Tsunade couldn't help but feel drowsy and achy after getting up at seven. Damn, she got used to the roll in Ino's room. That, and to the sound of rain pummeling the building. For once, the area around was quiet. She crawled out of bed and went through her usual morning affairs. Ate, cleaned, dressed. She couldn't help but repeating to herself that she gotten used to the easy life. Tsunade almost considered turning over the position to Kakashi as many people recommended, but she had to continue on.

After all, Kakashi's masked face would look really stupid chiseled into the mountain.

Shizune had already gone out to do some chores and left a note telling Tsunade to be ready for yet another meeting. At least it had actual importance to it; a inspection of the dam outside of the village to make sure it still held and would continue to hold when the storm came back again. Tsunade opted to stay at home for now and relax until it was close to the meeting time. She made a cup of tea and settled into her favorite armchair.

Her thoughts went back to Ino. Tsunade wondered how the girl was currently doing. She seemed to be in a stable condition when Tsunade left the Yamanaka household yesterday. Surely only the passing of a single day wouldn't be enough to return her to the state she was in before! Plus, Tsunade's student, Sakura, could and would be able to help Ino in that event. Tsunade predicted there and then that Ino would be healthy within a month, maybe two if more problems arose. Ino's depression might not just be tied to the traumas of war and losing her father.

Her thoughts got interrupted when someone knocked thrice on her door. Tsunade placed her teacup on the nearby desk and answered the door. "Ah, Sakura!" Tsunade beamed as she wrapped her apperentice into a hug. "How goes things at your place?"

"Well." Sakura sighed. "Tiring."

"But of course!" Tsunade cheered as she slapped Sakura on the backside. "Come in, come in!" She drew in the pink-haired doctor inside, closing the door and shutting Sakura in. "I heard you got a meeting with some bigwigs in a few days to get a actual hospital."

"Oh yeah." Sakura groaned out and flopped into a chair. "Three stories tall! And I can barely find a empty syringe now, imagine just trying to locate one with three stories!"

"Don't worry, the contractors are smart enough to make sure to include a supply room on each floor." Tsunade went into the kitchen to pour Sakura a cup of tea. "But it's up to you and your senior staff to organize those rooms yourselves. Keep the emergency stuff close to the door, less essentials further back."

"What I need is a trained staff; I just caught someone trying to smuggle out pills."

"You fire him?"

"After breaking his nose, yeah."

"Sakura."

"It's a hospital. I fixed him up and charged him with his last paycheck."

"Well at least you did the responsible thing." Tsunade shook her head with a smile before delivering the cup to Sakura. "So, how's Naruto and Sasuke? Still alive?" Tsunade asked as she returned to her seat.

"Yes, alive." Sakura nodded after taking a quick sip. "Naruto is quickly adapting to his arm. He didn't smack himself in the face when he tried to pick up the ball." Sakura then imitated that specific event by wildly swinging her arm up and nearly hitting herself in the forehead. "And Sasuke is doing fine. He's been quiet, and hasn't had any outbursts." Tsunade felt relived hearing that. The last intern that got in Sasuke's way still hadn't regained control of his legs. "Mistress Tsunade?" Sakura then piped up. "Can you tell me what lead you to stay at the Yamanaka residence the past while? Ino didn't tell me much."

"Ah." Tsunade raised a finger. "I was delivering Inochi's recovered headband." Tsunade paused for a second to let it sink in for Sakura, who lowered her head a bit. "The rain picked up and Mrs. Yamanaka offered to keep me while the storm raged on. I accepted. And no, I didn't steal any hooch."

"Really?" Sakura wondered under her breath before asking with a audible voice, "So, did you and Ino get along?"

"Ino…" Tsunade cleared her throat. "…needs a little help. She hasn't really adjusted back to life after the war."

"It's depression, isn't it?" Sakura blurted out. Tsunade breathed out of her nose before nodding her head. "I had a feeling when we last talked…it's been a while of course. She brushed me off when I tried to pry, and I was busy at the hospital at the time…"

"It's okay." Tsunade held up a hand to stop Sakura. "Ino's problems are going to require a lot of time and patience to fix. While this isn't a permanent problem for her, the solution will have to be permanent. The condition she's stuck in has many chances to relapse." Tsunade considered that Ino might have already relapsed, but she took a chance and assumed she was fine. "We got a appointment tomorrow, so if you see her today, can I ask you to make sure she doesn't do anything drastic? I have a important meeting at the dam today so I can't play babysitter."

"Of course." Sakura instantly agreed. "Ino is coming along with me, Hinata and Tenten to do some shopping before the storm comes back. We'll liven her spirits in anyway I can."

"Just remember." Tsunade trembled on that sentence, making Sakura focus completely on her. "If she seems a bit too energetic…"

"Yeah." Sakura interrupted. "We'll take her to my hospital."

"Good." Tsunade gulped. "Ino will get better. But it will take time…"