Chapter 229: Who is Pakura?
After finishing the two most urgent documents on her desk, Terumi Mei caught sight of Kitahara Kaede out of the corner of her eye.
He was leaning his head to the side, gazing out the window. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but a faint, elusive smile played upon his lips. Without even realizing it, Mei found her own lips curving upward in response.
"Jonin Kitahara."
Kaede snapped back to attention and turned to look at her. "Yes?"
"Would you like to head back and rest first?" Mei’s tone was gentle. "The rest of my work is just routine reviewing; there’s nothing left that requires your assistance."
Kaede blinked, momentarily stunned. "No more missions for today?"
"None," Mei shook her head. "Just paperwork. I can handle it on my own."
Kaede took the opportunity to stand up. There was indeed little point in sitting there idle.
"Then I’ll be heading out," he said, pausing for a moment before adding naturally, "I might as well stop by the market on my way back and pick up some groceries for dinner."
At the mention of "dinner," a sudden image flashed through Mei’s mind: the silhouette of that man bustling about the stove on her birthday, and that steaming bowl of red bean rice.
A powerful longing surged from the depths of her heart without warning. She wanted to eat his cooking again, just like back then.
However, the thought lasted only a second before she forcibly suppressed it. *No. Asking for that now would be too abrupt. It might scare him away.*
Controlling herself, Mei gave a poised nod, her face maintaining that perfect, professional smile. "Alright, go ahead then."
Without overthinking it, Kaede nodded and walked out of the office. As the door clicked shut, the room fell into an immediate, heavy silence.
Mei sat alone, continuing her work. About half an hour passed. After finishing a revised plan for border patrols, she instinctively turned her head, wanting to see what Kaede was doing.
Her gaze landed on the empty chair beside her.
Mei froze. Only then did she remember that she was the one who had told him to leave.
Over the past month, she had grown accustomed to it—accustomed to the way she could look up during a break in her paperwork and find him right there. Now, there was nothing. Just a hollow space.
Mei let out a small, bittersweet laugh and looked away. *Habit is a terrifying thing,* she thought.
As she continued to smile, the expression slowly faded from her face. The words of Elder Genji echoed in her ears once more: *"Half a month. If there are no results in half a month, I will take over personally."*
There were only two weeks left. Once he returned to Konoha, she would never see him again.
The thought hit her like a physical blow, leaving her chest tight and breathless. Suddenly, she felt a desperate need to know: what had Kitahara Kaede been thinking this past month?
Did he... did he enjoy these days spent together as much as she did? Or had he spent every waking moment longing for the mission to end so he could hurry back to the Hidden Leaf?
Mei craved an answer, but she didn’t dare ask.
Then, she remembered the two letters.
She reached into her pocket, pulled out the two envelopes, and placed them side by side on the desk. Her eyes flickered with uncertainty as she stared at them.
Her hand reached for the first letter. Just as her fingertips were about to touch the seal, she stopped.
When he had handed these to her, he hadn’t hesitated for a second. He had even told her the contents: one for the Hokage, and one for a friend. He trusted her. He trusted her without a single shred of suspicion.
If she opened them, she would be trampling that trust underfoot.
Mei’s hand hovered in mid-air, unable to descend. But then, another thought—something darker, more obsessive—began to churn in her heart.
*I’m not spying on his privacy. I just want to know... if he’s in a hurry to leave.*
*Yes. That’s all I want to know.*
*What’s wrong with that? I care about him this much—if I don’t even know his true feelings, how can I possibly make him stay?*
Mei’s breathing grew shallow and rapid. She stared at the envelopes, as if hypnotizing herself. *As long as I don’t tell anyone, it’s the same as not reading them. In the future... we shouldn’t have secrets anyway. He will understand. He’ll understand because I just want to know him so badly.*
That thought finally won. Without further hesitation, Mei carefully broke the seal.
The first was an official report to the Fourth Hokage, Minato. The language was formal, stating that the mission was progressing but had encountered some resistance and required more time. From start to finish, there was no mention of wanting to give up, nor any sign of urgency to return to Konoha.
Mei breathed a sigh of relief, a satisfied smile returning to her lips. He wasn’t in a rush to leave. This answer significantly lifted her mood. She even began calculating how to use the phrase "requires more time" to her advantage. She could tell Elder Genji that this was Kaede’s own professional judgment and that the plan required a longer cycle.
That way, she could legitimately keep him for several more months.
Her smile deepened as she happily picked up the second letter. This one was written to a friend named "Maito Guy."
As she opened it, she thought idly that a private letter to a friend would likely just be casual greetings or some trivial updates.
She unfolded the paper and scanned the lines.
In the next second, the smile on her face froze.
*"If Pakura goes to Konoha to find me, please tell her for me to stay calm and wait for me in the village. I’ll be back soon."*
*Pakura.*
*Tell her to stay calm and wait for me.*
*I’ll be back soon.*
The office became deathly quiet, filled only by the sound of Mei’s increasingly heavy breathing.
*Pakura.*
Who was this "Pakura"? Why was someone by that name waiting for him in Konoha? And why use such a soothing, comforting tone?
*"Wait for me."* Those words sounded like a whisper between lovers; every syllable dripped with intimacy.
The warmth in Mei’s eyes was instantly washed away, replaced by a searing fire of rage. What, exactly, was her relationship with Kitahara Kaede?
The recipient, Maito Guy, sounded like a man. But this "Pakura"... she was almost certainly a woman. A woman in Konoha, waiting for his return.
A suffocating sense of crisis, like a rising tide, flooded in from all sides. She couldn’t accept this. She absolutely could not let anyone snatch him away from her.
Mei stood up abruptly. She couldn’t stay in this room for another second. She needed to see Kitahara Kaede *now*. Only the physical sensation of him being by her side could calm her.
Mei carefully resealed the two letters, restoring them to a state where it was impossible to tell they had been opened. Then, she summoned a highly trusted Anbu operative.
"These two letters," she said, handing them over. "Arrange for them to be delivered to Konoha. Use the fastest means possible."
The Anbu took the letters with both hands.
"Also," Mei added, "find someone for me. Someone named ’Pakura.’ I want all her information—physical descriptions, background, the more detailed the better. I want it as soon as possible."
The Anbu bowed and vanished.
Only after the operative had left did Mei tidy the documents on her desk. She walked out of the office and headed toward the residential quarters, her pace quickening with every step.
By the time she reached the door of the small house where Kaede stayed, she stopped.
From inside, the fragrant aroma of home-cooked food wafted through the air.
Mei stood at the door. All the gloom and madness of the last few minutes had been swept away, hidden behind a mask of perfect composure.
She raised her hand and knocked softly.
*Knock, knock.*