The atmosphere inside the room grew tense. Mikoto looked at Tsunade, worry clear in her eyes.
"I think… I should leave," Mikoto said softly as she stood up, carefully lifting Itachi into her arms.
Kushina noticed immediately and felt troubled.
"No, Mikoto," she said quickly. "You don't have to."
Then she turned toward Tsunade, her expression sharp.
"Sister Tsunadeee," Kushina said, the look in her eyes clearly telling her to stop.
Tsunade caught it.
She realised she had made things uncomfortable—
between Mikoto and Kushina—
and that hadn't been her intention.
"I'm sorry, Mikoto," Tsunade said, her voice calmer.
"I wasn't interrogating you. If it felt that way—"
Mikoto froze for a second, surprised by the apology.
Embarrassment touched her face.
"No, no, Lady Tsunade," Mikoto said quickly.
"You don't need to apologise."
She shook her head lightly.
"I don't want to make things awkward here either."
She held Itachi a little closer, trying to ease the tension that had settled over the room.
Mikoto slowly sat back down.
"Yes, yes—no heavy talk," Kushina said quickly, glancing at Tsunade as if warning her.
Tsunade nodded.
She looked at both of them, and for a moment, something heavy settled in her chest.
Ever since she had returned to the village, she'd felt oddly alone.
Even now, sitting here, it felt like she had nowhere to return to.
As she looked around the village in her mind, she realised there was no one waiting for her—no one except Kushina.
Mikoto, who had been speaking quietly with Kushina, glanced at Tsunade from the corner of her eye.
She saw it.
The loneliness in Tsunade's face.
The weight she carried without saying anything.
Kushina noticed it too.
Both of them felt a quiet pity for her.
Kushina had spoken to Mikoto about
Tsunade before—
about how she sometimes felt lost in the village, how even Kushina struggled to cheer her up at times.
After a moment, Kushina brightened deliberately and turned to Mikoto.
"Mikoto," she said cheerfully, "do you know Sister Tsunade is going to become an elder?"
Tsunade blinked, pulled out of her thoughts, and looked at Kushina.
Mikoto turned to Tsunade at once.
"Congratulations, Lady Tsunade," she said sincerely.
Tsunade let out a tired sigh.
"What's there to congratulate?" she muttered.
"Those old geezers will do whatever they want anyway. As if the title of 'elder' changes anything."
Her tone was rough—
but underneath it, something weary lingered.
Kushina heard her and snorted.
"What's there to worry about?" she said. "If they make things difficult, just throw a punch at them."
Tsunade paused.
For a brief moment, she imagined it—
her fist connecting squarely with Koharu's face.
Then she laughed.
"Hahaha… you're right," Tsunade said, shaking her head.
"How do you even come up with things like that, Kushina?"
Seeing Tsunade finally smile, both Kushina and Mikoto laughed.
"Well," Kushina said proudly, "it's the easiest solution."
The room felt lighter than it had moments ago.
At the Kuzono shop—
Toyoma was looking over the sales records when something caught his attention.
"Aunt Shinka," he said slowly, tapping the page, "why is there no entry for the Hyūga clan?"
It felt strange.
A major clan not pre-ordering healing pills—especially now—
didn't make sense.
Shinka leaned forward and checked the document herself.
"I don't know," she said after a moment.
"No one from the Hyūga side has come yet. We allotted a quota for them, but since they didn't claim it, the stock is still untouched."
Even she found it odd.
"Well," Shinka added, leaning back in her chair, "it's their loss if they don't want to buy."
Toyoma nodded.
For now, it didn't seem like a serious problem.
Just then, the door opened.
Kageha stepped inside.
"Sister Kageha," Toyoma said casually, lifting a hand in greeting.
Shinka turned at once.
"What is it?" she asked, her tone heavier.
Kageha stiffened slightly under her gaze.
"M-Mother," she said nervously, "the grand elder asked me to give this letter to Toyoma."
She pulled out the letter with careful hands.
Shinka clicked her tongue in mild disappointment.
She took the letter from Kageha and passed it to Toyoma.
"How many moves have you mastered so far?" Shinka asked, her voice firm.
Kageha lowered her head.
That answer alone was enough.
Shinka sighed.
"For now, focus on training the clan's jutsu properly. That will be enough."
Toyoma had already begun reading the letter, but he heard every word of their exchange.
When he finished, a faint smile formed on his face.
"This is better than I expected," he said quietly.
"Now they'll have to answer. Let's see what kind of reason they come up with."
Shinka paused mid-lecture and looked at him, slightly puzzled by the hint of satisfaction in his voice.
"What happened?" she asked.
"Nothing much," Toyoma replied calmly.
"Just as I suspected—the village hasn't sent supplies or reinforcements to the Uchiha at the border."
He paused for a beat.
"And they've even pulled many civilian shinobi away from that front to reinforce the Cloud border."
The smile didn't leave his face.
"So now," he continued, "it's mostly Uchiha still fighting there… along with a handful of civilian shinobi."
The room felt quieter after that.
Shinka and Kageha watched Toyoma's expression as he spoke so casually, a faint smile on his face, as if nothing was surprising written in the letter at all.
That smile unsettled them.
Shinka turned toward him, her eyes sharp.
"I don't know why people in the clan still expect anything from this village," she said bitterly.
"Every time, they end up getting stabbed in the back."
Her anger rose as she spoke.
"They turned our proud Uchiha clan into a dog," Shinka continued, her voice flaring.
"Beat it, throw it a little food, and expect it to wag its tail."
For her, the village meant nothing.
Since childhood, Shinka had been a staunch supporter of the Hawk faction.
She held no fondness for the village or its people—
not even a little.
In her eyes, they were parasites, feeding off the clan while pretending to protect it.
Toyoma didn't look up.
"Don't worry about it, Aunt," he said calmly. "They'll have to give a proper explanation for this."
As he spoke, his gaze drifted back to the sales records spread across the desk.
Something seemed to click in his mind.
He looked up again.
"Hey, Aunt," Toyoma said thoughtfully, "what would happen if we hold the sales for a while?"
Shinka frowned slightly. "Hold them?"
"For a week," Toyoma added.
Shinka was surprised at first.
Then, after a moment of thought, a slow smile formed on her face.
"Yes," she said.
"We could hold the sales until the village gives us a reply."
Toyoma shook his head lightly.
"No," he said.
"Not just for them."
Shinka's smile faltered.
"Then what do you mean?" she asked.
Toyoma didn't answer immediately.
He only looked back at the records on the desk.
While they were still discussing it—
Within the clan compound, near the shrine, a shadow appeared from time to time.
Someone was moving there, searching carefully.
As the figure drew closer to the clan's secret vault—
the place where forbidden jutsu and important records were kept—
the air shifted.
The Uchiha shinobi stationed at the shrine gate felt it pass by them.
"Did you hear something?" one of them asked, his voice low, uncertain.
"No," the other replied.
But both straightened immediately.
The feeling alone was enough to put them on alert.
Inside the vault, the intruder moved quietly, eyes scanning the shelves and sealed containers.
"Where did the grand elder put it…" he muttered under his breath.
As he stepped into a faint beam of light, his figure became clear.
It was Shisui Uchiha.
"No… not this," Shisui murmured, skimming through a scroll case.
"These are fire-style records."
He moved on quickly.
Near the back of the room sat another box—older than the rest, its seal worn with age.
Shisui crouched and reached for it, fingers brushing the lock as he began to open it.
Then—
"Are you looking for something?"
The voice came from behind him.
Shisui froze.
His body went tense in an instant.
He hadn't sensed anyone enter.
Shisui didn't waste any time.
The moment the voice reached him, he used the Substitution Jutsu and vanished.
In the next instant, he reappeared a short distance away, already facing the figure who now stood in the room.
"Brother Masato," Shisui said calmly, as if nothing were out of place.
"I was just here to look for a few jutsu. I have permission from the elders."
The man watching him was Masato Uchiha.
Masato was a regular presence at the shrine.
Toyoma himself had once told him that if he wanted to understand Fire Breath more easily, he should first study all recorded Fire Style techniques—
only then could he develop his own moves.
Normally, Masato spent his time here meditating.
Earlier, when he had heard a faint sound, he had assumed it was just another Uchiha jōnin coming in to train.
But when he opened his eyes—
It wasn't a jōnin.
It was Shisui Uchiha, standing among the clan's sealed records, his gaze still sharp, still searching.
Masato didn't relax.
Not even a little.
"So," Masato said, his gaze empty, unmoving, "you have permission to look into forbidden jutsu now?"
Shisui froze.
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