Naruto: I'm really not an evil scientist!

Yu Yuan, the treasure trove of Takigakure Village, played a significant role in enabling him to become a Kage-level ninja.

Nobody cares about the life or death of a ninja from a small village, but if a tailed beast is stolen, well... that thing is a real nuclear bomb.

The five great ninja villages are very sensitive to this.

Strictly speaking, neither Konoha nor Sunagakure had any tailed beasts at this time—the jinchūriki of both villages were too young to control them.

While Zero-Tails is powerful, it still needs to recharge, and strategically it is not as flexible as a true Tailed Beast.

Because Hiruko revealed the information in advance, and the five great ninja villages are not entirely unconnected now.

Therefore, everyone quickly concluded that, just like last time, it was the organization called "Akatsuki" that did it again.

Because of Hiruko's meddling, "Akatsuki" became famous much earlier than the original work, and its influence was also greater.

This kind of reputation can be good or bad.

The downsides are obvious: they were targeted by the five great ninja villages early on.

As for the benefits... such a powerful evil organization naturally attracts the attention of many rogue ninjas, and its strength has been growing rapidly recently.

If it were before, Konoha, which had always wanted to become the overlord of the ninja world, should have jumped out long ago and taken the lead in taking down the Akatsuki.

But for some reason, after the battle between the two Kage, the Hokage remained silent and showed no intention of stepping forward to take the lead.

If the Hokage doesn't step forward, the Kazekage naturally won't follow suit.

The internal strife within the Hidden Cloud Village has become increasingly fierce, leaving them no time to attend to other matters. The Hidden Mist Village has gone even further, staging a coup.

Now that only Iwagakure remains, they feel somewhat isolated and vulnerable... The ninjas are confused about what has happened behind the scenes, and are filled with worry.

Mei Terumi could clearly feel the heaviness and unease in the air.

...It's not good to say that, but this is also an opportunity for Kirigakure.

After all, if there are hungry wolves all around, this coup d'état would likely cause countless more problems.

The four major ninja villages are all preoccupied with their own affairs, and Iwagakure, the only one that can intervene, is too far away to be of any use... The worst-case scenario shouldn't happen.

Mei Terumi felt relieved. After inquiring about the situation for a while, she gradually came to understand what was going on.

But as with good news, there is also bad news.

Konoha doesn't take the lead in causing trouble, and the other ninja villages also have their own affairs to attend to, so Kirigakure's external environment is barely acceptable.

But this tranquility was the same for the other factions in Kirigakure—at the Five Kage Summit, Mei Terumi encountered Takagi, the leader of the conservative faction in Kirigakure.

This was a robust ninja in his forties.

He is very strong.

—The fact that he could live to be forty years old, as a main force in the war, is enough to demonstrate his formidable strength.

As the leader of the conservatives, he should have stayed in the village.

But the person who controlled Yagura, for some reason, forcibly brought him and the core members of the conservative faction out.

When Terumi Mei staged her coup, it was extremely easy for her because none of these people were in the village.

Conversely, because the elite forces on both sides had no chance to fight, the main fighting force of the conservatives was preserved quite well.

The two groups already held differing political views and were hostile to each other.

Now, the conservatives have essentially lost their home turf, and the conflict between the two sides has deepened.

Now that Yagura's retirement is inevitable, the conservatives will certainly not let go of such a good opportunity... Of course, these conservatives will not be stupid enough to start a civil war directly, but they will definitely fight for the position of Fifth Mizukage.

Unfortunately, Mei Terumi was unable to stop them from participating in the election for the Fifth Mizukage.

Once they start the election... the Mizukage faction used to be able to suppress the conservatives, but after being ruined by someone, the Mizukage faction's prestige plummeted and its strength was severely damaged.

What the future holds remains to be seen.

If the two sides really start fighting, the damage might be even greater if Yagura controls it... "Ms. Terumi Mei."

“Mr. Takagi.” The two looked at each other, their eyes flashing with intense sparks.

But neither of them were fools, so naturally they wouldn't be stupid enough to start a fight here.

The two didn't even exchange any trash talk; they simply greeted each other and then immediately parted ways.

...The battle has only just begun.

Finally, Mei Terumi stood before Fugaku Uchiha and Hiashi Hyuga.

At this moment, the two Konoha bigwigs were discussing something.

Fugaku Uchiha was beaming, and a rare smile appeared on his usually tense face—it seemed that his eldest son, Itachi Uchiha, had outshone everyone at the Ninja Academy and won first place in his grade with an indisputable advantage.

Although the Uchiha clan has always been powerful and has never lacked skilled fighters.

But his eldest son's success still made him very happy.

In contrast, Hiashi Hyuga's expression was rather strange, as if he was troubled by something extremely serious.

As one of Konoha's top clans, the Hyuga have always lived a very comfortable life.

As Konoha grows stronger, their lives naturally become more and more comfortable.

Terumi couldn't figure out what could be causing the Hyuga clan head such worry.

However, Mei Terumi herself was also dealing with a lot of messy things, so she didn't have the mind to delve into it.

She stepped forward, greeted the two of them, and then went straight to asking her question.

"Excuse me, where is the Fifth Hokage... What, in the Mizukage's hospital room?"... The bad news is that Yagura, who was injured and unconscious, and Hiruko, who inexplicably fell into a coma, have both woken up, and Hiruko has already come to find Yagura.

The good news is... these two people, who should already know the situation inside Kirigakure, not only didn't fight, but instead gathered together again, as if they were discussing something.

Mei Terumi was puzzled by the reactions of these two idiots.

But no matter what she thought, she still had to meet these two people first.

After being informed through multiple levels of the process, she finally met the two shadows.

But these two guys... "Oh, you're here."

How have you been lately? Have you eaten? It was still daytime, but Hiruko and Yagura had all the curtains drawn, and even had black tape pasted on the places where light was still coming through, making the whole room pitch black.

What's even more outrageous is that these two guys, still wearing hospital gowns, each wrapped themselves in a blanket, sat on a bed, and even lit a candle... Are you two naughty children?!

"What...what are you doing?" "Ah, nothing, we just talk like this to sound like the big boss."

Hiruko, a research ninja, explained in a serious tone, "I was studying the effect of light on chakra flow and found that chakra flow is smoother in dark environments, so let's try communicating in this environment and see if we can come up with any new research inspiration."

What time is it? Why are you still playing such a boring game here... But Mei Terumi didn't say these words out loud.

Firstly, she knew that these two shadows were really powerful—even though they were usually unreliable.

Secondly... she was somewhat afraid to see Beiliuhu.

Because she has already breached the contract.

Although Hiruko greeted her with a grin as soon as they met, she didn't know how to respond.

Hiruko turned around and looked at Yagura.

"The successor you chose isn't very good; you actually feel embarrassed about it."

"There's no way around it, the average education level of ninjas is just too low. They're fine with fighting and killing, but if they really have to do anything else..."

Yagura also looked helpless. "Mei Terumi is considered a natural talent, and she's already quite skilled in Kirigakure."

I originally planned to stay with them for another ten years or so, but things have turned out this way... so this is all I can do.

Mei Terumi, who had finally fought her way out, discovered that she seemed to be disliked by both the Mizukage and the Hokage.

What do you mean you actually felt embarrassed...? Isn't that a normal human reaction?! And you, Hiruko!

I've gone through all this, yet you haven't uttered a single word of blame. What are you plotting?

Because of the unexpected conversation between the Mizukage and the Hokage, Mei Terumi's mental preparation, which she had been working on all the way, was completely shattered.

She was curious as to why Hiruko would tolerate her so much.

Shuiying shook her head and smiled bitterly.

Hiruko remained indifferent.

"Let's not talk about the previous agreements anymore. Let bygones be bygones."

Personally, I've always preferred to confront and solve problems head-on, rather than wander around aimlessly, creating more problems and making the situation even more chaotic. "Hiruko said, arms crossed and eyes resolute.

"No matter what happened before, Kirigakure is currently in turmoil. What it needs most now is stability and harmony. Only in this way can this traumatized village regain its vitality."

Chapter 451

Hiruko scanned his surroundings, his tone serious.

“Mei Terumi, Yagura thinks you are the best person to lead Kirigakure to the light, and I think so too.”

So instead of continuing to complain and waste time here, let's talk about something more practical—like how to get you into the position of Water Shadow, that's the most important thing right now.

These words immediately captured Mei Terumi's full attention. She leaned forward slightly, her eyes revealing both anticipation and doubt.

“Indeed… but what should I do? I’m too young, and I’m not very experienced in the village. I’m afraid my prestige is not enough to convince everyone…” Mei Terumi frowned slightly, a hint of worry appearing on her face.

“Nobles love prestige, monks love faith, and everyone loves gold coins.” Hiruko’s lips curled up slightly, revealing a meaningful smile. As he said this, he handed a can of cola with the Konoha logo to Terumi Mei.

"Konoha had already overexpanded and consumed a lot of resources in order to rescue you, and this is ultimately Kirigakure's internal affair."

We can't give you the direct support we used to... but I think as long as the money is there, and Yagura endorses you and uses his influence to promote you, there shouldn't be too much of a problem, right?

Mei Terumi knew perfectly well what kind of big commotion Hiruko was about to cause.

Every time he takes action, it is often accompanied by many unexpected events, always causing a great commotion, and sometimes even killing many people.

However, this involves the future of Kirigakure, so Mei Terumi can't worry about that now.

But... "Cola? Can this stuff make money?"

Mei Terumi stared wide-eyed, her face full of confusion; her reaction was exactly the same as Yagura's.

Hiruko had no choice but to have Terumi Mei sit next to her and slowly explain it to her.

Mei Terumi wasn't the kind of shy little girl, but she still silently maintained a distance of three body lengths from Hiruko, keeping a proper distance.