Twilight fell upon the bustling commercial street of Konoha.
Click-clack. The sound of Mei Terumi's heels stopped in front of a dessert shop. The paper bag she held was still steaming inside were freshly packed three-color dango.
Her gaze drifted to the distance, where a massive building was under construction. A crane was hoisting a large metal signboard into place it bore the name of the new experimental research facility nearing completion.
At that moment, Mei Terumi felt like a girl from the era of the samurai, suddenly dropped into Las Vegas. The gap between the infrastructure of Konoha and that of Kirigakure left her feeling... complicated.
It was hard to describe.
Just how much have we in the Mist lost during our years under the Bloody Mist? Mei couldn't help but reflect.
Her diplomatic mission had been only half successful.
The Third Hokage had agreed to reestablish diplomatic ties, even signing a promising draft alliance treaty. Konoha had also committed to providing some economic aid, which Kirigakure desperately needed.
Was Kisame Hoshigaki really worth that much? Mei thought. Sure, Samehada was valuable, but the price we offered included several chakra stone mining sites far beyond Samehada's worth in raw value.
After all, the Seven Ninja Swords held symbolic significance only within Kirigakure.
There was one more thing the Third Hokage had specifically requested that a young Mist ninja named Chojuro be sent to Konoha as an exchange student.
The reason? "To promote mutual understanding and cultural exchange between our nations."
Chojuro? Mei frowned. Is he some hidden bloodline user? How did the Hokage learn about him from thousands of miles away?
Maybe it was just that Kirigakure had been isolated for too long. Ever since Mei arrived in Konoha, she'd felt like she'd stepped into a new era.
And truthfully, the Third Hokage's overly welcoming attitude left her a little... overwhelmed. She'd clearly seen the scowl on the Iwagakure envoy's face as he left the village.
Nothing quite added up.
Her thoughts were interrupted.
"Would you like to try our newest item?" the shop attendant offered as she paid for her dango, handing her a sample of golden honey-glutinous rice cake. "It's made with honey from the Land of Tea~!"
Also... Konoha was filled with handsome men. Even the guy working at the dango shop was a looker.
Without much hesitation, Mei gave in and bought the extra snack.
She thought back to Kirigakure either full of elderly, sick, or literal sharp-toothed weirdos.
Then a commotion nearby caught her attention.
A trio of teenagers one blonde, one black-haired, one pink-haired passed by the shop, bickering as they walked.
"Hey, Naruto! Let's spar at the training grounds later!" the dark-haired boy called out.
Ever since he'd discovered the Uchiha clan's ancestral training scrolls and started studying under Orochimaru, Sasuke had felt his power skyrocket. It was time to reclaim the title of Team Leader from Naruto.
Naruto, looking like he hadn't slept in a week, was dragging his feet and muttering, "Sasuke, I really don't have time... I've been studying every night until midnight..."
"Is studying really that hard?" Sakura asked in confusion.
"It's not just book learning, okay? It's about... uh... spatial coordinates and stuff. It's for a new jutsu," Naruto said weakly.
Sakura tilted her head. "What kind of jutsu?"
"Flying Thunder God. I seriously can't figure it out," Naruto groaned like he'd been traumatized. "The scroll's thicker than me!"
They're both forbidden techniques! he thought miserably. Why is this one so much harder than Shadow Clone Jutsu?!
The moment Sasuke heard the name Flying Thunder God, his ears twitched.
That's the signature jutsu invented by the Fourth Hokage the one rumored to have wiped out fifty Jonin in an instant.
Noticing Sasuke's expression, Naruto sighed, already guessing what he was thinking.
"You can ask Orochimaru-sensei if you want," Naruto said. "I heard they're making all these techniques available at the Shinobi Academy. Anyone who's capable can learn them."
Sasuke nodded subtly, his desire to compete with Naruto slightly fading.
If Naruto can't learn it... I bet I can. I am the top student at the Academy, after all.
Naruto went on complaining, "I was really vibing with the Mount Myoboku Sage Arts. Why do they keep making me study this stuff instead?"
Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Don't kid yourself. It's probably just that the toad sage arts are easier."
"Who says so?!"
"Orochimaru-sensei, of course."
Sasuke actually had some understanding of Sage Arts now. But when he asked Orochimaru about it, the response was always, You're not ready yet.
Orochimaru explained that the Sage Mode from Ryuchi Cave was far more dangerous than the one from Mount Myoboku. Even he didn't want to risk it.
Coward, Sasuke muttered internally. No wonder the Third Hokage said you were the weakest of the Legendary Sannin.
As the two argued, Sakura had long since tuned out, her mind drifting elsewhere. Not long ago, Tsunade had suddenly thrown a bunch of medical scrolls at her, telling her to study them on her own.
If I can master this, maybe I'll catch up to them. Then we'll all be true students of the Sannin...
Mei took a bite of her honey-glutinous rice cake. The sweetness of tea and honey melted on her tongue as she watched the three noisy teens fade into the distance.
The term "Shinobi Academy" had been casually dropped by that boy Naruto.
She looked back at the massive building under construction. The crane was still lifting the engraved metal sign, which shimmered under the setting sun.
Konoha's next generation has come this far already? Flying Thunder God? Sage Arts? They're just teaching this stuff in school now?
Could it be... they staged this whole thing just to show off to me?
She couldn't help thinking it. And honestly, she hoped that was the case.
...
As for why Sarutobi Hiruzen treated the future Fifth Mizukage so respectfully it was simple. He'd just bought Mei Terumi in the game Heroic Legends.
He shifted into the subspace of the virtual world.
His workday managing Konoha was over. It was time to relax.
No way. Why did you guys vote the witch off in the first round?!
Sarutobi rubbed his forehead, completely baffled by the rules of this new game called Werewolf. It made no sense and felt utterly unplayable.
He glanced at his friends list ah, Ace was online.
In this vast digital world, it was astonishing how few sentient consciousnesses had awakened like his. He and Ace had never met in person, but after all this time, they were basically online friends.
Their conversations had grown casual and comfortable.
Sarutobi couldn't help but wonder what did Ace even do all day on the One Piece set? After all, unlike the Hokage of a functioning ninja village, Ace was locked up in the Navy's highest-security prison. He had nothing to do but wait for his execution date.
He sent a message: "Ace, what do you do all day in there?"
After a while, a reply came back.
"Lately, I've been reading fanfiction on this site."
Fanfiction, huh... If the Naruto Forums were a nightmare, fanfiction was a bottomless abyss for Sarutobi.
Still, the conversation couldn't just die there.
He replied, "What kind of fanfics? One Piece?"
"Naruto fanfics."
...He had a bad feeling.
"I've read almost everything worth reading. I'm thinking about writing one myself."
Yeah... you've got nothing but time, huh?
"Haha, I'll look forward to it." Sarutobi replied, already bracing himself.
And then it came:
"I've already thought of the title. Reborn as an Uchiha: Ace vs. the Konoha F4. You don't mind, do you, Lord Hokage?"
I knew it.
"Of course not! Why would I mind? I'm the Hokage. I didn't even care when Naruto graffitied my face on the mountain."
After ending the chat, Sarutobi was hit with a surge of creative energy. If Ace could write fanfic, then why couldn't he?
He began outlining his own story: King of the Navy: Arresting Ace at the Start.
In the vastness of the subspace, from nothingness to something, from a flicker to a glowing orb...
A new star of consciousness was beginning to shine.
————————————————————————————————————————————————
Loving the tale?Support the saga and get exclusive early access to new chapters by hopping on Patreon with me!
P@treon.com/yanxx
Change @ to a.