Do You Still Want Me?

The door was opened, Temari behind her back, looking somewhat uneasy, as if she were having an affair.

"What is it?" he asked, his voice somewhat cold.

He wore a tight-fitting black long-sleeved shirt that accentuated his large, muscular muscles. His taut jaw was slightly raised as he slowly and deliberately examined Temari.

Upon hearing this, Temari subconsciously looked up and met his gaze again. It seemed that she had just taken a shower and hadn't had time to dry herself yet, as the edges of her hair were still wet, and her eyes were also wet.

"No, about last time. I just wanted to ask how you are." Temari's mind was a complete blank, and she didn't even know what she had said. She wanted to disappear into a crack in the ground.

Naruto glanced back at the room, then at the next room. He figured Tsunade was still taking a bath; the arguments at the meeting were exhausting, and she probably wouldn't be having dinner anytime soon.

He also happened to have something he wanted to ask Temari; the deep cooperation between Sand and Konohagakure that he had brought about was all thanks to Temari. Both morally and logically, she had indeed helped him a great deal.

Thinking this, he grabbed a piece of clothing from the doorway and glanced at her with his eyes down.

"Shall we go for a walk outside?"

"Okay." Temari swallowed, her mind still a little foggy, and could only let Naruto lead her by his words.

Just as he was about to leave, he seemed to remember something, turned back into the room, grabbed a coat, and tossed it to Temari. Without waiting for her to accept it, he walked out.

With a splash, she lifted her leg from the Kurotsuchi bathtub, her toes landing on the absorbent mat. Humming a song, she bent down and wrapped herself in a snow-white bathrobe.

The inn on the floor belonging to Iwagakure was spacious, with six rooms. She had one room by herself, while Ōnoki, being elderly and needing care, shared a room with Akatsuchi.

"The weather in the Land of Iron is really terrible; it snows for a third of the year." Kurotsuchi stood by the window, gazing at the heavy snow outside, and stretched, naturally unaccustomed to the climate here.

She glanced casually outside, then her gaze suddenly stopped, and she narrowed her eyes.

"Aren't those people from Konohagakure and Sand? Why are they walking together? Can allied nations really get this close?"

On a snowy day.

The two stood silently under the eaves of the pentagonal pavilion, both wearing matching black coats, surrounded by a vast expanse of white. Temari, wearing her coat, exuded a faint, pleasant fragrance.

Suddenly remembering the glance Naruto had given her earlier that day, her heart began to pound uncontrollably again. She didn't know what was wrong with her; just one look from him made her feel hopeless.

She has met many people and suffered a lot since she was a child. When Kankuro was afraid of Gaara when they were young, she was the one who mediated between them.

Later, when she discovered that her father also seemed to want to kill Gaara, she began to realize that some things were beyond her control. But she still did what she could to take care of her family and diligently practice her training.

In Sunagakure, there were other men her age who tried to pursue her, some good-looking, some strong, but she didn't like any of them. She thought they were all too immature, like puppies wagging their tails everywhere.

She habitually enjoys taking care of people and is relied upon by her younger brother. But Temari already has two younger brothers. If she were to find another immature younger brother as a boyfriend? That would be ridiculous; it would just be a waste of time.

In the cold wind, she looked down at her chest, thinking for a long time but not knowing what to say.

Fortunately, Naruto spoke first, his voice neither too loud nor too soft, lacking the coldness he usually showed, and he stared at her as he spoke.

"I've heard about the deepening of the alliance between Sand and Konohagakure. At that time, it was quite surprising that Sand could make such a decision."

Temari listened intently, then suddenly realized that she wasn't mentioned at all in the entire sentence. Her expression remained unchanged, but a moment of sadness washed over her; she hadn't done all that entirely for the sake of Konohagakure.

After saying that, Naruto visibly relaxed, as if he had completed a task.

"In fact, Sand simply made a decision that was in our best interests. After all, we are allies, and we should unite in a situation like this in Konohagakure."

Temari forced a smile as she spoke, her smile quickly froze.

At this moment, the wind and snow intensified, Naruto stood with his hands in his coat pockets. Seeing Temari's increasingly strained expression, a smile appeared in his eyes.

As dusk fell, the sky gradually darkened due to the snowfall.

"Come here," he said, in a commanding tone.

Temari couldn't resist, and blushing, she slowly moved over. Afraid of being disliked for standing too close, she cautiously stopped about three or four steps away from him.

Naruto stared at her, amused. "I didn't see you this far away that day either. How come you're like this now?"

"That's not all." Temari dejectedly, muttering something before falling silent again, as if giving up on herself. "Whatever you say goes."

"Thank you anyway," he said directly. "Although what you did may not have been entirely for me, it did help me a lot, so thank you anyway, Temari."

The wind and snow were blowing softly and densely Temari stood still, and her heart skipped a beat when her name was called. It was just a simple expression of gratitude, but she felt an urge to jump up and cheer.

She had mentally prepared herself before leaving home, and wouldn't care if his attitude remained as impatient and indifferent as ever. But she never expected things to develop this way; it was somewhat unexpected.

"It's alright." Temari smiled, her eyes narrowed, but she still seemed a little awkward.

"I was a bit rude to you before, not very friendly, but I won't do it again," Naruto said. "I was just a little angry at the time, and I didn't expect you to be scared."

Temari felt a little panicked as she listened; something seemed wrong.

"Um... I've forgotten about what happened before, you don't need to take it to heart." She said nervously, stammering, "I was quite rude back then, I deserved it."

Her voice trailed off, and she looked up to speak to Naruto.

"You don't need to help me in the future. I can handle most things myself, and they're not that difficult." Naruto stood there casually, his expression indifferent, keeping everyone at arm's length.

Temari's body was stiff, her mind was buzzing, and she didn't hear a word of what Naruto said afterward.

She didn't notice Naruto leaving until the very end, and just stood there in a daze.

The talks broke down again.

Naruto sighed as he watched the atmosphere at the Five Kage Summit grow increasingly tense. It was even more boring than he had imagined; the Kumogakure was being completely unreasonable.

Ōnoki is a seasoned scoundrel, always ready to mock everyone, and doesn't seem to care if Iwagakure has anyone to take his place. But if Kumogakure is like a gang, then Iwagakure is practically a feudal dynasty.

The local tyrant Ōnoki will eventually pass the position of Tsuchikage to his granddaughter Kurotsuchi, just as she is doing now, attending the Five Kage Summit while Kurotsuchi gains experience.

Those standing here right now, apart from Sand and Konohagakure, are basically the successors of the Five Kage.

"If we can't reach an agreement tomorrow, let's just leave." In the room, Tsunade put down her wine glass, rubbed her temples, and said, "Arguing with those stubborn guys is just too exhausting."

"Fine, I'm tired of this place anyway," he said, discreetly pocketing the wine glass with one hand. "Staying here won't get me anywhere."

"You don't care, but I'm the Hokage." Tsunade reached for her wine glass but missed, and immediately looked annoyed. She then reached out and grabbed Naruto's collar with her other hand.

"Take it out."

"Drink less." He took half a glass of wine out of the Sealing Space. "Isn't Lord Tsunade always training Kakashi-sensei? She obviously doesn't want to be tied up with official duties all day, does she?"

"That's a different matter." Tsunade took a swig of her drink. "I really don't want to sit in that damn Hokage's Office every day, but there's nothing I can do about it right now."

"Konohagakure needs me. I can leave when Kakashi becomes a qualified Kage."

"Where to?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Let's keep traveling, where else can we go?" Tsunade said. "Are we going to stay in this village and spend every day in memories? Only something new can dilute those memories."

Perhaps the meeting did not go smoothly, and fueled by alcohol, Tsunade opened up a little to Naruto.

"That's true," Naruto agreed. "I want to travel around and see the world. There are no restrictions now. When I become Jonin, I'll leave the village and travel too."

"You mean you'll leave once you're an adult?" Tsunade glanced at him sideways.

"Pretty much." Naruto also mentioned a little about his future plans, "I plan to travel to different places and see the local customs and culture."

"Two or three jobs a year, enough to make a living, perfect."

"Two or three missions, is that enough money?" Tsunade sneered. Her neck was a little red from drinking. She tugged at her clothes, revealing large patches of her white skin, but she didn't care.

Naruto didn't care, acting completely immune, and stared at him squarely. He lay back in his chair, his tone relaxed and casual, and said with a smile.

"If I don't have enough money, I'll borrow from Lord Tsunade. Anyway, I won't starve."

"Looking for me?" Tsunade laughed. "Looking for me is fine, I can give it to you, just call me 'older sister' and I'll give it to you."

Naruto gave a cold laugh just like Tsunade's, "You can lie to me, but you can't lie to yourself."

With a thud, Naruto, jacket and all, was thrown out of the room by Tsunade, crashing heavily against the wall in the hallway. Tsunade seemed a little drunk, giving him a sharp, piercing look.

"Oh, dinner will be delivered to my room."

After saying that, the door slammed shut with a loud bang.

He realized he'd made a fool of himself, and grimaced as he stood up, rubbing his sore back. Fortunately, this entire floor belonged to Konohagakure, and the corridors were deserted.

He sighed, admitting his sharp tongue, and slowly went back to his room.

However, when Naruto pushed the dinner cart and knocked on Tsunade's door at dinner time, his sexy female boss seemed to have forgotten the unpleasantness of lunch and gestured for him to come in.

Fortunately, Tsunade doesn't hold grudges, and dinner was a relaxed and pleasant experience.

The next day.

The final day of the talks that Tsunade had mentioned had arrived, and the atmosphere at the negotiating table was incredibly tense. It was like a powder keg that had been accumulating for a long time, ready to explode at any moment.

Even the usually gentle Mizukage Mei Terumi, became assertive, coldly rebuking Kumogakure and Iwagakure at the meeting table. Her philosophy coincided with Tsunade's, both believing in the power of the younger generation.

The Fourth Raikage A, was like a godfather to the Shinobi World, constantly spouting the rules of the Shinobi World: the world of the strong, the law of the jungle, survival of the fittest.

Kazekage Ōnoki Gaara, also had a sharp attitude, looking down on the older generation of Raikage and Tsuchikage. Although young, he was also very composed and could retort to Ōnoki's difficult questions without missing a single word.

Ōnoki was still the same old scoundrel, acting like a local tyrant because of his seniority. His words were always sarcastic and pointed, and when he mentioned Gaara, he directly pointed out that the Fourth Kazekage had been tricked and defeated.

As for Hokage Tsunade, she was only there to argue and had no intention of taking responsibility for the Two-Tails incident.

Raikage: "All the rogue ninja came from your four villages. Shouldn't you send ninja to eliminate them? We, the Kumogakure, have no traitors!"

Ōnoki: "Raikage-sama, what you're saying is a bit much. We've already issued arrest warrants for the rogue ninja and sent them to various countries. Only by obtaining clues can we act effectively; there's no point in searching for a needle in a haystack."

"Besides, the problem of rogue ninjas has been around for a while now. We can't just waste the village's resources for no reason just because the Two-Tails was Kumogakure."

Mei Terumi: "The Lord Tsuchikage is right. Our Kirigakure has also had many rogue ninjas, and we have dealt with most of the rogue ninjas that we could track down over the years."

"Most of the remaining rogue ninjas possess strength comparable to that of Jonin, and tracking them down would require a considerable amount of manpower and resources."

Gaara placed his hands on the table, crossed. "Sunagakure has tracked down an organization called Akatsuki, whose members are all powerful ninjas who have defected from various ninja villages."

"Sasori, a ninja who defected from Sunagakure many years ago, has been serving the Akatsuki Organization."

Tsunade tapped the table. "Stop wasting time, Raikage. Just say what you have to say. Don't make baseless accusations against us. What's your real purpose?"

The talks unsurprisingly failed, with the Raikage flying into a rage and Tsunade storming out. The leader of the Land of Iron, Mifune, had sent someone once, but Tsunade bluntly stated there was nothing left to discuss.

"Go tell those people in Kumogakure that they should either discuss something feasible or just disperse." Tsunade's gaze was somewhat cold. "Tell them to stop bringing up Sasuke Uchiha. It's hard to say whether Kumogakure actually has any rogue ninjas. Anyone can say nice things."

The people from the Land of Iron delivered the message, but the Kumogakure unexpectedly yielded.

Naruto was already packing his things when Tsunade suddenly told him to stay another day for the final meeting the next day. Without saying anything else, he left.

In the afternoon, Naruto accompanied Tsunade in the room as they carefully reviewed the documents sent by the Kumogakure. After two hours, he grew a little tired, but when he turned around, he saw Tsunade still meticulously examining the documents.

He yawned and decided to go for a walk. Without disturbing Tsunade, he quietly left on his own.

He stepped outside and stood under the eaves of the inn. Gazing at the cotton-like snowflakes, he exhaled a breath of warm air and looked into the distance for a while to relieve the fatigue in his eyes.

The attitude of the Hidden Cloud Village is not of much concern to him. The Mizukage Kumogakure, Mei Terumi, seems to be inclined towards Tsunade, but in reality, she has reached a temporary tacit understanding with the Tsuchikage.

Konohagakure and Sand are allies, so naturally they have no disagreements. With the Mizukage and Tsuchikage reaching an understanding, Kumogakure couldn't morally condemn either side.

This resulted in a three-way standoff in the talks. Ultimately, Kumogakure compromised, agreeing to resolve the Two-Tails issue privately.

This meeting mainly focused on resource issues, and took the opportunity to seek cooperation with the four countries.

The plan was to use the Two-Tails incident to force the four kingdoms to make concessions, but no matter how tense the situation became, none of the four Kage would budge. When Tsunade announced she was leaving, Kumogakure was dumbfounded.

They couldn't possibly have all that effort to convene a Five Kage Summit only to have it fail because of endless bickering. After much deliberation, Kumogakure conceded first.

This is a good sign; at least it breaks the deadlock.

Just as Naruto's thoughts were wandering, he suddenly heard someone coming downstairs. He thought it was Tsunade and instinctively turned his head, only to see Temari's resentful face.

The wind and snow intensified, and a piece of wood was suddenly lifted up and quickly swallowed by the snow.

The surroundings were far from quiet; a howling wind obscured the sound of falling snow. But the chaotic white noise made Temari's footsteps and heavy breathing all the more distinct.

Konohagakure and Sand lived on different floors of the same inn, next to which were inns shared by Iwagakure and Kirigakure. Most of the time, no one was to be seen here.

As for Temari, Naruto already made it clear last time. He said it's a fresh start, and past grievances are wiped clean, so there's no need to deliberately help her.

Seeing Temari's absent-minded look, he wanted to ask her if she had heard him, but then he thought better of it and left. If she didn't know, she might think he had done something wrong, which would be really troublesome.

I don't know if it's because she caught a cold or something, but Temari's voice is a little hoarse.

Do you still want me?

The weather's changed, and I've caught a cold. That's all for today. I'll update again tomorrow morning. Take care, everyone.