The Difference Between Ruler and Subject

The fierce winter wind swept up heavy snow, leaving only the tops of the vermilion palace walls outside the Daimyō's Office of the Land of Fire exposed above the drifts.

Rows of icicles hung beneath the glazed tiles. Cold seeped through the cracks between the bricks, frosting even the gate guards' armor plates white.

Inside the hall, the underfloor heating burned brightly, making the stone tiles hot to the touch. The scents of incense and wine hung heavily in the air, and after staying long enough, one felt too lazy to move even a bone.

The daimyō sank into a soft couch covered in snow fox fur, his face flushed with drink as his stubby fingers turned a white jade cup.

In the center of the hall, more than a dozen dancers moved to the music of flutes and strings. Their gauzy garments clung to their waists, and fine sweat beaded at their temples.

"Good. There's spirit in those hips. Reward them."

The daimyō smiled until his eyes were reduced to narrow slits. He grabbed gold coins from a brocade box and scattered them across the carpet, where they rolled over the thick pile with a series of dull thuds.

The dancers prostrated themselves in thanks. Before their laughter had faded, the chief steward arrived beside the couch carrying an engraved silver wine pot.

He bent over to fill the cup, his gaze circling the daimyō's face several times. Only when the music in the hall briefly quieted did he cautiously speak.

"My lord, the envoy has been in Konoha for several days. Will the order to cut military funding by thirty percent make Minato Namikaze resentful?"

The daimyō did not turn around. He continued staring in the direction the dancers had left, and only after his cup was refilled