The Auction [Arrival]

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If the bleak atmosphere didn't portray a dreary sense of foreboding over anyone who entered the Rain Country, they probably haven't lived in the northern hemisphere of Mizu no Kuni. Alayasha had covered himself with a mediocre windbreaker that could certainly do the job of covering his entire body. But he would give the breaker a two out of ten when it came to leaving his body dry. It did a bit worse than that. His shirt and pants were absolutely drenched. They were already hugging his skin the moment he crossed the border and the downpour of rain came as immediate as a whoopin from his father's belt.

The one thing that kept him dry, surprisingly, was the boots he wore. He didn't have to place chakra around him to make them dry. They naturally kept the water out. He couldn't remember if these were the brand that was made in Kirigakure which were water retardant or if they were his old boots from Kumogakure. Either way, he was grateful for that little bit of relief. He knew that there were some things that were considered a blessing. This, however? This walking to this village where a majority of the population was either insane, depressed or insanely depressed? A place where his father sent him to do an entire campaign of creating insurrection when he told his father that, no, there was no need for him to go because it would've happen sooner or later but the reply was a literal fuck that and still had to go? A place where the drug addiction was so high that he could go into a bathroom and find two heroin addicts laying in their own filth? No, this was mental death sentence or for those who haven't got much left to live for. There wasn't much in that could agitate him. No, it was the fact that he simply had to come back to this forsaken country and this forsaken village.

Fuck this village.

The lake was surprisingly calm as he walked on top of it. He looked above and saw the grey sky overcastting the entirety of the village. It wouldn't thunder today, another blessing in his mind, but it would probably tomorrow or the following days. He didn't know how long he would be. A few days, a week maybe. He was hoping it wouldn't be any longer than a month because he didn't like being in the Rain Country. There were places, worlds even that he would've gladly been. He would've gladly been an eight year old again and gone through the agonizing, almost torturous training his father and his entire clan placed on the young children. It was awful, but he knew he would get a bit of relief in the end. The dreary and depressed village where the rain never stopped? No, it was a hell on this planet. A wet hell filled with black and grey clouds and pipes.

So why was Alayasha here? If he hated this place so much, why return? That was where his cousin Samu'al came in. He was a huge factor in this plan, this little tidbit of information that edged Alayasha along this path. He should've seen the set up.

"An auction?" Alayasha said, as he took a sip of the golden wine. It was at the dinner table alone in one of the smaller dining rooms. He had promised him that he would have dinner with Samu'al after that Kyousuu incident. Samu'al's father wasn't present (as per usual), so the next best thing was Samu'al himself. He also swept the incident of the Hyuuga and Uchiha boys out of international ears so it was the least he could do.

It was a modest dinner from the start. One appetizer and one main dish. The appetizer wasn't too much on the stomach. A simple mixed salad with a raspberry vinaigrette that was soft on the stomach. Alayasha hadn't realized how hungry he was until he took a bite and swallowed the salad. He had a few helpings stuffed before the main dish was brought out. The main dish was a pheasant cooked in snake spices, a mixture of cumin, paprika, cayenne, ghost peppers with a bit of mango. The mangoes sweetness mellowed the heat making Alayasha's mouth water and his nose run. He had three helpings that dish, and probably would've went on a fourth if the dessert wasn't brought out. A chocolate custard that was somewhat of a favorite for Alasyasha.

Samu'al nodded, cleaning off his mouth. "An auction to buy out of the most prized possessions in the black market."

"That's a lot of things, Samu'al. The clocks of the empress. The blade of the ruined king. The stones of argretta. There are a numerous amount of things that people would love to have You'll have to be a bit more specific."

"Come now cousin, what is the one thing the black market wants the most? The one thing that it aims to have?"

Alayasha's eyes looked to his right as he was contemplating the idea. Samu'al had a smirk on his lips as he drove a spoon into the custard.
"Well, if it's not possessions then it's definitely something that they can invest in that would gather them wealth almost indefinitely." Samu'al's silence was an answer in of itself so he continued. "Let's say they wanted to auction in ideology…would that be the answer?"

Samu'al made a face that said close but not quite. "Ideology comes with this package, yes. But it isn't what their auctioning. I think you had before, but you changed your mind at the last second."

"What, they're auctioning off a war?"

"Bingo."

Alayasha raised an eyebrow and his face contorted into confusion. "How? How are they going to attempt to auction off war? You don't exactly price that off. Wait, how do you price that off?"

"What? You've never of that? I thought all The Creed members had some inkling of that knowledge that the wealthy of this country creates wars so they can invest in that particular business."

"I-" Alayasha's mind began to put the pieces together.

"Use that big brain of yours, Alayasha-sama. I know that big head of yours can figure it out."

Alayasha rolled his eyes, but ignored the comment. "So let me get this straight? So they auction off war, but in the conventional sense. Like…for instance, they invest into a country, place propaganda against neighboring country, give them some crazy ideology, give them the money to and just-"

"Make them go to town? The proverbial phrase of course. But yes.

"Either way, whoever wins the war, they win that country…"

"And in winning that country, they win whatever lies in that land. Whether it is to increase their wealth, increase what wealth they lost, etcetera."

"But why would I care about that? The Creed doesn't care if that happens. As long as it doesn't invade with our plans, it wouldn't bat an eyelash to me, the other hands of the Creed or the Council."

"Right…Unless of course, you decide to put yourself into that mix."

A part of Alayasha knew his very ambitious mind couldn't pass up the opportunity to seize up one of the finest investments in the black market. The information was too good to pass up.