On the vast ocean, Tsunade's ship steadily advanced toward the Land of Water.
Standing silently behind the Hokage were Shikamaru Nara and Hyūga Hiashi, acting as her personal escorts.
From a strength standpoint, either of them alone would have been more than sufficient.
But that was not the true reason they had been chosen.
Shikamaru wanted to personally assess what kind of terms Hidden Mist Village intended to offer during this summit.
As for Hiashi—he wished to meet his daughter.
Under their persistent requests, Tsunade could only agree and allow them to accompany her as escort ninja.
Shikamaru frowned slightly as he looked toward the mist-shrouded horizon.
"Lady Tsunade, Hidden Mist's invitation is clearly centered around the Hidden Sand issue," he said quietly.
"If a conflict breaks out, there are only three of us."
Although they weren't entering Kirigakure itself, they were already within its surrounding waters.
If anything unexpected happened, the situation would be extremely difficult to explain.
Hearing this, Tsunade turned her head and glanced at him calmly.
"First," she said, "as the Mizukage, Shigure would never resort to something like that."
"Second," she continued, "didn't you arrange for three people who've mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique to follow us?"
If anything went wrong, they could immediately activate a Flying Thunder God Formation and extract everyone.
That was their final safeguard.
Shikamaru froze for a moment.
He hadn't expected Tsunade to already know.
A trace of embarrassment crossed his face. As a subordinate, acting on his own initiative wasn't ideal—but Tsunade didn't rebuke him.
The journey from Konoha to the Land of Water, taken at full speed, had taken less than a day.
Now that she was finally aboard the ship, Tsunade felt a wave of exhaustion.
She returned to her cabin to rest.
Hiashi remained alone on deck, his gaze fixed on the sea.
With the head of the Hyūga Clan personally present, security was not a concern.
Several hours later, the ship entered the waters near Hidden Mist Village.
Then—
Hiashi suddenly stiffened.
Although he had never visited Kirigakure before, that didn't mean he was unfamiliar with its geography.
"When did…" he muttered, eyes narrowing, "…an island appear here?"
An island had suddenly emerged on the horizon.
Hiashi stood frozen for a long moment.
He had reviewed the maps countless times and memorized them thoroughly.
No matter which version he recalled, there had never been an island in this location.
And yet—it was there.
What caught his attention even more was the massive Kirigakure banner planted on the island.
This was a special flag, used only during diplomatic talks.
It signified neutrality—no combat, no hidden troops, and safe landing for all parties.
"Byakugan!"
Activating his dōjutsu, Hiashi carefully scanned the island.
Just as expected, it had only been minimally prepared.
A single structure stood there.
No ambushes.
No concealed forces.
However—
When Hiashi turned his gaze toward Hidden Mist Village itself, his expression changed.
His vision couldn't penetrate it.
Some kind of force was interfering with the Byakugan.
"A barrier…" he murmured.
A highly specialized one.
Hiashi immediately contacted Tsunade and Shikamaru.
"Hidden Mist Village has deployed a special barrier. I can't see into the village itself," he reported.
"But the negotiation site is secure."
That was enough.
After docking, Tsunade disembarked and followed the stone path winding up the island's only mountain.
Markers lined the route clearly—there was no need for a guide.
At the summit stood a triangular table.
Three chairs had been arranged around it.
Hidden Mist shinobi were already present.
But there were only two.
Kuji and Ringo.
They stood quietly beside the table, waiting.
The wind carried the scent of the sea as the stage for the Three Kage Summit was finally set.
As former members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, Lady Tsunade immediately recognized the two standing before her.
Both were undeniably powerful.
"Where is the Mizukage?" Tsunade asked bluntly.
Hearing her question, the two lifted their heads.
Kuji spoke respectfully,
"Hokage-sama, please wait a moment. Lord Mizukage will arrive shortly."
Tsunade glanced at the empty seat opposite her and calmly sat down.
But the moment she habitually turned her gaze toward Hidden Mist Village, she froze.
She hadn't expected this.
Kirigakure's appearance had completely changed.
New structures rose throughout the village, and even the road layout was different from what she remembered.
What stunned her the most, however, was the ring of islands surrounding the village.
They were arranged with striking precision, as if meticulously planned rather than naturally formed.
And yet—
There hadn't been any islands here before.
"What's going on with these islands?" Tsunade asked, unable to hide her astonishment.
Ringo, standing to the side, answered calmly,
"Lady Tsunade, Lord Shigure used Ninjutsu to relocate the surrounding islands. This arrangement is more suitable for the village's long-term development."
Relocating islands… with Ninjutsu?
That sounded absurd.
Yet the scene before them left no room for doubt.
Even Shikamaru couldn't remain composed.
From his perspective, if a war were to break out, these islands would form an almost perfect outer defensive line.
Large-scale invasions would be nearly impossible.
Even small infiltrations would be detected immediately and dealt with before causing serious damage.
At the same time, developing these islands would effectively increase Kirigakure's usable land by nearly one-third.
Combined with the surrounding sea routes, the village's potential would grow even further.
What exactly has Shigure been doing in Hidden Mist Village?
To push such massive changes in such a short time…
As Shikamaru studied the layout, a realization slowly formed.
Shigure wasn't just strengthening Kirigakure.
He was building it into the strongest ninja village.
An unprecedented superpower among the Five Great Nations.
While Shikamaru was still processing this, Hyūga Hiashi turned his attention to Ringo.
"May I ask," he said evenly, "where is Hinata?"
Ringo paused briefly, then smiled.
"Miss Hinata is very safe. Lord Hiashi may rest assured."
Miss Hinata…
The form of address alone told Hiashi everything he needed to know.
She hadn't been imprisoned.
She hadn't been mistreated.
Hiashi exhaled softly, though unease still lingered.
Just what kind of position did Hinata hold in Hidden Mist Village?
Tsunade's expression sharpened.
"So where exactly is Shigure?" she asked coldly.
"Is he planning to keep us waiting?"
Kuji met her gaze calmly.
"Isn't the Kazekage still absent as well?"
Tsunade's eyebrow twitched.
"Does that boy's presence even matter?" she scoffed.
"Hidden Sand is nothing more than a bargaining chip."
"Isn't the purpose of this meeting to determine who Hidden Sand belongs to?"
For one of the Five Great Ninja Villages to be described so casually—
At that very moment, Gaara, who had just reached the summit, heard her words.
His fists clenched instantly.
But before he could speak, Hiashi sensed his presence and subtly warned Tsunade.
Of course, Tsunade had already sensed him as well.
Those words had been spoken deliberately.
Did a mere Sunagakure truly believe it had the right to interfere between Konoha and Kirigakure?
Kuji remained unperturbed.
"Lord Shigure has some personal matters to attend to," he said evenly.
"He will arrive shortly."
"Hokage-sama, please be patient."
...
(End of Chapter)
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