Chapter 328: A Meeting With the Ruler
Disclaimer: Naruto and all of its characters belong to Shueisha and Masashi Kishimoto. I own nothing but the original characters I create.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 328: A Meeting With the Ruler
"It's been a while since I visited this city. Although not much seems to have changed." Naruto was hovering in the air, far above the skies of the Fire Country Capital.
The last time he was here was with Jiraiya, and he got into some trouble with one of the local gambling gangs.
The capital was surrounded by a massive circular double wall, and the palace of the Daimyo could easily be seen even from this distance.
The place was so big that it must take up like one-tenth of the total territory of the city.
Today, Naruto had come here with a specific purpose in mind… to speak with the Daimyo himself.
He descended close to the palace entrance. Although Naruto could have just flown directly to the throne room, he decided to do things in a more polite manner.
There was no need to provoke anything unnecessarily. He knew that these mortal rulers could be very arrogant and quick to jump into aggression.
"Ahh!" One of the guards was startled when he suddenly saw someone appear right next to him.
"Halt!" The other guard held his spear and pointed it toward Naruto. "Where did you come from?!"
There was a long set of stairs leading to the palace entrance, so it was impossible they would have missed someone coming through there.
"I just flew here," Naruto responded.
"Flew?!" The guards looked him up and down.
"Do you take us for idiots?!" the other one added.
He'd rather not get into useless conversations. "I need to speak with the Daimyo. Is he here?" Naruto pointed at the palace. "I have something important to discuss with him."
"You want to see the Daimyo?"
"You think you can just walk here and request to meet the ruler of the Fire Country?"
The two guards looked at each other.
"He must be a country bumpkin."
"Yes… look at his clothes."
"Hmm?" Naruto glanced down at himself. "What's wrong with my robes?" He was wearing a set of simple black robes and some brown sandals he created himself with the power of the Rinnegan.
There was nothing fancy or special about them because he didn't care that much about clothes.
"Anyways… ehem!" The guard cleared his throat. "One cannot see the Daimyo without an appointment."
The other guard showed Naruto a list they had on a small table next to them. "The names of everyone meant to visit today are on that paper. If yo—"
"Okay, I've had enough of this…" Naruto released just a tiny bit of his cultivation.
The two guards felt a tremendous pressure wash over them. Their eyes rolled back in their heads and they lost consciousness.
He wanted to do things peacefully but this was taking too long already.
Naruto walked past them and climbed the last set of stairs before the main entrance of the palace.
The heavy doors were pushed open and he ventured inside.
The first chamber was massive and lots of individuals were walking around the place.
A few of the guards inside gave Naruto a passing glance but didn't trouble him afterward, having concluded that if Naruto went past the two guards at the entrance, it must be because he had an appointment.
"Excuse me, could you tell me where I can find the Daimyo?" Naruto asked a well-dressed woman who was carrying a stack of papers.
"The Daimyo? At this time, he should be in the throne room, attending requests." She pointed to another set of stairs. "If you have an appointment, just go to the last floor and find the biggest door."
Naruto thanked the woman and went on his way.
Once he reached the last floor of the palace, he found himself staring at a very long corridor filled with fancy decorations and paintings.
Guards were stationed all over the place, with six of them standing right before the gates that obviously led to the throne.
Naruto went directly to them and was immediately stopped by the guards.
"Halt! State your name and motive for the visit." The guard who asked was holding a small book in his hands.
Naruto knew there was no point in introducing himself to these guards, as he was obviously not on that list.
'Maybe I should have flown through the window after all.' He could have saved himself all of this.
After knocking out the group of guards next to the door, Naruto opened it up and walked inside.
"What's going on here?!"
There were many more guards inside, and they all heard the commotion caused by the others collapsing on the ground.
One of them caught a glimpse of his companions on the floor and got alarmed. "Intruder!"
"Oh, come on." He didn't want to do this. "Just stand aside. I'm not an intruder."
They didn't seem to listen to a single word he said, and in just a moment, he was surrounded by at least two dozen guards armed with spears and swords.
Naruto could also detect the presence of several ninjas hidden in different parts of the throne room. The two strongest ones were close to the throne.
"I just wish to speak with the Daimyo for a minute. That's all. There's no need for anyone to get hu—"
A spear was thrust at his chest.
Naruto held the tip of the blade with two fingers and broke it.
"As I was saying…"
"Hold!" An imposing voice came from the throne. "Lower your weapons!"
The guards looked at each other with confusion but still obeyed the order and lowered their weapons, though they still glared at Naruto.
An old man wearing a green tunic made his way toward him, parting the guards aside to pass, while two masked individuals followed right behind him.
The man stopped a short distance away from Naruto.
"My advisors just informed me of your identity… Naruto Uzumaki. The news of your deeds has reached my ears many times over the past years. What is it that you wish to speak with me about?"