"Teizawa?"
Koharu was the first to speak, her cane tapping lightly against the floor.
"When did Sunagakure produce someone like this? Who trained him? What battles has he fought?"
Kakashi slowly lifted his eyelid. "I've heard the name."
Everyone's gaze snapped onto the Copy Ninja at once.
Kakashi continued, "After Orochimaru and Sunagakure attacked Konoha, we dispatched pursuit teams to chase the Suna forces as they withdrew."
"Near the border, a squad of five jōnin was intercepted…"
His pace was slow, as if he were replaying every detail.
"The outcome… four of ours were confirmed dead. One was severely wounded and captured."
Kakashi's eye shifted to Asuma.
"A month later, only Kurenai returned to Konoha. Alone."
"Kurenai?"
Asuma jerked upright.
The cigarette between his fingers bent without him realizing.
"After she came back, she never mentioned…"
He stopped mid-sentence.
As if something clicked.
Asuma's face turned ugly.
"Don't tell me… the way she's been since then has something to do with this guy."
He remembered it clearly.
Ever since Kurenai returned…
It was like she'd become a different person.
She wouldn't respond to his overtures.
She wouldn't even look his way.
And she kept everyone at arm's length, like she'd built a wall around herself.
Koharu and Homura exchanged a look.
Both saw the same heaviness in the other's eyes.
Five Konoha jōnin. Four dead, one taken.
That kind of strength wasn't ordinary.
"Can we confirm how this Teizawa rose to power?"
Koharu pressed. "Did he defeat Gaara? Or did he climb through political maneuvering?"
Gaara was a jinchūriki.
He possessed Kage-level combat power.
If Teizawa had taken the position by defeating Gaara…
Then Teizawa was absolutely someone Konoha needed to treat as a priority.
Shikaku spoke up as well, voice even.
"More important is whether his ascension affects our alliance with Sunagakure."
"What's the situation inside Suna right now? How exactly did the transfer of power happen?"
He was far more rational.
Sunagakure's internal power struggles weren't Konoha's business.
But the new Kazekage's attitude toward Konoha?
That mattered.
Tsunade shook her head slightly. "Our line inside Suna is restricted. Those details aren't clear yet. But…"
Her tone shifted, dropping lower.
"Three days ago, we received another message from our asset inside the Wind Country daimyo's palace."
She reached into the files Shizune was holding, pulled out a scroll, and unrolled it slowly.
"The new Kazekage, Teizawa, led three thousand Suna elite and surrounded the Wind Country daimyo's residence."
"What?"
Homura raised his voice for the first time, losing composure.
"And then," Tsunade continued without letting him cut in, "the Wind Country daimyo, who had ruled for thirty-seven years, died while in office."
"Kazekage Teizawa directly named the daimyo's eighth son as successor, and the succession ceremony has already been completed."
A deathly silence fell over the room.
Outside the window, a leaf slapped lightly against the glass with a soft tap.
In the stillness, it sounded like thunder.
"That's impossible…"
Inoichi murmured.
His normally steady face was filled with disbelief.
Veins surfaced faintly at the edges of Hiashi's Byakugan as if he needed to confirm he hadn't misheard.
"The Kazekage… appointing a daimyo successor? What kind of joke is that?"
"Tsunade!"
Homura surged to his feet. "Are you sure you didn't hear wrong? Or the intelligence is flawed?"
"What is a daimyo? A symbol of the nation. The financial and political backbone of a shinobi village!"
"The Kazekage appointing a daimyo successor… that's…"
"This is what the report says," Tsunade cut him off, firm and unyielding.
She pushed the scroll to the center of the table. "It came through an encrypted emergency channel. It used the cipherbook I personally established. It's not wrong."
The scroll unrolled across the smooth tabletop.
Dense characters filled the page, and a clear Sunagakure seal stamp sat like a brand.
Everyone stared at it.
As if it were some dangerous ninja tool.
Shikaku was the first to regain full control of himself.
But the way he tapped the armrest had sped up noticeably.
"If this is real…" he said slowly, "then this new Kazekage has completely overturned the traditional relationship between daimyo and village."
"Not just overturned," Kakashi said quietly, his single visible eye narrowing into a thin line. "This is… direct control."
That word made everyone's stomach tighten at the same time.
Koharu's grip on her cane went white-knuckled, her voice dry.
"The Wind Country daimyo has eight sons. The eighth is only twenty. His mother's faction is weak. Politically, he's always been on the margins…"
"If Teizawa propped him up, then the one actually holding power in the Land of Wind…"
"Is the Kazekage himself," Tsunade finished.
Her gaze swept across every face like a blade.
"And he achieved that control through force and intimidation."
The air in the room felt like it had solidified.
Everyone was trying to digest what this meant.
This wasn't just a neighboring Kazekage being replaced.
It was a warning sign of a possible structural upheaval in the shinobi world's entire power order.
Outside the window, the sky had dimmed without anyone noticing.
A bank of cloud swallowed the sun.
"We need more intelligence," Shikaku finally broke the silence. "Teizawa's strength, his background, his political intent… and how Sunagakure is reacting internally."
"The real cause of the daimyo's death. The attitudes of the court ministers…"
"It's already being arranged," Tsunade nodded. "But I called everyone here to remind you of one thing…"
She stood, planted both hands on the table, and leaned forward, eyes burning.
"No matter what this new Kazekage intends to do, one thing is certain…"
"He is not someone who follows old rules."
"And someone like that sitting in the Kazekage's seat…"
She paused before continuing, voice heavy.
"Is not going to stay quiet."
The office was utterly silent.
Everyone understood…
A storm was coming. The wind was already at the windows.
…
By the time the meeting room door opened soundlessly again, dusk was near.
Kurenai stepped into the Hokage's office.
Today she wore a modified deep-purple combat outfit…
The top was a bandage-style wrap that traced her mature, elegant curves.
The bottom was tight-fitting pants designed for movement.
Over it, she wore a short open-front robe, the hem swaying lightly with each step.
Her face was still beautiful.
But if you looked closely…
There was a new allure in her brows and eyes.
And deep within those signature crimson irises, it felt like something was being hidden.
At this moment, only Tsunade and Shizune remained in the office.
Tsunade stood by the window, her back to the doorway.
She stared out at the village as lights began to bloom in the distance.
Shizune was off to the side, gathering scattered meeting documents.
She looked up at the sound of the door, then gave a small nod of acknowledgment.
"Hokage-sama, you wanted to see me?"
Kurenai stopped about three steps from the desk and bowed respectfully.
Tsunade turned around.
Her gaze lingered on Kurenai for a moment.
As a top-tier medical ninja…
She could tell from Kurenai's eyes, her posture, the subtle shifts in how she stood…
Kurenai was no longer a virgin.
And remembering the rumors spreading through the village…
Kurenai hadn't accepted Asuma's advances.
Now add in the fact that Kurenai had "escaped" from that Suna shinobi named Teizawa…
Could it be…?
A quiet suspicion formed in Tsunade's mind.
(End of Chapter)
[Get +30 Extra Chapters On — P@tr3on "Zaelum"]
[Every 300 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter Drop]
[Thanks for Reading!]