Fate Wheel | Naruto

𝟗𝟒| "The Kage Summit"

CHAPTER 94 — THE KAGE SUMMIT
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PRESENT DAY—DAWNS POV

When I wasn't killing people, I was scheming.

Thinking of new ways to either diminish ongoing tension or add more fuel to the fire. The thing was, I never knew the course of actions that would take place, but I definitely knew the outcome.

Here I was, in a room filled with ignorant people who thought that their definite futures were their final outcomes. That they had the ability to carve a path with their power and confirm absolute success, because success in their terms regarded the honour of preserving the power they held and not whom they held dear. Not to discredit the authority power had, it was because of its persuasion that I was in this mess, a spokesman and a scapegoat for problems I may or may not have caused.

It was easier to put the blame on someone else rather than take accountability, but for what it was worth, I'd rather be blamed. It was easier than pretending I was playing the role of an innocent pawn. I was also enticed by the countless moves a player could make. I observed and made mistakes, but even mistakes were a crucial turning point for change.

I had to admit, my power had no authority in this room, but I was a player nonetheless. Only that I didn't have to play well, I just had to play better than my opponents.

And so, I envisioned the chess board, almost as if my phantom body sat across Shikamaru's, analysing the way his eyebrows drew together in impeding frustration, sweat drawing in the crevices of his forehead and his eyes a never-ending calculation. It was an art to analyse the player rather than the game, because once you understand who was playing, you'd find it easier to unravel how they played. I derived these lessons from Tsunade and Shikamaru, from the endless encounters with important people and important deals, the decisions I had to make while also learning how to let go of a possibility for an upcoming victory.

All the five Kage were in attendance along with their bodyguards and possible future Kage candidates. Usually, a Kage would bring their protege so that they could use these meetings as a learning curve. In this instance, I had no intention to rule a Village, only to break it down. It was better to truly fend for yourself and pretend that you were fending for others.

"Before this meeting commences, it's important to clarify allegations and the current matter at hand." Mei Terumi was the voluntary arbitrator in this meeting. After all, after Kiri's dreadful sublimation, she worked hard to form relations with other Villages.

"One week ago, a pact reformation was recently signed between Konoha and Kumo discussing the prospect of trading route extensions and war aid. After years of tension post third war, this pact seem viable, needed to put a salve on a burn and be able to move on. In order to finalise this, Konoha, being the ones who initiated the pact, were asked to superintend Shimo; one of Kumo's allies. The mission being to save Shimo and Kumo hostages and ensure that the next Kage is inaugurated."

"The outcome of this mission is as followed: the Daimyo of the Frost Lands and temporary Kage was brutally assassinated, pieces of his body found in arbitrary locations. The crime scene itself was a blood bath and from a forensics report, there was no evidence of his murderer. Shortly after, there had been a series of cataclysmic, fire bombs planted all over the Village, setting it aflame. Report shows that the west wing, where the hostages ensued, was the first to fall."