Konoha.
Under the unrelenting rain, the village seemed to mourn for the countless fallen shinobi on the battlefield. Dark clouds loomed overhead, occasionally illuminated by flashes of lightning.
At the Senju compound, Tsunade slammed her fist on the table, shattering it in a burst of fury.
"Damn it! How could this possibly be a coincidence?"
Across from her, Uzumaki Mito sat silently, her expression somber.
Who would have thought that this time, they had almost lost the bloodline of the First Hokage?
"Tsunade, but… what if it really was a coincidence?"
After a long pause, Mito's raspy voice broke the silence. However, the bitter laugh that followed revealed her own disbelief in her words.
Tsunade's teeth clenched, her tone low and resolute.
"A coincidence? These wandering samurai had no discernible issues. Carrying explosive tags for self-defense is reasonable. Setting traps could be explained.
"But the number of explosive tags? Even if every source checks out as legitimate? Doesn't that seem like overkill, Grandma?"
The more flawless the setup appeared, the more suspicious it became. Without prior warning, it might have taken them ages to piece everything together, and it still would have ended as an unresolved mystery.
Yet the forewarning they received made everything line up too perfectly.
This wasn't just within the Land of Fire's borders. It had practically occurred at Konoha's front door.
Nawaki had celebrated his twelfth birthday one day, left on a mission the next, and by nightfall, Jiraiya had been summoned to identify his body.
That close to home!
"And as for the Uchiha…"
Tsunade's lips curled into a cold sneer.
"The Uchiha clan has been ostracized and isolated, desperate to integrate with Konoha. They wouldn't risk provoking us. And do you really think the Police Force has the resources to pull off something so seamless?"
The Uchiha were undeniably strong, arguably the most powerful clan in the village—perhaps even the entire shinobi world.
But within Konoha, most of their elite were deployed on the front lines. The remaining clan members were under constant surveillance and mistrust from the village leadership.
The risks for the Uchiha to orchestrate such a scheme were far too high.
"Tsunade!"
Mito's face was etched with sorrow as she let out a heavy sigh.
"Nawaki is my grandson. Maybe it's best this way. We should use this opportunity to send him to the Daimyo's palace. The Senju still have hidden support there. He could grow in safety, far from Konoha's dangers."
Mito's gaze darkened, her voice filled with both resignation and warning.
"Tsunade, the Konoha of today may no longer be the Konoha of old. But the war rages on, and you must not act impulsively."
Though Tsunade's anger was still simmering, her expression suddenly shifted to one of calm composure.
This unsettling tranquility left Mito momentarily speechless.
"Don't worry, Grandma."
Tsunade was impulsive by nature, but she was no fool. Beneath her fiery demeanor lay a sharp mind and an astute grasp of politics.
It was this balance of passion and intelligence that would one day make her the Fifth Hokage.
Seeing Tsunade quickly collect herself, Mito's eyes softened with relief.
"Tsunade, I won't be around for much longer. In the future, the family and Kushina will depend on you."
At that moment, both women stiffened as they sensed someone approaching the compound.
"Tsunade!"
Jiraiya's familiar voice called out just before the door swung open.
Tsunade, putting on her usual façade, barked angrily, "Jiraiya! If you don't have a damn good reason, you'd better give me an explanation!"
But Jiraiya's grave expression quickly snuffed out her feigned anger. A sense of foreboding settled over her as her forced scowl gave way to a nervous smile.
"Jiraiya… don't tell me the front lines are under threat?"
Jiraiya struggled to find his voice, the weight of his words clogging his throat. After a moment, he finally spoke, his tone heavy.
"Tsunade, Orochimaru is back… He's in the morgue."
A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating Tsunade's wide, disbelieving eyes.
She didn't need to hear the rest to understand.
In the next instant, with a loud splash, she bolted through the rain at full speed toward her destination.
Jiraiya, watching her retreating figure, quickly followed.
For all her emotions, Tsunade was a consummate shinobi, never letting her turmoil show. She had kept up the act to the very end, giving no one a reason to suspect.
The downpour outside the morgue was relentless, the heavy rain masking the hurried footsteps of those approaching.
Tsunade skidded to a halt, her chest heaving not from exhaustion, but from dread.
Orochimaru leaned against the doorway, his expression unreadable beneath a curtain of damp hair.
"Tsunade."
Jiraiya's voice was laced with sorrow as he stepped beside her. "You don't have to go in."
For Jiraiya to say this, the condition of the body must have been unimaginably horrific.
Orochimaru, on the other hand, spoke in an unnervingly calm tone.
"What's the point? You wouldn't recognize him as your brother anyway."
"Shut up, Orochimaru!" Jiraiya snapped, his anger failing to mask the pain in his voice.
Orochimaru's lips curled into a dark smile, though his eyes betrayed a hidden sadness.
"On the battlefield, the dead are often unrecognizable. And for a child, it's especially cruel—
"Especially when it happens the day after receiving a gift."
Orochimaru's nonchalant tone was accompanied by the necklace he pulled from his pocket.
The sight of the familiar pendant caused Tsunade's pupils to dilate, her mind going blank.
Jiraiya, unable to bear the sight, turned his head away.
This was war.
After a long silence, Tsunade's trembling hands reached for the necklace. Tears streamed down her face as she clutched the last memory of her brother.
"Nawaki…"
Her anguished cries echoed through the stormy night, drawing sympathetic yet helpless looks from nearby Konoha shinobi.
In the shinobi world, death was an ever-present shadow. During wartime, the sound of grief-stricken cries became an almost daily occurrence.
In the Land of Fire
The steady drizzle filled the air with the earthy scent of wet soil.
"August 10th. Yesterday was Nawaki's twelfth birthday. By now, Tsunade should already know."
Even if Nawaki's death was a coincidence, knowing in advance made it feel anything but.
This was human nature.
Perched on a tree branch, Uchiha Yo concealed his presence as he gazed at the night sky.
"Yo!"
A shadow flitted toward him, pulling his attention back to the present.
Uchiha Mikoto appeared, her clan's standard long blade strapped to her back. Her two-tomoe Sharingan glinted coldly as she stared at a distant cave.
"According to the ninja cats' scent tracking, the target is inside."
The normally gentle Mikoto was sharp and tense, her gaze fixed on the cave with a murderous intent.
Before she could move, Uchiha Yo placed a hand on her shoulder, snapping her out of her bloodlust.
"Mikoto."
His calm voice steadied her, and she refocused her attention on the task.
Inside the dark cave, a gaunt old man sat motionless, his eyes closed.
"Man or woman?"
His raspy voice broke the sil
ence, carrying an unsettling tone.
"If it's a woman, I'll kill her first."
As his eyes opened, a flicker of madness sparked within them, locking onto the cave entrance.