"Tsunade."
Hiruzen Sarutobi put down his pipe and looked at his student.
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
"What am I trying to say?"
Tsunade's smile abruptly vanished, replaced by seriousness.
"I'm saying, old man, you're old. Thoroughly old."
Hiruzen Sarutobi's body trembled slightly.
"Look at Konoha now. It's long since changed."
Tsunade held out her fingers and began counting things off one by one.
"The Uchiha Clan, the Konoha Military Police Force, the Great Love Group, Shimura Danzō, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, the Kumogakure War, the Two-Tails, the Kirigakure War, the Three-Tails, the Fifth Mizukage...
"Old man, tell me, out of everything I just mentioned, which of them had anything to do with you?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi fell silent.
He couldn't refute her.
Every term Tsunade mentioned was like a resounding slap, striking his face one after another.
Seeing Hiruzen Sarutobi remain silent, Tsunade spoke again.
"Old man."
"Hmm?"
"Do you remember what I said when I came back to the village?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked momentarily blank.
"What?"
"The Hokage is nothing but useless! Only an idiot would want to be Hokage!"
Looking at Hiruzen Sarutobi, Tsunade repeated what she had said back then.
"But now I think that needs a little revision."
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at his student.
"The Hokage is indeed useless, but not every Hokage is useless."
Tsunade tore away the last shred of warmth between teacher and student.
"It's just your generation's Hokage who's especially useless."
Hiruzen Sarutobi's aged face froze completely.
Having had her fill, Tsunade turned to leave.
"Whatever. I'm leaving."
Hiruzen Sarutobi instinctively asked, "Where are you going?"
"To the Konoha Military Police Force Building, of course!"
Tsunade waved without looking back.
"I came here today to see what the Fifth Mizukage looked like.
"She's the first woman in the history of the