Chapter 36: Confession

Not long after, Konoha provided the Jonin that came to konoha with the basic information necessary for the chunin exam.

Hachiro and Terumi Mei met each other inside the hotel.

"Hey, I heard that you beat Shisui Uchiha, Konoha's like... Number one genius, I guess?"

After stepping into the room the first thing she did was complement him on the commotion he had caused.

"The second part of the exam will take place in the forest of death. It's Konoha's 44th training ground. It'll last five days."

"Oh! And when the second part of the exam is over, I should have your gift ready."

Hachiro patted her on the should as a sign of encouragement.

To be honest, he hadn't expected Hyuga Hiashi to agree so readily.

It didn't seem that only his dislike for the Hokage fueled his choice.

He was probably desperate to see Hinata, which is slightly ironic considering how the original story went.

That was the only conclusion he could come to, as the Hyuga clan was much more level headed than their counterparts, the Uchiha in particular and wouldn't let their emotions cloud their judgement.

It may also be because Hiashi realised if the village can ostracise the Uchiha clan, the same could happen to the Hyuga clan.

"Can you let go already?"

Just when he was lost in thought, he heard Terumi Mei remind him.

He realised that his hand were still on her shoulder.

"Ah, sorry."

He retracted his hand and changed the subject.

"You've been in Kumogakure for more than a year, do you feel like you're fitting in now?"

"Hmm~ I guess so, I've been more focused on my training so I haven't really been anywhere aside from the shops, training ground and hotel."

She fixed her hair as she thought about the question rather intensely, she revealed a bitter smile at the end.

Despite how great her stay at the village had been.

She couldn't stay still for a second, when she remembered her hometown had been turned into a bloody whirlpool.

"Don't worry, we will help the mist recover from this abyss."

Hachiro said comfortingly and naturally as though stating facts.

"Thank you... If you hadn't taken me with you to the cloud, I might have become a cold corpse under Yagura's pursuit. Or..."

She jumped on the bed and curled up into a ball with her hands hugging her legs.

She cast a grateful glance at Hachiro and said,

"I know that the Raikage wanted to kill me after we finish the attack on Konoha. The other executives probably wish for the same thing."

He didn't reply for a moment and continued listening.

"A year ago, when I first arrived in Kumogakure, I took advantage of the time it took Mabui to register the kids in the orphanage to create a steam clone to eavesdrop on the conversation between you and the Raikage."

she looked down at her knees and said,

"Thank you for taking my side."

Imagine how awkward I could make this confession by telling her I knew she was there the whole time, observation haki isn't just for show.

He muttered to himself inwardly.

He had gotten into the habit of sending out an electromagnetic wave every minute. Combined with the passive effects of observation haki and he could pretty much react to almost anything that was sent to the Cloud.

His perception was so strong, not to mention Terumi Mei, White Zetsu couldn't escape Hachiro's senses.

He couldn't tell Terumi Mei about that though, even if he trusted her enough to not tell everyone his ability, a single genjutsu asking for information about him and she would reveal everything she knew.

He folded his hands behind his head and leaned against the wall, he said,

"I believe you're a trustworthy person, and decided to gamble on you. No need to thank me."

Not that there was anything for me to lose in the first place.

In the anime, she striked her as the same type of Kage that Minato Namikaze was, people often had the misconception that they were much weaker than they really were.

Additionally, she held a strong bloodline and was one of the best beauties in the entire series.

"I also heard that your cousin wanted you to have children with me, so you could tie me to Kumogakure. What did you think about his suggestion?"

She suddenly asked with a mischievous smile.

Damn it!

What the hell!

Hachiro jumped from his relaxed position and stared at her questioningly.

Terumi Mei suddenly realised what she had mentioned sounded like she was hitting on him.

She blushed due to embarrassment and covered her mouth.

"You flirt with everyone so naturally?"

Hachiro's lips twitched as he remembered how she was in the original.

In the later half of her first appearance in the book, she was a complete marriage freak.

He was curious if this was the start of that phase.

She angrily refuted before her voice got smaller and smaller.

"No! I didn't mean to say it like that..."

Hachiro felt his heart skip a beat as he stretched out his hand to pat her head.

She stared at him blankly for a short while before slowly closing her eyes and pursing her lips slightly.

Hachiro "..."

What's that meant to mean? Does she want a kiss?

She doesn't seem to have become obsessed with marriage, so that means she actually likes me.

Laws are fine with it, but the question is, if I feel the same way.

He could mentally see a vague picture of Mei next Samui in his head.

I guess so...

Although it seems to be more of a like and appreciation for her.

I guess we can cultivate our feelings more in the future.

She felt something move about in her mouth.

Hachiro could confirm one thing from the experience-

despite inexperienced, she was good at kissing.