When Mei Terumi arrived, she happened to witness the final stage of the Three-Tails' sealing.
The feeling was like an incompetent husband returning home just in time to see someone else sprinting out of his wife's bedroom.
And there was nothing he could do about it!
Mei Terumi and Makoto first met when she discovered Yagura was being controlled and led Hidden Mist ninjas to pursue the rampaging Mizukage.
In the end, with the help of Akatsuki members brought by Makoto, Yagura was subdued and survived with his consciousness restored.
After returning, Yagura used his remaining prestige as the Fourth Mizukage to help Mei Terumi stabilize the chaotic situation in the Land of Water.
However, Makoto had only sent Itachi to assist, making the process easier and reducing casualties, while the ultimate outcome remained unchanged from fate.
At that time, based on the appearance time of the wild Three-Tails in the timeline, Makoto deduced that Yagura's body was already "broken down" from years of genjutsu control and that he would inevitably die soon after regaining consciousness.
Reality proved exactly that.
Yagura's assistance to Mei Terumi was like a dying ruler clearing obstacles for his successor—he worked vigorously and recklessly for two days, then left a letter and departed from the Hidden Mist Village forever.
As the Mizukage, though controlled, he still understood the dire situation.
After his insane "Bloody Mist" policies, the village had become as dilapidated as his own body.
There were no suitable ninjas left who could serve as a Jinchuriki.
If forced to name one, there was Mei Terumi herself.
But Yagura didn't choose this path.
The ideal relationship between a Kage and a Jinchuriki was actually like the situation in the Cloud Village (Raikage and Bee).
The current Mizukage now encompassed the former Daimyo's political powers and had too many responsibilities to also contain a monster.
A Jinchuriki required ample free time to calmly master the Tailed Beast.
Moreover, judging from the situation in the Hidden Leaf over a decade ago (Kushina), there was a natural disadvantage to having a female Jinchuriki—the seal would significantly weaken during childbirth.
And this was even with the advanced Sealing Techniques of the Uzumaki Clan, which the Mist lacked.
Therefore, Yagura ultimately decided to leave the village and live in seclusion in a remote place for the remainder of his life.
He wasn't sure when he would lose control, which meant the Three-Tails could break free at any moment, so he couldn't remain near civilians.
Only Mei Terumi knew the location of Yagura's seclusion.
He had specifically instructed Mei not to tell anyone else.
The Hidden Mist Village was currently undergoing reformation.
Even in the relatively moderate transitional phase depicted in the original work, there were numerous hidden opponents who weren't fully purged until the Boruto era.
Right now, the Hidden Mist was essentially playing a game of "Werewolf".
If the "werewolves" learned about Yagura's condition, they might attempt to seize the Three-Tails' power to restore the Bloody Mist rule.
That would be disastrous!
That was the situation in a nutshell.
So Mei Terumi's sense of déjà vu wasn't unfounded.
The Hidden Mist Village couldn't seal the Tailed Beast themselves, and now they discovered someone else had managed to do it right under their noses.
Wasn't this just like an incompetent husband who got NTR'ed?
"Why didn't you come to me instead of secretly sealing the Three-Tails?" Mei looked at Makoto with a resentful tone, her hands on her hips.
"I was planning to find you, but I encountered two people along the way who happened to know the Three-Tails' location."
Makoto took out a Sealing Scroll from behind his back, retrieved the two Kiba blades he had previously confiscated, and handed them over.
"I also helped recover the Hidden Mist Village's signature Ninja Blades while I was at it."
"Eh? Isn't that Raiga Kurosuki?"
The Hidden Mist ninjas following Mei Terumi recognized the man standing awkwardly nearby and immediately drew their weapons, adopting defensive stances.
Raiga was a rogue ninja.
Moreover, he was a rogue ninja who hadn't returned to the village or registered even after the current Mizukage issued a general pardon.
"Yes, it's me."
Raiga scanned the Mist ninjas. "That gentleman earlier said there's someone among you more qualified than me to wield the Kiba. Who might that be?"
Unconsciously, Raiga had begun using the respectful term "that gentleman" when referring to Makoto.
This clearly showed he was being quite prudent (and traumatized).
"Oh?"
Mei Terumi also grew curious upon hearing this, glancing back at the several Jonin guards who had accompanied her.
Her gaze finally settled on a female ninja with unique brown-red hair.
While there were many kenjutsu users in the Mist, most specialized in Water Release.
This kunoichi not only used blades but also excelled in Lightning Release.
"Ameyuri..."
"Mizukage-sama, it absolutely has to be me."
Before Mei could finish her question, Ameyuri Ringo confidently stepped forward, her chin raised proudly.
Makoto: "?"
Makoto wasn't particularly surprised by Ameyuri Ringo's personality—she naturally possessed the confidence of a genius.
But why did these words sound somewhat familiar?
"Then I'll leave it to you."
Mei Terumi glanced at Makoto and, seeing he didn't object, confirmed that he indeed meant the person before them.
As someone who had "divine foresight," it was perfectly reasonable for Makoto to know who the next Ninja Blade inheritor would be.
"Mizukage-sama, the previous blade wielder seems somewhat dissatisfied. I think it would be best to give him a chance."
After taking the twin blades from Mei Terumi and weighing them in her hands, Ameyuri Ringo tossed one of them back toward Raiga.
Ameyuri Ringo had two hobbies: challenging strong opponents, and eating delicious food.
Both of these hobbies had unique characteristics due to her personality.
She preferred saving the most delicious food for last when eating, just as she preferred saving the strongest opponents for last when fighting.
Her hobby of challenging strong opponents, combined with her natural talent, made her famous at a young age.
However, her personality flaw made her regretful after being resurrected later in the war—if she could do it over, she would definitely eat the best part first, because life is short.
"Such a young girl..."
Raiga raised his hand to catch the Kiba blade flying overhead, and stood up with a cold laugh.
"The Hidden Mist Village truly has talented newcomers replacing the old generation now. This pleases me greatly."
Raiga's tone suddenly shifted as he spoke.
"Huh?"
Ameyuri Ringo scratched her head in confusion.
She had expected Raiga to say something harsh like "What a pity for someone so young to choose death" or "I'll bury you."
Why did his words make him sound like a kindly old senior mentoring a junior?
Among the Seven Ninja Swordsmen in the intelligence reports, there didn't seem to be anyone with such a wholesome personality.
Mei Terumi, however, seemed to understand Raiga's change perfectly, glancing at Makoto.
There was only one possible explanation for Raiga's current transformation—he must have encountered a major setback in life (Makoto) just moments ago that left him psychologically scarred and become humble.
'Who knows what exactly happened on this island before we got here.'
"Come then! Let me see what level the Hidden Mist's current prodigy has reached!"
Raiga swung the single Kiba blade in his hand, electricity surging along the metal.
The current Raiga Kurosuki inexplicably had an air of righteousness about him.
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Ameyuri probably die before shippuden right?