{Read the notes at the end, also, I read the comments that the discord link has expired so here it is- https://discord.gg/vv884FK5r3}
Once the duel was over, each delegation returned to their respective residences.
It didn't take long for word to spread across the Land of Iron that Minister Shunpei was dead.
But there were no protests.
No loud outcries, no chaos in the streets.
Because here, in the Land of Iron, the sacred law of the duel was final. The one who stood victorious was deemed right, no matter what others might believe. The law cared not for opinions. Only for survival.
With the trial settled, the Konoha negotiation team finally found themselves busy. Now that Juichi had won, it meant the Land of Fire had been falsely accused and they had every right to demand compensation.
Ren didn't know the details. Honestly, he didn't care either.
What was far more entertaining was Yugao shadowing Juichi wherever he went, constantly begging him to teach her.
"Please, Juichi-san!"
"Just one session?"
"Can you at least show me how you parried that vertical strike?"
But Juichi always laughed, always deflected.
"Maybe later."
"We'll see."
"I'm busy right now."
He never gave her a concrete answer, which only made Yugao more desperate and more frustrated.
~~~
Two more days passed.
The negotiations finally came to a close, and with that, the Konoha delegation was free to leave.
With the lockdown lifted, the streets of the Iron Capital were starting to return to normal. People walked the roads again, shops reopened, and the snow-covered city began to breathe like it used to, though a quiet stillness still hung in the air.
At the main gates, the Konoha delegation gathered.
Elder Homura stood near General Takeshiro, speaking with a neutral expression, exchanging formalities.
A little distance away, Juichi and Ren were off to the side, having their own conversation.
Juichi exhaled slowly.
"Listen, brat, I'm not heading back to the village with you. There are some things that I need to do."
Ren glanced at him.
"Why are you being all mysterious? Just say you're going off to train."
Then he lowered his voice, leaned in a little closer, and grinned.
"Or don't tell me you're sticking around here to get me a new mom?"
He subtly motioned toward General Sayo, who stood across the courtyard, arms folded, giving last instructions to one of her men.
Juichi coughed, hard.
He reached out and rubbed Ren's head violently.
"You brat. That's no way to talk to your father."
Still, Juichi couldn't stop himself from stealing a glance at Sayo. Unfortunately, she happened to look over at the same time.
Their eyes met.
Juichi quickly looked away.
"Alright," he said, tone serious again. "Listen up. Even though I won't be in the village, if you ever need anything, and I mean anything, go ask Utakata. He'll help you."
He placed a hand on Ren's shoulder and looked him straight in the eyes.
"When I come back, I'll be even stronger than I am now. So you better not slack off."
Then his serious expression broke into a loud, carefree laugh.
He gave Ren a solid pat on the back.
"Then the two of us will rule the village and kick that old man out!"
Ren stared at him, completely deadpan.
He sighed.
Juichi laughed harder.
~~~
After that, Juichi had a short word with Utakata, nodding once as they exchanged quiet words. The kind that only comrades understood.
Then he turned to Yugao, who had been standing nearby like a stalking hawk, clearly waiting for a final answer.
"Alright, little one," Juichi said.
He pulled out a scroll and handed it to her.
"I'm giving you this. If I'm satisfied with your progress, I'll take you in officially as my student."
Yugao's eyes lit up instantly.
"Thank you, Juichi-san!"
She bowed, scroll held tightly in both hands.
Juichi just laughed and waved her off.
~~~
By then, Homura and Takeshiro had also concluded their discussion.
With final words exchanged and formalities handled, the Konoha delegation turned and finally began their journey back home.
As they walked down the road, the massive iron gates of the capital slowly began to close behind them.
Ren turned back one last time.
He saw Juichi still standing near the gates.
Right beside him was General Sayo.
Ren grinned. He raised a hand and waved.
Then gave a dramatic thumbs up.
Juichi saw it and gave a small smile in return. He lifted a hand and waved back.
Then the gates of the Iron Capital closed behind them.
The mission was over.
The Land of Iron was behind them.
Now Konoha awaited.
~~~~~~X~~~~~~
The journey back to Konoha took another five days.
On the morning of the sixth day, the faint silhouette of the village gates finally came into view, peeking over the distant treetops.
The moment they reached the edge of the village, a collective exhale escaped the Konoha delegation. There was no cheering, no loud words—just the quiet relief that came from knowing they were finally home.
Ren, walking alongside Yugao and Hitoshi, looked up at the familiar gates and gave a soft nod.
Even if he didn't have much loyalty to the village itself, it's still the place he calls home here and it always feels good to return home.
After clearing the standard gate procedure, the groups began to split.
The negotiation team veered off first, escorted toward the administrative wing.
Meanwhile, Homura, Utakata, and the genin trio made their way to the Hokage's office to listen to the Hokage.
Once they arrived outside the office, Homura stepped forward and knocked once on the wooden door.
There was a brief pause before the voice of Hiruzen Sarutobi came from inside.
"Come in."
They entered in formation.
Team 1 bowed respectfully as they entered. Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, stood behind his desk, his ever-present pipe resting nearby. A warm smile appeared on his face as he looked at them.
"Good work, Team 1."
He nodded slowly, eyes resting on each of them in turn.
"Despite being Genin, you performed exceptionally well in a delicate foreign mission. The reports I received spoke highly of your conduct, precision, and results."
Ren blinked once.
The words were nice. Polished. Standard.
He pretended to listen as the Hokage continued offering diplomatic praise.
When Hiruzen finally reached the end of his speech, he gave a light chuckle.
"This mission shall be recorded as an S-rank diplomatic mission in your service records. You can expect a generous payout accordingly."
He paused again, turning his attention directly to Ren.
"Ah, young Ren. I've been informed about Juichi's decision to remain behind."
Ren gave a nod.
"You'll continue to rely on your Sensei, of course," Hiruzen continued, glancing toward Utakata. "However, if ever there's something even he cannot assist you with, you are welcome to consult me directly."
His tone was warm, like a grandfather offering candies.
"Alright, you three are free to go."
The Genin bowed once more.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama."
They turned and filed out of the room, leaving the heavy door to swing closed behind them.
Now that the Genin had left, the atmosphere shifted slightly.
Hiruzen leaned back in his chair and turned his attention to the two remaining men. Homura, who had already taken a seat across from the desk, and Utakata, who stood silently nearby.
The Hokage gestured lightly with his hand for him to sit as Utakata sat quietly and now, at last, the true debrief began.
Hiruzen leaned back in his chair, fingers resting lightly on the desk as he asked,
"So, how did the later negotiations go?"
Homura answered without hesitation.
"They were rather generous," he said, folding his arms, "but I suppose that's to be expected. They didn't want their general's name leaking out, even indirectly. Their own negotiation team looked confused when Takeshiro agreed to all the demands."
Hiruzen allowed himself a small smile.
That was exactly what he wanted.
Even if the mission hadn't completely destabilized the Land of Iron's leadership, it had cracked the surface, and the cracks would spread over time. The compensation, of course, was a nice bonus.
Homura continued, checking off items with his fingers.
"First, they'll be issuing a public notice acknowledging what happened."
He smirked slightly.
"Of course, all of it will be framed to blame Minister Shunpei. But the other nations aren't fools. They'll read between the lines. Everyone will know something more was at play."
Hiruzen nodded slightly as Homura went on.
"Shikeru will resume position as temporary ambassador, at least until we either reappoint him or name someone new."
"Monetary compensation will be 120 million ryo, with 50 million of that earmarked directly for the village."
The money was officially being given to the Land of Fire, not just Konoha, since the diplomatic incident was between nations, not only their military arms. 70 million would go to the Fire Daimyo. The remaining 50 million would be filtered through the village's chain of command.
That payout would first cover compensation to the negotiation team, Team 1, and of course, Homura himself, who led the operation.
Homura continued, voice steady.
"As for chakra metal, originally, they offered 1.5 kilograms, but I gave them the coin."
Hiruzen raised an eyebrow. "The one from Takeshi's house?" He had read this from Yoru's report and knew what it was.
Homura nodded.
"In exchange, they raised it to 2 kilograms, though they added a clause that we'll have to use their blacksmiths for any creations made using that supply."
Hiruzen made a thoughtful sound, already running calculations in his mind.
The Land of Iron mined approximately 10 kilograms of chakra metal a year. Giving away 2 kilograms was a significant concession, one-fifth of their annual yield.
In comparison, Konoha's reserves, even with careful extraction and purchase, barely matched that per year. And unlike the Land of Iron, Konoha couldn't mine chakra metal sustainably. Most of it came from trade or salvaging old mines.
Homura finished with the last item.
"They also approved a Kenjutsu Exchange Program. Six months, starting next year. Three participants allowed."
Hiruzen gave a satisfied nod.
'It sounds generous,' he thought, 'but considering what they avoided it was the minimum they had to offer for peace.'
He turned to Utakata.
"Send Yugao Uzuki as one of the participants next year."
Utakata looked thoughtful.
"I was hoping to enter the team into the Chunin Exams this year. Since they're being hosted in Konoha."
Hiruzen shook his head.
"They can take the one after that. That one's also scheduled to be held in Konoha."
He exhaled lightly and added,
"Going to this mission in the Land of Iron, they must have already started drawing attention. If we push them into Chunin Rank too early, one of them even at age nine, no less will make the other villages restless. We will make further arrangements later."
Utakata nodded at that. It was a valid concern.
He bowed slightly and, after receiving Hiruzen's permission, turned and left.
Once Utakata was gone, Homura glanced toward the Hokage, narrowing his eyes.
"You know, you should just tell me when you and Danzo are pulling strings."
His tone was dry.
"You two are unnecessarily making my job harder."
Hiruzen chuckled softly, almost playfully.
"Well, we didn't want you getting rusted."
He gave the desk a few light taps with his fingers.
Moments later, there was a faint flicker of movement in the shadows.
Yoru appeared without a sound.
~~~
[Bonus Alt Title: Scales of Justice Arc: Everyone Lied, But We WonSubtitle: Featuring The Arena of Divorce-Level Conflict Resolution]
~~~~~
{Official ending of the Scales of Justice arc. I think the last few chapters salvaged it since there weren't many dissatisfied comments.
As I said before, you won't be seeing Juichi for some time now, but I might just add a paragraph or two in between some chapters if you want.
I'm not sure about the chakra metal quantity, but it was said to be rare in the Naruto world, so I adjusted it accordingly; however, if any of you can give me a good reason, I can change it.
Also, what rewards do you think Ren would get for completeing his first S-Rank mission?}
{Now here is the most important announcement: till 30th April, there won't be any fixed number of chapters every day; there might be 1, 2 or 3. It will depend on how much I am able to write every day. This is because I will be having my exams till mid-May.
However, IF you guys want chapters to continue during that time, I would have to start rationing chapters from now on. Now the choice is yours.
1. Many chapters till 30th April then a break.
2. Chapters on alternate days, starting from the 25th till my exams are over or when my stock ends.}
{Anyway you know what else to do}
{STONES!!!!}