Neither Tsunade nor Orochimaru expected the Suna shinobi to catch up with them so quickly.
After finally shaking off the Suna pursuers and returning to Konoha to report their mission, Tsunade discovered that her home was gone.
More precisely, the Senju clan compound was gone.
The entire area had been reduced to ruins. Only her own house remained standing, isolated in the middle of the devastation.
Remembering the strange expression her teacher had worn when looking at her earlier, Tsunade immediately understood that he must have been involved.
The destruction of the Senju compound itself wasn't the most important thing.
The real problem was that her grandmother, Uzumaki Mito, had disappeared.
A barrier surrounded the outside of the house. Its chakra had already been greatly depleted and was now extremely weak.
Tsunade smashed it apart with a single punch.
Inside, the house itself had not been damaged.
But in her room, there was a letter.
It had been left by Uzumaki Mito.
The letter explained everything:
The decline of the Senju clan
The death of her younger brother
And the fact that the protective barrier Mito had left for Nawaki had somehow ended up on Hiruzen Sarutobi
After reading it, Tsunade collapsed helplessly onto the bed.
"…Nawaki…"
The village founded by the Senju…
The village her grandfather had protected alongside his clan…
had betrayed them.
"Shimura Danzō!!!"
Filled with fury, Tsunade rushed straight toward the Hokage Building.
---
"Just as I expected…"
Seeing Tsunade approaching from the distance, Hiruzen's face was filled with worry.
He knew the truth could not remain hidden forever.
Ordinary shinobi might be kept in the dark, but Tsunade would never be fooled.
It was only a matter of time.
"You three, explain this to me!"
Tsunade kicked open the Hokage office door and glared at the three people inside.
"My great-uncle must have been blind to choose the likes of you as his successors."
"Watch your mouth, Tsunade! We're your seniors!" Utatane Koharu snapped angrily.
"Mind your attitude!"
"That's enough. Stop it, both of you."
Hiruzen removed the Hokage hat and looked at Tsunade with deep guilt.
"This matter… is my fault."
"Once this Great Ninja War ends, I will step down as Hokage."
"Please calm down first."
Tsunade snorted coldly and stared directly at him.
"Then tell me, my dear teacher…"
"Why did the barrier my grandmother left for my brother end up on you?"
"And my brother's death—are you really telling me you knew nothing about it?!"
"That's enough, Tsunade," Mitokado Homura said.
"That was Danzō's doing. Hiruzen knew nothing about it."
"We'll give you an explanation for this. For now, go back and calm down."
"An explanation?"
Tsunade let out a cold laugh.
"Fine. Then tell me, how exactly do you intend to punish Shimura Danzō?"
"Betraying allies. Murdering fellow Konoha shinobi."
"Every one of those crimes deserves death."
"Tell me, where is he now?"
"…The Mist battlefield still needs him," Homura replied.
"His punishment will be decided after the Great Ninja War ends."
"At that time, we will give you a reasonable explanation."
At that moment, Tsunade understood everything.
Danzō was nothing more than their scapegoat.
Without another word, she turned and walked away.
In this Konoha—
Either Danzō stays, or she does.
But not both.
"Tsunade, don't do anything foolish," Koharu warned harshly.
"Otherwise, you'll be treated as a rogue ninja."
Her response was a devastating punch.
Tsunade's fist slammed into the wall less than three centimeters from Koharu's ear, leaving a deep crater.
Koharu and Homura broke into cold sweat.
The hidden Anbu guards instantly appeared, placing themselves in front of Hiruzen.
"Tsunade," Hiruzen said, waving the Anbu away.
"Koharu only spoke out of concern for the Mist battlefield. The pressure there is enormous. If anything goes wrong, Konoha will suffer heavy losses."
He looked at her seriously.
"Konoha has no one left to spare."
"The great clans—Uchiha, Hyūga, refuse to commit their strength."
"And on the Mist battlefield, only Danzō is capable of holding the line."
"That's why his punishment must wait until after the war."
"You know the current state of Konoha. We simply don't have the manpower."
The clans refuse to fight?
They saw what happened to the Senju—that's why they refuse.
They feared that if they went to the battlefield, they wouldn't die at the enemy's hands…
but from a knife in the back from their own people.
Tsunade scoffed internally.
Her teacher's stance was now obvious.
Danzō cannot die.
But what about her brother's death?
What about the destruction of the Senju clan?
Looking at the three people before her—
Which one of them dared claim ignorance?
Which one dared say they hadn't secretly interfered?
She had fought for Konoha all these years.
But for what?
To protect her brother?
To protect the village?
To protect the Senju clan?
Now the Senju clan was reduced to a single woman.
Her brother had died at the hands of his own village.
The village?
Looking at the three elders before her, Tsunade felt nothing but bitterness.
The village had long since stopped being what her grandfather had dreamed of.
"Old man… from now on, my affairs—and the affairs of the Senju, have nothing to do with you."
Suppressing the terrifying killing intent rising within her, Tsunade turned and walked away.
...
As soon as she came downstairs, she encountered another familiar face.
Dan Katō.
"Did the old man send you to persuade me?" Tsunade asked coldly.
"No. I heard you had returned, so I came immediately," Dan said.
"I know everything, so—"
"So?" Tsunade cut him off.
"So for the sake of Konoha's greater good, you want me to keep fighting for the village?"
"So I should forget my brother's death… and the destruction of the Senju clan?"
Dan hurriedly waved his hands.
"No, that's not what I mean! I believe the Hokage will give you a reasonable explanation."
"And Danzō will definitely be brought to justice."
Tsunade stared at him.
"Then tell me, what reason do I have to fight anymore?"
"Family?"
"Clan?"
"Friends?"
"The village?"
Dan fell silent.
"…Dan," Tsunade said softly.
"You're one of the few people in Konoha I still like."
"You're not like those old men—full of hypocrisy and ugliness."
As she spoke, she removed the necklace from her neck and placed it around Dan's.
"Don't try to persuade me anymore."
"I promise I won't attack Konoha."
"But I cannot stay in this place."
"…Dan."
"If one day you become Hokage, I'll come back."
Watching her leave, Dan knew he could not stop her.
He remembered the pain he had felt when his own sister died.
Tsunade's pain now…
was far greater.
...
Soon, Tsunade finished packing.
But when she reached the village gate, Dan appeared again.
This time, he was holding the hand of a small four-year-old girl.
"I'm still worried about you traveling alone," Dan said.
"And sometimes it's inconvenient to be by yourself."
"She's my brother's daughter. My brother died in battle."
"I'll be heading to the battlefield soon as well, and I'm worried there'll be no one to care for her."
"Could you take care of her for a while?"
Tsunade looked at the timid little girl.
"What's your name?"
"…Shizune," the girl replied softly.
Tsunade took her hand and nodded to Dan.
Without looking back, she walked away from Konoha.
---
From the top of the Hokage Building, Hiruzen and the two elders watched everything.
Koharu spoke up.
"Leaving like that… it could be considered desertion, couldn't it?"
"Hiruzen, should we—"
"No."
Hiruzen shook his head.
Seeing his reaction, Koharu dropped the topic and brought up another issue.
"What about Danzō?"
"You've seen Tsunade's reaction. It reflects how the other clans and shinobi will react as well."
"Don't forget, half the shinobi in the hospital right now were saved by Tsunade."
"If word of this spreads…"
"In short, you need to deal with Danzō quickly. Otherwise, there will be endless trouble."
"And remember—you are the Third Hokage. Your reputation cannot be stained."
"Koharu is right," Homura added.
"Danzō must be dealt with. Otherwise, you'll be the one in danger."
"If Danzō tries to expose anything to save himself…"
"…resigning won't be enough to solve it."
"I'll think about it," Hiruzen said.
Rubbing his aching temples, he dismissed the two elders.
...
"Report."
The Hokage office door opened.
The person who entered was Dan Katō.
"Hokage-sama."
Hiruzen nodded and got straight to the point.
"I called you here because something has happened on the Mist battlefield."
"The commander there was ambushed and is no longer capable of directing the war."
"The Mist shinobi have seized the opportunity and gained a major advantage."
"Our reinforcements there are also insufficient."
"I intend to send you and several shinobi as support."
"I understand, Hokage-sama. I'll prepare immediately," Dan replied respectfully.
After Dan left, Hiruzen pulled out documents from another battlefield.
"Kumogakure has launched another counterattack…"
"Who should we send there?"
According to the intelligence reports, the Third Raikage himself had appeared on the battlefield.
Originally, Orochimaru and Tsunade had been stationed there.
But now Tsunade had left.
Orochimaru alone would not be enough.
The Uchiha clan was already deployed there, and even their clan head had just withdrawn.
After learning about what happened to the Senju, they certainly wouldn't send more elites.
The Hyūga clan was no better.
Ever since a main-family Byakugan had been stolen, they had stopped going to the battlefield themselves, only sending branch family members.
But the Hyūga clan's secret techniques were held by the main family.
The branch family's combat strength couldn't compare.
Who could be sent to face the Kumo shinobi?
The smaller clans had no top-tier fighters.
…Should he send Sakumo Hatake again?
Hiruzen sighed deeply.
Then he headed toward the Akimichi clan residence.
"Torifu… I'll have to trouble you this time."
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