"How can you help?"
Terumi Mei raised her head, looked at him, exhaled, as if resigning herself.
"The simplest way is to find you a suitable jinchuriki."
Natsume drummed his fingers on the desk. "I have a few good shinobi."
The Uzumaki and Senju could both be jinchuriki.
Let's not talk about the latter.
But the former's few survivors were all under his command.
For example, Hinae, Karin, and Amaru.
"No."
Terumi Mei frowned. "The jinchuriki must be a Kirigakure shinobi."
If Konoha provided the shinobi, who would the jinchuriki actually belong to?
Even if she trusted Natsume, the other Kiri higher-ups would never approve such absurdity.
"Alright, I figured you'd say that."
Natsume spread his hands.
He didn't really care about who the jinchuriki was—he just wanted to farm fate points.
Since Terumi Mei refused, they'd pick someone from Kiri.
"Then why bring it up?"
Terumi Mei rolled her eyes at him, helpless.
Her beautiful face looked all the more aggrieved.
"Ahem, because you look pretty like this."
Natsume tilted his head, teasing.
"Can you be serious?"
Terumi Mei ground her teeth, her red lips bitten pale—looking quite… enticing.
"Okay, business."
Natsume smiled. "The jinchuriki's physical constitution being a bit lacking isn't a big problem—what matters is a strong enough sealing technique."
Terumi Mei's expression eased.
That was indeed a good approach.
Since Uzushio was destroyed, the best sealing techniques were, naturally, in Konoha.
"I feel like Momochi Zabuza could work."
Natsume just threw it out there. "His body looks great—at least sturdier than Ao's or Haku's."
"What about me?"
Terumi Mei arched an eyebrow.
"Your figure's great, but your constitution doesn't feel up to it."
Natsume gave her a serious up-and-down look.
Terumi Mei couldn't help stomping her foot.
She was pleased he praised her figure, but she didn't like the second half.
"Hmph. From a feeling? And how would you know?"
"Easy. We can spar sometime."
Natsume followed her lead without thinking.
"…"
Terumi Mei blinked, then flushed. "Pervert!"
Natsume was puzzled for a second.
Then he got it.
Who'd have thought, in just a few years, Terumi Mei had gone from a green girl to a mature woman.
"I meant sparring."
He reached out and pinched her cheek.
"I… I meant that too."
Terumi Mei reflexively wanted to swat his hand away, then held back.
She tilted her head, sounding guilty.
"Your face is so red."
Natsume cupped her cheeks.
Nowhere to escape, Terumi Mei stared at him.
Her face showed undisguised panic and a bit of shyness.
But faced with his teasing gaze, she still tried to keep a stiff tongue. "I… it's just a little hot, not— not blushing."
Her voice even trembled toward the end.
Which revealed the Mizukage's true thoughts.
Natsume dipped his head and nipped her lower lip. "Your mouth isn't that stiff."
It took Terumi Mei a few seconds to process what he meant.
Then she flushed with shame and anger, and shoved him.
Natsume sprang off the desk.
Terumi Mei stood, ear tips burning.
Her cheeks rosy, she snapped, "You can go now! I don't want to see you today!"
"So you want to see me tomorrow?"
Natsume put on an I-get-it look.
"No!"
She clenched her fist. "That's not what I meant!"
"Alright."
Natsume sighed. "Since the Lady Mizukage doesn't want to see me, I'll take my leave."
With a whoosh—
He vanished.
Terumi Mei panicked, wanting to say something, but didn't.
A moment later, she bit her lip in regret.
Then she remembered—that's where Natsume had kissed her.
She covered her face.
A rush of complicated emotions surged.
"Lady Mizukage, are you savoring it?"
The sudden voice made her freeze.
Her face flushed scarlet in an instant.
"I'm not a pervert—savor what?!"
She feigned fury to hide her shyness.
"Is your lipstick tangerine-flavored?"
Natsume licked the corner of his mouth.
"Drop dead!"
Terumi Mei nearly exploded, glaring, killing intent all over her face.
"If I drop dead, I can't help you."
Natsume shrugged. "When do you plan to replace the jinchuriki?"
Terumi Mei pressed a hand to her forehead, helpless.
Hard to be angry even when she wanted to be.
She felt thoroughly in his grasp.
She took a deep breath. "After the Fourth Mizukage passes."
Normally, extracting a tailed beast kills the jinchuriki.
Replacing early would be tantamount to murder.
Yagura had done wrong, but he'd been controlled.
If Terumi Mei were truly that ruthless, she wouldn't have waited until now.
"Mm."
Natsume nodded. "Here, this is for you."
"What is it?"
Terumi Mei stared at the bracelet he handed over, taken aback.
A gift?
"You can use it to contact me."
Natsume took her wrist, slipped it on, and held her hand.
Terumi Mei stiffened.
As she debated pulling away, chakra flowed into her body.
It conveyed the functions of the Skynet Login Device.
Terumi Mei blinked.
This thing seemed awfully convenient.
"It does a lot. If you're bored, give it a try."
Natsume released her hand with a smile.
As long as Kaguya didn't act maliciously, Skynet was harmless.
Spending money—or chakra—wasn't forced.
You could earn it with missions.
Besides, the rewards were solid.
For Terumi Mei, Skynet was like a giant online marketplace.
"Aren't you afraid I'll leak these jutsu?"
"Everything has a price."
Natsume didn't care. "If you can really redeem them, leaking them isn't a big deal."
Terumi Mei studied him for signs of a lie.
The Skynet shop offered almost all the jutsu of Suna and Konoha.
If she redeemed them all, the implications would be terrifying.
It could shorten Kirigakure's power gap by over a decade—no exaggeration.
But as he said, redemption was costly.
Still, there was hope.
"You're confident."
She thought it over and could only reach that conclusion.
With Natsume's strength, even if the jutsu leaked, it wouldn't matter.
They still couldn't beat him.
"You could say that."
Natsume didn't deny it.
What she didn't know was that his confidence came from Kaguya.
No jutsu worked on her.
Unless it was senjutsu.
And Kaguya was the Skynet server, after all.
There were safeguards.
Every player who logged into Skynet had their soul bound.
First, to prevent account sharing.
Second—those who know, know.
With Kaguya's ability, adding backdoors was child's play.
Joining Skynet was easy; leaving was hard.
But as he'd said, as long as you didn't provoke Kaguya, nothing would happen.
"Remember that guy?"
Natsume asked suddenly.
"The bastard who controlled the Fourth Mizukage?"
Terumi Mei's eyes hardened. "Of course I remember!"
"My investigation says he joined an organization—possibly targeting the tailed beasts."
Natsume warned. "You should be careful."
In the original story, the Three-Tails ended up wild.
But thanks to his meddling, it was still in Kiri.
Switching jinchuriki was when a tailed beast was weakest.
Akatsuki might make a move.
"I understand."
Terumi Mei's gaze sharpened. She didn't doubt his intel.
Natsume had no reason to lie.
"I've wanted to ask—was he from Konoha?"
She thought a moment. "And did you approach me back then because of him?"
"I'm surprised you managed to hold back this long."
Natsume smiled. "He does have some connection to Konoha, but he's a rogue now."
Terumi Mei's lips quirked.
She hadn't asked before because she was busy—and because she owed him too much to bring it up.
Now that he mentioned it, she took the chance.
"That's it?"
She pressed. "His actual identity?"
"I don't know."
Natsume shrugged. "He calls himself Uchiha Madara. Do you buy that?"
"Of course not."
Terumi Mei looked him over carefully and saw no sign of a lie.
She let it go.
"If there's nothing else, you can leave."
She took a deep breath. "And don't just pop in and scare people."
"I've helped you a lot. Where's my payment?"
Natsume crossed his arms. "Surely the mighty Mizukage won't stiff me?"
Terumi Mei was speechless.
She suppressed her rising panic. "What do you want?"
"What does the Lady Mizukage want to give?"
His eyes dropped to her lips.
"You really are a pervert."
She stared, a bit angry.
"I didn't say anything."
He looked aggrieved.
She ground her teeth.
A moment later, her delicate face leaned close to his.
Before she could act, Natsume beat her to it—
His lips met hers in what started as a simple peck, but he deepened it swiftly, his tongue slipping past her parted lips like a serpent striking.
Their tongues clashed and coiled in a heated dance, twin serpents entwining in a battle of slick, fervent exploration.
He tasted the faint sweetness of her breath, probing deeper as she hesitated, her own tongue responding tentatively at first, then with growing boldness, mirroring his movements in awkward but eager rhythm.
Terumi Mei responded awkwardly, her body tensing before melting into the intensity, her hands clutching at his shoulders as the kiss consumed them both.
Until she couldn't breathe and pushed him away.
Her chest rose and fell as she gulped air.
"You…"
She looked at him, her alabaster skin tinged pink.
Her lips had lost their rosy hue, paling slightly, now swollen and glistening from the passionate exchange.
But, unexpectedly, she wasn't angry.
"Thanks for the hospitality."
Natsume smiled.