After realizing what had just happened, Mei's face instantly turned bright red, and she nearly jumped up from the sofa.
She never expected Pakura to pull such a move, directly confessing her feelings to His Majesty on her behalf.
What should she do next?
Her heart was in complete turmoil, and for a moment, she didn't know what to do.
Looking at the Emperor beside her, her flushed face prevented her from uttering a single word.
Makoto, however, simply chuckled as he looked at her. "What's wrong?"
Mei's gaze darted around in panic, her heart pounding wildly.
She murmured in a low voice, "Your Majesty, Pakura was just making things up. Please don't take it seriously."
Makoto raised an eyebrow. "So what she said wasn't true?"
"..."
Mei felt that if she simply denied it outright, perhaps this whole thing would be treated as nothing more than a joke, and His Majesty wouldn't dwell on it.
But deep down, she was unwilling to let it go so easily.
After a moment of silence, she said, "I never expected anything… Your Majesty doesn't need to take it seriously."
Her words were both an indirect admission of her feelings and an attempt to shift the decision onto Makoto—essentially saying: I won't deny it, but how you handle it is up to you.
This little trick amused Makoto.
If it were an ordinary man in his position, he might have been at a complete loss for how to respond.
But how could Makoto be just an ordinary man?
With his status alone, he could easily dismiss such matters without a second thought.
Makoto said, "In that regard, you and Pakura are quite similar."
Mei was stunned for a moment, her eyes filled with confusion.
Makoto smiled faintly. "Pakura said the exact same thing as you. She also expressed her admiration for me and then told me not to take it seriously."
"..."
Mei was completely dumbfounded.
Makoto continued, "I don't have any special tasks for you. If you're really that bored and don't have any specific mission requests, you can check in with the guild."
"I… I understand."
"If there's nothing else, you may leave."
"..."
Watching as His Majesty resumed reviewing official documents, as if he truly didn't care about what had just happened, Mei felt an indescribable sense of disappointment.
Did His Majesty really have no feelings for her at all?
She bowed respectfully to him before turning to leave.
As soon as she stepped outside the hall, she saw Pakura leaning casually against the wall, seemingly waiting for her.
Pakura smiled teasingly. "What's wrong? You look so downcast."
Mei shot her an angry glare, let out a heavy snort, and walked past her without a word.
Pakura followed with a grin. "Why the attitude? Shouldn't you be thanking me?"
Mei scoffed. "Thank you? Thank you for making me look like a fool? Thank you for forcing me to reveal my feelings so carelessly?"
Pakura sighed lightly. "Mei, it seems you still haven't figured out your position."
Mei abruptly stopped in her tracks, her face dark as she turned to look at her.
"What do you mean?"
Pakura shrugged and asked, "What was His Majesty's reaction after learning about your feelings?"
"..."
Mei recalled everything that had just happened.
Before she could respond, Pakura continued, "Let me guess—at first, His Majesty was quite interested."
"No…" Mei denied it.
"He immediately changed the subject… He didn't care at all."
Her eyes dimmed with disappointment.
Pakura shook her head. "His Majesty isn't such a heartless person. On the contrary, he's very affectionate. If he really reacted that way, it must be because of something you said or did."
Mei thought carefully for a moment before hesitantly replying, "I told His Majesty… that I never expected anything and that he didn't need to take it seriously."
She froze upon finishing her sentence, realizing something.
Beside her, Pakura said, "Why say something so unnecessary? Do you think playing little mind games like that works on His Majesty? You have feelings for him—that's your own business. Throwing the problem onto him… did you really expect him to turn around and start pursuing you?"
"..."
Hearing this, Mei pursed her lips in silence.
Now, she finally understood where she had gone wrong.
"At that time, wouldn't it have been better to just admit it openly? Instead, you said you never expected anything and told His Majesty not to take it seriously. What, are you trying to make it seem like liking His Majesty is some kind of grievance?"
"..."
Mei remained silent.
She knew Pakura was right—this was exactly the kind of little mind game she had been playing.
But she still felt wronged.
After all, she was just a girl too.
Back in Kirigakure, no matter where she went, she was always adored and pursued.
She looked at Pakura and couldn't help but retort, "Even if that's true, what right did you have to say something like that on my behalf?!"
She shifted her frustration onto Pakura instead.
His Majesty was, after all, the man she admired, and Pakura's words had made her realize that if it weren't for Pakura's interference, His Majesty might not have reacted the way he did.
Pakura spoke slowly, "Do you know what I told His Majesty?"
"…What did you say?"
"I told His Majesty that you were my closest sister since coming to Konoha. And if His Majesty was willing to accept you, I would be happy to serve him alongside you."
Mei was stunned.
When she fully grasped the meaning of "serve him alongside you," her face flushed red.
Pakura… What the hell was she thinking…?
Embarrassed and annoyed, Mei stammered, "You… You… What nonsense are you spouting?!"
Pakura smiled faintly and said, "I'm serious. His Majesty is surrounded by beautiful women. We have to find a way to win His Majesty's heart. Otherwise, even if we do receive his favor, once the novelty wears off, he'll grow tired of us."
"I heard that Miss Samui's family has two other stunningly beautiful women. Why do you think His Majesty dotes on her so much?"
"..."
Mei stood there, her face flushed, lost in thought.
She had never considered things from this perspective.
In her mind, the best outcome was simply for His Majesty to one day accept her feelings, allowing her to officially become one of his women.
That alone would be enough for her to feel happy and fulfilled—she had never thought she needed to compete with others.
But Pakura's words suddenly made her realize something.
That's right.
His Majesty already had so many women.
Just among his wives, there were five, and beyond that, there was Miss Samui, that female pirate… Who knew how many more there were?
So how much time would His Majesty actually have for her?
Mei stood there, contemplating for a long while before she couldn't help but ask, "Then, what should we do next…?"
"We'll find another opportunity later," Pakura replied.
Mei looked at her with a complicated expression. "Pakura, you…"
Pakura chuckled softly and said, "What I'm doing is for you, but also for myself."
"Also, that female pirate by His Majesty's side—if there's a chance in the future, we should try to get closer to her. It's clear that His Majesty is very fond of her right now."
"Why?" Mei couldn't help but ask.
She didn't particularly like Hancock—this woman had just arrived and already won His Majesty's favor.
Why should she?!
Pakura said, "Did you forget what I just told you? We need to find ways to win His Majesty's heart. Miss Samui has two other women in her family. We can do the same—bring that female pirate to our side."
Mei frowned slightly.
Changing her opinion about someone wasn't that easy.
"We can't just bring in anyone, can we?"
Pakura noticed Mei's strong bias against the female pirate and sighed helplessly.
"Then go find another beauty yourself."
After saying that, she suddenly thought of something and added, "Oh right, that Konan next door seems pretty good."
Mei was startled. "Konan is about to marry Yahiko! You know that."
Pakura scoffed dismissively. "The former leader of Amegakure? Do you really think he can compare to His Majesty? If she can become one of His Majesty's women, it would be the greatest honor of her life."
Her attitude now was completely different from the understanding and considerate demeanor she had shown while speaking with Konan the previous night.
Mei stared blankly at her friend, suddenly realizing that she didn't know Pakura as well as she had thought.
That's right… She was the Fifth Kazekage before…
How could someone with such a deep mind and ambition be simple?
Pakura then turned to her and said, "If you think it's possible, go talk to her. If not, I'll do it."
"You… How would you even talk to her?"
Pakura shrugged. "Women in love are always blind. Just go straight for the man—I'll talk to Yahiko and make him back out on his own."
"..."
Mei returned home with her mind in complete turmoil.
Everything that had happened today was completely beyond her expectations.
The things Pakura had said all sounded logical, but something about them just felt wrong.
She didn't know what to do next.
As noon approached, Mei lay motionless on the couch, lost in thought.
Until a knock came at the door.
Konan stood outside, greeting her warmly. "Oh, you're home! You haven't made lunch yet, right? Perfect, come eat at my place."
"Eh?"
Before Mei could refuse, Konan had already grabbed her and dragged her along.
When she stepped inside Konan's home, Mei was surprised to see Yahiko and Nagato there as well.
Yahiko greeted her with a bright smile, just as enthusiastic as Konan.
Nagato, however, looked a bit nervous, giving her a quick, awkward greeting.
It turned out that on the way here, Konan and Yahiko had been discussing matchmaking him with Mei.
At first, Nagato hadn't cared about this sort of thing at all.
He had never even considered finding a partner for himself.
But Konan and Yahiko took the matter seriously and had even sternly scolded him for his indifference.
Nagato had no choice but to take it more seriously.
After all, once Yahiko and Konan got married, he really would be left alone.
But he had never interacted closely with any woman besides Konan, so facing Mei inevitably made him a little nervous.
Konan pulled Mei into the kitchen, leaving Yahiko and Nagato alone in the living room.
Yahiko grinned at him. "You've met her so many times—why are you still nervous?"
Nagato sighed helplessly. "Stop teasing me."
Yahiko said, "Miss Mei is beautiful, and she's one of the Ten Crown Guards. There aren't many girls as exceptional as her—you should take the chance while you can."
Nagato sighed. "I'll… do my best."
Yahiko and Konan were truly in love and understood each other's feelings, but their relationship hadn't moved forward because of Nagato.
The three of them had grown up together, surviving life-and-death situations.
Yahiko was afraid that if he and Konan officially became a couple, Nagato might feel left out.
So, he had kept delaying it, all while trying to find a suitable partner for Nagato.
Once Nagato had a wife of his own, Yahiko could finally feel at ease and propose to Konan.
In the kitchen, Konan had already prepared most of the lunch.
The dishes were plentiful and looked quite good.
Seeing Mei looking downcast, Konan smiled. "What's wrong? Still feeling the effects of last night's drinking?"
"It's not that."
"I brought Nagato over."
"Eh?" Mei Terumi didn't understand what she meant at first.
"Nagato." Konan gestured toward the living room.
"..."
Mei finally got the message.
"Actually, Nagato has a good impression of you," Konan continued.
"..."
"You're usually pretty free, right? And he's not that busy either. You two could go out together sometime."
"..."
In Mei's eyes, Nagato was indeed a good man, but she couldn't help but compare him to His Majesty.
But was there any man in this world who could truly compare to His Majesty?
She had always told herself that she needed to leave a way out, that she couldn't tie herself to just one tree.
If she never received a response from His Majesty, wouldn't she end up alone for the rest of her life?
Yet now, when faced with the idea of giving up on His Majesty and choosing another man instead, she felt a strong sense of unwillingness.
Why should she settle for second best?
Pakura's words kept echoing in her mind.
Mei felt that if she didn't even have the courage to pursue the person she admired—if she didn't at least try—she would definitely regret it in the future.
"Konan, thank you for being so concerned about me," Mei said.
"But you… really don't need to."
Konan looked at her and asked, "What, are you really going through with that… bet with Pakura?"
Mei simply smiled.
Konan hesitated. "Mei, I think people should be more realistic."
Mei paused, feeling displeased by those words.
What did she mean by "be more realistic"?
Did she think that Mei wasn't worthy of His Majesty?
Mei turned to her and asked, "If you had to choose between His Majesty and Yahiko, who would you pick?"
Konan didn't hesitate. "Of course, I'd choose Yahiko!"
Mei gave a faint smile. "Then you really are quite realistic."
In her eyes, it was impossible for anyone to reject His Majesty.
Konan only spoke so decisively because she knew that such a choice didn't truly exist.
But if she were really given a chance to get close to His Majesty, who knew what kind of attitude she would show then?
Konan still wanted to persuade her, but Mei simply said, "If it's ready, let's bring it out."
Konan had no choice but to drop the topic.
The two of them carried the dishes out of the room.
Seeing this, Yahiko and Nagato immediately stood up to help.
When Mei met Nagato's gaze, she noticed his slight awkwardness and unease.
This only made him lose more points in her eyes.
He was quite delicate-looking, but with such an introverted and silent personality, he must be a terribly dull person in daily life.
Pakura's words echoed in her mind once more—Who could possibly compare to His Majesty?
What was there for her to hesitate about?
Her heart belonged to His Majesty alone, and one day, she would win His Majesty's heart as well!
Mei's gaze swept over Konan's graceful figure, watching as she smiled warmly at Yahiko.
Her eyes flickered with deep thoughts.
--------------
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