Uchiha Tea Party and the Leak of Deadly Intelligence

Afternoon sunlight filtered through the carefully pruned maple leaves in the Uchiha Clan Compound garden, scattering warm, fragmented patches of light across the exquisite Japanese-style corridor. The crisp fragrance of top-grade gyokuro mingled with the faint sweetness of the high-end confection "First Snow," creating an atmosphere of serene elegance, utterly removed from worldly strife.

Mikoto Uchiha wore a pale-purple kimono embroidered with dark war fan patterns and knelt upright at the seat of honor. Every movement she made—from lifting the silver teapot, to pouring hot water into the tea bowl with a tea scoop, to stirring the tea with a bamboo whisk using a deft flick of her wrist—was textbook-perfect, elegant, and unhurried.

Seated opposite her were several high-ranking noblewomen from Konoha. Their husbands were either elders of great clans or Jonin holding important positions. The most eye-catching among them was undoubtedly the woman seated to Mikoto's left: a lady in an exquisite kimono with immaculate makeup—the wife of Yoshikawa, the Daimyo Residence's liaison officer stationed in Konoha, Yoshikawa Keiko.

"The tea at Lady Mikoto's residence is always the finest in Konoha." One of the ladies took a small sip and praised it sincerely. "Only here can one enjoy a moment of peace."

Another immediately chimed in, "Indeed. The atmosphere in the village has felt strange lately. My husband sighs every time he comes home, saying that at the high-level meeting, the Hokage..."

She stopped halfway, as if realizing something, and hurriedly covered her mouth with her sleeve before cautiously glancing at Mikoto.

The Japanese-style room fell silent in an instant. Everyone's gaze, intentionally or otherwise, settled on Mikoto. She was the confidante of the newly appointed Hokage—a fact that had long been an open secret among Konoha's upper circles.

Mikoto seemed not to notice the subtle change in atmosphere.