Konoha seemed a little different today. Although the March weather couldn't quite be called hot, the atmosphere at the Ninja Academy was buzzing with feverish excitement. The reason was simple: today was the graduation examination.
The faces of the students in the graduating class displayed a wide range of emotions – anticipation, anxious indecision, worry, and practiced calm.
In one corner of a classroom, a girl sat quietly. Her delicate features held a sharp yet restrained expression that only added to her allure. Boys nearby stole glances at her, but her cold aura clearly broadcasted 'strangers keep out.'
"Junko, what kind of work are you planning to do after graduation?" a boy named Takashi asked with a friendly smile. "With your skills, graduating should be easy, right?"
The girl, Junko, thought for a moment, frowning slightly. "Become a ninja," she replied simply.
Takashi was the opponent Junko had dueled that day some time ago. Ever since then, he frequently sought her out under the pretext of sparring. Junko, happy to have a consistent training partner, never refused. Coupled with Junko's naturally reserved personality, Takashi had gradually become the only classmate she was relatively close to.
"Become a ninja, huh?" Takashi leaned back against his chair, gazing towards the blackboard. "Become a ninja, and you never know when you might die."
Many students graduated from the Academy each year, but relatively few actually became genin. The village's various departments also required numerous non-combat personnel, so the Ninja Academy served a dual purpose: cultivating ninja talent and training administrative staff.
Konoha's strength stemmed precisely from this comprehensive education system, which continuously supplied the village with diverse talent, not solely restricted to combat specialists. After all, a person's aptitude wasn't necessarily confined to fighting prowess.
While other major hidden villages had adopted similar academy systems modeled after Konoha's, limitations in vision and resources prevented them from providing such a well-rounded educational structure. They tended to focus primarily on cultivating combat personnel, allocating far fewer resources to other types of talent development. This disparity was a key reason why Konoha consistently maintained an edge over them.
As for Takashi, although their teacher, Ueno-sensei, held high hopes for him, he had no desire to become a ninja. His own father, a ninja, had died on a mission when Takashi was eight, effectively abandoning him. So, despite being one of this year's top students, Takashi only wanted a simple administrative job.
He turned his head, looking at the cute, stern-faced girl beside him. His heart involuntarily beat a little faster. Maybe… maybe becoming a ninja wouldn't be so bad, he thought. If we get assigned teams… maybe we'd end up in the same group? At the thought, his heart pounded even harder.
"Is this the list of this year's graduates?" Tsunade asked, looking at the form in her hand.
"Yes, Lady Tsunade. These are the students who performed exceptionally well and are most likely to become ninja," Shizune confirmed, standing beside her.
Tsunade scanned the names, reviewing the files for each student one by one.
"Lady Tsunade," Shizune ventured, "I think you should consider addressing the students at the Ninja Academy. It would help enhance your prestige and foster unity within the village."
The Academy students represented the village's future, a fact even the Hokage took very seriously. Typically, the Hokage only addressed students at the entrance ceremony. However, given Tsunade's recent inauguration and the… incident… not long ago, Shizune, as both Tsunade's apprentice and assistant, felt obligated to offer sound advice.
(Since her junior sister Sakura's troubles began, Shizune had resigned from her position at the hospital to dedicate herself fully to assisting Lady Tsunade.)
"Not going!" Tsunade tossed the list onto the desk, leaned back in her chair with a stiff, irritable air, tilted her head back, and closed her eyes to rest.
"Lady Tsunade, I truly believe it would be best if you went," Shizune pressed cautiously. "There are… whispers… starting in the village about that incident. It seems people are discussing you."
Total information containment was impossible, after all. Tsunade could only lock down intelligence as much as possible within limited circles. Though none of the eyewitnesses had seen the entire sequence of events, over time, unintentional conversations between different witnesses would naturally allow a rough picture of the whole affair to be reconstructed. Because it involved the Hokage, no one was discussing it recklessly, but the undercurrent of talk undeniably existed.
"Let them talk!" Tsunade said dismissively. "Hmph. The Third is still around. At worst, I'll just walk away."
(When Sakura's situation first blew up, Tsunade had genuinely wanted to throw down the burden and quit right then and there. After all, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen, was still present. Tsunade had only been persuaded to accept the Hokage position by Sakura in the first place. Despite her years of wild, untethered wandering, Tsunade had deeply missed the feeling of family connection. Though taking Sakura as an apprentice was initially an order from Hiruzen, Sakura's deliberate efforts to please her and her uncanny understanding of Tsunade's personality had led Tsunade – starved for familial affection for so long – to view Sakura almost like a younger sister. Of course, Sakura's initial motive had simply been to learn as many valuable skills from Tsunade as possible. With the Third's presence still felt, Tsunade lacked a deep-seated sense of responsibility at that moment. If someone had provoked her further on the night of the incident, she very likely would have resigned on the spot. Had Danzo known Tsunade's mindset then, he probably would have risked everything to push her over the edge. But there were no 'what ifs'.)
"Lady Tsunade," Shizune began, momentarily speechless but understanding her mentor's feelings. Still, she had to say it: "If you resign, Sakura's case will never be resolved."
"I know!" Tsunade propped her arms on the desk, rubbing her temples wearily. "That's why I didn't do it." She sighed, glancing reluctantly at the list again. "Fine. Make the arrangements. I'll go."
"Yes, Lady Tsunade," Shizune replied. As she turned to leave, Tsunade suddenly stopped her.
"Wait!"
"Is there something else, Lady Tsunade?" Shizune asked.
Tsunade frowned, pointing to a name near the bottom of the list. "Muto Junko… Isn't this the girl she brought back from the Land of Grass?"
"Let me check." Shizune quickly, perhaps a bit flusteredly, located Muto Junko's file and handed it to Tsunade.
Tsunade sighed after reviewing it. "Quite talented, indeed. Reached graduation standard in just a few months."
"Is there a problem with her?" Shizune asked curiously.
"No apparent problems," Tsunade shook her head. "Inoichi personally conducted her screening back then."
"Right!" Tsunade suddenly recalled. "Go to ANBU headquarters. Summon the ANBU Captain. I remember ordering him to investigate Junko's background in the Land of Grass."
"Ah, yes!" Shizune acknowledged and left.
Tsunade continued looking through the other files. Shortly after, the door opened again, and a masked ANBU operative entered.
"Lord Hokage, you summoned me?" the ANBU stated.
"Yes." Tsunade placed Junko's file in front of him. "I recall ordering an investigation into this individual some time ago. Why was no intelligence report ever submitted?"
"This case!" The ANBU leaned closer to look at the file. "Ah, yes! It's her!"
"Well? What were the results of the investigation?" Tsunade inquired.
"It is still under investigation," the ANBU replied.
"Still under investigation?" Tsunade's brow furrowed sharply. "She's just a civilian orphan. Why isn't the investigation complete by now?" Hearing this, Tsunade's heart sank. She had only remembered the matter suddenly and called the ANBU captain over on a whim. Since Inoichi had already screened Junko, there shouldn't have been any issues. But now, Tsunade felt a distinct sense of foreboding.
"Yes, Lord Hokage," the ANBU confirmed.
"What have you found so far? Report!" Tsunade demanded, her voice heavy.
"Subject not found," the ANBU stated flatly.
"'Subject not found'?" Tsunade echoed, momentarily stunned. "What do you mean?"
"Our investigation in Koyo Village, Land of Grass, yielded no record of any individual named Muto Junko," the ANBU elaborated.
Tsunade's brow tightened further. "Why wasn't I informed of this sooner?"
"Muto Junko is currently under ANBU surveillance," the operative replied, following protocol. "If she makes any suspicious moves, ANBU will obtain intelligence. However, as no actionable intelligence has yet been gathered, it was determined that it was not yet time to submit a formal report."
Tsunade remained silent. That was indeed standard ANBU procedure; otherwise, the Hokage would be constantly inundated with raw, unverified data, making it impossible to function. ANBU work required not just force, but intellect and discretion. "Report everything you have found," Tsunade commanded.
"Yes, Lord Hokage," the ANBU captain acknowledged. "According to the initial information provided, Muto Junko supposedly had a grandmother named Rika residing in Koyo Village, Land of Grass. When our team arrived to investigate, villagers confirmed that such a person did exist, but she had passed away several days prior to our arrival. According to the villagers, Rika had lived alone for over ten years. She had one son, who died some time ago during a bandit attack. Villagers also stated that while her son did have a wife, the couple never had any children. Furthermore, none of the villagers had ever heard of anyone named Muto Junko. As of now, the investigation has yielded no conclusive results. That is the summary of the ANBU investigation to date."
Tsunade listened to the report, her expression growing increasingly grim. Suddenly, she felt this situation was far more complex and dangerous than she could have imagined. The girl Sakura brought back… there's something wrong with her!
A chilling thought gripped her. Sakura… what exactly did you encounter that day?!