An Iron-Fisted New Order
Push open the iron door of the makeshift interrogation room.
Kabuto Yakushi was firmly nailed to the restraint chair.
Naruto pulled over an iron chair, straddled it, and slammed the paper and pen onto the iron table in front of Kabuto.
There are three layers of Brain-Destroying Formula in his mind; Mind Reading Technique and Genjutsu will explode at the slightest touch.
Tsunade Hand Seals, pressing her medical Chakra against the top of Kabuto's head, ready to deal with any potential jutsu going berserk.
Naruto casually grabbed a teacup from the table and tapped it. "Write down the key points: mark the core base structure; fill in the blanks: complete the list of locations for the spare test subjects. For every wrong answer, I'll dismantle a joint in your body, starting with your right hand that holds the scalpel."
Dou looked up, his glasses reflecting the stark white light of the interrogation room.
He picked up a pen and drew three outer passages on the map, eventually circling a location called "Northern Ridge" and marking it as the core Reincarnation Laboratory.
Naruto stared at the paper, his mind racing.
I'll do a thorough investigation and expose all the false accounts you've made. Let's see what you can hide then.
"Shizune, bring me the logistics details of the top-grade medicinal herbs procured from the border regions of Land of Grass Land of Rice Fields over the past three years. Focus on checking analgesics and nutrient solutions."
Shizune immediately brought over a stack of files.
Naruto's long, slender fingers flipped quickly through the files, his gaze locking onto a few strings of numbers.
" At the Beiling Outpost, the monthly consumption of painkillers is five hundred doses. However, the ventilation shafts in this area on the map are only large enough to accommodate a maximum of fifty beds."
Naruto grabbed Kabuto by the hair and slammed his face hard onto the table. "Five hundred doses of medicine, sent into a hole that can only hold fifty people. What happened to the remaining four hundred and fifty doses? Were they fed to the dogs?"
Dou's breathing stopped abruptly, and a crack finally appeared on his face, which always wore a gentle smile.
His knuckles protruded as he gripped the pen, the nib pressing hard through the paper.
"Where are the true Coordinates?"
Naruto's voice was as cold as ice.
Dou kept his lips tightly pressed together, his gaze fixed on the torn paper on the table. On the back of the paper, a strange snake-shaped Cursed Seal was slowly revealing a purplish-black outline as it came into contact with the air.
At the same moment, hundreds of kilometers away, deep within the northern underground passage.
Water droplets dripped from the cold, damp rock face.
Sasuke Uchiha stood at a huge crossroads.
Orochimaru did not appear to greet them, but left two messages through the Sound Four: the left path led to the regular barracks, and the right path led to the Reincarnation Laboratory.
Sasuke suddenly felt a burning sensation from the Yang Release mark on his shoulder.
He gritted his teeth, his Sharingan spinning rapidly in the darkness.
While adjusting his wristband, he carved Kunai mark in a blind spot on the stone wall that only Team 7 could understand.
Without hesitation, he stepped onto the right flank.
Deeper into the tunnel, the sound of water gradually faded away.
Two extremely violent and distinctly different female Chakra fluctuations, like venomous creatures lurking in the center of a spider web, quietly rested behind the heavy iron door of the laboratory.
The faint light of the Yang Release Mark flickered in the darkness, a countdown signaling that the hunter had completely locked onto its prey.
On the third day, Hidden Leaf lifted its highest wartime alert.
Tsunade's succession ceremony was held in the most spacious conference room of the Hokage Building.
Outside the gate, the autumn wind swirled fallen leaves across the street. Tsunade personally removed her medical gloves and handed a pure white paper flower to the widow of a fallen ninja. "Hidden Leaf will make up for the outstanding compensation in full, piece by piece."
The noise from the crowd instantly subsided, and several family members covered their mouths, their shoulders trembling uncontrollably.
Inside the meeting room, however, the atmosphere was completely different.
Utatane Koharu finished reading the appointment document, Mitokado Homura coughed and hastily pulled out a supplementary proposal from his sleeve. "Fifth Hokage, to prevent repeating the mistakes of the Third Hokage, we hereby propose that—in the event of a major military operation, the Hokage must obtain the joint signatures of two advisors before mobilizing troops out of the village."
The true intentions are revealed when the map is unrolled.
The higher-ups wanted to use the transition between the old and new leaders to hollow out the Hokage's power and turn him into a mere stamping machine.
Tsunade raised her hand above the Hokage's hat, her emerald green eyes suddenly darkening.
"When the Third Hokage of old men died in the Four Violet Flames Formation, what did you two old geezers sign while hiding in the air-raid shelter?"
A voice, tinged with a hint of mockery and absolute coldness, came from the first row of the audience.
Naruto stood with his hands in his pockets, his military boots casually draped over the back of the chair in front of him, his azure eyes filled with undisguised contempt.
Mitokado Homura's face turned ashen. He slammed his hand on the table. "Insolence! Anbu, seize him!"
As four members of the Anbu wearing animal masks descended from the shadows of the beams, a sudden change occurred in the meeting hall.
Hyuga Hiashi, along with four elite members of the Hyuga Branch Family, stood up in unison, veins bulging at the corners of their eyes.
The Byakugan 'Chakra pressure, exceeding all limits, directly blocked all of the Anbu's escape routes.
In the corner, Kakashi Hatake of "Icha Icha Paradise" shut, his fingertips casually hooking the ring of Kunai.
Naruto didn't even lift an eyelid, leaving the advisor with only a condescending sneer.
Tsunade grabbed the document of seconding the motion from the table and tore it in half with a "rip" in front of everyone. The scraps of paper fell like snowflakes next to the Hokage's hat.
She firmly secured her straw hat on her head, turned, and surveyed the entire scene with overwhelming authority. "From today onward, wartime command, medical reform, and the pursuit of missing-nin will all be under the direct command of the Fifth Hokage! Anyone who wants to put me in this chair, step forward now."
The huge hall was completely silent.
Tsunade the Hokage and slammed it on the table. "First decree: The Kabuto Yakushi 'Hokage interrogation; no one may overstep their authority to interrogate him. Second decree: The command center for the Otogakure cleanup operation three days from now will be located in my office!"
As soon as the ceremony ended, Naruto walked out of the Hokage Building with his hands in his pockets.
Just as I turned off the main street steps, three exceptionally beautiful figures approached from different directions.
Shiro, dressed in a simple kimono, stood steadily in front; Karin peeked out from the left, her red head slightly red, stubbornly refusing to cry; Hinata walked in with small steps from the right path, her eyes still showing the fatigue of staying up all night organizing supplies.
Haku stepped forward, holding a neatly ironed black turtleneck coat, and gently draped it over Naruto's shoulders.
She skillfully buttoned up Naruto's first button, and after confirming there were no new wounds on his shoulder, she very considerately stepped back half a step, giving Hinata the frontmost position, and quietly hung a bag containing top-grade wound medicine on Naruto's waist.
"Naruto-kun..." Hinata's breath hitched, her ears turning bright red. She handed over several thick ledgers with both hands. "The accounts for the Hyuga Clan's shortage of Soldier Pills and medical supplies are all here."
Seeing the gleaming crest of the Main Family on Hinata's Karin, Karin gritted her teeth, shoved a repair list for the Uzumaki Estate into Naruto's arms, and grumbled haughtily, "The mansion's been repaired for three days already, when are you finally going to go see my room!"
The ninjas passing by frequently glanced at the scene, dumbfounded by this top-notch "battleground".