"'Not peaceful' doesn't even begin to describe it. No one can stay out of it, but the number of people in the entire Shinobi World who are truly qualified to defy fate can be counted on one hand."
"Oh, right. I'm talking about the Fourth Shinobi World War. If you mean twenty years from now, then everyone is a slave to fate."
"Huh?"
At Shirozumi's words, Mei Terumi once again felt that the future was completely bleak.
Before, it had been a personal darkness. Now, it was the darkness of the entire Shinobi World.
After listening to the recording just now, she had thought the other party wanted to join forces to deal with Madara Uchiha, who had somehow come back to life.
So Madara wasn't even the most terrifying one?
"This is a copy of the institutional reforms I drafted for the Land of Waves. Take a look when you have time.
"For a Kage, protecting the village is a responsibility.
"Without the strength to protect the village, even if you can satisfy and earn the approval of everyone, in the end you can only kneel amid the ruins of the village and the corpses of your comrades, raging helplessly and weeping bitterly."
As Shirozumi spoke, Mei Terumi had already opened the scroll and skimmed through it.
Most of it consisted of reforms to lighten the burden on the Kage and village leaders.
"With the extra time, aside from training, you should also make sure you have enough personal time to rest."
"Hmm? Why?"
Mei Terumi looked up in confusion when she heard that.
She had thought Shirozumi would say that, to face the threats of the future, she had to devote herself entirely to getting stronger.
"Maintaining good physical and mental health is important too. What I removed was just pointless busyness."
"Huh? Why are there also quite a few methods and reforms concerning the Daimyo's authority?"
"The Land of Waves doesn't have a Daimyo."
"I see. Then I probably won't need the parts after that."
"Hard to say."
--
While Shirozumi chatted with Mei Terumi about everything under the sun, Itachi assisted during the battle between Kirigakure and Yagura, occasionally stepping in to throw a Shuriken and block an attack.
At first, Kirigakure had been wary when he stepped in. After he did it a few times, they stopped paying much attention.
Later, he could even use crows to carry people out of the way of attacks.
Breaking the Genjutsu on the Fourth Mizukage was a major event for Kirigakure.
Kirigakure's strength had declined drastically in the wake of the Blood Mist.
It was easy to see why. The underlying logic of a survival-of-the-fittest system was flawed.
The key to raising poisonous insects was that the winner took all and could absorb the strength of the weak, allowing the insects to grow stronger with every fight.
But people didn't work that way.
Take Zabuza, for example. When he graduated from the Ninja Academy, he killed an entire class of students.
That was only because he had overwhelmingly superior strength. If he hadn't, and the others had managed to injure him—if he lost an arm or a leg, went blind, or became deaf—
Even if he had ultimately emerged victorious, how much would a cripple have increased Kirigakure's fighting strength?
So most of Kirigakure's core fighting force was actually here.
Meanwhile, at the Daimyo's residence in the Land of Water, Kisame and Zabuza had already infiltrated.
The Daimyo had guards, but against Kisame and Zabuza, they couldn't even manage a cry before they died.
The Daimyo of the Land of Water was soaking in a hot spring.
The thick mist rising from the spring became so dense under the Mist Technique that no one could see a hand in front of their face.
Before long, after confirming that there wasn't a single heartbeat nearby, Kisame and Zabuza left.
Everything happened in silence.
Zabuza was well-versed in the Silent Killing Technique. Kisame didn't specialize in it, but with their overwhelming strength, staying undetected was easy.
What happened at the Daimyo's residence went unnoticed.
Not only the Daimyo's children and relatives, but even the dogs and cats they kept were chopped down by the two of them.
They made sure not to leave behind anyone qualified to inherit the Daimyo's title and continue the hereditary line.
Under these circumstances, even if they were discovered, it would take two or three days, or perhaps even longer.
After taking care of the Daimyo, they had completed Shirozumi's mission, but they didn't leave by boat as he had instructed.
Instead, they took the initiative to gather information on the spot and decided to take care of some so-called "ministers" as well.
Then they would leave.
An entire day passed.
Shirozumi's group gathered again in the Land of Waves.
"Strategist, remember to call me next time there's a mission like this."
Kisame looked thoroughly satisfied.
Though Kisame looked like some kind of vicious beast, he didn't actually enjoy killing people. The one in the Akatsuki Organization who liked killing the most was Hidan.
He simply loved killing people and offering them as sacrifices to Jashin.
Kisame had enjoyed himself this time because the killing had made him feel something real, made him feel the meaning of being alive.
"Did things go smoothly on Kirigakure's side?"
Zabuza looked at Itachi and Shirozumi as he asked.
"I helped Kirigakure break the Genjutsu on the Fourth Mizukage. As for the rest... I'm not sure."
Itachi explained what he had done, then hesitated and turned his gaze toward Shirozumi.
"What do you mean, you're not sure?"
Zabuza furrowed his brows.
Hearing the first half, he had thought that with their help, the plan had succeeded.
But what did "not sure" mean?
Had they failed?
"The Strategist only spoke with a Kirigakure kunoichi while we were fighting the Fourth Mizukage. Afterward, he left with me."
Itachi kept his eyes on Shirozumi, wanting to know what he would say.
"She's the future Fifth Mizukage."
Those words left everyone speechless.
If he had discussed things with the Fifth Mizukage, what more was there to say?
Afterward, Shirozumi had not only given Mei Terumi advice on reforms, but had also offered her some suggestions about the Six-Tails Jinchuriki, to help her become Mizukage ahead of schedule.
Yagura hadn't died after regaining his senses, so it would have been enough for him to step forward and support Mei Terumi.
While he was still alive, he could hand over the position early, like the Third Hokage or Fourth Hokage in Konoha.
But after remembering what he had done, Yagura would most likely feel deeply guilty and think he no longer had the right to wield the Mizukage's authority.
In that case, to improve her chances of becoming Mizukage and claim the position from Genji ahead of time, she would need to rely on another Jinchuriki.
The method Shirozumi suggested was simple.
"Just talk to them nicely. Don't spend all day trying to hunt them down."
The Shinobi World was often strange. People used their fists when they should have talked, and talked when they should have used their fists.
When dealing with a Jinchuriki, all you needed to do was start talking things out.
If they wouldn't listen and ran at the sight of you, then send a letter by scroll.
The Six-Tails Jinchuriki was quite reasonable. In the original story, he had already planned to return to Kirigakure, but he ran into the same Akatsuki Organization team that had captured the Nine-Tails.
"All right, Zabuza, Haku, develop your operation here. If you run into any trouble, send someone to the headquarters."
Shirozumi said this because he was preparing to head back.
He had told Mei Terumi the same thing.
If she encountered any problems she couldn't resolve, such as failing to persuade the Six-Tails Jinchuriki, she could send a message to the Land of Waves, and they would pass it on to him.
"Something's come up."
Itachi raised his hand, wearing his ring.
Kisame had received the message too.
"What is it?" Shirozumi asked.
"Deidara went back to Iwagakure and got trapped."
Before you continue