In the inn's study, Tsunade sat in her bathrobe with golden hair loose down her back. One leg crossed over the other, her bare calf swung lazily while she stared at Taiichi's data sheets.
She tapped a pen against her red lips, thinking hard. She couldn't go to the front lines herself, but she wasn't about to ignore her student's call for help. Not after everything.
After a long night of work, she finally straightened up and spread the fifteen poison reports across the desk. Old mories of fighting Chiyo during the Second War ca flooding back. Piece by piece, she started marking the reports, circling key sections and scribbling her own notes.
By the ti she finished the last one, dawn was breaking outside. She stretched, bones cracking, and let out a satisfied breath. Her skills hadn't rusted—they'd actually gotten sharper. Taiichi was going to owe her big ti.
She grabbed a fresh sheet of paper and started writing the letter. First she roasted him for trying to trick her with that sob story. Then she bragged a little about her "amazing" gambling luck and how she was living the high life—completely ignoring the fact that her stomach was growling loud enough to wake the dead.
Finally she got to the real advice. These poisons were built on one or two core chanisms with small tweaks to change the symptoms. The only way to beat them for good was to find that core and destroy the whole system. She wished she had proper lab gear to do more, but this was the best she could manage from here.
She sealed the letter with all the annotated reports and summoned Katsuyu. "Get this to Taiichi as fast as you can."
The slug vanished in a puff of smoke. Tsunade leaned back, finally letting the exhaustion hit. She'd done what she could. The rest was up to her stubborn student.
---
Leaf forward camp, Land of Rivers.
The place was already buzzing at first light. Squad after squad poured out the main gate while others lined up at the mission desk for new orders. The big push Jiraiya had planned was in full swing.
Yohei's team woke up to the noise and stepped outside just in ti to see another group sprinting toward the front lines.
Obito rubbed his arm where he'd been cut the day before. Nothing. Not even a scar. "Did Taiichi heal us all while we were sleeping?"
"Obviously," Yohei said, one hand over his eye. His vision was crystal clear again. "That guy never sleeps when there's work to do."
Obito's eyes lit up. He yanked off his goggles and poured chakra into them. The black irises turned blood-red, two tomoe spinning in each eye. For a second he just stared at his reflection in the goggles, then his shoulders started shaking.
A second later he threw his head back and howled with laughter. "I did it! I finally awakened my Sharingan!"
Rin and Kakashi just blinked at him. They knew about the Sharingan, but seeing Obito lose his mind over two tomoe was sothing else.
Yohei wasn't impressed. He walked over and dropped a fist on Obito's head. "One tomoe and you're already acting like you're Madara? Did you forget what it felt like when you thought Rin was about to die?"
Obito froze. The mory of that kunai inches from Rin's chest hit him hard. His laughter died. He clenched his fists until his nails bit into his palms.
Before the silence could get awkward, a familiar voice called out behind them.
"Yohei! Kakashi! Get over here!"
They turned to see Minato waving them over with his usual bright smile.
"Minato-sensei, when did you get back?" Kakashi asked as they jogged up.
"Two days ago," Minato said. "Jiraiya-sensei wants to talk to you guys. Co on."
They followed him to the main command tent. Inside, Jiraiya and Shikaku were bent over a huge sand table, moving little flags around. Each flag represented a squad.
Jiraiya looked up when they entered. His eyes swept over their torn, bloodstained clothes and he gave a short nod.
"You five did good work," he said. "Most teams would've broken under that kind of pressure. You didn't."
Obito puffed up instantly. Yohei and Saori stayed calm. They knew their own strength.
Jiraiya waved them closer to the table. "Walk through everything from the first ambush to when Taiichi pulled you out. Point out the locations on the map as best you can."
Yohei took the lead, tracing their route with his finger while the others filled in details. When he finished, Jiraiya turned to Minato.
"Anything else you need?"
Minato shook his head. "I've got enough. I'll head out and see if I can find the other seven teams."
"Good. Don't take unnecessary risks," Jiraiya said. "Save who you can."
Minato nodded, then disappeared in a swirl of leaves—his real body already gone on the rescue mission.
Jiraiya looked back at the five of them. "You just got back from hell. Sure you don't want a day off?"
Obito opened his mouth to protest, but Yohei beat him to it. "We're ready for the next assignnt, sir."
Jiraiya studied them for a mont, then smiled. These kids were sothing else. He turned, grabbed a scroll from the desk, and tossed it to Yohei.
"This one's flexible. I think it fits your squad. Don't screw it up."
Yohei caught the scroll, opened it, and read the mission. A grin spread across his face.
"Understood. We'll get it done."
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