Alliance Matters

High Heaven Palace, Conference Room

This council chamber, located on the second floor of the palace, is not particularly luxurious; in fact, it can be described as simple.

A long, dark wooden table sat in the center, upon which rested only a tea set and a few neatly stacked scrolls of documents; the atmosphere was quiet and solemn.

Karin very obediently placed a white porcelain cup on Mei Terumi's table, picked up the teapot, and poured tea.

Steam rose from the rim of the cup, dissipating into wisps of white smoke.

After she finished doing all this, she straightened up and smiled at Mei Terumi.

"Thanks."

Mei Terumi smiled and thanked him, then picked up her teacup and took a small sip.

The moment the tea touched the tip of her tongue, she paused slightly.

"The taste is still the same as before..."

Mei Terumi looked at the few tea leaves floating lightly in the teacup and sighed with a touch of nostalgia.

Karin tilted her head slightly, and asked in a low voice with a hint of "worry":

Is the tea not to your taste?

"No."

Mei Terumi shook her head and whispered to Karin:

"This tea is very good, really... very good."

"That's good!"

Upon hearing this, Karin seemed to breathe a sigh of relief and winked mischievously at Koko:

"This tea was specially chosen by my master. He would be very embarrassed if you didn't like it."

His hand, holding the teacup, trembled slightly, and his face suddenly darkened.

"That brat... she absolutely, positively did it on purpose!"

He muttered through gritted teeth, his face instantly hardening as he turned his gaze back to Karin, and said in a low, menacing voice:

Karin!

"Yes, Master."

Karin responded very obediently, her little face even tensing up in perfect cooperation.

"You're talking a bit too much."

He placed his hands on the table and reprimanded in a deep voice:

"Come here quickly, don't delay my important conversation with our guest!"

"Yes!"

Karin responded meekly and took small steps back to Kō's side.

She walked behind Kou, still seemingly a little worried, and secretly gave Mei Terumi a "good luck" look before straightening her face.

Mei Terumi took in this scene, a subtle smile curving her lips, and whispered to Koko:

"You have a wonderful student."

"Ah, that was true before, but that doesn't count now."

Kō gave Karin a disgruntled look, then turned her gaze back to Mei Terumi.

He looked at her, his dark eyes no longer showing the feigned seriousness he had when he was scolding Karin, but instead filled with deep complexity.

"Then, Mei Terumi."

"Let's get down to business, Mist Village... Why did you suddenly decide to form an alliance with the Land of Rice?"

Mei Terumi's expression also turned serious, and she calmly said:

"Before explaining the purpose of our alliance, there's something I think you should know."

"We, Mist Village, will soon be expanding our Logistics Company to the entire Ninja World, building upon the existing foundation of Odd Jobs Agency."

You must have heard about this.

"... I know a little bit about it."

Kou forced a smile and nodded in a serious manner.

Mei Terumi stared speechlessly at Kokoro in front of her, suppressing the urge to retort, and said in a deep voice:

"Since that's the case, then I'll get straight to the point."

"The expansion of the Logistics Company's business is indeed a considerable economic benefit for the countries of the Ninja World."

However, apart from a few major countries like the Land of Fire, most of the smaller Ninja World did not respond positively to this.

"This is clearly not good news for us in Mist Village."

Kou listened quietly, his face expressionless, but he nodded silently in his heart.

As the main architect of this plan, he certainly knew better than anyone that Mei Terumi said was true.

Having Mist Village establish Logistics Company in their home country, and bringing the system that had already been successfully implemented in the Land of Water to other countries, would indeed be of great benefit to the transportation and trade of the Ninja World nations.

However, at the same time, this also means that the Mist Village will more or less affect each country's absolute control over its transportation lifeline.

A powerful nation with a deep-rooted history can rely on its formidable military strength and the deeply intertwined economic interests with the Mist Village to hedge against risks and even gain the upper hand in cooperation.

But small countries are different; they don't have that kind of confidence.

They already had reservations about the Mist Village Odd Jobs Agency) scattered throughout their country, but due to the pressure from the surrounding major powers, they never dared to turn against them.

Now that Mist Village is going a step further by extending its Logistics Company into their territory, it's perfectly normal for them to resist.

"But if the surrounding major powers take the lead and exert pressure, those smaller countries shouldn't be able to make any waves."

Knock calmly addressed Mei Terumi:

"For major powers, the benefits of the Mist Village plan far outweigh the drawbacks."

As for smaller countries, with the example and pressure from their neighboring major powers, even if they are unwilling, they probably won't have any major objections in the end.

"What you said does make some sense."

Mei Terumi nodded, but a faint, melancholic glint flickered in her emerald eyes as she gazed at Kokoro.

"But haven't you forgotten something? The Land of Rice you live in... is also a small country."

"Thanks to you, the alliance between the Land of Rice, the Land of Hot Water, and the Land of Waterfalls has now become a model of 'small country rising to power' in the Ninja World."

The misconception that "small countries can possess strength no less than that of large countries if they work together" is spreading rapidly in more and more places.

And the number of small countries that have developed this misconception... is certainly not small recently.

"Well..."

Knock away, looking somewhat guilty.

That's true. Lately, I've been so busy looking for Orochimaru and Nagato that I haven't paid much attention to the situation in the Ninja World.

I almost forgot, most of the rulers and high-ranking officials of the small countries in the Ninja World are basically at the level of "oddball small countries".

Given their lack of basic understanding of their own national strength and the Land of Rice, it's not hard to understand why they fantasize about a bright future where "small countries unite to fight against large countries."

"... What is this? Did I screw over Mist Village?"

He muttered something to himself, then looked away from Mei Terumi and coughed, feigning seriousness.

"So, Mist Village's intention is to set an example for other smaller countries by forming an alliance with the Land of Rice, so that they will recognize reality and stop harboring unrealistic fantasies, thereby clearing obstacles for the expansion of the Logistics Company?"

"That's exactly right."

Mei Terumi tacitly picked up where he left off, as if they weren't negotiating as representatives of their respective countries, but rather exchanging views as usual in that familiar office of the Mizukage Aide:

"In return for the alliance with Mist Village, the Land of Rice will receive preferential terms equivalent to those of the Land of Fire."

At the same time, Mist Village is willing to offer the same preferential policies to the Land of Rivers, which is allied with the Land of Rice, thereby indirectly deepening the bond of interests between the Land of Rivers Land of Rice.

She paused, then asked in a deep voice:

What do you think?

Koko remained silent for a moment, then leaned back in his chair, his eyelashes drooping, as if he were seriously considering the suggestion that Mei Terumi had just made.

After a long while, Kou raised his eyes again, and a Mei Terumi, relieved smile gradually appeared on the deep and prudent face of the leader of the Land of Rice.

"Your suggestion does make some sense."

"However, the alliance is a matter of great importance, and we must also consider the long-term implications."

"If you don't mind, how about staying in the Land of Rice for a few more days?"

Kou gave Mei Terumi a deep look, and the last trace of affectation in his tone vanished completely.

"You probably think so too, Mei Terumi."

Mei Terumi smiled slightly, neither denying it nor responding, but simply looking back at him quietly.

Kou sighed deeply, his voice filled with resignation, helplessness, exhaustion from working non-stop these past few days, and an overwhelming bittersweet feeling upon seeing old friends again.

He quickly composed himself, turned his head, and whispered to the red-haired girl behind him who was trying to shrink herself into a ball to minimize her presence:

"Let's go out first, Karin."

"Next, I have some personal matters to discuss with her privately."