Chapter 266: Decisions

Inside the operating room.

Tsunade held onto Uzumaki Karen's arm, her gaze fixated on the bite marks on her disciple's arm, questioning her with a stern expression. She immediately realized that the method Karen used to heal Sasuke was not any medical ninjutsu.

"Lady Tsunade, I actually… possess a unique constitution. Anyone who bites me can draw Yang Release chakra from my body, thereby healing their injuries," Karen explained cautiously, a hint of panic in her voice.

"Why haven't you ever mentioned this to me before?" Tsunade asked, furrowing her brow.

"Before I came to Konoha, I accidentally revealed my abilities and got captured by ninjas from a small village, becoming their 'medical pack.' It took me a great deal of effort to escape... Since then, I've been hiding my abilities, fearing I would be targeted again," Karen recounted her distressing past, her eyes dimming.

Shizune, Sasuke, and the others in the room couldn't help but be moved by her story.

Seeing her disciple's pitiable state, Tsunade softened her approach, releasing Karen's arm, "Karen, you're not just a commoner, are you? Tell me, what's your surname?"

Instinctively, Tsunade felt there was a connection between Karen and Sasuke's encounter, and Karen's true identity might hold the key to this mystery.

Karen seemed hesitant to answer, possibly due to some difficulties, but Tsunade needed to know. Only by understanding what trouble her disciple was in could she find a way to help, rather than waiting until it was too late.

"I…"

Karen hesitated, unsure whether to tell the truth. When she first came to Konoha, she even dyed her distinctive red hair black, always being cautious to hide her true identity.

Just then.

"Her surname is Uzumaki, Uzumaki Karen," a voice suddenly came from outside the operating room, followed by the sound of the door being pushed open.

Kakashi and Itachi, along with several Anbu ninjas, burst into the room, surrounding Karen.

Sasuke, relieved to see reinforcements arrive, knew his mission was complete. Karen's face paled, and her body began to tremble uncontrollably.

Tsunade, noticing her disciple's unusual behavior, felt a sense of foreboding and asked again, "Karen, are you really from the Uzumaki clan? Why hide such a thing?"

She didn't understand. In Tsunade's view, Konoha, the supposed ally, definitely had some responsibility in the destruction of the Uzumaki clan. Konoha owed the Uzumaki clan.

"Lady Tsunade, this is the situation," Kakashi stepped forward, handing Tsunade a paper crane from Konan and revealing the truth.

It turned out that Uzumaki Karen was actually a spy from the Akatsuki organization. Her purpose in approaching Tsunade was to gather secret intelligence about Konoha.

As for why Karen was reluctant to reveal her true identity, it was because her superior – the current leader of the Akatsuki – was the 'demon fox brat' from Konoha, Uzumaki Naruto. The two were from the same clan.

Konan's paper crane was Karen's death warrant.

Karen knew she had no chance of escaping with her own strength. She couldn't fall into the hands of Konoha's Anbu. Fearing severe torture and the potential betrayal of Naruto and teacher Konan, Karen prepared a suicide pill.

Thinking of this, she slipped a pill from her sleeve, ready to take her own life. Swallowing the pill at the right moment would not only kill her instantly but also destroy her brain tissue, leaving Konoha's intelligence department clueless.

However, just as Karen, sweating profusely, was about to commit suicide, Tsunade intervened.

"Kakashi, just because of a mysterious paper crane, you accuse my disciple of such a serious crime and barge into the operating room to capture her. Do you think that's appropriate?" Tsunade said, burning the paper crane in front of everyone on an alcohol lamp and watching it turn to ashes.

Then, she shielded Karen behind her, standing between her and Kakashi and Itachi.

Unexpectedly, no one anticipated Tsunade would do this.

Kakashi's expression changed, then he persuaded, "Lady Tsunade, please don't make it difficult for us. If you're worried, you can accompany us to the intelligence department and observe Karen's interrogation. I assure you the process will be fair and just. If she's innocent, I, as head of the Anbu, will take all responsibility."

Tsunade, however, was not persuaded, frowning coldly, "Are you threatening me, Kakashi? And you, Uchiha Itachi, Karen saved your brother, yet you repay her kindness by capturing her. Don't you think you're going too far?"

As soon as she finished speaking, a powerful surge of energy erupted from Tsunade without warning, sweeping through the entire operating room.

Crack.

The ground under her feet cracked like a spider web, spreading from the floor to the walls.

The Anbu present, including Kakashi and Itachi, all changed color, involuntarily stepping back.

Such was the formidable aura of Tsunade, so powerful that she could intimidate opponents without even moving a finger.

"Lady Tsunade…"

Karen Uzumaki, looking at Tsunade shielding her, felt tears welling up in her eyes.

Five years ago, she had volunteered to leave the Akatsuki and come to Konoha alone to become a spy.

After a simple investigation, she targeted Tsunade.

Thus.

From excelling in the ninja academy, showcasing her astounding talent as a medical ninja, to catching Tsunade's attention and being taken as her disciple, Karen's plan had progressed smoothly.

Perhaps it was her high aptitude in medical ninjutsu, her personality that resonated with Tsunade, or maybe it was Tsunade's loneliness due to her age.

In any case, Tsunade cared extraordinarily for Karen, investing a lot of time and effort, nurturing her like a daughter.

And Karen.

Since her mother's death, for so many years, she had felt maternal love from Tsunade for the first time.

But for the sake of the organization, she had to exploit Tsunade, extracting information about Konoha from her.

This caused Karen immense internal turmoil, living each day in pain and self-loathing beneath her seemingly optimistic and lively exterior.

Thus, death for Karen seemed almost like a release.

At this moment.

Seeing Tsunade standing up to protect her, even knowing she was a spy, Karen couldn't control herself anymore, and tears of gratitude overflowed.

Then, her voice emerged from behind Tsunade.

"Lady Tsunade, they are right, I am a spy from the Akatsuki. I've been deceiving you all this time, I'm sorry."

Karen stepped forward, breaking the tense silence in the room, then spoke to Kakashi and Itachi, "Gentlemen, Lady Tsunade was completely unaware of my identity from the beginning. I hope you will not make things difficult for her."

Despite Tsunade's determination to protect Karen, she didn't want to cause any trouble for Tsunade, the woman who was both a mentor and a mother figure to her.

"Karen, you…"

Tsunade once again grabbed her disciple's arm, her face filled with anger, as if she was about to explode, but ultimately—

She slowly released her hand.

Karen admitting her identity as a spy meant that even Tsunade couldn't protect her anymore.

However, Kakashi and Itachi didn't immediately move to arrest her. Instead, they exchanged glances, stepped aside, and cleared a path.

Following this, an immense, invisible pressure, like a tidal wave, surged from outside the room, filling the entire operating room and making it feel like being under a hundred meters of water.

Almost suffocating.

The presence arrived before the person.

And there was only one person in all of Konoha with such a dominating aura, surpassing even Tsunade's.

The Sixth Hokage, Uchiha Dan.

A tall and imposing figure, Dan walked into the operating room, like a god descending.

Thud.

Karen collapsed on the spot, shaking all over, her expression filled with terror.

In Dan's presence, she couldn't even stand steady.

Tsunade's face turned pale as well.

The Sixth Hokage, Uchiha Dan, privately said to be the greatest Hokage in history, was also the laziest. He seldom concerned himself with the village's affairs, leaving almost everything to his subordinates.

But now.

His personal presence underscored the severity of the situation.

Karen's fate seemed sealed.

However, the development that followed once again defied everyone's expectations.

Dan's gaze swept through the operating room, finally resting on Karen, his eyes showing an inscrutable light.

After a moment of suffocating silence.

"Make your choice, Uzumaki Karen," Dan suddenly spoke, uttering an enigmatic phrase.

"Choose... what?" Karen looked up at the god-like, towering figure, her voice trembling.

"Whether to stay or leave, the choice is yours," Dan declared astonishingly, making a promise to Karen, "If you agree to cut ties with the Akatsuki and stay, continuing to be with Tsunade, then it will be as if nothing happened. But if you wish to leave, that's also possible, and no one will stop you."

As his words fell, everyone's eyes widened in shock.

Ignoring the stunned crowd, Dan moved to a chair nearby and sat down, crossing his legs:

"I'll give you one minute to think about it."

After saying this, Dan crossed his arms and closed his eyes to meditate.

Then, swiftly, everyone's gaze fell on Karen Uzumaki, waiting for her decision.

The condition laid out by the Hokage was incredibly lenient.

If she betrayed the Akatsuki and sided with Konoha, her past crimes would be overlooked.

Conversely, if she chose to leave, she could do so unharmed, without facing any punishment.

Time kept ticking away.

Ten seconds, thirty seconds, fifty seconds.

This one minute, though brief, felt endlessly long for Karen.

Logically, after hearing Dan's promise, she shouldn't have hesitated, she could have left the room and Konoha immediately.

After all.

It was Naruto and teacher Konan who had rescued Karen from the nightmare in the Grass Village, giving her a new lease on life.

She owed them gratitude.

But thinking of Lady Tsunade, the care and love she had received over the years, and Tsunade's recent unhesitating protection...

Karen's heart was torn with conflict.

Finally.

"Time's up," Dan said calmly, opening his eyes again.

Karen clenched her fists, after a fierce internal struggle, she looked at Tsunade and with all her courage said, "I'm sorry, Lady Tsunade."

Then, without waiting for Tsunade's response, Karen rushed towards the window and leaped out.

"Karen…"

Tsunade murmured her disciple's name, clearly devastated, collapsing onto a chair as if her strength had been drained.

Silence.

The operating room fell into a deathly quiet, no one speaking.

After a moment.

"Take Sasuke to the ward for rest."

Shizune was the first to break the silence, arranging for Sasuke to be moved to a ward.

Kakashi and Itachi exchanged glances, then bowed to Dan and left with the Anbu.

Only Tsunade and Dan remained in the operating room.

Time passed.

"That child, her temperament is so much like mine. She's an Uzumaki, no wonder she's hot-tempered and straightforward..." Tsunade suddenly spoke, recalling Karen, and sighed, "I always treated her like my own daughter."

Dan looked at Tsunade, puzzled, "If you want a daughter so badly, why not have one of your own? Your own child won't betray her mother."

"Well, that's not necessarily true. The ancestor of your Uchiha clan, the Sage of Six Paths, betrayed his mother and sealed her in the moon, didn't he?" Tsunade retorted with a cold laugh, "And your daughter Marissa, I've heard she's quite rebellious, constantly challenging you. As she grows up, she might betray you one day."

Dan shook his head, "No, that's just a game between us, a kind of joy. You wouldn't understand. You'll know once you have a daughter of your own."

"And have a child with whom?" Tsunade rolled her eyes, clearly irritated.

Dan, ever so enthusiastic, offered, "Honestly, considering our many years of friendship, I can help you. It would be a good deed, continuing the Senju lineage..."

"Get out!"

Before Dan could finish, Tsunade stood up and rebuked him, cutting off his nonsense.

"Alright."

Dan's intention was to distract Tsunade, to ease her pain a bit, and having achieved his goal, he stood up, ready to leave.

But as he reached the door.

"Wait!"

Tsunade suddenly called out to Dan, her voice weary, "Do you have time to have a drink with me?"

Since quitting gambling.

Seems like drowning her sorrows in alcohol was the only way left to cope with such unhappiness.

Dan thought for a moment, then said, "I have a few bottles of fine wine in my office, a fifty-year vintage gifted by a merchant from the Wind Country."

"Let's go."

Tsunade strode past Dan, the first to leave the operating room.