Incense burned faintly in a corner of the room, its thick scent barely masking the smell of old wood and paper. Tsunade, seated behind her desk, scanned reports with a weary yet unyielding gaze. The evening shadows stretched across her face, deepening her scars, hardening her eyes.
The door swung open with a sharp bang, unannounced.
Takeshi burst in, breath short, fists already clenched. His eyes burned, laced with cold fury.
"Tsunade-sama!" His voice trembled—not with fear, but with rage. "You can't seriously be considering handing Natsumi over to the Hidden Cloud Village!"
She looked up slowly. Not surprised. Not impressed. Just... tired.
They weren't close. They hadn't even spoken in months. But Takeshi couldn't accept that.
"The decision is made." The words dropped like stones. "We can't risk an open war for one person."
Politics. Always the same refrain. The happiness of the many at the cost of a few sacrificed lives.
Takeshi's knuckles turned white from the pressure of his fingers digging into his palms. His heart pounded against his ribs, dull and violent.
Was Konoha afraid?
"One person?!" His voice exploded, too loud for the enclosed room. "Natsumi is one of us! She's risked her life for this village, again and again! And now you're throwing her to the wolves like some cheap bargaining chip?!"
Tsunade stood.
Not with anger. Not in haste.
Just… with authority.
The wood of the desk creaked under her fingers. The air turned hot.
"You forget who you're talking to, Takeshi." Her golden, cold eyes pierced him. "I am the Hokage. My duty is to protect Konoha as a whole. Not to cater to the whims of a boy in crisis."
A rough laugh escaped him, nearly hysterical.
"Whims?!" he spat, lips curled. "That's cowardice, nothing else! Kumogakure is torturing her as we speak, and you hide behind your desk like some rusted old bureaucrat!"
Silence fell like a hammer.
Tsunade didn't blink. Didn't flinch.
But something in her gaze grew harder.
"Listen closely, brat." Her voice was a blade against the throat. "You barge in here, scream, spit your venom… and you think that changes anything?" A step forward. The floor creaked. "One more word, and I'll throw you in a cell for insubordination. And trust me—no one will come looking for you."
Takeshi trembled.
Not with fear.
With contained fury.
His muscles tensed, ready to strike—the wall, the desk, her—
Then…
He broke.
His breath hitched. His shoulders sagged.
She wasn't bluffing.
"I…" His voice cracked. "I can't accept this."
Fists clenched, eyes shut, he bowed. Deeply. Forehead nearly touching the floor.
"Forgive me, Tsunade-sama." The words burned on his tongue. "I lost control."
She watched him, unmoving. Then, with a tired gesture:
"Get up."
He obeyed. But refused to meet her eyes.
A silence.
"I understand your anger," she finally said, softer. "But if I had a choice…"
The sentence hung in the air.
Takeshi nodded slowly. Hollow.
"I know." His whisper was bitter. "The village comes first."
He turned to leave.
But at the threshold, he stopped. Without turning:
"But today… I understood something."
A sharp click. The door shut behind him.
Tsunade remained alone.
Her fists still clenched.
"…Me too, kid."
Whispered into the void.
On the way back, Takeshi seriously questioned the reason behind his rage. Was it due to past trauma?
With hindsight, he understood what Tsunade had told him. And yet, it still reflected the cowardice of Konoha's leadership. After all, it wasn't the first time this had happened in the village's history.
Some might not know the unjust death of Hizashi Hyuga, Hiashi's twin brother, but Takeshi, a devoted fan of the series, knew everything about that manga.
"Now that I think about it, they were Kumo ninjas…" Takeshi thought. "They really think they're above everything… huh?"
His eyes gleamed with a certain light—it was clear he wouldn't let this insult slide. But first, he had to prepare. The current Raikage, the fastest man alive, wasn't someone to take lightly.
A smile crept onto the young ninja's face—he knew exactly what to do. Who could even compare to the wielder of the legendary system?
Within minutes, Takeshi stood before his house. After entering, he summoned the system's interface, one goal in mind: to find the perfect technique to counter the Raikage's speed.