But Uchiha Kagami had always kept his distance from Utatane Koharu.
Later on—without so much as a word of warning to her—he fell in love, got married, and now his kids were old enough to go buy soy sauce on their own.
That nearly drove Koharu insane.
Sarutobi Hiruzen pursued me. I turned him down. Mitokado Homura, too—I turned him down as well. Even if Shimura Danzo didn't exactly chase after me, there was still something between us...
And you, Uchiha Kagami—how dare you treat me like that?!
And so it happened: the old witch didn't just get angry at Kagami—she turned her fury on the entire Uchiha clan.
And all that resentment? She dumped it squarely on someone who had absolutely nothing to do with it: Uchiha Ran.
Even though Uchiha Kagami had been dead for seven years, Koharu still hated him with the same white-hot rage.
"What are you staring at?!" she snapped when she noticed Ran had paused in his work. "Filthy little Uchiha—just like the rest of them. Useless!"
"Elder Koharu," Ran said stiffly, barely keeping his irritation in check, "since the day I left the compound, I've had nothing to do with the Uchiha clan."
"Even if you renounced the clan," she hissed, venomous, "the evil in your blood remains. You're still a child of darkness."
"Elder Koharu, aren't you taking this too far?"
"You've got any idea how many times I've helped you over the years?"
"I never asked for gratitude. But isn't it strange—how you keep using me for your own ends and then turn around and talk shit behind my back?"
"You little brat, how dare you speak to me like that?!" Her voice turned low and cruel. "Think I won't kill you? Death would be too kind for someone like you!"
"And what if I do dare speak like that?" Ran squared his shoulders. "Even a clay idol has a temper. Is this your idea of asking for help?"
"You wanna kill me? Go ahead. What're you waiting for?"
He spread his arms—"do your worst" written all over his posture.
But in his head, the thought was cold and calculated:
Come on, old witch. I'm betting you won't. But if you do—I won't hold back. Not for a second. I'm sick to death of this life anyway.
Still, killing Utatane Koharu wasn't part of the plan. Getting hunted down by Konoha? Not something he was ready for. Not yet.
"Listen carefully, boy!" Koharu stepped in close, but didn't strike. "This batch of antidote is going to the front lines again. If you delay it—whatever happens will be on your conscience!"
"Tch." Ran glanced aside. "Then I'll say this one last time: if you want my help, act like a human being. If not—make your damn potions yourself."
"Hmph!" Koharu turned on her heel in disgust, not even sparing him another glance.
But inside, she was seething.
You dare talk back to me, filthy Uchiha brat? Fine. We'll see who gets the last word.
Ran knew exactly what she was thinking. That, too, was part of the plan.
He was playing high stakes—and the centerpiece of it all was this bitter old hag.
If it worked, Tsunade would soon be eating out of his hand. For a while, at least.
They had years of collaboration behind them. Subtle influence, shared successes, mutual respect… add a bit of psychological pressure and there was just one final push needed.
If everything went according to plan—freedom was within reach.
---
Konoha Hospital.
Tsunade hadn't seen Uchiha Ran all morning—and she was feeling off.
In the past three months, things had shifted between them. They bickered plenty, but when it counted, they worked together with seamless understanding.
Especially when it came to medical ninjutsu. The moment something interesting came up, they could talk for hours, forgetting the rest of the world.
In just three months, they'd already laid the groundwork for three new techniques.
Tsunade was sure: just a little more time and they'd finish developing them.
"That idiot…" she muttered, frowning.
He'd left without a word. Did she still mean that little to him?
Did he really not feel the need to even tell her he'd be gone?
"Lady Tsunade, why aren't you heading to lunch?" A pretty nurse named Kawai Nao peeked into the room, noticing she was still at her desk.
Lately, Tsunade had gotten into the habit of dragging Ran to lunch with her. Everyone was used to it by now, so the question was casual.
"Not hungry," Tsunade said evenly, keeping her emotions in check.
"Waiting for Dr. Ran?" Kawai Nao smiled. "You won't see him today. He won't be back till late."
"You know where he is?" Tsunade's eyebrow rose, followed quickly by a flash of irritation.
Why does everyone know but me?
"He's in the pharmaceutical department," Kawai Nao said. "Elder Koharu often calls him over to help. Been that way for years—everyone's used to it."
"The pharmaceutical department? What's he doing there?"
"Helping the village develop new medicines," she answered honestly. "Most of the effective drugs we've gotten in the past few years—including antidotes for the battlefield—he's had a hand in all of them."
"But…" She hesitated, glanced around to make sure no one was listening, and lowered her voice.
"Every time Dr. Ran comes back from there, he's in a terrible mood. For days afterward—it's like walking on eggshells around him. We just steer clear."
"He's not exactly fragile. What could possibly shake him that bad?" Tsunade said doubtfully.
"We don't speculate, ma'am. We're just nurses. We don't meddle in the affairs of our elders…"
"Go eat," Tsunade cut her off.
After Kawai Nao left, Tsunade sat deep in thought.
She knew Koharu oversaw the medical department—and the pharmaceutical division fell under her authority.
Which meant… every time Ran worked there, he had to deal with that old hag directly.
Of course. Developing a new antidote was a confidential matter. They wouldn't assign that to just anyone—Koharu probably insisted on supervising it herself.
And her reputation? Everyone in Konoha knew.
In recent years, even dogs crossed the street to avoid her. She was bitter, nasty, and vindictive.
It all made sense now.
Every time Ran went to work there, Koharu was poisoning him—not with potions, but with words. Grinding him down. Humiliating him. Knowing her, she was dumping all her bile on him.
"Maybe I should do something…"
If Koharu really was bullying Ran, belittling him, trying to break him—she wouldn't dare pull that with Tsunade.
She wouldn't dare.
And if she tried—Tsunade would put her right in her place. See who ends up humiliated then.
"If I go instead of him… he wouldn't have to deal with that anymore."
That settled it.
Tsunade made up her mind. But she kept it to herself—for now. She wanted to surprise Ran.
He ran off without saying a word? Fine. I won't say anything either.
---
Pharmaceutical Department, Secret Lab. Five hours later.
The new antidote was ready.
Uchiha Ran pulled out a scroll and carefully wrote down the formula: ingredients, exact proportions, every step of the process.
When he finished, he didn't say goodbye to anyone. Just went home.
I wonder if Tsunade will figure it out. Shouldn't be too hard to find out where I was. All she has to do is ask. And once she does—she'll reach the exact conclusion I want.
---
He skipped work for three days. When he finally returned to the hospital, he was a little surprised.
Tsunade asked where he'd been, even showed some concern… but never once mentioned the pharmaceutical department.
Since she didn't bring it up—he didn't either.
Don't underestimate Tsunade. Fiery temper aside, she had a sharp mind and an even sharper instinct.
If he brought it up first, she'd instantly suspect something was up—and the whole plan would crumble.
Fine. You stay quiet—I'll stay quiet. Let's see who cracks first.
---
Another month passed.
Ran continued working like usual. But then something unexpected happened: Tsunade didn't show up at the hospital.
Turned out she'd taken the previous evening off for personal reasons.
Nothing unusual there. These things happened. Ran didn't think much of it.
What he didn't know was that right now, behind his back, Tsunade was doing something that might just blow up his entire carefully laid plan.