"Is the teacher home?"
Minato finally returned to Konoha on the evening of the next day.
He returned directly to the Hatake household first, with no intention of meeting Kushina just yet.
[Flying Thunder God is seriously overpowered—it enables an instant return to Konoha. I checked the map—at least it was possible in the original plot. Apologies for the creative liberty!!]
"The Second Young Master hasn't returned yet."
The butler was relieved to see Minato after such a long absence, though he couldn't help noticing something off about his demeanor.
"Is there something wrong?"
"The Second Young Master should be at the Hokage's office."
The butler gave the answer before Minato even asked.
"Got it. Thank you."
Minato turned and left at once. He hadn't been arrogant enough to place Flying Thunder God marks inside the Hokage's office, so he had no choice but to run there.
Arriving at the Hokage Building, he passed through unimpeded and soon reached the door of the Hokage's office.
Knock knock—
He knocked on the door, then took a deep breath.
"Come in."
Tsunade's voice sounded from within.
Minato pushed the door open and walked in. He saw Kawaki sitting on the sofa.
Tsunade was helping Shouta—poor guy—with his paperwork.
"Minato, you're back!"
Kawaki, who had been lounging around, smiled as he saw his favorite disciple.
"Teacher, Teacher's wife."
"On our way back, the Third Mizukage took Nagato."
Minato delivered the news right after greeting them.
"What? Why would he take Nagato?"
"Was everyone okay?"
"What about the others?"
Kawaki's first reaction was concern for their safety. The tea in his mouth suddenly tasted bitter.
"And Nawaki?"
Tsunade shot up from her seat, glaring at Minato, bracing for bad news.
"We're fine. Nagato traded himself to save us."
Minato understood Tsunade's special affection toward Nawaki.
After all, they were blood siblings—which didn't mean she didn't care about the others.
"As long as you're safe, that's what matters."
"The Third Mizukage?"
"Tell me everything in detail."
Kawaki felt momentarily confused, but he was sure Nagato was safe now.
This matched Minato's belief as well.
"Here's what happened."
Minato collected his thoughts and began recounting the key points.
Tsunade and Shouta listened carefully.
"Our mission was successful—we eliminated the Kiri Anbu and rescued the Snow Clan."
"On the way back, we defeated the Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist and took six of their blades."
"As we were returning from the Land of Waves, we were suddenly ambushed by the Third Mizukage."
"We couldn't defeat him. He specifically demanded to take Nagato with him."
"He didn't ask for anything else, which felt strange."
"Oh, and he's a Jinchūriki."
Minato shared all the important intelligence, double-checking for any omissions.
"That's bizarre!"
"The Mizukage himself came out in person, not going for the blades, not the Snow Clan, and not killing you all."
Shouta couldn't figure out why.
"Did you get to see his eyes?"
A sudden thought crossed Kawaki's mind as he asked Minato.
"No, he never opened them."
Minato honestly shook his head.
"I think I more or less know what's going on."
"Nagato is safe. I'm going to rescue him."
"Who dares kidnap my disciple? No one's getting off easy!"
Kawaki stood up and was ready to depart immediately.
Even now, still causing chaos while clinging to life through the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path—old bastard, just wait until I find you!
"Can you handle this alone?"
"Wanna bring Big Bro or Orochimaru with you?"
Tsunade turned her head again, now worried about Kawaki.
It wasn't that she doubted his strength—it was just that a deep unease lingered inside her.
If she weren't both the Hokage and a Jinchūriki herself, she would've gone with him in a heartbeat.
After all, Nagato's Medical Ninjutsu had been taught by her personally.
"Just a measly Mist Village."
Kawaki waved his hand dismissively, smirking coldly.
He might have hesitated to say something like that before, but now that he wields Wood Release, who in the ninja world could even stand against him?
"All right then, be careful."
Probably thinking about the overwhelming power of [Thousand Hands Manipulation Force: Thrust], Tsunade gave a gentle reminder.
"Yeah, I'm off."
"Wait for good news from me."
Kawaki vanished from the Hokage's office as soon as he finished speaking.
"You look awfully pale. Let me give you a once-over—teacher's wife style."
Tsunade stood up and forcefully pushed Minato onto the couch, giving him a rough examination.
"Teacher's wife, I'm perfectly fine—I just came back too fast."
Minato was a little flustered under Tsunade's care. Her way of showing affection was rough to take for most people.
"Hmph, your internal injuries are almost completely healed."
"Rest well these next few days."
After finishing Minato's checkup, Tsunade noticed signs of prior treatment—most likely Nagato's work.
"In that case, I'll go visit Kushina."
Minato finally remembered his own "little fiery girl" at this point.
"Run along, you little brat," Tsunade said, giving Minato's head a playful smack. For someone so young, he sure had a lot on his plate.
"Teacher's wife, goodbye."
Minato staggered slightly after being hit, then quickly ran out the door.
"Hokage-sama, won't this strain relations between our countries?"
"After all, the war ended not long ago."
Shouta knew Nagato was Kawaki's disciple, so normally he wouldn't speak out of turn.
But now he had responsibilities to uphold.
"So what if it does?"
"Are we afraid of Kiri?"
This situation clearly put Konoha on shaky moral ground, but Tsunade remained firm—an obvious contrast to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
[Author's note] If you're enjoying *Naruto: Starting from Pursuing Tsunade*, please bookmark: (m.
Had Hiruzen Sarutobi still been in charge, he would've definitely stopped Kawaki—and no one could predict the chaos that might've followed.
"You have your reasons, I suppose."
Seeing Tsunade's stance, Shouta didn't press further. After all, when the sky falls, the tall ones hold it up.
"Right, let's continue."
Tsunade returned to her desk and resumed assisting Shouta.
Still, her mind wandered elsewhere—was Kawaki already on his way?
"Big bro, I need to go out for a few days."
Kawaki hadn't forgotten Sakumo. He still needed to greet the "head of the house" before heading out.
Maybe because it happened so often, Sakumo now barely batted an eye when Kawaki suddenly appeared via Flying Thunder God in his office.
"You still remember leaving home? Thought you'd never leave your bed?
Sakumo didn't know what had happened, yet still had the mood to joke with Kawaki.
"Nagato was captured by the Mizukage. I'm planning to go to Kiri."
Kawaki didn't hide anything and came straight out with it.
"Why would they capture Nagato? Did the mission get exposed?"
Sakumo's face changed dramatically, thinking that the mission had failed.
He couldn't begin to imagine how many lives might have been lost.
"No, the mission has already been completed."
"Minato and the others are already on their way back."
"They probably captured Nagato because of his eyes."
After Kawaki explained, Sakumo calmed down.
"I'll go with you."
Right away, Sakumo expressed his intention to accompany him.
"No need. You're a high-ranking Anbu officer who has responsibilities to manage."
"I've got nothing better to do anyway."
"Besides, don't you trust me?"
Kawaki immediately refused—it'd be easier for him to go alone.
"You think your older brother's gonna slow you down?"
Sakumo glanced sideways at Kawaki.
"No way! I'm also worried about things at home if nobody's around."
Kawaki came up with another excuse.
"Alright then, you brat. Hurry back. I'll let Kakashi know."
Seeing Kawaki refuse again, Sakumo didn't insist further.
"Alright then, I'm off."
Without telling anyone else, Kawaki left right away—it'd be too much of a hassle if everyone wanted to come along.
"Go ahead."
The moment Sakumo finished speaking, Kawaki disappeared without a trace.
If you enjoy Naruto: Starting from Pursuing Tsunade, please bookmark: (m.
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