At the training grounds of the Cloud Village,
"[Cloud Stream: Shuriken Blade!]" A blonde kunoichi slashed at her opponent with a short blade at incredible speed, flashing like flowing clouds and slicing through a rock on the training ground, leaving behind a smooth cross-section.
However, she herself was not satisfied.
"No good. My strength still isn't enough. I must keep training!"
As she prepared to continue practicing taijutsu, a white-haired female ninja came running over excitedly. "Samui! Samui!"
Seeing her troublesome friend again, Samui sighed helplessly. "What now?"
Selina waved her hand enthusiastically. "That Seiki Shimaseki has come here as Konoha's diplomat!"
"Seiki Shimaseki?" Samui's expression turned complicated. Four years ago they had barely been at the same level, but now he had far surpassed her!
Regaining her composure, she asked, "But what does that have to do with you?"
Selina blinked. "How can it not concern me? I've already become Lord Seiki's loyal believer!"
"When did you suddenly become his follower? When did I miss this?"
"Oh, just now!"
"You little traitor!" Samui said in exasperation. "Don't forget, from the Cloud Village's point of view, he's our enemy!"
"But the war's over already!" Selina argued unhappily. "Besides, I'm not the only one who thinks this way!"
Samui knew her friend wasn't lying about this point.
Among the Cloud shinobi, who always revered strength, most people didn't mind Seiki Shimaseki. In fact, there were even many admirers—folks just like her silly friend, who worshipped him fanatically.
Especially compared to their losses against Mist and Stone, those defeated by Seiki seemed less significant, making these "defectors" feel even more justified in their admiration.
Samui shot back, "Regardless of what others think, can't you at least stick to your own stance?"
"I'm being perfectly consistent!" Selina declared proudly. "What if my beauty and intelligence capture him? Then we'd gain an incredible asset for the Cloud Village!"
Samui replied expressionlessly, "Heh."
Seeing clear disdain in Samui's eyes, Selina mumbled quietly, "Arrogant people who think they're better than others because they've got big—"
Samui's gaze turned suddenly dangerous. "Hmm? What did you say?"
Looking guilty, Selina turned her head away. "Eh? Did I say anything? Oh right, Yugito's seal still needs him to remove it. Are you sure you don't want to go take a look?"
"Yugito's seal?" Samui frowned, then nodded slightly. "Now that you mention it, I really should go check it out."
...
Upon entering the Cloud Village, all along the way crowds gathered.
Surprisingly though, instead of hatred, Shimaseki found mostly awe and admiration in the eyes of the villagers.
Walking beside Dodai, Shimaseki glanced toward the accompanying Hidden Cloud ninja and asked, "It seems your village doesn't hate me after all?"
"Because in Cloud Village, we've always respected strength above all else. When someone defeats us in a fair fight, we only offer our blessings and admiration!"
Another Cloud Village ninja added, "The ones we truly despise are Iwagakure who used underhanded tricks to kill the Predecessor Raikage!"
A nearby ninja nodded in agreement, "Seiki's victory over the Tsuchikage has gone totally viral in our village!"
"Yin'in is indeed despicable!" Seiki joined their conversation, though thinking internally, 'You people from Cloud Village aren't exactly shining examples of honor either.'
With Iwagakure as this common ground, the conversation between both sides suddenly grew unexpectedly passionate.
But just then, the entire room fell eerily silent.
Looking up, Seiki saw the Raikage striding toward him with a serious expression.
This approaching presence with ill intent caused Seiki to narrow his eyes.
The Raikage strode right up to Seiki and stared at him intently. "Please spar with me..."
Before he could finish speaking, A was abruptly pulled aside by B for a quiet conversation.
"Aniki, I understand your eagerness to fight him, but you're the Raikage now, representing Cloud Village's image! Please consider your influence!"
Having spoken so much without slipping into a rap, A found himself unexpectedly getting a little misty-eyed.
This guy... actually learned to talk like a normal person!
Yet after the feeling of emotion came intense annoyance.
"What do you mean by that? Do you think I'll lose?"
"Aniki, be serious! You really think you can win against him?"
Seeing B's shocked expression, A's facial muscles twitched slightly. "Within seven steps, my physical speed surpasses his hand seal formation speed!"
B frowned deeply, hesitating. "Does his Flying Thunder God Technique even require hand seals?"
As the two whispered to each other, other Cloud ninjas were gossiping about the situation intensely.
"What did Raikage-sama mean by not finishing his sentence? 'Please spar with me...'"
"Based on Raikage-sama's lustful gaze earlier and the shock on B's face, it's not hard to guess—the Raikage probably wanted to say 'Please go out with me!'"
"W-What? But they're both men!"
"So what? True love can break every rule—race, time, and even gender!"
"T-that's pushing it too far!"
"That's tame compared to if Raikage meant 'Please mate with me!' That would really cross the line!"
Under B's repeated warnings, A reluctantly abandoned his plan for a public challenge. With an annoyed expression, he walked up to Seiki. "Konoha's representative, on behalf of Cloud Village, I welcome your arrival."
Seiki formally replied, "Thank you for the reception, Raikage. On behalf of Hokage-sama, I sincerely extend our greetings and hope the friendship between our villages will continue forever!"
A's lips twitched slightly. He simply couldn't handle these formal situations.
He wished he could just have a good fight to express his greeting.
Dodai, who had been carefully observing from the sidelines, sensed his leader's growing impatience and quickly stepped in. "Raikage-sama, shall we proceed to escort Jonin Seiki to the banquet table?"
"Hmm, fine!" A responded in a deadpan tone, before suddenly tilting his head in confusion. "Banquet table? What for?"
A sense of dread instantly crept up Dodai's spine, but he still held onto hope as he asked, "For the banquet welcoming Jonin Seiki!"
"There's a banquet too?" A cried foul before being accused. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
Dodai pressed his hand to his face in misery. Being Raikage's aide was utterly impossible to survive!
Could there truly be such a chasm between aides serving under different Kage-level leaders?
Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Dodai forced a composed expression and suggested, "Raikage-sama, why don't you take Jonin Seiki for a quick tour around the village first while I get everything ready?"
A patted his shoulder with solemn sincerity and said, "This time I'll cover for you, but next time remember to be more careful and don't make such careless mistakes again!"
Dodai: (╯‵□′）╯︵┴─┴.
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