Chapter 567.Do You Dare to Believe Them?

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"..." Their Lord Advisor was still as uniquely eccentric as ever. The Anbu operative broke out in a cold sweat of embarrassment.

"Are we not going to the Hokage building?" Led by the Anbu, Mabui entered the Leaf Village. What puzzled her was that the Anbu operative wasn’t escorting her toward the Hokage building. Instead, they were heading in the direction of the Leaf Village’s commercial district.

Faced with Mabui’s question, the Anbu hesitated for a moment before weakly explaining, "The Advisor is taking a rest day today. He doesn’t wish to handle official matters at the Hokage building, so..."

Kazuki was skipping work. As a subordinate, the Anbu operative certainly couldn’t say, "My boss doesn’t want to work." He could only diplomatically state that Kazuki was taking a day off.

"I see." A peculiar glint flickered in Mabui’s eyes. After all, the glorious, well-known track record of both Kazuki and Tsunade skipping work was common knowledge throughout the shinobi world. "Taking a rest day" – what utter nonsense. For people like them, as long as there was work to be done, the concept of "rest" was a fantasy.

Even in the dead of night, exhausted to the point of collapse, you still had to drag yourself up to handle official business. At least, that was how it worked for the leaders of other villages. Unfortunately, this principle didn’t quite apply to Kazuki and Tsunade. Whether it was Tsunade or Kazuki, both were individuals who thoroughly enjoyed slacking off. Tsunade at least needed to find excuses; Kazuki couldn’t be bothered with such formalities. "I’m tired. I need a break. That’s it." Even the most monumental matters could be postponed. Kazuki’s willful skipping of work was something the people of the Leaf Village had long since grown accustomed to.

Under the Anbu’s guidance, Mabui quickly located Kazuki, who was leisurely strolling and shopping on the street. "Miss Mabui, we meet again." Kazuki held up a garment, checking its size, then hung it back up. He greeted her with a smile, "Care to join me for a stroll?"

"Of course," Mabui replied, smiling politely in agreement. She then accompanied Kazuki as he wandered aimlessly through the streets. Noticing that Kazuki kept browsing and selecting clothes, she couldn’t resist asking out of curiosity, "As the Hokage’s Advisor, do you still need to personally come and pick out your own clothes?"

"Of course not," Kazuki said, casually handing several garments that caught his eye to Izumi beside him, signaling her to wrap them up. "It’s just a rare day off. I felt like wandering around, taking a walk, and incidentally buying some casual clothes for myself."

"Ah, I see," Mabui nodded slightly in understanding. When she herself was overly exhausted from work, she too would want to use her rest time to go out, shop for some clothes, eat something delicious, and unwind. After all, ninja were human too, not machines. They couldn’t possibly work twenty-four hours a day. Thus, Mabui also decisively set aside work matters for the time being. While accompanying Kazuki, she ended up buying quite a lot of things for herself. Her enthusiasm even surpassed Kazuki’s.

What the hell. Your shopping frenzy is even worse than mine! Am I accompanying you, or are you accompanying me?! Kazuki watched Mabui, who was browsing with increasing relish and excitement – even dragging Izumi into various discussions – with a slightly stunned expression.

"You bought this much stuff?!" Mabui had successfully demonstrated to Kazuki what women truly meant by "just looking around." Thank goodness you were "just looking." If you had seriously done a proper shopping round, you probably would have blown a whole year’s salary on this.

Mabui smiled somewhat sheepishly. "Although our village’s commercial district is also quite prosperous, the Leaf Village is ultimately located in a region abundant in resources. The variety of goods is greater than in our village, so... I may have accidentally bought a little too much."

"Then I must first thank Miss Mabui for contributing to the Leaf Village’s tax revenue."

"You’re welcome."

Seeing that it was already noon and time for his lunch, yet this woman still seemed intent on continuing to shop, Kazuki hastily put a stop to it. "Ahem. Miss Mabui, this trip to the Leaf Village... it wasn’t specifically for shopping, was it?"

"Oh dear, I did accidentally buy too much." It was only then that Mabui noticed the sheer volume of her purchases. She was laden with bags of all sizes, nearly unable to carry them all. It was fortunate she still possessed some self-awareness and only asked Izumi to help carry a few things, refraining from turning Kazuki into a mobile pack mule.

Otherwise, Kazuki would have refused long ago. You’ve gone shopping-crazy, and now you expect me to carry your bags?! Swiftly organizing her items, she pulled out a sealing scroll and stuffed all her purchases inside. After stowing the scroll, Mabui clapped her hands together with brisk efficiency and asked with a smile, "Does the Advisor truly wish to discuss the village’s official business with me here?"

"Follow me." The street was indeed inconvenient. Kazuki led Mabui and Izumi to the Akimichi Clan’s barbecue restaurant. He requested a private room, and after ordering a variety of meats and side dishes, handed the menu to the restaurant staff. Only then did he speak. "So, does the Raikage have any instructions for us?"

"’Instructions’ is far too strong a word," Mabui said, shifting into work mode. She sat up straight, hands resting on her knees, and inclined her head slightly. "This time, I have come to the Leaf Village under the Raikage’s orders, specifically regarding the matter of the Advisor becoming a Jinchuriki. The Raikage wishes to understand why the Advisor chose to make himself the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki."

She was certainly direct, getting straight to the point the moment she opened her mouth. It made sense. Other villages might not be overly concerned, but the Cloud Village was different. The Cloud Village’s emphasis on Tailed Beasts and Jinchuriki surpassed even the Leaf’s. In the Leaf Village, a Jinchuriki was fundamentally just a Jinchuriki.

But in the Cloud Village, their Jinchuriki had always striven along the path of developing and harnessing the Tailed Beasts’ power. That was an advantage the Leaf Village couldn’t compare to. The Akatsuki was targeting the Tailed Beasts, including the Nine-Tails. Yet at this critical juncture, Kazuki had sealed the Nine-Tails and become a Jinchuriki in the eyes of the world. Given the Raikage’s temperament, he would undoubtedly seek to probe the secrets behind this. When guessing proved futile and the truth remained elusive, asking directly was, in fact, the best approach. It was the least likely to cause offense. If the intelligence could be shared, the Cloud Village would not disappoint the Leaf Village. If not, they could simply pretend the question was never asked.

"It’s not some particularly important secret," Kazuki said with a faint smile. He lifted the teacup from the table, blew gently on the steaming tea, and looked up. "I simply felt that the Nine-Tails, being a power that rightfully belongs to the village, was a pity to leave sealed away indefinitely. So, I found a way to release it. To avoid causing trouble, I had no choice but to personally seal the Tailed Beast and become a Jinchuriki. Although this puts me in the Akatsuki’s crosshairs, the result is still positive. At the very least, the Nine-Tails can enhance my combat strength considerably."

Was that really the case? This was clearly the official, diplomatic answer – what was commonly known as externally directed deceive. Mabui clearly didn’t believe Kazuki’s stock explanation. Seeing her disbelief, Kazuki appropriately tossed out a tiny morsel of bait. "Strictly speaking, I am actually somewhat different from an ordinary Jinchuriki. However, this is classified intelligence of the Leaf Village and cannot be casually divulged."