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The group traveling with Terumi Mei still consisted of Akimoto Ruri and Chojuro, and with the addition of two patients from the Hidden Mist Village—Hozuki Mangetsu and Ringo Ameyuri—the overall team felt reasonably well-staffed.
When Hozuki Mangetsu and Ringo Ameyuri had first arrived in the Hidden Leaf Village, Tsunade had been away from the village. By the time she returned, she was completely preoccupied with matters concerning the Leaf, leaving her no time to treat their conditions.
Fortunately, the medical expertise in the Hidden Leaf far surpassed that of the Hidden Mist, not merely because of one or two outstanding medical ninjas, but because the village possessed a broader pool of skilled healers.
Even the other medical ninjas were capable of providing meaningful treatment for the two patients.
Of course, "meaningful" here only meant alleviating their symptoms; a full recovery remained far out of reach.
It was possible that their illnesses were incurable.
Still, when it came to medical prowess, Tsunade stood in a league of her own. Until she offered her assessment, no one dared to make a definitive judgment about the pair's prognosis.
After Midorima and Terumi Mei returned to their lodging, Akimoto Ruri's face lit up with joy, and Chojuro followed closely behind her, hurrying out to greet them.
Since crossing over into this world, Midorima had rarely encountered Chojuro, even though the young man was destined to become the Fifth Mizukage in the future.
Upon seeing him, Midorima gave Chojuro a light pat on the shoulder. Feeling the tension in the boy's muscles, he signaled for him to relax.
Chojuro forced a smile and obediently positioned himself behind Akimoto Ruri.
Midorima and Terumi Mei took seats at the table. Chojuro and Akimoto Ruri brought over water and some nuts, then prepared to leave, only to be stopped by Midorima, who gestured for them both to sit down.
Akimoto Ruri and Chojuro glanced toward Terumi Mei.
After all, she was the Mizukage of the Hidden Mist. Without her permission, neither of them would dare to take a seat.
Terumi Mei nodded, approving Midorima's suggestion. Only then did the two sit down respectfully across from Midorima and Terumi Mei.
Midorima wasted no time and immediately began recounting everything that had happened during his time in the Hidden Cloud Village.
Terumi Mei suddenly understood and exclaimed in surprise, "No wonder that old man was being so difficult with us. It turns out he was overthinking things on his own."
"His reaction is quite understandable," Midorima replied. "He was already in the middle of a conflict with the Hidden Stone Village, and then suddenly this organization called 'Akatsuki' appears out of nowhere. Anyone would become suspicious. But Akatsuki won't care about how he feels... Sometimes I wonder whether the simultaneous troubles breaking out in all five major ninja villages are part of Akatsuki's scheme... Unfortunately, there's still no solid evidence."
He clicked his tongue. "However, because both the Eight-Tails and I were attacked at the same time, and the Two-Tails vanished along with the amber purifying gourd that contained it, the Raikage has decided to treat Akatsuki as a serious enemy... The results of this upcoming meeting should be much more substantial than the last one."
"Serves him right..." Terumi Mei muttered silently, forming the words with her lips without making a sound.
"Next, I need to address the two of you," Midorima continued. "My suggestion is that during the Five Kage Summit, you should not travel alongside the Mizukage. Finding a safe place to hide is far more important than anything else."
"Our duty is to protect Lady Mizukage's safety!" Chojuro protested immediately, his voice rising with urgency.
"I know that. But can you actually protect her?" Midorima countered. "If something happens to the Mizukage, even if you're right there, what could you possibly do? You'd be like a mantis trying to stop a chariot—utterly futile."
"That might not be the case..." Chojuro replied, clearly unwilling to back down.
"Have you forgotten what happened to me?" Midorima asked pointedly.
Chojuro fell silent.
Midorima's past exploits had become almost legendary in the Hidden Mist Village—a seemingly ordinary medical ninja who, after being presumed dead for many years, returned to the village and single-handedly suppressed the Six-Tails.
It sounded like something straight out of a storybook.
"So, if even the Mizukage can't handle a situation, your presence there wouldn't make much difference. The same logic applies to anyone accompanying the other Kage. If a real crisis occurs, their escorts won't be of much use either." Midorima spoke with careful tact.
In truth, if a dangerous situation arose, both Akimoto Ruri and Chojuro would essentially be liabilities. Not only would they fail to provide meaningful assistance, but the Mizukage would likely have to divert attention to protect them, which would be highly inefficient.
Chojuro opened his mouth to argue further, but Terumi Mei cut in. She looked up at him and said firmly, "Listen to him. If you encounter a truly formidable opponent, you two would only end up getting hurt—injuries that could easily be avoided. More importantly... you represent the future of the Hidden Mist Village. We cannot afford for anything to happen to you here."
The Hidden Mist had already suffered devastating losses among its younger generation after two consecutive crises. Chojuro was one of the most outstanding talents remaining. If he were to be injured or worse, the village could face a serious gap in its future leadership. That was no exaggeration.
Chojuro looked like he wanted to say more but ultimately held his tongue and nodded in reluctant agreement.
Once Chojuro and Akimoto Ruri had left the room, Terumi Mei turned her gaze back to Midorima. "Are you attending the summit as well?"
"Yes. There are certain matters that only I can explain clearly in person."
"What if they still harbor suspicions? Are you planning to use them to eliminate Akatsuki?"
Midorima countered with a question of his own. "The Hidden Leaf also has a jinchuriki, right?"
"Yes."
"With a jinchuriki present, it's impossible for the Leaf to stay completely out of this. Moreover..." Midorima's expression grew grave. "Based on the intelligence we've gathered so far, aside from the Six-Tails, Eight-Tails, and Nine-Tails, all the other tailed beasts' jinchuriki have already fallen into Akatsuki's hands. They mistakenly believe that the Eight-Tails has been captured as well. That means the only tailed beasts still at large are the Six-Tails and the Nine-Tails—and both of them are currently in the Hidden Leaf Village. Do you understand what that implies?"
Terumi Mei was stunned.
She remembered that the Six-Tails resided within Midorima.
"Four Kage gathering in the Leaf, with the remaining two tailed beasts also located there... If Akatsuki decides to go all-in, they could potentially obtain everything they've ever wanted in one fell swoop..."
"Exactly. So now you understand why I'm so worried," Midorima said. "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Akatsuki will not let it slip away."
Terumi Mei rubbed her forehead, the situation proving far more dire than she had initially imagined.
...
As representatives from the other villages arrived—Ebizo from the Hidden Sand, the Raikage A from the Hidden Cloud, and the Tsuchikage Onoki from the Hidden Stone—the security measures in the Hidden Leaf Village grew increasingly strict. Patrols of ninja could be seen moving through the streets at regular intervals.
"Is something big about to happen?" Naruto wondered aloud, watching a group of ninja pass by and head toward the end of the street, his confusion deepening.
"Uh..." Iruka hesitated, looking uncomfortable.
Not long ago, the Hokage had specifically sought him out and instructed him to keep a close eye on Naruto in the days leading up to the Five Kage Summit.
Even without asking for details, Iruka could sense that Naruto's situation was delicate. He had agreed without hesitation.
Now that Naruto was asking directly, Iruka truly didn't know how to explain things to him.
"Would you like some ramen?" Iruka asked, resorting to his ultimate trump card.
"Yes!"
Just as Iruka had expected, the moment Naruto heard the word "ramen," he immediately forgot about his previous question.
Iruka breathed a small sigh of relief and smiled, preparing to lead Naruto toward Ichiraku Ramen. But then Naruto spoke again:
"Teacher, isn't that Sasuke over there?"
Iruka quickly turned to look in the direction Naruto was pointing. Sure enough, there was Sasuke walking with his head lowered and hands stuffed in his pockets, passing along the other side of the street. Before Iruka could say anything, Sasuke had already vanished into the crowd.