Tsunade Is not Gambling This Time

Training the elite jōnin didn't take much time; they were all competent shinobi.

They assembled in the morning and disbanded by noon.

Kyōichi had lunch with Tsunade, and during their meal, she shared with him the profound intentions of the Third—advocacy and intimidation.

Step by step, everything was to prepare Kyōichi for the eastern front.

The shinobis heading east might be the very ones benefitting from today's instructions.

Kyōichi deeply agreed.

After all, Tsunade, being a sannin, understood the intricacies clearly.

In just a few days, he indeed received the list.

These were the jōnin teams who would go to the eastern front ahead of him.

Most were those who had benefited that day.

On this particular day, Kyōichi also had no choice but to set off, patrolling the eastern part of the Fire Country.

However, it wasn't that the Hidden Mist Village was causing trouble.

The Hidden Cloud Village was the first to catch the attention of the intelligence bureau At the border of the Lightning Country, Cloud shinobis were becoming more active, even traces of Cloud and Rock shinobis were found in the Fire Country.

Meanwhile.

There was also intelligence from the Hidden Rock Village, with many Rock shinobis active on the border, showing a readiness to cross and fight.

This was an ominous sign.

The three villages might have reached a tacit agreement!

...

That night.

Kyōichi chatted with Asuma about tomorrow's mission, and when he returned home at dusk, pondering whether or not to go out for dinner, he was greeted by the rich aroma of food.

He paused for a moment.

Glancing sideways, he saw Tsunade and Shizune gathered around the table, a spread of food laid out.

"Welcome home; come eat," Tsunade said with a gentle smile.

"Uh, Tsunade Oneesan, did you make this?" Kyōichi asks incredulously.

The food on the table wasn't refined, but it looked delicious, far from a culinary disaster.

Was Tsunade's cooking this good?

That couldn't be right! He remembered a time when someone nearly died after eating Tsunade's cooking.

"What, you don't believe me?" she asks.

"I can tell Shizune made this meal. It's great, but it must have been tough for you to wait until now, Tsunade Oneesan!"

"You talk too much!" Tsunade's face stiffened, her expression sour.

Shizune laughed out loud.

She told Tsunade she couldn't fool Kyōichi, but Tsunade wouldn't believe her.

The three picked up their chopsticks.

"I'm starting!" Kyōichi announces.

At that moment, the room under the lamplight seemed warm and cozy.

The next day.

"I'm leaving; no need to see me off."

"Heh, it's just the battlefield. Who would see you off? Hurry up and go."

Tsunade said with a blank expression.

But then.

Once Kyōichi stepped out the door, she leaned against it, looking out with a face full of worry and desolation.

"I'm not gambling this time."

"You must come back!"

She murmured to herself, so softly that no one else could hear.

Shizune remained silent.

But she knew that Lady Tsunade must be very concerned for Kyōichi's safety at this moment.

Just like those two before.

"Shizune, starting today, I will train you twice as hard. If you dare slack off... hmph!"

"What?"

Shizune was surprised, and then saw Tsunade return to the room, pulling out her notebook, next to which was a stack of books.

All medical books.

Some were Tsunade's own, while another stack was pushed towards Shizune.

"Read. If you don't understand, ask."

With that, Tsunade buried herself in the books—she needed to research a cure without delay!

Meanwhile.

At the village gate, Kyōichi had assembled with Shisui and the others.

"Sensei, what mission do we have this time?" Asuma curiously asked.

Nearby, Kurenai and Shisui were not focusing on the mission itself, their minds occupied with other thoughts.

Kurenai was pondering medical ninjutsu.

As for Shisui.

His mind was consumed with how to influence his clan.

Kyōichi's strategy had been successful, and these past few days Shisui had been working with Tetsuhi to slowly influence the clan, and he was even coming to understand it from the "books" himself.

Unfortunately.

At this crucial moment, they were called for a mission.

He didn't know if Tetsuhi would be up to the task...

He sighed, a little worried, but had to focus on the present, only to hear shocking news.

"We're going to the eastern front."

"Are we going to war?"

The three of them were instantly on high alert.

War was coming!

And they were the first batch?

The three were both afraid and excited.

"Sort of, exactly when depends on the actions of the Hidden Mist Village, or... on me."

"You're in command?"

Shisui's eyes widened.

These past days, while working on influencing his clan, he had been reading books unrelated to ninjutsu, although many were incomprehensible, his enthusiasm to learn the subject was greater than Asuma and Kurenai.

Commanding represented many factors.

Could his teacher possibly become Hokage in the future?

He became excited at the thought.

If his teacher became Hokage, then the last concerns of the Uchiha could be resolved. His teacher's attitude towards the Uchiha would certainly be relatively mild.

"Yes, but don't think too much about it. I will still need to discuss with Lady Tsunade. It's not a one-man decision."

Kyōichi smiled.

He was mainly speaking to Shisui.

He could remember Shisui's conversation with his shadow clone, so Kyōichi knew what Shisui had been up to during this time.

He had been growing rapidly lately, his mind often wandering into unnecessary tangents, overthinking trivial matters.

Shisui understood, nodding gently.

Lady Tsunade...

Regarding this matter, it should be quite good.

He could do some research when he got back, but in any case, it would certainly be a benefit to the Uchiha clan.

"Amazing, my teacher is only seven years older than me, and he's already commanding the eastern front," Asuma said, his voice filled with genuine admiration and respect.

"Didn't you notice? Lately, there's been a lot of news about the teacher, clearly something big is happening," Kurenai spoke up.

She frequented the hospital and would see Kyōichi's name prominently displayed on the bulletin board, so conspicuous that it could not be more so. Along with her father's recent mention of the teacher's situation, she faintly understood that there must be a new appointment for him.

Sure enough.

A mission was assigned today.

"Being a Chunin really makes a difference, especially in intelligence gathering and analysis. You've improved a lot. Keep it up!" Kyōichi praised, gently touching Kurenai's hair.

So smooth.

An excellent texture!

"Teacher, even you tease me," Kurenai responded, not feeling particularly proud of being a Chunin. "In both ability and overall competence, I'm still inferior to Shisui. The Chunin position should have been his."

She expressed indignation on Shisui's behalf.

Because in the second exam, Shisui's role was more significant than hers, although most of the time it was behind the scenes and unknown to others—

or at least, that's what she thought.

"Hahaha."

Kyōichi laughed but said nothing.

Shisui began to explain: "Don't overthink it. You earned this Chunin position with your abilities. As for me... I asked for it. I didn't want to be promoted to Chunin so soon."

"Ah?" Asuma was surprised.

He had also felt that Shisui was being treated unfairly, thinking that the old man was surely biased and suppressing the Uchiha.

But...

It turned out that Shisui had asked for it, something he had not expected.

"Why?" Kurenai was stunned.

"The reason is not convenient to say, but it's true that I asked for it. I even discussed it with the teacher, and he agreed with my thoughts," Shisui explained without giving the details.

It was not a matter of trust.

It was an internal matter for the Uchiha, and it wasn't good for Kurenai or Asuma to get involved, to avoid implicating them.

As for the teacher...

Shisui counted on his fingers and realized there was no one within his clan who could harm his teacher.

The Uchiha now...

They truly lacked a top-tier genius.

Shisui used to be proud, but once he went outside, he realized that there were geniuses everywhere, and apart from the past glories, his clan had nothing to boast about.