"In that case, it's a good thing. After all, smart people know what's good for them."
Shimizu crossed his arms, commenting while observing his surroundings.
Observing the level of infrastructure, the appearance of the residents, and the commercial atmosphere—all of these reflect Loulan's national strength.
Remember the first website domain name 𝕥 𝕨 𝕜 𝕒 𝕟 . 𝕔 𝕠 𝕞
Of course, he was also observing the geographical environment to see if it was suitable for combat.
This was the instinct of a ninja who had been on the battlefield several times.
Loulan looked quite prosperous now, but it was still not as big a metropolis as the animated movie Shimizu had watched in his previous life.
But regardless, it's always a good idea to investigate the information first.
At the same time, inside Loulan Palace.
The Loulan Queen wearily held a document and carefully looked through it. Suddenly, she asked the attendant beside her:
"The Sand Village's envoy? Have they arrived in Loulan? Have you found out which Jonin is leading the team?"
The attendant replied, "Your Majesty, the soldiers guarding the city gate saw four ninjas in Sand Village uniforms enter today. After comparison, the leader should be Jonin Kazekami Chiran."
"So it's him. It seems that Sand Village values our Loulan quite a bit."
Kazekami Chiran's position in Sand Village was among the highest under the Kazekage and the two elders. He was considered a high-level figure, so he naturally carried some weight.
"Did they request an audience?"
"No, they wandered around after entering the city and inquired about news in taverns and other places. Your Majesty, could it be that Sand Village..."
The Loulan Queen slowly shook her head.
"If Sand Village intended to directly seize Loulan, we would already be dead. They should be investigating the domestic situation now, preparing to control Loulan later."
The Loulan Queen closed her eyes, thinking.
After years of war, Sand Village was now quite exhausted. However, after signing a peace agreement with Konoha and freeing up their hands, it would be too easy to clean up a Loulan.
However, people fight wars for profit, and controlling Loulan is also to obtain profit.
Sending troops to occupy Loulan would only result in a Loulan that had experienced war and was no longer prosperous. If she were the ruler of Sand Village, she would definitely want a prosperous Loulan that could provide a lot of benefits to Sand Village and the Land of Wind.
Sand Village wanted to control Loulan to obtain benefits, and as long as she could provide benefits that satisfied Sand Village, then Sand Village wouldn't mind continuing to let her be the Queen.
It's just that, in this case, Loulan's future development momentum would have to slow down.
...
...
"The current ruler of Loulan is undoubtedly the Loulan Queen. The Queen's lineage relies on the ability in their bloodline inheritance to suppress the Dragon Vein and borrow the power of the Dragon Vein to a certain extent, which allows Loulan to have good weather in the desert and evolve into a large oasis."
"There are three ministers who have a certain say in the country: the Minister of Finance, the Minister of Political Affairs, and the Minister of Security. Their names are..."
"The estimated total population and military strength are..."
After half an afternoon of investigation, the four gathered together to summarize the information.
There was no An Lushan among the ministers. Perhaps the future had really been changed, and without that incident, or perhaps it was still too early, and that guy hadn't traveled over yet.
But no matter what, it was a good thing.
If there was an An Lushan, it might cause some variables.
And if An Lushan came later, then by that time, Sand Village would have completely controlled Loulan, and as soon as he showed his face, Shimizu would have to take him down.
"It's better to act sooner rather than later. Let's go to the palace to find the Loulan Queen now. I see that some people in the city are already looking for us. It's estimated that we've stayed in the city for too long without going to the palace, and this Queen has already felt the pressure."
Kazekami Chiran looked at the sky and said to the others.
"That's good. It just so happens that we haven't had dinner yet, and we haven't found a place to stay tonight. Why not let this Queen arrange it for us?"
Maki patted his stomach and followed.
The Loulan Queen did prepare a sumptuous dinner for the Sand Village people and arranged for three ministers to accompany them.
"Everyone, I apologize for the inadequate hospitality."
The Loulan Queen had a bright smile on her lips and raised her glass to Shimizu and the others.
This was a woman with red hair, looking in her early thirties, with a beautiful face, elegant temperament, and dignified demeanor. She was very beautiful.
"Sorry, Your Majesty, the village has not yet lifted the war ban. We must abide by the ninja ban during the mission. It is not convenient for us to drink alcohol. It's enough to eat some dishes and drink some soup."
Kazekami Chiran pushed the wine glass away and said seriously.
"I see, it was inconsiderate of me as the host. I'll punish myself with three cups first."
One mistake, one head, one hair, one content, one look!
The Loulan Queen picked up the wine glass with her slender hand and drank three cups in a row to Shimizu and the others. Her cheeks were slightly red, making her look quite charming.
Shimizu was currently sizing up the Loulan Queen.
Red hair was a relatively rare hair color, otherwise Kushina's red hair would not have been ridiculed by her classmates at the ninja school.
Both Rasa and Scorpion's mother had some Uzumaki clan bloodline. Although they were not pure Uzumaki clan members, they also had red hair, and their chakra reserves were much higher than ordinary ninjas.
The Loulan Queen also had red hair. He didn't know if she was also related to the Uzumaki clan.
While he was thinking, Shimizu suddenly felt his foot being stepped on by Yekura next to him.
"Huh?"
Yekura slightly puffed up her small face, half-squinting her eyes, like an angry kitten, and quickly turned her head, showing a smile on her face, and said to the Loulan Queen:
"Your Majesty, you are so beautiful!"
"This little Sand Village girl is really good at talking. You are also very beautiful!"
The Loulan Queen replied with a smile.
The others did not notice the small movements between Shimizu and Yekura, and only thought that Yekura stood up to speak in order to stir up the atmosphere.
This girl...
Her possessiveness is quite strong.
Shimizu smiled wryly, his lips moved slightly, and he activated his ability to manipulate air currents, restricting the air vibrating near his mouth and turning it into a line that was transmitted into Yekura's ear, comforting her.
Yekura glanced at Shimizu in surprise.
She had never seen Shimizu use the ninjutsu of sound transmission. Apart from the Yamanaka clan of Konoha having a similar secret technique, she had never even heard of this ninjutsu anywhere else.
After some small talk, the Loulan Queen took the initiative to start talking about serious matters.
Discussing serious matters in such an informal setting can often have some unexpected effects.
It doesn't actually have a direct relationship with whether or not to drink alcohol. It's mainly about the atmosphere, and drinking is a good way to stir up the atmosphere.
My sleep schedule is completely messed up... Another lazy day...
