Mei gnashed her teeth, her voice dripping with resentment as she spat, "Lead the way!"
It was a humiliating disgrace. An absolute disgrace!
Toward Jie, Matatabi had been as docile as a tamed housecat, respectfully inviting him into Kumogakure after exchanging just a few words.
But why, when it came to their Hidden Mist Village, were they brushed off with a single, curt sentence?
She was the grand Mizukage standing right there! Did Yugito Nii even see her?
However, remembering the Hidden Mist's overarching plans, Mei forced her rising anger down.
'Kumogakure, just you wait,' she swore internally. 'Once the plan is complete, if I don't bleed you dry until you have to pawn your pants, my surname isn't Terumi!'
Wearing a dark expression, Mei led her group of Mist shinobi inside.
Meanwhile, under C's personal guidance, Jie and the three young ones soon arrived in front of a magnificent, incredibly luxurious mansion.
Although the property's footprint wasn't massive, the decor practically reeked of exorbitant wealth.
'It seems Kumogakure is still flush with cash,' Jie thought, stroking his chin. 'Even after paying so much in war reparations to the Hidden Leaf every year, they still have the money to build such a lavish house.'
'Should I mention Kumo's current financial situation to Tsunade? Maybe we should appropriately increase their reparations?'
C, who was leading the way, had no idea what was running through Jie's mind. If he had known, he probably would have regretted bringing him to the most opulent house in the entire village.
This residence had been specially constructed by the Kumo shinobi for Yugito, acting almost like a royal palace.
After all, it was the Tailed Beast Matatabi who currently controlled Yugito's body, not Yugito herself. To coax Matatabi into continuing her role as Kumogakure's Fifth Raikage and protecting the villagers, the higher-ups had gritted their teeth and squeezed funds from their already depleted treasury.
It had taken five years to construct this magnificent estate, and it had only been officially completed a few days ago.
They originally intended to wait until the alliance agreement was signed before inviting Yugito to move into this palace. However, to avoid giving Jie any excuse to lash out, the Kumo elders had no choice but to have C bring him here instead.
Having completed his task as their guide, C respectfully addressed Jie. "Lord Hokage, I'm afraid we must inconvenience you to stay here for the next few days."
"If you need anything, feel free to order the Kumo shinobi standing guard outside. If you feel bored, you can also stroll around the village and experience Kumogakure's local customs."
Hearing C's words, Jie nodded casually.
'Order the guards around if I need anything?' Jie mused. 'Isn't that just an open excuse to plant a few Kumo shinobi to monitor my movements?'
Still, he could understand their reasoning.
To the Kumo shinobi, he was a ferocious predator. If they didn't keep a close eye on him, and some blind fool of a Kumo ninja angered him, then he might just flip the entire village upside down.
The higher-ups wouldn't even know where to cry. Therefore, having a few sets of eyes on him was entirely necessary from their perspective.
Receiving Jie's response, C left the palace and hurried to report back to the Kumogakure elders. They still needed to figure out exactly how to deal with their formidable guest.
After C left, Sasuke looked around the magnificent palace, clicking his tongue in wonder. "Brother, Kumogakure is so rich! This house they're using to host you is way grander than your Hokage building."
Naruto chimed in from the side, "Yeah, Hokage-nii! Your office really is uglier than this place."
Jie, who had still been debating whether to increase Kumo's war reparations, instantly made up his mind upon hearing their comments. Giving Naruto and Sasuke a double thumbs-up, he laughed.
"I really didn't expect you two to have a talent for rubbing salt in the wound. I wonder what kind of expressions the Kumo elders will make when they find out they have to pay more money all because of you two brats."
Hearing this, both Sasuke and Naruto froze slightly, not entirely sure what Jie was talking about.
As for Hinata, she merely kept admiring the surrounding decor completely lost in her own thoughts.
It was a rare opportunity to visit another ninja village, and given Naruto's restless nature, it wasn't long before he wanted to go out and see the local sights. Sasuke didn't have strong feelings either way, but he didn't object.
Considering the two brats' idea, Jie thought for a moment before looking at Hinata. "Hinata, do you want to go for a walk in the village with us?"
Hinata nodded quickly. "If Brother Jie is going, I'll go."
After getting her answer, Jie immediately called over one of the Kumogakure shinobi guarding the area.
"Take us to the busiest part of Kumogakure," he ordered calmly.
It was Jie's first time visiting Kumogakure. Without a local guide, who knew where all the lively places were? More importantly, if he moved around freely without informing the Kumo higher-ups, there was no telling what kind of suspicions they might come up with.
To avoid unnecessarily provoking their nerves, Jie decided to cooperate for the time being.
Hearing his order, the Kumogakure shinobi naturally didn't dare act carelessly. One of them immediately rushed off to report Jie's movements to the higher-ups, while the others respectfully led the group toward the busiest commercial district in the village.
At that moment, Dodai was standing inside the Raikage's office. After hearing the subordinate's report, the corners of his mouth twitched slightly.
"What exactly is Jie Uchiha trying to do?" he muttered. "Is he seriously here just to sightsee? Does he think Kumogakure is some kind of tourist attraction?"
Beside him, Yugito couldn't help shaking her head.
Even though it sounded absurd, Matatabi's instincts told her that sightseeing and showing off were probably Jie's real reasons for coming to Kumogakure.
After wandering around the village for quite some time, Jie and the others finally returned. They had gone out full of interest, only to come back thoroughly disappointed.
In terms of prosperity and entertainment, Kumogakure was far behind Konoha. Other than a few unique local customs, there was barely anything worth mentioning.
The moment Jie stepped back into the palace, his attention was immediately drawn to a crow perched quietly on the windowsill.
'An Uchiha Clan summoning crow?'
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