Chapter 203: 199: Adopt

Chapter 203: 199: Adopt

He boarded a cruise ship from the Land of Fire's port, traversed the Strait of the Land of Wind along the sea, and drifted for three or four days before finally reaching the port of the Land of Snow.

Cold.

This was Kakashi's first impression of the Land of Snow. The majority of the land was covered in pale snow throughout the year, reminiscent of the constant rainfall in the Land Of Rain. Frozen mountains and woods could be seen everywhere, with thick snow accumulating on the mountains and branches, adding a pervasive chill to the atmosphere.

After disembarking at the port of the country, Kakashi chose not to take the official road to the capital. Instead, he discreetly followed the snow-covered forest path, arriving in close unnoticed. Although he was quite disappointed that his vacation plans fell through, duty called, and he had to execute it flawlessly.

It was something that couldn't be helped. The Fourth Hokage's subordinates were basically unavailable. The Anbu recruiting plan faced constant obstruction, hindering even the recruiting. However, this political struggle was beyond Kakashi's role as a part-time ninja and Anbu team leader.

After all, even the Sannin had withdrawn, and intervening would be useless.

Jiraiya pretended to be crazy, neither helping Minato nor supporting his sensei. Tsunade left Konoha due to a business trip, and Orochimaru had been silent for months. It indicated the turmoil within Konoha.

And Minato's mission this time to the Land of Snow wouldn't be a simple mission. A few days ago, there was a bloody coup in the Land of Snow.

The younger brother of Snow Daimyo, Kazahana Dotō, gathered a large number of ninjas, assassinated his elder brother Kazahana Sōsetsu, and her ruthlessly slaughtered anyone opposing his rule as the new Diamyo. He had brutally seized control of the Land of Snow.

While the coup would certainly bring instability to the regime relying on terror and violence, the Land Of Snow definitely belonged to Doto.

The reason for Dotō's coup and his killing of his brother was unknown to Kakashi. His mission wasn't to save the Land of Snow but to secretly extract Kazahana Koyuki, the former Daimyo's daughter, the sole heir, to safety and find her a secured place to settle down. As for what happens next, it wasn't his concern.

Originally, Konoha wouldn't interfere in such matters, but the deceased Land of Snow's daimyo had generously rewarded Konoha. Konoha, slowly recovering from the ninja war, lacked funds. As long as the assistance from the Land of Snow, resolved Konoha's urgent needs, it was sufficient for Hokage Minato to give the green light.

Given these circumstances, Kakashi's arrival made perfect sense. The only thing unpleasant was the disruption of his leisurely vacation plans.

From the gathered inyel, Koyuki was secretly moved out of the castle during the coup and was currently hiding in a corner of Yuki City under protection. The rebel, Dotō, had dispatched nins under his command to blockade Yuki City, and initiated a citywide search for the Princess.

Kakashi couldn't predict when Dotō would find Koyuki. But judging from the current situation, he needed to act quickly as possible. Before Dotō found her, he had to successfully rescue her and safely escort her out of the Land of Snow. If she fell into Dotō's hands, the mission's difficulty would increase from A-rank to S-rank.

Minato's order to Kakashi was clear: depending on the circumstances, if Koyuki was captured, he could abandon the mission. The Land of Snow might lack a ninja village, but it didn't mean there were no ninjas. The ninjas in the Land of Snow were called Yuki nins, not affiliated with a ninja village but a force trained by the daimyo.

However, in this generation, Doto had seized control of most Yuki nins, the power of this ninjas fueled his ambitions to replace his brother Sōsetsu as the new daimyo.

.....

After hours of travel, the sky had darkened, and the city was in sight. A magnificent city stood on the mountainside, covered with cold snowflakes that fell profusely under the night sky.

The city wall was tall and thick. Climbing such a structure might be a dream for ordinary people, but for them, it was mere decoration.

Easily crossing the city wall, Kakashi avoided the guards and entered silently. The letter had pinpointed the princess's hidden location in the city, and Kakashi rushed there.

It was a dilapidated private house. After evading the Yuki ninjas combing the city, Kakashi showed himself and watched as the ninjas left. The number of ninjas searching the city was far more than his expectations. They wore wore some kind of blue and white thick with a core device resembling a gem on their chest, which gave him a bad feeling.

Typically, such bulky armor would slow down a ninja's speed, but these ninjas moved swiftly, hinting at a special armor enhancing their agility. Therefore it probably wasn't the best strategy to confront them head-on. Fortunately, he didn't need to engage them directly; he just needed to safely extract the target from the Land of Snow.

Entering a dark path, Kakashi reached the innermost house.

It was dark inside, but there was a strange musty smell, signifying no one had lived here for a long time.

In the dark, Kakashi located the secret compartment, recalling it was behind the cabinet. Pressing the mechanism in the concave hole, a click sounded, and a stone slab slid open, revealing a hidden path to the ground, illuminated by moonlight. He walked down the dark path for about a minute before reaching the bottom. Though still pitch-black through his senses, he discerned the number of people hiding and where they hid.

Two knocks sounded on the door.

Kakashi stood in the darkness, waiting for whoever were on the other side of the door to open.

Creak!

The wait wasn't long; the door creaked open, revealing light that shone on Kakashi.

A Yuki ninja, similar to those outside, stood there, donning blue and white armor with the snowflake imprint forehead protector. Different from the ninjas outside, these were ninjas solely belonging to the late Snow Daimyo.

Without them, Koyuki wouldn't have safely escaped the castle, remaining undiscovered by Doto.

The Yuki ninja, seeing Kakashi's Konoha attire and forehead protector, visibly sighed in relief.

They didn't underestimate Kakashi due to his age. Even in the remote Land of Snow, with his mask, sword, and silver hair, Kakashi's reputation preceded him. The son of Konoha's White Fang Hatake Sakumo, a student of the Fourth Hokage Minato, Kakashi was a genius Jonin who had shone in the previous war.

Konoha sending him here, obviously meant they had a sincere concern for the Land of Snow, not just sending a ninja to deceive them.

Kakashi took out a letter handing it to the ninja for verification.

"Come in."

Realizing Kakashi wasn't a Doto supporter, they opened the door wider. The stone room was small, housing only a little girl besides the ninja.

Her identity was quite clear, the daughter of the lat Snow Daimyo. She looked at Kakshi with fear and nervousness.

"Koyuki-sama, please don't be afraid. This is Hatake Kakashi from Konoha. He's here to protect you."

After the ninja's explanation, Koyuki nodded, her tension easing a bit.

Kakashi's calm words grimaced the ninja, who didn't dare to approach him. Because the next time she gets cut by the sword, she would undoubtedly die.

Just then, there was movement behind Kakashi.

Snowflakes danced as a male ninja emerged, shrouded in a massive shadow. Covered in the same chakra armor as the female ninja, coupled with his strong body, the overwhelming pressure made it hard to breathe. He clasped his hands together, releasing a surge of cold air from the Chakra armor. A formidable momentum erupted, striking Kakashi's head.

"!"

The male ninjasl's widened his eyes.

The attack,, was blocked by the sword raised above Kakashi's head.

To others, it might be terrifying, but to Kakashi, it was nothing surprising. At this moment, he used Senjutsu chakra to significantly enhance his physical abilities, allowing his slender frame to unleash strength surpassing that of the male Yuki ninja.

Afterwards, he made a quick slash with his sword

"Ahh!!!"

Accompanied by a scream, blood splattered, and the male ninjas hands fell onto the snow.

"Fuyukuma!"

The female ninja in the sky shouted the name of the burly male ninja. Just as she was about to fly down, Kakashi stared at her coldly. Her body immediately stiffened in the air, intimidated by Kakashi's aura, unable to move, swallowing the fear-induced saliva.

Kakashi shifted his gaze to a snow-covered tree.

A Yuki nin wearing Chakra armor appeared there, with long ice-blue hair, approximately 20 years old. Despite Fuyukuma writhing in pain on the ground, this new Yuki nin didn't advance.

The Snow Princess on Kakashi's back trembled. She recognized this Yuko nin with ice-blue long hair; he was a direct subordinate of Doto. During the previous coup, he massacred those opposing Doto.

Kakashi also sensed the newcomer had extraordinary abilities. If the male and female from before, with the help of the so-called Chakra armor, could engage a Jonin for a brief moment. This one was probably a Jonin. Wearing Chakra Armor made one stronger.

Kakashi remained silent and disappeared with the body flicker.

The female ninja in the sky wanted to pursue, but was stopped. "Fubuki, don't go there; you'll be killed. Hatake Kakashi isn't simple. He's indeed White Fang's son." He had a solemn expression, obviously unsure about taking down Kakashi.

Powerful ninjutsu that could ignore Chakra armor's defense was undoubtedly their bane to them who relied on it. Pursuing them now would likely result in all three of them being killed. Although he was a subordinate of Doto, he wasn't so blindly devoted to sacrifice himself for Doto's ambitions. In essence, it was merely for personal gain with Doto's ascension to the daimyo position.

"Then what's our next move, Roga?"

"First, stabilize Fuyukuma's condition, replace the lost hands with prosthetic limbs. As for the crystal... I don't believe Konoha can protect Koyuki for a lifetime. Once she's lost Konoha's protection, the crystal will be ours sooner or later." Roga analyzed rationally.

Fubuki nodded, following Ryoga's suggestion.

.....

"I never anticipated there would be such a turmoil in the Land Of Snow which appeared calm."

In the office, he received the specific information reported by Kakashi. Every detail witnessed in the Land Of Snow was meticulously recorded for Shiraishi to gauge the current chaos.

The kind diamyo of the Land of Snow, was assassinated by his younger brother Doto, who claimed it was due to illness. The succession ceremony for the new daimyo would take place in the next few days.

"Isn't this what you wanted? Moreover, the rightful heir to the daimyo has been placed under Kakashi's care is being brought here, to secure her safety. This appearance advantageous."

Ruri, saw the potential benefits.

"That's true. Even if Sosetsu's death was accidental, the legitimate heir should be his only offspring. Doto might have inherited the name, but overcoming powerful forces, suppressing, and eliminating all opposition won't be as easy."

Shiraishi nodded. Indeed, it was a golden opportunity. Using Koyuki's status as the heir, secretly funding her, defeating Doto's regime, and then taking over everything in Land Of Snow.

"So, when do you plan to act?"

"We're still a neutral territory. A grand takeover of the Land of Snow wouldn't be appropriate. We need to bide our time. In name, we're merely assisting Princess Koyuki in reclaiming her rightful power."

Moreover, how to take control of the Land Of Snow presented a challenge. A well-devised strategy was required, and they needed to avoid acting hastily.

"Anyway, we'll first head to the Land Of Rainbows and contact whoever this Sandayu Asama person..He was a servant the previous daimyo. If we can persuade him, things will become much easier."

After all, Koyuki was a child without any understanding, lacking autonomy. Shiraishi quickly made his decision.

"I'm afraid things won't be that simple."

"We will try as much as possible. The princess certainly won't be able to reclaim what's rightfully hers without the intervention of a powerful external force. But then again, Ruri, do you think matters would proceed smoother if I take Koyuki as my adopted daughter?"

Shiraishi thought about it matter seriously. This way, he had enough reason to assist the princess, intervene in the Land Of Snow's conflict, defeat Doto, and assist her in regaining control of Land Of Snow.

----

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