Deep in the dense forest at the Land of Rivers Border, Sakumo's temporary Anbu base lay hidden behind a mountain ravine where three waterfalls overlapped.
A curtain of water concealed the entrance, while the exit backed onto a sheer cliff. Layers of Explosive Tag Arrays covered the interior and exterior, leaving no gaps in its defenses.
When Maki arrived with his squad, Sakumo was crouched at the entrance, leisurely whittling a branch with his White Fang Chakra Blade.
He was not making a trap. He was carving a crutch.
The bandages around his left arm were two layers thicker than at their last meeting. The pale purple poison stains had faded to light gray, but the entire arm was clearly impaired, stiffening at even the slightest movement.
The moment Tsunade and Maki's group entered the base, Tsunade strode forward without a word and pushed Sakumo down onto a wooden crate.
She briskly tore away the old bandages. The soothing green glow of the Mystical Palm Technique flared to life, illuminating her stern profile.
"There's more residual puppet poison than we estimated."
"These Sunagakure elites switched to a completely new formula. It contains an agent that inhibits platelet aggregation. Even if the surface wound heals, the tissue underneath will keep bleeding and becoming inflamed."
Without pausing, Tsunade deftly took a newly formulated antagonist from her medical kit. With a turn of her fingers, the needle slid precisely into a vein in Sakumo's left arm. Her hand was as steady as a top surgeon's as she injected the drug.
"Your left arm absolutely cannot handle any more intense combat. You need at least a full week of detoxification treatment. Don't give me that defiant look. You're Konoha's White Fang, not immortal."
"If White Fang loses the use of an arm because he