After walking a little farther, a group of figures suddenly appeared on the road ahead.
More than a dozen ninjas in dark uniforms blocked their path. Hiruzen Sarutobi led them, with his good friend—Danzo Shimura—behind him.
Danzo stood in the middle of the road with his cane, his single eye slightly narrowed as his gaze landed precisely on Mirai Uzumaki.
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood beside Danzo, followed by several masked Anbu,
as well as Orochimaru, who should have been heading to the front lines—he stood beneath the shade of a tree, leaning against its trunk with an indifferent expression.
"Tsunade," Danzo spoke, his voice carrying its usual unquestionable authority. "You may leave, but Mirai Uzumaki cannot leave Konoha."
Tsunade stopped walking, her brows knotting together. "Danzo, what are you trying to do now?"
"He is the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki." Danzo's single eye never left Mirai. "If you bring the Jinchuriki to the battlefield and something goes wrong—if the Nine-Tails loses control or he is captured by the enemy—who can bear the consequences?"
Tsunade clenched her fists. "The Land of Whirlpools is Konoha's ally. Mirai is a member of the Uzumaki Clan. What's wrong with him returning to support his homeland?"
"The problem is that he is a Jinchuriki." Danzo's tone was sickening, as though he had no selfish motives at all.
"Can you bear the risk of the Nine-Tails losing control? Can you shoulder that responsibility for the village?"
Tsunade opened her mouth, only to find herself speechless for a moment.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed from the side, stepped forward, and softened his tone slightly:
"Tsunade, Danzo does have a point.
We still don't know how many people outside know that Mirai is a Jinchuriki.
But if he appears on the battlefield in the Land of Whirlpools and is recognized or targeted by