"Terumi Mei, have you made up your mind?"
The next day, Wuye found Terumi Mei in the Hokage's office.
"How do you want me to choose?"
Terumi Mei raised her head from the mountain of documents, her face full of melancholy.
"How about I help you become the Fifth Mizukage, and in return, Kirigakure Village forms an alliance with Konoha?" Wuye suddenly smiled as he sat down beside her.
Terumi Mei's beautiful eyes shifted. "What kind of alliance?"
Wuye chuckled. "The same kind as with the Land of Rain, of course. The Land of Water opens completely to the Land of Fire, and we'll be responsible for developing the Land of Water."
Dark lines spread across Terumi Mei's forehead. "You want the Land of Water to become like the Land of Rain—an alliance in name, but in reality, it would become a complete vassal state?"
"What's wrong with that?" Wuye said with a smile.
Terumi Mei wanted nothing more than to slap his hateful face with her plump palm.
"The Land of Water is one of the Five Great Nations!"
She glared at Wuye fiercely. "Your appetite is too big. Aren't you afraid the entire ninja world will turn against you?"
"I'm not. Shared interests are the key to binding people together. Not everyone will oppose me. Besides..." Wuye glanced at her profile, "compared to that, what I care about more is..."
He leaned closer and brought his mouth to her ear. "Will you turn against me?"
Terumi Mei's ear tickled, and her face flushed with embarrassment. "Who do you think you are?! You're just a scoundrel who kidnapped me here and then refused to take responsibility!"
"Hey..."
Wuye straightened up, turned to look at her, and said, "All this time, have you felt like you were living under someone