The busy street was filled with people coming and going.
The woman Megumai was watching was not remarkable; she could even be described as completely ordinary.
The woman was about twenty-something, with light yellow shoulder-length hair and black metal-rimmed round glasses.
Her face was fair and her features delicate. She had a moderate attractiveness but gave off an elusive aura that made it hard to remember her after a glance.
A cool breeze blew. The woman walked steadily, step by step.
Megumai scanned the surroundings, then closed the children's picture book, picking up her son and standing up.
The woman kept her eyes straight ahead, walking directly into the supermarket.
As she passed Megumai, she softly greeted, "Long time no see."
The two-year-old Seiya was confused.
His eyes followed the woman's back, while his small hand gently pinched his mother's cheek.
Megumai understood what her son meant and immediately whispered, "She is an old friend of Mommy's."
Friend?
Seiya hadn't learned that word and looked bewildered.
Of course, the little one missed the main point.
The key was not 'friend' but 'old.'
Having not seen her in years, Megumai was unsure if her relationship with Yakushi Nono was the same as before, and she urgently needed to gauge her intentions.
After all, the sudden, unconcealed appearance of the "Walking Shrine Maiden" in the Tetsu no Kuni did not allow for simple assumptions.
Megumai slowly walked into the supermarket with her son, taking the opportunity to explain the meaning of 'friend' to him.
Yakushi Nono bought some dried food and medical supplies like bandages.
At the checkout, she lowered her voice and asked the cashier, "I'd like to ask for some information. May I ask who your store manager is?"
The cashier looked toward Megumai, who was standing at the end of the checkout counter.
Megumai watched Yakushi Nono quietly. The young Seiya was nestled in her arms, his small face gently rubbing against his mother's fair neck.
Yakushi Nono walked up to Megumai and handed her a slip of paper.
Written on it were the words: The path to peace is at your feet.
The password was correct.
Megumai glanced at Yakushi Nono, burned the paper, and then gestured with her eyes to an employee nearby. The person understood, stepped forward, and began to lead Yakushi Nono away.
Yakushi Nono, however, shook her head, staring at Megumai and whispering, "I just said I want to ask you, the store manager, for some information."
The emphasis was on "you."
In over a year of operation, this was the first time someone had specifically targeted the store manager.
The cashier's eyes immediately sharpened. Megumai quickly took several steps back, using her hand to protect Seiya 's head and back.
A silent gravity rapidly spread around them.
The other customers were confused but accustomed to the rising tensions.
It was common knowledge that the Tetsu no Kuni was becoming increasingly chaotic.
After quickly paying, the customers left one after another.
Several employees tidying the shelves stopped what they were doing and silently moved closer to the counter.
They were Akatsuki combat members with considerable skill.
They had been sent by Konan to guard the "Peace" supermarket since the situation in the Tetsu no Kuni changed.
Now that someone was targeting the store manager, they naturally stepped forward.
Yakushi Nono remained composed, stating calmly.
"I mean no harm. The password proves I understand the rules here. It's just that I personally prefer to consult with the store manager rather than the intelligence post. Don't worry, I will pay the fee."
There was nothing objectionable in her words.
The employees paused, looking at Megumai and awaiting instructions.
Megumai pretended to contemplate, then smiled faintly, saying to Yakushi Nono, "I am only responsible for managing the supermarket; I do not offer consulting services."
"Perhaps the store manager could make an exception just this once."
"Very well."
Megumai's eyes flickered. She said, "Let me state this beforehand: my consultation fee is much higher than the prices at the intelligence post. It might not be a bargain."
Yakushi Nono was unconcerned. "Money is not an issue."
Megumai nodded slightly. "In that case, please follow me to the office for a talk."
Taking a few steps back to create distance from Yakushi Nono was merely a display of the appropriate weakness of a commoner.
In fact, Yakushi Nono's request for a direct consultation played right into Megumai's hands.
...
In the office, the fragrance of tea drifted.
Megumai sat upright, her fingertips lightly tracing the armrest of the tiger-skin chair. In the adjacent crib, Seiya was engrossed in playing with a toy.
Yakushi Nono sat across the desk from Megumai, facing her. They looked at each other.
A strange silence descended upon the room, broken only by the clattering of Seiya 's building blocks.
After a moment, Megumai broke the silence. "If you don't speak soon, my consultation fee will switch from charging by information to charging by the hour."
Yakushi Nono smiled faintly, exhaling a soft breath. She sighed, "I can't believe you're actually alive!"
Megumai's eyebrows rose slightly. "I can't believe I was discovered merely four years after going into hiding."
Yakushi Nono shook her head and chuckled. "Your makeup almost fooled me. But perhaps because we were classmates, I felt a vague sense of familiarity, which allowed me to recognize you."
"I see."
Megumai rubbed her forehead, then remarked with a sigh, "People truly cannot be judged by the same standard. Spies like you can walk the world with your true face and no one notices. Yet, I, despite my disguise, was unsuccessful."
Yakushi Nono smiled faintly.
"That's because I use fake identities when I'm on missions. Actually, when I saw you a while ago, I wasn't sure it was really you either."
Who would believe that a genius Shinobi, reported dead, had come back to life, shed her immense arrogance, disguised herself as a commoner, and lived in seclusion in a busy marketplace, content with an ordinary life?
Yakushi Nono couldn't believe it. Out of caution, she secretly observed her for half a month.
Only just now, when Megumai showed an uncharacteristic wariness towards her outside the supermarket, did she finally believe, with a shock, that this store manager was indeed Uchiha Megumi, who was thought to have died!
"As expected of the Walking Shrine Maiden. You observed me without me noticing beforehand."
Megumai's eyes flickered, and she clapped her hands in praise.
Yakushi Nono lowered her head to sip her tea, glancing at the joyfully playing Seiya .
"Megumai, are you married?"
Megumai shook her head.
Yakushi Nono was slightly taken aback and couldn't help but look at Seiya a few more times.
The little baby's features closely resembled Megumai's; he was clearly her child!
Yakushi Nono's mind raced, and she blurted out, "Megumai, did you realize your original idea?!"
Megumai raised an eyebrow, approvingly saying, "Your mind works as quickly as ever."
Yakushi Nono's lips curved into a smile. "I thought life had worn down your sharp edges, and you had married and had a child like any other person."
"Absolutely not."
Megumai tilted her head to look at Seiya and said calmly, "In this world, apart from my son, there is no other man worth noting."
Yakushi Nono did not comment, merely praising, "Your son is very cute."
"Thank you."
Megumai smiled faintly, then changed the subject.
"You wouldn't have come for no reason. Tell me why you're here!"
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