Blind Sight (COTK Book 1)

Chapter 8: The Logbook

The concept of an embassy was still relatively new and hadn't been fully developed either. The Land of Fire had been the first to offer another country, the Land of Fire, a spot to build an embassy.

Its intended purpose was to be an established form of connection between countries. The Land of Fire and Land of Earth had just come out of numerous conflicts caused by a severe lack of communication at the time. As expected, the Land of Earth jumped on the opportunity to freely set up a base in another country's land, and the Elemental Nation's first embassy had been created.

Iwata had never personally seen that embassy, but she'd heard stories and rumors as to the strength and size of it. She had heard it had taken a year to build, and could safely and comfortably house well over a hundred shinobi. It was built near the center of the Land of Fire's capital, Leaf City.

Shortly after the first embassy was finished, more lands began to offer a property for others to build their own embassy. Kumo, however, forced their way into countries and built an embassy whether the country wanted one or not. Most were created with the idea of a small stronghold in mind, more than a peaceful location for diplomatic relations.

She was skeptical as to how long this embassy idea would survive, as the concept had yet to go through a war. In her experience, most brilliant ideas fell by the wayside under the brutal pressure of war. Iwata hoped that another Great Ninja War wouldn't happen in her lifetime. Perhaps the embassies could help hold back the relentless need for power and violence the Shinobi thrived on.

The reason she feared such a war was because the next one would be different. The Bijū had all been captured and subjugated, their power now under Shinobi control. It was highly likely that the Jinchuriki would be sent into the battlefield.

Shaking her head, she raised her hand to shade her eyes, trying to spot the Kumo Embassy ahead of them. Her teammates surrounded her as they followed after a Puppeteer Shinobi. He'd introduced himself as Ochida and had offered to guide them there.

She'd never seen this embassy, not having been stationed here or gone on missions in Suna since it was built. She knew the embassy in this city wasn't one of the most impressive ones Kumo had ever made, but it was nothing to scoff at either. Despite that, it had been broken into, and everyone inside had been taken completely unaware.

Ochida gestured toward the ground below, and she dropped off the roof after him. They all landed in a small courtyard surrounded by iron fencing. Behind her was the street, only a few civilians walking by glanced at them before hurrying on. In front was a nondescript building that barely stood out from the ones around it.

"This is the Kumo Embassy," Ochida said as he walked up the small sandstone pathway to the door. Standing next to the door was a Suna Shinobi hidden in a low-level Genjustu, who dropped it as Ochida approached. She'd noticed him as soon as she landed in the courtyard.

Ochida opened the door and gestured for them to follow him.

Stepping inside, Iwata checked the back of the door and noticed the protection seal had been destroyed. She wasn't an expert in seals, not many in Kumo were, but she had a rudimentary knowledge all Shinobi were required to have.

Ochida noticed her looking at it as her teammates funneled into the building by her.

"We had to destroy that to get in," he commented, and she nodded.

"Do you know how the attackers got in?" Taguchi asked, and Ochida shook his head.

"We still don't know, despite doing a rough search. We were hesitant to explore the lower levels of the embassy, as we didn't want to break the treaty. However, we did have to go down there to retrieve two of the bodies." Ochida explained.