Konoha cat breeder

Chapter 83: Confrontation

Tsunade cradled Kushina in her arms, healing her injuries while inspecting the Nine-Tails seal on her.

With Tsunade around, their return to Konoha was uneventful. The once-absent guards responsible for patrolling and monitoring the village's borders were now back at their posts. Without Tsunade leading them, Tonari and Minato would have faced strict questioning for leaving the village without authorization.

After delivering Kushina to Konoha's hospital under specialized care, the immediate crisis was resolved. However, Tonari and Minato's personal grievances weren't so easily settled.

With Tsunade leading the way, the pair stormed through multiple security checkpoints guarding the conference room, each layer seemingly more impenetrable.

To Tsunade's growing ire, all the guards were members of Root. It wasn't hard to see why the Third Hokage hadn't been informed of the earlier crisis.

Her temper boiled. Tonari had returned injured after a vicious ambush. Kushina, her kin as a descendant of Mito Uzumaki, had been abducted. And yet, the village had been utterly unresponsive. The culprit behind this negligence was all too obvious.

Tsunade's frustration reached its peak.

Bang!

She kicked the conference room doors open with a forceful strike.

Inside, Konoha's senior leaders and Cloud's delegation turned their attention toward her and the two young shinobi at her side.

"Tsunade…"

Hiruzen Sarutobi forced a strained smile, but before he could continue, Tsunade cut him off.

"You know my temper, old man," she warned.

The sound of her knuckles cracking filled the room, her delicate fists clenched so tightly they defied their size.

Sarutobi froze. Though he was proud of his three disciples, he also knew each of their temperaments far too well.

Tsunade's explosive personality and her monstrous strength made her a force to be reckoned with. Moreover, her lineage as Hashirama Senju's granddaughter gave her considerable sway within the village.

Danzo Shimura was the one who finally broke the silence.

"Tsunade, this isn't the place for your tantrums!" he barked, his voice cutting through the tense air.

Tsunade didn't even look at him, her contempt for him palpable. Danzo's ambitions were no secret, and while Sarutobi might indulge his former comrade, Tsunade had no such patience.

"You!"

Danzo's frustration was evident, but he wasn't foolish enough to escalate further.

Tsunade strode directly to Cloud's representative, Dodai. Her amber eyes locked onto his with unrelenting intensity.

Dodai maintained his composure, his expression calm but watchful.

"To what do I owe the honor of this interruption, Lady Tsunade?" Dodai asked smoothly. "Surely you realize we're discussing important matters between our villages. Are you here on behalf of Konoha or as an individual? Or is this Konoha's way of hosting its allies?"

His words were sharp and pointed, matching her gaze without flinching. As a representative of the Third Raikage and the Hidden Cloud, Dodai's demeanor reflected the strength of his village.

"Just one question," Tsunade said coldly. "Did Cloud's ninjas attack ours?"

Her bluntness caused a ripple of unease throughout the room.

Dodai's expression didn't change, though the atmosphere grew heavier. Sarutobi and Danzo exchanged tense glances.

"Lady Tsunade, I must ask you to provide evidence before making such an accusation," Dodai replied. "If you cannot, I might interpret this as Konoha's intent to sever our alliance."

Dodai's calm assertion of innocence showed the careful planning behind Cloud's actions. Though he suspected that their operatives had failed, Cloud had prepared for this eventuality. They would simply deny everything, confident Konoha lacked evidence.

"Oh? If it's evidence you want, perhaps I can provide some…"

A low, raspy voice interrupted from outside the room.

Orochimaru entered with his characteristic slithering grace, a twisted smile on his pale face.

The conference attendees watched as a snake slithered from Orochimaru's sleeve and onto the table. The serpent's mouth stretched unnaturally wide, regurgitating the charred corpse of one of Cloud's special jōnin, Night One.

"Night One?!"

Dodai's usually composed demeanor faltered, but he quickly recovered.

"Konoha attacks our ninjas and then accuses us of wrongdoing?" he said sharply. "Lord Third, I demand an explanation for this insult to the Hidden Cloud!"

Sarutobi's eyes darkened, but his gaze flicked to Danzo before returning to Dodai.

"If this was the work of your shinobi," Sarutobi said firmly, "then the Hidden Cloud owes us an explanation."

Orochimaru chuckled, his voice dripping with mockery.

"Shall we examine the blood on his weapons, then?" Orochimaru suggested. "It might reveal whose blood he spilled before dying. Or perhaps…" His golden eyes gleamed. "We'll find something even more interesting."

Dodai's mask of indifference cracked briefly. He glanced at Night One's corpse before composing himself again.

"Whatever crimes he committed, they were not sanctioned by the Hidden Cloud," Dodai declared. "I'll remind you that Night One, Night Two, and their associates were declared rogue ninjas just yesterday. You'll find confirmation of this soon enough."

With this declaration, Dodai deftly distanced the Hidden Cloud from the incident.

Sarutobi grimaced, recognizing the move as a calculated play. The Cloud had planned for failure and prepared a plausible cover story in advance.

Tsunade, however, was less interested in diplomacy.

"I hope," she said coldly, "that your ninjas remember to respect the borders of other villages. Konoha's defenses aren't exactly lax."

Dodai met her gaze evenly, his smile faint but unyielding.

Orochimaru retracted the snake, letting it swallow Night One's corpse again. "A shame we couldn't resolve this misunderstanding," he said with mock regret.

With the confrontation over, Tsunade turned to leave, beckoning Tonari and Minato to follow.

As they exited, she added one final remark, her voice dripping with challenge.

"I trust the Cloud's forces are as strong as its representatives claim."

With that, she left the room, leaving the Konoha and Cloud leaders in tense silence.

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(Chapter End)

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