Under normal circumstances, something like this could have been smoothed over with a simple announcement, a bit of an explanation, and some appeasement to calm the villagers down. Over time, the incident would fade from memory.
But not now. Not during a time of war, when life had become unbearably difficult and many families had lost loved ones on the battlefield. With so many people grieving, this kind of scandal was bound to stir chaos.
"I don't even know how it got out," the Third Hokage admitted, looking thoroughly embarrassed.
He was sure he hadn't told anyone else, so how had it spread so quickly?
Koharu Utatane pointed an accusatory finger at the flustered Hokage, barely restraining her urge to let loose.
They had grown up together, been classmates and comrades in arms—she knew all too well about Hiruzen's dirty little habits. He was practically a carbon copy of Jiraiya.
In fact, Jiraiya had learned quite a bit from him.
"Fine, you say you didn't tell anyone. Then how do you explain this?" Koharu snapped, slapping the incriminating paper down on the desk.
"There are people out there protesting right now, demanding you come out and explain yourself—especially those who've lost loved ones on the frontlines, and the owners of the hot springs and bathhouses."
"Thanks to this jutsu being made public, their businesses are going to tank."
"Who's going to want to visit Konoha now? Who would dare to soak in our hot springs or bathhouses?"
Make no mistake, Konoha's tourism industry was no small thing.
Unlike other major shinobi villages that were incredibly strict about outsiders entering—often requiring a thorough background check—Konoha had always taken a more open approach to tourism.
But now? Now, everyone knew that if you came to Konoha, you were under surveillance, with someone potentially spying on you even while you bathed.
Who wouldn't find that disgusting?
"We'll issue an announcement claiming that all of this is just a baseless rumor, spread by spies from enemy villages to sow discord in Konoha," Homura Mitokado interjected, trying to salvage the situation.
Whether it was true or not, there was no way they could let this scandal stick.
The damage to the Hokage's reputation would be too great. They had to deny everything. Blame it all on enemy spies, and that would be the end of it.
"I'll order the ANBU to start rounding up spies immediately," the Third Hokage agreed. He knew this wasn't the time for jokes—this situation couldn't be allowed to escalate any further, or it would spiral out of control.
"Notify all the jōnin remaining in the village to report to the conference room for an emergency meeting!" he commanded. "And have the ANBU retrieve every single one of those papers. If anyone refuses to hand them over, detain them under suspicion of betraying the village and take them to the Konoha Police Force for interrogation."
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
With the Third Hokage's orders, the ANBU sprang into action.
Meanwhile, the jōnin in the village received their summons and headed to the conference room in the Hokage's office.
The ANBU sent to fetch Tsunade, however, found her still asleep, and they didn't dare wake her. Instead, they asked Kushina to wake her up.
"Tsunade-nee, Tsunade-nee, wake up! Hokage-sama called an emergency meeting at the office. You need to go!" Kushina urged, gently shaking her.
"Don't mention him—I'm sick of hearing about him. I'm trying to sleep here, so stop bothering me," Tsunade grumbled, batting away Kushina's hand before rolling over and wrapping herself up in her blanket.
Can't win with you, Kushina thought, shaking her head in exasperation.
"Tsunade-nee, it's serious! The ANBU said that there's a large number of spies in the village, spreading harmful rumors. Everyone has to go to the Hokage's office for a meeting."
"Spies?"
One second, Tsunade was dead to the world, and the next, she was wide awake, sitting up in bed.
"Yeah, the news is all over the village. A lot of people are gathering to talk about it, but I was busy making breakfast for Takuya, so I didn't go see for myself," Kushina explained, pointing out the window.
This must be serious, Tsunade thought, jumping out of bed and hurriedly getting dressed, skipping her usual morning routine as she dashed out the door toward the Hokage's office.
Even on the way there, Tsunade could hear the not-so-friendly discussions going on in the streets.
"Do you think this Telescope Technique is real?"
"It must be—people have already tested it, and it works."
"So, the Hokage really did create it? Does that mean he's actually been using it to spy on girls at the hot springs and bathhouses?"
"Shh! Watch what you're saying! How can you slander the Hokage like that? It's obvious this rumor was spread by enemy spies. The Hokage is an honorable man—he would never do something so perverted."
"If it's not true, then why are the hot spring and bathhouse owners protesting?"
"If you keep insulting the Hokage, I'll knock your teeth out."
"Oh yeah? Bring it on! I'm just asking questions, it's not like I said the Hokage definitely did it."
Watching the heated arguments on the street, where people were seconds away from coming to blows, Tsunade's emotions shifted from concern to outright anger.
Anger at the Third Hokage.
The villagers might not see through him, but Tsunade wasn't an idiot.
He wouldn't do something like that?
Then who was the pervert clutching a crystal ball, grinning like a maniac, blushing, and drooling as he stared into it?
Getting nosebleeds whenever he saw something particularly "exciting." And the worst part? That dirty old man even wanted to spy on his own students!
The more she thought about it, the more Tsunade wanted to punch the Third Hokage into oblivion.
Disgusting!
It wasn't enough to keep an eye on Jiraiya—she now had to watch out for her old teacher too.
Realizing the full extent of the situation, Tsunade's mood couldn't have been worse as she stormed into the Hokage's office. The ANBU stationed nearby saw the look on her face and quickly stepped aside, hoping to avoid becoming her punching bag.
In the conference room, several jōnin had already taken their seats. Tsunade entered with a scowl, heading straight for the seat to the right of the Third Hokage, second from the head of the table.
Tsunade-hime doesn't look happy.
She had taken Danzo's usual seat, but no one dared to comment on it.
Danzo, Tsunade—either way, the senior shinobi knew better than to get involved in the affairs of their superiors. They just focused on minding their own business.
"Wow, things are really heating up, huh?"
At that moment, Takuya had just been dragged out of bed by Kushina for breakfast.
He'd been feeling a bit sleepy, but when Kushina mentioned the chaos in Konoha, he burst out laughing.
So even the Third Hokage has days like this, huh?
Go ahead, keep spying on people—next time, I'll expose your secret experiments with Hashirama cells and see how cocky you feel then.
"Takuya, slow down! I made plenty of food," Kushina fussed, worried as she watched him hastily stuffing his face. She assumed he was starving, and her expression was full of concern as she tried to get him to eat more slowly.
"I know, I know, cough cough!"
Takuya swallowed his food quickly, clearing his throat before continuing. "I'm just trying to eat fast so I can go see the commotion. Kushina, you should take Nami out for a walk today. I've gotta run!"
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