Land of Rivers – The City Hosting the Talks – Hallway of a Hot Springs Inn
"I'll take care of it."
Link spoke in a calm tone, and the shadows at his feet swiftly separated and vanished from sight.
No matter how many times I see it, this technique is incredibly convenient, Kakashi thought. He leaned against the wall, opened his cherished Icha Icha Paradise, and said aloud, "Well then, the security is in your hands."
Link didn't reply. He slipped into "mission mode," closing his eyes to control the shadows as they spread throughout the hot springs inn. Focusing completely on chakra detection, he verified that no one was using chakra in the vicinity, then opened his eyes and stood by in silence.
"Click—"
Dressed in a bathrobe, the Third Hokage emerged from his room. He patted Link's shoulder with a big grin. "No need to be so tense."
"How about you change into something more comfortable and join me in the hot springs? I specifically chose this inn for its baths—"
Such major events as a Three-Nation Summit are for the Kage to handle. For the two guards—Kakashi might participate a bit, but Link just needed to enjoy the trip and the political capital it brought.
"I'll pass. We still have—" Link began, but before he could finish, Kakashi set a hand on his shoulder with a cheerful smile. "Come along, now. You have to learn to enjoy life."
"You're too young to always walk around frowning. How dull."
The Third Hokage—Sarutobi Hiruzen, really—was already humming a tune nobody recognized as he clacked down the hall in wooden clogs, heading toward the baths.
Link didn't refuse. He left a few shadows to guard their rooms and followed Kakashi to the bath. After washing, they donned towels and slid into the hot spring.
"Tsk, tsk, young Link… you're quite handsome and in great shape." Sarutobi Hiruzen laughed in a teasing manner. "Bet you attract a lot of girls, am I right?"
"I've noticed the Sand Princess, Temari—" Kakashi added, soaking in the bath with his mask and forehead protector still on, which looked awkward.
Link, submerged nearly up to his nose, simply closed his eyes and leaned against the pool's edge, ignoring the two older men's banter.
He'd discovered other facets of Sarutobi Hiruzen's personality lately. The elderly Hokage with a telescope he'd set up in the Hokage's office for "observing" the women's baths, his casual jokes—some quite off-color. But it didn't bother Link all that much.
As for Kakashi, he was far from earnest himself. Link had once glanced at Icha Icha Paradise at a bookstore:
"…didn't realize your prized possession was so big…"
"…this thing is huge, I can hardly believe it…"
"…I'll do anything, so please…"
"…an entire hour, and still…"
Basically, a blatant adult novel. How it remained openly on sale was beyond him.
Anyway, Link, mindful of his public image and not all that interested in "adult content," mostly stayed silent while the two grown men swapped random, risqué remarks. Eventually, they finished their soak, changed into fresh yukata, and headed to the dining hall for a meal. Afterward, planning to see Sarutobi Hiruzen back to his room, Link sensed someone approaching and tensed at once.
"Whoosh—"
The door to the private room slid open, and in walked an older monk in a bathrobe. "Long time no see, Lord Third Hokage."
"Ah, it's you, Bansai," Hiruzen said, smiling. "Didn't expect an old coot in hiding like you to come out of hiding."
The monk called Bansai shook his head with a sigh, closed the door, and took a seat. "I had no choice. Matters in the Land of Rivers are quite serious, and the monks at the Fire Temple are spread too thin. Even this old bag of bones has to be out and about…"
Although it was Konoha who proposed this Three-Nation Summit, officially that couldn't be stated—nor could they host it inside the Konoha. They settled on the Fire Temple hosting it in the Land of Rivers. Don't be misled by the name "Fire Temple"—it had significant resources and wealth, with branches active in many parts of both the Land of Fire and the Land of Rivers.
In the wake of the Land of Rivers' civil strife, the monks had become especially active. The country's bureaucratic system was practically useless, while "ninja temples" and "shinobi monks" were influential and could actually wield chakra. This hot springs inn was one such property funded by the Fire Temple, which explained why Sarutobi Hiruzen kept telling Link, "Don't be too tense."
Bansai came by mainly to talk with the Third Hokage, giving an update on the Summit. The Fourth Kazekage had arrived, but there was no sign of Hanzo of the Salamander from Amegakure. Rumor said the Land of Rain was growing even more chaotic; though the monks had forwarded the message about the meeting, it wasn't clear if he'd show.
In truth, for the Land of Rivers to find peace, the primary factor was cooperation from Konoha and Sunagakure—nobody really cared what closed-off, war-torn Amegakure did. If the two major villages would simply decline any mission requests involving the Land of Rivers' unrest and assign missions to keep the peace, eventually the surviving "Rivers ninjas" would pacify the country. It might take a long while, but so be it.
During that process, collecting a fee was only fair. The Three-Nation Summit was all about divvying up the spoils the Land of Rivers could offer. If Amegakure declined to show, so be it. At worst, some "minor friction" might occur.
As the hosting group, Fire Temple would also get a share.
…
One Day Later, at the Summit Venue
"I am Chiriku, in charge of this Summit," announced the Fire Temple abbot in monk's robes. "All three representatives of your respective nations have arrived, so let the Three-Nation Summit begin."
"Regarding the Land of Rivers—"
Link stood behind the Third Hokage, silently observing.
The Fourth Kazekage was nothing special in his eyes. Link had already met him twice. His big, flashy "gold dust" techniques were far inferior to Iron Sand in terms of hardness and versatility. Indeed, there was a reason the Third Kazekage was dubbed "the strongest Kazekage"—Iron Sand, in Japanese tradition, was the highest-quality forge material for iron weapons, so in Naruto's context, it was naturally formidable.
It was Iron Sand that had instantly destroyed the Third Kazekage puppet after Link used his "Spice Girl" ability to reflect it, demonstrating just how powerful Iron Sand could be.
But Hanzo of the Salamander was someone Link was seeing for the first time. Hanzo wore full coverings—he even kept a peculiar respirator on during the meeting. More absurdly, while the Third Hokage and the Fourth Kazekage each had two guards, Hanzo had a full five, all heavily armed, giving the impression he'd come to battle, not negotiate.
Is he that afraid of dying?
~~~
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