[Feel like we should play it cool. Try to, anyways.]
[Agreed. I would be comforted if you took the lead this time. It might be...unpleasant otherwise.]
[Got it. I'll carry you though.]
[Thank you, my love.]
You return her signal for visual confirmation before looking to the Hokage. "We'd appreciate it if the lords and lady summarized your earlier findings. At that point, we would have an easier time filling in any possible gaps that you have in your information web."
"Sounds alright with me," Minato says.
"I object to this. We're not going to just give up information to criminals," Rasa says.
"This isn't your place to argue that, Lord Kazekage. We are officially in neutral territory, and if that somehow changes within the time of this meeting, the first ones with jurisdiction will be the Leaf," Mei replies. "If you would simply cooperate with our guests, I'm sure we can gain the information that we need."
"..." Rasa grumbles but says nothing else.
"Many thanks, Lady Mizukage," Hannah says. The two exchange another nod. Seems like they're hitting it off, which is good.
"Before we have any more unnecessary objections, I'll start with the summary of our earlier meeting," Mei begins. "Anything that needs extra attention can be indicated with a raised hand, as I am naturally taking note of everyone here. The first portion of authorized information begins as such..."
Mei starts to speak, and it's as you expect; she traces right over everything that Haru told you, with little variation. Some of it is for the other Kage to save face, from what you can tell. She's a very talented speaker and really good at conveying information to others. If it wasn't a natural talent, she definitely picked it up out of need to run all the resistance forces she had during the Mist's civil war.
You notice her gaze lingers on you for a bit on each of her sweeps of the table. Haru did say she was interested in meeting you, so...
Though you notice that Hannah is quiet. She's definitely aware of everything, but she seems to want to focus and follow orders down to the letter today. You'll oblige her, since it wouldn't be good if she hurt herself or anyone else in the room on account of stress. You look over at her and tap a light, quick pattern on the table. She puts a hand over her heart and nods. A few of the bodyguards glance in your direction before returning their focus to the action.
"...that should be it. Hopefully there are no objections," Mei says as she finishes.
"Sounds good to me," Minato says with a nod. "Okay, you kids are up."
"Right. I'll field any questions you have for us," you say.
"I'm sure the young lady can speak for herself," Oonoki says.
"She can. But she won't. No parts of this meeting say we can't run with established SOP, and that's what we've established. She'll need permission from me to speak on any unauthorized subjects."
"That is absurd. We reserve the right to ask whatever questions we like," A growls. "You're nothing but mercenary punks. Don't play games with us."
"And I suppose you'll force us to talk?" you ask, eyebrow raised. "Wonder how well that's gonna go, Raikage..."
"Listen, boy..."
Mei shakes her head. "Lord Raikage, if you could just stand down a moment-"
"Stand down? And let this criminal scum walk all over us? I'll be damned if I do that!" he says as he rises to his feet.
"You watch your mouth."
A turns his head to face Hannah. "What did you say?"
"I said to watch your fucking mouth, Raikage. Don't you dare call him scum," she warns. "Don't ever in your life...!"
"Everyone calm down. Now," Minato orders. Haru and Hikari have taken up defensive positions near you, while the rest of the bodyguards are on alert and in ready positions. "Raikage, shut it down before I do it for you. I am asking you to back off."
A considers saying something else but drops it, letting out a grunt before settling back into his seat. Mei sighs and does the same, with everyone's security winding down and returning to their earlier positions.
"One second," you say with your hands raised. You leave your chair and go over to Hannah, who is visibly shaking despite the calm look on her face.
"Hey. It's alright."
"It was too hard to just...hold it in. I'm sorry. I couldn't stand hearing that about you."
"I know. It's okay." You take her hand in yours and she squeezes it tightly.
"It's unsightly of me."
"It's fine. I mean it. Don't worry, alright? Play it cool. Don't let these guys get you off course. We're here to do good."
"Yes. We are. We are."
"Good. Tell me when."
"Yes. I will."
You hold onto each other for a while longer before Hannah nods, indicating that you were allowed to let go. Slowly doing so, you keep your hands raised as you get back to your seat.
"Alright. Let's get down to business," you say as you sit. "We have information on Yamada and Henson, the two guys from the Iron. They're connected to Luther Donovan, and all of them are tied to an extremist group called the Iron's Shadow."
"Iron's Shadow? I thought they were wiped out," Pakura says from her position beside the Kazekage.
"I thought I-"
"Lord Kazekage, wait a moment. Miss Pakura, how do you know about that group?" you ask her.
"I've done studies on various organizations to help with diplomacy efforts. The violent uprising in Iron Country was well documented by the historians there, and has made for a very vivid case study. As far as I know, policy and several security areas were tightened to prevent something like that from happening again...but the solutions were very holistic, and subtle. I've been attempting to integrate some of the lessons into my own work."
"Hm. That's really interesting...anyways, I was just wondering. The group has apparently reappeared, but with the help of a benefactor," you continue.
"Madara Uchiha, if our luck hasn't changed too much," Oonoki says.
"We did information gathering on the two so-called diplomats," Hannah says to the group. "Both bigots and xenophobes in their own ways, and fixated on the possibility that tying up the Five Shinobi Powers in red tape and material loans will stop them from fighting each other."
"Sounds ridiculous," Mei says with a chuckle. "So they really were trying to get me out of the picture."
"Indeed, Lady Mizukage. And though their plans seem short sighted, they are just as dangerous as any due to the connections we have now discovered. We also met with Madara Uchiha, during a business visit to Lightning Country. A bit of unpleasantness caused us to take our leave a while later."
"I'm sure," A mutters.
"Two of his associates we've confirmed...Zabuza and Haku of the Mist," you say.
Mei places a hand on her head. "Figures. Zabuza Momochi and Haku Yuki. They're already in the bingo book, but I imagine that Madara is paying them a princely sum if they're willing to stay with one group like that."
"Based on all the information we have, we think that Madara is one of the key players in Akatsuki, and not just working with them or using the group for his own ends."
"That's no good. But we can't exactly prove it's him, can we...politics are already a bit rickety, and while the daimyo might go for it, we could see backlash," Minato says. He rubs his chin in thought.
"Akatsuki is definitely targeting places they think they can get to, and so is Donovan," you say to the group.
"Don't know why I didn't think of it before. Layered strategy," Shikaku says from his seat.
"Layers, then. Commander Nara, if you could explain...I'm having a hard time keeping up," Mei says politely.
"Of course, Lady Mizukage. First though, I wanted to ask our guests some questions to confirm."
You nod to him and then give Hannah the go ahead.
"At your will, sir. What questions do you have for me?" she asks.
"I wanted to ask about your previous interactions on the front, preferably in recent times."
"Yes. If I may be so bold as to anticipate your line of thinking, sir...with Akatsuki's strategy of building their reputation and increasing cash flow from smaller areas, this resurrection of Iron's Shadow and the proposed diplomatic strategy are linked, though not in immediately obvious ways. To answer Lady Mizukage's question...might I?"
"Go right ahead," Shikaku says.
"Thank you. We have reason to believe that this specific time was chosen because of the acquisition of certain elements. Lord Hokage would be privy to those."
"Yes, ma'am. Classified, though."
"Yes, my apologies to all. Suffice it to say that these are of importance. Madara chose to have Luther Donovan make this move at this time. The network being created by Akatsuki would be compatible with the strategy to keep the major nations out of war by providing incentives in the form of material and liquid wealth. That is to say, Akatsuki would be allowed to spread mostly unchecked while the villages took their spoils and expanded upwards, as opposed to outwards. Akatsuki's growth pattern would allow them into the foundations of various countries."
"This would be at cost to the Iron," Mei concludes.
"Yes."
"But of course there would be back channels as far as funding goes," Shikaku follows. "Also, the trouble wouldn't stop there. The play to target the military leaders was deliberate, and the information would spread to other levels of government. The daimyo would enjoy the prospect of what seems like quick and easy materials acquisition, without thinking of the long term repercussions. They don't yet see Akatsuki as a threat as long as the money flows in."
"And we can't exactly do anything about that with the current climate," Mei says. "Aggressive arms gathering and supplementing standing forces don't exactly help our cause. But even so, we can't exactly ask the Tsuchikage to stop what he's doing without good reason. The Raikage is adamant on continuing down his own road, and the Kazekage is clearly uneasy at the moment, prone to making what I feel will be reckless and irreversible decisions in order to rescue his village and country."
Rasa clears his throat. "You say there are foreign elements from the Iron here, yet you declared yourself as still being from the region, boy."
"I suggest you use language befitting your guests, Lord Kazekage."
Rasa glares at Hannah, who doesn't flinch.
"Why should we believe you, or that you're not already in league with these rogue elements?" he continues, looking at you suspiciously. "You seem to know a lot about this Luther Donovan and his plans, you apparently know that he's a terrorist, yet your details are conveniently vague. You're also a criminal yourself, exiled from your village."
"I really don't have to answer that," you say firmly. "But you know full well from your earlier investigations and reports who I am, and who my mother is. If she even suspected that I was involved, she would be standing in front of you herself. You also have no evidence to suggest that I would have any reason to start an international incident. I'm not charged with any formal crimes under international law; you're merely exercising your power as Kage to proscript me from your nations."
You lean forward in your chair. "And I'll remind you that the only reason you can do that is because I waived my diplomatic immunity, in order to protect my parents."
"..."
You settle back into your seat and place your hands on the table. "If you're accusing me of working with Madara, I hope you have something worth talking about. Otherwise, we can stop our journey down this road right now."
"I agree," Mei says. "Making wild accusations will accomplish nothing. Joshua and Hannah have already put themselves at extreme risk both by agreeing to this closed meeting and by giving out sensitive information. If you think this is all a ruse, you should bring compelling evidence on that end. If not, then you are severely overstepping your bounds, Lord Kazekage, and that is unacceptable."
"She's right about that much," Oonoki adds. "We're all attempting to pull together, and these kids are giving us light to work with. I would never have guessed that Madara was connected with this, and on so many levels. It's making it harder and harder to justify using Akatsuki, even if I feel it is necessary. I'm very interested in listening to them right now."
"Then we can listen," A says. "Now it's our turn to ask questions, just as we should have been doing from the start. The Kazekage has the right idea, even if his methods are irresponsible."
"There are things I want to pick up, too," Minato says. "Hopefully you guys don't mind."
"It's not a problem in and of itself, sir," Hannah replies.
"That's a relief."
Haru hands you and Hannah glasses of water, which you gratefully take and sip from.
"If you truly want to cooperate, you'll lift your restrictions on the girl," A demands.
"Do you want a bloodbath?" you ask, incredulous.
"That sounds like a threat to me."
"It's a promise," Hannah says from beside you.
"You sound like you're up to no good. I'm against this," Mei says. "It's only going to stir up trouble. I know what you're going to try to pry into."
"I say let the girl speak her mind," Oonoki says, looking amused. "Some more entertainment would be nice."
"Your protocol is of no importance to us," Rasa follows. "So we can stop playing games."
"I'd rather respect their privacy," Minato says, head resting on his folded hands. "It's unreasonable to just have them violate SOP like that, no matter what your personal feelings are. We might be the Five Kage, but they're not beholden to us."
"Hokage, you're woefully soft," A replies.
Minato shrugs. Mei smiles and shakes her head.
"What do you say, darling? Shall we stick to our plan? Or should we give them what they want this time?"
"I guess that means you're okay coming off the leash a little," you say to Hannah.
"I've always trusted you."
"I know. Well...let's see." You cross your arms and think.
---
[] Some of the Kage are thirsty for information. You don't know exactly how far they'll try to go, or how helpful to the current situation it will be.
-[] Stand your ground. All questions go through you, and you reserve the right to bar Hannah from answering. This is where you are now.
-[] Open up, slightly. The atmosphere might change favorably if you allow some room in protocol. Not letting them go too far, but being more relaxed.
-[] Cut loose. Give them what they want, though that could easily mean chaos. You're no longer responsible for your partner's approach.
-[] Custom option.
---
[] The tone is still a bit hostile.
-[] Aggressive stance. You're not trying to get bullied.
-[] Neutral stance. Play it cool.
-[] Passive stance. Try to deal with what comes as it comes, though it might leave you vulnerable.
---
a/n: progressing through it nicely. Couple of ways to continue.
