Mei Terumi never expected Whitebeard to be so overbearing.
The two choices before her make it difficult to decide.
Originally, she'd planned to pull a "get something for nothing" scheme as Plan A. If Whitebeard didn't fall for it, Plan A would be scrapped and she'd switch seamlessly to Plan B—officially hiring Whitebeard with money and bringing him into her faction.
Though it would cost a lot, if it achieved her goal, no price was too high.
Right now, it looks like Plan B has succeeded.
But only halfway.
In her design for Plan B, she would pay Whitebeard, so she'd be the dominant party. She would be the "client," and Whitebeard the "contractor." So in that arrangement, she, Mei Terumi, would hold the greatest authority, and Whitebeard would follow her plan for the money.
Whitebeard's overbearing nature, however, exceeds all imagination—he turned the tables.
"Whitebeard-san, we've spent years preparing for this plan," Mei says seriously. "None of us want any mishap in the middle; a single mistake could ruin everything."
"Gurararara! That's got nothing to do with me." Whitebeard's grin stops her words in her throat.
"Mist brat, that means… you want to try the men-of-the-sea's greeting?" Whitebeard asks.
"I don't want conflict, but…"
Mei responds firmly, "I won't let the plan fail if it concerns that plan!"
She forms a seal.
Mei says gravely, "I can pretty much guess what you mean by 'greeting.' If that's how we have to go for a say in things, then I have to fight for it."
"Gurararara! You're quite something," Whitebeard says, raising an eyebrow.
"Show me what you're made of, Mist brat!"
Whitebeard attacks without warning.
Not even the wary Mei expected him to strike so abruptly.
He thrusts his naginata forward—hard to believe such a large weapon can be wielded so lightly. Its speed is astonishing.
Mei's mind reels, her face shifting. She leaps upward in time to dodge Murakumogiri's blade—barely. It slices through her left shoe, revealing her pale, delicate foot with all five toes.
"Hey, brat, move back!" Mei calls while forming her seals.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!!!"
She finishes her seals and spits forth a colossal torrent from her mouth, coalescing in an instant into a fierce dragon's head—bigger than a house. The surging water dragon roars, charging at Whitebeard.
It's the most shocking Water Release Whitebeard's seen so far. All those Mist brats he killed before are nothing compared to this "Mei Terumi."
Even as these thoughts pass through his mind, Whitebeard never stops moving.
He slashes once!
Without using his Devil Fruit power, not even any Haki, that casual slash severs the gigantic water dragon in two. Murakumogiri cleaves both the dragon and the air. A huge, visible slash wave crashes forward with unstoppable force.
Mei's pupils shrink to pinpoints.
"Water Style: Water Substitution!"
Swoosh!!!!
The slash tears through her body in an instant—but no blood spurts, only water droplets.
"Close one…" Mei reappears not far away, cold sweat beading on her forehead, her heart pounding.
She looks over her shoulder to see the slash has gouged a trench in the ground at least several meters wide, extending who knows how far. Unbelievable.
"This is the so-called 'Nation-Destroyer—Edward Newgate'?" Mei mutters in shock. "So this is how pirates 'greet' each other?"
Had she been just a bit slower, the partnership would have been over—she'd be dead.
"Mist brat, are you spacing out in the middle of a fight? You underestimate me?" Whitebeard's voice suddenly booms, nearly making Mei's breath catch. He's so close.
Her peripheral vision finds Whitebeard's massive form right beside her. They're practically face-to-face.
"Not good!" Mei panics.
Buzz—
The blade of Murakumogiri swings toward her, and she senses death breathing down her neck. She flings herself aside in a wretched posture, narrowly dodging once more.
But the whirling gust from the slash hurls her away. Mei quickly manages to land, only to see another slash wave roaring toward her. She can't fathom what this "technique" is. A single slash, instant cast, requiring no seals?
But if it's ninjutsu, it must be made of chakra. If so…
"Lava Release: Melting Blade Weasel!"
Mei reveals one of her Kekkei Genkai—spitting a mass of corrosive fluid. With a jerk of her head, that highly acidic fluid spreads out like the slicing wind of Kamaitachi, clashing head-on with the slash wave.
Boom!!!
In Mei's astonished gaze, Whitebeard's slash cuts right through her Kekkei Genkai technique.
"How can that be? My Lava Release should corrode an enemy's chakra. Unless…that slash isn't made of chakra?"
Mei reels in shock. "He's not even using chakra?"
Ridiculous.
Right before her eyes, Whitebeard's slash rips another gash in the earth. A building not far away is effortlessly bisected.
Mei's eyelids twitch. Their brief exchange has convinced her that she's probably no match for Whitebeard in her current state.
She strongly suspects Whitebeard, for the sake of that 50 million deposit, is still holding back. Otherwise, his initial sudden strike would've killed her.
"Please wait!" Mei's survival instincts surge. She doesn't want to risk her life on a mere contest.
She quickly shouts, "Whitebeard-san, I think we've 'talked' enough!"
She well knows this "hiring" arrangement was her choice. Now that she's started it, she can't simply dismiss Whitebeard—he won't allow that.
Yes—
Seeing his crushing power, she realizes she doesn't even have the option to end the deal.
He has her by the nose.
Though it's far from what she initially planned, she's already come too far.
She'll gamble everything.
"Fine, we let Whitebeard-san's Whitebeard Pirates make all the decisions," Mei says, bowing her head.
Seeing the gap in strength, she has no leverage.
She now regrets everything—maybe even hiring the Akatsuki would've been better than hiring Whitebeard. At least the Akatsuki presumably wouldn't meddle with her plan. They'd just do the job for money…maybe?
…
A few minutes later,
The uproar from Whitebeard and Mei's clash has alarmed Kakashi, Uzumaki Fushi, Karin, and Uchiha Shisui. They rush over to find an unharmed Naruto and Whitebeard, plus a strange Mist ninja.
At first, Kakashi thinks she's an enemy, but Naruto's story leaves him flabbergasted.
"Wait, we're going to the Mist Village to take part in a coup?" Kakashi's eyes widened. He looks from Whitebeard to Mei, his mind in chaos.
He'd just been teaching Karin the Three Basic Jutsu when the commotion began, glimpsing a giant water dragon from afar. He realized trouble had befallen Naruto's location, so he dashed over.
Upon arriving,
He saw Naruto unscathed, Whitebeard standing there, and a new face from the Mist.
He assumed at first she was an enemy.
But after listening to Naruto…
He's just baffled.
"You're Copy Ninja Kakashi from Konoha?" Mei suddenly brightens. Kakashi is somewhat famous in the ninja world. "You're actually companions with Whitebeard-san?"
Kakashi starts to deny it,
But then he recalls that no matter how he tries to explain, it's useless. He has to stay by Whitebeard and Naruto.
In outsiders' eyes, if he's with them all this time, what else would that make him but their companion?
"Great!"
Mei doesn't notice Kakashi's uneasy expression.
She feels like she's scored big, giving her some consolation.
"With the Copy Ninja Sharingan Kakashi on board, our chance of success goes up!"
She glances at Uzumaki Fushi, unrecognized. Then her eyes land on Uchiha Shisui—someone she vaguely remembers.
She falters momentarily.
"Uchiha Shisui from Konoha!" Mei exclaims, momentarily stunned again.
This Whitebeard Pirates crew is so odd.
How could they have two Konoha ninjas?
Prior to coming to the shipyard, Mei gathered limited intel: Whitebeard wasn't alone, but she never learned who was with him. She assumed they must be Whitebeard Pirates.
But from the look of it, she guessed wrong.
Kakashi ignores her reaction, turning to Whitebeard.
"Whitebeard-san, Kirigakure is not the same as Kusagakure. Both are ninja villages, but one is far stronger than the other," Kakashi warns, trying to illustrate the gravity of it.
But Mei interrupts, "I think you misunderstand. I'm not a missing-nin from the Mist. And this so-called 'coup' isn't toppling Kirigakure itself, only dethroning the Fourth Mizukage."
"Kakashi-san, you should know how much the Bloody Mist policy has hurt Kirigakure."
"Um…" Uchiha Shisui raises a hand, chiming in, "Though I'm not from your village, I don't think you should solve a village's problems with violence. Maybe there's a more peaceful way?"
He can't help thinking about Konoha, and about the Uchiha there.
Mei's plan for a coup is a lot like the Uchiha's plan in Konoha.
"If you truly love the village, you shouldn't use such extremes. There must be a gentler approach." Shisui tries to advise, but admits he doesn't know Kirigakure well.
"Shunshin no Shisui… you're really an Uchiha?" Mei Terumi looks at him oddly.
"Huh?" Shisui is taken aback.
"Because that talk… it's like an Uchiha with a split personality," Mei replies honestly.
During the Third Great Ninja War, Mei saw many Uchiha. They were all extreme, some obviously unhinged. But this Shisui is saying the exact opposite of what she'd expect from them.
"We've tried countless ways, but none worked," Mei sighs. "And the reason our Mist Village ended up like this is connected to your Uchiha clan."
Shisui: "Huh???"
He was just minding his own business, and now the blame is tossed on him from nowhere.
"Although higher-ups declared it was a secret, there's no point hiding it." Mei continues, "Our Fourth Mizukage was once under the Sharingan's control. We discovered something was amiss only a few years ago."
Kakashi: "!!!"
Shisui: "!!!"
"While trapped by the Sharingan, the Fourth Mizukage intensified the Bloody Mist policy. The entire village and even the country fell under heavy oppression. Eventually, the higher-ups noticed and used secret techniques to free him from that Sharingan genjutsu."
She's referring to Ao's use of the Byakugan to expose the issue, thus undoing the jutsu.
"But…" Mei's tone shifts. "Even after being freed, the Fourth Mizukage barely changed. The Bloody Mist policy eased for one year, then returned to its original brutal form. It's only gotten worse since then, causing mass discontent. Tons of Mist ninja have defected."
"And we don't know why."
She clenches her teeth. "Now, the only way to save the village from the Bloody Mist policy…
"Is to kill the Fourth Mizukage!!!"
Shisui falls silent, shocked that the Uchiha clan is implicated in the Mist's troubles. He'd never heard of anyone controlling an entire Mizukage.
And from Mei's tone, she's clearly not lying.
"But ultimately, it's your village's internal affair."
Kakashi tries to remain calm, but Whitebeard's voice cuts him off:
"Gurararara! What's with all you ninja brats—so stiff? White-haired brat, Uchiha brat, remember: My foolish son, the First Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, already decided. I'm a pirate—my crew does as it pleases! Don't bother us with your baby-ninja rules. It's embarrassing!"
"Phew…" Mei exhales in relief.
She can see that among these people, Whitebeard really calls the shots.
No matter what the Copy Ninja or Shisui say, Whitebeard's word is final.
"…This is trouble," Kakashi mutters, dropping his serious facade and reverting to his usual dead-fish expression.
If Whitebeard has spoken, what can he do? He's just a tag along.
He's sinking deeper into this pirate "ship" and can't climb out.
Because he must stay with Naruto. If Whitebeard openly joins a coup in Kirigakure, that basically forces Kakashi to participate too.
Kakashi glances at Mei.
He speaks words that baffle her. "You really shouldn't have come to hire the Whitebeard Pirates. It's easy to get on this ship—but leaving it? That's hard."
Next, Whitebeard asks, "Hey, Mist brat, how long will it take us to reach your Kirigakure?"
"Two days," Mei answers at once.
"Gurararara! Foolish son!" Whitebeard says to Naruto with a boisterous laugh, "I'll make an exception—give you two days' rest. Then you'll carry our pirates' flag! Two days later, we'll hoist the Whitebeard Pirates' flag at the highest point of the Mist Village! We'll invade Kirigakure—plunder Kirigakure!"
"Yes, Dad!!!"
Naruto straightens up, face bright with excitement.
Mei's eyes go wide.
Wait, wait!
Invade the Mist?
Plunder the Mist?
That's…
Not at all what they'd planned!
"Hold on, Whitebeard-san, that's not our original plan," Mei says urgently. "And isn't it too soon? We're not at the best timing. If we act now, we might fail! We need at least six months—"
She stops abruptly as Whitebeard glances her way. The rest of her words choke in her throat, unspoken.
"Are you trying to teach the Whitebeard Pirates how to do things?" Whitebeard asks, voice dangerously calm. Cold sweat breaks out on Mei's forehead.
The aura of a conqueror radiates from Whitebeard, making her nearly gasp for air.
Now she finally understands what Kakashi's warning meant.