"I can't be bothered arguing with you."
Tsunade wiped the faint sheen from her lips with the back of her hand. Beneath her slightly furrowed brows, her bright eyes looked at Uchiha Anlan with open disdain.
"Have Shizune brought here. I need an assistant."
"And while I'm in charge, no unrelated personnel are allowed on this floor."
She had not expected Anlan to agree so easily.
It was only a negotiation tactic.
Start high, then settle lower.
But his answer came at once.
"Fine."
No hesitation.
No bargaining.
Clean and decisive.
Almost too decisive.
Something is wrong…
Is this bastard planning something?
Her suspicion lasted only a moment.
"I'll have Uzumaki Minako accompany her," Anlan added calmly. "I trust Tsunade-senpai won't take the opportunity to leave with Shizune without saying a word."
"Heh."
Tsunade gave a soft laugh and folded her arms beneath her chest.
"I honor my bets better than you do."
"I'm not like certain bastards who rely on tricks."
"Until I get results from studying the corpse, I won't leave."
A lie.
A complete lie.
Being forced to stay and choosing to stay were two different things.
The moment she found an opening, she would leave.
"That's for the best."
Anlan smiled faintly.
"In fact…"
His tone remained casual.
"If Tsunade-senpai were to disappear, I might consider sending the corpse to the Daimyō's residence."
"That would increase the number of active samples. It might even help your research."
"Or perhaps…"
"The center of Konoha would be better."
"Good things should be shared, after all."
He stepped closer.
"Tsunade-senpai?"
"…Fine. I won't leave."
Her lips twitched.
She stared at him.
That angelic face, paired with words that sounded as if they had crawled out of hell.
"Mm. Professionals should focus on their work."
Anlan nodded.
Then he reached out.
His fingers brushed her cheek.
Lightly.
Slowly.
"So, senpai… do try to be efficient."
"Keeping me waiting makes me anxious."
"And when I'm anxious…"
Crack.
He pulled his finger back just before she could bite down.
"…I might do things even I didn't plan."
"Let's avoid that."
Tsunade stared at him.
That method was too familiar.
Suppress, then reward.
Break the will.
Turn the person into a tool.
And this bastard calls himself married?
Her thoughts sank.
Then she noticed someone approaching.
Uchiha Shisui.
An idea flashed through her mind.
"Anlan-kun."
Her tone changed.
Soft.
Playful.
Dangerous.
"You wouldn't want Mikoto to find out about… us, would you?"
For the first time, Anlan paused.
Unexpected.
But the footsteps were drawing closer.
He showed no outward reaction.
Instead, he made a subtle gesture only she could see.
Blatantly suggestive.
Tsunade's face flushed at once.
Anger.
Shame.
Shock.
All at the same time.
"If you're not afraid, senpai, why should I be?"
"You—!"
"Enough."
Anlan cut her off.
"Let's leave this for later."
As he walked away with Shisui, that single word echoed in her mind.
Later.
"…Bastard."
Ginza Tower, Eighth Floor.
Anlan's office.
Beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows, the layered skyline of Infinity Castle stretched into the distance.
Shisui stood upright before the desk, faint traces of battlefield killing intent still lingering around him.
"General, the prisoners from Jūzō Biwa and Suikazan Fuguki's forces have been secured."
"Should we release them again?"
"No."
Anlan gestured for him to sit.
"Some things shouldn't be repeated."
"If we go too far, we become the common enemy of the nobles."
He rested his chin on his interlaced fingers.
"They lack force, but they do not lack intelligence."
"We used Kirigakure as a blade."
"But what's been done cannot be hidden forever."
"From the perspective of those whose interests have been damaged, many of them have likely already realized that the Uchiha are directing Kirigakure's actions."
Shisui stiffened.
"Then… are we in danger?"
Anlan shook his head slightly.
"Not yet."
Shisui's eyes sharpened.
"Then we should eliminate the problem entirely."
"Kill all the nobles of the Land of Fire."
"Even the Daimyō."
Anlan pressed his fingers against his temple.
This kid…
"If the Uchiha openly turn against the nobles, we break the rules."
"And once the rules are broken, everyone becomes our enemy."
"This is war."
"Those arrogant nobles…"
"Do you think they would trust ninja like us not to follow the same example?"
Shisui fell silent.
Then he remembered.
Balance.
"Ninja are the blade."
"Nobles hold the handle."
"And if the blade can slaughter the one holding it…"
"The balance collapses."
"…I understand."
Anlan nodded.
"From their perspective, they have two choices."
"First, absorb us."
"Turn the Uchiha into part of their system."
"Second, destroy us."
"Through pressure, isolation, or even joint attacks."
"Just like what happened to the Land of Whirlpools."
He leaned back slightly.
"Without absolute strength, the one who breaks the balance first becomes the enemy of all."
"Eat only what you can digest."
Shisui nodded.
"Understood, General."
He left.
Silence returned.
Anlan leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.
Thinking.
Then he picked up a pen.
Hatake Kakashi.
Uchiha Obito.
Nohara Rin.
He had not expected it.
Hatake Kakashi.
Dead.
Just like that.
The wheel of history…
No.
The path had already changed.
He drew a line through Kakashi's name.
His gaze shifted.
Obito.
Rin.
One saved.
One missing.
"…Where did you go, Obito?"
"It seems…"
"The story has reached a turning point."
His hands rose.
In one hand was a Peach of Grace.
In the other was another fruit.
Fresh.
Perfect.
A grin spread across his face.
"Uchiha Madara…"
"When you die…"
"I'll turn you into the clan's guardian."
"I hope you'll enjoy it."
"Kehehe…"
"Anlan-sama!"
The laughter stopped.
He looked down.
A large orange cat was staring up at him.
"…"
"Erase the evidence."
He placed the peaches down.
"Da Ju, do you know any memory-erasing jutsu?"
"I don't, meow."
The cat trembled.
A hand pressed down.
Instant refinement.
"You know too much."
"Young Master—no—meow!"
Top Floor.
The door opened.
"I'm back."
"Welcome home, darling~"
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