Danzo was a bona fide bastard.

Tsunade was grounding her teeth and she was sure the three elders that had cornered her could hear it. She was doing another shift at the hospital to deal with a particularly hard case that needed her attention. Due to their limited doctors that specialized in hunter related injuries, she helped out when she could.

On one hand, she found her shifts at the hospital was a stress reliever. It was familiar. There was no one to question authority there. She could save lives and see the bright smiles of relieved family members. Even when they didn't thank her, she could feel some satisfaction knowing that a family wouldn't have to suffer the loss of a loved one. Even if the patient died, at least she felt she had done something more than sitting at her desk, waiting to hear results.

Today was one of those days where she had failed. The hunter had been especially young, being only a second-year high school student. After hours trying to negate the slow-spreading curse, they had lost. The poor girl had to be put out of her misery.

Tsunade gave the order to end her life. She could remember her scared eyes, her quivering voice asking Tsunade to save her. She cried saying she wasn't ready to die, holding onto Tsunade's clothes with her gradually weakening grip. Tsunade did everything she could to remove the curse from her body, but she wasn't skilled in that area. It wasn't often they ran into that type of situation and their specialist was elsewhere to deal with another case.

Knowing she was lacking in that area of expertise didn't make Tsunade feel any better, and the death added more stress to the mountain she carried on her back. Quiet and disheartened, she returned to her hospital office, looking forward to the silence. She wouldn't cry. She had no tears to shed. Death was common in this world, and there was no time for her to dwell on it. All she could do was grieve for her student and subordinate for a short while before pushing it out of her mind and get as close as forgetting as she could. In situations like this, there was never anyone to lean on. She had to stand on her own. Be strong. She was not allowed to appear any other way.

So yes, the solace of her office was something she needed to recover, and yet, opening her office door the three elders were waiting. Elder Koharu and Elder Homura stood on either side of Danzo, their hateful eyes on her as she entered. Immediately, she knew this wasn't' good. For all three elders to come to her could only mean a handful of things. None of them good. She immediately started racking her brain for why they would search for her.

Elder Danzo gave that irritating polite smile, greeting her. "I see you have been working hard these past few days, my lady. I would not expect anything else from our leader."

The pretty words that he spoke put Tsunade on edge as she closed the door behind her, analyzing each of the elders. "Since you understand how busy I am, you should know how inconvenient of a time it is to speak right now."

"I assure you, we come bearing news we thought we should discuss with you."

Kakashi, who Tsunade hadn't noticed at first with the three elders present, presented a chair for Danzo to sit in. Danzo sat down, the other two elders standing on either side of him. He truly presented himself as a don with his henchmen. She was the leader, yet he dared to act so arrogantly in front of her, using his age as an excuse. As an elder, she did owe him some respect, but he was still her underling and Danzo kept pushing and pushing.

"I was unaware that your leg was still causing you pain," her words carried a bite to them as she feigned concern. "If standing is so troublesome, should I take a look at it for you? I may be able to alleviate some of your pain."

Danzo's eyes hardened though his polite smile never left his lips. "No thank you. Your time is precious, and I could never trouble you so. I just came to discuss the new development."

"Forgive me as I have been in the ICU for the past several hours, but what development could have happened where I was not informed immediately but important enough to bring our esteemed elders together outside of a meeting?"

Danzo motioned for Kakashi to come forth. Kakashi looked worse for wear. He was pale and had bruises under his eyes. She could imagine that he hadn't been sleeping. Since Iruka had disappeared, he had grown quieter, following his master's example and diving into work. She just wished his work didn't involve Danzo.

Kakashi took a knee, presenting a scroll for Tsunade to take. Tsunade took it, reading over it quickly. It was a list of names, ages, and descriptions of each person. A few were hunters that had gone missing a month ago. And one was from the group of hunters sent to kill Uzumaki 2 weeks ago.

"We discovered a dumping ground of bodies on the island," Danzo informed her. "All these poor souls were reporting missing within the past 2 months. The cause of death was blood loss. I do not think I need to explain more."

"You think it is Uchiha-san," Tsunade concluded.

"What other alternative could there be," Elder Koharu said. She, like a lot of the older clan heads and elders, preferred to wear traditional clothing. She was dressed elegantly in a dark blue kimono and red obi. Her piercing dark eyes always held a touch of contempt whenever she addressed Tsunade directly. Considering how few female leaders there were within the shinobi ranks, Tsunade would have believed Elder Koharu would support her more than she did. If anything, she was harder on Tsunade than the other two and much more critical. "Do bodies normally appear out of nowhere? Is there any other vampire we have allowed to enter our borders and given permission to wander as he pleases? Would one of those soulless creatures really be able to refrain from hunting within our borders if they had the chance?"

"Uchiha-san made a blood pact. The consequences of hunting outside the perimeter of his estate would be too costly."

"But it wasn't Uchiha-san himself who made the pact," Elder Koharu countered. "It was Deidara-san, was it not?"

"Do you think Uchiha-san would risk getting on the bad side of the council?"

"Assuming that he was arrogant enough to do so," Danzo said calmly. "Could anyone prove it? If I recall, Deidara-san is presumed dead, or at the very least missing, after the attack in Beppu. No hunter has seen her since her meeting with you nearly two months ago. There is no proof that Uchiha has kept his word if the one who made the pact cannot be found."

"There's no proof that he hasn't either."

"Why do you speak in his defense, Godaime-sama?" Danzo asked, concern in his voice. "He is an enemy, one that has a history of targeting hunters. Would it not be safer to expel him from the island now?"

"I feel at this moment, we would benefit by keeping him with us," she said carefully. "He too wishes to stop Orochimaru, and his skills could be of use."

"Should Orochimaru-san be your main priority?" Elder Homura spoke up, gritting his teeth. "Our host is missing and on the verge of changing into a full vampire. Capturing him and putting him down is our number one priority, yet you are here, protecting a vampire and worrying more about a rogue hunter than your duty."

"I have always taken my duty seriously," she forced herself to speak calmly, but her irritation was rising.

"We know you have," Danzo agreed. He looked up to Elder Homura and spoke placatingly. "Tsunade-sama has given up much for the shinobi. We should never forget her sacrifices. That being said, Master Jiraiya has taken responsibility for the boy. I am sure he will take care of the host problem."

It wasn't normal for Danzo to take her side. He was up to something.

"Speaking of Master Jiraiya, we would like to speak with him. When can we see him?" Elder Koharu asked. "He hasn't been to the last two meetings."

She knew it would be a matter of time before someone asked for him. If they knew he was missing, the elders wouldn't sit still. There were only two masters in Japan. To have one missing now would be the equivalent of going into battle with your dominant arm cut off. Putting aside how bad it would look for her, for Jiraiya to be MIA would be worse for him. To leave without permission could have a death penalty attached to it as it could be seen as betraying the shinobi. Jiraiya knew this which made it all the more confusing as to why he would leave without telling her. "He's dealing with the Uzumaki problem," she lied. "Meeting him, for the time being, would be difficult."

"That is a shame. We could have used his guidance," Danzo sighed, "Things have indeed been hectic for you. We are understaffed and overworked. It makes it difficult to watch everyone play their part while us elders stand idle."

"Your support is more than enough," Tsunade said, hoping this was the end of it. She needed to sleep and reorganize her thoughts.

"I do not think so. We three have been talking, and while we can no longer be of use on the front lines, we can be of use elsewhere. We can take care of some of your duties so that you have more time to assist in the hospital and investigate Orochimaru freely."

Tsunade's breath hitched, realizing what Danzo was trying to do. "You can't take away my authority."

Danzo, the great actor that he was, looked truly lost and offended at her accusation. "Tsunade-sama, how could you accuse us of doing such a thing? We are merely lightening your load. We are in desperate need of someone of your abilities. Administrative duties can be handled by anyone, but your talent is scarce. A life cannot be replaced after all."

"Then I will have to decline your kind offer. I am more than capable of handling my duties."

"We must insist," Danzo said, smiling wider.

Reaching her limit, she scowled. "You overstep your bounds, Elder Danzo. How dare you come into my office and try to disrespect me."

"Disrespect?" Elder Homura stepped forward. He looked every bit menacing as he had in his younger years, prone to violence before using his words. "Do you see yourself as a dictator? The three elders have spoken. Do you dare try to defy us?"

"Now, now, Elder Homura," Elder Danzo waved his hand, and Elder Homura backed down after an annoyed glance at the other two elders. "I am sure Tsunade-sama did not insinuate such things. She is merely tired after a long day and forgot herself."

"Yes," Elder Koharu agreed, pulling out a fan from her sleeve. "If Tsunade-sama wishes to go against our decision, she can call for the clan heads to override us."

Tsunade's eyes widened as she realized that she had fallen into a trap. Their true intent was to discern Jiraiya's whereabouts, to confirm that he was not on the island and had no return date. To override the elders' unanimous decision, the clan heads had to vote against them. Tsunade had few supporters, but Jiraiya had enough reputation to persuade many to her side by respect alone. Whether the list Danzo had given her or not was real did not matter. It just gave them a pretext to take her power, and she had no way to get it back.

"Elder Koharu, if you speak like that, you will make it sound like we have ulterior motives," Elder Danzo chided. "Once things calm down, we will return all your duties to you. We only wish to help, nothing more."

Tsunade barely heard what he said. She was angry, panicked, and scared. What will happen to Naruto? Or Jiraiya? She never wanted this job, but she did it to protect those she cared about. She didn't know what face she was making. Didn't know if her training kicked in or if her fears played out on her face; however, Elder Koharu and Elder Homura's expression changed, unable to hide their satisfaction at the situation.

Danzo stood, his face the only one in the room who gave off the feeling of friendliness and ease. "We will give you a list of how we will delegate your duties by the end of the day. I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all." Her voice didn't sound like hers, void of emotion, left in a state of shock. She didn't know what else to say. What to think. The shock of how quickly they had swooped in to cut her down had been swift and unforgiving. They didn't care how they humiliated her, how much they disrespected her and tried to make it seem like she should be honored for them to do so.

"Then we should take our leave. We have taken up too much of your time." Elder Danzo excused himself with the two other elders in tow.

Backed into a corner, her fists shook at her sides, forced to stay silent and look unaffected as the elders walked by her, leaving as they gave their farewells. Until the end, they kept their thin façade of respect towards her when they truly thought of her as nothing. At best, a child to be governed, and at worst, an outsider that had no right to be where she stood.

Kakashi was the last to walk to leave walking behind them. Her jaw clenched, and she asked, "Have you made your decision?"

Kakashi stopped. The elder didn't wait for him, but it wouldn't go unnoticed by the old geezers. "Yes," he answered, looking straight ahead, avoiding her eyes.

"Couldn't you have warned me?"

Slowly, he looked over to her, and for an instant, he reminded her of Jiraiya with his stoic face with only work on his mind. "I am unable to say," he replied.

She nodded with understanding, waving him away. He saluted and left her office as well.

Tsunade sat down, contemplating her options. Naruto's disappearance may be a blessing. If they can't find him, they couldn't do anything to him. She sighed heavily, wiping her face with her hands only to hear a knock on her office door, making her withhold a groan. She was nearing her limit to the amount of bullshit she could take. It never even occurred to her that the knock was anything but negative.

And she was right. When she called out for the visitor to enter, she was greeted with the sight of Sarutobi, Kurenai covered head to toe with splattered blood. Tsunade half rose from her desk in concern, hovering just over her chair for a couple of seconds then sat back down. The woman strolled in with a small strut, her aloof air untainted and brimming with confidence. Despite her dress as a shrine maiden, she was the image of anything but purity and innocence.

"Sarutobi-san, are you hurt?" Tsunade asked, scanning over her body just in case she had missed something. She was treated to a scowl that crossed the woman's face.

"Just a bit of demon blood," she replied rudely, plopping down on a chair. Tsunade balked inwardly at the woman's choice of words. She didn't want to know what Kurenai considered to be a lot of blood if that was her idea of a bit.

She thought of asking if the blood had been purified; however, she stopped herself. Kurenai was skilled. Even if she had been out of the profession for the past four years to settle down with Asuma, there was no way she would have missed such a simple step. Not when she was hunting down something as dangerous as Hidan.

"I take it he got away then," Tsunade asked.

Kurenai scowled. "He must have caught on someone was watching him. His trail ended at the Iwakuni American base. A bunch of demons decided to ambush me shortly after I arrived in Oita before the purification ceremony for the dead in Beppu. Luckily, I had the foresight not to go straight home."

Kurenai had her arms crossed and her teeth clenched with annoyance. If she had not been more careful, she would have led the demons straight to her home where her barely month year old daughter, Mirai. A fat and healthy baby girl that Asuma would have doted on.

"You are safe. That is what matters," Tsunade said.

Kurenai's scowl only deepened. "Do you want the bad news or the worst news first?"

Tsunade did like Kurenai. Like her, she was very direct, getting straight to the point. She put up no pretext of caring what people thought of her. If she did not have such confidence in her abilities or the skills to back it up, her attitude would not have been tolerated by the hunters here. Compounded by her rare abilities that could deal with the incorporeal beings very easily, a dying art among hunters, Kurenai had the privilege to act however she wanted. And she knew it.

How Asuma managed to reign in such an independent, bad-tempered, rude, and powerful miko was something only she and Jiraiya knew. To Kurenai, though Asuma was several years older, he was an innocent, well-meaning man. With his lack of knowledge of who she was, he had no preconceptions of what she was supposed to be like, no rose-colored glasses to overlook her bad qualities. Asuma had no trouble throwing passive-aggressive statements that called out her behavior with a professional smile that left her speechless.

And when she decided to pursue the older man, his shy and awkward behavior only endeared her more. He wasn't jaded from the hunter lifestyle. He was honest and kind. He had hope for humanity, for the people around him. He became a cop to help people. He was different from the people they knew and associated with. Which made it all the more painful for them that he died in such a way. If it had been a vampire, at least his soul would have gone to the afterlife. Asuma had even been denied that.

Tsunade sighed, running her hands through her hair, resisting the urge to rub her scalp roughly with frustration. "Does it matter at this point?"

"I got too close to the American base, and they noticed me."

"Fuck," she whispered under her breath, praying that was the worst news.

"And Vice President Johnson is waiting outside to talk to you."

"Fuck!" Tsunade sat up, shooting the woman a glare. "You couldn't call to warn me first?"

Kurenai's gaze darkened. As much as Tsunade liked her, Kurenai wouldn't say the same. She did blame Tsunade for Asuma's death. The night Tsunade told her of her husband's death, Kurenai only said one sentence while holding her day-old child in her arms. "I won't forgive you."

That sentence was said so coldly, filled with all of Kurenai's hatred directed towards Tsunade, and Tsunade couldn't blame her for it. If she had caught on to Itachi sooner. If she had noticed that the barrier had been broken temporarily. If she had noticed Hidan sooner… Any of those and Asuma may have lived, and Tsunade had failed. Sure, Hidan was an ancient demon that no one had been able to capture for centuries, but it did not ease the guilt. Tsunade still felt responsible.

"Let me check your injuries first," Tsunade rose once more.

Kurenai interjected sharply, "No need. I can handle them myself." She stood up. With years of experience under her belt, Tsunade could see by the way Kurenai stood that she had hurt her foot or leg. It was subtle as most hunters trained themselves to hide their pain and weaknesses. She could also tell because Kurenai had chosen to sit down briefly when she knew she would be leaving in a minute or so with no intention of staying.

"Very well," Tsunade conceded to her wishes. She would just have to send Sakura to check on her later. "E-mail me your report and give notice when you leave again. We can't afford to lose track of any more people."

Kurenai turned her back towards Tsunade, intending to leave without saying as much as a word to her leader. If it was anyone else, Tsunade would have been angry and called her out on the behavior. However, she also knew Kurenai showed such behavior to the elders as well, angering the elders often in the past. Tsunade would love those moments as they had a taste of how she felt whenever they disrespected her in the same way. They never reprimanded Kurenai because she was close to crossing over to the status of Master, and they did not want to risk making an enemy out of her, causing them to hold their tongues.

Living without worrying about offending someone you should not sounded quite nice. Too bad Tsunade didn't have the same luxuries. "Send him in on your way out."

Kurenai made a small gesture to signal that she heard her, and Tsunade took the moment to ready herself for the political bullshit she had been trying to avoid with the Americans. Depending on the president of the country at the time, dealing with them could be pleasant or a total nightmare. Lately, it had been the latter.

There was a knock, and she switched to English. "Come in."

The door opened again as her third guest entered. Everything about him stuck out, from his towering height at 191 centimeters, to his dark cocoa-colored skin, to his hair where even the close shave could not hide the coarse black hair. His light grey suit and blue shirt was well pressed with only the slightest wrinkles from movement. Nothing about him blend in, meaning everyone would know about his presence here and know that an American had come to see her.

He gave her a smile full of straight, bright white teeth, a nice change to the normally stoic people she worked with, and he had a much more easy-going atmosphere than the elders and clan heads. He came off as approachable rather than holding that ancient air of dignity and mystery. In other words, he did not come off as a hunter. Not to her. At least not in the sense Tsunade had grown familiar with.

Older countries relied on ancient arts. Japan the shinobi. China had their cultivators. The United States however was too new a country, developed long after science had taken a hold of the general public. They relied more on technology and firepower, as shown by the gun that was kept out of sight in his suit jacket that bulged ever so slightly. Only an American could get away with carrying a gun in Japan. Kakashi had to go to extreme measures when he was out to ensure his gun was never seen, but this American barely concealed his.

She supposed that was the charm of Americans. They were hardly subtle. They were direct. Their tone and words were usually clear, and you knew when you were being threatened or looked down upon because they didn't hide their facial expressions to the degree shinobi did. It made things easier to deal with. Of course, Americans also had their flaws, and today she knew she would see them due to the purpose of this visit.

"Mr. Johnson," Tsunade stood up to shake the man's hand. He reached out and accepted immediately. "It is nice to finally meet you in person."

"The pleasure is mine, Ms. Tsunade. You have no idea how happy I was to be the one sent to Japan." His voice was deep with a little bit of a gravely sound in the undertone. He took a seat without being offered one.

"Forgive my dress, I wasn't expecting to see you."

"No, it's my fault for not giving you a heads up on my visit."

Tsunade didn't point out that he could have called, but she kept the polite smile. "I hope your visit to Japan has been pleasant so far."

She had expected a short polite response as most people do. A simple, "I have," or maybe a little bit longer of a response. She did not expect him to actually answer the question, going into detail about his stay.

Tsunade listened for a short while, hearing about his near run in from food poisoning, people wanting to touch his hair while at a restaurant, or just stopping to take pictures with him while he was visiting the shrines. It almost appeared like a personal visit with how freely he talked. Tsunade, however, was not in the mood. Tired and not wanting to wait, she dropped the pretext of politeness, sighing heavily and making the man pause his story.

"Mr. Johnson, do you want me to keep pretending to be interested or would you rather get this meeting with as quickly as possible. I doubt you came all the way here for me to humor you."

Mr. Johnson chuckled, leaning back in his chair. "My apologies. I thought it was considered rude to get straight to the point in Japan."

Tsunade gave a wry smile. "As touched as I am by your effort, I used to be an American, so I don't mind if you drop the pleasantries and get to the point. If you don't mind that is."

Mr. Johnson folded his hands in his lap crossing his legs. "It's convenient actually. I know things won't get lost in translation."

"Then please don't get upset if I drop the pleasantries as well and let me be frank. I don't appreciate you coming here unannounced. Vice president or not."

"Ma'am, I don't believe you have a leg to stand on when one of your people was attempting to sneak onto one of our military bases. Where was the communication then?"

"We were tracking a demon. I apologize for the inconvenience, but this demon is centuries old and very dangerous."

"Inconvenience?" Mr. Johnson smiled. "If I may say, Ms. Tsunade. Trespassing is a serious issue that needs to be addressed. After the debacle in Beppu followed by this incident, the United States is concerned about your abilities and intentions."

Of course you are, Tsunade thought dryly. "I assure you, Mr. Johnson, that we have no ulterior motives."

"I find that hard to believe," he interrupted before she finished her sentence. "Especially when we come to find out that you have not one but two vampire lords under your care. Interesting that we never heard of anything about an alliance being made with the Medjay." A hunter was still a hunter, no matter where they came from. The way he delivered the line, though lacking in chakra, still had a bloodlust behind it and carried an intimidating presence.

"I understand your reservations due to the rocky history you have with the Middle East, but what Japan does politically is none of your concern."

"It is my concern when the power dynamic has shifted. What did you promise them?"

"I promised them nothing. Their host was more comfortable here, so he was allowed to stay for a short time. Not everyone only thinks in terms of benefits for their country."

Mr. Johnson laughed. "No one does anything for free."

"Not Americans, no," she replied. "But we are not Americans. At least we try not to be obvious when looking down on others."

Mr. Johnson's smile dropped. "You really don't want to get on our bad side, Ms. Tsunade. One call and I can have the US abandon Japan. Not a very good time with North Korea getting an itchy trigger finger lately."

Her smile turned wry. "I see the US hasn't changed its negotiation strategies. Still as cowardly as ever."

"We do what we must to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our citizens and allies."

"Then it is one thing we have in common." Tsunade stood up from her desk, placing her hands on the surface. "As your visit is unexpected, I'm afraid I cannot accommodate you any longer nor do I have an obligation to. Please see your way out the way you came in."

Mr. Johnson sighed, "Ms. Tsunade, do you really want to end things so open-ended?"

It was probably the most sincere, the young man had been since entering her office. He probably wasn't a bad person, merely doing his job his superior told him to do. She could understand and relate to that. She just didn't feel like doing so.

Her smile widened, becoming just too bright. Gathering chakra into her fingertips, she only had to press down for the desk to crack a split second before completely breaking apart with no visible effort on her part. "It appears I've gotten a bit clumsy in controlling my strength lately. Aging really is a funny thing, isn't it?"

Mr. Johnson's eyes flicked down at the remnants of the desk. He did his best to remain unphased, but he was no shinobi. She could read his nervousness at what was essentially magic to the chakra-less human. A little flex was enough to set him on edge.

"I suppose I will find out myself in a couple of years," he said, standing. He smoothed out the front of his jacket and extended his hand. "It's been a pleasure."

"Likewise," she took the handshake, squeezing just enough to pressure him a little more. He didn't say anything or wince at the pressure.

Seeing him politely leave, she sat back down in her chair and took in the quiet moment she finally earned. She had finally vented her anger on someone, and it was cathartic to a degree. The one thing she did pride herself in since she took office was that she never let the Americans walk over them. Politeness be damned. It did earn her some respect ironically with the Americans while her own people thought poorly of it. She would always protect Japan. She just wished her people had more confidence in her and her methods in doing so.

Taking in the silence, she let the rest of her anger go. Still, it would be best for bother Gaara and Uchiha to leave the country for a short time. Americans would continue pressing for a while, and they may use underhanded means. Until Naruto was found, it would be safer for Uchiha and Gaara to be elsewhere.

Leaning forward, she reached down into the pile that had once been her desk. Her hands were raw from using abilities not suited for her body but deemed the look on the American's face worth it.

She fished out her cellphone and searched through her many contacts. There had to be over 500 in there, so it took a while to find who she was looking for, not quite remembering the name until she saw it.

She waited for someone to pick up on the other side.

The phone rang for a long time. It rang for so long, most would think it would never go to voicemail or end on its own, but still, Tsunade let the phone ring. After a minute and a half, someone finally picked up in a very annoyed voice.

"Can I help you?" a woman said in Korean.

"Yeong Seo Ah, it's been a while." Tsunade tried to be polite, but her Korean was rusty, sounding a bit stiff and awkward.

The woman was quiet for a while. There was the sound of chatter in the background. After a long drawn-out silence, she said, "Forgive me, but I am not in much of a mood to talk. Please don't call this number again."

"Before you go, aren't you interested in what I have to say?"

"Seeing the news, I rather not get involved in whatever favor you might need, even if it is from the Godaime of the shinobi herself. I don't need the publicity." The woman's words were rude, but similarly to when Uchiha spoke, there was a high-class air, that was simultaneously polite while distant and dismissive. Fortunately, Tsunade had a way of dealing with her.

"Hiashi will be sad to hear that."

The woman was quiet once more for a while. The chatter in the background grew quieter and there was a sound of a closing door, stopping the sound completely.

"What does he need?" she asked seriously.

"He will be coming to Korea with his nephew, a host, and a high profile vampire. He requires protection as well as a place to stay."

"I take it the vampire spoken of if the one that was on the news."

"Naturally."

The woman made a noise that sounded like a click of the tongue, obviously not happy about the request. "And your host…"

"Not mine. The Medjay's." Tsunade could imagine the annoyed face that would mar the woman's features. She could even imagine the woman's lips purse, wanting to reject.

"If that's what Hiashi-sunbae needs, I can supply him accommodations," she said quietly.

"Thank you. I'll have them arrive in 10 hours."

Again, more silence and Tsunade almost smiled, imagining the thoughts probably going through the woman's head, probably cursing at her for the short notice. "I will have a car pick them up."

"You have my thanks."

"I don't need your thanks." Yeong hung up.

Tsunade leaned her head back, breathing in slowly. This was for the best and would buy her some time to find Naruto and deal with the Americans and find a way to deal with the elders. Would she be able to do all that in such a short period of time?

"Jiraiya, I could use you right now," she whispered.

How nice would it be for Jiraiya to walk through that door, sweep her off her feet and send her to bed, kissing her hand, calling her his Godaime. Closing her eyes, she took one last deep breath before getting up. Jiraiya would never do something so sweet, and there was no time for daydreaming. She needed to prepare for their departure before the Elders find out about that too.

"Just a little longer, Tsunade," she muttered. "Just hang in there a little longer."