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Hiruzen Sarutobi was having a hell of a day.
Miyuki Uzumaki had defected. Vanished. And one of the three who took her had used a Water Release jutsu. A very specific, very familiar Water Release.
The pipe clenched between Hiruzen's teeth was getting a workout. He sucked on it like it was his lifeline.
She must have been in contact with outsiders for a while. Planned it. Then tonight, using the Uzumaki clan's Sensor abilities, she'd slipped past Konoha's borders without a trace.
The reason for her betrayal was obvious. The rumors. The village gossip.
He'd thought it manageable. A nuisance, not a crisis. Let it simmer in the shadows, so long as it didn't boil over in public. What a fool he'd been. If he'd known it would drive the Jinchūriki to desert… he'd have crushed every whisper with an iron fist.
But it was done. Now he had to deal with the fallout.
"Orders," Hiruzen's voice cut through the smoke-filled office, sharp and final. "Dispatch a squad. Go to Miyuki Uzumaki's residence. Retrieve Naruto Uzumaki and secure him in the ANBU underground facility. Maximum security. And this—Miyuki's defection—does not leave this room. Ever."
He'd considered sending another pursuit squad. Thought better of it. The first team was decimated—ten went out, three limped back, reporting overwhelming force. Chasing her now was futile. Worse, dangerous. Konoha was surrounded by vultures—spies from every major village. If they caught wind that a Jinchūriki had fled…
They'd swarm. They'd hunt her. Try to claim the Nine-Tails for themselves.
This secret had to die here.
"Summon Danzō, Koharu, and Homura," he commanded to the shadows. "Now."
Outside the Hokage's office window, perched on a cold stone ledge, a serpent watched. Its yellow eyes were unblinking.
Sharing its senses, Qianyu listened. A faint, cold smile touched his lips.
Just as he predicted. Hiruzen wouldn't dare let this get out. Konoha was still reeling from the Nine-Tails' attack, from Minato Namikaze's 'death'. If news broke that the Fourth Hokage's wife—a Jinchūriki—had turned traitor? The village would fracture. And Hiruzen, reclaiming the hat in this chaos? His authority would evaporate in the backlash.
For Konoha's stability. For his own power. The old man had no choice but to bury it.
Now, the interesting part. Naruto.
His father was in a coma. His mother was gone.
Qianyu knew Danzō. Knew the old badger's greed. This was a golden opportunity—a chance to seize control of a Jinchūriki. Danzō wouldn't let it pass.
The next move was Hiruzen's. If there was any shred of genuine loyalty to Minato left in him, he'd keep Naruto away from Danzō. But then he'd have to endure Danzō's relentless, poisonous scheming.
If, however, Hiruzen prioritized damage control above all else—if he feared a second defection and decided to hand Naruto to Root "for safekeeping"…
Well. Then Qianyu would have to step in.
Danzō, Koharu, and Homura filed into the office. The late-hour summons hung heavy in the air.
"Hiruzen," Koharu Utatane asked, her voice tight with unease. "What is so urgent?"
The Third Hokage didn't mince words. "Miyuki Uzumaki has defected."
The reaction was instant. All three advisors, halfway to their seats, jerked upright as if struck.
"The Jinchūriki?!" Homura Mitokado's glasses nearly slid off his nose. "How? Explain!"
"It happened tonight," Hiruzen stated, his voice grave. "Her guards were subdued. She was gone. I dispatched a pursuit team immediately. They caught up with her outside the village. She was not alone. Three escorts. Their strength… was formidable. Our team was outclassed. Ten went. Three returned."
He let the numbers hang in the silent room.
"One was a Kiri missing-nin. Another matched the description of Suna's former hero, the Scorch Release user, Pakura—also a missing-nin. The third… his identity is unknown. But he employed a Water Release technique. Tobirama-sensei's Water Release."
The air in the room turned to ice.
"Impossible," Danzō's voice was a low rasp. "Sensei's techniques were never disseminated. Has a scroll been lost?"
"I checked myself, before you arrived," Hiruzen shook his head, his expression grim. "The scrolls are secure. The seals intact. I have no explanation."
He leaned forward, the weight of the village on his shoulders. "Sending another team is pointless now. We don't know how many more are out there. And with every foreign spy circling our borders, the priority is containment. I have ordered a complete information blackout. No one outside this room is to know the Jinchūriki is gone."
Homura's eyes narrowed. "You said Miyuki. What of Naruto?"
"A small mercy," Hiruzen replied. "She left him behind. He is currently secured within the ANBU compound."
Koharu and Homura exhaled in unison. One Jinchūriki remained. The situation was catastrophic, but not utterly hopeless.
"But why?" Koharu pressed, baffled. "She is Minato's wife!"
Hiruzen sighed, the sound weary and old. "The rumors. The ones calling her son a 'cursed child'. Some even whisper he should be… removed. Perhaps that was her breaking point."
Homura frowned. "If that were the reason, why leave the boy behind?"
"I cannot say for certain," Hiruzen admitted. "Perhaps out of respect for Minato. Minato loved this village. For both Jinchūriki to abandon Konoha… the blow would be incalculable. It could ignite another war. Perhaps she understood that. Perhaps that is why Naruto remains."
He looked at each of them in turn. "So. We must decide. What do we do now? What is our course of action until Miyuki Uzumaki is recovered?"
A glint flashed in Danzō's eyes.
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