Tsunade opens the chamber doors, and Kakashi closes them once inside.
"Cat."
A purple-haired female Anbu steps out of the shadow of one of the corners before kneeling.
"Yes, Lady Hokage."
Tsunade reached into her cleavage, pulling out a scroll along with a pen before she opened it and began to rapidly write, copying the idea Kakashi had into more proper terms on the fly.
Kakashi blinked, trying not to think about her storage place as he waited.
Tsunade finished writing in a few minutes, going over every line multiple times to make sure nothing could be twisted into something else.
"Take this and have it copied; I want one copy per seat here."
Tsunade handed the scroll over and took her seat as Cat disappeared to complete her task before taking her seat at the head of the table.
"Stand to my right, Kakashi."
Kakashi nodded before walking over, standing next to the Hokage; in a meeting, usually means that they're being considered to be the next Hokage, and this would cause a stir considering Tsunade hasn't even been a kage for a year yet.
Cat returned with the copies a couple of minutes later, placing them in front of Tsunade along with the scroll before going back into her shadowed corner.
Members of both sides of the council began to appear one after the other, none of them wishing to be late for this meeting in fear that the doors will be locked and their positions stripped, though this concern was actually only on the civilian side, the Ninja clans were much more disciplined, even the lazy Shikaku Nara wouldn't dare show up late to a meeting called by the Hokage.
Once the last seat was filled, the hidden anbu sealed the room and locked the door. Tsunade handed the stack of paper to Shikaku, who passed it down to Choza and so on, until all the papers were passed out.
"I'll not waste time explaining; everything that needs to be explained is on the paper in your hands."
Shikaku leaned back, having already gone over the paper multiple times as they were passed around. The rest of the clan heads finished reading a few seconds before the civilians.
"Thoughts?"
Tsunade asked, seeing the constipated expressions of the civilians, and before one could speak up, the Ino-Shika-Cho spoke up in favor of it, quickly followed by the heads of Aburame, Hyuga, and Inuzuka, who smiled at the civilians with their long canine teeth and slit eyes, making some of them lean back in their seats at the scary-looking woman.
"And the civilian side?"
Tsunade asked them for appearance's sake, not needing their approval for anything, but she'd at least give them the illusion of the authority that they crave.
As expected, the civilians were against more work, not disciplined like the ninja side; even Shikaku Nara, who everyone here would agree is lazy, knows when to be serious, and even the added job of troop assignments didn't bother him all that much.
"A tie. This would be a problem if I actually considered the opinions of the civilian council to be valid, and for the ones that can't follow a conversation, I'm saying your opinion never, not once, ever, mattered to me."
Tsunade relaxed in her chair, rightly predicting an uproar from the civilian side and getting it.
"Kakashi."
Tsunade spoke in a normal tone, but it carried more weight to it than the shouts from the civilians, an unspoken order to 'shut them up'
Kakashi glared at the civilian side, a wave of pressure slamming into them and making them choke on air, some reaching for their throats as if they were being choked to death, only letting up when Tsunade raised a hand, the civilians gasping for air and wiping the drool from the side of their mouth, refusing to make a sound or even look in the direction of Tsunade in fear that they'd experience whatever that was or worse.
"As I was saying."
Tsunade smirked with a hint of amusement at their docile nature; they were like little children who just got spanked and threatened with another whipping if they crossed the line.
"This is happening. If those of the civilian council don't comply, it'll be disbanded, and the allocated funds for your budget will be reallocated. Konoha Isn't your bank; you're expected to tribute to this village, not be a leech. If you understand, then nod."
Tsunade watched with narrowed eyes as they began rapidly nodding.
"Good, but be warned, if you try and cheat the system you'll be fired and left to find another job; you're not irreplaceable, and I'm sure many upstanding citizens would be more than happy to take your seat."
Tsunade let that hand there before waving her hand at the civilian side.
"You're dismissed, clan heads and Kakashi, stay."
The civilians left, backs less straight than when they arrived, less entitlement on their faces, replaced by the fear many face in the form of responsibility.
Now that the civilians were gone, Tsunade's face relaxed into something closer to friendly.
"Thank you all for that."
*bang
"Tsunade, what is the meaning of this?! Holding a council meeting and not informing us!"
Elder Advisor Koharu shouted as she burst through the doors, with Homura following along with his usual sour expression.
'And here I was having a good day.'
Tsunade rolled her eyes before replying.
"A council meeting doesn't require the participation of advisors."
Tsunade stressed the 'advisors' as if saying, 'You're not that important.'
"You invite Kakashi Hatake, but not us? He's not even a member of either council."
Homura spoke up, ignoring the pointed reminder of their status.
"Are you so senile that you can't see where he's standing and the implications of that?"
A vein throbbed on the side of Tsunade's head, one second away from kicking the council table at them.
"You've already picked a Hokage candidate without informing Hiruzen or us. You're too old to be acting this immature; you're the Hokage and should act with more care when choosing your candidates."
Koharu replied just as snappily, speaking to Tsunade as if she were a child, crossing the line.
*Crack
Both elders took half a step back as Tsunade's red nails dug into the desk, her chakra making itself known and reminding the two that they weren't talking to the passive Hiruzen, but the princess of the Senju with the famous female Uzumaki temper from Lady Mito.
"You old fools, if you're so eager to reunite with Danzo, I am always able and willing to make that wish come true, and if you speak to me like this again, it'll be a certainty. Don't think sensei can save you; I'm done with the lot of you, sensei as well. My decision to pick my successor is just that, my decision, and none of you have the power to tell me otherwise. Effective immediately, you're both stripped of your position as Elders of Konoha."
"Who will advise you if not us?"
Koharu spluttered at the turn of events, having come here to scold Tsunade only to be threatened and then fired in the same breath.
"I'm not foolish like my Grandfather or indecisive like my sensei; Granduncle didn't need the opinions of people who have no brains and too many opinions, and neither do I. If I truly need advice, I can ask members of this shinobi council and Kakashi here."
Tsunade was pleased to see the council members nodding slightly, showing their silent support.
"You'll come to regret this foolish decision, Tsunade. We've only come here to help you-"
Tsunade grabbed the scroll she used for the copies earlier and chucked it full force with chakra at Koharu's head mid-sentence, sending the old bat flying back alongside Koharu behind them and into the wall outside, knocking them both out in the process.
"Cat, take these fools to the hospital and drop them off in the waiting room, but not on a seat; they don't deserve the luxury."
- Chapter End -
Hope you enjoy this one. Discovering the true extent of Danzo's evils earlier and all the mistakes of the past generation really made Tsunade lose almost every semblance of trust. The only one she somewhat trusted was Hiruzen because he'd still sacrifice himself for the village, but the elders were another matter.