"Cough! Cough! Cough!"
The moment Koharu stepped into the Hokage's office, she was hit by a choking wall of smoke that sent her coughing, eyes watering.
She looked up—what she saw left her stunned. The entire office was shrouded in haze, thick enough to blur every outline of a person. Was something on fire?
Her gaze darted around for the source, and then she froze, eyes wide. Hiruzen Sarutobi sat at his desk, beard wild as dead grass, cheeks sunken and slick with neglect, his eyes ringed with dark circles, bloodshot and weary. The ashtray overflowed, and his pipe looked like it belonged in a chimney, belching smoke in steady, miserable puffs.
Koharu almost blurted out her frustration, but caught herself. Instead, she turned to Kakashi and Uchiha Fugaku behind her.
"You two—go wait in the conference room. I need to speak to the Hokage alone. Close the door behind you."
Kakashi and Fugaku exchanged a glance, reading the room, and slipped out quietly.
As the door shut, Koharu's expression hardened. She strode over and flung open the windows, letting the smoke rush out in a gust, finally making the office breathable.
"Hiruzen Sarutobi! Are you trying to smoke yourself to death?"
Hiruzen tapped his pipe, eyes rolling up to meet hers. "I'm stressed out. Can't I have a little smoke?"
Rage surged up Koharu's spine. She slammed her palm onto the Hokage's massive desk.
"Hiruzen Sarutobi! How can you look me in the eye right now?!"
Hiruzen's shoulders hunched. "You—don't start with that. Whatever happened between us as kids, that's ancient history. Ever since Biwako, I've been—"
"Spare me! I'm not here for that!" Koharu snapped, cheeks flushed.
"I nearly died in the Mist, fought tooth and nail to bring back the Three-Tails for you! Do you have any idea what I went through? The pain? The losses? How many people died—"
Her voice cracked, bitterness spilling out. "Everyone's counting on you to turn the tide, to stand strong—and you're just falling apart! How can you face Sensei Tobirama? How can you face Konoha?"
The anger boiled over. Koharu grabbed the ashtray, packed full of ashes, and hurled it at Hiruzen.
He caught it, but the ash exploded in his face, coating him in gray. "What's gotten into you!" he sputtered, looking almost comical.
But the fury faded quickly. Hiruzen set down the ashtray, shook the ash from his beard, and spoke softly.
"I know your mission wasn't easy. Don't get worked up. I'm not trying to destroy myself—I'm making a difficult decision."
Koharu's sobs faded, replaced by stunned silence. She knew this man wasn't weak, wasn't one to quit or wallow. If he was this broken, something truly agonizing lay ahead.
Hiruzen stood, brushing off the ash, and his hands flashed through a series of seals.
"Ninja Art: Sound Barrier Technique."
A transparent dome shimmered into existence, sealing off the office. Koharu understood—this was serious. She rose and locked the door.
Hiruzen nodded. "Glad you're back. I need your advice."
"Speak," Koharu said.
Hiruzen's gaze sharpened. "The situation is clear now—our chances of victory are shrinking fast. When Minato, Kushina, and Jinghang vanished, I knew we'd lost our last trump card."
He sighed, shoulders heavy. "Mist is finished. Stone is stuck at the border. No help is coming. I've led the army in twenty-nine assaults on the Wind-Cloud Alliance camp, but that old bastard Third Raikage just digs in, won't budge. It's been seven days. If I'm right, Minato and Kushina are gone…"
"Then why isn't the Wind-Cloud Alliance attacking?" Koharu pressed.
"Good question." Hiruzen nodded.
"We're fighting on home turf. Our will to defend, our courage—I believe we're stronger than the alliance. If they attack, they'll pay dearly.
But instead, they're strangling us—cutting off our moves, grinding down morale, crushing our spirit. We're collapsing without a fight. That's the real danger."
"Are they trying to force us to negotiate?" Koharu asked.
"That's my guess," Hiruzen replied.
Koharu frowned. "We… can't negotiate."
"Exactly! Not now, at least!" Hiruzen rapped the desk.
"This war—we started it. We've lost battle after battle. If we sit at the table now, we have no leverage. What can we bargain for? If we couldn't win it on the battlefield, we sure won't win it in talks."
"I brought back the Three-Tails jinchūriki, didn't I?"
"Thank god you did, or we wouldn't even have a seat at the table!" Hiruzen said.
"But one Three-Tails isn't enough. Sand and Cloud together have four tailed beasts. Our position is still weak."
Koharu could see the desperation in his eyes.
"So what's this hard decision?" she asked.
Hiruzen looked up, voice grave. "We need a victory—even just one—so we can negotiate with our heads held high."
Koharu deflated, hope draining away. "Is victory even possible?"
A fierce light flashed in Hiruzen's eyes. "There wasn't—until yesterday. Orochimaru gave me an idea. It's… not exactly moral."
"What idea?" Koharu asked.
Hiruzen's jaw tightened. "Remember Tobirama-sensei's forbidden jutsu?"
"Tobirama had plenty. Which one?"
"Edo Tensei—Impure World Reincarnation."
The office fell silent. They weren't fools—they understood immediately.
After a long pause, Koharu reached out. "Got a smoke?"
Hiruzen shot her a look, opened a drawer, and tossed over an unopened pack and a box of matches.
Koharu lit up, took a long drag, and exhaled slowly.
"You can't be the one to do this."
"Then who?" Hiruzen asked.
"Let the next Hokage do it."
A glint flashed in Hiruzen's eyes. "Good idea."
"This has to be planned carefully. That kind of blame… no ordinary person could carry it."
Koharu blew out a smoke ring, her eyes hard.
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