Chapter 315 |
"Could you make me a cup of tea? I suddenly feel a bit thirsty," Dan asked Shizune while casually inspecting Tsunade's office.
"…Oh, okay! Hokage-sama, please wait a moment," Shizune replied, momentarily stunned, before hurriedly bringing Dan a cup of tea.
"Hmm, not bad," Dan said, savouring the tea before patting the sofa beside him. "You should sit too, no need to stand the whole time."
"Yes, of course," Shizune nodded, sitting nervously on the sofa opposite Dan.
Dan began to chat idly with Shizune about light and casual topics. However, Shizune felt as if she were sitting on pins and needles, her back drenched in sweat.
She knew very well that the Sixth Hokage was a man of unfathomable depth, and one could never deduce his true thoughts from his outward demeanour.
For example, at this very moment, Dan was smiling and chatting while enjoying his tea, appearing to be in a good mood. But to Shizune, he was like a smiling tiger, one who might turn on her at any moment if he grew impatient, consuming her in a fit of rage.
To keep this tiger at bay, Shizune forced herself to smile and racked her brain for interesting topics to keep him entertained.
Tick-tock, tick-tock.
Tsunade-sama, where are you? Please come quickly.
Shizune silently prayed for Tsunade to arrive soon. Leaving the Sixth Hokage waiting too long could have dire consequences.
"Hmm, why are you sweating? Is it hot?" Dan noticed the beads of sweat on Shizune's forehead and looked surprised. The office was quite cool.
Shizune trembled at his question, forcing a smile.
Just when she didn't know how to respond, the door to the office swung open with a bang, and Tsunade finally stormed in with her other disciple, Anko Mitarashi.
The cavalry had arrived.
Seeing Tsunade, Shizune breathed a sigh of relief, almost collapsing onto the sofa.
"Oh, you're still here. I thought you would have left by now. Sorry, I couldn't get out of that meeting," Tsunade said as she walked up to Dan, crossing her arms and looking down at him with a surprised expression. She hadn't expected him to wait patiently for a whole hour.
"It's my fault for showing up unannounced. I'll make sure to schedule an appointment with Shizune next time," Dan replied with a slight smile, maintaining a humble demeanour despite being the Hokage. He even teased, "By the way, Shizune told me quite a few of your embarrassing stories. Very entertaining."
"What?" Tsunade was taken aback, then glared at Shizune, questioning her with her eyes.
Shizune looked helpless and wronged, unable to explain her predicament.
Tsunade-sama, you have no idea how I survived this past half-hour. I had no choice but to tell him those stories to keep him from getting angry.
We'll deal with this later.
Tsunade conveyed this message with her eyes before turning to Dan with a furrowed brow.
She suspected that Dan's visit wasn't for anything good, likely to cut the medical department's budget or something similar.
Using the meeting as an excuse, she had instructed Shizune to send Dan away, but that plan had failed.
Hmph.
Seeing Dan's slightly mocking smile made Tsunade's temper flare up. She spoke coldly, "I'm a bit tired and need a shower and a change of clothes. Can you wait?"
"Of course, I'm in no rush," Dan replied calmly, showing no sign of impatience.
With a suspicious look, Tsunade walked into the inner room of the office.
She often stayed in the office late into the night, so the office was equipped with a bed, a shower, and other amenities.
Soon, the sound of running water could be heard from the bathroom.
Shizune anxiously glanced towards the bathroom, praying that Tsunade wouldn't take another hour-long bath.
How was she supposed to handle the terrifying Sixth Hokage in the meantime?
Fortunately for Shizune, Dan didn't try to engage her in more small talk. Instead, he turned his attention to Anko.
"By the way, how's your curse mark? Is it affecting your body and mind?" Dan asked suddenly.
"Uh," Anko hesitated, instinctively raising her right hand to touch the rough skin on her left shoulder where it met her neck.
She then honestly reported, "Hokage-sama, I feel…fine. No unusual symptoms. Since that incident eight years ago, under Tsunade-sama's care, I haven't lost control again."
Eight years ago.
During the Fourth Shinobi World War, the four major villages joined forces to invade Konoha. Anko was pursued by Kumogakure ninjas and, in her panic, fled into the Uchiha Biomedical Modification Department, where she encountered Dan and Tsunade.
Terrified by Dan, the Heaven Curse Mark on Anko's shoulder activated, putting her in a berserk state. However, Dan easily subdued her as if she were a toy.
Fortunately, Tsunade took Anko under her wing and made her a disciple.
At this moment.
The Sixth Hokage suddenly asked about the Cursed Seal. Was he just showing a sudden interest in her well-being, or did he have another purpose in mind? Anko Mitarashi carefully observed Danzo’s expression, trying to guess his intentions, feeling anxious and uncertain.
To her surprise.
“Good to hear that you’re fine.”
Danzo nodded and didn’t pursue the matter further, seemingly just making a casual inquiry.
Shizune, standing nearby, was puzzled. Despite her long association with Anko, she had no idea about her junior’s biggest secret.
Time passed.
Soon, another half an hour had gone by, and the sound of running water from the bathroom continued.
In the office, Shizune and Anko were restless, busying themselves with serving tea to the Sixth Hokage, occasionally exchanging bewildered glances, not knowing what to do.
"Shizune, why don’t you go urge Lady Tsunade? We can’t keep the Hokage waiting forever…"
Anko nudged Shizune with her elbow and whispered.
"…Alright."
Shizune knew they couldn’t continue like this. If Lady Tsunade kept the Sixth Hokage waiting all day, they would be stuck “imprisoned” alongside him.
Fortunately, Tsunade finally finished her long, leisurely bath.
Creak.
She walked out slowly, wearing a large white bathrobe. She tilted her head as she approached the three, drying her wet blonde hair with a towel.
"So feminine."
Danzo couldn’t help but remark.
"Let me remind you, Sixth Hokage, you’re a married man now. Shouldn’t you watch your words?"
Tsunade's eyes were sharp as she spoke, then plopped down on the sofa opposite Danzo.
She crossed her legs, matching his imposing presence, then nonchalantly asked:
"So, what’s the matter?"
She had deliberately kept Danzo waiting for over an hour, but he didn’t seem angry at all, which made her feel a bit uneasy.
Sure enough.
Danzo’s next words made Tsunade’s hair-drying motion freeze.
"It’s nothing major. Just that Karin has been kidnapped by Orochimaru."
Danzo looked at Tsunade with a hint of regret as he delivered the news.
As soon as he finished speaking.
Whoosh!
Tsunade stood up abruptly, her chest heaving with emotion. But at that moment, she didn’t care about any possible wardrobe malfunctions. She was both shocked and furious.
"Why didn’t you say this earlier?!"
She clenched her fists, veins bulging on her forehead, angrily questioning Danzo.
"That’s not fair."
Danzo leaned back on the sofa and replied leisurely, "As soon as I got the information from Konan, I came straight to you without telling anyone else. But weren’t you busy with a meeting? Surely a renegade like Karin isn’t more important to you than a medical department meeting, right?"
"You…"
Hearing Danzo’s sarcastic tone, Tsunade was almost driven to fury, but she knew she had no right to blame him.
After all, she had deliberately made him wait.
Concern for Karin wasn’t limited to Tsunade. Shizune and Anko were also worried.
"Hokage-sama, what exactly happened? Is Karin in danger?" Shizune asked anxiously.
"Well."
Danzo frowned and speculated, "Orochimaru probably intends to use Karin for his forbidden technique—Living Corpse Reincarnation, making her body a vessel for his soul. So yes, Karin is definitely in danger. The only uncertainty is whether she has already fallen victim to Orochimaru."
"Where is that bastard now?"
Tsunade stormed up to Danzo, leaning over and grabbing his collar, her eyes blazing with anger.
Knowing Orochimaru, Danzo’s words were definitely not just to scare her.
Orochimaru was capable of any cruel act.
Huh?
Dan saw Tsunade in such a state and, feeling surprised, tried to comfort her:
"Don't worry, you should trust Naruto and Konan. Even if they can't save Karin in time, they'll certainly avenge her and bring Orochimaru's corpse back to Konoha."
How is that supposed to be comforting? The more Tsunade listened, the angrier she got. She was about to engage Dan in a fierce battle when Anko's voice suddenly came from behind.
"Tsunade-sama, I… I might be able to find Orochimaru's hideout."
Anko, trembling with fear, spoke as she pulled down her cloak, revealing the curse mark on the left side of her neck.
To be precise, it was the Heaven Curse Mark.
Orochimaru had given his snake bite to many people, but they all perished under the curse mark's power, except for his beloved disciple Anko, who withstood its power.
The mark consisted of three striking black tomoe encircling each other with a fine black pattern around it, resembling the Uchiha's Sharingan.
"Really?"
Tsunade let go of Dan and looked at Anko in surprise.
"Orochimaru uses this curse mark to leave some of his chakra in me, so I can always sense Orochimaru's presence and even vaguely determine his location."
Anko carefully explained, keeping an eye on Dan's reaction.
She finally understood why Dan had inquired about the curse mark earlier. This Sixth Hokage had already sensed its significance.
"Great! Shizune, Anko, get ready immediately. We're heading out of the village to hunt down Orochimaru!"
Tsunade's spirits lifted, and she rushed inside, soon accompanied by the sounds of hurried dressing.
In less than a minute.
Tsunade emerged and donned her familiar dark green cloak, urging her disciples to hurry up.
"Where's Uchiha Dan?"
She noticed Dan was nowhere to be seen.
"The Hokage just left, wishing us… good luck," Shizune and Anko replied in unison.
Uchiha Clan Grounds, Training Field.
"Cousin Sasuke, watch out. Ora ora ora!"
Marisa went all out, throwing hundreds of punches with her Stand, "Star Platinum," creating sonic booms in the air.
"Come on!"
Sasuke said sternly as his purple Susanoo appeared, its solidified chakra withstanding Marisa's every punch.
Though it was just training, both of them gave it their all, holding nothing back.
Because.
Each had a powerful enemy they had to defeat.
Sasuke's target was Orochimaru, who sought to take his body, while Marisa's goal was to defeat Toneri Otsutsuki, who had taken Hanabi's Byakugan.
To overcome these formidable foes, the siblings had been training relentlessly.
Boom, boom boom!
After their intense battle, the training field was left in ruins amid the clash of chakra and physical strength.
"Huff huff…"
Both Sasuke and Marisa were drenched in sweat, exhausted, and took a break on the sidelines.
Just then, a tall figure teleported in front of them.
"Yo, you're really working hard, you two."
Dan surveyed his nephew and daughter, teasing them.
"Uncle, why are you here?" Sasuke was surprised but immediately stood up and bowed respectfully to Dan.
Sasuke, remember, he's not just our uncle; he's also the Sixth Hokage. So, no matter when you must always be respectful in front of him.
Otherwise, you might feel his fist…
This was Itachi's advice to Sasuke, which he kept in mind.
In contrast, Marisa showed no respect for Dan.
"Hmph."
She snorted, rolling her eyes and not even glancing at Dan, let alone greeting him.
"Heh."
Dan chuckled, used to his precious daughter's behaviour, not getting upset.
He even apologised slightly to Marisa:
"Marisa, your cousin Sasuke won't be able to train with you for a while. He has to go out of the village for something."
Then, Dan handed the paper crane from Konan to Sasuke: "I just got word that Karin has been kidnapped by Orochimaru."
"What?!"
Sasuke's shock and anger were no less than Tsunade's.
Both Karin and Orochimaru were important to him.
However, Karin was someone Sasuke cared about, even liked, while Orochimaru was his enemy, and now the latter had kidnapped the former.
Regaining his composure, Sasuke's face filled with murderous intent. Without a word, he was ready to leave Konoha and take Orochimaru's head.
Seeing this, Dan smiled at Marisa, who was frozen beside him, and said:
"Sweetie, how about training with your dad? My ‘The World' wants to have a good match with your ‘Star Platinum.'"
"!"
Marisa shivered, as if hearing a devil's whisper. Even her Stand, Star Platinum, trembled.
"I'm going with my cousin!"
She threw out the words and ran after Sasuke without looking back.
(End of Chapter)