No I don't want to bend the stuffing tube .. now that I know better

My motor was set up for solid shaft so it points directly to the keel at the transom

The problem I face is that if I exit at the transom, run 3'' of exposed wire then connect to a shaft, my prop is now 4+ " aft of the hull ... that’s way far back on a 15" boat .. or is it?

If I do the bend internally, I'd expose the wire for @2" before meeting the drive shaft at the transom ... problem there is even I telescope to some thin tubing where the wire enters the shaft, there won't be a lot of thin tubing to stop the water entering.