The candlelight flickered.
Samui sat across from Teizawa, her posture relaxed.
She stretched lazily.
The motion was shockingly broad.
Both arms lifted overhead, and her slim waist bent back into a graceful arc.
The fabric pulled taut.
It outlined a breathtaking figure.
"My back is killing me."
She complained in a lazy drawl, her voice carrying an unintentional note of sultry languor.
Teizawa let his gaze flick, just once, over that strip of pale bare waist.
His throat bobbed.
"Your back hurts..."
He paused, forcing down that trace of sharp hostility in an even tone.
"Probably because they're too big."
Samui glanced down at her chest and casually rubbed her shoulder.
"Maybe."
The gesture was so natural it felt routine.
Clearly, she was long used to bearing that burden.
Teizawa swallowed.
He cursed inwardly.
Damn it, what kind of official could keep his composure through a test like this?
What kind of official could keep his composure through a test like this?
This woman looked icy on the surface, but every move she made hooked at a man's nerves.
He understood now.
This trip of Samui's was never some "business negotiation."
It was seduction. Naked, blatant seduction.
Those hot-blooded brutes from Kumogakure.
They actually sent a woman to pull this kind of stunt?
Still...
She really did have the capital for it.
Teizawa took a deep breath, pushed down the jumble of thoughts in his head, and straightened his expression.
"Ahem. Samui..."
He looked directly into her eyes.
"Let's be direct. What are you here for?"
The corners of Samui's lips lifted slightly.
A flicker of approval passed through those blue eyes.
"Kazekage-sama is a smart man."
She leaned forward a little, folding her hands over her knees as her posture turned more formal.
"Then I'll be direct. Kumogakure is very interested in the Four-Tails."
She paused, and her tone grew even more serious.
"The Raikage-sama has even promised that if you're willing to hand the Four-Tails over to us, Kumogakure will absolutely offer you generous compensation."
"How much?"
Teizawa asked bluntly.
"If it's only six billion ryo, that's nowhere near enough."
Samui's expression did not change. She had clearly come prepared.
"Money isn't the most important thing. The most important thing is..."
She met Teizawa's eyes head-on.
"You and Sunagakure would gain the friendship of Kumogakure."
Teizawa waved a hand and cut her off.
"No, no, no. Money is the most important thing."
His tone was firm.
"Let's talk about money instead."
He cursed inwardly.
The Land of Lightning and the Land of Wind were separated by nearly half a continent.
They didn't even share a border.
What the hell use was their friendship?
If war really broke out, by the time Kumo's reinforcements marched all the way to Sunagakure, it would already be over.
A worthless promise like that. Who were they trying to fool?
Samui's expression finally shifted, just a little.
She fell silent for a few seconds.
As if she were reassessing the young Kazekage in front of her.
"Then..."
She hesitated.
"How much does Kazekage-sama want?"
Teizawa held up one finger.
"Ten billion."
His tone was as flat as if he were commenting on the weather.
"I'll cancel the auction right now and hand the Four-Tails over to Kumogakure immediately."
Samui's mouth twitched.
Ten billion?
That was two years of Kumogakure's military budget, enough to buy every hot spring inn in the Land of Hot Water.
She let out a bitter laugh, and there was a trace of helplessness in it.
"Kazekage-sama, we can't offer that much."
The Raikage had given her an upper limit of seven billion.
She had originally thought that price was already sincere enough.
Who knew this Kazekage would open with ten...
He wasn't even leaving room to bargain.
Teizawa spread his hands with a troubled look.
"Then there's nothing I can do."
Samui bit her lip. The motion added a rare touch of fragility to her cold, striking face.
"Is it possible..."
She narrowed her eyes, and her voice dropped.
"That Sunagakure doesn't want something else?"
There was an almost imperceptible threat in her tone.
"You should understand. Under the current circumstances, the best outcome would be for the Four-Tails to end up in Kumogakure."
Teizawa sighed, looking as melancholy as though he were watching his own daughter get married off.
"Yeah. I can't keep it forever."
He lifted his head, looked at Samui, and a smile curved his lips.
"But if I accidentally sell the Four-Tails to Kirigakure instead, or just kill it outright..."
He paused.
"Then Kumogakure gets nothing at all."
Samui's face finally changed.
She stared at Teizawa. A flash of anger passed through those blue eyes, but it was quickly forced back down.
"You..."
Her voice had gone tight.
Teizawa looked at her, the smile at his mouth deepening slowly.
"So..."
Samui inhaled deeply, trying to keep her voice steady.
"What exactly do you want?"
Teizawa's gaze slid slowly down from her face.
Across that pale neck, across those exaggerated curves, across that lace-trimmed waist still trembling ever so slightly.
Then he raised his head and met her eyes.
"What I want..."
His voice was very soft, as though he were speaking a secret.
"You happen to have it."
Samui's pupils tightened slightly.
The room fell so quiet that the crackle of the candle flame could be heard.
She simply looked at him.
Looked at the undisguised light in those deep eyes.
A long silence passed.
Then...
"Kazekage-sama."
Her voice regained its cool clarity, but there was something else mixed into that coldness now.
"You're joking, aren't you?"
Teizawa smiled.
There was amusement in that smile. Testing.
And a certainty that made the heart beat faster.
"What do you think?"
he asked in return.
Samui did not answer.
She rose to her feet and looked down at him.
Moonlight spilled in through the window.
It coated her body in a layer of silver radiance.
"We'll meet again at the auction."
After saying that, she turned and walked out the door.
Her back was still straight. Her steps were still steady.
But Teizawa noticed it.
Her hand was trembling slightly.
The door closed softly behind her.
Teizawa leaned back in his chair, looking at the closed door, the smile never leaving his lips.
Interesting.
This woman was even more interesting than he had imagined.
He lifted his teacup and took a small sip.
The auction was becoming more and more worth anticipating.
Then, suddenly...
The door opened again.
Teizawa had just raised his cup. His hand stopped in midair.
He looked at the figure returning after leaving, and froze for a moment.
"Something else?"
Samui stood in the doorway without coming in.
Moonlight streamed down from behind her, sketching out her long silhouette.
Her expression was hidden in shadow, impossible to read.
But Teizawa noticed it.
Her hand was clenched so tightly her knuckles had turned white.
Silence.
Then...
"Were you serious?"
Her voice was very light, so light it was as if she were afraid someone might hear.
Nothing like the cold, poised Kumo jonin from before.
Teizawa set down his teacup and leaned back in his chair.
"About what?"
Samui bit her lip. Very lightly.
But Teizawa saw it clearly.
Her lower lip had been bitten pale before its color slowly returned.
She drew in a deep breath.
As if she had made an enormous decision.
"If I... if I stay with you..."
Her voice came in broken fragments, each word sounding as though it had been forced out through clenched teeth.
"Will you give the Four-Tails to... to Kumogakure?"
(End of Chapter)
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