Tsunade walked back to the bed, leaning down until she was eye-to-eye with him. "Three years of service. You'll report for medical stabilization every week—a dose of medicine only I can prepare. If you miss a day, the disease returns, and you become a statue of bone. And in exchange, you want me to stay away from Orochimaru?"
"Yes," Kimimaro whispered. "And you will not send your shinobi after him for the duration of my service."
Tsunade stood up straight, sighing as she looked out at the village rooftops. It was a devil's bargain. But he was right... Konoha was bleeding. The loss of the Third Hokage and the casualties from the "Konoha Crush" had left them perilously weak. Kumo and Iwa are eyeing for a moment of their weakness.
"Fine," she said. "I'll use you until there's nothing left of you."
Tsunade exited the room, the door clicking shut behind her. She found Kakashi Hatake leaning against the opposite wall, his nose buried in a familiar orange book, icha icha series. He didn't look up as she approached, but his voice was grave.
"You're actually going through with it, Hokage-sama? Putting a wolf in the sheepfold?"
Tsunade didn't look at him. She just kept walking toward her office. "He's not a sheep, Kakashi. You can handle him. And right now, we're a village without enough hammers."
Kakashi closed his book with a soft thud. "He's loyal to a fault, but that loyalty is directed at the man who tried to level this village. Can we ever truly trust a weapon that belongs to Orochimaru?"
"I don't need to trust him," Tsunade replied, pausing at the end of the hall. "I just need to keep him alive and point him in the right direction. He's likely the third strongest jounin we have right now, after you and Guy. In three years, a lot can change. People die, loyalties shift, and villages rebuild. But right now? Right now, I'll take every hand I can get. And keep an eye on him. I will give you few heavy sedation syringe use on it on him if need be."
"Sasuke is not my only problem, Kakashi. The Village is. I will have Yamato look into the Orochimaru's hideout and I am not sending shinobi after Orochimaru but after Sasuke. So, there is no void in the deal."
~~
The afternoon sun crawled across the mahogany surface of the Hokage's desk, illuminating dust motes and stacks of paperwork that seemed to multiply every hour.
"ANBU," she commanded, her voice cutting through the stagnant air of the office.
A masked figure materialized, kneeling instantly. "Hokage-sama, your orders?"
"Have Inoichi Yamanaka summoned," Tsunade said, not looking up from a report. "Tell him I require his presence immediately."
"Understood, Hokage-sama." The ANBU vanished as quickly as they had arrived, leaving only a slight breeze behind.
It didn't take long for Inoichi to arrive. The head of the Intelligence Division looked every bit as haggard as the rest of the village leadership. His clothes were slightly rumpled, and his eyes was tempered by visible fatigue.
"Lady Tsunade," Inoichi began, offering a respectful bow. "You called? If this is about the walk-through of the Intelligence Division or the new protocols for the Analysis Team. We can go right ahead. My people have been running on fumes for past few days, monitoring every merchant, traveler, and a stray cat entering Konoha's gates since the invasion of Suna and Sound."
Tsunade sighed, her expression softening with a flicker of empathy. "I know, Inoichi. These are lean times, and don't overlook the strain your team is under. Your vigilance is the only reason the village is sleeping at night. However, I have a more surgical task for you."
She leaned forward, her hands interlaced. "We've received the prisoner from Suna. He's currently held in the high-security wing of the medical ward. I want you to peel back his mind. I need the exact coordinates of Orochimaru's hideouts, the layout of his laboratories, and any data on his current research. We're looking for a map of his rot so we can be prepared what to expect."
Inoichi's posture straightened. "I'll assemble the team immediately. We'll have him shifted to the Intelligence Division's interrogation chambers within the hour."
~~
As Inoichi departed to coordinate his team, Shizune entered the room, her companion Tonton tucked under one arm.
"Shizune," Tsunade called out. "About the prisoner. When he's moved from the medical ward, I want him over-sedated. "
Shizune blinked, her brow furrowing. "Lady Tsunade, he's already on a heavy regimen of suppressants. Any more and we risk permanent neural suppression."
"He's been under those for a long time under Orochimaru," Tsunade countered, . "He should have build up resistances to many of the sedations. I cannot have him waking up... take care of it personally."
Shizune nodded. "I understand. I'll oversee the transfer and the sedative adjustment myself."
Once the door clicked shut, Tsunade was left alone. She reached for a drawer, pulling out a folder. These were the profiles of the youth—the future of the leaf.
"Now," she whispered to the empty room, "for the part that actually gives me a headache."
Spread out before her were the files of six Genin: Shikamaru Nara, Neji Hyuga, Choji Akimichi, Naruto Uzumaki, Rock Lee, and Kiba Inuzuka.
The Chunin Exams had been a disaster, interrupted by the attack, but the need for chunin promotions hadn't vanished. In fact, it had become more desperate as it is an important measure to show the strength of the village and get the budget for the village. She tapped a finger on Shikamaru's photo.
"Shikamaru..." she mused. The boy was a genius, arguably the smartest tactical mind the village had produced for over a decade. He was more than qualified to lead, yet his strength was still lacking.
Then there was Neji Hyuga. He was a prodigy, disciplined, and possessed the calm and composure required to keep a mission's objectives at the forefront of his mind.
But Neji presented a political quagmire.
Tsunade rubbed her temples. "If I promote Neji, a member of the Branch house, while Hinata remains a Genin... Hiashi might see it as a slight to the Main family's prestige." She knew she needed the Hyuga clan's full support to stabilize the village's defenses. Offending the head of one of the noble clan over a promotion was a move she had to weigh carefully.
She shifted the papers, uncovering another file: Shino Aburame.
"The dark horse," she murmured. Shino had been remarkably efficient. He had neutralized Zaku Abumi with terrific precision during the chunin exams and had shown incredible poise when the village fell into chaos, stalling Kankuro even without orders and protecting his comrades. He was calm, composed, and lacked the ego that often tripped up younger shinobi.
She looked at the others. Naruto was a powerhouse, but a tactical liability and he is not suited for being a chunin. Lee was a force of nature, but currently recovering from injuries. Kiba and Choji had heart, but they weren't ready to hold the lives of a squad in their hands.
~~
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