The crimson light of the emergency room lamp was like a bloodshot eye, staring fixedly at the people waiting in the hallway.
Time thickened in the smell of disinfectant, dragging on slowly.
Kakashi leaned against the wall. He had closed his copy of Icha Icha Paradise long ago, his exposed eye occasionally scanning the shut door.
Minato Namikaze stood at the entrance like a sculpture, arms crossed. The hem of his Hokage Cloak remained perfectly still, with only his twitching eyelashes betraying the turmoil within.
"It's taking too long."
Gamakon, perched on Kakashi's head, muttered, "Are the medical ninjas in there even competent? If this drags on any longer, that woman's life force will drain completely."
"She is of the Uzumaki clan; her vitality is resilient," Minato said softly, as if comforting others, or perhaps convincing himself. "Besides, I have already funneled some of the Nine-Tails' chakra into her."
"That will only buy a bit of time," Gamakon countered bluntly.
Before the words had fully landed, a series of urgent, heavy footsteps echoed from the end of the hallway, accompanied by the dull thud of feet hitting the floor.
"Out of the way! Everyone get out of my way!"
The voice was filled with both fury and authority.
Tsunade, wearing her green gambling-themed coat, swept in like a jade whirlwind. Behind her, Shizune followed, panting and clutching the pink pig Tonton as she struggled to keep up.
"Lady Tsunade!"
The medical captain standing guard at the door looked like he had seen a savior, nearly breaking into tears. "You're finally here! The patient's internal organs are failing in multiple places, and her chakra meridians are almost entirely withered. We..."
"Enough talk! Move!"
Tsunade shoved the captain aside without even glancing at Minato and kicked the emergency room door open.
The heavy, sterilized door groaned under her monstrous strength as it slammed open. Tsunade strode inside, her voice echoing through the operating room: "Everyone, follow my lead! Prepare the Mystical Palm Jutsu! Shizune, get my special chakra activator! Move!"
The door swung shut again, cutting off the noise from inside.
But in that brief moment, Minato had glimpsed the tragedy on the operating table.
The red-haired woman was covered in tubes. The sharp, piercing alarm of the heart monitor sounded like a countdown to the end.
Minato leaned against the wall and exhaled a long, heavy breath.
With Tsunade inside, it meant even the Reaper would have to retreat before the legendary medical master.
...
Two hours later.
The light in the operating room finally went out, turning a reassuring green.
The door opened, and Tsunade walked out while stripping off her blood-stained medical gloves.
Beads of sweat covered her forehead, and her expression was dark. Her pale gold eyes burned with an unquenched anger.
"How is she?" Minato asked immediately.
"She's stabilized."
Tsunade tossed her gloves into the waste bin and took a towel from Shizune to wipe her hands. "The little one is fine. Just malnourished and severely traumatized. She'll recover with some rest. But the older one..."
Tsunade paused, her teeth gritting audibly. "If we had been half an hour later, even a god couldn't have saved her. Her body is completely depleted; her internal organs were on the verge of shutting down. Do you know what I saw on her body?"
Tsunade looked up sharply, staring straight at Minato. "Bite marks! They were everywhere! Even old wounds from years ago had severed meridians beneath them. Those animals in the Grass Village didn't treat her like a human being. To them, she was just a plant to be harvested and chewed on whenever they needed healing!"
The air in the hallway instantly dropped to freezing temperatures.
"I know," Minato said, his voice cold. "I will make them pay."
"Pay?"
Tsunade scoffed. "Wiping that trash village off the map would be too good for them. By the way, where's Kushina? When are you letting her see these two?"
"I'll tell Kushina, but they shouldn't meet just yet."
Minato shook his head, looking through the glass window at the sleeping mother and daughter. "The mother's condition is too fragile. If Kushina came now and saw a clanswoman treated like this..."
Minato gave a bitter smile. "With Kushina's 'Red Hot-Blooded Habanero' temper, she would probably charge straight into the Grass Village and start a massacre. Besides, that mother needs peace and quiet right now, not excitement."
"Fair point."
Tsunade nodded, recalling Kushina's volatile personality. "We'll focus on healing their depletion first. I'll personally oversee their follow-up treatment using the best medicinal ingredients. As for the costs..."
"The Hokage's office will cover it in full," Minato said without hesitation. "Deduct it from my personal allowance."
"At least you have a conscience," Tsunade hummed, turning to give Shizune a few instructions before storming off.
Given her expression, she was likely heading to a tavern to drink away the stress.
Silence returned to the corridor.
Gamakon hopped from Kakashi's head onto Minato's shoulder, his golden pupils fixed on the Hokage's profile.
"Minato, you said you'd make the Grass Village pay."
Gamakon's voice carried a hint of intrigue. "What do you plan to do? Send an army? Or have Jiraiya go and take their leader's head?"
"No."
Minato turned away from the hospital room. The warmth on his face vanished, replaced by a heart-chilling indifference.
"The Grass Village is a small nation, and they are opportunistic. If we deploy troops directly, the Stone and Cloud will use it as an excuse to intervene, potentially sparking another Great War. I am not afraid of war, but starting one over two clansmen would be detrimental to Konoha."
"Furthermore..."
Minato narrowed his eyes, a cold light flickering in his blue gaze. "Killing them outright is too easy. They have sucked the blood of the Uzumaki for years. I will make them vomit up everything they have taken, piece by piece, until they wither away in despair."
"Kakashi."
"Sir." Kakashi snapped to attention.
"Go and invite Uchiha Fugaku," Minato said deeply. "Tell him I have 'important matters' to discuss. Have him come alone, and do not alert anyone."
"Understood!"
Kakashi vanished in a blur.
Gamakon grinned, his wide mouth stretching. "Tsk, tsk... Minato, you're looking more and more like a proper politician. I take it you plan to give the dirty work to the Uchiha?"
"The Uchiha clan is eager to prove themselves," Minato said, adjusting the collar of his Hokage Cloak, his tone calm. "If they want to integrate into the village's core, they must provide a pledge of loyalty. Missions that shouldn't be recorded in the history books are perfect for them."
"I believe they will do a fine job."
...
Half an hour later, in a secret chamber beneath the Hokage building.
This was once one of the hidden bases belonging to Root, now taken over by Minato.
Uchiha Fugaku sat on the tatami, hands resting formally on his knees, his expression solemn.
Since Danzo's death, the Uchiha clan's situation had improved noticeably.
The Police Force's authority had been reaffirmed, and the clan members were no longer under constant surveillance by the Anbu.
Fugaku knew this was all thanks to the young Hokage before him.
But he understood better than anyone that power required an exchange.
"Clan Head Fugaku."
Minato sat opposite him, getting straight to the point. "I have an S-rank top-secret mission that requires the Uchiha clan's expertise."
Fugaku's eyes brightened slightly.
He didn't fear a difficult mission; he feared having no mission at all.
The Uchiha were only truly safe as long as the Hokage needed them.
"State your orders, Lord Fourth," Fugaku said deeply. "The Uchiha clan will see it through without a moment's hesitation."
"There's no need for that level of sacrifice."
Minato stabbed a kunai into the map on the table, specifically into the Land of Grass.
"I want you to select thirty elites from your clan," Minato said, his voice low. "Do not use the Police Force structure, and do not carry any Konoha forehead protectors or gear. Dress as rogue ninja or bandits."
Fugaku paused, looking up at Minato. "Lord Hokage, do you mean..."
"Go to the Grass Village."
Minato circled the village on the map, effectively boxing it in. "Besiege it."
"I am not asking you to capture territory or even fight your way inside."
Minato looked Fugaku in the eye, speaking with deliberate slow pace. "I want you to cut off all external access. Any merchant caravans entering or leaving—drive them away. Any clients going there to post missions—'persuade' them to leave."
"If any Grass ninja come out to resist..."
A cold arc curled at the corner of Minato's mouth. "Show no mercy. But before you kill them, make sure they feel fear. I want the world to know that the Grass Village has been targeted by a group of terrifying 'bandits.' Anyone who does business with them is marked for death."
Fugaku nodded silently.
The Grass Village was small and lacked resources; it survived primarily as a middleman for larger nations, selling intel and accepting low-level requests.
If their trade and missions were cut off, their economy would collapse within three months.
Without money, they couldn't buy food or tools.
Without missions, their ninja would desert.
This was a plan to starve the Grass Village to death without shedding a drop of blood!
"This..." Fugaku swallowed hard and asked cautiously, "Lord Hokage, what if they seek help from the Stone or other great nations?"
"That will be a matter for the diplomats."
Minato regained his gentle smile, as if the man who just devised such a ruthless scheme never existed. "I will inform the other nations that banditry is rampant within the Land of Grass, and since it is their internal affair, Konoha cannot interfere. If they cannot handle a few 'bandits,' it only proves the Grass Village is incompetent."
"As for your clan..."
Minato looked at Fugaku. "The Uchiha's genjutsu and Fire Style are the best in the world for masking identities and sowing chaos, aren't they? I trust you to play this role well."
Fugaku took a deep breath.
*This was the Hokage he wanted to follow!*
Tough on enemies, ruthless in method, yet meticulously organized.
Moreover, giving this task to the Uchiha proved the Hokage viewed them as true insiders.
"I understand."
Fugaku bowed deeply. "Please rest easy, Lord Hokage. Starting tomorrow, not even a fly will enter the Grass Village. I will have the clan's elites use their Sharingan to make those Grass ninja regret ever being born."
"Very well."
Minato nodded in satisfaction. "Go. Remember, these are the actions of 'bandits,' and they have nothing to do with Konoha."
"Yes!"
Fugaku rose, bowed, and disappeared into the shadows.
His steps were much lighter than when he arrived, as if a great weight had been lifted.
In the secret room, only Minato and Gamakon remained.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk..."
Gamakon hopped onto the map, looking at the kunai pinned through the Grass Village. "Minato, this 'economic blockade and armed siege' is more cruel than a direct massacre. Just think of those ninja watching their contracts dry up and their granaries empty while they can't even find their enemy. The despair... tsk."
"When they treated people like livestock, they should have expected this day would come."
Minato pulled the kunai out, spinning it on his fingertip. "Against villains with no bottom line, one must use even darker methods."
"However..."
Minato's tone shifted as a hint of fatigue touched his face. "This can't stay hidden forever. When the Grass Village is on its last legs, they will likely do something desperate. At that point, I'll need some 'technical support' from Orochimaru's side."
"You mean..." Gamakon's eyes lit up. "You're going to let Orochimaru collect the Grass Village's 'legacy'?"
"The Grass Village may be trash, but their Hozuki Castle prison and some of their unique jutsu heritages should be good research material for Orochimaru."
Minato stood up and blew out the candle. "If we're going to squeeze them, we might as well do it thoroughly. It's a way to put their assets to good use."
...
Meanwhile, in a ward at the Konoha Hospital, the red-haired girl, Karin, her eyelashes fluttered slightly. It seemed she had finally begun to wake from a very long nightmare.