The Kingdom of Iron is located in the northern part of the mainland.
It is one of the few neutral countries in the ninja world. The nobles and people in the country highly respect the way of the samurai. Therefore, in the Iron Country, the popularity and prosperity of samurai culture can be clearly felt.
As for the Iron Country, which was founded by warriors, even the five major countries could not ignore the country's armed strength.
Iron Forest.
A huge forest covered with snow all year round, covered with white snow and silver.
In the extremely cold forest, there were about hundreds of warriors, surrounding the core of the forest in a defensive formation, providing tight protection.
In the protected area of these warriors, stands a magnificent and majestic castle.
In the castle, in a quiet room, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in."
The voice in the quiet room seemed old, but it was full of majesty, power and vitality.
"Excuse me, Mifune-sama."
The samurai opened the door, with a sword on his waist. He stood at the door with meticulous respect and spoke to the people in the quiet room.
"It's okay, what's the matter?"
The man called 'Mifune' has gray hair and wrinkles on his face. He is already quite old, but his eyes are still clear and bright, like a sharp blade that pierces people's hearts.
He sat cross-legged on the cushion, put his favorite knife on his knees, cleaned it with a handkerchief, and made the blade sharper. The edge of the blade shone with a cold light that stung his eyes.
"Lord Tsuchikage and his men have just arrived and are resting in the guest room."
replied the samurai.
"Really? Then you can't be too rude. Counting the time, the rest of the Kage and the guests from the Ghost Country must be arriving soon. How is the venue for the meeting arranged?"
Mifune asked.
"It's been set up."
"Should it be arranged according to what I said?"
"Yes, there is nothing wrong with it."
"That's good. Our Iron Kingdom is a neutral country. We must maintain an absolutely neutral attitude at all times and act as the impartial host of this meeting."
Mifune put his favorite sword on his knee back into the sheath on his waist, stood up from the cushion, and straightened the wrinkles on his clothes.
"yes."
The warrior lowered his head and still answered respectfully.
"Let's go, follow me to meet Lord Tsuchikage."
Mifune stepped out of the quiet room with steady steps and led the samurai towards the guest room where the Tsuchikage was.
◎
The wind, snow and ice were freezing and the weather was extremely cold.
When he was approaching the meeting place, Shiraishi slowed down and changed to a walking posture, heading towards the castle where the meeting was held.
At this moment, three samurai intercepted Shiraishi and his group. The leading samurai came out, pressed the hilt of the sword at his waist with his palm, and said to Shiraishi: "This is His Excellency Chiba Shiraishi from the Kingdom of Ghosts. ?"
His attitude was quite meticulous, there was no obvious arrogance or malice, he was just saying hello.
"Yes."
Shiraishi nodded.
"Excuse me, my name is Satokaku, and I am Mifune-sama's subordinate."
The samurai named Satokaku is very tall and powerful. Judging from his flawless stance, he is a resolute samurai.
Samurai Rikaku glanced at Shiraishi, Ayane and Ako, and finally locked his eyes on Ako, frowning slightly, kid?
No matter how you look at it, this is a child under ten years old. He is dozing off in a daze. He is holding a long gun that is much longer than his body. The long gun is tied with a bandage, giving people a very strange look. sense of dissonance.
However, Satokaku didn't say anything. Ninjas can't judge based on common sense. Children, especially, cannot let down their guard.
The fact that the other party can serve as a guard together with Hyuga Ayane, who once defeated the Fourth Raikage, is enough to prove that he is extraordinary.
"Next, I will lead the three of you to the castle where the meeting will be held, please."
After saying that, he turned around and walked towards the castle with the two warriors without delay.
Shiraishi didn't say anything, and he and Ayane quietly followed Satokaku toward the castle. Akako slowed down a beat and followed him. He opened his mouth slightly and let out a steady and weak breathing sound, exhaling cold white air.
In such a cold weather, sleepiness came over like a beast, making Ako want to find a warm bed to sleep on.
Arriving in front of the main entrance of the castle, there were about a dozen sword samurai closely guarding the entrance. Their eyes were sharp and their palms were like the horns. They were pressed on the hilt of the sword. If an enemy attacked, they could unsheath it at any time and use the blade to kill the enemy. Instant death.
Because the power of samurai is concentrated on blades and swordsmanship, although they cannot use ninjutsu, they can also impart chakra to enhance the lethality of the enemy.
In this ninja-themed era, the power of samurai cannot be underestimated.
In particular, General Mifune of the Kingdom of Iron was a renowned swordsman in the Ninja world. When he was still in Konoha, Shiraishi heard Sakumo praise General Mifune of the Kingdom of Iron more than once. He was the top swordsman in the Ninja world. Master.
It is said that it has extremely amazing explosive power, so that the ninja has no chance to connect the seal before being killed by the blade.
Just as Shiraishi and the other three were preparing for the main entrance of his country's castle and entering the castle, there was a loud noise from behind, and an extremely terrifying chakra thrust from behind.
Its astonishing momentum left the surrounding warriors with no time to react.
Akako also woke up from his nap, quickly held the spear with both hands, stood behind Shiraishi and Ayane without hesitation, held the spear in front of him, jumped up and blocked.
boom!
Thunder and lightning were everywhere, and snowflakes were flying.
Ako's body turned directly into a cannonball, flew into the castle, hit the wall at the end of the road, made a roaring sound, and was buried by earth and rocks.
"Lord Raikage, please stop!"
Only then did the samurai Rikkaku realize that the person who attacked the Shiraishi trio was none other than the fourth Raikage of Kumogakure Village who came to participate in the Five Kage Talks.
His figure immediately flashed, blocking the path forward of the Fourth Raikage. Although nervous sweat appeared on his face, the samurai's faith did not let him take a step back, even when facing the Raikage, one of the Five Kages.
He followed the teachings of Admiral Mifune. In this Five Shadows Talk, the Iron Kingdom maintained absolute neutrality. It only maintained the order of the Five Shadows Talks, rather than creating enemies.
Therefore, protecting the life and safety of everyone participating in the talks is an iron rule that the samurai must abide by even if they sacrifice their lives. They will not shrink back even a step when facing anyone.
"Samurai, you'd better retreat. Standing in front of you is Lord Raikage, one of the Five Shadows, if you don't want to lose your life."
One of the two Jonin guards standing behind the Fourth Raikage came out. He had dark skin and thick lips unique to the Kingdom of Thunder. On his left and right shoulders, 'Thunder' and 'Thunder' were engraved on them respectively. A tattoo with the word "water" and a broad-edged heavy sword on his back.
He scratched his head and kindly asked the warrior to step back.
"It's my duty, and I can't bear to obey my orders. If Raikage-sama continues to insist on his own way, the next opponent will be me."
The samurai Rikkaku's eyes were firm and he pulled out the sword from his waist without hesitation, with no fear in his eyes.
The Kumogakure Jōnin said helplessly: "Sorry, boss, the negotiation failed."
"It doesn't matter, Darui, my opponent is not a samurai. After so many years, let me see how strong your strength is, you white-eyed woman."
The Fourth Raikage took a step, and the chakra on his body was extremely violent, and the dense lightning was as terrifying as a thunderstorm.
Eyes dancing with thunderous light crossed the samurai Satokaku and landed on Ayane behind him.
Shiraishi, on the other hand, was ignored by the Fourth Raikage.
"You are still as brutal and brutal as before. This is an important moment for the Five Shadows meeting. As one of the Five Shadows, the Raikage, is it really okay to continue to act like this?"
Ayane sighed with a headache.
She knew this would happen.
"It's better to stop talking nonsense like this. I've been waiting for this moment for a long time!"
The hair stood on end, and the thunder escape armor on the Fourth Raikage's body became more violent. The electric current visible to the naked eye, the wind and snow were all repelled, and it was impossible to get close to the strong body of the Fourth Raikage.
"I'm different from you. I don't want to embarrass the warriors here. Let's avoid fighting."
Ayane glanced at the surrounding samurai who looked like they were facing formidable enemies. They all followed samurai Urakaku, pulled out the saber on her waist, and pointed it at the Fourth Raikage.
This is the territory of the Iron Kingdom. Since he is the host of the Five Shadows Conference, the samurai has reason to maintain order in the conference venue, and this will is unshakable.
"I also think this is not good, Raikage-sama, please stop."
Another Kumogakure jounin with short yellow hair stepped forward to dissuade the Fourth Raikage from his behavior at this moment.
Unlike most people from the Kingdom of Thunder, this Kumogakure jounin with short yellow hair has very fair skin and looks somewhat delicate.
"Tch. It's really boring."
The Fourth Raikage snorted coldly and glanced at the surrounding samurai who were staring at him cautiously. He also knew that if he wanted to fight Ayane, these samurai would definitely come up to cause trouble.
Although this samurai cannot pose any threat to him, Mifune, the general of the Iron Kingdom, still has to give him some face.
Seeing the Fourth Raikage remove his Thunder Armor, the samurai Rikkaku breathed a sigh of relief and put the blade back into the scabbard. The other samurai followed Rikkaku and put away the blade.
A commotion subsided.
Ako walked out of the castle at this time. He walked up to Shiraishi, his young face wrinkled together, and he began to complain:
"That uncle's fist hurts so much."
Shiraishi touched Ako's head and said nothing.
This little devil! The Fourth Raikage narrowed his eyes.
He knew how heavy the punch he just punched was, and it was definitely not something that a normal ninja could easily defeat.
Except for the fact that his clothes were stained with a little dust, Chi Zi's body seemed to be fine, jumping around, causing a look of uncertainty to flash in his eyes.
"Is this kid a freak? He took a blow from the boss and still can be here as if nothing happened..."
Darui clicked his tongue and became interested.
Sure enough, there must be something special about how someone who can serve as a guard with Hyuga Ayane is a simple brat.
"Today's young people are really ignorant of etiquette. They are noisy outside and disturb the elders' rest. This is very rude behavior, Raikage boy."
An old man sneered, and in front of the main entrance of the castle, a short figure floated out, his hands behind his back, and he unceremoniously scolded the Fourth Raikage for his rude behavior.
"What are you talking about, old man Tsuchikage! Do you want to fight?"
The Fourth Raikage glanced coldly at the floating short old man.
"Haha, young people are always impatient, just like your father, the Third Raikage."
Ohnoki's words undoubtedly stung a sensitive nerve in the Fourth Raikage's heart.
An extremely heavy atmosphere brewed in the open space between Onoki and the Fourth Raikage. The samurai standing around felt this silent sense of depression and swallowed their saliva.
Once the five kage ninjas engage in battle, the momentum alone is enough to make one feel chest tight and breathless, making it difficult to breathe.
At this tense moment, a voice sounded from behind Ohnoki, like a sharp blade:
"Please stop, sir. The Tsuchikage and Raikage don't want to see a messy meeting venue."
Samurai Satokaku walked up to the owner of the voice and bowed respectfully.
"Mifune-sama."
The person who came out to rescue the siege was none other than Mifune, the general of the Iron Country.
He is the head of the Iron Kingdom's samurai and a renowned swordsman in the ninja world.
The originally heavy and depressing atmosphere was cut off by something sharp in the middle, restoring the surrounding atmosphere to calm and gentleness.
"Hmph, I'm still as confused as ever, Mifune."
Onoki snorted coldly.
Mifune replied: "Lord Tsuchikage, I am just fulfilling my duties as a samurai. I don't want you to meet each other in a place like this. This is not a ninja battlefield."
At the end of the sentence, Mifune's tone was extremely firm.
"Also, since the guests have arrived, please come out."
Mifune's sharp eyes glanced at several large trees covered with snow, and his words came out clearly.
There was a sound of stepping on the snow from behind the tree on the far right, and Yagura walked out from behind the tree with Ao and Kiden Mangetsu.
Behind the tree in the middle, the third generation Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen, and the three jounin of Konoha, Ino Shika Cho, walked out from behind the tree.
Behind the tree on the far left, Chiyo, the former advisor of Sunagakure Village, walked out from behind the tree with two Sunagakure jounin. Her eyes were fixed on Shiraishi with a calm expression on her face.
"Everyone is here now."
Ohnoki smiled and glanced back and forth at Shiraishi and Chiyo, meaning something inexplicable.
Mifune ignored Onoki's malicious laughter, but nodded and said in a calm tone: "Everyone has come from afar, so you must be very tired. Next, please go to the prepared guest rooms to rest, and the corresponding dinner will be served as well. It will be presented. A meeting will be held on time at eight o'clock in the evening."
It is now two o'clock in the afternoon, and there are still six hours before the official start of the talks.
Onoki didn't say anything, sneered, and took the lead in floating back to the castle, disappearing.
Shiraishi didn't want to pay attention to everyone. Under the leadership of the samurai, he entered the castle almost at the same time as the Fourth Raikage's team and went to the guest room to rest.
At the forked intersection, the Fourth Raikage took two steps forward and suddenly noticed something. He turned around and saw a figure shorter than Onoki following them in confusion. The innocent man with the spear.
He nodded as he walked, clearly unfocused.
boom!
Hitting the Fourth Raikage's thigh, Akako staggered back two steps and fell to the ground.
He touched his sore butt, raised his head and looked at the Fourth Raikage with a look of confusion.
"Hey kid, you're going the wrong way."
The Fourth Raikage pointed to the road on the opposite side.
Only then did Ako react and found that Shiraishi and Ayane had disappeared.
He quickly got up from the ground and kept bowing and apologizing to the Fourth Raikage.
"I'm sorry, I was a little sleepy just now."
Then he ran towards the road pointed by the Fourth Raikage.
"This kid seems confused."
Darui looked at the funny figure of Chizi trotting. No matter how he looked at it, he was just an immature child.
Another Kumogakure Jonin said with a serious face: "Don't be careless, Darui, this brat's aura is a bit weird, and I can't feel much chakra fluctuations in his body."
Darui nodded, even if no one reminded him, he would not underestimate Chi Zi.
The Fourth Raikage didn't say anything, just snorted and continued to step forward.
◎
8pm.
The air outside the castle became even colder, and the wind howled. The warriors wearing armor and sabers stood like wooden stakes in the cold wind and snow. Despite the biting cold wind, they stood there unswervingly, The castle where the Five Shadows Meeting is held is closely guarded.
The castle and the cold outside are completely different worlds.
The conference room where the Five Shadows Talk was about to be held was extremely warm under the protection of the fireplace and could not feel the extremely cold air outside.
The important leaders and guards participating in the meeting entered in no particular order and sat in their own seats.
This is a huge conference table with a complete ring. The five shadows sit down in order of 'wind', 'earth', 'fire', 'thunder', and 'water'. On the right side of Yagura, where Shiraishi is. The position, and further to the right, is the position of the Iron Country general Mifune.
Since the distance between each person's seats is slightly longer, two or three guards can easily stand behind each person.
The five shadows took off the hat on their heads and placed it in front of themselves, leaving Mifune as the organizer. The empty white stone in front seemed a bit out of place.
But there was no expression on his face. He closed his eyes and seemed to be thinking about something, unswayed by external factors.
Ayane behind her was scanning the venue with a smile, giving people a friendly and gentle impression.
Chizi tried his best not to let his upper eyelids and lower eyelids fight, but the bubbles in his nostrils still kept getting bigger and smaller.
Chiyo, who acted as Kazekage, had a calm face and flashing eyes. He looked towards Shiraishi from time to time, not knowing what he was thinking in his mind.
Behind her, stood Sunagakure's Jounin Hayakura, a very famous Blood Successor Limit Scorch Release ninja in Sunagakure Village.
Another guard Jonin is also a well-known person in Sunagakure Village. His strength is not as good as that of Yakura, but being able to accompany Chiyo as his guard shows that he is very skilled.
Then there was Tsuchikage Onoki, with a smile on his face, looking back and forth at the faces of the people participating in the meeting, as if he was planning something in his heart.
The two Iwagakure jounin who came with him were his son Huangtu, and the blasting ninja Kari who was from the blasting force.
The third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, held an unlit pipe and bit it symbolically. He seemed to know that smoking at this time was not a good idea. After all, there were still a small number of ninjas who smoked.
Behind him is Konoha's Inar, Deer, and Butterfly combination. Their combined attack is second to none among ninjas. The three of them will protect the Hokage. They are definitely the best bodyguard candidates as strong as an iron wall.
The Fourth Raikage held his hands in front of his chest, his face was calm and intimidating, his eyes were like lightning, and humming came from his nostrils from time to time. He didn't know what he was dissatisfied with.
Kumogakure jounin Darui scratched his head, his face listless, and the words "unmotivated" were written directly on his face.
With him is Kumogakure Jōnin Nozomi, who has a fair complexion different from the people of the Land of Thunder. He is proficient in perception and medical ninjutsu, and is also very proficient in illusion. Like Darui, he is one of Kumogakure's younger generations. Outstanding talents.
As Mizukage, Yagura looks much more casual, with a friendly and powerful smile on his face, and his hands folded on the table. However, due to his short stature, his face is also very childish, like a teenager, even if Trying to look dignified may seem a bit inconsistent.
The Jonin Ao behind him scanned the meeting place with his eyes from time to time, probably looking for if there were any other 'guys' here to eavesdrop.
Standing side by side with him, Onito Mangetsu, was more casual than Yagura, the Mizukage, holding a water cup and sipping water through a straw, making noise.
This caused many people to stare at him dissatisfied, as if to warn him that this was not his own home, and he could not do whatever he wanted.
Gui Deng Man Yue didn't care and still went his own way.
"It's a full moon. If you need to replenish water, go outside and don't disturb the others."
Yagura spoke, with a hint of headache in his tone.
"Uh, yes, Mizukage-sama."
Only then did Gui Deng Man Yue put away the water glass, stood upright and made no more noise.
Mifune glanced at the Five Shadows and Shiraishi present, and had a panoramic view of the guards behind them.
I smiled helplessly in my heart, how should I put it, more or less, they are all a group of more unique guys.
Even so, Mifune still tried to cheer himself up. In any case, it is a kind of trust for the five major countries and the Kingdom of Demons to hand over this Five Shadows Talk to the Kingdom of Iron to host it.
Whether it was because of the position of a neutral country or the trust of the Iron Kingdom's daimyo, Mifune decided to let the Five Kage Talks proceed smoothly.
"Everyone."
Mifune coughed and stood up from his seat, attracting everyone's attention.
As the only neutral party in the talks, Mifune will undoubtedly make an opening statement.
"Before the Five Shadows talks officially begin, I hope that the Five Shadows present here, as well as Mr. Shiraishi, can all value peace. This is not a battlefield, and I will stop any acts of force in time. This is the position of a neutral country. If No problem, then, let this meeting of the Five Shadows officially begin. Please ask Mr. Kazekage Chiyo, the agent of Sunagakure Village, to speak first. You are the initiator of this Five Shadows meeting."
Mifune sat down and handed over the right to speak to Chiyo.
Chiyo glanced at Shiraishi, then set his sights on Mifune, and said calmly: "Before that, I want to know why the military chief of the Demon Country can share the same conference table with us. This should be the fifth Is there an exclusive seat for Kagewa and the neutral party? I hope Mifune-dono can handle this matter fairly and justly, and set up another seat to arrange the seats for the Demon Country."
Mifune had already expected this. The pride of the five major countries has existed since ancient times, and the meeting would definitely not be peaceful.
Therefore, Mifune replied unhurriedly: "It is out of the principle of fairness and justice that I will arrange the position of Mr. Shiraishi here. As long as you can be invited to participate in this meeting, the Iron Kingdom, as a neutral country, will not oppose Any country that is partial will not target any country and treat them equally. This is also the way of 'harmony' for our warriors."
"It was Lao Shen who extended the invitation. But Lao Shen did not look down on the military power of the Kingdom of Demons, but pointed out that a rebel ninja could participate in such a meeting without being immediately arrested, which is the greatest tolerance of our Five Shadows. So, please Set up another seat to arrange the seats for the Kingdom of Demons. Otherwise, if a traitorous ninja sits here, it will tarnish the name of the Five Kages. This is a matter of stance."
Chiyo's words were sharp, and he firmly grasped Shiraishi's identity as a traitorous ninja and refused to let him go.
Mifune frowned, feeling a little embarrassed about this.
To be honest, there is no difference between a rebel ninja and a ninja to the Iron Kingdom.
As long as they don't provoke the Iron Kingdom, samurai will not intervene in the battles between ninjas at will.
But it is obvious that the position of the samurai and the position of the ninja are not the same.
Chiyo's words left him speechless.
No matter how he defends Shiraishi, the rebel ninjas are a group of ninjas who cannot see the light of day in the ninja world.
A sneer flashed in Chiyo's eyes, and he continued: "Since Mifune-dono feels embarrassed about this, then let the Five Shadows present vote. If the Oni Kingdom can be recognized by three of the Five Shadows, it will be qualified to sit Here. What do you think of Mifune-dono?"
