Ryoku, after leaving the Kusakage's manor, decided she would do a little business before starting the training of her group. Two of the three members of her group were already Chuunin, so she only had one she had to focus on and even then, hijima and moriko could train the genin in the basics. As leading member of the hidden Grass Council, she needed to strengthen Kusa's ties with the surrounding nations. This was the reason why she was now heading to the Stone village. Being a neutral village, she did not have to worry about being arrested by the Fire Alliance. She had discovered that the late Kusakage, Midou, had made a pact with the Stone Village several months earlier, and now she was on her way to speak with the Tsuchikage to make sure this pact was still in place and that Stone and Grass were still on good terms.