Chapter 20: A Friendship Across Time
"…"
Terumi Mei recognized the voice as her own.
The first few sentences, aside from hearing "Uchiha Madara", were completely incomprehensible. Only the last one…
"What do you mean by 'an older single woman who only knows how to spray water'?!"
Terumi Mei lowered her head slightly, her face darkening as she gritted her teeth.
"Don't rush," Shiromo said seriously. "You said it yourself, and besides, I think there's something wrong with that statement."
"Oh?" Terumi Mei's emerald eyes lit up instantly. "Then tell me…"
"You not only spray water, but also slime and acid mist."
"…So being an older single woman is right, then, huh?"
Terumi Mei's expression froze again, teeth clenching once more.
huh?
Before she could even continue fuming, Terumi Mei suddenly froze. How did Shiromo know she also knew Lava Release and Boil Release? She was currently just an unknown nobody, never even leaving the Land of Water. Could it be…
Terumi Mei was beginning to believe Shiromo's story about coming from the future. She never imagined that in the future she would become the Fifth Mizukage and even fight the legendary Uchiha Madara… Wasn't Uchiha Madara long gone?
The sheer amount of information Shiromo had given her was overwhelming, leaving her momentarily unsure of what to say first.
After holding back for a while, Terumi Mei finally released her grip on her lower lip, her red lips slightly parted. "I know you won't tell me about your private matters, like how you returned. So tell me, how did we meet in the future, and where did you get this thing?"
"Is this all you need to know?"
"Actually, it's nothing much. During a future Chunin Exam, there was a Five Kage Summit. All five Kage gathered, so I took a picture with each of them."
"As for this recording, it was originally a video. The Sixth Mizukage went to the meeting, and you, who came with him, had nothing to do. We chatted, and then you decided to go to a pub for a drink, and you dragged me along. I was worried that if something happened, no one would be able to testify, so I recorded it. This is the extracted audio."
Heh.
Terumi Mei felt like she was about to laugh out loud. What did he mean, "worried that if something happened, no one would be able to testify"? She was so beautiful and alluring, shouldn't he be worried about 'her'?
Hiss, wait.
"You just said you're from how many years in the future?" Terumi Mei clenched her fists, looking nervously at Shiromo.
"Twenty."
"Ah." Terumi Mei was speechless. Twenty years from now… will she still be single?
Today was supposed to be a good day. They had gathered to dispel the genjutsu on the Fourth Mizukage, blow away the Blood Mist from Kirigakure, and welcome a bright future. But hearing this news, Terumi Mei instantly felt her future shrouded in darkness, losing all motivation.
"Don't be too sad, it's not your fault. There are plenty of opportunities to change things now, aren't there? Look, of the five great ninja villages, the first place I thought of was the Land of Water, to find you. That's because we were kind of friends back then, despite the age difference…"
"Cough cough cough!!!"
Originally, listening to Shiromo's comforting words, Terumi Mei's mood had gradually calmed down. But then Shiromo said "kind friend", and those three words made her vision go black, almost causing her to vomit blood.
After a long while, Terumi Mei finally recovered.
"What's that photo you're holding?"
Terumi Mei realized that what Shiromo had taken out of the scroll included not only a cassette tape but also a photo, which he had just mentioned.
"Here, handle it yourself."
Shiromo didn't say anything more to further upset Terumi Mei and simply handed her the photo.
Terumi Mei took a deep breath, mustered her courage, and looked at it.
"!"
Even with mental preparation, she nearly fainted.
"Boiling Release: Skillful Mist Technique!"
Terumi Mei tossed the photo aside into the air and exhaled a thick cloud of acidic mist. The Boiling Release, capable of melting Susanoo, instantly reduced the photo to ashes.
Thud.
After dealing with the photo, Terumi Mei turned around, walked to Shiromo, pressed down on his shoulders, straightened his head, and, under Shiromo's bewildered expression, said, "Look at me, remember what I look like now, and forget your previous memories!"
Terumi Mei now had only one bright green eye showing; the other was hidden by her long reddish-brown hair. She wasn't wearing the strapless dress of the future, but ordinary Kirigakure ninja attire. However, the black stockings below remained unchanged…
"Uh, I say, Mizukage-sama, before you say that, why don't you go and borrow Kotoamatsukami from someone?" Shiromo smiled helplessly.
"Don't call me Mizukage, I'm not Mizukage yet. Just call me Mei. Give me the tape, and I can consider listening to your discussion about cooperation."
Terumi Mei released Shiromo and reached for the tape in his hand. Shiromo didn't resist, letting her take it. She didn't destroy the tape immediately, but put it away. Her expression returned to calm and serious.
"Tell me about the cooperation."
Terumi Mei was actually the youngest of the five Kage in the Fourth Shinobi World War. After the death of the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, leadership of Kirigakure was held by the Genji. Terumi Mei only became Mizukage at the Five Kage Summit. She was directly appointed Mizukage by the Genji without objections, partly due to her success in resolving the Yagura genjutsu incident.
Most importantly, Terumi Mei's long-standing love and loyalty to the village were evident to all, earning her recognition and leading to her becoming Mizukage.
Therefore, now that Shiromo, a person from the future, mentioned cooperation with Kirigakure, Terumi Mei naturally took it seriously. For this reason, she completely put aside the sadness about being an older single woman and entered a calm, professional state.
"Cooperation. Firstly, the Land of Waves is currently within our sphere of influence. Once the Blood Mist is dispelled and the Land of Water opens up, all diplomacy can proceed through there… The Land of Water's resources are mainly seafood and tourism based on its sunny beaches. Although I haven't been there in the future, I was curious, and you gave me a few photos…"
Shiromo had just taken out the photos when Terumi Mei snatched them away. She seemed afraid her future image would appear on them again. However, this time, there were only landscapes and tourists, which relieved her.
"Such beautiful scenery, such a leisurely atmosphere. Can the future after the Blood Mist dissipates be this wonderful?" Terumi Mei looked at the photos wistfully.
"Thank you. Knowing this will save me a lot of trouble. I'll try to persuade Elder Genji to talk to the Daimyo and get Kirigakure of the Land of Water to develop in this direction and cooperate with you."
After regaining her composure, Terumi Mei thanked him earnestly.
Faced with Terumi Mei's gratitude, Shiromo shook his head.
"No, I hope you become Mizukage as soon as possible and gain control over Kirigakure and the Land of Water. You don't think I traveled through time all the way to the Land of Water just to cooperate and make money, do you?"
"Will the future still be turbulent?" Terumi Mei sighed slightly. In fact, ever since she began to believe that Shiromo was from the future, she had already had a premonition of this.
(End of this chapter)