The tent flap rustled as Tsunade leaned close, her voice dropping to barely a whisper. "Stay sharp. This isn't over."
Hanekawa's ear tingled at her proximity, but he kept his expression neutral.
"We ran into Hidden Cloud ninjas on the way back," Tsunade announced, stepping forward with characteristic bluntness. "It delayed us."
Orochimaru's eyes narrowed as he studied the group. Hanekawa and Shisui looked exhausted, their chakra visibly depleted. Yet Tsunade and Sakumo appeared untouched—no injuries, no fatigue. The contrast was impossible.
What truly caught his attention was the state of the Hidden Cloud delegation. The Fourth Raikage, Killer Bee, and both Yugito lay unconscious on the ground.
Orochimaru's lips curved into a thin smile. Tsunade and Sakumo were formidable, certainly, but this? This exceeded their known capabilities.
Which meant the variable was Hanekawa and Shisui.
His tongue flicked across his teeth. Had Shisui awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan?
Danzo's face darkened as the implications crashed over him. The two jinchuriki and the Fourth Raikage—defeated so thoroughly, so quickly. He'd expected a prolonged stalemate, time to consolidate power while Tsunade was occupied.
Instead, she'd just cemented her position as the next Hokage. Her reputation now rivaled the First Hokage himself.
Danzo's eyes shifted toward Orochimaru. A silent question.
Orochimaru met his gaze and immediately understood. Eliminate her.
But the Snake Sannin's expression remained unreadable. He studied the group again—no serious injuries, no depleted reserves. A direct confrontation would be suicide.
And there was the matter of Shisui's Mangekyō. Orochimaru's curiosity burned, but not enough to throw away his life. Not yet. His forbidden techniques remained incomplete, and there were still mysteries here he didn't understand.
Recklessness could wait.
"Rescue them," Orochimaru said smoothly, waving a dismissive hand.
Tsunade's shoulders relaxed fractionally. She'd been prepared for violence, but Orochimaru's pragmatism was a relief. The last thing Konoha needed was civil war.
"Orochimaru!" Danzo's voice cracked with desperation. Don't give up the Hokage position.
The Snake Sannin ignored him entirely, turning to Tsunade with genuine curiosity. "I'm fascinated by how you defeated two jinchuriki and the Raikage. Perhaps you'd enlighten me?"
Danzo's body trembled with barely suppressed rage, but he was powerless. Root had been dissolved. The ninjas he'd managed to mobilize were only there through Hiruzen's goodwill—a reminder of their old friendship that now felt like a chain.
"Wait," Hanekawa said quietly, stepping forward and pulling Tsunade behind him. He loosened the First Hokage's necklace at his neck. "Uncle Orochimaru, what crime would someone face for colluding with the Hidden Cloud?"
Tsunade's frown deepened. She knew exactly where this was going—and she didn't like it. Not now. Not with Orochimaru watching.
But Hanekawa had already committed.
"Treason," Orochimaru replied calmly, though his eyes sharpened. "Who are you accusing?"
"Shimura Danzo."
The words hung in the air like a blade.
"Lies!" Danzo's voice rose to a shout. "I am the Assistant Hokage! You dare accuse me of betraying the village? This is slander!"
"Evidence?" Orochimaru asked, his tone deceptively mild.
But his expression had shifted. Danzo's vehement denial was practically a confession.
Hanekawa turned toward Mabui. "The four Root ninjas the Hidden Cloud captured—they were yours, weren't they?"
Mabui's breath caught. She'd been wondering how Hanekawa knew about the ambush. Now the answer was terrifyingly clear: he'd known all along. This entire battle had been a setup.
Her mind raced. If Hanekawa had known beforehand, then Tsunade and the others had fought with complete confidence. They'd never been in danger.
Cold sweat beaded on her forehead.
"She's from the Hidden Cloud," Danzo said quickly, his hand already reaching for her. "Her testimony is worthless."
"Precisely," Orochimaru agreed smoothly. "Leave her to me. I'll conduct the interrogation personally."
Danzo's eyes lit up. With Orochimaru's skills, Mabui would be turned around—or simply disappear. All traces would be erased.
"No," Hanekawa said flatly.
"Hanekawa!" Danzo's face flushed purple. "You overstep yourself! I have authority to arrest you for slandering the Assistant Hokage!"
His hands flew through seals without hesitation. Wind erupted from his mouth—sharp, cutting, lethal.
Hanekawa didn't move. Instead, he clapped his hands.
Wood Style: Tree World Advent!
The earth convulsed. Trees erupted from the ground in a violent explosion of growth, branches and vines spreading in all directions. Within seconds, a forest had materialized.
Orochimaru's eyes went wide. His tongue extended involuntarily.
Wood Style.
The legendary technique of Hashirama Senju. The power that had made the First Hokage a god among shinobi. And it was being wielded by a child standing right in front of him.
Orochimaru's expression shifted into something almost feral with hunger.
Danzo, distracted by the impossible sight, lost his focus for a critical moment. Vines wrapped around him, constricting, pulling him down.
He tried to escape, but Hanekawa was already moving.
Genjutsu: Sharingan Illusion!
Their eyes met. Danzo's pupils dilated in terror as the world twisted around him. More vines erupted from the ground, wrapping him completely until he was a cocoon of wood and shadow.
Tsunade blinked, processing what she'd just witnessed. Her eyes drifted to the First Hokage's necklace at Hanekawa's neck, and understanding bloomed across her face.
Ah. So that's how.
She couldn't help but smile. The kid looked good when he was serious.
"Uncle Orochimaru," Hanekawa said, his voice steady despite the chakra drain. "Shimura Danzo has been apprehended. Do you have any objections?"
Orochimaru's tongue retreated slowly. His eyes remained fixed on Hanekawa with an intensity that made even Tsunade tense.
"Remarkable," the Snake Sannin breathed. "Truly remarkable."
In that moment, Orochimaru's mind had already begun calculating. A container for his immortality technique. Someone with bloodline limits spanning taijutsu, genjutsu, ninjutsu, swordsmanship—and now Wood Style. The most perfect vessel in the entire shinobi world.
Hanekawa took a subtle step backward. He could read that look. He'd seen it before.
Not the creepy snake guy too.
"Orochimaru," Danzo's voice emerged from the cocoon, slurred and desperate. "Don't let him—"
Hanekawa tightened the vines. Danzo's consciousness faded into darkness.
Three lines of text materialized before Hanekawa's eyes:
[B-Rank Talent Entry: Pot Breaker]
[Trigger Condition: Defeat Shimura Danzo]
[Effect: All Wind Style jutsu power increases by 100%]
Not bad, Hanekawa thought. Wind Style counters Lightning. Could be useful.
He released the Wood Style, and the forest dissolved back into the earth.
"Hiashi," Tsunade commanded, her voice cutting through the chaos. "Return to the village. Bring reinforcements to secure the battlefield."
"Yes!" Hyuga Hizashi practically vibrated with excitement. The stronger Hanekawa became, the more the Hyuga clan benefited. He'd already begun mentally calculating which of his relatives might become Hanekawa's disciples.
The remaining Konoha ninjas scattered to their tasks—medical teams tending to the wounded, guards securing the Hidden Cloud prisoners.
"Come with me," Tsunade said, pulling Hanekawa toward the medical tent.
The moment they were inside, exhaustion crashed over him like a wave. His legs buckled.
Tsunade caught him smoothly, lowering him onto the carpet and cradling his head in her lap.
"Who told you to be so reckless?" she asked, her voice carrying equal parts anger and concern.
The First Hokage's chakra wasn't his own. Using it always came with a cost.
Hanekawa touched his face cautiously. "Did I age?"
"No," Tsunade said, though she could see the faintest lines around his eyes. They made him look older, more mature. Not that she'd admit it.
"Good," he murmured, already drifting. The Yin Seal had closed automatically. Recovery would take half a day at most.
When consciousness returned, Hanekawa realized his head was resting on Tsunade's thigh. Her hands held him gently, and the scent of her perfume surrounded him—warm, comfortable, safe.
"Teacher," he said, his voice still drowsy. "Make sure someone contacts the Hidden Cloud. We need those four Root ninjas found before Danzo can spin a story."
"Already handled," Tsunade replied, her fingers brushing his hair. "Sakumo and the others are on it."
Those four ninjas were the smoking gun. With them as witnesses, even Hiruzen couldn't protect Danzo. The evidence was irrefutable.
Hanekawa's mind drifted through the implications. With Hiruzen in the picture, execution was unlikely—life imprisonment at best. But if Danzo defected...
Then all bets are off.
"Stop thinking," Tsunade said, flicking his forehead lightly. "Rest."
"Yes, Teacher," he murmured, and sleep claimed him instantly.
Tsunade held his head carefully, laying him on the carpet. She watched him for a long moment—this impossible child who wielded the power of legends—then leaned down and pressed a soft kiss to his forehead.
She stood and left the tent, her expression unreadable. Unlike Hanekawa, she hadn't used the Yin Seal much. She had work to do.
And with Orochimaru lurking nearby, she couldn't afford to rest.