Naruto: Starting By Saving Mikoto

The room was quiet, but the tension was thick. Shizune busied herself with preparing tea, her mind racing through the possibilities. 

Who could this man be, knowing enough to exploit such a personal weakness? It made no sense. 

Tsunade was always careful, always aware of her surroundings. For someone to defeat her like this…

"Shizune," Tsunade's voice cut through her thoughts. It was softer now, though no less determined. 

"We need information on him. Quietly. No one can know."

Shizune nodded. "I'll reach out to a few contacts. Discreetly." Her eyes flickered with uncertainty, but she pushed it down. For Tsunade, she would do anything.

Tsunade's gaze shifted to the window, the moonlight filtering in and casting a silver sheen on her face. She looked calm, but inside, her thoughts were in turmoil. 

How could she let herself a senju be humiliated like that? By a stranger, no less?

She clenched her jaw, her fingers drumming against the armrest of the chair. that guy wouldn't get away with it. 

As Shizune quietly stepped out of the room to begin her search, 

Meanwhile, Hiro in the dim light inn the outskirts of the village. His movements were slow and deliberate as he cleaned the small blade he had used earlier. He smiled to himself, recalling Tsunade's stunned expression.

The Sannin were powerful, but even they had their limits.

As the blade gleamed in the low light, Hiro's thoughts turned to his next step. He had to always stay 2 step's ahead of others. 

She wouldn't rest until she found him. That much was certain. And when she did...

Hiro slowed his pace as he reached the edge of the forest. He looked up at the sky, the stars flickering above as his mind replayed the encounter with Tsunade. 

He had underestimated her, not in strength, but in the trouble he had just set up for himself. Making an enemy of her might be an mistake.

Tsunade wasn't just anyone—soon, she would become the Fifth Hokage, a leader with influence and resources that could make his life very complicated if he didn't handle this carefully. 

"Damn it," he muttered, running a hand through his hair. 

He wasn't afraid of Tsunade, but dealing with a Hokage wasn't something he wanted on his list of problems. 

If he didn't fix this, she could easily rally powerful allies against him in the future.

He leaned against a tree, thinking through his next steps. He couldn't just walk back and apologize; that wasn't his style, and she wouldn't accept it anyway. 

But if he played his cards right, there might be a way to repair the damage—maybe even turn her into an ally. 

She was prideful and stubborn, but Hiro knew how to get under people's skin. He just had to shift his approach.

"Tsunade's not the forgiving type," he murmured, eyes narrowing as he thought. "But everyone has a price."

The gears in his mind began to turn. He needed to create a situation where helping him would benefit her, where she couldn't afford to keep him as an enemy. 

He'd have to be subtle, find a way to offer something valuable enough that she would have no choice but to reconsider.

Hiro smirked, pushing off from the tree and sliding the small blade back into its sheath. He had a plan forming. 

Tsunade might be furious now, but he knew that anger was just a cover for something deeper.

Tsunade didn't care for petty revenge; she cared about protecting the people she loved, about stability and control. 

If he could offer her something that aligned with those interests, her rage might just cool enough for him to make his next move.

'But how do I reach her?' he pondered.

Then it hit him—there was someone close to Tsunade who might listen, someone more level-headed. Shizune. If he could plant the seed of an idea with her, the rest might follow.

As he walked through the dimly lit streets. 

'The Fifth Hokage, huh?' He thought with a chuckle. 'Maybe I need someone like that on my side after all.'

As Hiro walked through the dimly lit streets, his plan started to solidify. If he wanted to turn Tsunade into an ally, he couldn't just appeal to her logic—he had to reach deeper. 

She wasn't a woman easily swayed by words or force. She had built walls around herself to shield her heart. 

And Hiro had a feeling he knew exactly what Tsunade needed, even if she didn't realize it herself.

'She's a healer,' he mused, his smirk softening. 'And healers are the ones who need healing the most.'

Tsunade had suffered loss after loss—her brother, and that blue-haired guy, who was her lover, if he remembered right. 

To him, the guy always seemed kinda retarded, but those wounds never really faded.

Despite her strength, there was a fragility beneath her anger, a fear of getting close to anyone again. 

That's why she pushed people away, kept everyone at arm's length, relying on only herself and her own power.

If he could exploit that vulnerability—not by harming her, but by offering her something no one else could—he might just win her over. 

Hiro wasn't interested in manipulating her feelings out of cruelty. No, it was about showing her that he could understand her pain, that he wasn't just another person trying to use her.

'You can't hate someone who understands your suffering,' he thought. 'Not forever, at least.'

Meanwhile, Tsunade stood in her room, her fists still clenched

Tsunade paced inside her quarters, the frustration building in her chest. The images of that man's face taunted her, his arrogance, his nerve.

Before she could step outside to find him, the door creaked open.

Hiro stood there, his expression unreadable.

Tsunade's eyes widened briefly in shock, but her body responded on instinct. She charged at him, her fist engulfed with chakra, ready to strike him down.

But Hiro moved swiftly.

In one smooth motion, he drew a small blade, blood glistening fresh on its surface. The crimson droplets caught the dim light as he raised the weapon, just enough to stop her dead in her tracks.

Tsunade's heart lurched at the sight. Blood.

Her worst fear.

Her fist faltered, her body betraying her as her eyes fixated on the blade. She froze, helpless in the grip of her phobia. She could feel her strength drain as the terror gnawed at her.

Hiro smirked, lowering the blade as he stepped closer. "You should be more careful, Tsunade," he murmured, his voice low and taunting. "You don't want to make rash decisions."

Tsunade's fists clenched at her sides, but her body refused to move. Her eyes darted from the blade back to his face, fury warring with the helplessness she hated to feel.

"You…!" she growled, her voice trembling with rage.

Before she could continue, Hiro reached out and grabbed her chin, his fingers firm but not harsh, tilting her face upward so that she had no choice but to look him in the eyes.

Tsunade's breath caught in her throat. The audacity of this man—how dare he!