Farewell, Shisui

Enjoying Pakura's massage, Yamei wanted to speak several times, but seeing how absorbed Pakura was in her storytelling, he ultimately gave in.

Since he could not resist, he might as well enjoy it.

Seeing Yamei relax his muscles with such peace of mind, Pakura's lips curled up slightly as her hands continued moving.

A few minutes later, Yamei had gained a general understanding of the Land of Waves' current situation.

The country was highly unified and entirely controlled by the cabinet, which consisted of twelve elders. Every policy had to be discussed by the council before it could be implemented.

These twelve elders came from all walks of life and had been selected one by one by the people below them.

If any of them committed wrongdoing and lost the people's support, a new election would be held to replace them.

Of the twelve elders, the chief elder was Shisui, known as the Great Divine Envoy.

After him came Pakura, followed by Zabuza.

The three of them held the vast majority of authority. Of course... that was only on the surface. The one who truly held the power was Shisui.

As for Haku, he was merely Zabuza's little follower...

Raiga Kurosuki served as the head of the Land of Waves' security department.

Yamei nodded as he listened. The Land of Waves currently had five top-tier fighters: two at Kage level and three elite Jonin. That was fairly good.

And once Uchiha Izumi and Mikoto joined the Land of Waves, they would have three Kage-level fighters and four elite Jonin!

Of course, Izumi still needed further training as a Kage-level fighter. She lagged behind in many areas, such as taijutsu, and was currently only comparable to an elite Jonin.

"Reporting to Lord Yamei and Divine Envoy Pakura, the ship has docked. Please give your instructions."

Just then, after the cabin swayed slightly, Tazuna's voice sounded from outside the door.

Yamei drew back his feet and led Pakura onto the deck, while sending a thought through his mind.

Before long, Izumi and Mikoto, who had received the message through Empathy, boarded the ship with the children.

"Who is this?" Mikoto and Izumi looked curiously at Pakura.

"Greetings, you two. My name is Pakura."

"Shakuton Pakura of Sunagakure!?" The two women were both astonished and puzzled. They had heard of this powerful woman from Sunagakure.

But had the rumors not said that she had died two years ago? Why was she here? And why did she appear to follow Yamei's lead so completely?

"I am now Pakura of the Land of Waves, no longer Pakura of Sunagakure," Pakura corrected them.

"This is..." Mikoto and Izumi froze, unable to stop themselves from turning to Yamei.

"I sent the information to you through Empathy. Take a look yourselves." Yamei tapped his temple.

Suddenly, information flowed into Izumi and Mikoto's minds through Empathy. As they continued reading through it, the two women's expressions grew increasingly shocked!

"All of this... is true!?" Mikoto stared blankly at Yamei.

"It is true. And from now on, you will also live in the Land of Waves and help me build it. Are you willing?" Yamei invited them warmly.

Izumi and Mikoto exchanged a glance, then turned back to Yamei with their eyes shining brightly.

They knew Yamei was formidable, but they had only thought he was an exceptionally powerful person.

They had never imagined... that he had created an ideal nation they had never even dared to dream of!

"We are!" the two women answered at the same time.

Suddenly, hope appeared in Mikoto's eyes as she looked at Yamei.

Before she could speak, Yamei already understood what she was thinking. He shook his head. "You know Itachi. Though he resembles Shisui in many ways, he is even more stubborn than Shisui."

"As for Sasuke, that is impossible for now... the Land of Waves is not yet suited to being exposed before the world."

Mikoto's gaze dimmed, but a moment later, she revealed a relieved smile. "I understand."

Yamei nodded as the great ship officially set sail for the Land of Waves!

The Land of Waves was an island nation. As soon as the ship docked at the harbor, Yamei saw Shisui and the others waiting at the pier.

"Greetings, Lord Yamei!!"

The moment Yamei disembarked, Shisui and dozens of people behind him enthusiastically came forward to greet him. Seeing this, Mikoto and Izumi, who stood behind Yamei, became even more astonished.

Yamei, however, frowned slightly and activated Secret Technique: Empathy as he asked in a low voice:

"Shisui, why did you not use an alias when you came to the Land of Waves? And my name has spread as well..."

Shisui paused at those words, then smiled. "Yamei, do not worry. Aside from the personal guards who picked you up and the higher-ups I brought with me, no one else knows our true identities."

"Furthermore, I used a genjutsu seal. These people will not and cannot reveal any information."

Only then did Yamei nod in satisfaction, while also taking a closer look at Shisui.

He had grown taller and more mature, and his face bore the marks of hardship and diligent work.

"Greetings, Lord Yamei!"

Behind him, Zabuza, Raiga Kurosuki, Haku, and the other elders stepped forward to pay their respects.

"Mm. Since you have joined the Land of Waves, work hard to build your home." Yamei nodded, accepting them.

"We will certainly work hard!" Zabuza and the others said excitedly.

Before this, they had actually been quite uneasy. Over the past two years, they had witnessed many things they had never dared to imagine before. They had come to see this place as their home and had contributed their own strength to it.

Now that they suddenly learned of Yamei's arrival, they feared that he would dislike them, refuse to accept them, and drive them away.

Now, the heavy stone in their hearts had finally fallen away.

Shisui then looked toward the people behind Yamei with a complicated expression.

"Aunt Mikoto, Izumi, it has been a long time."

"It has been a long time, Shisui." Looking at that familiar face, the two women could only feel that everything had changed.

Shisui nodded. There was not much sadness in his heart, or perhaps he had already come to terms with it long ago. After all, he understood Itachi's personality well enough.

What was more, he was someone who had died once already. He had devoted his current life to Yamei!

He looked toward a middle-aged man behind him. "Ouyu, please take Aunt Mikoto and the others to the prepared residence."

"Yes!"

Ouyu stepped forward and respectfully said to Mikoto's group, "Two honored guests, this way, please."

Mikoto and Izumi both raised their eyes to look at Yamei. Only after seeing him nod did they say, "Thank you."

Watching the Uchiha group leave, Shisui said gratefully to Yamei, "Thank you, Yamei."

"Was that not what I promised?" Yamei smiled faintly and looked into the distance. "Show me around the Land of Waves?"

"With pleasure." Shisui smiled and nodded, while Zabuza and the others followed behind them as well.

As they walked through the streets of the Land of Waves, people came and went, every face filled with happy smiles.

Out in the countryside, farmers busied themselves in the fields. From time to time, they boasted and sang with friends working beside them, creating a scene of perfect harmony.

At times, they could also see ninjas stepping forward to greatly reduce the time and cost of work that would otherwise require tremendous effort from ordinary people.

It was difficult to imagine that such a nation could exist in the ninja world, where war was the dominant theme.

"Keep it up. This place will become a flame of hope. I hope that one day, it will burn across the entire ninja world." Light flashed in Yamei's eyes.

"I believe that day will come!" Shisui was equally full of determination.

"Mm. Next, let us return to the cabinet. Since everyone is here, we can discuss some matters together."

At those words, everyone's expressions turned slightly solemn. This was the first cabinet meeting since Yamei's arrival, and its significance was extraordinary!