In Edo, known throughout the continent as the pleasure capital of the world, the Daimyo of the land of fire, enjoys himself in the finest brothel in Edo with the company of 10 beautiful courtesans and 5 shirabyoshis along with the finest drink and food money can buy. His wife, Madame Shijimi on the other hand, located on the room next to her husband, was accompanied by his entourage of bodyguards and advisors, her room was dimly lit as across from her sat a woman dressed in an elaborate white and gold kimono, her age did not diminish her beauty as her long graying hair fell gracefully on her shoulder. The women stared at each other, as Madame Shijimi spoke.
"I'm sure you are aware of what has happened?"
"Of course, this recent war between the ninjas has shaken the very core of all the lands"
"Gonzen-san, I do not care for the petty wars of people beneath me, what I do care about is about the implications of it." Madame Shijimi, gestured to one of the advisors and he pulled from his kimono a scroll and gave it to Lady Gonzen. She opened it gently, and spread out the scroll on the tatami floor, it contained a list of names and locations each pertaining to the shinobi villages and the lands that governed them. Several of these names were already crossed out in red, Lady Gonzen studied the scroll carefully and then looked at the Madame Shijimi.
"The recent war has embolden these ninja into a revolution against the nobility They have created rogue states and some have already overthrown local lords and stolen territory from them like such is the case in the land of water. Even though the mizukage denies any involvement, her top operatives have been seen leading insurgents in many of the islands and have been seen leading one of the rogue states. The Daimyo of the land of Water has only been able to destroy only 2 of theses rogue states at the cost of half of his military, he and his family have fled to our borders for protection but-"
"You fear that it is only a matter of time before the rest of the lands fall at the hands and military might of the ninja" said Lady Gonzen as she hid the scroll in her breast
"Exactly, your mission is to eradicate all forms of ninja resistance in the lands as well as keeping tabs on villages that might have the potential to become subversive. This mission must be kept secret and is your highest priority, you may choose 10 of your most powerful to do this, but no more for we do not want to cause unnecessary suspicion. Do we have an accord?"
Lady Gonzen nodded respectfully towards Madame Shijimi while one of the advisors handed a large bamboo box, Lady Gonzen opened it and grabbed a single Oban from the inside. She smiled as she placed it back inside the box and closed it, Lady Gonzen stood up and bowed at Madame Shijimi, she then grabbed the box.
"Gonzen-san, you realize what is as stake if you fail this mission"
"I am well aware of the punishments of the land of fire, Shijimi-sama. The mission will be done" said Lady Gozen as she exited Madame Shijimi's room. Outside was a young man with a simple dark blue kimono waiting for Lady Gonzen, she gave him the box as she gestured him to follow her.
"Jun, I need you to get this box to our treasury as quickly as possible. Once you are done with that I need you to prepare transport, supplies and weapons for one of my samurai. I'll give you 3 hours."
"Understood, Gonzen-sama" said Jun as he bowed and went running with the box in tow towards the exit of the brothel. Lady Gozen walked towards one of the rooms at the far end of the floor, there in the light of a lantern, a voluptuous silhouette of a woman could be seen mixing with that of a man. Lady Gonzen opened the slide door and caught a scene of passion quite common in the floors of this building, Lady Gonzen then bowed respectfully at the man.
"Excuse me kind sir, but may I borrow Hamuko? It is only for a quick moment"
The man only grunted as he pulled of the maiden and then sat on her futon, Hamuko then stood up and bowed to man and followed Lady Gozen out of the room and into the hallway,
"Gonzen-sama, pulling me away from a client is not good for business you know?" said Hamuko as she straighten her kimono, Lady Gonzen removed the scroll from her breast and gave it to Hamuko, Hamuko opened the scroll slightly but was stopped by Lady Gozen.
"Hamuko, you must go to Konohagakure immediately. Finish up with this client and pack only the essentials you need. Jun will be waiting for you with supplies, weapons and a transport that will take you directly into Konohagakure unnoticed, open the scroll only when you are out of Edo"
Hamuko nodded in understanding as she placed the scroll in her breast, she turned and returned to her room. She smiled seductively as she placed the scroll on a small table and took off her kimono in a swift and elegant manner.
Hours passed, and Hamuko was already in carriage on route towards Konohagakure, when she opened the scroll and studied it carefully. It was abundantly clear to her the reasons for her swift departure. As she opened the flap of her carriage carefully and looked at the familiar sight of Edo once more, hoping to drink up every single one of its details as she left for unknown lands.