Only two days later, Yuna received a report that Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane managed to break out of Konoha’s prison and fled the village, causing Yuna to nod in approval.
Naturally, these two old-timers wouldn’t be kept in a highly secured place, making it possible for Sasuke to get in and out without being noticed. Unlike Danzo, who could at least back his position as one of Konoha’s elders with his strength, Homura and Koharu only had the role due to their age and their friendship with Hiruzen.
Well, considering Danzo had implanted Hashirama’s cells and eleven Sharingan into himself and only reached a power level that was more or less around an average Kage, his true skill probably wasn’t that great either.
Anyway, Yuna was currently seated in Tsunade’s office with a casual smile on her face, while Tsunade was looking at her in irritation.
“Well, like always, whatever happened, I’m entirely innocent and have not in any shape, form, or fashion participated in whatever is currently irritating you, Tsunade.”
Tsunade’s eyebrow twitched in irritation when she heard Yuna’s usual claim of innocence before she pushed the annoying feeling down and started speaking.
“Well, considering how ridiculous your information network is, I assume you received a report about two of Konoha’s previous elders breaking out from prison?”
Yuna rolled her eyes at Tsunade’s question and nodded her head in acknowledgment.
“Obviously. If I wanted to, I could get a daily report about how often the Tsuchikage stabbed his life-sized puppet of me; he commissioned a craftsman to make, so I obviously know about something as big as a prison break.”
Tsunade paused for a moment to digest Yuna’s answer, but the longer she thought about it, the more confused she became, so she decided to simply ask Yuna for confirmation.
“I’m sorry, but did I hear you correctly? The Tsuchikage has a life-sized puppet of you?”
“Mhh? Yeah, he commissioned it after the training dummy that had my picture on it broke apart due to too many kunai getting stuck in it.”
“W-Why does he keep stabbing objects that look like you.”
Yuna pondered Tsunade’s question for a short moment before shrugging her shoulders.
“I heard it’s for stress relief, but I’m honestly not sure.”
Tsunade had a lot of questions. For example, she would really like to know how Yuna manages to gather that kind of information, but right now, there was one question that she needed answered more than any other.
“On a totally unrelated note, do you know the craftsman who did the job?”
Tsunade cursed herself after that question left her mouth. She wanted to casually guide Yuna through a conversation that would smoothly reveal the name of the craftsman at the end, but the mere thought of stabbing a kunai into a puppet that looked like Yuna made her blurt out the question instantly.
Tsunade took a deep breath to calm her nerves before taking a sip of tea to mask how flustered she actually was. Unfortunately, that was a mistake…
“Of course, I know him; he is part of my Uzumaki clan, after all.”
*SPLURT*
Tsunade performed a splendid spit-take, which Yuna dodged by ducking her head under the table.
“Another amazing spit-take. You are really getting good at this, Tsunade.”
“*Cough* *Cough* D-Did you just say that someone from the Uzumaki clan made the puppet? A-Are you fine with that?”
“Mhh? Yeah? Why wouldn’t I be?”
“W-Well, isn’t it weird that someone is creating puppets that look just like you so that other people can stab them?”
A contemplative look, combined with deep sadness, appeared on Yuna’s face as she slightly lifted her head, giving her a mysterious and melancholy air.
“*Sigh* There is nothing that can be done about that, Tsunade. Just look at me. It is only natural for others to want to gaze at my beauty every day, making them desperate enough to even craft puppets of me. The sad fate of someone as blessed as me.”
When Tsunade saw Yuna’s facial expression, she initially thought there was some complex reason behind Yuna’s actions, but as soon as Yuna started speaking, Tsunade’s face deadpanned.
“I see, so you decided to ignore the stabbing part.”
“Geez, Tsunade, you should go with the time. Isn’t the Tsuchikage’s behavior relatively straightforward? It’s called being a tsundere, Tsunade.”
“Pretty sure it isn’t.”
Yuna was slightly startled by Tsunade’s claim, but she quickly calmed down when she realized that Tsunade was already pretty old and might not understand the current trend.
“I feel like you just thought something rather rude, but whatever. Shall we get to today’s main topic?”
“Right, you wanted to know the craftsman that makes puppets of me.”
“*Ugh* The usual headache is kicking in. No, I was talking about the two elders who broke out of Konoha’s prison.”
“Ohh~ right. I completely forgot about that. So, what about them.”
“Did you help them escape so you can kill them, Yuna? If I remember, you had a grudge against those two as well.”
Yuna gave Tsunade a weirded-out look before wagging her finger at her.
“Nonono, Tsunade. A grudge? Wouldn’t that mean that I acknowledge them as something more than an insect that can be squished instantly? I do not hold a grudge against them. Them being permitted to continue living was solely based on the fact that the one minute it would take me to find and kill them is worth more than their lives in my eyes.”
Tsunade pondered Yuna’s domineering words before she nodded her head in understanding. Naturally, she wouldn’t dismiss Yuna so easily.
“Okay, I believe that you weren’t the one to help them escape, but there are still quite a few people in your circle left that I think could do so as well. What about them?”
“Mhh, fine, let me put it like that. I guarantee you that the Uzumaki clan and those they have relations with were not involved in this incident and that they did not gain any benefits from it.”
A frown appeared on Tsunade’s face when she heard Yuna’s phrasing. Obviously, there were quite a few loopholes in how Yuna formulated her sentence. After all, she could have talked to someone who is not associated with the Uzumaki to do the job.
However, while contemplating, Tsunade realized something much more significant.
‘Why now? If Yuna wanted these two dead, she would have killed them years ago. If this had happened right after Danzo died, Yuna would have been the obvious culprit, but now, three years later, that chance was actually relatively small.’
“You know what? F*ck it. Your guarantee is good enough for me. You are dismissed.”
Yuna said her goodbyes before leaving the room, leaving Tsunade behind.
“Damnit, I forgot to ask her about the craftsman.”
“Don’t worry; I know who it is.”
Tsunade didn’t even twitch when she heard another person suddenly speaking, and her gaze landed on an old man, lying on a couch, reading a book.
“Alright, thanks, sensei..”
