Shikamaru gritted his teeth. Ninja that he was, he didn’t have any piece that powerful. They had a plan. But that path was for the daimyo to take, and the ninja Shikamaru had absolutely no say in it.
Looking at the dumfounded pair of ninja before him, Ikkyu closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He expelled all the air in his lungs before nodding deeply once more. “All right. I’ve decided.”
Naruto and Shikamaru said nothing as they waited for Ikkyu to continue.
“There are several enclaves within the domain of the Land of Fire. Fortunately, there’s an area my grandfather took near the border with the Land of Earth that doesn’t fall too short of the Land of Flowers. The area was originally Earth’s. Even now, the people who reside there consider themselves to be citizens of the Land of Earth in their hearts. I’ll cede it to him.”
“Cede…” Shikamaru murmured.
A broad smile rose up on Ikkyu’s face.
“Please wait a moment!” Shikamaru shouted, slapping his hands on the table between them. “Ceding territory’s the same as admitting defeat. It means that the Land of Earth defeated us without a fight.”
“True.” Ikkyu held up a hand to stop Shikamaru. “It’s just as you say, the act of giving territory to another country perhaps does mean defeat. But I think it’s also better for the people who live in that distant region if we return it to the Land of Earth. I’ve thought that for some time now. There’s nothing for you to worry about.”
“But…”
“I said I would fight together with you two,” Ikkyu insisted. “Once I decided to fight, I had to prepare myself for the worst.”
Shikamaru grew tense in the face of Ikkyu’s obvious determination. He set his mind working at top speed in order to respond to this determination and slowly said, “The five great nations alone cannot decide on a matter such as the ceding of land. This will also have an effect on the neighboring smaller countries.”
“True. It will.” Ikkyu nodded.
“Let’s have a grand summit and invite key personnel from all the countries on the continent, not just the daimyo but also their aides,” Shikamaru continued. “Naturally, we’d also invite representatives from the land to be ceded.”
Their original plan had been to offer the secrets of the village of Konohagakure as a trade for calling off the invasion. But Ikkyu’s decision brought them the power to push this idea to a whole other level.
“There’s no precedent for a thing like that,” the daimyo protested.
“There doesn’t have to be,” Shikamaru countered. “The Land of Fire is the most powerful country on the continent, and it is about to cede territory without a fight. This decision affects every nation. The deal should only go ahead with the agreement of all daimyo, their aides, and the people of the land to be ceded.”
“Hmm.” Ikkyu looked at the table and fell into thought.
Shikamaru had had these words in his head for a while, and now he finally uttered them out loud. “A continental summit!”
Ikkyu gasped, and then he half-muttered, “A continental summit. Can we really pull it off? I honestly have no idea.”
“If you decide something’s impossible before you even start, you’ll never get anywhere,” Shikamaru said.
“But some things are indeed impossible—”
“First, let’s talk with the daimyo of the five great nations.” Shikamaru wouldn’t budge. “If that fails, we can think about our next step then. My head is full of different strategies!”
“This is the last card we have to play to avoid a war,” Naruto finally said, lending his support to Shikamaru’s plan. “Please, I’m begging you.”
Shikamaru also bowed his head.
After a period of silence, Ikkyu stood up. “It might be worth a try at least.”
The ninja kept their heads bowed until the aura of the daimyo was gone.
The other daimyo were speechless after Ikkyu made his proposal.
“Cede the territory?” Tekkan asked, his right eyebrow arched into a neat semicircle.
“Yes.” There was no hesitation in Ikkyu’s reply. He nodded at Tekkan and then immediately turned his gaze on Danjo. “It’s slightly smaller than the Land of Flowers, but you’ll be able to grow crops and other things. How about it, Lord Danjo? Can we make a deal here?”
“B-but the preparations for the attack are already underway.” Danjo’s chins wobbled. “I’ve spent a lot of money on this.”
“This way means fewer sacrifices,” Ikkyu said, smoothly. “Otherwise, you risk the Land of Lightning joining this war, so that you all end up killing each other on a large scale. I don’t think what I’m offering is such a bad deal.”
“No, but—!” Danjo obstinately rejected the proposal. He was losing the chance to bring down the hammer he’d raised. “What are the Land of Fire and Konoha planning?! Seducing me with sweet words like cede? What exactly are your intentions?”
“I simply want to stop a war,” Ikkyu insisted.
“You’re lying!” Danjo leaped to his feet, shaking his head. Beads of sweat popped up on his round forehead. He flailed as he yelled, “I will not accept this!”
“In that case, we have no other choice. We’ll have to ask everyone else,” Ikkyu said, coolly.
Tekkan was paying close attention to this exchange, his arms still crossed. The solution to their problem was in the hands of Ikkyu and Danjo now.
“W-what do you mean, ‘everyone else’?” Danjo frowned.
“The daimyo of all the countries on this continent and their aides,” Ikkyu replied.
“How would we do a thing like that?”
“We all sit down and talk to each other.” Ikkyu opened his eyes wide. “A continental summit!”
“A-a continental summit…” Danjo’s face, which had been overly confident, now twisted into a menial smile.
“We hold a continental summit and together discuss the Land of Fire’s ceding of territory against the Land of Earth’s invasion of the Land of Flowers. How does that sound?” Ikkyu smiled.
“Ikkyu, you…” Danjo’s selfishness spilled out into his words.
Forced to breath deep of the noxious air of the Land of Earth’s daimyo, Ikkyu did not so much as flinch. “If you say you refuse, well, I have some ideas of my own, you know.”
The Land of Fire would become the Land of Earth’s enemy.
Danjo looked like he would succumb at any moment to the pressure of Ikkyu’s implicit threat.
“Sounds like a fine idea, hm?” Tekkan interjected deliberately. Glaring at the Earth daimyo’s sweaty round face, the Lightning daimyo continued, “The Land of Lightning agrees to Lord Ikkyu’s proposal.”
“I do, as well.” The daimyo of the Land of Wind raised his hand.
“Then so shall we.” The daimyo of the Land of Water followed suit.
“So then, what will you do?” Ikkyu asked, and Danjo no longer had any means of resisting.