Konohagakure – Hokage's Office
The Third Hokage stared at the letter on his desk, written in Tsunade's hand. His brows furrowed deeply, and he remained silent for a long moment. Sitting on the nearby sofa, the elderly head of the Hyūga Clan looked grim and tense.
"Lord Third Hokage! Can you explain to me why, after entrusting Tsunade with Hinata Haruki's safety, he still ended up in trouble?!" the clan head demanded.
"And can you explain to me," the Third replied sharply, tapping his finger against the desk, his eyes hard and burning with anger, "why Hinata Nisshin and Hinata Ame supposedly took on a mission to investigate ancient ruins for the Hyūga Clan—when their real goal was to harm Haruki?"
"We of the Hyūga are the victims here!" the clan head shot back. "Nisshin's Byakugan was taken by Sunagakure! Haruki is dead! We even lost a jōnin! Are you saying this has nothing to do with the front-line commander?!"
"If Hinata Nisshin hadn't tried to harm Haruki, would he have been killed by Suna shinobi and had his Byakugan stolen? That's called reaping what you sow! Haruki died because of that!"
"This is not the time for us to be pointing fingers," the Third said, pressing down his own rising temper, his voice deepening. "We need to think of how to handle this situation properly."
"We must retrieve the stolen Byakugan from Sunagakure. Even if they can't unravel its secrets, they could still gather critical intelligence about the dōjutsu—or worse, transplant it into someone else, creating a powerful shinobi with Byakugan sensory abilities!" the clan head said, calming himself slightly as he presented his proposal.
"Haruki's body must also be recovered. There's a chance it holds information about his self-developed Gentle Fist techniques! And as for Nisshin's betrayal, I urge you not to make it public—if word spreads, it will deal a severe blow to the Hyūga Clan's reputation. They're both already dead, and that beast Nisshin has already disgraced the Main House enough. I don't want Haruki's death to deepen tensions between the Branch and Main families."
The Third shook his head, thinking bitterly, Hmph… so you dare act, but you don't dare admit it? Still… making it public would only make things worse…
"Very well," the Hokage said at last. "Hinata Nisshin and Hinata Ame will be officially recorded as having failed their mission, abandoned their comrade, and been killed by Sunagakure shinobi. Their bodies will not be allowed burial in the Heroes' Cemetery. Haruki will be recorded as having fallen into a deep chasm while protecting his comrades during a battle with Suna."
"Haruki, especially—he took down nine Suna chūnin single-handedly. He's a hero, and a hero deserves to be treated as such." The Third's tone hardened. Even though Haruki was gone, he refused to simply do nothing.
"I understand," the clan head said with a nod.
"But this matter will not simply be brushed aside. Even if I didn't pursue it, Tsunade will. You and I both know who was behind Nisshin's actions! How many of our kin has that fool gotten killed over the years? Out of consideration for his son's death, I can spare his life—but if he remains in his position as elder, your clan will suffer for it sooner or later!" the Third said harshly.
"This… this is my fault," the clan head admitted. "I never thought he would send his own son to do such a thing. The Hyūga Clan will deal with its own affairs."
Suddenly, BANG!—the office doors slammed open.
Danzō stood there, fury radiating from him. Two ANBU guards rushed after him, trying to stop him.
"Lord Danzō, the Hokage is in a meeting. Please wait—"
Ignoring them, Danzō barked, "Sarutobi! Just what is Tsunade doing?! How could Haruki have been put in danger?!"
"Shimura… sit down," the Third said, motioning the guards to leave and close the door.
"This matter… Tsunade was indeed negligent—"
"Hmph! I told you from the beginning it was a mistake to entrust Hinata Haruki to your student! Not only could she not train him properly, but she couldn't even protect him! Just like you—both of you are blinded by naïve ideals!" Danzō snapped.
"Shimura…"
"As for the stolen Byakugan, the ANBU's Special Operations Unit will deal with it. And as for the Hyūga, Clan Head—you'd better handle your own people! Third, I regret tolerating your idealism for so long. If you can't resolve this, I will!" Danzō spat, turning on his heel.
"Shimura, don't be rash!" the Third called after him, surprised—Danzō had never spoken so harshly to him before.
Danzō stopped, not turning around. "If I had trained him, Konoha would never have lost a genius." Then he walked out.
The Third exhaled heavily. "…Was I really wrong?"
Hyūga Main House Estate
From within came the sounds of objects shattering.
"Get out! All of you, get out!" Hinata Hideyoshi roared, his sharp features twisted with rage. He smashed a teacup into shards, then collapsed to the floor, pounding his fists against the tatami.
"Nisshin! My son! Damn Suna! Damn the Branch Family! Damn them all!" Hideyoshi's voice cracked, sobbing as he wept.
The shōji door slid open and several men stepped inside without ceremony.
"Out!" Hideyoshi shouted, flinging his arm.
The man in the lead sneered. "Oh? And who exactly are you ordering around, Hideyoshi? The clan head asked me to inform you: your son's failed mission, his abandonment of a comrade, and the enormous damage it caused the clan—those were the result of a plan you proposed."
"Therefore, the Elders' Council has expelled you. By order of the clan head, you are to be confined to the clan's judicial quarters. Come with us. Or would you rather 'roll out' yourself?" The man's expression was cold, his gaze filled with contempt.
They served only the clan head, and to them, a parasite like Hideyoshi was beneath notice.
"I—I'm no longer an elder? The Main House dares confine me?! You bastards! My son is dead, and now you strip me of my title?! You dare kick me when I'm down?!" His outrage over losing his position seemed to eclipse even his grief.
"Take him," the leader said flatly.
Two shinobi stepped forward and seized Hideyoshi.
"Damn you, Hyūga Den! Damn you, Hinata Haruki! Damn all those Branch Family trash who helped him! Damn the Main House!" Hideyoshi screamed and thrashed as they dragged him away.
He had fallen from power, his son—the only one who could have contended for the position of clan head—was dead. Now, others treated him like a stray dog to be avoided.
"Hmph… I will have my revenge… If I can't have the Hyūga Clan… I'll destroy it!" Hideyoshi muttered, eyes bloodshot, voice dripping with malice.
Sunagakure Fortress
Chiyo and Ebizō listened as a jōnin delivered his report.
"So, you're saying Konoha's recent large-scale operation was to search for Tsunade's student? The boy has gone missing?" Chiyo asked.
"Yes, Lady Chiyo. He's a Hyūga child—reportedly a six-year-old chūnin. Of the thirteen Konoha casualties during our forest ambush, he alone killed nine chūnin. In the end, we couldn't find any trace of him."
"I know the details. But the other two Konoha shinobi weren't killed by us—so who did it? And if Tsunade can't find her student, will Konoha blame us? Could someone else have been there and framed Sunagakure?" Ebizō mused aloud.
"In any case, it doesn't matter who did it," Chiyo said. "Konoha losing shinobi only makes me happy. Especially if Tsunade's student is dead—that's even better. And if Konoha points the finger at us? We're already at war. I should thank whoever killed him." Ebizō nodded in agreement.
"How's the counterattack plan coming?" Chiyo asked.
"We lack the strength for a full counteroffensive. I suggest dispatching elite squads to target and eliminate isolated Konoha teams. If their casualties mount, they'll want to end the war sooner, reducing pointless losses. Then, when we negotiate, we'll have more leverage to secure Suna's interests," Ebizō said.
"…Yes. That's all we can do," Chiyo agreed.
"The war is nearly over," Ebizō added, gazing at the setting sun. "The pro-peace faction in the village is gaining strength. The Third Kazekage will probably send a delegation to Konoha soon to negotiate a ceasefire—or even surrender. We must secure as many bargaining chips as possible."
"That's fine… at least I'll be able to go home and hold my grandchild soon," Chiyo said, though her face carried a trace of sadness.
"Elder Sister, there's no shame in losing to Tsunade-hime. She is the First Hokage's granddaughter—one of the Legendary Sannin," Ebizō consoled.
"Heh… that monster strength of hers is truly formidable. The new always surpasses the old. If not for the war, perhaps we could have been friends. I'd love to exchange medical knowledge with her someday…" Chiyo smiled faintly—in truth, she had always respected Tsunade.
Konoha – Tsunade's Quarters
Cough, cough! Tsunade coughed, sitting at the bedside of Kato Dan.
"Tsunade, are you all right?" Dan asked with concern.
"I'm fine… just a bit of a cold," Tsunade replied, forcing a faint smile.
Since returning to the village, her complexion had been poor. She looked listless, the light gone from her eyes.
"A medic-nin falling ill? You need to rest properly for a while," Dan said softly.
"I'll be fine. I am a doctor, after all. Cough—!" Another wave of coughing overtook her.
Dan placed a hand on her forehead, frowning. "You have a fever."
"Do I?" Tsunade touched her own forehead. "Huh… I suppose I do. I've just been tired lately…"
And who could blame her? She had been working herself to exhaustion—managing duties, commanding in battle, and then, for over two sleepless weeks in the wild, searching for Hinata Haruki. On top of that, the crushing grief of losing him weighed heavily on her heart.
After all, doctors can fall ill too.
"…Looks like I really will have to take some time to rest. I'll pass some of my workload to Senior Sayun…" Tsunade thought, her voice heavy with fatigue. Before long, she had fallen fast asleep in Dan's arms.
Looking at her peaceful face, Dan sighed, sadness glimmering in his eyes. He knew Tsunade had truly regarded herself as Haruki's master—and Haruki's death pained her deeply.
And Haruki… had been his student as well.