Konoha has nine people in total, which is too many for a team that mainly communicates. There were not many battles as expected, and the attack from Orochimaru that might have been expected did not appear. If all the tasks of Konoha are of this level, then it is too easy.

It didn't take long before the Fifth Mizukage, Mei Terumi, arrived. She didn't wear the iconic cloak robe that symbolized the Mizukage, but a dark tight dress that showed off her graceful figure to everyone.

Mizuki took a look and the first impression of Mei Terumi was very vague. She seemed to be in her early thirties, but in fact she was about the same age as Mizuki and slightly older than Kakashi Hatake. However, her serious expression and mature attire and dress made her look a little older than her actual age. Her long brown hair covered most of her forehead and right eye, and only the emerald green left eye was exposed, revealing a sense of "keep away from strangers", which made people involuntarily stay away from her. Her face, which was not very smiling, exuded a lazy and relaxed aura of a superior. The oppressive feeling brought by the Fifth Mizukage could not be ignored. This was a strong woman with a strong desire for control.

Mei Terumi appeared with a strong aura, and only brought two unfamiliar ANBU guards with her. Chojuro, Ao and ANBU captain "Tsurugi", who had met everyone from Konoha, were not there.

Jiraiya actually didn't like this kind of occasion very much. He was free-spirited and preferred to look around to find some inspiration for his creation. If it weren't for the seriousness of this matter and Naruto was not here, he might have given up long ago. Although the Akatsuki organization should have stopped its activities, it was better to be cautious when Uzumaki Naruto's strength was not enough to protect himself.

After everyone was seated, Mei Terumi spoke with a strong voice, "We are honored to be your distinguished guest. The Hidden Mist Village is really simple and humble, so please forgive us for the poor hospitality."

"You're too polite." Jiraiya, the leader, smiled broadly and said, "We all feel your village's hospitality."

Indeed, the Hidden Mist Village was very humble. As two ninja villages communicating on an equal footing, there was actually no need for them to be so servile. However, they had to ask for help from others and had to go to great lengths to reach an agreement.

As for hospitality, the Mizuki and Hatake Kakashi teams, who had just arrived, didn't have a deep understanding of it. Jiraiya, who had been here for many days, was almost enjoying himself so much that he didn't want to leave. The Hidden Mist Village had taken great pains to take good care of Jiraiya, one of the famous "Three Ninjas".

"That's great." Since she was quite satisfied, Terumi Mei stopped beating around the bush and asked directly, "Regarding the alliance between the Hidden Mist Village and Konoha, do you agree with your village?"

"Well," Jiraiya replied, "We have no objection to forming an alliance with the Hidden Mist Village. Peaceful coexistence is our common wish. Moreover, the Hidden Mist Village must be well aware of the Akatsuki organization that has penetrated deep into the ninja world and endangered the world. Under the common threat, joint resistance is the best choice. But..."

"But what?" Mei Terumi asked.

Jiraiya's words made it very clear. This was the general trend and it was natural to form an alliance. Each side would gain what they needed, and since they had a common powerful enemy, union was inevitable. However, there might be a lot of room for bargaining on the details.

The specific matters need to be discussed by Hatake Kakashi, who has Tsunade's instructions.

"Mizukage-sama." Hatake Kakashi took out a sealed scroll, placed it in front of him, and pushed it forward, "This is Tsunade-sama's receipt, please take a look."

An Anbu behind Mei Terumi stepped forward, took the scroll, checked it and handed it to Mei Terumi.

Mei Terumi opened the scroll and frowned as she read the contents of the scroll. After a long while, she carefully read the answer from Konoha Village and asked, "The Hidden Mist Village can accept the affairs of Wave Country. After all, Konoha's influence has far exceeded ours. Since you have already intervened, we will naturally not do anything else. The abandoned Whirlpool Country has a close relationship with Konoha, so we can stop expanding in that direction. However..."

Mei Terumi said dissatisfiedly: "The distribution ratio of commissioned tasks is so low, is this a humiliation to the Hidden Mist Village?"

It doesn't matter if the sphere of influence that has long been lost is given to Konoha, but the number of commissioned tasks, which is the lifeline of the ninja village, is a battlefield where every inch of land must be fought for. Only if there are enough commissioned tasks, there will be enough commissions to train more outstanding ninjas, thereby improving the overall strength of the ninja village. At this time, Konoha is striving for greater benefits even when it is short of manpower to complete the existing tasks, because only this can guarantee the long-term prosperity of a ninja village.

Under the pressure from Mei Terumi, Hatake Kakashi said calmly, "I'm sure the Hokage has explained the specific reasons very clearly. The geographical location of the Hidden Mist Village has been very limited, and the current situation is indeed not very good."

Everyone knows the current situation of the Hidden Mist Village. Jiraiya has been here for so many days, and it is unrealistic to say that there is any concealment or deception. The plan proposed by Konoha is actually quite tolerant, but the current situation still makes Terumi Mei very dissatisfied.

"I can't deny what you said." Even if there are more mission commissions, whether there are enough outstanding ninjas to complete them is something that Mei Terumi, the Mizukage, knows best.

"Just do as you say." The decisive Mei Terumi did not get entangled in trivial details. The general situation was like this, and no amount of sophistry would be of any use.

"However, things will always change. If the alliance is signed, as two allied villages, proper communication is also essential. Then, we should act according to the tradition of the ninja world. Otherwise, I don't have enough reasons to convince my compatriots to accept this agreement..."

"Tradition?" Mizuki and Kakashi looked at each other, then looked at Jiraiya. This kind of decision needs to be made by a ninja of Jiraiya's status.

After thinking about it, Jiraiya nodded: "Okay."

"That's good." Mei Terumi, who finally gained something, also smiled.

…

Although they had reached a preliminary agreement, there were still many details that needed to be bargained. The rest would require a battle of wits and courage. On the way back, it was already completely dark. After a delicious dinner hosted by the Mist Ninja, the Konoha people walked on the street back to their residence.

"Hey, Mr. Mizuki, what exactly does the 'tradition of the ninja world' that the female Mizukage mentioned mean?"