Hokage Office.
Tsunade snatched the documents Shizune handed her.
Since she'd only been sitting in the big chair for a minute, Shizune was still doing most of the heavy lifting.
Tsunade honestly had no clue how many members of the Kurama clan were even left.
She flipped open the file and blinked in surprise.
"Is this it? Just one?"
Tsunade didn't mean the Kurama clan had been wiped out to the last man, but rather that among those who actually inherited the clan's Kekkei Genkai, there was only one with enough talent to be worth Makoto's time.
The rest of the Kurama clan members were simply embarrassing.
Take the current clan head, Kurama Unkai—what kind of joke was his power level?
Any enemy who could get their ass beat by kid Naruto basically didn't make the cut for this mission.
Look at Black Zetsu; he single-handedly ruined the prestige of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen early on.
Kurama Unkai was in the same boat of mediocrity.
That left only Kurama Yakumo.
But even she came with significant baggage.
This made Tsunade feel a bit awkward.
While reviewing Yakumo's detailed medical history, she kept stealing secret glances at Makoto.
She had fully braced herself for Makoto to roast her or make a snide comment, but surprisingly, he didnt said a word since she arrived.
The silence was actually way worse!
It made Tsunade incredibly uncomfortable.
"Kurama Yakumo has some serious physical and mental health issues. We need to inform her home tutor, Yuhi Kurenai. Shizune, I'm leaving this to you."
Tsunade rolled up the scroll and shoved it toward Shizune.
"Got it." Shizune nodded briskly, turning to leave to find Kurenai.
"Wait."
Tsunade stopped her. "Take this news to her as well."
"Alright... uh, Lady Tsunade, are you serious?"
Shizune instinctively agreed, but when she peeked at the scroll, her face dropped.
It was the notice of Asuma's death.
'Good grief.'
'We had temporarily withheld this info back then, and now Tsunade-sama wanted to drop this news on her at the exact same time she was asking for a favor?'
"Should I have Yugao go with you?"
Tsunade knew exactly how messed up this situation was.
If it weren't so awkward, she would have summoned Kurenai and told her face-to-face.
Sending Shizune was a way out so she wouldn't have to deal with the tears.
As for sending Yugao along... well, Yugao had recently lost Hayate Gekko.
Sharing that similar suffering might make the pill easier to swallow.
"Alright then, Yugao, you're coming with me." Shizune had no choice but to agree.
Waiting in the Hokage's office, Tsunade started regretting her decision after about five minutes.
She really should have just gone with them.
The atmosphere in the office was suffocating—everyone was standing around silently, pretending to be deep in thought.
Fortunately, Yuhi Kurenai arrived quickly.
Judging by her makeup, Kurenai didn't seem to have been crying her eyes out; she was holding it together with strong self-control.
Perhaps it was because she and Asuma hadn't officially confirmed their relationship yet.
Or maybe learning about her student Yakumo's situation triggered her "sense of duty," forcing her to shove the grief down to handle official business first.
In any case, Kurenai's arrival broke the weird vibe in the room.
"Everyone, please follow me."
Kurenai stared blankly for a second at the room full of legendary dead people before snapping back to reality.
Kurama Yakumo was living in a mountain villa on the outskirts of Konoha.
On the walk to the villa, Tsunade tugged at her grandfather's sleeve, and the two deliberately slowed down, falling to the back of the pack.
Once she was sure they were out of earshot, Tsunade started grilling Tobirama.
She briefly explained her history with Makoto to the Second Hokage—from the time she disguised herself as a kid and Makoto called her out as an "old hag," to their formal meeting where he spoke to her without a shred of respect.
But now?
Now that Makoto was clearly in the right, and she was waiting for him to rub it in her face so she could apologize but the guy was giving her the silent treatment.
"Here's the deal with Makoto. I've pretty much figured out his character," Tobirama said, sounding like an expert psychologist.
"His previous blunt remarks? That meant he actually considered you a friend. Between friends, there's no need for formal pleasantries or fake politeness."
"However, your repeated suspicions toward him have exhausted that trust. He has nothing left to say to you. As an outsider, your suspicion was logical, so he doesn't blame you for it—he just doesn't care anymore."
Tobirama didn't actually know if he was right, but he figured this was the best way to lecture Tsunade at the moment.
And it worked.
Upon hearing this, Tsunade felt guilt wash over her.
She remembered the Third Hokage mentioning that the Fifth Mizukage and Fourth Tsuchikage were closed with Makoto during the Chunin Exams.
It confirmed that Makoto really was that kind of guy—loyalty for loyalty.
"So... is he.... the legendary 'Reverse Uchiha'?" Tsunade asked, confused.
After hearing her second grandfather rant about the Uchiha for hours, combined with her own memories, she understood the Uchiha dynamic.
Before you gain Uchiha recognition, you're just a stray dog to them—they don't give a damn if you live or die.
But once you cross that line, the Uchiha will love you with an intensity that's borderline psychotic!
According to her second grandfather, Makoto was the exact opposite.
He started out warm and enthusiastic, but if you did things to "lower his favorability," he would eventually treat you like a stray dog—indifferent to your existence.
"Don't compare the Uchiha with that kid—that's an insult to him," Tobirama corrected sharply.
"Alright, I get it. After we finish this mission, I'll take the initiative to apologize." Tsunade made up her mind to swallow her pride and beg for forgiveness later.
The group finally arrived at the villa. Kurenai opened the door to reveal Kurama Yakumo inside, painting a canvas.
Seeing a mob of legends gathered at her doorstep, the girl immediately panicked.
As a shut-in with almost zero social contact, Yakumo looked like she was about to hyperventilate.
Inside her mind, the dark entity began scratching at the walls, stirring restlessly.
"Kurenai-sensei, wh-what is this?" Yakumo shrunk her neck, trying to hide.
Were these people brought by Kurenai-sensei to execute her?
"Yakumo, don't be afraid. They just need your help with something," Kurenai reassured her gently before turning to the group.
"Yakumo has always been frail. That's why I advised her to quit being a ninja. As you know, extracting Chakra requires mixing physical and spiritual energy. For her, extracting Chakra from her cells essentially eats away at her life force..."
"Poor health, you say?" Orochimaru glanced at the First Hokage.
Normally, physical issues like this had a universal fix: Hashirama Cells.
But that clearly wasn't an option here.
With her paper-thin constitution, she wouldn't be able to suppress the potent Yang energy of Hashirama's cells and she will turn into a tree instantly.
This situation required a targeted, gradual medical approach.
The timing was too tight.
If he had a month to study those Otsutsuki cells Makoto had, he might have come up a solution.
But right now? Orochimaru had nothing, so he kept his mouth shut.
Tsunade was thinking the same thing.
Usually, for poor health, the answer is "train" and taijutsu.
But her Creation Rebirth technique—which forces cell division—would just kill the girl faster.
"It's not just a physical issue, is it? didn't you mention 'physical and mental problems' back in the office?"
Makoto cut through the medical debate and looked straight at Kurenai.
At those words, Kurama Yakumo, who had been cowering behind her teacher, went pale as a ghost.