A few hours earlier

The middle-aged, yet somehow still young-looking man, sat in a leather office chair, glad that the occomodations granted to him by the Council of Kumogakure were at least comfortable enough to rest his weary self for some time.

Enjoying the comforts of the apartment and the bliss of a perfectly prepared tea, Enaka simmered through an entire map with documents and reports handed to him by one of his operatives he had meet right outside Kumogakure a few days earlier. As it seemed, the death of the former Raikage Lady Reika, had not affected his own plans and his extensive network nearly as much as he had feared. However, some things had changed for the worse after all.

Despite the fact that Enaka had some information on the new Raikage's dealings with a few less savory types of Shinobi, it seemed that the man's objective or rather his obsession was to remove all of his adversary's pawns and influence. The defection of one of Kumo's former Raikage candidates was a big shock, but the fact that there were people insisting that this Bokuden-fellow was a more suitable candidate for the title of Kage than the current one, must have been a serious insult to Sanosuke Flynt, which became apparent in his immediate cleansing of Kumogakure.

In a certain way, it amused the Ouroboros Regent that the Raikage had not thought about the possibility that there were more players in this game and that none of them had a more favorable position than Enaka did. The Tsuchikage had tried to warn and even threaten him, such a pity that Iwagakure was no longer a consideration as a valuable ally, but Kumogakure on the other hand, held such great promise. It had the means, the power and certainly the drive to aspire for much more than they had at this very day.

A single name seemed to pop up in many documents, intriguing the Orochi lord greatly: Tame. A name linked to the death of not only a Hokage, but also a suspect in the mysterious death of the former Raikage. Understanding that this was most likely going to become an obsession with the current one to find those responsible for the death of his predecessor...how dull and so petty of an obsession to have for a man seen as the greatest among the Sages, even rivalling the current Hokage when it comes to battle prowess and perhaps second to only the Mizukage, though that Solstice girl was not really an issue, now that Kirigakure had turned into a self-centered village, closing itself off from the entire shinobi world.

Present:

Sighing deeply, Enaka got himself dressed in a more appropriate attire, before making his way to the Administration building to meet the new Raikage as part of Enaka's own mission to consult the other hidden villages and as the Hokage had requested him: make valuable contacts and contracts with them. The emissary couldn't have been more wrong regarding the Hokage's goals, for Enaka did not seek peace or the prosperity of people, but only the advancement of himself and the entire Shinobi world in general. With this in mind he eventually wandered through the streets until he had reached the large building atop the mountaincliff that stretched as far as the eye could see, surrounding and protecting the village.

When entering the building, Enaka sought out a reception, where he could introduce himself and request a meeting with not only the Hokage, but also the Council of Clanheads as well.

With a smile on his face, his eyes squinting and covering his cold eyes, Enaka awaited a response and made sure his black kimono and purple Haori with the Ouroboros crest on the back looked fine. Taking out a small piece of silk, the man made sure that not a single pec of dust could be seen on the three thin, yet beautifully crafted little chains that went from the collar of his kimono to the left shoulder of his Haori, which had two leather pads on the shoulders again embroidered with the Ouroboros crest.

A sneeze escaped from Sanosuke's mouth as he quickly scratched his nose  to compose himself. The sneeze was loud enough to cause the ANBU that were slowly following him in the shadows to lightly startle them. It was enough for their chakra signatures to spike minutely, but enough for him the Wasp Sage to notice; and annoy him as well. Rolling his eyes, Sanosuke whipped around to look in the general direction that most of them were. "Lighten up you bunch of sissies. It was just a sneeze." Sanosuke mumbled before returning to his walk in his administration building. He would definitely need to talk to the council about finally having himself walk through his own village without having an entourage follow him everywhere. It's been months and not a single incident has occurred. There's a difference between being protected and being imprisoned.

The sun glanced from the lightly tinted windows of the building to cast the hallway into a more fulfilling light. Shadows danced around the Raikage as he walked towards the 2nd floor of the building. The 2nd floor of the administration build; only one floor before reaching his own office, and also the location of the council's rendezvous. It wasn't everyday that he would meet with the council, the last time he met with them was for possible leads of the murderer of Reika Misora. At the moment, Tame was a very possible individual but there were no leads of where he could be or about his character at all that Kumo's ANBU could pick up. So at the moment they were at a dead end. Now they were assembled once more.

A representative from Konoha requested audience with not only him, but also all members of Kumogakure no Sato's council. It was a rather unorthodox request considering that most visitors would wish to talk to him specifically, but the council as well? Sanosuke was against the idea of it originally, but that was when Koga the representative and clan head of the Kyodara clan requested that they should adhere to the request of the representative. Tame murdered the Hokage that was before Konoha's White Star, but unlike the murder of Reika this was taken place in the open with many people to witness it. Koga explained that maybe they could learn more about Tame by comparing notes to Konoha so that they had a better idea of whom we're dealing with exactly. It was weird that Koga, of all people, would point this out. But then again, Koga was more likely interested than dissecting the murderer and figuring out the composition of the majority of his techniques. The rest of the council was in agreement with this plan, so Sanosuke accepted the terms of the meeting.

Taking the elevator that would lead to the hallway taking him to the meeting room, Sanosuke looked at himself in one of the elevator's reflective panels. He straightened out any hair that was in the way of his face. His cap was straightened and there was no dirt on his kage robes. When the elevator hit the 2nd floor, Sanosuke strode through the hallway. Out of curiosity he decided to look in the room by using his chakra sensing abilities. There were the 7 councilmen members and their signatures, but there was also another chakra signature that was foreign. This must be the visitor. There was something off about his chakra signature. He didn't know what it could be, but something told him to be wary of him. When he entered the room, Sanosuke saw that all eyes were on him. He looked at the individual that had requested the meeting with him and Kumo's highly ranked officials. The man was a rather young looking male with pale skin and black hair, but what gave his age away was his eyes. Just looking into those dark, grey eyes revealed wisdom that was well beyond the age his face gave off. His gaze was also causing him to feel slightly uneasy. The man smiled at him while briefly closing his eyes. Did he know that his gaze was getting to him? No that was impossible. This man's chakra was correct, he would need to be very careful when dealing with this man.

Nodding to the man, Sanosuke sat down at the head of the circular 'U' shaped table that was directly across from the seperate table where the Konoha representative was sitting in. To his immediate left side of the table was the Ko Noboyuki, Koga Kyodara, Takumi Chiakra, and Ren Ryuzoji. To his immediate right side of the able was Bo Noboyuki, Hanabi Misora and Michiko Inuzuka. Each of them had on kimonos and other formal outfits to the meeting that had their respective clan's crest somewhere on their body. When Sanosuke looked at the individual, he felt better that there was some distance between him and the man. Navi flew close around him to give him support. Sanosuke took a deep breath before speaking.

"As the Raikage of Kumogakure no Sato, I would like to personally welcome you to my village. May I ask of the name of Konohagakure no Sato's representative?" Sanosuke in a very articulated and loud voice for all to hear.

At long last, Enaka could meet face to face with the Raikage, who seemed to be just as unorthodox for his taste as most other Raikage were. He couldn't remember how many Raikage had passed the baton during his life; four or so he thought. With his chakra cleanly suppressed to the level of a jounin, the man hoped he would not come over as a threat to the Raikage, even though it was such a hassle to constantly suppress it, it had made his life so much easier, with so many people simply acknowledging him rather than feeling threatened. It was his best choice after all, since he had stopped being an official shinobi when he was but a mere jounin, while now, he was so much much more than 'just' a jounin.

When being escorted to the room where he would meet the leading members of Kumogakure's society, the Ouroboros regent had already understood that despite the fact that there was no war between any of the nations as of yet, these people were very cautious, sickeningly even so, demanding that he would remove all weapons and even searching him for them. With a diligent smile he had accepted their requests, though he couldn't help but feel slightly annoyed by their almost paranoid perception on foreigners.

Standing up behind the seperate table in front of the massive 'U' shaped table behind which all the representatives and the Raikage were seated, Enaka gave a slight, yet not a full bow, showing that he was not intending to be the submissive subject in this meeting.

"Ah yes, forgive me for not introducing myself earlier," The man smiled again, his dark, almost void eyes gazing to each and every member behind the table, a small glimmer could be seen in his eyes when his eyes finally rested upon the Raikage. I am Orochi Enaka, Regent of the Ouroboros clan and Advisor to the Hokage."

To some at the table, the man's name might've rung a bell, as Enaka was not only known as an advisor or simply the Ouroboros regent, but also as one of the most gifted medical-nin of all ages, with supreme knowledge on poisons and their antidotes, the human anatomy and the use of modifications thereof. However, his background, as was usual with all ex-ANBU was shrouded in mystery, for only the Hokage and the upper echelons of the Hi no Kuni had access to his documentation and his mission record.

Any ANBU and any sage in the room could've sensed the tingle of a sensory jutsu scanning them, the ANBU in particular should've been able to sense the familiarity of this konoha ANBU technique. This in a way betrayed the man's background, but Enaka did not rly care about that, since he was fairly sure that anyone sensing it would know that a shinobi had to be careful in the first place.

"I greet you all with gratitude for allowing me to meet you all in such a short notice and do accept my apologies if I may have disturbed your daily routines with this perhaps, slightly selfish request," The man continued calmly, still with a smile on his face. "As you might all know, Konoha has faced many crisis in the past years, with the most notable one being the death of a former Hokage at the hands of a wanted criminal in possession of the shoton element, in other words a crystal element user."

Knowing that the former raikage had been murdered as well, Enaka knew that what he had said might've put the men and women behind the table a bit on edge, which as always would be easy to deal with and an early advantage if there would be some treaties to make. The Hokage had ordered him to talk about peace and trading with both the tsuchikage and the raking, but the tsuchikage had flat out insulted him, something Enaka had still not forgotten and if he was not being monitored by that hyuga boy in Iwagakure, he would've destroyed that entire village and everyone in it, just to erase the insult.

"Hence, the Hokage Senju Sousetsu, has asked me to come here and talk about making or bonds tighter, so that both our nations and villages may flourish..." The man spoke suddenly with a slight air of authority, but also some feigned sadness. "Alas, reports have come to us, telling us that Kirigakure and Iwagakure have been strengthening themselves to unknown proportions. both ofcourse have excuses, but they still concern us. As of lately, reports have also shown that Kumogakure has started to greatly improve and cleanse their ranks as well, though I may sound imprudent, may I on behalf of the Hokage ask if these reports are true and what your intentions might be."

That feeling of dread and anxiety. There it was again. Why was he feeling this way towards this man? Was his instincts towards the man's aura really that strong? Ever since mastering senjutsu, and thus becoming arguably one of the greatest sages in the shinobi world, he's gained a sort of 6th sense to danger. And right now, they were screaming at him to be careful when dealing with this man; that smile he was exhibiting was for show. A deep breath was taken in and let out. It was discrete so no one should have seen him struggle to calm down. Navi noticed and floated around him  playfully to get him relax. It worked as he noticed his breathing was calming himself, putting him in a state of serenity. Voices in his head barking at him with doubts slowly quieted down to a barely audible whisper. Now he could hear himself think.

So this man was Enaka Orochi, he was the representative from Konohagakure, the head of the Orochi clan and adviser to the current Hokage. A very dominant figure indeed. But from how he sounded, Enaka made it sound as though he was much more significant to Konoha than that. As soon as he said his name, Michiko and Takumi were left in awe; while Koga adjusted his glasses and rose his eyebrow in interest. Apparently Michiko and Takumi knew of this man's record and were momentarily starstruck, even Koga was impressed. It takes a lot to gain Koga's attention, so this Enaka fellow was definitely something else. When he apologized for his request, Hanabi was the first person of all of the council to speak up. Clearing his voice, before giving some sort of vocal warmups before speaking.

"♪It is all right my beautiful Orochi-kun. Although you caught me in the middle of my dress rehersal, I will gladly make time for youuuuuuu!♪" Hanabi sung loudly so all of those who were in the room could hear him sing. He suddenly slipped into latin and sung a quick monolouge that was done in a few minutes. When he was done, he took several bows to his invisible audience before sitting back down. The entire group council, including Sanosuke himself, looked at Hanabi and all joined in a group sigh as they all knew that it was only a matter of time before Hanabi would do this. Even though it was out of place, Sanosuke had to thank Hanabi. He must have known that Sanosuke was on edge so this out of place singing was enough to get his mind off this feeling of uneasiness he was feeling from Enaka. He wouldn't know how Enaka would react to Hanabi's singing, but that probably wouldn't stop him from telling Kumo what he was here for.

The man began speaking about Konoha's past crises that the country had faced in the past. Without missing a beat, the Konoha adviser brought out, out of all of the crises the hidden village had went through, he chose the one regarding the death of the former Hokage that was assassinated as well. Reaching common ground huh? It was a very good persuasive technique in politics. Koga looked at Sanosuke and gave a short nod when Enaka described the man a bit more into detail. The Kyodara head was right on the money on what Enaka would want from Kumo. So the murderer was a crystal user. Sanosuke had heard about shoton users, they were formidable shinobi. One of them definitely could have been capable to kill Reika. Nevertheless, Sanosuke played the situation out well without showing any visible sign of shock or feeling. He had on a mask that was vague of any feeling whatsoever. It was all he could do to contain himself from the excitement from the intel he was just given for free; a shoton user....good, they have something to play off on.

Next Enaka went on with the mission statement that was to be expected of a representative. Konoha finally seemed to recognize Kumo as a country worthy of an alliance. It must have been after seeing how well Kumo, or should he say Kaekio, did in the chuunin exams. What the man said about the countries getting stronger made him smile. So this man wasn't as knowledgable about how the world works as he lets on. Being a traveler, he knew that the world was always suspect to change. "Enaka-san, the world is always changing my friend. Konoha has been a superpower for generations, do you really think that would remain the case for so long? Others are getting stronger, it's just how the world works." Sanosuke said simply while returning the courteous smile. Although what he said could have been very patronizing to the adviser, he knew that Enaka showing any sign of retaliation of anger would not play well in these negotations of a possible treaty. Kumo and Konoha both have things to gain with an alliance between the two; the terms of trade, shinobi strength and intelliegence as well.

"Kumogakure is just now going through our own metamorphosis. In the past, we haven't been the most prominent figure during major events that would have effect the shinobi world. My sensei Midnight, the Hachidaime Raikage, was one who wanted Kumo to stay within its shell and just be an observer to the world. My imediate predecessor, Reika Misora, was the same way. She slowly began to creep out of this cast that Midnight has laid for Kumo's future leaders. And it seemed as though her actions led to her assassination." Sanosuke responded to the question. He clenched his fist as he lived through the time of both rulers and couldn't do anything due to the fact that he didn't have half the influence as he does now.

"I for one am changing how Kumo responds to the world. We will not be a country that stays within its walls and block out the problems the world is facing." Sanosuke answered the question shortly before thinking about a question to ask Enaka. "Now I have a question regarding Konoha. I seriously do not believe that you stopped with Kumo first on this mission for securing more alliances with other villages. So what other villages have you also visited and how did negotiations play out?" It was a fair question. Konoha has asked a question regarding Kumo's infrastructure, it was only fair for them to do the same. Besides if Kumo and Konoha were going to be in an alliance together, they should be able to share this information without any hesitation to be shown.

For a single moment, Enaka's facade of a gentle and friendly man fell down into ruin. Even if it was for just a single second, a cold, icey glare towards the singing and dancing member of the council showed his disdaint for such an unwanted interruption of the meeting and how he felt ridiculed by that man, something which he hardly even managed to tolerate from even the Daimyo of Hi no Kuni, who knew very well that the Regent of the Ouroboros clan was far from the meek and gentle mask he had given himself to be accepted more easily by the society of nobles, who only cared about their wealth and pleasure, rather than using and solidifying their position and power.

"I do know that the world changes, Lord Raikage," The man said with a feint, even fleeting smile on his face. His eyes, darker than the void of space, were no longer squinting, but looked directly at Sanosuke. "I might even applaud you for the hard work you have done so far in the good grace of Kumogakure and its citizens."

For a moment, the man in front of the seperate table sighed deeply. Not because he was asked which villages he had already visited, but just because he really found it rather annoying to be reminded on the hostility and more or less the stupidity and dare he had encountered when meeting that Tsuchikage Kazako Akira, who had been downright blatant with his answers and had not just insulted but dared to threaten Enaka, something which the man had not forgotten as of yet.

"It is a fair question Milord," The Orochi lord gave a soft chuckle to lighten the mood a bit for the other members of the council, though he was quite certain that the raikage would realize that this was merely to soften the tension only for those clanheads and not for Sanosuke himself. "I have recently visited Iwagakure as well, as I was rather concerned about the identity and the intentions of their Tsuchikage, who has appeared out of nowhere and just like you has succeeded in greatly restructering the hidden village in his care. However, what mostly concerned me was the fact that he was in possession of not only classified, but also relatively recent documents, information and intelligence on Konoha and its people."

Another feint smile came upon Enaka's face, as he remembered how that man, Akira had thought that he knew everything, when thinking that knowing Enaka's past of being an ANBU captain gave him the edge, on the contrary, the information the tsuchikage had, seemed to blind the man for the real truth: Enaka was indeed no longer an ANBU captain, but at the same time, he had risen to be so much more.

"However, this entire matter regarding Iwagakure is not in the slightest a problem for Konoha," The man exclaimed calmly, making a gesture with his left hand as if he was simply waving it away like a buzzing mosquito. "What I do perceive lately, is that people think Konoha has turned into a pit of decadence and deprevation, which I could understand with the death of a hokage and the dissapearance of two of them, not to mention the uprising of the notable criminal Uchiha Hao and the so-called doujutsu collector Senju Ukiyo. Luckily though, that is all in the past and even though Konoha might've turned soft and weak, I certainly have not... lost the belief that we can be of service of benefit to many other villages."

[OOC: Sorry about the long wait. I was just getting lazy with posting :P]

At the sight of Enaka's cool and diplomatic demeanor slowly melt away to show his annoyance and clearly dislike he has for Hanabi caused Sanosuke's eyebrow to raise. So even someone like him can get annoyed. That brought Sanosuke relief as the once intimidating freak of nature could have his buttons pressed like anyone else. This man no longer made Sanosuke feel anxious. Pressure that once enclosed on Sanosuke loosened as it allowed for him to not feel so intimidated by him. Enaka was a man just like everyone else, a dangerous man yes but a man nevertheless. Looking at Hanabi, this Misora clan head however was taking the stare rather hard.

The artful Misora clan head clenched his heart dramatically as though he was having a heart attack. His other hand was desperately grasping for air as though something in the air would save him. After all he was a member of the Misora clan, so Hanabi attempting to do this might actually help him under the right circumstance. "Oh woo, is me! The linguistic venom that yields from the snake has stricken me with sickness. Love is a smoke made with the fume of sighs, yet you do this to me!" Hanabi wheezed. Great his heart attack turned into an asthma attack. "Julie, get my insulin pump! I cannot go onnnnnn" Just like that he slumped back in his chair attempting to play dead. It would have been believable if he didn't use his right eye to peek to see if anyone was looking at him. His assistant Julie, came to his side and began fanning the clan head with a small fan that was mixed with a few bits of fuuton chakra coming from the woman.

Shaking his head in shame, Sanosuke looked over to Enaka whom was now returning his look to Sanosuke this time. "I'm sorry about how Hanabi-san is acting, he is a bit of an eccentric." The Raikage apologized while scratching the back of his head. When Enaka finally answered his question, it was with a heavy sigh. So the negotiations between him and the Tsuchikage didn't go well at all. If things did go well then Enaka would have know where the kage had gotten the information about Konohagakure. That's when he dismissed what he had just said and began talking about Konoha's past. He had heard about all of Konoha's problems. Hao Uchiha was a menacing figure in the shinobi world that freightened him when Sanosuke was a genin years back. Ukiyo Senju was a woman that he met on his travels, but she was a small girl that was very naive of the world; she was at the time content in staying in the woods. Finally the disappearance of Mitsuhide Uzumaki. The last time he had seen him was when he had fought along Konoha's White Star and Kiri's Ice Witch. This was before he was appointed Raikage, so this made Sanosuke worried about his brother-in-arms.

The last part of Enaka's sentence intrigued Sanosuke. It was very cryptic, but the meaning could be interpreted in a different number of ways. Each of them were not a diplomatic message that any kage would not trust an adviser to make; unless that kage was an imbecile that didn't know how to control his parliament. Everyone in the council and Sanosuke paid attention, even Hanabi creaked open one of his eyes from his "death" to look at Enaka. "I feel as though you would like something more than a traditional alliance between Konohagakure and my village. Now, tell me exactly what you are after." This time Sanosuke was looking at Enaka with a protective look of his village. Before through the meeting, Sanosuke had given off the vibe of a ruler that might be concieved as underwhelming. Now he was looking at Enaka as though there might be reason to suspect that the Konoha adviser might be a longterm threat to his village's security

Enaka didn't even take the time to react to that eccentric clanhead, but what he saw in Sanosuke's eyes made him grit his teeth for a moment, as it was obvious that the fact that he had so foolishly displayed his annoyance for just an instant, the Raikage had noticed this and had obviously calmed down quite a lot. Useful in a way, but rather dissapointing for Enaka, who now knew that the only way to throw that man off balance was either by showing him the truth about who he had standing in front of him or simply, like in a game of Ouji, take another approach and switch tactics with the pieces in his possession.

"I am no judge on people's desires and pleasures, Milord," The Orochi lord responded calmly to the Raikage's apology for one of the council member's behavior. "Theatrical skills might come in handy when it is the right time for a fitting performance, is it not Misora-san?"

Not hoping to have appeased, but more likely soothed the man's behavior and to show a bit of false remorse for his actions, Enaka made it clear that he did not denied the man his performance, yet simply not agreed on the 'how' and 'where' of the performance.

"Ah, so finally you do understand the meaning in my words," The Ouroboros regent chuckled with a sinister, yet still quite elegant and smooth sound. "I should've expected no less from the man who has ties with this person."

From out of the map he had brought with him, Enaka showed Sanosuke a picture from someone the Raikage certainly knew, a one-armed woman who was once heralded as a promising future for Sunagakure, but had relinquished her position as Kazekage and now seemed to have steered down a path less savory for the regular type of shinobi.

"I for one know you are not interested in an alliance with a village that seems to be on the brink of self-destruction or rather destruction by another dead hokage," Enaka calmly continued, placing the picture of Kuroka Gin on the table in front of him, taunting the Raikage with his knowledge, which albeit not sufficient to truly pinpoint the relationship between the raikage and the criminal who had attacked the hokage, was probably more than enough to make Sanosuke think twice about what he was going to say next. "However, I was more thinking of a less obvious alliance, not between Konoha and Kumo, but between you and me. I am willing to offer you everything I have to aid you in the search for the criminal behind the death of the former Raikage, but only if you are willing to invade Sunagakure, where if I am not mistaken, another....unsavory character you've been searching has been located."

The way he chuckled only confirmed that the feeling of dread and distrust he had of the man the second his silver eyes locked onto him. Before the feelings he was having was of uneasiness and hesitation of what this man's nature was of. The Raikage had no idea what the man was capable of at first, and was beginning to think that it was just a sense of paranoia that was clouding his judgement. He had to resist the urge to break out in sweat at trying to figure out what this man was up to. What was Enaka Orochi's game, and why was he feeling so uneasy with his words? But that was when Enaka showed him a picture of someone that nearly made his heart stop. He was at first speechless at what the man said and how this man knew so much about his life. Before him was the picture of the last person he would expect Enaka to have on him:

Gin Kuroka.

Stress pressed against his teeth as he clenched it hard to make sure he wouldn't say anything too stupid that would make the matters worst. He was at the moment in a love hate relationship with the ex-Kazekage. Although he wouldn't admit, Gin meant the world to him and would do just about anything to protect her from harm. The fact that the Konohagakure adviser had a picture of her while she is touring Konoha. She was without her mask and hold the hands of their adoptive son Ren. They were having ice cream with Ren leading her through Konoha, while the mother was barely keeping up with the child. Her plastic surgery she had on her face made it so that nobody would be able to identify her without saying who she actually was. They were happy, but why? Why was she being brought into this?

Even though that this man had this picture of Gin on him and his adoptive son, he could easily claim that it was her allias Shinobu and her son. That was confirmed with a majority of the council that he was in a relationship by a leading member of the Seven Swordsmen of the mist. Nobody in the room besides him, and possibly Enaka, knew of the woman's true identity. But still the fact that he was attempting to blackmail him with this information made his blood boil.

His proposal, more like an order, was what set him off. The chancellors and the rest of the council listened to the man's proposal listening intently and at the same time shocked. Sanosuke looked at the man, his facial expression stern and visible, anger was barely being contained. Like a broth that was boiling for far too long. When his proposal reached his ears, Sanosuke's face went blank. It was as though he hit a brief moment of enlightenment. Everyone looked at the Raikage to see how he would react. One chuckle, then another chuckle, and finally laughter. He was continuing to laugh until he was in a fit. Finally calming down, Sanosuke wiped a tear from his eye. "You come to my village. Threaten to blackmail me with a picture of my loved ones. All just to hide your own ego of not having enough power in Konoha to do anything, but to follow the lead of a kage who isn't maintaining his village correctly. How degrading." Sanosuke said while looking directly at the man's eyes. His silver eyes were now piercing into his soul as he saw exactly what this man was; a viper who's eyes were locked onto his village. He would squeeze the life of Kumo's services, and when it's all dried up he would feast on the remainder to strengthen himself.

Before the chance for Enaka to retort, he allowed chakra to be radiating off of his shoulders passively. "You've made several mistakes in this proposal of yours Enaka. One, you left your hand wide open and openly expressed treason of the highest caliber for your own village. You're before the clanheads of 5 of Kumo's families and myself, within the building filled with my ANBU that will pounce on you the second you try to get away. Not to mention me as well. I believe me handing over a trader like yourself to Konoha will be enough for me to form an alliance with Konoha without the need of your help, so long as I promise not to wage war based on your selfish actions. Secondly, the woman in the picture is not only associated with me, but someone else whose strength rivals my own. Would you really want to be the cause of war between 2 countries against Konoha with your own hunger for power being your undoing? Your third mistake was...why would I even trust a word that comes out of your mouth?" Sanosuke said.

This time his entire body erupted spontaneously with chakra thus turning him into a creature that was made of nothing but chakra. The pressure was engulfing the entire room as his eyes preyed on Enaka as though he was his prey. Even in this state, Sanosuke was speaking with his chakra echoing. "You would expect me to believe the words of someone that would betray his own kage just for me, filling me with empty promises of locating the killer of my predecessor? Do not underestimate us, Orochi." His voice boomed because of the chakra that invaded the eardrums of those who were in the room. Making his point, Sanosuke let the chakra around him die down. The wind that was blowing through the room died down with a small breeze being left over. Looking at Enaka now, he eyed him seriously as the adviser must realize that he was in a situation where he could easily lose everything. "Now I will agree with the terms of the alliance between Konoha and Kumo, but lets get one thing straight: You're making this alliance with me. You will take orders from me, not the other way around." With these threats laid out before Enaka, this wasn't a proposal, but a command.

Chakra: 360/385. Jutsu Used:

A chuckle followed by a laughter seemed to fill up the room, which visibly seemed to shock the rest of the council probably even more than the demands made by the man standing at the seperate table. However, that very man seemed to just coldly stare at the Raikage, even seemingly reaching the point of having to yawn. After hearing the raging speech of Sanosuke, even refusing to flinch under the incoming pressure of the wave of chakra which seemed to envelop the room, Enaka sighed deeply, raising one hand with an open palm to in front of his chest.

"Really, my dear Raikage, getting so pent up is bad for your health," The Ouroboros regent said calmly, with a soft, yet sinister smile on his face. "Do you really think I came here to blackmail you? Rubbish, I simply showed you a picture of someone you know and tell you that I know what she did and who she is. I have no need for any of you to get hurt, nor do I desire to harm them in any way."

Still holding the picture in his other hand, the man sighed a bit again, placing the picture inside the map and closing it again, before looking straight into the Raikage's eyes, with his dark eyes void of any emotion fully opened, no longer hidden in squints or with a false smile.

"You really think that I am that base, to blackmail a kage?" Enaka exclaimed calmly, clenching the open hand in front of his chest to a fist. "Let me enlighten you, dear Raikage. Konoha is mine, their ANBU under my control, their shinobi's under my command, their forces, their wealth completely reigned in by my men and my power. The one you see sitting behind his desk, worrying about the menial tasks and the ridiculous attempts on his life, the man who calls himself the Hokage, is not even an obstacle for me, he is but a pawn waiting to be sacrificed for the greater good. I allow him to rule, I allow him to exist, but just as easily I can put this base instrument of my desires down into a locked cage of some unnamed prison or dungeon. For the record...I AM Konoha, I am the person who has all the cards, all the information and more importantly...do you really think I make mistakes?"

Now it was Enaka's turn to laugh, but unlike Sanosuke's laughter, which was intimidating and imposing, this laughter was one which could make one tremble to their very nerves, the laughter of a man who absolutely showed no mercy, no regards and in a way, didn't even need to lie about what he was saying or proposing.

"Let's look at the facts, shall we?" Enaka suddenly said, his laughter gone as fast as the life he would snuff out of a mouse by merely squeezing it. "Do me a favor and listen, my dear Raikage. I have not even played a hand in this game of ours. Your clanheads are nothing but puppets that will be easily pursuaded if I would mention a few of the things I have in mind, your ANBU would not even dare to touch me if they knew what I am capable of and as for you, actually I like you, you remind me so much about myself it is almost mindblowing. You are smart, very capable of holding your own, a brilliant fighter and certainly not a bad looking person, but I do advice you not to overstep your boundaries and try and intimidate me, dear Raikage."

Not showing in the slightest, any sign of anger, fear or even the desire to fight or use any kind of jutsu, even being so lenient to crack a genuine smile, Enaka was certainly not a person one would encounter more than once in their life.

"An alliance between Konoha and you...IS and alliance between you and me," The oruoboros regent exclaimed with a soft smile on his face, stepping away from the table and walking straight up to the raikage, without pausing, but with an air of elegance and authority, reaching out his hand towards Sanosuke. "The rules however are different, I am the one calling the shots, I am the one granting you the freedom and the oportunities, I AM the one who has all the cards and I DO want you onboard, but if you dont like taking orders...I could just as well leave you be, let you search for your killer all on your own, solve your problems and handle the ALL on your own, who knows, I might even be more interested in the man who's been waiting in Sunagakure...the man I could've simply delivered into your hands. So now to make things crystal clear: take my hand and join MY forces, deny and I'll walk away, but DO not dare to threaten me again or you will rue the moment you crossed me."

So that's how it was? Konoha was being controlled by this power hungry maniac. Yes the word maniac is very appropriate to describe this individual. Just looking at his eyes as he spoke, despite the orders he threw at the Konoha representative, it held nothing but malice and greed. This person wanted nothing more than to take everything from Kumo and Konoha and profit from it. And judging by his eyes, he wouldn't stop there. This person was after something more than the two villages. It was obvious. How he talked and played with his words, and then now Enaka was being forceful with what he wanted. Even coming back to threaten Sanosuke once more with words that he would regret threatening him. For a second he actually believed him, but then the Raikage caught himself and realized the insult to his pride that the representative did.

Standing up to meet the man face to face, he stood before him so that he could look at the man in his eye. After he was finished speaking, Sanosuke just looked at the man's hand that was outstretched towards him for the longest time. Shaking this man's hand was just what he wanted. He would be submitting this man, and submission would allow him to lose everything. But then again what if everything that Enaka said was true and he did have information on the man responsible for Reika's death? His hands shook with confusion and anger, he wanted nothing more than to wring his neck for bringing his loved ones, both alive and dead, into this. It wouldn't take much for the man to regret his words. He could give the man a brain anyeurism on the spot, break his mind forcefully with ninjutsu, slice him to ribbons, or even turn him into ashes. All he would have to do his clap his hands together and the man before him was history.

It would seem as though the councilmen could sense the bloodlust that was radiating off of Sanosuke's body and decided to pounce before their leader made a rather foolish mistake. Bo and Ko both laid their wrinkly hands on the shoulder of their young leader to snap him out of his state of anger. It worked as Sanosuke looked at the both of them before returning his gaze back to Enaka. This time more reserved than before as he had two people holding him back. "We would like to discuss this proposal briefly before coming to our decision. Raikage-sama himself will meet with you to discuss this...alliance you want to have between us himself. Will you find that agreeable?" Bo asked the man while his voice was soothing and attempting to calm the situation down before things got too haywire. Sanosuke could feel the pressure coming from his right shoulder as Ko was attempting to look passive but really he knew the old fart was just as pissed off as he was about this. Even so, Sanosuke would remain calm and wait for Enaka's answer...

Enaka's gaze met the eyes of the Raikage for just a brief moment, when the leader of Kumogakure suddenly proposed a moment to convene with the council in private through the voice of one of his council members. Apparently the Orochi lord's words had stricken home and this made the man nod silently and with a slight smirk on his face. At long last his plans had come to fuitition and he would have what he so desired: the power to change the entire shinobi world. There was nothing that could stop him now and the 'Others' would be pleased with his actions. Certainly this was a good time.

However, before Enaka could even give an answer to the request, alot of noise was created when a group of masked shinobi barged into the meeting room. A group comprised out of Kumogakure ANBU and men and women in a slightly less than ordinary Konoha ANBU uniform. The surprise on Enaka's face was easy to see when a man clad in armor entered the room as well, giving a silent order to some of the men with the black ANBU outfits, who quickly restrained the Ouroboros regent with specialized Chakra shackles, cutting off all his abilities to mold and utilize his chakra, while just as well gagging him and silencing him this way.

As the Kumogakure ANBU greeted the Raikage respectfully, the man clad in a samurai-fashioned armor gave a bow and handed a scroll to the raikage with the seal of the Ouroboros clan on it.

"Lord Raikage, my apologies for this intrusion," The armored man said calmly, but respectfully. "A few days ago, reports have been stating that this man, Orochi Enaka, is believed to be responsible for the death and dissapearance of over a dozen hyuga and Uchiha shinobi, as well as several other strong kekkei genkai users. In effort to stop this man's terror, we've asked for the cooperation of the Kumogakure ANBU in this case and we are grateful that you've been so kind to listen to our request."

A Kumogakure ANBU member with a blue-ish boar mask gave a deep bow in front of the raking and apologized to the man. "My deepest apologies, Raikage-sama, but when we heard the news, the meeting had already started, so this was a quick operation. It appeared the messenger hawk from konoha had been delayed by the bad weather in the village of Hidden Rain."

Giving a nod, the man clad in armor, gave a slight bow again, turning his head towards the men who had bound the Ouroboros regent, who took him a few meters further. "Lord Raikage, I am sorry to request this, but is it possible to have this man be put in prison here for a few days until we make arrangements for his transportation to Konoha?"