The atmosphere in the office was unbearably awkward. A clearly intoxicated woman in a terrible mood, and beside her, Shizune, who had no intention of getting dragged into this mess and becoming Tsunade's emotional outlet.
Tsunade tossed Mizuki's report carelessly onto the table, already dreading another read through that dull document—accurate but meaningless. This technically accurate yet utterly pointless jargon was only good for bureaucratic formalities and left a sour taste in anyone's mouth.
"Your intuition runs deeper than your apparent abilities," Tsunade remarked, as if reluctant to dwell too long on the subject, though she suddenly seemed to recall something. Sitting up straighter, she asked Mizuki directly, "Forget all those minor issues—I want the truth from you. Are you really the one who clashed with Orochimaru inside the Forest of Death?"
Although Tsunade hadn't witnessed the incident herself, the village maintained detailed records describing that terrifying scene. Compared to various legendary ninjutsu known thereafter, it might not have seemed especially powerful, but its spectacular visual effects and awe-inspiring intensity definitely left unforgettable impressions. Moreover, any technique capable of actually injuring Orochimaru couldn't possibly be some ordinary jutsu wielded by a nobody. Yet strangely, despite Konoha's lengthy investigation, there'd been absolutely no trace or information about this person opposing Orochimaru—like they'd appeared out of nowhere and then miraculously vanished again without a clue. So when Mizuki, previously considered an unexpected anomaly, turned up secretly within the Forest of Death, Tsunade naturally drew certain connections, prompting this question.
Mizuki had anticipated this inquiry but still found it uncomfortable being pressed so directly.
After a brief hesitation, he finally gave a reluctant nod. "Yes, it was me."
"Really you?" Tsunade widened her eyes at Mizuki in shock. "I thought I was probably overthinking, but I actually guessed right."
"Well... you could say we met face-to-face on a narrow path," Mizuki replied with an awkward grin.
"Meeting face-to-face on a narrow path might be true—but acting on pure emotion? That explanation's even harder to believe." Sarcasm lacing her tone, Tsunade pulled out some old records from her drawer. Flipping through them casually, she handed the pages to Mizuki.
"Take a look. See which parts match what happened..."
Faced with Tsunade's teasing challenge, Mizuki merely smiled uncomfortably. "Hokage? You're joking. I wouldn't even dare dream about that."
As Mizuki finished speaking, he accepted the file and flipped through it.
"How does it look? Anything familiar?"
Mizuki shook his head. "I don't know exactly what transpired, but some of these details clearly contradict what really happened. Whether it's errors from Anbu intelligence or something else entirely, I can't say."
"What do you mean?" Tsunade expressed genuine surprise at his statement. "Could the intelligence actually be incorrect?"
Shizune, who usually had very little presence, also said in confusion, "There shouldn't be any mistake, right? Are you sure you didn't get this wrong? This was transferred directly after being sealed by the Third. There's absolutely no way anyone could have tampered with it."
"No, Shizune," Nagare replied thoughtfully, "there still might have been some changes. If there was a mistake right from the beginning..."
"From the beginning?" Shizune seemed to recall something unpleasant.
The atmosphere fell silent for a moment, all traces of their earlier lighthearted conversation vanishing completely.
After a while, Tsunade asked solemnly, "Specifically, what parts are problematic?"
"Let's skip the small stuff," Mizuki began. "First off, there's no doubt that Orochimaru didn't come alone. It's obvious he must have inside help within the village. Secondly, since Orochimaru went through so much trouble to return, it couldn't just be about Sasuke Uchiha alone. He's had plenty of opportunities to take Sasuke before, and almost nobody could have stopped him. However, I found some clearly misleading judgments and conclusions in these records. And most importantly..."
Mizuki paused, glancing at Tsunade's increasingly grim expression before continuing,
"The injuries Orochimaru sustained must definitely not be as severe as described here. In my opinion, he was entirely uninjured. As for claims that his combat effectiveness will be affected for the third exam a month later, that's absolute nonsense."
What kind of injuries could possibly keep Orochimaru from fully recovering for an entire month? With Orochimaru-Style Body Replacement Technique, unless severely injured involving massive chakra consumption, he can transfer those injuries. Unless it's spiritual damage like from the Dead Demon Consuming Seal or mental damage like from Tsukuyomi, other types of injuries wouldn't really bother Orochimaru given his abilities.
The moment Mizuki finished speaking, the atmosphere inside the office turned sharply icy.
"You better be prepared to stand by what you just said, Mizuki," Tsunade said seriously, her playful mood completely gone.
"Of course," Mizuki replied calmly. "I was the one who landed the blow that injured Orochimaru. Naturally, I know exactly what consequences that strike should bring."
If someone else had taken that hit directly, chances of survival would be next to nothing. But for Orochimaru... forget it, this kind of purely physical attack barely fazes him.
That's exactly why his words angered Tsunade even more. The document Mizuki held was essentially an assessment report, a critical basis for the Third Hokage when making decisions. It wasn't completely off-base, but the intentional misleading on crucial points was both confusing and unacceptable.
"In principle, mistakes this obvious shouldn't occur," Shizune nervously glanced at Tsunade.
"I wasn't in the village back then, so I don't know exactly. How likely do you think it is that the Third made a wrong judgment based on this and decided to confront Orochimaru directly?"
Mizuki carefully weighed his words before answering, because every single one might serve as a spark for internal discord within Konoha.
"Chances are slim, but we can't completely rule it out," Mizuki said after a moment's thought. "Third Hokage's intentions are quite obvious. Even without this report, he probably would have made the same decision. But with this information, the Third will feel even more confident..."
"Using the current momentum to steer events, huh?" Tsunade said unhappily.
"It's not quite that straightforward to explain, Lady Tsunade. The Anbu investigations rarely make mistakes, but there's still a chance."
Mizuki's objective explanation did nothing to ease Tsunade's fury.
"Shizune, who was in charge of this report? Investigate thoroughly."
"I'm very sorry, Lady Tsunade, but this person has already fallen in battle."
"Fallen in battle? No way to confirm now… like trying to get a word from the dead."
After grasping how everything had unfolded, Mizuki couldn't help but feel fear toward Danzo Shimura's methods. Without making a sound, through careful manipulation—precisely because he understood the Third Hokage's thinking—just a few minor techniques could guide events in the desired direction without leaving any evidence behind.
"He's spent his whole life weaving schemes and orchestrating political intrigue. Indeed, my little tricks can't compare. I'll need to be much more careful from now on…"
"Let's drop this matter for now."
Tsunade didn't want to continue discussing these vague suspicions.
"Tomorrow is your big day. You should go back early and prepare. You must've been busy today too."
"Huh? Tomorrow already," Shizune replied with a touch of surprise. "Didn't expect it to come so quickly. These two days should be quite lively, and tiring too."
"Then I'll take my leave first." Mizuki also prepared to leave. "Why do you say it like you've been through this kind of thing so many times?"
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