Chapter 120

"Huh?"

"Electing a Daimyō?"

Everyone turned to Uchiha Toki in confusion.

What the hell does this have to do with you?

Toki smirked, picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and said with a smile:

"What? Is there a problem?"

The Daimyō of the Land of Lightning spoke with an exasperated expression:

"The Daimyō of the Fire Country naturally has their own system of inheritance. This has nothing to do with Konoha, does it?"

The Daimyō of the Land of Earth nodded repeatedly. "That's right. Besides, how could a woman inherit the position of Daimyō?"

Toki put down the teacup and gave the daimyo a strange look.

"Huh? Haven't you read the intelligence yet? During this latest Nine-Tails incident, the entire Daimyō's residence was wiped out. Not a single member of the Fire Country's ruling clan—whether direct or collateral—survived."

He paused for effect before continuing,

"So, in the entire Fire Country, isn't Tsunade—the daughter of the First Hokage and the princess officially recognized by the First Daimyō—the only legitimate heir to the position? Is there a problem with that?"

Silence filled the room.

The nobles and shinobi leaders had all come to this meeting thinking they could divide up Konoha for themselves.

But in their rush to seize power, they had completely overlooked the fact that there was still an official royal heir.

Toki looked around at the gathered daimyo and shinobi village leaders with feigned surprise.

"You weren't planning to just carve up Konoha directly, were you? The Fire Country's Daimyō's entire family was just wiped out, and now you want to treat them like this? Isn't that a bit too much?"

Then he suddenly smiled and suggested,

"How about this? If one of you is willing to take custody of the Nine-Tails, the Fire Country will simply merge into your nation. With an extra tailed beast, you should have no trouble defending such a large new territory."

The nobles' faces immediately twisted in discomfort.

They all shook their heads.

Even Ōnoki and the Fourth Raikage, usually so aggressive, remained silent.

Now was not the time for reckless expansion. The previous Great Ninja War had left all the villages battered, and that was fourteen years ago.

A normal tailed beast rampage was already a nightmare to handle. If the Nine-Tails went berserk inside their village, their country might be the next one to need "merging."

Ōnoki coughed twice, then glanced at the Fourth Raikage with a sly smile.

"I think your Cloud Shinobi Village should consider it. After all, the Third Raikage was able to fight the Eight-Tails head-on and even battle my life-risking Iwa Shinobi troops single-handedly. Compared to him, surely the Fourth Raikage, who has inherited the name 'A,' should be capable of handling it as well, right?"

SLAM!

Fourth Raikage A slammed his hands onto the table and cursed,

"Screw you, old man! Don't think I don't see what you're trying to pull! Anyone who wants the Nine-Tails can have it, but we in Cloud Shinobi sure as hell don't want it!"

In his mind, A vowed that as soon as he returned home, he would squeeze every last coin out of the daimyo to expand the military.

Once he had enough strength, he'd just take the Nine-Tails by force—and while he was at it, he'd make sure to shut up this scheming old fossil for good.

Who did he think he was fooling with that act?

The Daimyō of the Land of Earth spoke with a grim expression.

"Even if Tsunade's status is unquestionable… how can a woman inherit the position of Daimyō? That goes against tradition."

He trailed off, but his meaning was clear. To him, women were just playthings, not rulers.

The other nobles all nodded in agreement.

The Fire Country losing its Daimyō was one thing, but letting a woman inherit the title? That was unacceptable.

Toki touched his chin, looking troubled.

"Well… that's true. But there's no other royal family left in the Fire Country."

At that moment, Nara Shikaku suddenly spoke up.

"In that case, wouldn't it be fine if Princess Tsunade's husband succeeded her as Daimyō instead?"

As soon as those words left his mouth, everyone turned to look at Toki.