Teizawa had just lain down, preparing to get some sleep.
Then, suddenly…
There was movement by the window again.
Very faint, as light as the night breeze stirring the curtains.
But it could not fool him.
There were only a handful of people in all of Konoha who could slip through his window under the eyes of Sunagakure's Anbu.
He did not open his eyes.
His breathing remained even.
"Kazekage-dono."
Samui's voice sounded beside the bed.
Then came Karui's voice, carrying a hint of uncertainty.
"Samui, he isn't asleep, is he?"
The corner of Teizawa's mouth rose slightly.
The black-and-white duo.
Climbing through his window in the middle of the night to look for him. That function was not bad at all.
Interesting.
He did not move, and his breathing remained steady.
As if he had truly fallen asleep.
Samui and Karui exchanged a look, then leaned a little closer.
Moonlight slipped through the gap in the curtains and fell across Teizawa's face.
That face looked as peaceful as an infant's.
Samui reached out and gently pushed his shoulder.
"Kazekage-dono…"
Before her voice had even faded, Teizawa suddenly opened his eyes.
His arms spread.
One hand wrapped around Samui's waist, the other around Karui's, pulling both of them into his arms at once.
"Ah…"
"You…"
Two startled cries rang out at the same time.
Samui braced her hands against his chest.
Karui's knee pressed against his waist.
But neither of them used any real force.
Teizawa turned over and trapped them.
One in each arm, pinned beneath him.
"Wait…"
Samui's face flushed crimson, her voice hurried and unsteady.
"I have something to tell you!"
"Tell me later." Teizawa lowered his head and spoke softly beside her ear. "There are more urgent matters."
The heat Yūgao had stirred up in him earlier surged higher and higher.
At this point, how could he hold it back?
Realizing what was about to happen, Samui's ears instantly turned bright red.
She wanted to say something, but no sound came out.
Beside her, Karui struggled twice.
But she could not move.
Her dark face was flushed red.
Her eyes were wide and round.
She wanted to curse but did not dare, wanted to struggle but did not dare use force.
Teizawa released Samui and turned to glance at her.
"What? You too?"
Karui turned her face away, her ears red enough to drip blood.
The room soon filled with restless noise.
Samui bit her lip, refusing to make a sound.
As for Karui, there was even less need to say.
In the end, the night passed in a haze of coercion, shame, and tangled silence.
Moonlight squeezed in through the gaps in the curtains.
It fell over the foot of the bed.
A long time passed before the room gradually quieted.
"Tomorrow… the money will be delivered to you."
Samui's voice was hoarse, carrying a trace of exhaustion.
"The Four-Tails… belongs to Kumo."
Teizawa's expression was indifferent.
"Mm."
"You promised me."
Her voice was very soft, carrying a trace of uncertainty.
Teizawa lowered his head and kissed her forehead lightly.
"I keep my word."
Karui poked her head out from the edge of the blanket, confusion in her pretty eyes.
"You really… will give the Four-Tails to us?"
Teizawa looked at her, the corner of his mouth rising slightly.
"What? Afraid I'll go back on my word?"
Karui bit her lip.
"No… it's just…"
She could not continue and buried her face back into the blanket.
Teizawa lightly patted her.
"Tomorrow. Money in one hand, person in the other."
His voice was soft, but steady.
Neither Samui nor Karui said anything more.
Teizawa, however, was very pleased.
Another seven billion in the account.
He had stolen Iwagakure's seven billion, let Kumo take the blame, and now he would even receive another seven billion from Kumo.
Fourteen billion all at once.
An absolute killing.
Right now, what Sunagakure needed most was money.
Only with money could the village develop better.
Everything he did was for Sunagakure.
It was just a little hard on the waist.
…
Early the next morning.
Sunlight poured through the inn window.
It spread across the floor in a warm sheet of gold.
Teizawa stood at the inn's rear entrance.
He watched as Samui and Karui lifted Rōshi onto the carriage.
Rōshi was still unconscious, his entire body wrapped in sealing chains.
His face was pale, almost translucent.
Karui pushed him into the carriage.
Her movements were not particularly gentle, but she did not deliberately abuse him either.
Samui stood to the side.
In her hand, she held a sealing scroll.
Inside was the seven billion.
She handed the scroll to Teizawa.
Teizawa accepted it.
He weighed it in his hand, then casually tossed it to the Sand ninja behind him.
"The Four-Tails is yours." Teizawa looked at Samui. "Be careful on the road. Iwagakure won't let this go."
Samui nodded.
Her gaze lingered on his face for an instant.
She seemed to want to say something.
In the end, she only said softly, "Take care."
Then she turned and boarded the carriage.
Karui poked her head out the carriage window.
She looked at Teizawa once, then quickly drew back.
The carriage slowly drove out through the rear gate.
It followed a quiet alley toward the outside of the village.
Teizawa stood at the entrance.
He watched the carriage disappear into the morning light.
The black-and-white duo had left just like that.
He really was a little reluctant to see them go.
After all, double the pleasure. Those who knew, knew.
A Sand ninja flashed out from the shadows and knelt on one knee.
"Kazekage-sama, Iwagakure's people have also left."
"Kitsuchi is leading them. They took the north gate, heading toward the Land of Earth."
Teizawa nodded thoughtfully.
Kitsuchi really had not given up.
The money had been stolen, and the Four-Tails had also been snatched away by Kumo.
How could he possibly accept that?
If he returned to Iwagakure with defeated remnants, how would he explain it to Ōnoki?
He would definitely try to intercept Kumo's people along the way and take the Four-Tails back.
Teizawa narrowed his eyes.
But Kumo should have backup too.
That reckless brute, the Fourth Raikage.
Since he dared let Samui and the others come rob them, he would not have done so without a second move.
Perhaps the Raikage himself was already on the road.
Now that would be interesting…
Kitsuchi against the Raikage. Who would win?
The corner of Teizawa's mouth rose slightly.
No matter who won, it had nothing to do with him anymore.
The money was in hand. The Four-Tails was out of his hands.
Sunagakure was safe and stable.
He drew back his thoughts and turned toward the Hokage Tower.
He had not seen Tsunade for several days. He did miss her somewhat.
He wondered if that woman's anger had faded yet.
That desk slam last night…
It had looked rather painful.
Konoha's streets had already grown lively.
Breakfast shops steamed with heat, and children chased one another, rushing out of the alleys.
Ninja hurried toward their mission sites.
Teizawa walked among the crowd.
His dark-gold robe was particularly eye-catching beneath the sunlight.
The villagers he passed made way one after another, looking at him curiously.
He did not notice.
Or rather, he simply did not care.
His steps were leisurely.
His gaze wandered around.
When he reached the entrance of a quiet alley, a slender figure stepped out from within.
She blocked his path with perfect timing.
Long auburn hair fell over her shoulders, and her emerald-green eyes looked like two gemstones beneath the sunlight.
A smile that was not quite a smile curved at the corner of her mouth.
Today, Mei wore a pale cyan dress.
A dark belt was tied at her waist.
It made that slender waist seem as if it could be encircled with one hand.
She simply stood there.
Like a flower blooming by the roadside, enchanting and ostentatious.
"Kazekage-dono…"
Mei's voice was lazy, carrying a trace of careless amusement. "What a coincidence."
Teizawa stopped and looked at her.
"What? Was a beauty waiting for me?"
His tone was frivolous.
But the smile in his eyes was impossible to hide, and neither was his appreciation.
Mei clicked her tongue twice.
"Kazekage-dono, what a sweet mouth you have."
She tilted her head, those emerald-green eyes circling over his face. "I wonder how many girls you've deceived with it."
"How do you know?" Teizawa took a step forward and leaned closer to her. "Want to taste it?"
Mei did not retreat.
She raised her head and looked into the eyes so close at hand, the smile on her lips growing deeper.
"Kazekage-dono, is that an invitation?"
Her voice was still lazy.
But her heartbeat quietly sped up by several beats.
Teizawa lowered his head until the tips of their noses almost touched.
He could smell the faint fragrance on her.
It was not the scent of cosmetics, but some kind of flower.
Clear and not cloying.
"That depends…" His voice lowered. "On whether you accept the invitation."
Mei's eyes narrowed slightly.
Her gaze slowly slid across his face, as if savoring something.
Then she suddenly laughed.
She lifted a finger and gently tapped his chest.
"Kazekage-dono, you…"
She paused. "You really are dangerous."
Teizawa took hold of her finger and did not let go.
"Dangerous things are the most interesting, aren't they?"
A flicker passed through Mei's eyes.
She did not pull her hand back, simply letting him hold it.
The smile on her lips slowly deepened.
"Unfortunately, I'm returning to Kirigakure today."
Her voice carried a trace of regret, though whether it was real or fake was impossible to tell.
"So soon?" Teizawa released her finger, his tone carrying just the right amount of reluctance. "I was still thinking of inviting you for a drink."
"Next time."
Mei turned around and walked a few steps, then stopped and looked back at him. "Kazekage-dono, the next time we meet, don't forget to invite me for that drink."
Teizawa smiled.
"Definitely."
But just as Mei was about to leave, Teizawa suddenly spoke.
"Mei!"
"Mei?"
Mei's brows lifted slightly.
A trace of surprise flashed through those emerald-green eyes.
And something else that could not be described.
Wasn't that form of address a little too intimate?
She opened her mouth.
In the end, she only turned her face aside.
The corner of her mouth rose slightly, and she did not refute him.
A faint blush spread from her cheeks to the tips of her ears.
It was especially clear in the morning light.
Teizawa looked at her profile, the smile in his eyes deepening.
"This trip to Konoha, you seem to have done nothing at all."
His tone was casual, as if he were discussing the weather.
"You didn't win the Four-Tails, didn't spend any money, and just stood on the side watching a show."
"I really do wonder what Kirigakure's objective was."
Mei fell silent for a moment.
The morning breeze blew in from the alley entrance, lifting her auburn hair.
A few strands drifted across her cheek.
She reached up and gently tucked them behind her ear.
"At this point…"
Her voice was softer than usual, with less laziness and more seriousness.
"There's really nothing I can't say."
She turned around and leaned her back against the wall.
Then she raised her head and looked at the square of sky cut apart by the eaves above.
"The elders sent me here partly to make contact with the major ninja villages…"
She paused. "But the real objective was to prevent Konoha from obtaining the Four-Tails."
Teizawa said nothing and waited for her to continue.
"As for Kirigakure, if we could obtain the Four-Tails, of course that would be good. If we couldn't…"
She turned her head and looked at him. "That would be fine too."
Teizawa nodded.
"But I didn't expect Konoha to have no interest in the Four-Tails at all."
There was a trace of self-mockery in Mei's voice. "So my mission was actually completed from the very beginning."
Teizawa looked at her thoughtfully.
After the years of civil strife caused by the Bloody Mist policy, Kirigakure had suffered a great loss of strength.
Now was the time for them to lick their wounds.
So they simply could not take out a large sum of money to bid for a tailed beast.
But they also did not want Konoha to obtain one.
Konoha already possessed the Nine-Tails. If it obtained the Four-Tails as well, its strength would swell even further.
That would break the fragile balance between the Five Great Nations.
As Konoha's neighbor, Kirigakure naturally did not want to see such a thing happen.
As for whether the Four-Tails returned to Iwagakure or was stolen by Kumogakure…
That had little to do with them.
The distance was too great. It would not threaten Kirigakure.
So Mei's true mission had never been to buy the Four-Tails.
It was to gather intelligence.
To observe and remember the attitudes, strength, and movements of the major ninja villages.
Kirigakure had been isolated from the shinobi world for too long.
It could not continue stumbling forward blind.
"So…" Teizawa looked at her. "What did you see?"
The corner of Mei's mouth rose slightly.
"I saw…"
She paused. "Kazekage-dono is a very dangerous man."
Teizawa smiled.
"That's all?"
"Isn't that enough?"
Mei tilted her head, and those emerald-green eyes reflected his figure.
"One person stirred up the entire shinobi world. Iwagakure, Kumo, Konoha, Kirigakure. All of them were led around by you."
She paused. "Is a person like that not dangerous enough?"
Teizawa did not answer.
He only looked at her, his eyes carrying a trace of appreciation.
This woman was even smarter than he had expected.
"All right."
Mei straightened away from the wall and patted imaginary dust from her dress.
"I've said what I should say. Kazekage-dono, until we meet again."
With that, she prepared to turn and leave.
But the instant Mei turned around, Teizawa took a step forward.
Light and swift, like wind brushing over water.
Leaving no trace.
He reached out, wrapped an arm around her waist, and lowered his head to kiss Mei's lips.
It was not a fleeting touch.
It carried a certain certainty, a possessive force that allowed no refusal.
Mei's eyes widened round.
Her mind went blank.
This man. This bastard.
He actually dared…
Actually dared…
Anger surged through her heart.
Not the feigned annoyance of flirtation.
But true anger, carrying killing intent.
She was Kirigakure's future Mizukage.
The wielder of the kekkei genkai Lava Release and Boil Release.
She was Mei Terumi.
Not a woman any man could casually take liberties with.
Her lips parted slightly.
A scorching breath surged up from deep in her throat.
Lava Release, magma hot enough to melt steel.
She would make this reckless Kazekage learn the price of his audacity.
Then…
Her vision blurred.
The hand around her waist released her.
That oppressive presence vanished.
His aura retreated in an instant.
She only had time to catch a flash of dark-gold cloth disappearing at the alley entrance.
His voice still echoed beside her ear.
Amused, smug, and carrying a certainty that made her teeth itch.
"The future Mizukage's lips… really are soft."
(End of Chapter)
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