Tsunade, Kakashi, and Sasuke in Trouble

To Hotaru Hyuga's surprise.

The surgery removed eleven Sharingan from Danzo. The process went very smoothly, and Danzo did not resist.

In Hotaru Hyuga's imagination, Shisui's Mangekyō Sharingan, which should be on Danzo, is not here.

Eleven Sharingan, all of them ordinary Tomoe Sharingan.

This rendered all the elaborate setup that Hotaru Hyuga had put in earlier futile.

"Could it be that he really didn't take Shisui's eyes?" Looking at Danzo unconscious on the ground, Hotaru Hyuga frowned, deep in thought.

"If Shisui's connection is severed, the only charges against Danzo for the Uchiha Clan Massacre will be desecrating corpses and possessing Sharingan..."

The woman who Byakugan was somewhat troubled.

But there was nothing she could do.

After cleaning up the mess, Hotaru Hyuga sighed silently and said to everyone, "That concludes today's mission. Thank you all for your cooperation; you can all go back now."

She took out a scroll, preparing to seal the Sharingan into it.

"Wait a minute, Captain, I have a question!" someone shouted.

Hyuga Hotaru frowned slightly and looked closely. The person who spoke was none other than Uchiha Sasuke.

It was him? It really was...

Unexpected, yet perfectly logical.

"That old bastard really got hit..." Hotaru Hyuga cursed inwardly, but smiled and asked, "Is there something you need, Sasuke?"

"Captain Hyuga," the black-haired boy stared coldly at the eleven Sharingan eyes beside Hotaru Hyuga, his Sharingan, "Give them back to me... These belong to the Uchiha."

Sasuke's tone was quite direct and harsh, implying that he would take it if it wasn't given to him.

"Sasuke Uchiha..." Hotaru Hyuga's smile vanished quickly, replaced by a blank expression as she stared at him. "The Sharingan in my hand is stolen property destined for the Lord Hokage, not something belonging to any clan in Konoha. Do you know what you're doing?"

"I..." Sasuke's tone was cold, the Mitsudomoe in his eyes beginning to spin rapidly, "Give me back my Sharingan!"

"Sasuke!"

Kakashi frowned deeply and tried to stop Sasuke, but the latter shook off his hand and glared at him fiercely. "Please don't stop me, Kakashi!"

Kakashi once again exposed his inadequacy as a teacher: only at this moment did Kakashi realize how much Sasuke valued his clan. Born into a clan, and with his father's dishonorable suicide, Kakashi had never experienced the meaning of clan honor. Therefore, in the original story, he never understood why Sasuke defected; therefore, at this moment, he also couldn't understand why Sasuke would suddenly stand up and directly clash with Hotaru Hyuga for a few Sharingan.

Being publicly slapped and reprimanded by his disciple, Kakashi felt... just like being slapped across the face by Sasuke.

Sadness. Anger. And then... helplessness.

"Stop, Sasuke..." Kakashi realized for the first time how powerless he was.

Hotaru Hyuga frowned.

"I..."

Afterwards, some people gossiped that members of the Uchiha Clan and Hyuga Clan had gotten into a fight at the hospital, bringing the matter to Tsunade.

They described the scene vividly, as if they had actually witnessed the conflict between Sasuke and Hotaru Hyuga. If you were to ask them for more details, the questioner could easily find clues in their answers—the material mostly stemmed from the fierce rivalries that Konoha's two Dōjutsu clans had staged over the past few decades, before the Uchiha was wiped out.

However, the truth is that Hotaru Hyuga took a step back.

He gave his Sharingan to Sasuke.

Although the atmosphere was very tense, no conflict ensued.

In fact, since Hotaru Hyuga had called Sasuke, she was naturally prepared for this scene and had already thought of a solution.

Tsunade neither approved nor disapproved of this proposed solution.

Actually, she also had a bit of a headache.

Normally, this incident would be considered a serious breach of village authority by the Uchiha, requiring severe punishment. In the past, not only would the Sharingan be returned, but Sasuke would also receive a major demerit. However... now, Uchiha is the only Sasuke left, and he's at the age of adolescent rebellion. Being impulsive, acting rashly, and disregarding consequences are characteristics of all boys in this age group after entering adolescence, not just Uchiha problem.

Although the Uchiha lasts a tiny bit longer than the average person's.

If we follow the proper procedures, we'll save face for the village, but Sasuke will be ruined, and Konoha will lose a future top-tier fighter... We also have to consider the relationship between Sakura Haruno and Sakura. Even for Sakura's sake, we can't treat Sasuke so roughly.

Therefore, as an excellent Hokage, for the sake of Konoha's future, one can be a little flexible and not too rigid.

Since Hotaru Hyuga has chosen not to escalate the conflict, Tsunade has much more room to maneuver.

She called Kakashi over.

"I haven't spoken to Sasuke at all these past two days..." Kakashi said with a wry smile as he entered, "It's probably no use asking me about Sasuke's matter."

"Who else should I turn to if not you?" Tsunade scolded irritably. "I haven't even held you accountable yet! As your teacher, how could you be so ignorant about Sasuke and fail to guide your disciple's growth properly! This has led to such a mess."

Wait, you Sasuke into this mission, didn't you? So, you're also partly to blame for this, aren't you?

Kakashi thought to himself.

He hesitated for a moment. "I... um... I'm sorry, Lady Tsunade, this is my dereliction of duty."

Tsunade watched with satisfaction as Kakashi willingly took the blame, and smiled, "Actually, the problem isn't as serious as you think. This time, probing Sasuke's true thoughts was also one of the hidden intentions of the mission. Although the result wasn't the most ideal, it wasn't the worst either! The education of the Will of Fire has had some effect."

"Go and talk to Sasuke! He's just having a temporary tantrum; once he understands, he'll be fine. The key issue isn't the Sharingan; you should understand that. Whether or not he has those eleven Sharingan doesn't affect the village much. What we care about is Sasuke Uchiha himself..."

Sasuke may not have realized that his identity was quite special.

Uchiha Itachi's younger brother, Sakura Haruno's companion, Naruto Uzumaki's companion, and... a promising young talent with the potential to become a Kage.

Each of Sasuke's identities provides him with a layer of protection. Unless he commits an unforgivable crime, Tsunade can't really punish his willfulness severely. She can only put in more effort, do more work, and help him come to his senses and admit his mistakes.

"Alright... I'll do my best." Kakashi scratched his head and sighed, "However, once this kid's thinking gets stuck in a dead end, he won't be able to get out of it anytime soon."

Tsunade smiled and shook her finger.

"Heh heh," she said, giving Kakashi a meaningful look, "You have two trump cards in your hand that could absolutely change Sasuke's mind..."

Kakashi stroked his chin Earth Flow of the Hokage's office.

"The Lord Hokage is right to remind us, but how should we begin? We can't just use our trump card right away..."

As Kakashi walked out of the Hokage Building, he pondered this question while aimlessly Earth Flow through the streets of Konoha.

Then he realized that he had subconsciously arrived at the training ground that the Team 7 used to frequent.

Team Kakashi's first mission, to steal the bell, took place here.

And that's where the story begins.

On the three classic wooden stakes by the sidelines, a boy sat quietly, head down, brows furrowed, as if deep in thought.

Upon seeing each other, they were both taken aback.

"Kakashi-sensei!"

"... Sasuke!" Kakashi called out the boy's name with mixed feelings.

Sasuke Uchiha hesitated for a moment, then jumped off the wooden stake and slowly Earth Flow Kakashi.

The white-haired youth had a headache. What could Sasuke possibly be doing here? He hadn't figured out how to communicate with Sasuke yet... What if Sasuke something rash?

If Sasuke...

Kakashi stared intently as Sasuke approached, until he was right in front of him, and then—

He bowed ramrod straight at a ninety-degree angle.

"I'm sorry, Kakashi-sensei! Well... I shouldn't have treated you that way."

The black-haired boy said sincerely.

"Hmm...?" Kakashi was taken aback, then patted Sasuke on the shoulder and laughed, "I accept your apology, Sasuke!"

She's not as immature as I thought.

Kakashi was secretly delighted.

[Now you should believe me, I got up at seven to write this.]