Previously, when Kushina and Hagoromo stole ninjutsu from the Scroll of Seals, the Hokage naturally interrogated the boy. He wanted to know exactly how much Hagoromo had seen and learned.
However, Hagoromo cunningly left no written records. He had simply memorized a portion of the jutsu.
Otherwise, regardless of what punishment Kushina received, Hagoromo definitely wouldn't have gotten off with just house arrest.
With no evidence against him, Hagoromo faced the Hokage's questioning with a simple answer. He claimed he remembered nothing and learned nothing.
The Hokage obviously didn't buy the whole story. But he couldn't exactly deploy the Torture and Interrogation Force over this incident, either.
In truth, the Hokage didn't believe Hagoromo could have actually mastered many jutsu. If the kid managed to learn one or two, the Hokage considered it a perk of being Kushina's student.
The Hokage's guess was mostly accurate. The Scroll of Seals contained highly difficult, forbidden jutsu.
Even a genius like Hagoromo couldn't truly master much in just ten minutes. However, the Hokage failed to account for Hagoromo's photographic memory.
Even if he couldn't understand certain jutsu right away, he could memorize them word for word.
During his confinement in Konoha, Hagoromo didn't dare reveal these techniques. He could only constantly review them in his head every day.
But once he left the village, he finally began recording those jutsu onto a scroll.
Out here, it was impossible for anyone to spy on him. He wrote them down to prevent himself from forgetting the intricate details over time.
Forgetting a jutsu entirely would be fine. But if time passed and he remembered a hand sign incorrectly while practicing... a single mistake could be disastrous. Who would take responsibility for that?
Naturally, he remained highly cautious. He placed a sealing formula on the scroll that only recognized his specific chakra signature.
If anyone else tried to force it open, the scroll would destroy itself.
Then again, the strength of this seal was relative. Against an expert like Kushina, Hagoromo's petty trick would be completely useless.
But Kushina's sealing jutsu level was at the absolute apex of the ninja world. If the scroll fell into the hands of a sealing master of her caliber, Hagoromo would just have to accept defeat.
Due to his chakra nature affinities, he temporarily couldn't practice a portion of these jutsu.
And because of his limited chakra reserves, he simply couldn't use some of them right now.
It wasn't that he lacked the chakra to cast even a single advanced technique. It was that casting it would instantly empty his tank.
It was like Megumin's Explosion Magic—she could only fire off one shot a day. What use was that in a real fight?
Yesterday, the squad was attacked, and Hagoromo experienced his first real combat. The results were satisfactory, but the team was now entirely on edge.
Until they reached the Konoha headquarters, their vigilance had to remain at its absolute peak.
"Halt!"
The Anbu captain at the front suddenly raised his hand. The entire formation stopped instantly.
The Anbu ninja automatically shifted into defensive and alert stances.
A Konoha ninja appeared on a large tree slightly ahead and to the side of the squad. It seemed they had finally entered the security perimeter of the frontline headquarters.
The Anbu didn't speak to the newcomer. They had their own methods for identifying allies.
The captain simply tossed a scroll directly to the appearing Konoha ninja.
The ninja caught it without hesitation and swiftly unfurled it. He carefully inspected the contents of the scroll, then thoroughly examined Hagoromo's squad.
Only then did he signal them to continue forward. That scroll was the mission directive for their current escort assignment.
The ninja led the way, with Hagoromo's squad following closely behind.
Moreover, Hagoromo could sense quite a few other Konoha ninja escorting them from the surrounding woods.
It seems the shortage of medical ninja on the Sand front is completely true... Hagoromo thought silently, noting the heavy security placed on this newly arrived batch of medics.
After advancing another thirty kilometers, the escorting ninja slowly began to disperse. They had to return to their assigned patrol zones.
The guide eventually led Hagoromo's group straight to the headquarters' field hospital.
Calling it a "field hospital" was a stretch. It was merely a cluster of larger tents. Occasionally, wounded soldiers could be seen moving about inside.
Hagoromo and the Anbu stopped at the entrance while Kushina led the medical ninja inside.
About twenty minutes later, Kushina emerged again. She waved the stamped mission scroll at Hagoromo and the others.
"A-Rank escort mission complete. Absolutely perfect."
It truly was perfect. Both the guards and the medical ninja had arrived at their destination completely unscathed.
Well, except for the injured Kamishiraishi Hagoromo. But that minor slash was well within acceptable limits.
"Lady Kushina, since the mission is complete, we should return to Konoha as soon as we've rested."
An Anbu ninja stepped forward, completely oblivious to the mood. "Given your status, you shouldn't linger on the front lines for too long."
Kushina's excitement was instantly killed by the buzzkill Anbu.
"What's the rush? Since we're already here, we obviously have to go see Lady Tsunade first," Kushina replied bluntly, glaring at the guard.
"But..." The Anbu ninja had their own difficulties.
If the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki suffered even the slightest harm, ten thousand deaths wouldn't be enough to atone for their failure.
"Anyway, we are seeing Lady Tsunade first."
Kushina wasn't about to accommodate them. She had finally managed to leave the village; there was no way she was going back so soon.
At the very least, it was much freer here than in Konoha, and she didn't have to constantly listen to the Third Hokage's nagging.
She was able to come to the front lines partly because Konoha was genuinely short on manpower.
But the main reason was that the Hokage simply couldn't stand her pestering anymore. He treated it as a chance for Kushina to relax and gave his own brain a much-needed vacation.
However, allowing Kushina to leave Konoha came with a strict prerequisite: once the mission was complete, she had to return immediately.
Kushina naturally knew this. If she returned right away, she'd lose her excuse to bother the Third Hokage.
It also meant she'd be stuck behaving herself in the village for a long time—something she absolutely loathed.
That "long time" could be a year, or perhaps three to five years.
Unless it truly came to a point where a Tailed Beast needed to be deployed in the war, she would likely never be allowed on the front lines again.
Therefore, completely ignoring the Anbu's protests, Kushina grabbed Hagoromo and marched toward Tsunade's tent.
She had already sniffed out its location while she was inside the field hospital.
Left with no other options, the Anbu could only silently tail Kushina.
She was famous in Konoha for being completely unreasonable when she wanted to be, and they had no way to stop her.
Unless they used physical force. And they absolutely could not do that.