“You don’t need to say anything else.
I won’t agree to you going after those ruins.” Kurō sat upright in his chair, his back perfectly straight.
His usually gentle face was now filled with righteous seriousness.
“Why?!” Mei Terumī spoke with clear agitation.
Her body leaned slightly forward, and her green eyes were filled with unconcealed urgency.
For the first time, that cold, beautiful face showed something close to pleading.
“We finally found a chance to break the deadlock!
As long as we find the lost sealing jutsu of the Uzumaki clan in those ruins, we can break the current stalemate with Yagura!
“Only by completely bringing down those stubborn fools who still support the Bloody Mist policies can Kirigakure’s reforms be fully carried out.
Only then will Kirigakure have a bright future…” Her voice grew louder and more urgent, as if she were trying to convince Kurō, and also herself.
“But that is only if everything goes perfectly.” Kurō responded calmly.
His voice was not loud, but it was like a wall, steadily blocking Mei’s surging words.
He looked at her.
In those gentle eyes was the calm of someone who had seen through all illusions.
“Have you thought about what our reformist faction’s situation would become if you failed to return, just like those Kirigakure ANBU who went to investigate before?” Hearing Kurō’s words, Mei instantly stopped.
The urgency on that cold, beautiful face gradually froze, replaced by an indescribable complexity.
She wanted to argue, but the words turned over and over in her throat and would not come out.
Kurō looked at Mei’s reaction, which was exactly as he expected, and smiled faintly in his heart.
His face still wore that serious expression, and his tone remained steady as he refuted her.
“Do you really think the reason we can stand against Yagura’s faction is because we have the support of most people in Kirigakure?” Kurō’s gaze settled on Mei’s face.
“Even you probably don’t believe that.” Mei’s breathing hitched slightly.
Kurō looked at Mei, whose momentum was gradually weakening, and continued his “persuasion.” His tone was unhurried.
Every sentence seemed carefully calculated.
“The reason we’ve been able to force Kirigakure’s reforms forward despite obstruction from Yagura and the conservatives under him is not only because we have the support of most of our comrades in Kirigakure, including Genji-sama.
“The most important reason is that our side has you and me, the only two Kage-level fighters in Kirigakure besides Yagura.” Kurō tapped the table lightly with one finger.
The sound was very soft, yet it seemed to settle an unshakable fact.
“It is precisely because you and I serve as deterrents that Yagura, as the Fourth Mizukage and the Three-Tails jinchūriki, has not moved to purge the reformists.
“That is why, over the past four years, we have been able to stand against him, even gain the upper hand, and smoothly implement part of the reforms.” He paused, his tone becoming even more serious.
“Leaving aside whether this map is real, or whether those ruins actually contain lost Uzumaki sealing jutsu, even if they do, letting you go in alone is far too risky.
“If something happens to you, everything we have worked for will come to nothing.
We cannot afford that price.” All of the above was half true and half false.
From Mei and the others’ perspective, this explanation was indeed correct.
But in truth, the current stalemate in Kirigakure had been deliberately created by Kurō and Obito working together.
What Kurō wanted was not a ruined Kirigakure poisoned by the Bloody Mist policies, nor was it a completely reformed Kirigakure walking the road to revival.
What he wanted was a Kirigakure that was gradually improving through reform, one that could steadily provide him with support, yet still lacked the strength to threaten his life under the current circumstances.
Only when Kurō was certain he possessed enough strength to fully control Kirigakure would he consider pushing the village’s reforms all the way through.
In the end, his own life and interests came first.
The him who wore a mask and lived under a false identity… had never truly belonged here.
Kurō spoke with half-truths and half-lies, then looked solemnly at Mei across from him.
There was unquestionable firmness in his eyes.
That firmness was real.
He truly did not want her to throw her life away.
It was just that the reason might not be quite what she imagined.
Mei fell silent.
She lowered her head.
Her green eyes stared at the tabletop, but nothing entered them.
Her hands hung weakly at her sides, and her whole body seemed to have lost its strength.
She knew everything Sora said was reality.
How could she not understand his reasoning?
It was only that Kirigakure had finally seen a glimmer of hope ahead.
The pressure from her clan and the uncertainty of the road before them had made her anxious.
In the end, she had made a decision she would normally never make so lightly and come before the comrade she trusted most, aside from Genji, hoping to receive his support.
But now it seemed that she had indeed been too impatient… Kurō saw Mei waver, and a faint trace of satisfaction flashed through his gentle eyes.
He continued coaxing her, his tone becoming softer, like he was calming a frightened cat.
“I believe that if this were any normal day, you would have thought of everything I just said very quickly.
“You’re just too tired.
A little too anxious.” His voice gained a few traces of concern.
“Rest properly for the next couple of days.
I’ll have someone temporarily take over your work.” Kurō’s gaze landed on the map, his eyes becoming meaningful.
His fingers gently brushed the edge of it.
“As for investigating the Uzumaki ruins, let’s stop here for now.” He raised his head and looked at Mei, his tone still gentle.
“The waters here are too deep.
You can’t handle them.” As he spoke, Kurō observed Mei’s expression.
Seeing that she did not react much, he suppressed the secret joy in his heart and very naturally rolled up the map with great care, then put it away.
Just leave it to your dear Kurō to handle, then.
He added silently in his heart.
Kurō put the map away with complete naturalness, while his face still wore that righteous expression.
He spoke to Mei, his tone solemn enough to sound like he was making an oath.
“I’ll keep this map safe for now.
When the timing is right, we can discuss investigating the Uzumaki ruins again.” Mei looked at Kurō’s “sincere” eyes, and her restless heart gradually calmed down.
Her breathing became even, her shoulders no longer tense, and the surging emotions in her green eyes slowly settled.
She nodded.
The movement was slight, but it carried trust from the heart.
Whenever she felt restless or discouraged, she could always feel at ease beside Sora.
Even she did not understand why.
As a Kirigakure ninja who had grown up in a cruel environment, she should not have trusted anyone so easily… She looked at Kurō before her, the corners of her mouth rising slightly into a faint smile.
“Thank you, Sora.” Kurō looked at the beautiful woman before him and froze for a moment.
But in the very next instant, he immediately showed that gentle, sincere smile, the kind no one could find any fault with.
“You don’t need to be so polite.
We’re comrades, aren’t we?” Comrades… Mei repeated the word in her heart.
At some point, a faint blush had risen on her fair cheeks.
She looked at Sora and replied with a smile.
“Mm!”