Inside the meeting room, the faint, manic laughter of the Uchiha echoed from outside.
Tsunade stood in place, her fists clenched so hard they trembled. The surrounding clan heads stared at the hole in the floor and the pulverized table, instinctively shrinking back in their seats. Silence reigned for a long time.
Finally, Hiruzen Sarutobi awkwardly took a puff from his pipe, using a cloud of smoke to mask his embarrassment.
"Tsunade... this is for the village, after all. Why don't you... just go?" he coaxed. "Besides, the Uchiha... gave compensation, didn't they?"
"Fine. Fine. Fine."
Tsunade took a deep breath, her expression darkening as she squeezed out the words through gritted teeth. "Then I shall go and give this brat a very... thorough 'treatment'!"
Hiruzen let out a massive sigh of relief as she agreed. However, Orochimaru's expression shifted instantly.
Those Uchiha idiots! Why would they let Tsunade, the world's greatest medical ninja, treat Ren? With that brat's self-healing speed, it's completely unnecessary! One touch and she'll realize everything!
Orochimaru thought of Ren's indestructible, "built-to-be-experimented-on" constitution. Combine that with his "Will of Fire" that was even more pure than Hiruzen's...
Ren was a walking "Tsunade Trap." To her, he would look exactly like the ghosts of her dead lover, Dan Katō, and her brother, Nawaki—a version of Nawaki that simply refused to die!
If that troublesome woman got close to Ren, any future experiments—the Hashirama cell transplants, the Cursed Seal refinements, the Sage Mode trials—would become a logistical nightmare.
Damn it! Orochimaru never expected that even while he stayed silent to avoid the bill, a boomerang would come around and hit him in the back of the head.
Thud! Orochimaru stood up abruptly, his voice raspy and deep. "Tsunade, I'm coming with you!"
He could not let Tsunade find out his disciple was actually a hot-blooded idiot. To her, Ren Uchiha had to remain a greedy, arrogant, and "evil" Uchiha brat!
"Hmm? Orochimaru?" Tsunade raised an eyebrow, surprised that he was following, but she didn't care. she turned and strode out toward the Konoha Hospital.
Watching them leave, Hiruzen's eyes softened with a touch of nostalgia. "Orochimaru... he actually cares quite a bit for this disciple, doesn't he?" he murmured. "I wonder what kind of child this Ren Uchiha really is. Perhaps I should make time to meet him as well."
Danzo Shimura, who had just sat back down, heard this and stiffened. He shot a wary look at Hiruzen, like a farmer watching a fox near his coop.
That damn monkey... trying to snatch my people again?! I won't let you have him!
Konoha Hospital
After Ren had fainted, Yashiro Uchiha hadn't listened to a word the boy said. Yashiro had no idea Ren could heal himself; seeing those horrific burns, he had panicked and rushed him to the hospital, demanding the best doctor in the village.
Ren was just regaining consciousness when he felt someone prying his eyelids open. He opened his eyes to see a slender, pale hand with rose-red nails.
Behind that hand was a face framed by golden hair, a blue-violet diamond mark on the forehead, and sharp brown eyes.
Ren recognized her instantly: Tsunade-hime!
Tsunade was checking his chakra flow, her brow furrowed. She shook her head with a look of pity—the kind of look a doctor gives a patient with a terminal illness.
Ren's heart leaped with joy. Did I finally do it? Is this body, stuffed with conflicting forbidden jutsus, finally collapsing? Can I finally claim my 'death' insurance?!
"Doctor," Ren asked tentatively, "how am I looking?!"
Tsunade pursed her lips and stood up, sighing. "Tsk, tsk..."
Ren widened his eyes, waiting for the "good" news.
Tsunade continued flatly, "If you had arrived any later... the wounds would have finished healing on their own."
Ren blinked, his face twisting into a look of indignation. This woman is messing with me!
Tsunade smirked. "But fortunately, I arrived fast enough. So, kid, have you thought about how you're going to pay the most expensive consultation fee in Konoha? We take card or cash."
Ren's eyes bulged. "How... how much?!"
Tsunade was about to tease him further when a raspy voice interrupted. "Enough, Tsunade. Stop playing. What is his actual condition?"
Ren turned his head toward the shadows in the corner. His "dear" teacher, Orochimaru, stood there in a black kimono, his golden snake pupils glowing eerily.
Tsunade's tone turned frigid as she looked at Orochimaru. "Orochimaru, did you teach him this mess? Is it a teacher's job to give a student power they can't control? Do you have any idea... this child is dying!"
Orochimaru replied calmly, "I know. I only need you to tell me how much longer he can last."
Tsunade's temper flared. "Orochimaru! How have you become this way?! Forbidden jutsus, playing with lives... and now creating a short-lived humanoid weapon? You've grown too dark!"
"It is for the sake of Konoha!" Orochimaru snapped, his face half-hidden in shadow. "Once the long war between the Stone and the Mist ends, Konoha will face a four-front war! Can the village survive on its own? Can you lead us, Tsunade? Can you even step into an operating room without shaking anymore?"
"Do not waste your pity on an evil Uchiha brat."
Ren blinked, utterly confused. Wait, why are we talking about me? What evil Uchiha? What is happening?
Orochimaru let out a raspy chuckle. He pointed at the bewildered Ren and sneered at Tsunade. "This was his choice. Did you think this kid was some saint? The war reports are fabrications!"
"This boy is cold-blooded and cruel. He has even personally killed his own teammates! He is a greedy, arrogant, 'evil' Uchiha who would do anything for power! He came to me, and I gave him the power he craved in exchange for his life. It was a fair trade. He fights for me, he fights for Konoha, and he pays the price."
"Is that not fair, Tsunade? Do you have any other questions?"
Ren lay on the hospital bed, his jaw hanging open. Since when... did I become an 'evil' Uchiha? Cold-blooded? Killing teammates? Orochimaru, you're just making stuff up now! You're slandering my good name!
Tsunade fell silent under Orochimaru's barrage of lies. Memories of the war—her brother Nawaki blown apart by tags, her lover Dan Katō's organs spilling out—rushed back. Orochimaru's questions cut through her like a scalpel, exposing her hemophobia and her inability to return to the front.
After a long, heavy silence, Tsunade turned away, unable to look Ren in the eye.
"This child..." she whispered. "He has less than two years left to live."
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