Nagato shook his head, feeling as if he had just woken from a nightmare.
In the dream, he was entangled by a vengeful spirit, unable to shake it off no matter how hard he tried.
When he came to his senses, he found himself still standing in the same spot, but the scroll in his hand had somehow turned completely blank.
He clearly remembered that when he first opened it, it was covered with intricate and mysterious patterns.
Frowning, he examined the scroll once more before closing it and placing it back where he found it.
He pressed a hand lightly against his forehead, carefully thinking over what had just happened.
Had he fallen into a genjutsu?
It had been a long time since he had encountered anything that posed a real threat to him, and for him to be caught off guard like this, the genjutsu must have been of a very high level.
Remembering the purpose of his visit, he carefully searched Hakuryu's room once more, but unfortunately, he found nothing else suspicious.
After leaving Hakuryu's residence, Nagato arranged for a few trusted subordinates to investigate Hakuryu's past origins.
As a high-ranking figure in Amegakure, Hakuryu was well-respected and had a good reputation.
If word got out that he was the one who had assassinated the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, it could easily stir up significant unrest.
What worried Yahiko the most was Konoha.
In every aspect, Konoha was far stronger than Amegakure.
When the Hokage came to personally take Hakuryu away, Yahiko hadn't even dared to voice a single objection.
Nagato understood this well.
He felt it was his responsibility to become the village's strongest force, to find a way to grow even more powerful.
That way, in the future, even if someone from within Amegakure committed a crime, outsiders would not dare to come and interrogate them so easily—let alone use Jiraiya-sensei as leverage against them.
After making the necessary arrangements, Nagato headed to Yahiko's residence, only to run into Konan, who was walking out with a troubled expression.
"What's wrong?"
Konan sighed. "Jiraiya-sensei... suddenly sent a letter, saying he wants to visit us."
Upon hearing this, Nagato couldn't help but be overjoyed. "Really? Jiraiya-sensei is coming!"
Jiraiya had been missing for a full three years.
Back then, after being declared a fugitive by Konoha, he had only made a brief farewell visit to Amegakure before disappearing.
They all understood that Jiraiya didn't want his presence to affect the relationship between Konoha and Amegakure.
Over the past three years, Yahiko had even sent people to search for him, but to no avail.
To Nagato, being able to see Jiraiya-sensei again was naturally a joyous occasion.
However, there was no trace of joy on Konan's face. "Jiraiya-sensei probably thinks that after three years, the situation has settled down..."
Nagato was momentarily stunned—he understood what she meant.
"Yahiko doesn't want to see Jiraiya-sensei, does he?"
"...You heard what the Hokage said before he left. Yahiko said that if this matter were to leak and Konoha found out, it would be impossible to settle peacefully."
Nagato clenched his fists silently. "I see."
Konan could only say, "Yahiko is thinking about the village."
"Yeah, I know."
...........
After Orochimaru escaped using soul division, Makoto knew that returning to Amegakure would likely yield no further results, so he had no choice but to take Hakumen back to the village.
The reason Makoto was so deeply concerned was that the sense of threat Orochimaru posed to him was simply too great.
Even when it came to figures like Uchiha Madara, Black Zetsu, or Kaguya from the original story, Makoto never truly feared them.
He was confident that as long as he had enough time, surpassing them was only a matter of time.
Moreover, Uchiha Madara was most likely already dead, the three Tailed Beasts were in Makoto's hands, and Kaguya had no way of emerging.
But Orochimaru was different—he was someone who could continue to grow indefinitely given enough time, and his growth rate might not even be slower than Makoto's.
When it came to research and exploration of the human body, whether it was Hiruko, Kabuto, or the Second Hokage, none could compare to Orochimaru.
The mechanical science Makoto had initially envisioned was constrained by the current level of technology, forcing him to lean toward biological sciences instead.
As autumn transitioned into winter, daylight hours grew shorter, and the sky outside had already darkened early in the evening.
Makoto remained at his desk, feeling burdened by a mountain of concerns.
Samui, ever thoughtful, came up behind him and began massaging the acupressure points on his head.
"What's troubling Lord Hokage?"
Makoto leaned his head back against her.
"A lot of things."
The Land of Fire was an absolute mess right now.
The moment he sat down, he was faced with an endless pile of documents awaiting his attention.
Meanwhile, research at both institutes seemed to have hit a bottleneck, with no breakthroughs in sight.
Regarding Orochimaru, Makoto had not placed any restrictions on his soul-division escape technique.
Even if he continued the pursuit, Orochimaru would still manage to slip away from his grasp.
So, was it really worth continuing the chase?
"If there's no good solution for now, then don't dwell on it," Samui said.
"But ignoring it won't solve the problem."
After enjoying Samui's massage for a while, Makoto's mind gradually calmed.
"Lord Hokage."
"Mm?"
"Lady Tsunade's work is almost finished."
Hearing this, Makoto slowly opened his eyes. "Is that so? When?"
"Tomorrow is her last day."
"Let it end, then."
Makoto closed his eyes again.
These past days, Tsunade had become increasingly proficient in her role as the Hokage's assistant.
She no longer resisted Makoto's various requests as much and had grown more meticulous, fearing that she might make a mistake just before the job ended.
For her to endure this long, she was probably looking forward to this day.
If Makoto were to suddenly change things for her now, it might provoke rebellion and strong resistance.
In his view, forcefully compelling someone without regard for their feelings was meaningless.
As long as she remained by his side, there would always be opportunities.
After leaving the Hokage Building, Makoto did not immediately return to the Hokage residence.
Instead, he headed to the Hyuga clan compound and gathered some of the clan elders for a meeting.
The meeting didn't have any substantial agenda—Makoto simply expressed his regards, engaging in casual conversation as one might in a normal family discussion.
Of course, given his current status, the elders couldn't help but feel somewhat apprehensive in his presence.
What Makoto was considering was the future.
As his status and position rose even higher, he wouldn't be able to micromanage everything like the Hokage of a single village.
Delegation would be necessary—major responsibilities would need to be passed down, but at the same time, certain powers had to be consolidated.
He needed reliable people around him.
Naturally, he couldn't allow the Hyuga clan to dominate everything, as that would only stifle the ambition of other clans.
The Hyuga's status was already high enough; accordingly, their actual authority should be limited.
He would also need to start reaching out to other prominent clans.
The Uchiha clan was currently led by Uchiha Hachidai, but Makoto planned to support Itachi as the next clan leader, giving him the rightful position.
That future would arrive soon.
Yet, Makoto felt no excitement—this was still far from his ultimate goal.
.........
Early Morning
Tsunade woke up early, washed up, and dressed neatly.
Today was the last day.
Just one more day to endure, and she would finally be free.
The thought alone filled her with excitement.
Feeling good, she stood in front of the full-length mirror, striking a few poses and admiring her graceful figure.
She couldn't help but think—With how beautiful I am, it's only natural that that guy, Hyuga Makoto, harbors certain thoughts about me.
At this thought, she smirked smugly.
"Good morning, Lady Tsunade. You're up early."
Shizune, still in her pajamas, emerged from the bedroom, looking surprised to see Tsunade fully dressed in professional attire, standing in front of the mirror.
"I made breakfast. Go wash up and have some."
Shizune was even more surprised.
She examined Tsunade carefully before chuckling. "Lady Tsunade, you seem to be in a really good mood today."
"Oh, really?"
"You almost look like you enjoy this job."
At those words, Tsunade's expression immediately darkened.
"Like hell I do. I'm just happy because today is my last day."
She grabbed the coat from the hanger, wrapped it around herself, and stepped out of the house.
A thick fog blanketed the air, making visibility poor.
A thin layer of frost coated the ground.
The outside temperature was low, so Tsunade pulled her coat tighter around herself and quickened her pace toward the Hokage Building.
She arrived quite early—even Samui hadn't shown up yet.
She walked into the break room, poured herself a cup of hot tea to warm up, and then started tidying up the Hokage's office.
Not long after, Samui arrived and was slightly surprised to see Tsunade cleaning the room.
"Good morning, Miss Tsunade. You're here quite early."
"I just happened to wake up early, that's all."
Samui gave her a curious look, then walked into the break room, poured herself a cup of tea, and sat down in the Hokage's chair, watching Tsunade clean.
"Winter starts today," she casually remarked.
"Really? There's no snow, though."
"Snowfall isn't the only indicator of winter—it's just a seasonal transition by the calendar."
"Miss Tsunade, today is your last day of work, isn't it?"
"…Yeah."
"What a shame. I think you've already adapted well to this job, and Lord Hokage is quite pleased with your performance."
"..."
Tsunade had no desire to respond to such words.
She didn't think it was a shame at all.
She despised Makoto to the core.
He had forced her to kneel more than once, subjected her to humiliation, and trampled on everything she held sacred.
She had endured all this just for the sake of making it to today.
There was nothing to regret!
Suddenly, Samui said, "Oh, right, Miss Tsunade, there's a new task for you today."
Tsunade looked over.
"Since winter has begun, before Lord Hokage takes his afternoon nap, you need to warm his bed for him."
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