Honestly, Tsunade was at a loss regarding the poison inside Zaraki Kita. Half a year ago, she couldn't cure it—and now, six months later, there was still no solution. The fact that Zaraki Kita was still alive could only be described as miraculous.
As she flipped through her medical texts, a knock echoed from the Hokage's office door. By habit, she said, "Come in," but the momentarily focused Tsunade had to divert her attention to the visitor.
Black-and-white robes, a single eye wrapped in bandages.
Shimura Danzo.
Danzo rarely entered the Hokage's office. Usually, he was called to meetings by the Hokage's advisors. But this time, he bypassed them entirely—and that forced the Fifth Hokage to exercise extreme caution.
"You really are willful, Tsunade."
The first words came from Danzo—a man of the same generation as her sensei—using his seniority to disregard any courtesy to the Hokage. He was referring to Tsunade holding a wine cup in one hand while burying herself in medical texts with the other. Tsunade frowned slightly, setting the cup down and closing the case file containing Zaraki Kita's records.
"You come uninvited. What is it, Danzo?"
Damn it… why now?
His tone was neither friendly nor openly hostile. Danzo seemed indifferent to her attitude; after all, to him, she wasn't the Hokage, just a child to be noted. But he wasn't here to challenge her—he came straight to the point.
"Tsunade-hime, need help?"
Tsunade froze.
Help? Help with what? To remove me from the Hokage seat and take my place? Or to pin some disaster on me?
She could never believe that Danzo, Konoha's Root who had long plotted to overthrow the Hokage, suddenly offered help.
"No need?"
Danzo observed her disbelief calmly, unfazed. His tone was as casual as if asking an insignificant question, as if helping the Hokage were self-evident.
But it wasn't.
From the Third Hokage's era to the Fifth, Danzo had spent his life grooming subordinates, waiting for an opportunity to overthrow the Hokage. And now—offering help? This was unprecedented.
Tsunade was extremely cautious, internally questioning why this man would speak such words at this precise moment.
What "moment" is this?
The Otsutsuki threat had paused, the Nine-Tails issue had concluded, and a being who should not be in Konoha had just appeared. Tsunade sounded an internal alarm.
Could he already know about Zaraki Kita coming to Konoha? What's going on?
"What do you mean?" she asked, her expression stern.
Danzo turned away indifferently.
"Literal meaning, Tsunade-hime. Seems you don't need it."
With that, Danzo limped away, leaning on his cane.
Pity, he thought.
.....
When Obito and Kakashi arrived, Zaraki Kita was in surprisingly good spirits. Though completely drained, she could still endure. At her bedside sat the plush tiger she had won in a previous ordeal, now accompanied by a fruit basket.
Konan happily arranged paper flowers nearby. Obito set down a tray of red bean sweets from a local dessert shop and plopped onto the empty bed, teasing, "People bring flowers when visiting patients—what are those paper flowers?"
Without looking up, Konan shot back, "I've already been nice to you these past two days—who gave you the courage to speak like that?"
Though harsh, her tone carried no malice. Obito could sense her good mood and laughed, glancing at the calm, reclining Zaraki Kita. "And your woman acts like this… don't you discipline her?"
Discipline? Zaraki Kita laughed. "You clearly don't know the meaning of death."
Obito didn't, but Kakashi did. He had stood silently since entering the room, knowing he would never come here if it weren't part of the mission.
Normally, Konan would have crushed Obito—or at least tormented him for days—but today, she was in a good mood. She neatly arranged the paper flowers and opened Obito's sweets: red bean pies, red bean cakes, and the three-color dango loved by someone in Amegakure.
"All red bean stuff… couldn't you bring something else?" Konan grumbled, handing Zaraki Kita a piece of cake and picking up a skewer of dango herself.
"No other sweets taste as good. I chose the best ones," Obito said, convinced everyone must like red bean treats as he did. Zaraki Kita ignored him, and even Konan let it slide. Konoha's sweets were good, but not as good as Kakashi's homemade red bean treats.
Obito sprawled on the bed without care, watching Zaraki Kita nibble, then casually asked,
"So, what did Tsunade say?"
Calling the Fifth Hokage by name without respect annoyed Kakashi slightly, though it wasn't technically disrespect.
Zaraki Kita put down half-eaten red bean cake and pointed at the empty teacup. Obito understood immediately, grumbling as he got up to refill it.
"I'm not bossing you around, who else would I boss?" she asked with a smile. When Obito set down the water, she asked again what Tsunade had said.
Zaraki Kita smiled, sipping her hot tea, then pointed to the unwashed fruit. Even Obito could interpret her meaning—the tea wasn't mandatory. Looking at Konan, she appeared calm, but Obito couldn't tell if she was genuinely composed or masking deep emotions.
The room remained unusually quiet until Obito broke the silence:
"Oh, by the way, when I went back yesterday, Konan said Shion wanted to come by. Do you need her?"
Zaraki Kita sipped tea, shook her head. Konan tossed the skewers in the trash.
"She's just pestering the boss all day," Obito said casually. Zaraki Kita interjected, smiling, "Then send her to work."
"She's weak, what work can she do?" Obito scoffed, grabbing a piece of fruit mid-bite. Zaraki Kita sighed. Compared to Akatsuki, Shion was weak—but still stronger than a normal jonin.
"How can she be weak? She's my student," Zaraki Kita said, smiling.
"She's far from your level," Konan said, eating dango. "If she's idle, let her come anyway."
Zaraki Kita tugged her sleeve. "No need. She rarely has peace, no need to drag her into this mess."
Konan sighed. "You really care for your student."
Zaraki Kita smiled. "Of course. I heard you've been strict with her."
Konan explained, peeling an orange, "Just pushing her to improve. Learning is slow, she's not talented."
Obito couldn't help but interject. Zaraki Kita laughed, tapping Konan lightly.
How petty, she said without annoyance.
Before long, there was a knock at the door. It opened without permission, revealing a handsome black-haired boy in grey-white ninja attire, with a long blade at his waist and a Konoha forehead protector.
"Sorry to bother you, I'm looking for Kakashi," the boy said, scanning the room with clear black eyes. He hesitated briefly upon seeing Obito, then focused on Kakashi. Kakashi's expression was unreadable, but his eyes showed slight guilt as he bowed. "Excuse me." He then quickly followed the boy out.
Konan's displeasure was evident. Obito noticed and explained, "Don't worry, he's never met Zaraki Kita."
"You know him?" Konan asked, calm. Obito nodded, but before he could speak, Zaraki Kita tugged Konan's sleeve. Konan looked down and saw the reassurance in Zaraki Kita's eyes.
"Uchiha Sasuke. It's fine."
Konan raised an eyebrow, continuing to peel the orange. "It's Itachi's brother? No wonder he looks familiar."
Zaraki Kita nodded. "Yeah. When he was younger, it wasn't obvious. Now he looks more like him."
Obito asked, holding a piece of cake.
"You met him as a child?"
"Yes. Years ago." Konan handed a piece of orange to Zaraki Kita. "He's nothing like his brother in manners."
"True. That brat is arrogant, and Kakashi never talks to him properly. Where does he get such confidence? He's a weakling." Obito joked. Konan frowned at his protective tone.
"Still… decent. Not Itachi, but a little genius," Zaraki Kita said, swallowing an orange. She had sparred with Sasuke—he was weak, but holding his own a few moves was impressive among peers.
"You've fought him?" Konan asked, curious.
Zaraki Kita nodded.
"When we sealed the Two-Tails, I held back Konoha reinforcements. My skill… mid-level."
"Haha, modesty. Mid-level? Then I must be godlike," Obito teased, handing over a peeled orange. Konan glared.
"Really pushing your luck, Obito," she muttered.
"Eh! I'm not!"
"Stop calling me 'Konan-nan'!"
"Gah! You two really know how to torment people!"
━━━━ ❖ ━━━
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