Hola Folks!

Here's a quickie for you guys! Gotta admit, it's not my best (and personally, I'm not too fond of this chap) but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't really change the feng shui so this'll have to do. Consider it a filler since next chap will clearly have some 'meat' to chew on. Also this chap is super wordy so I apologize if that seems a little boring for you folks. Hope you enjoy and don't forget to follow and review!

Furthermore, if you've liked this story so far, maybe you'll like my other ones on my page, especially the one that I am currently writing, Not the Same as Them. Please read and review, enjoy!

Eggs and Bacon,

CrimsonNi

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"Just shut the fuck up," Tetsu whispered under his breath mournfully.

When Sakura walked into Tsunade's office, she was not expecting to see (or feel) pure dread. Tsunade looked upset, and not upset like Shizune hiding her sake bottles, but upset like a world war were about to start. Her desk was smashed into pieces, papers scattered everywhere, the windows were busted, the walls had huge holes in them, and even the floor looked like it received some wrath. The even scarier part was that there were several shinobi in the room, one she definitely knew was Sasuke. By his side was Kakashi, Jiraiya-sama, Shizune, Shikaku-san, and Inoichi-san.

"My…Lady," she said, though not as strong as she would have liked. She was nervous, who could blame her.

"Sakura, thank you for coming quickly. I have an emergency mission for you and Shizune."

"Of course, My Lady."

Tsunade passed on a piece of paper to Shizune, proceeding as if she hadn't just have to walk over the mess in her office to do so. "There is a classified patient in the location written on that sheet. That patient is exclusive except to the three of us, for the time being. I want round the clock reports of his condition and to be immediately alerted when he awakens. Shizune will clue you in on anything else you might have a question on. As of now, I wish for you to meet with him as soon as possible."

"Yes, My Lady, of course."

Sakura nervously looked around the office hoping to get some kind read on Sasuke, but Shizune reached her side and the two left before she could. Tsunade waited, wanting the silence to work as a reminder to the current shinobi of the situation. Granted, they already had an idea as they watched her lose her shit on her office furniture. Still, that destruction, although pretty alieving, didn't completely mollify her rage simmering under her skin. She wasn't only angry as the Hokage who felt her directions were ignored, but as a doctor who hated seeing the human body being treated like anything but, as a hemophobic individual who hated the sight of blood, as a friend of Kushina who'd never, never be able to stomach such a sight. That was disgusting, disturbing.

"Where is Ibiki?" She was met with silence. "Let me remind all of you that even if it results in my immediate removal from this seat, I will find it within myself to inflict the most painful form of torment you'd ever feel, even as elite shinobi. Try me."

"Alright, it's my fault!" Jiraiya shouted.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I'm the one that went to Ibiki and I told him to switch between levels 8 and 9 of torture. I botched the whole thing up!"

"What the fuck possessed you to think that was a good idea?! Worst of all, that wasn't part of the plan!" Tsunade was livid.

"Maybe not, but time was of the essence here. Minimal progression was being made and our assumptions in his trust of Sasuke was clearly overestimated. Something had to be done to speed up the process."

"But that's not your decision to make! I would have thought of something—we would have thought of something if the original plan was shown not to be working. You've jeopardized everything with what you have done! Now, that child will have every right to resist in trusting anyone."

"Not everything is lost, Hime," Jiraiya said, trying to calm his raging wife. "You said that he agreed to talk after experiencing Sasuke's Tsukiyomi."

Shikaku cleared his throat, having everyone turn to face him. He was no stranger to the spotlight but that didn't mean he always enjoyed the stares. He cleared his throat again and pushed his bashfulness down. "There are three problems we must concern ourselves with from that line of action. Although Uchiha-san reacted appropriately in the situation he was in, the fact that Tetsu-san was given the 'option' to tell the truth forces us to rely on his word from here on out. It implies that we must word all of our questions carefully and hope he's still willing to come out with the truth.

This correlates to the second issue; if we sense that he is lying or withholding any information, we cannot rely on previous methods, such as the Yamanaka clan. Tetsu-san's mental capacity may have already taken a lot of damage after so many circumstances against him; his arrest, his escape, his recapture, his torturous treatment, and now his recovery. In addition, we must also factor in his jinchūriki status; we do not know his current control level, although we can assume it's high based off of the reports of the capture mission. With that said, this could potentially bring about a third problem, which is how long we can keep the Kyuubi's chakra at bay. Even with the best seals made by Jiraiya-sama or Orochimaru-sama, it can only be so long before the beast will want to reconnect with its host and/or vice versa."

"Then what do you propose we do, huh?" Jiraiya growled.

Exhausted from speaking so much, Shikaku released a heavy and long sigh before replying. "Honestly, we should go with the simplest route. We've already taken complex directions just in trying to get on an even playing field with Tetsu-san. Instead, I suggest we send either Inoichi-san or Uchiha-san in there to apologize and talk."

"Talk, Shikaku? That's the best idea you can come up with?" Tsunade asked with an arched eyebrow. Her anger seemed to have cool down a smidge thanks to Shikaku's long speech. It gave her less time to scream and pummel the remaining items in the office.

"Yes, Sir. It may sound ridiculous, but in your experience as a medical professional, I'm sure you can attest that many times, especially during times of recovery, people tend to talk more. I'm also sure that Inoichi-san, Ibiki-san, and anyone else in T&I can vouch that criminals, once given the appropriate attention, prefer to talk than have their minds peeped through, more times than not."

Tsunade nodded, holding her chin in her hand, seeming to consider Shikaku's words. "I can see where you're coming from, and I do think using Inoichi is a smart choice, but why Sasuke?"

"As I've mentioned before, an apology should still be warranted. Primarily, I was one of the people that suggested that Uchiha-san would be an effective piece to Tetsu-san's torture, underestimating his intelligence by assuming his preferences would cloud his judgement. An apology is a means of owning up to that slip-up."

"Sounds more like you need to apologize, not the Uchiha," Jiraiya muttered. Shikaku did hear, but respectfully kept his mouth shut and decided instead on a sideway glance.

"With all due respect, I will have to decline either way," Sasuke interjected. Everyone now shifted from Jiraiya and Shikaku, to him.

"Come again?" Tsunade asked, feeling the edges of anger creeping up on her.

"Forgive me, Hokage-sama, but I cannot agree to that. Despite previous conversations and plans, we've all forgotten that we are still talking about a criminal. Perhaps I could have bypassed Kotetsu's death, for duty, and justified it with a number of arguments. But in the capture mission, I witnessed something…unspeakable. Using one of those specialized clones of his, without a second guess, he murdered an infant, in front of its mother no less. I will not apologize to an individual who thinks there is any excuse for that kind of action."

Silence reigned within the office. Many expected for Tsunade to blow up in retaliation, but she remained calm, much to their surprise. Kakashi seemed uncharacteristically nervous, unsure of what would happen now, similar to Inoichi, who was too busy sweating, while Jiraiya and Shikaku remained impassive. Finally, Tsunde exhaled and clicked her fingers against the window sill behind her broken desk, ignoring the shards of glass that were littered about.

"I'd like to disagree with you," she began softly. "Although I do understand. It'd be wrong of me to force you, so I won't. So we're gonna scratch the apology—sorry, Shikaku—and instead, have you and Kakahi monitor Inoichi. Once I hear from Sakura or Shizune on Tetsu's condition, I want Inoichi to step in and see if he can pull the truth out of him. I want no more games or time-wasting tactics but I want one thing understood for all of you: criminal or not, Tetsu was born here in Konoha. Until final sentencing is determined, I will not tolerate misconduct or 'moral' judgements other than my own; is this understood?"

When all present shinobi voiced their consent, Tsunade nodded as confirmation. "Furthermore, Jiraiya, I want you to stay far away from this kid until further notice. Everyone here is witness that you will not be permitted to learn any new updates or current information until I say so. Is this clear?"

Jiraiya scowled but he understood the reasoning behind the reprimand. "Yes, Hime, understood."

"Alright, dismissed, all of you." No one had to be told twice, well, except for Jiraiya. He remained in the office, staring at Tsunade who also hadn't moved from her spot. "Are you finally going deaf, ya' perv?"

Jiraiya chuckled as he slowly approached Tsunade. "I'm not that old yet. Are you going to sock me if I touch you?"

After giving him a long look, Tsunade sighed heavily and leaned into Jiraiya's open arms. "I'm still pissed at you," she grumbled. "You know I hate it when you don't respect me enough to listen."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that," he whispered into her hair. "I thought my idea was the quickest when it should have been the safest."

"That's Minato's son, Jiraiya—what were you thinking?" She hissed the words out through gritted teeth, trying to stop herself from sobbing. Even if he were her husband, she disliked him having to see her cry.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." That was all he could manage to say.

~*SUSUSUSUSUSUSUSUSUSUSU*~

"Mind telling me what that was about?"

"Let's just say certain things didn't go as originally planned."

"I see…how much trouble are they in?"

"I doubt they're all in trouble, but specifically, I'd say Uchiha-san and probably Ibiki-san."

"Sasuke?!" Sakura gasped. As a disciple of the slug sannin, she better than anyone knew of Tsunade's rage. Sure, Sasuke wasn't one to visibly tremble but that wasn't what worried her. She knew that if Tsunade couldn't get a physical reaction out of her 'victims' then she'd resort to other methods (i.e. like a month of helping out in hospice or cleaning the dog shit from the Inuzuka's pens—without the Genin). And she'd keep it up until the person would finally relent. "How serious are we talking?"

"It's hard to say," Shizune said after a heavy sigh. It hadn't taken long for them to reach the destination of the secret location, which was a sheltered medic shed hidden behind the Hokage Momument. It was built after the Second Shinobi War to help the injured shinobi without the enemy knowing. It hadn't been used since then but both the Third and Tsunade made sure to upkeep the supplies…one never knew. The other fortunate aspect of the shed was that it was also hidden by a genjutsu, which could only be broken by a medic.

Shizune used her glowing hands to break the jutsu and allow herself and Sakura to pass through. Sakura liked how it smelled of wet grass, which was an odd thing considering there was nothing but medicine surrounding her. It was a spacious shed with several cots, large shelves and cabinets filled with medicine, wraps, cotton swabs, and a separate section for the more serious injuries. That was where Sakura saw a large door—locked with a padlock.

"Is…Is that really necessary?"

"We don't really know what we're dealing with, Sakura. So let me warn you now, judge him carefully. We've seen him at both his strongest and his weakest but he shouldn't be underestimated; he's unpredictable in that regard."

"Don't worry, Shizune. I'm a doctor, I'll heal whoever no matter what."

"Good," Shizune agreed with a firm nod. "Let's go."

Shizune unlocked the specialized padlock with another wave of her glowing hands and opened the door. The both of them immediately heard the blaring sounds of one of the monitors. Running as fast as two experienced shinobi could run, they quickly made their way towards the noise to discover why it was going as wild as it was.

Tetsu was sitting up on the bed clutching his stomach, grunting in what sounded like pain. "Fuck," he kept repeating. Even form where they stood, it was easy to see the red coating Tetsu's hands.

"You're awake," Shizune whispered in shock. She anticipated from the infections and open wounds that he'd at least be out for a week, or in his case, a couple days.

Tetsu loosened his scrunched up eyes to look at who had spoken. Both medics noted his heavy breathing and light sheen of sweat on his forehead. "Yeah…it sucks. Give me the best fucking pain killers you got or I'm passing out for good."

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