Chapter 184 - Interlude - Around the World 01

"The items recovered will be returned to their original owners. But since we're the ones who found the treasure, the monetary reward for finding the items as per the original negotiations must be handed over first." Nomoru Nara said as he looked at the other diplomats.

"What about the one who stole the treasure? What is the identity of the Phantom thief?" The diplomat from Sand village asked.

"His identity is irrelevant as he died months ago." The Nara replied.

"How can you expect our cooperation if you can't even reveal to us his identity? What are you trying to hide?" This question came from the man who represented the Stone village. He had an aggressive air as he looked at the leaf ninja.

"He has a point. How do you expect us to believe that the Leaf village had nothing to do with the Thief if you don't reveal who he is… What deceitful tricks are you trying to pull…" A man with dark skin who wore the head band of the cloud village asked.

Nomoru narrowed his eyes at that question. "This coming from the man from the village which orchestrated a fake peace treaty to get at one of our clan heirs…"

"Careful with your words Nara."

"I could say the same for you." Nomoru took several documents that were on his side and handed them over to the others in the room.

"Those documents contain the dates and locations of all the places the Phantom Thief hit. He stole from the Fire country just as much as he did from the other nations. And during the 3rd war his actions forced the Hokage to divert some forces from certain areas which allowed your village an advantage in the battle… Do you really think if the thief was from our village and acting under the Hokage, he would make a move like that?"

The diplomat from the Cloud village was silent as he looked at the event in question. "Maybe it was a ruse… And as I recall, that battle ended in your favor."

"Not without avoiding casualties. The robbery that happened here 4 years later… Do you really think the Daimyo would show mercy for an insult like that? The Hokage has spoken with the Fire lord and it was his decision that the identity of the thief not be revealed. Not because we want to hide something but because of what will happen to his family. The thief is dead and his family had no idea about the double life he led. They are innocent."

"Getting back to the distribution of all the items. How long do you expect that to take?" The Sand village ninja asked.

"As soon as the conditions set forth by the Kages are met, we will return the properties..."

"682 million. That's a lot of money." The ninja muttered and looked at the documents on two Leaf ninjas who uncovered the treasure.

'Kakashi Hatake and Daichi Hekima. Based on the report it was the Genin Daichi who solved the puzzles that led to the identity of the thief… Another talented ninja growing in the Leaf.'

The sand diplomat sighed and moved on with the negotiations.

—-

It took a few days but with the Daimyo overseeing the meetings, it all soon came to an end.

Hiruzen bid farewell to the Fire Lord and made his way back to the village. Meanwhile the Fire Lord Ryuga Hinoō was having tea and relaxing in his garden.

"My Lord, Did you really want that Genin to Join the ranks of imperial guards?" Ryuga's closet advisor asked him.

"Even though it was a spur of the moment decision, I wanted to see his response."

"And what did you find my Lord?"

At this question Ryuga turned to his closet advisor and smiled. "There are three types of people in this world. The first are the ones who only know to follow orders without question. Ones who cannot be a leader. The ones who follow behind everyone else. The Sheep. The second and third are wolves but they are of a different nature. One looks for freedom while the other looks to conquer. But regardless of what category they fall into, they want one thing. Power. Be it physical or the political power to rule. There are people who achieved one or the other but ones who achieved both of those things… Those people are a rare breed."

"You mean someone like you my Lord… You have the strength to rival a kage and you are also the ruler of a great nation…"

Ryuga laughed at that… "Yes. But I was lucky. I was born into one of those roles and had to work hard for the other. But I'm talking about the people who had none of these when they were born but still managed to achieve both."

"Someone like the Kages…"

"Yes." The Fire Lord nodded at that.

"So that child, is he a wolf?"

"He's a wolf. Of that there is no doubt. But I don't think he's the kind that's looking to rule over anyone. I could tell when I was looking in his eyes. He's someone who wants freedom and he knows that to have it, he needs strength."

Lord Ryuga thought about the question the Hokage asked.

Flashback.

"Yes. But before that, I wanted to ask… Did you ask young Daichi to stay here because of this?" Hiruzen gazed into the man's eyes as he posed his question.

"No. I was genuinely interested in the boy. What his grandfather was up to wasn't a concern for me."

Hiruzen nodded and leaned back in his seat. "Daichi has a passionate heart. He wanted to become a strong ninja from a young age. He is quite dedicated."

"Of that I have no doubt." Ryuga had a smile as he said that.

"I'm surprised you let it go so easily. That's not usually the case." Hiruzen said as he looked into Ryuga's eyes.

The Fire Lord just shrugged and smiled. But there was something else in his smile that Hiruzen missed.

The Fire Lord took a cup of tea and slowly drank it as he remembered Daichi's eyes. 'He's dedicated to becoming more powerful but loyalty… I can tell that he is loyal to himself first and foremost. I've seen eyes like his plenty when I looked in the mirror in my early days. When I just wanted my freedom. I yearned for it. But I knew to achieve that freedom I would need power. '

The Fire Daimyo looked at the clueless Hokage in front of him. 'A child like him, he won't submit to anyone for long. Because I wouldn't if I were him. It's why I didn't push the matter of recruitment any further… Well, I'm not going to interfere in the matter of the village, Hiruzen. So I'll just stay quiet.'

Flashback End.

"I'm curious to see what that boy will do in the future… But right now, he isn't all that important." Ryuga said and closed his eyes to enjoy the calm peaceful atmosphere.

It wasn't just the Fire Daimyo discussing Daichi but various powerful ninjas across the world were becoming aware of him.

Hidden Sand Village.

The Kazekage looked at the reports his men had sent after the meeting at the Fire capital.

'The village is already in a precarious position and this will put the economy in even more of a struggle. At a time like this…'

The leader of the Sand village took a look at another file on his desk. He flipped the page and in it were the pictures of Kakashi Hatake and Daichi Hekima.

"So the son of White fang took an apprentice huh."

It wasn't the Kazekage who spoke but an elderly woman who came near him. He looked at her as she and another elderly man came to the room.

"Who that man takes as his student is of no concern to me. So what was so important that you had to call us here? You know that we are retired, correct?" The old woman spoke with a slight irritation in her voice.

"Yes. And I apologize for calling you in at this time but there is a matter that you should be aware of. The Phantom Thief has been found and the stolen items have been retrieved…"

Both the newcomers were shocked. "This is certainly news. To think that after all this time someone would discover the identity of that Thief." The granny spoke as she digested the information. "I assume it was this team who did it?!" She said pointing to the Leaf ninja duo.

"Yes. But there is more. This child. Daichi Hekima. He's not just the student of Kakashi Hatake but he is also the apprentice of Tsunade Senju the Sannin."

Lady Chiyo was shocked. "What?"

The red haired Kage nodded. "Yes. And based on the information we found, his medical ninjutsu skills are already comparable to hers. Or at least that's the rumors at the Fire Capital hospital. I did some more digging and it seems this child is touted as a genius by the Leaf village."

Lady Chiyo frowned upon hearing that. "That Slug girl has caused me quite a bit of headache during the war. Every poison I created, she had a counter. When I heard she left the village with only a little girl as a companion I was happy. Happy that she wouldn't be a thorn in our side again. But now you're telling me she took on another apprentice? One with genius potential?"

The Kazekage sighed and nodded his head. "It seems so."

At this time an elderly man who has been silent the whole time spoke up. "Have you spoken to the Wind Daimyo? Will he still continue to send missions to the Leaf and not us?" It was Lady Chiyo's brother Ebizo.

"For the moment a large amount of missions comes our way but he has been slowly decreasing it. He finds that sending missions to the Leaf is easier since they charge less. And it also doesn't help that two of the missions he entrusted us ended in failure…" The redheaded kage clenched his fists as he said the last part. He was angry thinking about the incident and he made sure to punish the shinobis in question.

Rasa stood from his chair and walked to the window in his office. He sighed as thought about his next move. "I'll pay a visit to the Daimyo. But I want you two to accompany me. You still have some power with him… There is also the matter of repossessing the precious items. But we will have to abide by the terms set. Only the Daimyo will be able to help us out in that matter. It's why I called for you two."

"And here I thought I could retire and leave everything to you…" Chiyo said as she came and stood by his side.

Hidden Cloud Village.

A black muscled man in kage attire was looking over the documents in front of him. "So they will only return the artifacts after the sum has been paid huh."

"Yes Lord Raikage. They were quite adamant. It didn't help that the conditions were set forth by the Kages and Daimyos themselves." A ninja reported.

"682 million. And even only a 10% of that will boost the Leaf's economy by a good margin."

"That's assuming that the money isn't given to the two ninjas who found the treasure, Lord Raikage."

The leader of the hidden Cloud village looked at his men. "You think the Hokage will give the money to the two ninjas? It makes sense for him to give half to Kakashi Hatake. His reputation is known far and wide but the other 34 million to a Genin? I doubt he'd do that."

"Well sir, the Genin in question is also one of the rising prodigies of the Leaf village. And it's also confirmed that he is the apprentice of Sannin Tsunade Senju."

A was shocked. "What?"

"Yes sir. We've confirmed it. He was seen training with her for two years."

A became silent and thought about the last interaction he had with the woman. It was when he had to save his men from chakra parasites. 'I thought that girl Shizune was her only apprentice. And from what she told me Tsunade was still traumatized from losing her brother and fiance. But now she has another student? How did that happen?'

Unaware of the thoughts of the Raikage the reporting ninja spoke. "Regarding the identity of the Phantom Thief, it was agreed that a sealed scroll containing the details and identity of the thief would be sent to only the Kages. The Hokage and Fire Lord made this decision. It had some pushback from the diplomats the other Daimyos sent but certain concessions were made. It's all in the report."

A nodded in silence. His eyes still on the picture of Genin in front of him. "I need you to get me everything you have on this child. Daichi Hekima."

"Yes sir." The ninja nodded.

Hidden Stone Village.

A short old man looked at the file in front of him and frowned.

"Seriously. Is there something in the Leaf village's water that we don't know about? The moment one Genius disappears from that village another one pops up. Orochimaru, Minato, Kakashi, Itachi and now him."

The Tsuchikage muttered in displeasure as he looked at the details his ninjas sent. He was sitting at the end of a conference table and several important figures of his village were there. The council of the Hidden Stone village.

"It was said that he along with his sensei was responsible for finding the Phantom's hidden loot." One councilor said.

"A two man Genin team. That's certainly a first from that village. They usually always preach about teamwork and all that but this is unexpected." Another one gave their opinion.

Onoki looked at the picture of Daichi and had a twitch above his eye. "Based on the reports, this child completed his medical training under Tsunade in just two years and already the people at the Fire Capital are comparing his skills to hers… Tch! Learning medical ninjutsu to that degree in just two years. Absurd. This could be some kind of trick from those tree huggers."

"Lord Tsuchikage, I'm afraid there is some truth to the rumors. His skill and abilities are verified. And he is currently under Kakashi Hatake. The copy cat Ninja." One of his ninjas standing by his side said.

"The prodigy of Yellow Flash." The Kage frowned as he recalled the face of the man who decimated his ninja during the last war.

"Lord Tsuchikage, the Chunin exams will start in a week. Do you think the Hokage will send this child here to participate?" A councilor asked.

Onoki took a breath and was silent for a few moments. "There is a chance that Hiruzen won't send the child but if he does, we'll crush him in the exam."

"What about the monetary payment proposed in the agreement sir?"

At that, Onoki jumped to the table and crushed the papers into small balls. He then threw them to the ground and proceeded to stomp on them. "That's what I think about their payment."

"Crack." At that moment a bone breaking sound was heard throughout the room.

"OW my back!"

Hidden Mist Village.

It was night time. Clouds were gathering in the sky and it looked like it was about to rain.

In a dark room in a tower at the center of the Mist Village, a ninja was giving his report to his leader.

"Is that everything?" A voice came from the shadows.

"Yes, Lord Mizukage."

"Hmm… You're dismissed."

The ninja bowed and left the room. A second later a short young adult with messy grey hair and pink eyes reached forward and took the report his subordinate submitted. He looked over every detail in silence. The fourth Mizukage of Hidden Mist village.

At that moment a light from outside shined through the window and a shadowy figure could be seen standing behind the Mizukage. A man with a spiral mask and one eye hole. The ominous glint of the Sharingan could be seen.

'Kakashi, I thought you would take a team under you. Not a single Genin… How strange.'

The masked man took the small picture and looked at it very closely. "Daichi Hekima. I wonder what's so special about you that my old teammate would take you as his apprentice…" He muttered in a small tone.

Lightning struck outside and illuminated the Kages room again but this time, the masked man was nowhere to be found.