"Konoha means nothing to me, but you do," Dark Glow cupped Tsunade's face and asked, "I still remember every promise I made to you. What about you? Have you truly decided to stay here, even if it might lead to death, even if there's no future left for us?"
A flicker of longing passed through Tsunade's eyes. She had imagined their future together countless times. However, now there was something far more important. Her voice was firm as she replied, "Yes, Konoha is the village my grandfather built with his own hands. It's the place that raised me. I am a ninja of Konoha. Defending it is my duty. I can't leave."
Although already knowing Tsunade's answer, Dark Glow still couldn't help but ask, "Then between me and Konoha, which one matters more to you?"
Tsunade's expression turned conflicted. She turned her head aside, somewhat flustered, "How can they be compared? It's different..."
Dark Glow's hands tightly gripped her shoulders, giving her no room to evade, "I don't want to hear anything else. Tell me directly—me or it?"
Faced with Dark Glow's relentless questioning, Tsunade couldn't help herself and shoved him away, blurting out, "It."
A flicker of relief lit up Dark Glow's face, and a faint, calm smile curved across his stern expression, "Thank you for not lying to me. Can I have one last hug?"
Tsunade looked apologetic. At this moment, she suddenly understood the words Dark Glow had spoken a few days ago. Indeed, ninjas were always accompanied by death. And this time... it might be her who dies.
The two embraced tightly, as if wanting to merge into each other's flesh forever, permanently memorizing each other's scent and taste.
Dark Glow gradually became unsatisfied with merely this. He quietly reached out for her face, looked down at her, his eyes shining like stars in the night sky. His warm lips already descended onto hers.
Kissing Tsunade's somewhat pale lips, she didn't resist, closing her eyes and enjoying their final moment, lost deeply in the sweet dream of love. Konoha, the Four-Nation Coalition, the Hakuto Stronghold—all slipped away from her mind at this moment. Embracing this warmth—this must be the sweetness of love!
Wait a second, her mouth truly tasted sweet—what kind of flavor was this? As the kiss deepened, Tsunade awoke from her recent dream-like state. Something was wrong...
Tsunade gathered all her chakra, preparing to use all her strength to push Dark Glow away, only to discover she couldn't summon even the slightest bit of force. Her usual monstrous strength had vanished at this moment.
Incredulous, Tsunade looked at the man she loved and said, "You... did you... poison me?"
Seeing the look in Tsunade's eyes shift from disbelief to rage, the diamond-shaped mark on her forehead began to glow. Prepared beforehand, Dark Glow had already finished the hand seals, then applied a sealing technique, completely extinguishing Tsunade's final resistance.
"What are you trying to do?" Tsunade angrily demanded.
Dark Glow held her close and replied, "War is meant for men. You shouldn't be here. Go back to Konoha. I'll handle the Four-Nation Coalition."
"You should clearly understand my personality, Dark Glow. Don't make me mad, or I swear I'll never forgive you for the rest of my life."
Knowing full well Tsunade had an extremely high tolerance for poisons, Anya released chakra to neutralize the toxin as he spoke. But it was completely ineffective. The poison had completely paralyzed her immense chakra, leaving her sluggish like a cat lounging in the sun—unresponsive and powerless. Only then did she realize—the poison had been specially made for her. Anya had planned this all along.
Furious, Tsunade roared again, "Remove this poison now!"
"I'm sorry. I can't," replied Anya, ignoring her. He then called out, "Yugao."
Yugao, who had remained hidden in the shadows, stepped forward. "Commander."
A scroll appeared in Anya's hand—it had been delivered by an Anbu two days ago, and he had kept it from Tsunade until now, when it no longer mattered. He handed the scroll to Yugao along with Tsunade. "Tsunade is your responsibility now. Safely return her to Konoha. Also, tell the Third Hokage I've received his mission. I'll defend Mount Hakuto. Inside this scroll are the words I have for him."
Tsunade finally understood Anya's plan—he intended to send her away and face the Four-Nation Coalition alone.
"What do you take me for? Anya, listen to me—don't you dare have someone take me away today, or we're finished. I swear, I'll never see you again in my entire life, whether you live or die." She had never spoken such harsh words before.
Anya remained silent, giving Yugao a decisive look.
Understanding immediately, Yugao quickly picked up Tsunade and sped off toward Konoha.
From a distance, Tsunade's furious voice could still be faintly heard: "An...ya... I won't forgive you... never..."
A soft chuckle followed—Orochimaru's laugh.
"So, that's your plan?"
Orochimaru had already arrived and witnessed everything. Now, smiling, he stepped forward and couldn't resist commenting, "Truly direct and brutal. Honestly, I didn't expect things to be like this between you two."
Anya ignored Orochimaru's words and cut straight to the point. "Uncle, three days should be enough time for you to do what I asked, right?"
"Of course." Orochimaru watched the distant enemy army with amusement, sighing slightly. "They've gathered like a storm ready to destroy Konoha—circling slowly at times, roaring at others. Quite a spectacle, don't you think? Though I can't see how you'll win, I'm still looking forward to it."
After saying this, Orochimaru formed hand seals and declared, [Summoning Jutsu: Impure World Reincarnation!]
Suddenly, a yellow coffin emerged from beneath the earth. As the coffin lid lifted, a ninja stepped out—silver-haired with red eyes, wearing a Konoha forehead protector on his head. Each cheek bore three red marks. He wore a layered blue coat with a feathered collar and shoulder guards.
This was the man Anya had asked Orochimaru to summon—the Second Hokage of Konoha, Tobirama Senju.
He stood with his hands in his pockets, eyeing the two before him with clear irritation. "Who do you two punks think you are, misusing the technique I created?"
"Orochimaru wore a smug expression as he spoke, 'The difficulty of performing the Impure World Reincarnation jutsu isn't particularly high. However, this is a technique that should never have been created.'"
Tobirama already knew who had used the Kinjutsu. He shot a furious glare at Orochimaru and said, "You actually had the gall to..."
"Enough," interrupted Anya, cutting off the Second's words. "Let's get down to business."
"You? One of the Uchiha?" Tobirama gave him a surprised glance.
Anya hadn't even activated his Sharingan and asked, "How could you tell?"
"Tch, kid," Tobirama replied knowingly. "I understand the Uchiha Clan better than you do. That explains why you're running with criminals."
With that said, Tobirama had no patience left. His chakra flared violently as he filled the air with murderous intent, his voice seething, "You evil little Uchiha brat born for evil, I'll..."
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