Put the Pressure on Orochimaru

Meanwhile.

Tsunade, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and Orochimaru left the Rear Mountain Cemetery.

The village lay just ahead.

Hiruzen Sarutobi hesitated, then stopped.

"Tsunade, wait."

Tsunade stopped and turned toward the Third Hokage.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression shifted as he weighed his options.

At last, he sighed.

"Leave the First Hokage's remains with me."

He paused, his tone turning grave.

"I want this matter to end here."

Tsunade narrowed her eyes.

She had expected as much.

There was no way Hiruzen Sarutobi would actually let her carry Hashirama's remains home.

But the Third Hokage's eagerness to smooth things over, even to the point of favoring Danzo,

still left a bad taste in her mouth.

She said nothing. She just looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi.

He sighed and lowered his voice.

"Tsunade, since Lord Tobirama's death, the Shinobi World has grown unstable again."

"Cloud and Iwagakure have both been restless lately."

"At a time like this, Konoha cannot afford infighting."

He looked at Tsunade, his eyes troubled.

"You understand what I mean, don't you?"

Tsunade fell silent.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's concerns weren't without reason.

Danzo might be a bastard, but he was still one of Konoha's leaders.

As head of Root, he commanded considerable power and an intelligence network.

Konoha was already under pressure from outside.

If this affair led to an open break with Danzo, became public knowledge, or even caused unrest within the village...

The cost would outweigh the benefit.

What Danzo had done by moving the First Hokage's remains without permission was disgraceful.

But as long as word didn't get out, it would do little damage to Konoha's reputation or stability.

"Konoha is in a difficult position. We can't afford turmoil within the village."

Hiruzen Sarutobi added that with a hint of helplessness.

Tsunade stared at him for a few seconds, then snorted and turned away.

"Fine. I'll let it go this time, for your sake."

"But old man, you'd better take good care of Grandpa's remains. Don't let certain people get their hands on him again."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's face relaxed at once, and he nodded quickly.

"Don't worry. I'll see that he's properly laid to rest."

Then something occurred to him. His expression grew especially stern, and he lowered his voice further.

"One more thing. You must not tell Lady Mito!"

Tsunade rolled her eyes.

"I know, I know. I'm not stupid."

Tell Grandma?

What a joke!

If Mito Uzumaki learned that someone had dug up her husband's grave and kept his body in a tank for research,

with her temper, she might fly into a rage and destroy Danzo along with his entire Root base on the spot.

Only then did Hiruzen Sarutobi breathe a sigh of relief.

As Hashirama's wife and the Nine-Tails' jinchuriki, Mito Uzumaki held an exceptional position in Konoha.

If she found out, all hell really would break loose.

That was probably why Danzo had cowered earlier, not even daring to fight back after being beaten.

Tsunade glanced at Orochimaru, who had remained silent beside her.

Orochimaru gave her a slight nod. He had what they needed.

Then he gently lowered Hashirama's remains from his shoulder.

Hiruzen Sarutobi took a specially made Sealing Scroll from his robes and spread it on the ground.

He formed hand signs, Chakra surging through him.

"Seal!"

A flash of white light swept over the remains, drawing them into the scroll.

Hiruzen Sarutobi rolled it up and carefully tucked it into his robes.

He looked from Tsunade to Orochimaru, then said only,

"That's enough for today. You two should head back."

With that, he turned and strode toward the Hokage Building.

Once Hiruzen Sarutobi had vanished from sight,

Tsunade's displeased, reluctant expression vanished too.

Her face lit up as she hurried over to Orochimaru.

"Got it?"

Orochimaru nodded. A flicker of suppressed excitement crossed his golden slit-pupiled eyes.

"Heh. Nicely done!"

Tsunade grinned and clapped him on the shoulder.

"So how long until you have results? My Bloodline Reversion Plan is counting on this!"

Orochimaru hesitated.

"I can't say for certain."

"You can't say for certain?"

Tsunade's face darkened at once.

She narrowed her eyes at Orochimaru.

"I took a huge risk with you! I put on an act, beat someone up, and nearly broke with Danzo completely, and now you tell me you 'can't say for certain'?!"

She stepped closer, bearing down on Orochimaru without holding back.

Orochimaru swallowed reflexively, his expression stiffening.

"This kind of thing... really is hard to predict."

"Cell research is full of unknowns, especially with the First Hokage's cells. They're far too unusual."

"But I promise I'll produce results as soon as I can."

"And how soon is that?" Tsunade pressed. "Give me a straight answer!"

Orochimaru opened his mouth, intending to offer a conservative estimate, perhaps two or three years.

But when he saw Tsunade's fists clench with an audible crack, he swallowed the words.

He had seen firsthand how Tsunade beat up Jiraiya.

And today, he had seen her make Danzo cough up blood with just two punches.

He had no desire to experience her Monster Strength himself.

"...A year?"

Orochimaru offered the number tentatively.

"A year?!"

Tsunade's voice shot up.

"Are you kidding me?! Three months!"

"What?!"

Orochimaru's eyes widened. His golden slit-pupiled gaze practically screamed, You're the one who's joking.

"Three months? That's impossible! These are the First Hokage's cells. Basic safety testing alone could take—"

"I don't care!"

Tsunade cut him off, planting her hands on her hips as if her word were law.

"I want preliminary results within three months! At least give me a direction or a feasibility report!"

"If you don't..."

She clenched her fist. Her knuckles cracked sharply, and she gave him a smile that was anything but reassuring.

Orochimaru backed down immediately.

"All right."

The words sounded painful coming from Orochimaru.

"I'll... do my best."

"Not your best. You will do it!" Tsunade insisted.

"...I will," Orochimaru forced out through gritted teeth.

Only then did Tsunade nod in satisfaction.

She gave Orochimaru's shoulder a hearty slap.

"That's more like it! Keep up the good work. Once I'm Hokage, I'll double your lab funding!"

With that, she tossed her blond ponytail,

turned, and headed toward the Senju Compound.

With her back to him, Tsunade's lips curled into a sly smile.

Results in three months?

Honestly, even she didn't believe it!

In the original story, Orochimaru had spent who knew how many years researching in secret

before he barely managed to develop an unstable Hashirama Cells transplant technique.

And it came with a pile of side effects.

She didn't expect him to produce some earth-shattering breakthrough in three months.

But she still had to put pressure on him.

Who knew? He might surprise her.

It was like a boss setting targets for an employee in her previous life.

Even when the boss knew the targets were impossible, they set them high.

How else would they bring out that "drive to succeed"?

Now Orochimaru was firmly in the same boat as her.

They each had something they wanted.

She provided the funding; Orochimaru provided the expertise.

As the one footing the bill, she had to be firm!

"Next, I need to keep building good relationships with the shinobi clan ladies."

In high spirits, Tsunade hummed a tune.

She remembered the tea gathering Yamanaka Sora had mentioned, planned for next Wednesday with women from several clans.

"I'll go take a look."

"The more 'good friends' I make, the more votes I'll have when I run for Hokage!"

"Heh. Official business, perfectly legitimate socializing."

As she walked, she planned her next steps.

She couldn't neglect her training.

She needed to keep storing power in her Yin Seal and practicing the Eight Gates.

She had to maintain her relationships with the women of the major shinobi clans.

And every so often, she needed to go "check on" Orochimaru's research progress.

"Being busy is good. Keeps life interesting."

Tsunade stretched, feeling that the future looked bright.