"Ino, where exactly did Sasuke-kun go?"
At the Ninja Academy, Sakura Haruno asked her friend Ino with a defeated look. Ever since Uchiha Sasuke was forcibly taken from the training field behind the academy, he hadn't returned.
Sakura and Ino even snuck into the Uchiha district to look for him, but the area was deserted, and some roads were sealed off.
"I don't know either. My father won't say a word about the Uchiha. Shikamaru, Choji, do you guys know anything?"
Hearing this, Shikamaru, chewing on a straw, clicked his tongue and thought to himself how troublesome women were. He then said, "No idea. My old man isn't home. And it's not just Sasuke—even Naruto hasn't shown up. Only the ANBU might know what's going on."
Shikamaru remembered the sounds of fighting near the academy that night and the ANBU who took Naruto away. It was beyond what they could investigate.
"Same here. My dad just told me to focus on class and not to stick my nose in other matters," Choji said while munching on chips. He acted indifferent but had tried to get information right away—only to get nothing from his father, Choza.
After hearing what Shikaku and Choza said, Sakura's face fell.
Shikamaru suddenly said, "If you really want to know, why not go ask the Fifth Hokage directly? Lady Tsunade would definitely know. Though, she probably won't bother answering questions from us students."
"Fifth Hokage? Isn't the Hokage the Third Grandpa? Why is there suddenly a Fifth?" Sakura asked, confused.
"Sakura, the Third isn't in the village anymore. And Lady Tsunade is the strongest and most beautiful kunoichi. My mom said the village went to great lengths to bring her back. But Shikamaru's suggestion is basically useless. Lady Tsunade's way too busy to bother with us," Ino explained, then rolled her eyes at Shikamaru for coming up with such a dumb idea.
But Sakura silently noted the name "Tsunade." Now that she had a lead, she couldn't focus in class anymore.
After school, Sakura chose not to tell her friends, sensing Ino's doubt about the matter, and went alone to the Hokage's office.
Though the Hokage building was busy, students from the Ninja Academy weren't forbidden from entering.
Tsunade had just dismissed Kimura, who'd come to report, and quietly pulled out a bottle of sake Hyuga Mirai had given her. She planned to enjoy a little drink to relax.
It was her last bottle. If she finished it, there was nowhere to get more. She had already asked Mirai where it came from, but Mirai kept the secret tightly guarded.
She said it was to prevent Tsunade from becoming an alcoholic.
That brat. Doesn't trust me at all!
Tsunade poured herself a cup and took a long, satisfying sip.
"Ahh, this sake really is heaven's nectar!"
The flavor and the sensation instantly swept away the fatigue of a long day's work. Unfortunately, only Hyuga Mirai had access to this kind of sake. Tsunade had searched several countries without finding anything close. After drinking this, other sake just didn't compare.
Knock, knock!
There was a knock at the door. Tsunade instantly stashed the bottle in a drawer, opened a window, used chakra to clear the smell from her mouth, and then said in a commanding tone, "Come in."
But when she saw the pink-haired girl enter, she clicked her tongue, thinking she had scared herself over nothing. Once Sakura was fully inside, Tsunade asked, "You're a student from the Ninja Academy, right? What do you want?"
"Lady Tsunade, may I ask... do you know the whereabouts of Uchiha Sasuke and Naruto Uzumaki? They haven't come to class in days."
When she mentioned Sasuke, she also remembered what Shikamaru said about Naruto. She felt their disappearances were related but had no information, so she came to ask Tsunade.
"Tch. Kids shouldn't be asking about this kind of thing. Right now, your top priority is to study. Otherwise, you won't even become a ninja in the future."
Tsunade glanced at Sakura and instantly saw she was the type obsessed with romance during her school years—wearing a skirt, hands free of any calluses from training, no sweat or signs of hard work.
Tsunade, who hadn't even started a new relationship herself, thought—what's the rush for kids?
The Ninja Academy's quality was declining. Tsunade sighed inwardly. Back in her generation, they were doing C-rank missions at age eight. In Hyuga Mirai's generation, there were still monsters like six-year-old Chunin Kakashi.
But now, in Sakura's generation, Sasuke seemed to be the top student, and the rest were mediocre.
Not that they were bad—but there were no standouts, no one who truly shone.
"But, Lady Tsunade—"
"Go home. Ninjas must follow the rules. Don't go poking around in things you shouldn't. If you can't even manage that, you shouldn't become a ninja at all."
Her tone sharpened at the end, startling Sakura so much that she trembled. Without another word, she bowed deeply and left the office slowly.
Shortly after Sakura left, Kimura entered again, this time with Shizune. Thanks to her previous experience, Tsunade had prepared well. Even when Kimura came in, he couldn't smell any trace of alcohol.
"Lady Tsunade, this is an emergency order from the frontlines. The Third Hokage is requesting not only medicine and medical Tags but also medical machines and support from medical-nin."
"Why doesn't he just move the entire Konoha Hospital there? And Kimura, stop saying it's an order from the Third Hokage. I'm the Hokage now."
Just hearing Hiruzen Sarutobi's name irritated Tsunade. She took the request form from Kimura, and after reading it, her anger only grew.
"There are only 400 men at the front. Why the hell is that old man requesting supplies for 800? Does he think I've been away so long that he can just inflate the numbers?"
She slammed the form onto the desk and asked sharply:
"Kimura, from now on, reject all such outrageous requests. Every supply request from the front must be audited before it gets to me."
Kimura hesitated. "Lady Tsunade, it might include supplies for the Iwa-nin as well?"
"Iwa-nin? Why are we providing medical supplies to Iwa-nin?"
Tsunade was shocked. Kimura then explained the situation: the Iwa-nin had suffered massive losses at the hands of the Rain Village leader. The remaining forces were all wounded, forcing the frontline medics to work nonstop. Hiruzen's request was out of desperation.
The ANBU had worried Tsunade would be furious, so they had Kimura bring the form in instead.
"Rinnegan..."
Tsunade frowned slightly. She remembered he was once Jiraiya's student. His family had died due to Konoha ninjas, and his best friend had died because of Hanzo and Danzo's collusion, leading to his hatred for the major villages.
She had learned this from Hyuga Mirai. Until she fully controlled the ANBU, there would be many such issues. Every Hokage faced them. Even the Fourth, despite his wartime achievements, never had full control over the ANBU.
Seeing Tsunade lost in thought, Kimura asked quietly again, "Lady Tsunade, about the supply request—"
"Have the logistics department prepare it. But tell the frontlines—this is the last time we'll support the Iwa-nin."
Tsunade reasoned that the front couldn't collapse yet. If they lost in the Land of Rain, it might cause a chain reaction at Kikyo Castle. She had just assumed the role of Fifth Hokage—any instability could lead to major setbacks.
"Kimura, get Shizune up to speed on Konoha Hospital. Her medical ninjutsu is fine; she just needs experience. Once she's ready to take over, I need you to help manage the logistics department."
The departments keeping Konoha running were: Finance, Logistics, Mission Hall, Intelligence, ANBU, Medical, and Barrier & Sealing. The Police Force had been one too, but since the Uchiha left Konoha, it had been disbanded.
But Tsunade would eventually rebuild the Police Force. She already had candidates in mind. Currently, daily patrols relied on ANBU and mission teams—but that wasn't sustainable. A proper Police Force was needed to handle villagers' complaints and defend against enemy spies.
She planned to rebuild it with support from clans skilled in reconnaissance like the Hyuga and Aburame. As for the captain, she intended to select someone she could trust from the village.
Tsunade had even heard of a "rebellious" main-branch Hyuga. If he proved suitable, the Hyuga clan could become the backbone of the new Police Force.
(End of chapter)