"Honestly…"
Terumi Mei glanced at the convoy checking supplies, then back at Rei's brand-new jōnin uniform, her expression slightly resentful.
"I still can't get used to seeing you dressed like that."
"What's there to get used to?" Rei rolled his eyes. "My whole persona has always been 'genius.' A genius becoming jōnin early—how is that weird?"
"It's not the early promotion," Mei sighed. "It's that your breakthrough moment—your rise—was fighting Namikaze Minato."
"That monster basically beat Iwagakure into submission by himself."
"If it were me against him… one moment of distraction and I'd be dead without even realizing it."
"True," Rei said, casually slicing the air near her slender neck with his hand. "One clean cut and you'd be gone."
"You've got large-scale killing power, but your defense isn't much better than an ordinary shinobi without a bloodline."
Mei slapped his hand away, annoyed.
"Sorry I'm not built like a tank."
"But even if I could trade bloodlines with you, I wouldn't."
"Because fighting while turning yourself into a bloody mess isn't pretty?"
"No," Mei said flatly. "Because I don't have the courage to fight naked."
Rei's eyes drifted—briefly—over her figure, then he nodded solemnly.
"Fair point."
Before the atmosphere got weird, he cleared his throat and changed the topic.
"Still… the Seven Ninja Swordsmen really are the Third's elite."
"We declared war not long ago, and they've already pushed the front into Fire Country and stabilized it."
"How else would they deserve the title?" Mei said with real respect.
"They once conquered an entire small nation in a single night with just seven people."
"But it won't stay easy," Rei murmured.
"Konoha's counterattack is coming."
"The question is who they send to command."
"Orochimaru? Jiraiya?"
"Or Minato, once he's mostly recovered?"
Mei hesitated, then said, "Before you came back from the Land of Whirlpools, the Third received intel from our spy in Konoha."
"It seems the commander is… Uzumaki Kushina."
Rei's eyelid twitched.
"Wait. That's all the intel said?"
"She's called Uzumaki Kushina," Rei repeated, voice sharpening. "And the spy didn't connect any dots at all?"
Mei frowned. "Connect what? The intel says she's Minato's fiancée, she was kidnapped by Kumogakure as a child, and she's likely an Uzumaki descendant Konoha took in…"
Rei exhaled slowly, feeling genuine despair for the world's intelligence networks.
"Let me ask you something."
"Does Kirigakure's intel system… not even know the name of Konoha's first Nine-Tails Jinchūriki?"
Mei's face flushed. "Of course we know! Senju Hashirama's wife—Uzumaki Mito. Just saying her name carries weight for anyone who lived in that era!"
Rei stared at her with a deadpan, almost pitying expression.
"Fine. Then tell me—did Uzumaki Mito die?"
"Probably before the Third Great Ninja War started…"
Mei froze mid-sentence.
If Mito died, then who controlled the Nine-Tails?
If Konoha lost its Jinchūriki, the Nine-Tails would absolutely wreak revenge on the village that imprisoned it.
But Kirigakure's spies never sent any report about a Nine-Tails rampage.
Meaning—
Konoha still had the Nine-Tails under control.
Which only left one possibility.
Konoha had a new Nine-Tails Jinchūriki.
Hidden as a top-level secret, never used openly in foreign wars.
Mei swallowed, voice trembling.
"…Uzumaki Kushina is the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki?"
"At least you're not so stupid I have to spell it out," Rei said, pressing his brow, irritated.
"Your performance is making me lose faith in the village's intel system."
"This was obvious."
"Our spies, intelligence analysts, and even the Third—none of them caught it."
"I—I'll report it to the Third immediately!" Mei blurted, turning to run.
Rei grabbed her hand and yanked her back, eyes dark.
"And then what?"
"Is there anyone in Kirigakure besides the Third himself who can fight a Nine-Tails Jinchūriki?"
"If not, reporting it only shakes morale."
"Are you going to make the Third come to the front personally to face her?"
Mei's face went pale.
"And how will you explain the source?"
"That you 'realized' it from the spy report?"
So Rei could slap everyone—from analysts to the Mizukage—across the face?
He wasn't interested in creating enemies before even stepping onto the battlefield.
"…Then what should I do?" Mei whispered.
"That's the Nine-Tails," she said, voice tight. "Even fighting a wild Nine-Tails requires the Seven Ninja Swordsmen gathering and the entire front line mobilizing to have even a slim chance…"
"A Jinchūriki who can control it… is even worse."
Rei smiled slightly and squeezed her hand, warmth and strength flowing through the contact.
"Leave it to me."
"If she shows up, I'll be the one to tie her down."
"But—"
"Don't panic," Rei said calmly. "And don't assume she'll unleash the Nine-Tails freely."
"If she were openly known as a Jinchūriki, our spies would've heard rumors long ago."
"The fact they didn't means Konoha's top brass hid her identity."
"Why hide it?"
"One reason is to deceive other nations and keep a hidden trump card."
"The other reason is… to keep her life from becoming hell."
"You know how ordinary shinobi treat Jinchūriki."
"If someone has lived long enough without being treated like a monster…"
"They won't reveal that difference unless they're forced."
"So as long as we don't corner her—or her comrades—into desperation…"
"She likely won't expose the Nine-Tails."
"And if she doesn't use it…"
"She's just a very strong elite jōnin."
Mei stared, breathing hard.
"So," Rei concluded, dead serious—
"To protect everyone, we need to slack off as much as possible."
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