As Mujie stepped out of the prison gate, he let out a deep sigh and glanced down at the mission briefing in his hand.
They only called him "Advisor Mujie" when there was a job to do; otherwise, it was just "Old Mujie." He snorted quietly. "The lord really is something else, planning to invite Mr.Inevitable over but still acting all secretive. Almost fell for it!"
No surprise there. A lord who managed to get a signed book from Mr.Inevitable? Clearly a fan. How could he hate Mr.Inevitable when they shared the same wavelength?
Actually, thinking back, before anyone else even knew who Mr.Inevitable was, the lord had already given him that precious signed book. So maybe he wasn't just a fan, maybe he actually knew Mr.Inevitable personally.
Narrowing his eyes, Mujie thought, "Maybe I should ask him about it."
But first, he needed to finish this mission, close the deal with the Konoha shinobi, and only then get to the bottom of the Mr.Inevitable connection.
Looking down at the papers again, Mujie muttered, "Whats the lord up to now? Buying shinobi rights from every village?"
No wonder he was lord, every plan he cooked up was so confusing no one else could follow. And he even claimed he wasn't really a Kusa shinobi?
Talk about modesty. There was probably no better shinobi in the Land of Grass than him.
Meanwhile, Charlie rubbed his nose and frowned. "That bastard Mujies cursing me again," he muttered. If not Mujie, then who else would dare curse him?
After all, Charlie was the respected lord of the Land of Grass, praised even by Jiraiya, one of Konoha Sannin. There was no good reason for someone to curse him out of the blue. 'I'll settle this with him when I get back,' he thought firmly.
He glanced up at the crew of 'Sannin Make Trouble in Kusawood'. Everything was set. The entire staff was present, and even the little Hajime had been recruited to play the young versions of the Konoha Sannin.
Since the story began at the shinobi Academy, showing their childhood was essential. Plus, because one of the three was female, the script had been adjusted accordingly.
They combined one of the main characters with the female lead, but then,
"Cut!"
"Cut! Cut!"
"Cut! Cut! Cut!"
Charlie stared in disbelief at the sly-looking Jiraiya, who was lifting his head with a smirk. "How many times is this now? Youre scared of kissing! Scared!
You look ridiculous, closing your eyes and tilting your head up like that, what do you thinks going to happen? You should be scared! Seriously, scared!"
"Director Charlie, I dont think the story should go that way," Jiraiya said sincerely. "Look, as a rogue shinobi of the world, if a girl just came up and kissed me, do you really think I'd just give up? What about you? Would you just back off?"
"…"
He made a good point. I… I… I…
Charlie quickly gathered himself, almost getting distracted by Jiraiya, who casually flicked his head and started talking about his flirting techniques. He hadnt even gotten close to Tsunade yet, but he sure talked like a pro!
"I'm not that kind of person! And this is the script! We have to follow it!"
Thinking back to how shamelessly this guy had come over asking to add a kissing scene, Charlie now understood what was really going on. "Arent you worried Tsunade wI'll find out and beat you up? Youre just trying to steal a kiss from your own clone!"
Jiraiya threw his head back proudly and sneered, "Not scared!"
"If your legs arent shaking, I'll believe you!"
"Theyre not shaking, its just a little sore from standing!"
"…"
Watching Jiraiya stubbornly stiffen his neck and refuse to admit defeat, Charlie sighed and rolled his eyes. "Alright, keep going. But remember, stick to the script!"
Filming this scene wasn't difficult, just a bit tricky with the shinobi flair hed added. Once Charlie called "Action," all the actors took their places.
Jiraiya sighed and shook his head, muttering, "Honestly, I dont know when I'll see Tsunade again. If she wants to hit me, she cant reach me now, hehe~."
To be honest, he hadnt expected to play both Tsunade and Orochimaru himself. Learned something new today. True Kusa shinobi style, always full of wild ideas!
Jiraiya glanced over at the curious red-haired boy standing among the little Hajime nearby. He fell silent for a moment, then sighed as he looked up at the sky above the Land of Grass. "Its time to keep moving," he said quietly.
"Jiraiya! What are you doing? Everyones waiting for you! Hurry up!" someone called out.
"Coming! Coming!" Jiraiya replied, snapping back to the moment. With that, he jumped back into his performance. Honestly, he was actually excited to see the movie hed acted in. 'I wonder what Tsunades face wI'll be when she watche's it?' he thought with a small smile.
Time flew by, and before long, the new Kusawood movie was finishe'd successfully. Shortly afterward, Jiraiya received a letter from Mujie. 'All done!' it said.
The success was unexpected, but maybe it shouldnt have been. The First and Second Hokage of Konoha were so famous that everyone in the shinobi world knew their names.
Konoha didn't fuss much about copyrights as long as no one tried to smear their reputations. Even the rights to Uchiha Madara, which Mujie had secured from the Uchiha clan, were safely handled.
However, since Madara was a traitor to his clan, the Uchiha kept their distance, as long as no one insulted the clan itself. So, the copyright fees werent too expensive.
"Maybe… Madaras copyright fees should go straight to him?" Charlie muttered, looking down at the floor before meeting the eyes of the curious senior officials of the Land of Grass.
Now that the movie was finishe'd and the blind boxes were ready, Charlies expression grew serious. "Its time to get started," he declared.
Meanwhile someplace else. The weather was just perfect, a gentle breeze stirred the air, the sun shone warmly without being too hot.
Yet, despite such a lovely day, a little girl nearby with short black hair looked utterly lost and weighed down by worries far beyond her years. Her face revealed the heavy thoughts swirling inside her mind.
Shizune silently watched Tsunade ahead, who was walking with her usual carefree but somewhat clumsy gait. Finally, she spoke quietly, "Lady Tsunade, we cant keep going like this, can we?"
Before Shizune could finish, Tsunade waved her off with a confident smile. "Dont worry, I know exactly what I'm doing," she said breezily. "I'm not gambling recklessly, I'm just taking a break. Ive been a shinobi for so long; dont I deserve some rest?"
Shizune remained silent for a moment. Sure, Tsunade deserved a break, but this one had dragged on for nearly half a year. As her longtime apprentice, Shizune knew it was pointless to argue, but she couldnt help herself.
"If this keeps up… one day you'll lose every last penny we have."