Morning.
A light drizzle fell outside the Village Hidden in Mist.
Mei Terumī lay in bed.
The bedding had been replaced with fresh sheets, carrying a faint, unfamiliar fragrance.
After waking up during the night to eat dinner, she'd fallen back asleep quickly.
Even by the next morning, her entire body still felt drained.
Had it not been for her fear of others discovering her condition, she would've already summoned a medical ninja for a checkup.
Thinking of this, Mei's face slightly flushed.
Natsume was the perfect embodiment of the saying, "Looks slim when clothed, yet hides curves beneath."
She never imagined she'd be bested by him.
At that moment, a sound came from outside the window.
Mei tensed instinctively.
She warily looked over, then relaxed again.
"Lord Mizukage, good morning."
Natsume pushed open the window and landed steadily.
In his hand was a lunch box.
"Couldn't you have just used the door?"
Mei pouted as she spoke.
"Of course I can," Natsume smiled. "But you'll understand soon enough what kind of door I'm referring to."
Mei paused for several seconds, then gave up on trying to figure it out.
Her gaze fell on the lunch box as she said, "Go out first—I need to change."
"I'll keep watch," Natsume placed the lunch box on the bedside table, crossed his arms, leaned against the wall, and said, "To make sure no one peeks."
Mei almost laughed out loud in anger.
Snapping, she hurled a pillow straight at him.
"Who else would peek in here besides you?!"
He caught the pillow effortlessly.
"I'm not peeking," he replied. "I'm watching openly—it's completely different."
Mei had nothing to say.
Once again, she witnessed his shameless—no, downright vulgar—side.
Hesitating briefly, she reached out and grabbed her outfit.
Immediately, disappointment flashed across Natsume's face.
So she wasn't completely naked after all.
What a pity—he missed out on a spectacular sight.
Still, not bad at all.
Her flustered appearance was definitely worth savoring.
"I made breakfast for you," Natsume pointed toward the lunch box and asked, "Should I feed you too?"
"I'm not some child," fully dressed now, the blush on Mei's face gradually faded.
Taking the lunch box, she went to the living room.
"Just wait a second."
Putting down the lunch box, Mei walked into the bathroom.
Natsume considered following along to help somehow.
But she seemed to have predicted this, shooting him a fierce glare.
To avoid aggravating her chest wound through anger, he obediently stayed put.
Besides, last night had indeed been rather excessive—time to start making amends properly.
Before long, Mei returned.
Opening the lunch box, she found porridge inside.
After taking a sip, her eyes brightened slightly.
It had to be admitted—Natsume was insufferable, yet surprisingly adept in the kitchen.
So good it didn't resemble typical male cooking in this world.
By that standard alone, he could make someone a decent husband.
Walking behind her, Natsume began massaging her shoulders.
Mei Terumī let out a soft snort and asked, "A little late to be buttering me up now, aren't we?"
"What do you mean 'now'? Didn't I behave myself last night?"
Natsume bent down close to her ear and whispered teasingly.
Mei felt his warm breath against her skin and heard his playful words. Her face turned red—from her cheeks all the way to the tips of her ears.
"Go away!"
Her voice was tinged with embarrassment.
"Alright, alright. You eat first."
Natsume gave her head a gentle pat and said warmly.
Mei shot him a look, though her expression softened slightly.
But she didn't respond, instead quietly sipping her porridge.
Ten minutes later, Mei felt warmth spreading through her body and her strength slowly returning.
"Thanks, Hokage-sama."
Looking at Natsume, who waited quietly nearby, Mei couldn't help but smile. It wasn't often she saw him this well-behaved.
"You're welcome," he smiled back. "By the way, Mizukage-sama, do you still need to go to work today?"
"Of course."
Mei stretched lazily. "I'm not as free as you are."
"If you handle everything yourself, of course you'll be swamped." Natsume pulled out a scroll. "Here, take a look."
"What is this?" Mei asked, somewhat puzzled.
"It's Konoha's operational system," Natsume said casually. "You could try delegating some work to your subordinates."
The Mist Village's organizational structure closely resembled Konoha's original system. In fact, many ninja villages followed similar models. The prototype had indeed originated from Konoha.
For example, the Anbu were created by Tobirama Senju, the Second Hokage. Once proven effective, other villages adopted similar systems. Even institutions like the Ninja Academy followed roughly the same procedures.
However, after Natsume reformed Konoha's system, no one else tried to copy it. The reason was simple—it would disrupt the status quo and infringe upon existing interests of various ninja clans and shinobi. No one wanted to reshuffle the deck unless they possessed both Natsume's reputation and authority.
But perhaps it could work in the Mist Village.
Currently, Mei Terumī's authority and power stood unrivaled. Moreover, both Jinchuriki followed her commands without question. If she decided to push for reforms, resistance wouldn't be significant.
"Will this actually work?"
Mei Terumī unfurled the scroll and glanced at its contents. They seemed too new to not raise her suspicions. Although she'd kept an eye on Konoha before, she hadn't bothered tracking its internal personnel changes closely. Perspectives from within and from the outside were vastly different. So, it felt odd to receive these documents directly from Natsume.
"Definitely useful." Natsume thumped his chest confidently. "At the very least, it'll halve your workload."
Mei Terumī studied his face closely—he didn't seem to be lying.
"I'll give it a try," she said with a slight nod, then added coolly, "If you have so much free time, why haven't I seen you around more often before?"
Natsume stiffened.
Uh-oh—she'd caught him off guard.
He scratched his head and said, "I'm not exactly free either. I still have duties with the Thousand Sunny Merchant Guild."
Mei Terumī fixed her gaze on him in silence.
Natsume steeled himself and held her gaze.
After a moment, Mei broke eye contact and returned to reading the scroll.
Truth be told, the content wasn't just novel—it was surprisingly logical too.
It wasn't vague theory—it provided concrete examples.
As she kept reading, Mei felt a growing urge to test it out herself.
Being freed from duties was actually just a side benefit.
The important thing was that following Konoha's approach could cultivate many talents.
And Kirigakure desperately needed talent.
In fact, it was lacking talent in every department.
Mei rolled up the scroll and said, "Thank you."
Natsume shook his head and replied, "We're family. No need to thank me."
"Who said we're family?"
Her beautiful eyes widened slightly as she snapped, "Don't make things up."
Looking at her expression, Natsume couldn't help but chuckle. He said, "You'll see whether we're family tonight."
"..."
Mei's expression stiffened slightly as panic crept into her voice, "Not tonight!"
Too many times, and she felt it would seriously affect the operation of Kirigakure.
She wouldn't be able to work properly.
Seeing this, Natsume didn't insist further. He simply said, "Then your call."
Letting out a breath of relief, Mei said, "I need to go to the Mizukage Building."
"I'll take you."
Walking in front of her, Natsume offered.
"Wait."
Mei knew he was about to use the Flying Thunder God Technique. Seeing his confusion, she explained, "I'm not wearing shoes."
"Oh."
Understanding dawned on Natsume's face. He fetched the shoes and knelt before her.
Mei couldn't help but be momentarily taken aback.
After a brief pause, she slightly lifted her foot.
Natsume took her ankle gently and helped her put on the shoe.
As she watched him, a smile gradually formed at the corner of her mouth.
Any lingering annoyance from earlier vanished completely.
"There."
Standing back up, Natsume was immediately embraced by Mei.
Warm softness pressed against his chest.
He found it quite unexpected.
But the change in attitude—this was definitely a good thing.
Activating the Flying Thunder God Technique,
the two appeared in the Mizukage's office.
Natsume placed her onto the chair, then bent down and kissed the corner of her mouth. "See you next time."
Mei gave a slight nod, softly replying, "Until then."
Unlike typical young women, she didn't ask Natsume to stay.
That was part of being the Mizukage—the pride that came with the title.
Plus, Kirigakure's pressing affairs left little room for personal indulgence.
She thought their dynamic worked surprisingly well.
Watching Natsume vanish before her eyes, Mei's smile slowly faded.
She pulled out the scroll once more, ready to think through how to adapt and implement what she had learned.
Natsume returned to the Hokage Building.
There were encrypted documents waiting on his desk.
They contained reports on Mikoto Uchiha's current situation.
She had been faring quite well.
Additionally, there were updates regarding the development progress of the Land of Fire's Metropolis.
With ninja involved, the pace wasn't slow at all.
That timing would align with Mikoto Uchiha's expected due date.
Natsume briefly reviewed his students' latest status updates.
Naruto Uzumaki had studied under Jiraiya for a while, but that training had ended.
There were no more techniques left to teach him.
Jiraiya wanted to take him traveling and go on some wild adventures, while also passing on a bit of life philosophy.
But Kushina Uzumaki put her foot down firmly.
So Naruto didn't agree either and instead threw himself into missions.
Because Sasuke Uchiha had joined Kakashi Hatake's team,
Natsume asked Naruto to go out on some missions with Shizune.
In short, he was full of motivation.
As for Hinata Hyuga, she remained at home training.
The things she wished to accomplish required overwhelming strength that would leave no room for objection.
Natsume planned to make a trip to the moon to help Hinata obtain the Tenseigan (a powerful dojutsu said to grant divine vision).
Once she possessed it, she could properly reform the Hyuga clan.
But he decided to wait a little longer.
Right now, Hinata needed to study some theoretical knowledge.
Natsume had gathered quite a collection of books from past lives.
He believed these would help her gain deeper insight into the relationship between the main and branch families of the Hyuga clan.
After peacefully spending half a month, Natsume received orders from the Akatsuki organization.
They wanted him to monitor the revival progress of the Two-Tails Matatabi.
Previously, due to his manipulation, everyone was led to believe that Yugito Nii and the tailed beast inside her had both been killed by Moryo.
The revival locations of the tailed beasts appear randomly.
The Two-Tails' revival time wouldn't be long—probably similar to the Three-Tails'.
It was routine for the Akatsuki to issue such an order.
However, this indicated that Nagato was already preparing to set the Moon's Eye Plan into motion.
Come to think of it, it was somewhat related to Natsume.
Because of the loans he provided, the Akatsuki had gathered enough funds earlier than in the canon timeline.
Oh...
In other words, the plan might begin at any moment.
Fortunately, Natsume had infiltrated their ranks.
Still, just to be safe, he gave Kakashi Hatake a heads-up.
He warned Kakashi to stay cautious, especially when facing powerful enemies, and to report back to him right away.
Meanwhile, at the Hyuga Compound…
Hiashi Hyuga was sparring with Hinata Hyuga.
With every passing moment, he became more surprised.
Hinata's power had far exceeded his expectations.
Even without using the bow Natsume had given her, she still managed to pressure him.
Partly due to her diligence, and partly thanks to Natsume nurturing her innate talent, she had improved greatly.
Plus, she also had Kaguya Otsutsuki as her teacher.
Hiashi stepped back and said, "Enough."
If they continued, it would turn serious.
As father and daughter, there was no need to push further.
"Yes, Father."
Hinata exhaled deeply.
She hadn't used [Void Fist], but had relied solely on [Gentle Fist].
Being able to reach this level against Hiashi, she felt quite satisfied.
Most importantly, she wouldn't disappoint Brother Natsume.
Not only did he bring her meals every night, but he also helped her train using his Mangekyo Sharingan.
If she couldn't show any results, she'd feel like she'd failed him completely.
Hiashi didn't know exactly what Natsume had done—he assumed it was all due to Hinata's talent.
After a rare smile crossed his face, he said, "You will surely become the strongest leader our Hyuga clan has ever had."
"I will do my best."
Hinata nodded firmly.
"Okay."
Hiashi looked up at the sky and said, "The Ninja Academy should be letting out soon."
"I'll go pick up Hanabi."
Hinata immediately rushed back to her room, changed into a different outfit, and headed straight for the Ninja Academy.
At twelve years old, she no longer needed a bodyguard following her around, and certainly wouldn't get lost.
Besides, in Konoha, who in Konoha didn't know she was the Hokage's apprentice?
Under normal circumstances, there shouldn't be any danger.
Ninja Academy.
Natsume took a look at the newly renovated classroom and nodded slightly.
It had a bit of that feel from his past life.
Equipped with computers.
This was made possible by Kurenai Yuhi recruiting experts from other countries.
They had made slight improvements to the existing computers during this time.
Although costs remained quite high, Natsume wasn't short on funds, so he ensured every organization in Konoha Village was properly equipped.
Needless to say, computers did significantly improve efficiency.
"Won't this be too wasteful?"
Shizune asked, standing beside him.
This particular classroom was designated for those studying the Medical Ninja specialization.
"Not at all."
Natsume shook his head. "In this era, Medical Ninjas are far more important than other types of ninja. We absolutely cannot afford to be careless."
In the original story, knowledge about Medical Ninjas had actually been very limited.
Without Tsunade, Konoha would never have developed a fairly comprehensive medical system.
Of course, there were many different reasons for this.
But he would never underestimate their value.
"Ms. Shizune, just submit a list of necessary medical equipment to the secretary's office. They'll purchase everything for you."
Natsume casually added, "Don't hold back—after all, money isn't an issue."
Shizune nodded.
"I'll leave this place to you. I'm going to check on my little sister."
He meant Hanabi.
His *Yoshi* sister.
Right now should be dismissal time.
Hanabi was seven years old this year, in second grade at the Ninja Academy.
Just like in the original story, even at such a young age she had already displayed considerable talent.
Natsume reached Class 2A soon after.
Hmm, school hadn't ended yet.
So he simply waited a little longer.
Four thousand words
(Chapter ends)
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