Menma brushed it off. They were on the other guy's turf, after all—if they wanted to give him an earful, he'd just have to sit there and take it.
Throughout the lecture, Menma maintained a polite smile and gave noncommittal nods. Internally, however, his mind was racing. One track was calculating how to handle the initial contact with the young leader, while the other was pushing his sensory perception to the limit, scanning the entire village.
In the original story, during that specific filler arc, the Hidden Waterfall Village appeared tiny, almost devoid of ninjas. But that was clearly just a slice of the reality.
This was a village that possessed the Seven-Tails. It was once a contender for the title of the "Sixth Great Shinobi Village" and was the birthplace of Kakuzu. How could it possibly have such a skeleton crew?
And sure enough, within the wide range of Menma's sensory net, he clearly detected over a hundred chakra signatures in the immediate vicinity. Further out, there were many more signatures constantly on the move.
While the scale of the village couldn't compare to the Five Great Nations, the civilian population here easily reached over ten thousand, and the ninja count was in the hundreds. If you included those on patrol or out on missions, the total military force likely exceeded a thousand.
Of course, the quality left something to be desired. Most of these signatures were weak; there were very few possessing Jonin-level chakra reserves. Compared to its peak, the current Hidden Waterfall was truly a shadow of its former self.
What was worth noting, however, was that Menma didn't sense any exceptionally powerful chakra fluctuations nearby. Considering how exaggerated his sensory range was right now, if he couldn't find it, it wasn't there.
Does this mean the Seven-Tails Jinchūriki isn't in the village right now?
Menma's mind subconsciously conjured the image of the girl with the mint-green hair—Fū.
She was the most critical pawn in his upcoming plan.
Any Jinchūriki, provided they can draw out a majority of their Tailed Beast's power, can be treated as a Kage-level combatant.
And that's not even touching on Perfect Jinchūriki. They represent the absolute apex of Kage-level power—specifically the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura, and the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki, Killer B. Especially the latter; if B went all out, an ordinary Kage wouldn't stand a chance.
While Fū didn't get much screen time in the original series, she was still the host of the Seven-Tails. even lowering expectations, she could safely be treated as a standard Kage-level threat.
She was one of the biggest reasons Menma had chosen the Waterfall Village.
"Please wait here for a moment. Our leader, Lord Shibuki, will be with you shortly."
Under normal circumstances, outsiders wouldn't get to see a village leader this easily. The Hidden Waterfall was, strictly speaking, one of the top powers just below the Five Great Villages. With a thousand ninjas under his command, the leader's status was considered "extremely noble" in the ninja world.
It was only because Menma was posing as an envoy from a high-ranking political official of the Land of Fire that he was granted a direct audience.
"Understood."
Menma nodded with a smile and took a seat. Karin remained expressionless from start to finish, sitting down right after him. This was the pre-arranged plan: Karin just had to maintain a "stay away from me" vibe, leaving all the talking to Menma.
Menma was honestly afraid Karin might slip up if she tried to improvise.
Of course, Menma had prepared a backup plan in case his cover was blown. The Transformation Jutsu is a tricky thing. It's hard to say whether it's easy to see through or not. Top-tier ninjas skilled in Genjutsu, those with hyper-sensitive sensory abilities, or wielders of special Dōjutsu (eye techniques) could certainly spot a fake. But your average ninja would struggle to tell the difference.
Menma didn't assume this trip would go perfectly smooth. He came with a "let's give it a shot" attitude. If it failed, it wouldn't be the end of the world.
It all depends on whether the opportunity presents itself.
Menma took a gentle sip of the tea the server had just brought out, his thoughts churning silently.
The wait wasn't long. Barely ten minutes later, footsteps echoed from the main entrance of the reception hall.
Menma, having already sensed the approaching chakra, turned his head.
Walking in the lead was a young man who immediately caught his eye. Following behind him was a man wearing a bandana with a distinctly ferocious face. The man radiated a slightly cold, dangerous aura—proof enough of his strength.
"Ah, apologies for keeping our honored guests waiting. Please, forgive the delay."
The young leader of the Hidden Waterfall smiled warmly at Menma and Karin the moment he saw them.
His demeanor and posture didn't scream "military dictator" in the slightest. He looked more like the friendly guy next door.
Karin maintained her icy exterior, but internally, she was roasting him relentlessly.
Menma, however, was used to this. This young leader was exactly as harmless as he appeared in the original anime.
Menma frankly suspected the guy hadn't even fully grasped the reins of power in the village yet.
Otherwise, why would he need Team 7 to escort him back to his own village in the anime? Where were his own guards?
Then there was the betrayal plot later on, and the struggle for the Hero Water.
Menma had plenty of reasons to believe there was an internal power struggle happening within the Waterfall Village. It was the only way to explain the inconsistencies.
"Not at all. We should be the ones asking for forgiveness for this sudden visit and for taking up your valuable time, Lord Leader," Menma replied, standing up in sync with Karin as Shibuki entered, offering a slight bow and a bright smile.
"How could this be considered an intrusion? To be recognized by the Minister of the Left of the Land of Fire is an honor for the Hidden Waterfall."
Despite looking soft, Shibuki handled the public formalities quite well.
After a brief background check earlier, Shibuki was about 60 to 70 percent sure these two were indeed from the Fire Nation's government. Naturally, his attitude was polite. For a village like theirs, receiving a mission from the Land of Fire was rare—let alone a direct commission from a high-ranking noble.
Usually, those jobs went straight to the Hidden Leaf.
"Please, no need for formalities. You can just call me Shibuki. And this here is currently the strongest Jonin in our village—Suien. If it's appropriate, we will likely assign the mission you are proposing to Jonin Suien. Oh, my apologies, I've been rude—I haven't asked how to address you two yet?"
Shibuki took his seat at the head of the room, gesturing for Menma and Karin to sit back down as he spoke with a smile.
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