Nawaki Attacked

"Here, this is for you." Tsunade handed him a kunai.

"Uh, thanks." Keiko accepted the kunai with a trace of disdain, unable to keep himself from grumbling inwardly. She's the Princess of Konoha, and for my birthday she just casually gives me a kunai? That's way too perfunctory.

As if seeing through Keiko's thoughts, Tsunade said unhappily, "Don't underestimate this kunai. It's a relic left behind by my second granduncle, and it even has his Flying Raijin Formula on it! If it weren't your birthday, I wouldn't bear to give it to you!"

"Oh! Really? A relic of Lord Tobirama? Then it's incredibly precious!" Keiko immediately regarded the kunai seriously. Sure enough, the hilt bore the Second Hokage Tobirama's distinctive formula. It was the real deal!

"Oh, right. I'm going back to Konoha tomorrow," Tsunade said.

"Huh? Didn't you say you'd be supporting Sunagakure for three years? It hasn't even been a year yet, so why..." Keiko was puzzled.

"It's just a temporary trip back. A letter came from the village saying that Lord Torifu Akimichi's old injury has flared up. Apparently, it's rather dangerous. The Hokage wants me to go take a look. I performed his surgery, so I have to see it through," Tsunade explained.

"Mm, then you do need to go back. I'll arrange for someone to escort you."

"No need, don't make such a fuss. I'll go back alone. If all goes well, I'll be back in half a month." Tsunade smiled.

"Fine. Put the travel expenses on my tab," Keiko said.

"Okay, thanks." Tsunade's smile brightened even further.

Hourglass Ninja Tools Factory, Shule River, Amegakure

Rasa carefully ground the blade, occasionally lifting it to test its sharpness before sprinkling on some water and continuing. His management style differed from Keiko's. Keiko set out clear rules, and everyone simply followed them.

Rasa was different. He always felt that he was not particularly gifted, so he led by example and handled everything personally. Whenever he had no administrative matters to deal with, he would spend the day in the production workshop, eating and working alongside the laborers. As a result, he commanded tremendous prestige among the workers, and nearly every employee in the factory respected him.

"Done! Take it to have the handle fitted." At last, Rasa was satisfied with the blade blank in his hand and passed it directly to the next assembly worker. He picked up a towel, wiped away his sweat, and gave up his station to another worker. After all, he was the factory director and had many other important matters to attend to. He could not truly spend every day producing goods in the workshop.

This assembly-line method had also been proposed by Keiko. The production of a ninja sword was divided into a forging team, a hammering team, a grinding team, and an assembly team. This new work model not only greatly improved production efficiency but also ensured the secrecy of Damascus Steel forging to the greatest extent possible.

The factory's most crucial technology—the casting process for Damascus Steel blanks—remained firmly in the hands of the dozen or so senior craftsmen personally taught by Keiko at the very beginning. This forging workshop was closed to outsiders, and Keiko had even specifically assigned ten Sunagakure jonin to handle workshop security full-time.

Every senior smith also received extremely high wages and generous benefits. At the ninja tools factory, they ate special meals and lived in private rooms. Every senior craftsman owned a detached private apartment in Moon Lake New District, while their family members were assigned jobs by the village there.

Their children could also receive free education. The forging workshop workers operated on three shifts, and each shift received three months of leave to reunite with their families in Moon Lake New District. This was an age of war, after all. Many people were still suffering under the devastation of conflict, while many others struggled on the brink of starvation. Having such benefits was practically a heavenly existence.

Without exception, all the senior craftsmen were deeply grateful to Keiko and Rasa and were utterly loyal to the factory. During this period, the Land of Crafts had sent several batches of corporate spies to poach senior craftsmen and extract the secret of Damascus Steel, but the workers had captured them on their own initiative. What a joke. The pathetic amount they offered would not even buy enough toilet paper, yet they wanted to poach a senior craftsman like him? In their dreams!

"General Manager, Mr. Shibuya, the representative of the Lightning Country trade caravan, has arrived. He's waiting in the reception room." Karura, serving as the general manager's assistant, came to Rasa carrying a stack of documents.

Rasa immediately put on a warm smile. "Have them wait a moment. Make them some good tea. I'll be there after I change clothes."

"You all keep at it. Tell the kitchen to stew fish for lunch as an extra meal," Rasa instructed the workers as he turned away. The workers burst into cheers.

"What?! Two thousand ninja swords! Three thousand pairs of tactical boots! Five thousand tactical vests! And thirty thousand cans of food! All to be delivered within three months! Mr. Shibuya, are you joking with me? Do you know how far our orders are booked out? Until June next year! It's not that I don't want to make money. I truly can't do it."

Rasa rolled his eyes as he looked over the order in front of him, making a helpless gesture at the visitor. Karura, standing beside him, used a folder to hide her face as she struggled not to laugh aloud. In her eyes, Rasa had always been the type to wear a bitter expression and rarely smile. Yet after less than a year as general manager, he had actually become so worldly and smooth.

"General Manager Rasa, I know this is difficult, but the fighting at the front is intense right now. The Hidden Cloud soldiers urgently need this batch of supplies. I gave the Third Raikage my word. Please, you must help me. I beg you." Mr. Shibuya gave Rasa a deep ninety-degree bow.

"Ah, Mr. Shibuya, there's no need for this. We're old friends. By all rights, I should help you, but supplies can't just appear out of thin air."

"I'm willing to pay a twenty percent premium!" Shibuya's eyes were already bloodshot. This matter had clearly put him under enormous pressure.

"More money..." Rasa stroked his chin and secretly signaled Karura with his eyes. Karura considered it for a moment, then shook her head slightly.

"There's no need to add money." Rasa spoke as though he had made an extremely difficult decision. Mr. Shibuya froze.

"Mr. Shibuya is no stranger. He's a friend I value deeply and an important business partner. I won't let the Raikage chop off your head. Karura, immediately notify Factory Director Yura and all workshop supervisors to hold a meeting. The Hourglass Group is taking this order!" Rasa slapped the order with imposing force.

"Thank you, thank you." Mr. Shibuya excitedly gripped Rasa's hand, tears seeming to swirl in his eyes.

"The price will not increase, but there will be no discount either. Your order is too urgent, after all. The workers will need to work overtime."

"Of course, of course." Mr. Shibuya still would not let go of Rasa's hand.

"Of course, it would be even better if you could pay in cash."

"I've already brought the payment. I can pay immediately."

"Ah, Brother Shibuya, you can finally sleep soundly. I'm the one who won't be able to sleep now." Rasa rolled his eyes and stared up at the ceiling. Karura was already trembling from holding back laughter. Using the excuse of notifying people about the meeting, she went straight to the warehouse to count the inventory. What a joke. How could such a large factory keep running without some stock on hand?

"Get up! Get up, Nawaki! Get up!" Tsunade screamed hoarsely in the rain. Her hands released chakra desperately and without restraint as she performed the Palm Healing Jutsu.

The half-grown boy beneath her had already begun breathing weakly, exhaling more than he inhaled. Blood continued to pour from his chest and abdomen. The ghastly wound in his chest was especially horrific; faintly, one could even see organs still twitching inside. He was clearly not going to survive.

"Give up, Tsunade. Don't waste your chakra. Nawaki can't be saved," Orochimaru said sorrowfully behind her.

Hiruzen, Danzo, Mitokado Homura, and Utatane Koharu slowly gathered around as well. Their faces were filled with grief as they looked at Tsunade, who still refused to give up, their gazes full of sympathy.

Nawaki was the grandson of the First Hokage, Hashirama. This group had watched him grow up. Everyone liked the child who dreamed of becoming Hokage. Yet his dream was about to be extinguished before it had even begun. It was truly heartbreaking.

"Those damned Hidden Mist bastards act no differently from bandits! I say we send troops to punish them directly and wipe them out!" Danzo gritted his teeth in fury, as though he wanted to devour the perpetrators alive.

This was what had happened: in order to punish Hidden Mist for its repeated provocations against Konoha, the Third Hokage had organized a targeted purge. For a time, every Hidden Mist outpost and base secretly established within the Land of Fire had been swept away.

Unexpectedly, the operation was quickly met with frenzied retaliation from Hidden Mist. Unable to defeat Konoha's regular forces, the Hidden Mist ninja turned their attention to civilians and children who lacked the ability to protect themselves. Nawaki, who had been playing outside the village, had accidentally stepped into an Explosive Tag trap set by Hidden Mist ninja. His life now hung by a thread.

"Give up. It's no use. Let the child go peacefully," Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed helplessly.

"Shut up, you old bastard." Tsunade ignored Hiruzen's attempts to persuade her.

"His heart and liver are severely damaged. It seems his kidneys and spleen are injured as well. Even if you exhaust all your chakra, this child will only live for another hour at most—unless you can immediately gather fully compatible organs and transplant them into Nawaki. That's nothing but a fantasy. Give up, Tsunade." Orochimaru placed a hand on Tsunade's shoulder and tried to persuade her.

"What did you say?!" Tsunade looked at Orochimaru with the gaze of someone ready to devour him. That icy killing intent made even these battle-hardened people shudder.

"Organ... transplant. Organ... transplant..." Tsunade muttered to herself. Suddenly, her eyes lit up, and she looked toward Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"Old man! You three, use the Flying Thunder God Formation right now and send Nawaki and me to Sunagakure! My second granduncle's Flying Thunder God marked kunai is there, and I have a laboratory in Sunagakure. I can save Nawaki! Hurry! Hurry! Hurry!"