quite a bit. On top of that, whenever he happened to finish a mission and wipe out some bandits or hunt down a fugitive along the way, he earned even more. Though Jing Hang was young, he was a regular at the underground exchange houses. To put it simply, before becoming Kazekage, his net worth had already approached thirty million.

The moment he took office, there was war. Then diplomatic visits. Then another war. Damn it, it was about time I enjoyed myself.

"Should I find a woman and start a family?" Jing Hang muttered to himself as he leaned against the headboard.

Jing Hang was not bad-looking. In fact, among all the Kazekage, the Third Kazekage had the highest looks. Back when he was a Jonin, he had been very popular with the girls in the village. But Jing Hang had been ambitious then—or rather, timid. These days, almost anyone could take his life. He had focused wholeheartedly on improving his strength and tempering his body, without giving that sort of thing any thought. By the time he became the Kazekage's guard, and then Kazekage himself, he was so busy that even his Shadow Clones were not enough. Finding a woman was out of the question.

"If it really comes down to it, Pakura will do! Pah! Jing Hang, you beast. She's only sixteen!" Jing Hang gave himself a fake slap.

"Ding-dong!" The doorbell rang outside.

"Who is it?"

"Big brother, it's me, Pakura! I saw that you hadn't eaten dinner, so I made something and brought it over."

"Wait a moment, I'll be right down!" Jing Hang scratched his head. After thinking about it, he figured that waiting a few more years was not impossible.

A lifelike puppet puppy comically turned somersaults in front of a red-haired child, making him laugh with delight. Chiyo controlled the puppet dog, her face and eyes full of a kind smile, her affection unmistakable.

"Sasori, don't keep pestering Grandma. Be good and go to bed. You have school tomorrow morning." Akasuna Guimu and Akasuna Hideki came into Chiyo's room.

Sasori of the Red Sand was obedient and well-behaved. Since Jing Hang had saved his parents from White Fang's blade, he had not developed the coldness and cruelty he would have shown later. He politely bowed to Chiyo and followed Akasuna Hideki into the bedroom. Chiyo watched her beloved grandson leave with loving eyes, then signaled for her son to shut the door.

"Have you found out?" Chiyo immediately changed expressions, becoming inscrutable and cold.

"We have," Akasuna Guimu said.

"Speak."

"The visitor is called Yagura Karatachi. He claims to be an envoy of the Third Mizukage. The Karatachi Clan is considered a prominent family in the Hidden Mist Village. There is no doubt about his identity."

"I never doubted his identity. I only wanted to confirm his purpose."

"He only says that he wishes to speak with the Third Kazekage in person. He refuses to say another word!"

"How arrogant!" Chiyo slapped the armrest of her chair, visibly angered.

Since Jing Hang had appointed her director of the Sunagakure Intelligence Bureau, Chiyo had rarely lost her temper like this. Usually humble and composed, she became extremely sensitive whenever the matter concerned Jing Hang.

In her eyes, Jing Hang was a Kazekage she deeply admired. Whether in foreign wars or diplomatic maneuvering, he had performed flawlessly. More importantly, Jing Hang possessed enormous prestige among the frontline ninja, and every faction in the village trusted him. Under Jing Hang's leadership, the village's thinking had become more unified than ever before.

Development in every area had also begun taking shape. This was exactly what Chiyo wanted to see. She believed that, with the entire village united in thought, they would surely welcome rapid, sweeping growth.

But the assassination attempt in the Land of Fields had sounded an alarm for Chiyo. What if Jing Hang were to suddenly die an unnatural death at this moment? This wonderful situation would vanish like a beautiful bubble under the sunlight.

Jing Hang had only issued a brief notice and diplomatic statement regarding the incident, but the old woman, as director of the intelligence bureau, had broken out in a cold sweat. She also blamed herself deeply. She resolved to thoroughly reorganize the ANBU and forge a capable "dark force" for the village and for Jing Hang.

"Leave him hanging for a few days, but the ANBU must not sit idle. Activate the sleeper agents and find out why this man has come."

"Yes. In fact, the sleeper agents began moving long ago. This is the information that came in yesterday."

"Mm." Chiyo accepted the report. After a while, her brows furrowed deeply.

"I hate villages like this most of all. A whole village of lunatics, and they still have factions. If something happens, no one knows who has the final say. If trouble breaks out, no one knows who to hold accountable. Take a look." Chiyo handed the report to her son.

The Hidden Mist Village was different from other villages. Villages such as the Hidden Leaf Village and Sunagakure had been founded by First Kage whose overwhelming strength had subdued the masses, allowing them to unite the surrounding forces. But the Hidden Mist Village was different. Its founding resembled a loose alliance formed by the various islands joining together.

The First Mizukage, Byakuren, was more like a grand elder, while each island blew its own tune. It was not until the era of the Second Mizukage, Gengetsu Hozuki, that this changed completely. Gengetsu Hozuki possessed immense martial strength and brilliant methods. To consolidate the village's development, he followed the Second Hokage Tobirama's example by establishing the Hidden Mist Village Ninja Academy and ANBU, as well as creating laws to protect the village's secrets. Only then did the Hidden Mist Village achieve military unification.

None of the various factions dared to act up after that, and the Hidden Mist Village's strength became unprecedented. It could even contend with the Hidden Leaf Village. Unfortunately, during the First Shinobi World War, the Second Mizukage Gengetsu Hozuki and the Second Tsuchikage Mu perished together in battle. The Third Mizukage, who succeeded him, was far less capable of bringing scattered forces together.

Now, the Mizukage's orders could barely leave the main island. The other forces in the village acted with impunity, and the Mizukage had no way to stop them. For example, the previous plan to assassinate the Kazekage had been entirely the work of the militant faction led by Fuguki Suikazan, which sought to provoke conflict between the Hidden Leaf Village and Sunagakure. The Mizukage had not known anything about it!?

"I think we should report this to Lord Kazekage as soon as possible. Something about this feels wrong. Delaying it might only cause harm," Akasuna Guimu analyzed.

After considering it briefly, Chiyo nodded in agreement. She checked the time. "It's only eight o'clock. It's still early, and Jing Hang should not be asleep yet. Come on, let's go to his house. I also want to hear his opinion on whether we should meet this man."

"Meet him! We must meet him! Arrange the meeting first thing tomorrow morning." After reading the intelligence, Jing Hang spoke decisively.

"Why?" Chiyo asked.

"Heh, it's simple. No matter which side he represents, we need to understand their attitude." Jing Hang bent down and poured tea for Chiyo and Akasuna Guimu.

"We would like to hear the details."

"Look, if this Yagura Karatachi really is the Mizukage's envoy, then his purpose is nothing more than one of two possibilities. First, he is here to explain the previous assassination attempt and seek peace from us. Second, he is also here to explain the assassination attempt, but by twisting the facts and declaring war on us instead. However, the latter is highly unlikely. Given the temperament of the Mizukage throughout the generations, if they wanted to fight, they would simply fight. Declaring war would be completely unnecessary."

"What if he isn't one of the Mizukage's people?" Akasuna Guimu asked.

"I don't think that is possible." Jing Hang shook a finger.

"Mm?" Neither of them understood.

"A representative of a local militant faction. Their people assassinated another country's leader, failed, and then sent someone here. For what? To apologize? What a joke. Who would be generous enough to forgive them?" Jing Hang left the more important point unsaid. Wasn't Yagura Karatachi the Fourth Mizukage who would later be controlled by Obito? He had never heard of a crown prince rebelling.

"As for what they really came for, we will only know after meeting him. Only once we know can we come up with a response, right?" Jing Hang said confidently.