The Hokage's office in Konohagakure.
Tsunade sat behind the Hokage's desk, rubbing her temples while Shizune stood beside her.
There was a lot she wanted to complain about, but with the people still present here, she held it back.
Honestly, she never wanted to become Hokage again and inherit a mess like this.
When Kushina and Naruto came to find her, she had already been prepared to take the position because a certain bastard had asked her to.
And now that she was actually sitting here, she could only feel one thing.
Konoha was in terrible shape.
The Third Hokage was dead.
There was still no word from Jiraiya.
Even Mount Myōboku had gone silent after she asked Lady Katsuyu to try and make contact.
From what she heard, after seeing the devastated land around Mount Myōboku, they had no intention of investigating any further.
Tsunade had a pretty good idea who might have done something like that.
But what was the point of knowing?
That thought only left a bitter taste in her mouth, along with a trace of self-blame.
Sunagakure had also come to lodge a complaint, claiming that their Jinchūriki had been abducted by Sasuke Uchiha, a rogue ninja from Konoha.
If Shizune hadn't stopped her, Tsunade would have smacked that old hag herself.
Sunagakure had lost their Kazekage too, along with many capable shinobi. Although they had withdrawn for now, judging by the looks on their faces, they might still do something reckless before long.
After all, Sunagakure had lost even more than Konoha.
At the Kage level, the only one they had left was Granny Chiyo.
And now they didn't even have their village's strategic weapon anymore.
Their Tailed Beast was gone too.
"Haaah..."
Tsunade let out another tired sigh.
In front of her, Kakashi and Asuma were still reporting on the masked man and everything connected to the Konoha Crush.
Tsunade heard them, but her thoughts kept drifting elsewhere.
She only nodded from time to time, letting them continue.
"Asuma, what do you think?" Kakashi asked quietly.
Asuma folded his arms and frowned. "There's too little to go on. That guy appeared, stirred everything up, and disappeared. But one thing's obvious... he wasn't just watching from the sidelines."
Tsunade rested one hand against her forehead, her expression unreadable.
Kakashi glanced at her, then continued, "There is one more thing, Lady Hokage. Someone has a guess about who that masked man might be."
That finally made Tsunade lift her eyes.
"Oh?" she said flatly.
Asuma nodded. "He wants to speak to you privately. Without anyone else knowing."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow.
"And why doesn't this person trust his own comrades?"
Asuma gave a small shrug. "He's being cautious. And considering the current situation... that might not be a bad idea."
Tsunade stared at him for a moment, then waved her hand.
"Fine. Let him come."
Kakashi and Asuma didn't say anything else after that.
Not long after they left, the office fell quiet.
Tsunade and Shizune exchanged a glance, neither of them saying anything.
Then, at the agreed time, a figure wearing a cloak quietly entered the Hokage Tower and came to meet Tsunade.
When the hood was lowered, Tsunade's eyes narrowed slightly.
It was Shikamaru.
Standing in front of the desk, Shikamaru took a breath and began laying out his suspicions.
He spoke about his guesses, about what had happened during the mission, and about how he believed it might all be connected.
Tsunade listened with a serious expression, questioning him from time to time while letting him continue at his own pace.
Shikamaru laid out one hypothesis after another.
The masked man seemed to have a strange interest in playing with people.
Even Sasuke had clearly been used.
And if someone carefully looked back at the recent incidents, the pattern was actually not that hard to notice.
Before leaving, Shikamaru hesitated for a moment, then added one more thing.
"Lady Tsunade... there's something else."
Tsunade looked at him. "What is it?"
Shikamaru's expression grew more serious.
"Kurenai-sensei has been acting strangely too," he said. "I think... she might know something. Or maybe she had some kind of contact with that masked man."
Shizune's eyes shifted slightly, but she stayed silent.
Tsunade rested her chin on one hand. "And why do you think that?"
Shikamaru frowned.
"It was just a feeling at first. But the more I thought about everything, the less it felt like a coincidence."
He lowered his gaze drifting into memories.
"That guy... he doesn't do things randomly. He always has a reason. It's like he enjoys moving people around and seeing what happens next." (PS: Sigh...)
The office fell silent for a moment.
Then Tsunade nodded.
"I understand. You've done well bringing this to me." ( PS: "..." )
Shikamaru gave a short nod, but his heart was still pounding in his chest.
Even if he had pieced together all those possibilities, he was still just a kid. Standing in front of the Hokage and laying out a theory like that wasn't exactly easy.
After leaving the Hokage Tower, he let out a slow breath.
Only then did he realize how tense he had been.
But soon, something else surfaced in his mind, and a flash of anger crossed his face.
He returned home and went straight to his room.
Papers were scattered all over the table, filled with notes about recent events, past records, names, and possibilities.
He had even written down the incident from years ago—
The one where his father had died.
Shikamaru stood there in silence, eyes fixed on the papers as he sank into deep thought.
He could feel it.
A giant web had already formed around them.
And that was exactly why he had hidden his most dangerous guess from Tsunade.
The possibility that even what happened years ago—when Danzō suddenly went mad—might have had something to do with that same masked man.
It sounded absurd.
But it wasn't impossible.
--
Outside the Hokage Tower, the atmosphere in the village was far from calm.
A few villagers had gathered near the street below, their voices low but filled with agitation.
"Did you hear? That Uchiha brat… Sasuke. They say he ran off and became a rogue ninja."
"Hmph. Not surprising," another villager muttered, arms crossed. "The Uchiha were always trouble. We should've dealt with him when we had the chance."
"Exactly," someone else chimed in. "That clan was wiped out for a reason. Guess one survivor was already too many."
"First it was his brother slaughtering the clan, now this kid runs off and kidnaps a Kazekage's son. Tell me that bloodline isn't cursed."
Not a single person defended Sasuke.
Everyone seemed eager to vent their frustration, and the easiest way to do that was by blaming someone. Sasuke became the perfect target.
The villagers didn't hold back. Their words grew harsher, even slipping into vulgar remarks.
Inside a small ramen shop, a man paused mid-motion, his chopsticks hovering in the air.
His hand slowly tightened around them before he forced himself to relax and regain his composure.
"What's wrong?" the man sitting across from him asked, glancing sideways. "Something bothering you?"
"…It's nothing," he replied quietly. "Just idle talk. It doesn't concern us."
Both men wore the black cloaks patterned with red clouds.
It was Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame, sitting casually in the ramen shop while the voices of the villagers continued in the background, criticizing Sasuke without restraint.
Kisame smirked faintly. "Your little brother's become quite the topic of conversation."
Itachi lowered his gaze slightly, his expression unchanged.
"People often speak the loudest when they understand the least."
He lifted the ramen bowl calmly, as if the discussion around him meant nothing at all.
Kisame smirked, resting his cheek against one hand as he glanced at Itachi.
"Heh… looks like your little brother is following in your footsteps," he said in a teasing tone. "Becoming a rogue ninja… he's matching you quite nicely, wouldn't you say?"
Itachi didn't react immediately. He simply set his chopsticks down, his gaze calm and unreadable.
"Sasuke walks his own path," Itachi replied quietly. "Whether it resembles mine or not… is meaningless."
Kisame chuckled softly.
"You really are cold, Itachi-san. Even when they're talking about your own brother."
Itachi lifted his eyes slightly, the usual composure returning fully.
"Emotions cloud judgment," he said. "That's something a shinobi cannot afford."
Kisame didn't say anything else. He only smiled faintly and returned to his ramen, as if the topic had already lost its interest.
Itachi lowered his gaze, the surface of the broth reflecting his calm expression.
Sasuke… what are you doing?
For the first time, a trace of concern flickered in his thoughts.
The masked man.
Uchiha Madara.
A name that should have belonged only to a legend… yet the man behind that mask possessed the power to make even that impossible truth feel real.
The fact that Sasuke had ended up with him was not something Itachi had planned.
If Madara had personally approached Sasuke, then things were far more complicated than he had anticipated. Worse, there was a possibility they had been in contact long before this incident.
If that was true…
Then Sasuke's actions were no longer moving along the path Itachi had carefully prepared for him.
This was getting out of his control.
Itachi's fingers tightened slightly around his chopsticks before relaxing again. His expression remained calm, as if nothing had changed, but his mind was already racing through possibilities.
If Madara was guiding Sasuke now, then the situation had become far more dangerous.
Not just for Konoha—
But for Sasuke himself.
At that moment, Itachi's gaze shifted almost imperceptibly.
The faintest disturbance in the air.
Someone was approaching… someone very strong.
"Kisame. Get ready," Itachi said quietly. "We may have company."
"Oh?" Kisame's eyes narrowed slightly as he rested Samehada on his shoulder. "Someone who makes you react like that… guess I'll have to take this seriously."
His grin widened, revealing rows of sharp teeth.
---
Bang!
"Huff… huff…"
"To think I'd be left in such a sorry state… I underestimated you…"
Blood dripped from Itachi's left eye as he covered it with one hand. His breathing was uneven. He slowly lifted his head, trying to clear his blurred vision and identify the person standing before him.
Because he was kneeling, all he could see were her legs.
But he already knew.
"Kisame… how much more time?" Itachi asked quietly.
Beside him, Kisame had already fused with Samehada, his body partially transformed into his shark-like state.
"…Looks like we might be dead soon, Itachi-san," Kisame replied, baring his sharp teeth in a grin. There was no fear in his expression.
"You two… really had the nerve to stroll into Konoha so openly."
A furious voice cut through the air.
"What do you take me for?!"
The figure blurred forward.
A fist descended like a meteor.
Itachi's body instantly burst into a flock of crows, scattering into the air. At the same time, Kisame dove into the water below, disappearing with a splash.
The entire area had already turned into a shallow lake due to Kisame's earlier Water Release. Moving like a shark, he sped away beneath the surface.
"Tch. Sneaky bastards."
Tsunade cracked her knuckles and let out a snort, then placed her hands on her hips, her expression annoyed.
"Lady Tsunade…" Kakashi muttered, clearly shocked.
He knew Tsunade was one of the Legendary Sannin, but seeing it firsthand was something else entirely.
To push Uchiha Itachi into that state…
It had been Tsunade alone who fought him head-on.
Kisame, meanwhile, had been intercepted and held back by Kakashi, Asuma, and the others.
Kakashi exhaled slowly, still processing what he had just witnessed.
He had only been strolling through the village when he noticed two suspicious figures wearing black cloaks patterned with red clouds.
The moment he recognized them, he immediately alerted the Hokage and nearby shinobi.
That had led directly to this clash.
Tsunade glanced at the direction where the two Akatsuki members had escaped, then clicked her tongue in annoyance.
Her sharp eyes shifted toward Kakashi, who was still staring at the destroyed street, clearly lost in thought.
"Kakashi."
He didn't respond immediately.
"Kakashi!" Tsunade snapped.
Kakashi straightened at once. "Y-Yes, Lady Tsunade!"
"Stop daydreaming," she said bluntly. "Take Asuma and get him to the hospital. I'll examine him myself later."
Kakashi glanced to the side.
Asuma was leaning against a broken wall, one hand pressed against his side, blood seeping through his fingers. The earlier clash with Kisame had clearly taken a toll on him.
"…Understood," Kakashi replied, his tone turning serious.
He quickly moved to Asuma's side and helped him stand.
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