With the matter brought to a successful close, there were still several details left for the Land of Waves and Konoha to negotiate internally regarding protection, trade, and related arrangements.
After finding a clean, level patch of ground amid the ruined coastline, Kaiza proposed holding a bonfire celebration for Konome and the others, to commemorate this hard-won victory.
Everyone naturally agreed.
The people of the Land of Waves had endured Cardo's threats, Black Hoe Raiga's brutal rule, and then an earthquake and tsunami brought on by a battle between Kage-level fighters. Their nerves had been strung tight for far too long. A bonfire celebration was exactly what everyone needed.
As the hero ninja who had saved the Land of Waves, and as the key link in future friendly relations with Konoha, Team Seven naturally became the stars of the victory feast.
That evening...
Smoke curled skyward and stirred the clouds. The bonfire licked at the dusk, melting sea and sky into a deep blue blur.
Brilliant flames danced, shattering into the night with every crack of burning wood, while the tide rolled in and spread layer upon layer of silver fragments along the shore.
The bonfire banquet was loud and lively.
In the makeshift kitchen, oil crackled and spat in the pans, sending up fragrant smoke that filled the air with mouthwatering aromas.
Wearing white caps, the cooks wielded their spatulas with gusto, preparing one Land of Waves specialty after another.
Konome did not go anywhere else. She stayed right beside the kitchen, sniffing the smoky scents in the air. Her cherry-blossom lips pressed tightly together as she fought back the flood of hot saliva in her mouth.
When it came to her, "her mouth could cook with longing" was not a figure of speech.
The Land of Waves sat between the Lands of Fire and Water. Its local dishes were as rich in ingredients as those of the Land of Fire, while also carrying the island flavors of the Land of Water.
Not counting her previous life, Konome had been born in the Land of Water and raised in the Land of Fire. She liked the food of both.
So tasting the cuisine of the Land of Waves felt like someone who loved both sour and spicy food suddenly discovering there was such a thing as sour-spicy cuisine.
Naturally, she had to devour bowl after bowl.
Using Earth Release to raise a stool as hard as granite from the ground, she sat by the serving area. Every time a dish appeared that she had never tried before, she sampled a bite to judge the flavor. If it suited her taste, she kept it. If she disliked it, she sent it off to someone else.
Her eating movements were slow and elegant, yet the speed at which she cleared dishes was shockingly fierce. Combined with her absurdly high beauty, completely different from everyone else's style, it made people steal glances at her again and again.
"It looks like Miss Konome really likes the food of our Land of Waves."
Tsunami, who was helping serve the dishes, handed one of the rejected plates to her husband. Looking at the girl seated there eating with relish, she wore a gentle smile.
She had already learned from Naruto that the crucial ninjutsu which saved Kaiza had come from Konome's hand.
Tazuna had nearly died in the ambush, and his shoulder had been shattered, yet Konome had saved him as well.
Then there was Black Hoe Raiga, who had imprisoned her and Inari in coffins, only to be killed in a single move by Konome.
All of those things piled together had left her gratitude beyond words.
At this point, if Inari ever got into conflict with Konome, Tsunami would absolutely march over and smack him without hesitation.
At the adults' table, where Kaiza, Tazuna, and Kakashi sat together, they too smiled when they heard Tsunami's words.
The Land of Waves had only become prosperous a few years ago, and the people still carried the plain-hearted simplicity of their past.
A guest eating heartily was the greatest honor for a host.
And besides, they were truly grateful for Team Seven's help. No one minded Konome's astonishing appetite in the slightest.
Only Kakashi's smile carried a trace of melancholy.
Every time he saw Konome eat, he thought of that afternoon when he had taken her to Ichiraku Ramen.
That was the day he learned that a human being really could inhale twenty bowls of ramen in one sitting.
"Just a reminder..."
As he spoke, Kakashi picked up a bite of food and covered part of his face with one hand.
Swish.
He suddenly pulled down his mask, devoured an entire plate in what looked like one brutal gulp, then yanked the mask back into place.
The entire process took less than two seconds. By the time he finished, Tazuna and the others at the table still had not reacted. They had not even gotten a clear look at his face under the mask.
Even Tsunami, standing nearby, was dumbfounded.
Looking at Konome clearing table after table, then looking back at Kakashi, she suddenly realized that human beings apparently could eat this quickly too.
Adjusting the angle of his mask, this other freak of nature swallowed and said calmly,
"Just a suggestion. If you can get Konome to say a few good words for the Land of Waves, it'll save you a lot of effort when persuading the Hokage."
The moment they heard that, Kaiza and his family were all startled.
After exchanging glances, Kaiza leaned closer and whispered to Kakashi,
"Miss Konome is...?"
"It wouldn't be convenient to explain the exact relationship. Just know that Konome holds an unusual position in Konoha, and the Hokage values her very highly."
Kakashi leaned lazily back in his chair with his hands behind his head.
He had a good impression of the Land of Waves and did not mind giving them a useful hint.
Kaiza reacted quickly. Tilting his head, he called to Tsunami,
"Tell the kitchen to bring out all the signature dishes, especially the ones Miss Konome likes..."
As soon as Tsunami entered the kitchen, the volume of smoke and fire from above visibly increased, and the dishes started coming out even faster.
Konome ate until her cheeks puffed out, her lips shining with oil.
Sasuke, meanwhile, had little interest in the bonfire celebration. Stroking his chin, he kept glancing toward the glutton in the distance while mulling over how to trade for the Thunder Blades.
In this mission, Naruto had turned disaster into fortune and opened the Third Gate. On top of that, some strange red chakra had come out of his stomach, and his strength had clearly advanced to a higher level.
Sasuke, on the other hand, had made no progress at all.
At this rate, he might actually become the weakest member of the team.
He could not accept that.
That blade was perfectly compatible with him. It was a powerful ninja tool that was hard to come by. If he could get the Thunder Blades, he would definitely secure a firm spot in the team's top three.
But...
What exactly could he trade for it?
Sasuke's expression filled with hesitation.
It was not as if he had no bargaining chip.
Two years earlier, when his Sharingan had evolved into the two-tomoe stage, Konome had proposed studying his body a little. He had rejected that offer with absolute determination.
Now, if he used cooperation in research as the price to exchange for the Thunder Blades...
Sasuke shivered for no clear reason.
He felt as though an abyss yawned open in front of him.
But then again, how could he gain power without paying a price?
It was only selling his body for research. It was no big deal.
After forcing down the inexplicable fear in his heart, he put on the expression of a man marching to his death, as though in that instant he had finally understood the floral language of steel wool.
Compared to Konome and the others, Naruto was by far the busiest.
He jumped up and down beside the bonfire, vividly recounting the battle. Whenever words were not enough, he would drag in Shadow Clones and perform reenactments with multiple actors.
A crowd of little children had already gathered around him, with Inari right in the middle.
Listening to his retelling of the danger and excitement of the battle to defend the Land of Waves, their eyes practically burned with admiration. Inari in particular had already turned into Naruto's devoted little fan.
The boy who had once dreamed of becoming a bridge-building master now had something in his heart quietly beginning to change.
And Naruto, basking in everyone's worshipful looks, thoroughly enjoyed his time in the spotlight as a hero.
The feast continued until everyone was full and happy, and the firelight did not die out until deep into the night.
The deal between the Land of Waves and Konoha was urgently needed, so by the third day the general terms had already been set.
Kaiza, representing the Land of Waves, would accompany Team Seven back to Konoha to formally request protection.
A few days later...
Team Seven returned to Konoha with Kaiza and hurried straight to the Hokage Tower to meet Hiruzen.
Inside the Hokage's office...
The smoke that never seemed to dissipate drifted through the air as Hiruzen puffed on his pipe. Looking at the troublemakers of Team Seven, the wrinkles on his forehead seemed deep enough to pinch flies to death.
Kakashi had just finished recounting the Land of Waves rescue mission from beginning to end, and cold sweat had broken out across Hiruzen's brow.
From the ambush outside the Land of Waves to the final battle at sea, the names involved included Momochi Zabuza, Black Hoe Raiga, the "man who would live as long as heaven and earth," and even an immortal body and an evil god's curse...
There had not been a single ninja involved whose level fell below elite jonin.
The difficulty of the mission had long surpassed the scope of an A-rank task. Calling it S-rank would have been more than justified.
If not for Konome's Byakugan sensory ability, which had kept the enemy's information relatively transparent, then if Guy or even Hiruzen himself had gone in her place, they might well have been caught off guard and killed on the spot by that immortal ninja's curse technique.
Thinking of that, Hiruzen's gaze toward Konome grew even more affectionate.
His three disciples had all long since left the village. The Uchiha and the Senju were gone. Both he and Danzo, two Kage-level men, were old and fading. The rising generation represented by Naruto and the others had not yet fully matured. And Kakashi and Guy, on whom he had placed such high hopes, had still not taken the final step.
At a time when Konoha was in such an awkward transitional period, Konome's appearance had felt like a gift from heaven.
That was why he favored this disciple so much.
She had appeared at the very moment Konoha needed her most, like a single flame in the darkness.
"As for stationing Konoha ninja in the Land of Waves for protection, and the rest of the related arrangements..."
After Kakashi finished his report, Kaiza, as the Land of Waves' representative, stepped forward and began negotiating cooperation with the Hokage.
At this moment, the famously courageous Captain Kaiza was so nervous his toes were practically clawing into the floor.
He had always known that Konoha was publicly acknowledged as the strongest hidden village in the world, and that its ninja quality far surpassed the rest. But because he had never had a true sense of what ninja strength meant, that knowledge had remained abstract.
It was only after traveling with Team Seven and arriving in Konoha that the village's prosperity left him stunned, and he realized something truly horrifying.
Konome and the others were only freshly graduated genin.
He had seen with his own eyes the orange-clad ninja create over a thousand Shadow Clones in an instant and send the Black Hoe gang fleeing in panic. He had seen Sasuke's sword blaze with sparks as he cut through enemies like harvesting weeds.
And the scariest one of all, that girl, had used a laser-like attack to blow a hole straight through Black Hoe Raiga.
If Konoha's genin were already this powerful, then what kind of monsters were its chunin, jonin, and Hokage supposed to be?
From one spot on the leopard, you could see the entire beast. Faced with the seemingly kind Hokage, Kaiza did not dare lower his guard for even a second. Forget negotiation tricks. He laid out the Land of Waves' greatest sincerity in full.
After hearing the terms the Land of Waves was offering, Hiruzen pondered for a moment, then turned to the disciple who had remained silent from the very start.
"Konome, what do you think of the Land of Waves?"
The instant Hiruzen asked that, both the ANBU guard standing nearby and Kaiza looked up at once, equal shock in their eyes.
What did that mean?
This was a matter of negotiations between countries. Why was Konome being asked?
There were implications in that which were anything but small.
As captain of the self-defense force, Kaiza knew a little about politics. The moment he saw this, he instantly remembered Kakashi's hint from the banquet and his gaze toward Konome changed again and again.
Kakashi, however, merely lowered his head and remained silent like an old monk in meditation.
This was hardly the first time he had seen Hiruzen discussing village affairs and management with Konome. That was why he had given the Land of Waves that hint in the first place.
In fact, the rumor spreading through the village that Konome was a future Hokage candidate had originally started with him.
Seeing all eyes suddenly focus on her, Konome immediately realized they had all misunderstood.
She was the one holding the real power in Root now, and Hiruzen knew a bit of that.
So even though she held no official title, she had effectively begun replacing Danzo's position. Since Hiruzen already knew who the future decision-maker of Root would be, he often asked her questions about governance and national matters. It was a kind of informal test before she officially stepped into the role.
But in truth, she had no interest in meddling with any of that.
No matter how slick your politics were, they were not worth as much as one solid punch from her.
"The people are decent, the geography is excellent, and the food tastes pretty good."
Since she had eaten their food and because no one had made her pay for destroying the harbor, Konome gave the Land of Waves a few kind words.
"Heh. Very well then."
Hiruzen chuckled and made the decision on the spot. Then he turned to the ANBU at his side.
"Take them to see Shikaku and discuss the follow-up terms of cooperation."
"Yes!"
The ANBU code-named Suzaku bowed his head, rose, then cast a deep glance at Konome before escorting the overjoyed Kaiza away.
Now only Hiruzen and Team Seven remained in the office.
"You all worked hard. This mission was extremely difficult, so I'm counting it as an S-rank mission. Go back and rest properly for a while."
Hiruzen upgraded the mission by an entire rank on the spot.
To have an S-rank mission on their record while still genin instantly transformed Team Seven's previously pitiful resume of only a few D-rank missions into something dazzling.
And do not think mission rank was unimportant to ninja.
A strong resume affected everything from promotion in ninja rank, to advancement in office, and even to future eligibility for becoming Hokage.
To take one example, participating in the Chunin Exams required at least one completed C-rank mission. Becoming a tokubetsu jonin required multiple B-rank missions and at least one A-rank mission. And to become a full jonin, an S-rank mission was required.
That S-rank mission record was something many ordinary ninja would dream of for their entire lives.
Since there were only three official ninja ranks, Team Seven had already crossed the most difficult hurdle on that road, even though they likely would never actually need that credential.
Kakashi nodded and turned to leave the office.
After being away from the village for so long, he wanted to visit the Memorial Stone and talk to Rin, Obito, his father, and his teacher and Kushina about the dangers they had faced during this mission.
Naruto, who had been bored stiff, instantly began practically bubbling over when he heard the mission had been recorded as S-rank. All traces of fatigue vanished from his face as he rushed out in excitement.
He was most likely eager to go show off to Shikamaru and the others.
Sasuke, on the other hand, looked distracted. Every so often he glanced at Konome, the struggle in his eyes impossible to miss.
As for Konome, she was planning to head straight to Root.
The coffins sealing Kakuzu and Hidan, along with the Red Eye and the Thunder Blades, had already been taken away by Root operatives who received orders the moment they entered Konoha.
For all she knew, "Yang Release Konome" and the main body were already busy researching them.
She was genuinely fascinated by the bodies of the undead duo.
Hidan in particular. If she could understand the secret of his immortal body, then aside from sealing techniques, she would be left with no real weakness at all.
Unfortunately, things could not go quite as she wished.
"Konome, stay behind. I need to speak with you."
One sentence from Hiruzen stopped her in her tracks.
Naruto and Sasuke knew well enough about Konome's relationship with the Third Hokage, so they were not surprised. After exchanging farewells with her, they left.
At last...
The office, so noisy moments ago, was left with only Hiruzen and Konome.
"What is it, sensei?"
With no outsiders present, Konome no longer needed to avoid acknowledging their relationship. Since she was eager to return to Root, she asked directly.
Hiruzen drew deeply on his pipe. The worry on his face was impossible to hide.
"In a little while, the village will host a joint Chunin Exam."
His voice was low and heavy, and Konome immediately sensed something was off.
A joint exam between Sunagakure and Konoha should not have been enough to make him look this troubled.
Could it be that Orochimaru's actions had already been discovered?
Had Zabuza somehow run into Orochimaru while he was assassinating the Kazekage?
Ever since all the unexpected twists in the Land of Waves, Konome had stopped placing absolute faith in the original plot. A dozen possibilities flashed through her mind.
But the words that followed made her realize her imagination had still been too tame.
Tap.
Hiruzen blew out a cloud of smoke. Wrinkles bloomed around the corners of his eyes as he said gravely,
"This exam will be unprecedented in scale. It will be the first super Chunin Exam in the history of the Five Great Villages, jointly hosted by all five of them."
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