Morning.
The wall clock ticked steadily. A warm ocean breeze slipped through the window, brushing across the room, making the curtains sway flirtatiously before slipping back out through the half-open door.
Sunlight fell across her cheek—the kind of bright warmth that felt embarrassingly intimate after a night's sleep.When Mei Terumi opened her eyes and noticed the damp patch on her pillow, she felt a sudden pang of shame.
She wiped the corner of her mouth, then—in dignified denial—flipped the pillow over to hide the evidence.
But once awake, she couldn't fall back asleep.
The previous day's memories returned in brutal fragments:Konoha.Neiki.Hashirama.Kengakure.Kirigakure's defeat.
Things she somehow didn't dream about last night ambushed her thoughts the moment morning arrived.
"Damn it…"
She wasn't sure which memory irritated her the most.So she punched the wall—venting anger, humiliation, and frustration all at once.
After a while, her breathing calmed.
She heard faint movement outside the room.
Mei glanced at the clock, sighed, and tossed off the blanket. She found a nightgown in the wardrobe—if it even qualified as one. It barely reached her navel, fitting more like lingerie on her mature figure.
Considering the country's poverty—and her status as a prisoner—she didn't bother complaining.
She slipped it on and stepped out.
The living room was small but neatly decorated. Numerous potted plants filled the corners and climbed the staircase.
A white-haired girl stood watering them. Hearing footsteps, she turned—and froze, face instantly flushed at Mei Terumi's very revealing nightgown.
"Hey, hey. You're drowning that flower," Mei commented lazily, watching the pot overflow.
"Ah! S-sorry, sorry—!"
The girl panicked apologetically.Mei recognized the type immediately: one of those overly polite, overly apologetic, overly sensitive kinds.
The best response was to ignore her until she calmed down.
Two bowls of red bean porridge sat on the table.
Mei sat down, took one sip—
—and frowned.
She glanced at the girl, swallowed the too-sweet porridge, then stood up and retrieved soy sauce from the kitchen.
She poured it into her bowl until the porridge turned completely black.
Only then did she take another sip and reveal genuine satisfaction.
"Sorry…" the girl murmured again.
This time, Mei understood exactly what she was apologizing for.
"Yes, the sugar in this should be a crime," Mei nodded seriously. Then she pointed to the girl's bowl."Remember, red bean porridge should always have soy sauce. That's real food."
Before the girl could protest, Mei poured a generous amount of soy sauce into her bowl as well.
"Try it."
The girl put down the watering can, washed her hands properly, and sat down obediently.
"What's your name again?" Mei asked, vaguely remembering she had asked last night but not caring to pretend otherwise.
"Hiyara Fuyuka," the girl said softly. She stared anxiously at her now-black porridge, then took a hesitant spoonful.
"…Well? Good?"
Fuyuka forced a tiny swallow.
"Yes… delicious…"
A good kid who doesn't want to disappoint anyone.Mei Terumi's eyes glimmered with amusement.
She leaned in slightly, lowered her voice, and asked:
"So, why are you living here alone? Where are your parents?"
"They passed away," Fuyuka answered sadly. Then she took another big bite—likely to hide her expression. "I used to live with my brother, but it was too far from Kengakure. I didn't want to be late for lessons, so I moved here."
"So Kengakure doesn't allow family inside?"
"They do… but my brother has to take care of our fields."
Under Mei's gentle probing, the honest girl revealed everything—stories about Hashirama, the training system, the academy, the secret techniques.
"We all practice the secret techniques Lord Hashirama teaches," she said shyly. "I'm still in the first stage. I can only perceive a little natural chakra that matches my attribute…"
"But Big Brother Kusami is amazing! He can already see almost all chakra attributes and is starting to merge them. He can use chakra-attribute sword techniques too. Lord Hashirama says he'll be Kengakure's first Genin soon."
Mei Terumi wasn't particularly impressed.
Geniuses were nothing new.Most died before becoming Jonin.Most prodigies faded before adulthood.
The ninja world was brutal—and unpredictable.Late bloomers like Might Dai, or monsters like Neiki, were far more interesting.
What did interest Mei was Hashirama and Kengakure's purpose.
But as Fuyuka described the sword techniques…
Mei suddenly paused.
"Chakra-attribute sword techniques…?"
Her mind snapped awake.
Isn't that exactly how Neiki fights?
Sword techniques that merge chakra natures—no seals required—jutsu executed through the blade.
Neiki, Hashirama, Kengakure…
A thread connected them.
Mei's heart pounded.
"…Fuyuka," she said softly, "can you show me the sword technique?"
Though confused, Fuyuka nodded and fetched a sword wrapped in oil paper.
Mei expected something special.Something like Neiki's ominous black blade.
Instead—
It was an ordinary sword.
They went outside, into the morning fog.Buildings looked blurry, almost ghostlike.
"I'm not very good yet…" Fuyuka warned.
"It's fine. I'm an elite Jonin," Mei replied without shame—despite the seal in her heart that prevented her from using chakra properly.
Fuyuka took a deep breath.
For a moment, her eyes flashed white—a faint shimmer.
Mei's pupils contracted.
Before she could speak, she saw the fog thicken unnaturally around them. The buildings she just saw blurred out of existence.
That—
That wasn't normal.
Before she could process it, Fuyuka shouted:
"Water Sword Technique: Flowing Water Slash!"
She slashed forward.
The sword flickered with a faint blue glow before dimming. Only droplets of water remained.
Fuyuka lowered her head in shame.
"…Sorry. That's the best I can do."
Mei stared.
And stared.
Then, trembling, she grabbed Fuyuka's shoulders.
"No, that was AMAZING!"
"Little Fuyuka—tell me the truth."
"Do you know someone named Neiki in Kengakure?"
Fuyuka blinked blankly.
"No."
"…Think again?"
"No… sorry…"
Mei let go slowly.
Fuyuka didn't know Neiki.
But this sword style—this no-seal attribute manipulation—this unnatural fog behavior—
It matched Neiki's techniques perfectly.
Which meant—
Neiki didn't invent his sword arts.
He learned them.
From someone older.
Someone absurdly powerful.
Someone who had lived far longer than Neiki.
Someone who could create Kengakure.
Someone who could teach ordinary villagers to use jutsu-like sword techniques.
Someone who could massacre half of Kirigakure's forces overnight.
Someone who could grow a godlike tree with countless eyes.
Someone who called himself…
Senju Hashirama.
"Neiki… and Hashirama…"
"There's a connection between them."
Mei Terumi's mind raced.
Neiki killed his clan.Neiki defected from Konoha.Neiki triggered the war.Neiki fought both Konoha and Kirigakure.
What if—
Neiki was acting under Hashirama's direction?
What if Neiki sowed chaos in Konoha…
…and Hashirama expected her or Zabuza to sow chaos inside Kirigakure?
If that was true…
Then cooperating with Hashirama might plunge Kirigakure into an even deeper disaster than Konoha.
Mei Terumi inhaled sharply.
She might have been captured—but she wasn't blind.
A terrifying possibility bloomed in her heart.
"What… exactly is Hashirama planning?"
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