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The Land of Crafts is an island nation, so its territory can't be considered vast. But this is in comparison to the Five Great Nations. In terms of area, it's actually not a small country. It's at least much bigger than countries like the Land of Waves or the Land of Whirlpools.
But in terms of combat strength, it's not much different from the Land of Waves. Because it's a country without a ninja village. In terms of location, the Land of Crafts is located southwest of the Land of Water, sandwiched between the waters of the Land of Water and the Land of Fire.
As for the country's characteristics, as its name suggests, it's said that, starting with a legendary swordsmith named Kusanagi, the Land of Crafts has been famous for its handcrafted metalworking. Although many things can't be verified, there are rumors that the Kusanagi Sword, famous throughout the ninja world, was forged here.
According to a certain law, various divine weapons can't be mass-produced. After all, only uniqueness and exclusivity can highlight the value of something. So, they are often produced by chance in small workshops.
Divine weapons often have a "handmade by one person" label.
Of course, the story of the Land of Crafts has nothing to do with swordsmiths and divine swords. They are just a starting point.
"Welcome, guest..."
One day, a young person walked into a certain izakaya.
"Please, have a seat here."
Facing the kind offer, the young person chose to refuse.
"No, I have an appointment with someone."
As he spoke, the young person showed a kind smile and pointed with his right finger to a corner at the back of the room.
There was indeed a table of guests there.
"Ah, I apologize. Please go ahead."
After the owner expressed his apologies, the young person nodded at him and walked inside… This was a person with a gentle face and a gentle smile. Or, perhaps, it would be more appropriate to describe the young person as "beautiful"?
So, the question is, is he a man or a woman?
That's worth thinking about…
Also… wait, what is he carrying on his back?
As for Haori, whether it was by chance or with intention, the ninja world is only so big. In any case, he found a lifeline.
He walked to the back of the room and stood in front of the beautiful woman with sleepy eyes.
Tsunade obviously didn't recognize who he was at first glance, as he walked straight in front of her. She just squinted her eyes and looked at him.
Haori smiled, not minding her reaction. He spoke to the person who could recognize him, "Shizune, long time no see."
The full-time nanny, Shizune, could still recognize Haori.
"You know Shizune? Who are you, kid?"
Tsunade's cheeks were flushed, and her reaction wasn't very clear. This revealed a real and profound fact… She was really a little drunk.
"Haori, Upper白石 Haori."
Shizune was about to explain to this often-embarrassing Konoha (old) princess who was standing in front of her, but Haori had already spoken first, revealing his identity.
"What? It's you."
You couldn't tell from Tsunade's tone whether she was happy to see an old friend or annoyed to be interrupted by someone she didn't want to see. But there was definitely a casual greeting between old friends who often see each other in her tone.
It wasn't surprising that Shizune could recognize Haori. After all, she wasn't drunk. And Haori's face hadn't changed much over the years.
And it was quite normal for Tsunade not to recognize Haori. Because her eyes, no matter how hard she tried, couldn't focus properly. She probably couldn't see Haori's face clearly.
The Three Ninja Precepts, the Three Ninja Precepts. Money, alcohol, and women. Tsunade had them all.
Furthermore, the last time Tsunade saw Haori, he was clearly shorter than her. But now, Haori was at least fifteen centimeters taller than her.
And more importantly, the Haori in front of her was completely different from before. Tsunade hadn't even seen the gourd boy Haori. So, Haori couldn't match the image in her memory.
—If you had to describe Haori's current style of dress, it's actually easy. Because his clothes are 90% similar to the Medicine Seller. Or, you could say that if Haori just tied a headband like Zoro's, he could go and impersonate the Medicine Seller.
Compared to the 100% dragon suit he wore before, Haori's current outfit is definitely considered gorgeous. In fact, it also made him appear more androgynous.
Had Haori changed his low-key way of doing things? Not really.
"Why did you change your style? It's different from before, right?" Tsunade asked. After the characters overlapped, Tsunade just said whatever came to mind. Maybe in her eyes, the current Haori wasn't much different from the little kid he used to be.
Why did he change his style? Actually, there's a deep reason for this.
Haori was about to explain, but a voice suddenly came from behind him.
"Haori, you're blocking me. I can't see."
There was no doubt that this was a little girl's voice.
Haori had a large scroll across his waist. And on top of the scroll, lying on his back, was a small figure.
She was clearly very curious about who Haori was talking to. But because of her height, no matter how hard she tried to stand on her tiptoes, she could only just peek her little head over Haori's shoulder.
Even if she jumped lightly, she would only be able to show a bit of her forehead… As she said, Haori was completely blocking her view.
After her efforts were fruitless, she could only choose a different approach… A small hand pushed aside Haori's right arm. In the gap between his body, her curious eyes peeked out.
This scene was quite sudden. Tsunade's wine cup fell onto the table… Who would have thought that Haori was hiding a little person behind him?
Her drunkenness subsided immediately.
"Mirai, I've been carrying you for a long time. You should have rested enough. You can get down."
"…Yes, I've fully resurrected. I'd like to express my sincere gratitude to Haori."
Although her tone was intentionally serious, you couldn't hear the words "sincere" in her voice at all.
But as Mirai spoke, she had already climbed down from Haori's back. Then, she walked around to Haori's left side, then extended her left hand and clasped Haori's right hand.
Then, these two disproportionate hands formed a simple seal. The scroll behind Haori instantly shrunk and fell to the ground.
Mirai bent over, picked up the scroll, and stuffed it into a small bag behind her… The only purpose of this scroll was to provide a footrest when she needed Haori to carry her.
This was probably the most targeted scroll Haori had ever made…
Tsunade looked at the child in front of her… a light blue, double-breasted yukata, her long red hair tied up at the back, obsidian eyes, a long, dark blue scarf around her neck, and a black hair clip with a horn-like sheen on the edge of her collar.
"This child is…"
No matter what, you could see Kushina's shadow in her face. This was especially true for someone like Tsunade, who had seen Kushina as a child.
"Yes, Mirai is one of the last treasures left by Minato and Kushina…"
"Her name is Mirai… But I mean, she can already use seals, although she's doing it with you."
Was she recalling something? Tsunade's later words sounded more like she was changing the subject.
It wasn't particularly surprising that Mirai could use seals. She was almost five years old. If you compared her to others, Kakashi was already collecting heads on the battlefield at her age.
But Mirai's talent as a ninja wasn't in this… Haori did come here by chance, but why could he find Tsunade's location so precisely? This time, he didn't rely on the Slug.
He relied on the Sharingan… Uzumaki Mirai's Sharingan.
"Actually, she can use seals herself, but…"
"But I'm Haori's left hand now." Before Haori could answer, Mirai spoke first. There was even a hint of responsibility in her childish tone.
Because she was the left hand, she had to cooperate with Haori, who could only use his right hand, to complete a seal.
"Cough, Mirai, let me introduce you to this person…" Haori wanted to introduce Tsunade's identity, but he couldn't think of how to address Tsunade in front of Mirai.
"Auntie? Grandma? Uh… Granny?"
Every time Haori changed a word, Tsunade's eyelids would involuntarily twitch.
Making the seniority relationship so clear was obviously not something Tsunade wanted to see.
Fortunately, Mirai stopped Haori's reckless behavior in time. She gently bit her lower lip and said the most accurate and pleasing address for an older single woman in this situation:
"Hello, big sister."
Tsunade nodded slightly. Yes, this child was well-educated.
So… Uzumaki Mirai was never anyone's replacement. If you really had to say, it was just like what Haori had said to Kushina. This child would become his clone.
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