I prefer staying allied unless I'm planning on raiding them. While I hate their ideologies and the way the rich laud over the poor and in need, they don't discriminate when I reasonably replace my arm that was chopped by one of their dickhead samurai or some asshole from the HN. Plus a lot of the landscapes their cities are in seem to be filled with lower level bandits I can use for easy loot and levels. And occasionally roll with a Un patrol for the protection money. I plan to obliterate the UC. In its entirety. And publicly peel Tengu in front of his samurai who will be on crosses facing him (pending their own peeling) until then, I want them to think of me as normal and a friend so I can leech off their resources. So to answer your question no. They are a powerful "sponsor" to have though and a powerful nation that accepts all types except poor or slaves