"Kushina is a ninja of Konoha."
Tsunade's tone turned stern.
"She can't make private deals with outsiders. Any agreement has to be approved by the village."
Rei Ao smiled.
It wasn't a friendly smile—more like he'd just heard an amusing joke.
"Konoha?" he repeated, drawing out the last syllable.
"You really think Konoha is safe enough now to protect her?"
"What do you mean?" Tsunade's voice cooled.
"Exactly what it sounds like." Rei Ao spread his hands.
"This attack happened inside the village. Three Mist ninja—well-equipped, clear tactics."
"They knew where Kushina was, knew the guards' shift schedule, even knew the weakness of the seal inside her. Tsunade-sama, you really think that's a coincidence?"
Tsunade fell silent. Of course she'd suspected as much, but…
"Konoha will find the traitor," she said.
"And then what?"
Rei Ao took two steps forward, out of the shade and into the sunlight.
Only then did Tsunade notice his eyes—an inky black under the light, so dark there was almost no reflection.
"Bring Kushina back and keep her as a container? Keep hiding her like a weapon for the higher-ups—missions have to be reported, leaving the village needs approval, even making friends gets monitored—so that's what you call protection?"
"Those are necessary measures," Tsunade shot back, though even she could hear how unconvincing it sounded.
"Necessary?" Rei Ao gave a short, scornful laugh.
"Then what was the 'necessity' behind the Senju clan disappearing?"
Tsunade went rigid.
The air suddenly felt heavy.
Somewhere along the way, the birds in the forest had gone quiet. Only the rustle of wind through leaves remained.
"What did you say?" Tsunade's voice was very light—light in a dangerous way.
Rei Ao acted as if he hadn't noticed, continuing in the same casual tone.
"The Senju clan—the main line of the First and Second Hokage's family. Konoha's most glorious clan once upon a time. And now?"
"Tsunade, other than you, who else from the Senju is still active in the shinobi world?"
"That was the Senju clan's own choice," Tsunade said, each word squeezed out through clenched teeth.
"My clan willingly blended our bloodline into the village, letting our people live as ordinary ninja—"
"Willingly?" Rei Ao cut her off.
"Then why didn't the other clans 'willingly' blend themselves into near-extinction?"
"The Uchiha are still here. The Hyūga are still here. The Sarutobi and Shimura are thriving."
"Only the Senju—this huge, famous Senju—can't even produce a proper heir anymore. Don't you think those odds are a little too ridiculous?"
Tsunade clenched her fists.
Her nails dug into her palms—the pain keeping her steady.
She had thought about it before. She'd just never dared to follow the thought all the way to the end.
The village Grandpa founded. The village Great-Uncle protected. How could her teacher…?
"Every great clan rises and falls," she forced herself to say.
"That's normal."
"Normal?" Rei Ao tilted his head.
"Then what about Nawaki Senju's death? Was that normal too?"
It was as if time abruptly stopped.
Tsunade felt all the blood in her body rush to her head—then drain away in an instant, leaving behind a numb, icy cold.
She stared at Rei Ao as darkness crept in at the edges of her vision.
Her brother's name—how long had it been since anyone dared to say it to her face?
Those eyes that carefully avoided the topic. Those expressions that stopped halfway…
"What do you know?" she asked, her voice terrifyingly calm.
Rei Ao met her gaze without flinching.
"I know he died on that 'accidental' mission. I know his body was recovered intact."
The wind died.
The forest sank into absolute silence.
Tsunade could hear her own heartbeat.
Each thud was so heavy it felt like it could smash through her chest.
She remembered the day Nawaki was buried—his pale face before the lid closed, the feel of her hand brushing his forehead… cold, stiff, without warmth.
And then she remembered older things.
She'd always blamed it on war, blamed it on fate.
But if—if it wasn't?
"Who are you?" Tsunade asked. This time there was no anger—only exhaustion, and something deeper underneath.
Rei Ao didn't answer.
He turned to look at Kushina, who had been silent the whole time.
"Do you still want to go back to Konoha?" he asked the red-haired girl.
"Think carefully. If you go back, you'll keep being a jinchūriki. You'll keep being watched. You'll keep living in that cage that only looks safe."
Kushina bit her lip.
She looked at Rei Ao, then at Tsunade, her eyes full of struggle…
Suddenly Tsunade realized: this stranger who had appeared out of nowhere was forcing them to choose.
No—he wasn't forcing them.
He was ripping open what had been covered up for years, dragging the rot out into the sunlight.
You couldn't avoid it. Couldn't pretend you didn't smell it. Couldn't deny it existed.
"Tsunade-sama…" Kushina spoke softly.
"I… I want to become strong. Not the kind of strong that's just a weapon—strong enough to protect myself, and protect the people important to me."
"Rei Ao-san's method is weird, but it really works. The Nine-Tails now… it's willing to talk to me."
The Nine-Tails was willing to talk?
Tsunade honestly wondered if her ears were failing.
That was the Nine-Tails—the embodiment of hatred, a monster that roared at everyone it saw.
But Kushina's eyes were deadly serious.
There was a light in them Tsunade recognized—just like when she was a child, declaring she would become Hokage.
"Do you know what you're saying?" Tsunade took a slow breath.
"Betraying the village is a grave crime."
"I didn't betray anything!" Kushina suddenly raised her voice, her eyes reddening.
"I just… I just want to choose my own path."
"I don't want people in the village looking at me with fear and disgust!"
"I want to prove I can control it. That I can coexist with it—"
Her voice caught in her throat.
Tsunade looked at the girl she'd watched grow up.
And, out of nowhere, she remembered the scene from years ago—standing in front of her great-uncle, saying she wanted to become a medical ninja. What expression had he worn then?
Something like this, maybe—complicated and hard to name. Worried. Disapproving. But in the end… he'd yielded.
Because children have to grow up.
Because some roads have to be walked personally before you know whether they're right.
"What if I don't agree?" Tsunade asked, her tone softening.
Rei Ao answered for her: "Then I'll take her anyway, because our deal must be fulfilled."
"Of course, you can try to stop me—but I wouldn't recommend it."
He said it as if it were obvious, as if snatching someone from Tsunade Senju—one of the Legendary Sannin of Konoha—were the simplest thing in the world.
But strangely, Tsunade didn't feel offended.
There was a strange certainty about him.
Not arrogance—more like everything was already under control.