Shota stepped into the underground ANBU headquarters for the assign division of the Anbu. He walked straight to Spider's small office and pushed the door open without knocking.
Spider looked up from a scroll and smiled. "Raven. Good to see you."
Shota dropped into the chair across the desk and groaned loudly. "Wish I could say the same, sensei."
He had stopped pretending with Spider months ago. The man read faces like children read picture books. Masks and training did not help. Spider also hated the stiff, silent ANBU types, so he never minded Shota's complaining and frankness.
Spider laughed softly. "Aww, don't be so cold. I hope you rested well. This new mission is going to be tricky. Very important too."
Shota sat up straight. Tricky assassination missions were never fun. One mistake could start a war. One mistake could end with him in chains or worse. His stomach already hurt.
An assassination mission gone wrong could lead to a full blown war between shinobi villages, diplomatic ties ending with entire nations, trade cuts, sanctions and for him the consequences of a wrong mission could be expulsion from Anbu, demotion to genin, expulsion from Suna shinobi forces imprisonment or worse execution to stop the outrage from the public or other countries.
'Ah man, this mission is so going to be a pain in the ass. I can tell it even without hearing the details of the mission.' Shota thought
Spider pushed a sealed scroll across the desk. "Your target is Tamashiro Tamiko."
Shota frowned. The name sounded familiar. "Isn't that one of the big nobles in the Land of Wind court?"
Spider nodded once. "Correct. He sits close to the daimyo himself. Very rich. One of the richest in the land of Wind and a shrewd nobles who cares more about money and his power than the nation or his subjects."
Shota whistled. Killing a noble from their own country felt wrong. "You want me to kill someone important to our own daimyo?"
Spider leaned forward on his desk. "Tamashiro wants to push the Land of Wind back into war with Iwa. He gives speeches every week about revenge and honour in the court. He says that Iwa had damaged Suna a lot and the compensation negotiated between the two villages is not enough for the lives lost. If it was only patriotism, we might have let it go. But it is not."
Spider tapped the desk. "War would close the trade routes between the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth. Foreign merchants from Land of Earth would stop coming. Tamashiro sells the same goods those merchants sell: cloth, tools, medicine. No competition means he can raise prices as high as he wants. People still have to buy food and clothes, so they pay. He becomes even richer while children starve."
"He had been doing this for the past couple years when Suna was in war with Iwa. But now with the ceasefire and peace agreement between the two Shinobi villages, Merchants from Land of Earth are travelling back in Land of Wind and hampering his business."
Shota felt his face grow hot. Greedy nobles were the worst kind of people in this world.
Spider continued. "If the Daimyo and the rest of nobles start supporting him, Suna might have to restart it's war with Iwa. Suna cannot fight another war right now. We are still healing from the last one. There are no rewards either. It would be just more costs and lives lost The Kazekage and the elders wants peace. Tamashiro's death must look like an accident or the work of common bandits. Nothing can point to the village."
"We have to stop him from making the Daimyo restart the war. He is already getting support from some nobles already as well as some civilians in Suna who lost people to Iwa shinobi." Spider said
"While it could not be traced back to Suna, the intelligent nobles would know that suna was responsible for it. It would stop them from having such thoughts in future" Spider said
Shota swallowed. "So I have to kill a powerful noble inside our own country and make sure nobody ever suspects Suna shinobi did it. Great. Sounds easy."
Spider almost smiled. "Exactly."
He slid a thick packet across the desk. "Everything we know is in here. Guards. Samurai numbers. Shinobi he hired. Servants. Family members. Read it. Memorise it. Burn it."
Shota took the packet.
Spider kept talking. "He has samurai for his protection. Some are skilled. Nobles have some shinobi they themselves have trained over the years. Iryo nin and sensor nin are in high demand. So expect to see a few shinobi too but not strong enough to be a jonin. He likely has a sensor nin according to our intel."
Shota opened the packet and glanced at the first page. A picture of a fat man with small eyes and a big smile stared back. Shota already disliked him.
Spider watched him carefully. "The Kazekage did not want to give this mission to you. He wanted me to do it, or send an experienced team. He said that is too much risk with a child."
Shota looked up. "But you decided why not give Shota a troublesome task?"
Spider gave a real smile this time. "Of course. A team makes noise. I make noise. We would have to fight and that would mean that the enemy would have made lot of noise. You are perfect for jobs that must disappear."
Shota rubbed his neck. "That is a lot of faith, sensei."
Spider leaned back and folded his arms. "I trained you. I know what you can do."
Shota sighed. "Fine. I will do it."
Spider's smile faded. His voice became serious. "Do not mess this up, Raven. If you fail, many people will suffer. I will probably lose my head for recommending you. They cannot execute the village's precious weapon, but they can execute the teacher who chose wrong."
Shota stood up slowly and tucked the packet inside his jacket.
"I understand," he said quietly.
When Shota reached the door, he turned and gave Spider a cheeky smiled,"If I fail sensei. it was nice knowing you. I hope they would give you a painless death."
Spider shouted back,"DON'T JOKE ABOUT IT! I AM NOT EVEN MAREIED YET!"
---------Author Notes------
I have decided to increase the extra chaptera of Naruto: The Eraserhead of Suna from 15 chapters to 20 chapters.
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