Rushing through the village, Sai made his way towards the Hokage tower to inform Tsunade of the situation. Although he believed he could have assisted Soifon, he realized that he would be outnumbered and it would be more advantageous to seek help. Upon landing on a roof to catch his breath and prepare to depart, he heard his name being called.
Looking down, Sai saw Naruto with Yoruichi, Sasuke, and an unfamiliar woman. Naruto greeted Sai and asked about his hurried movements, leading Sai to question the presence of Sasuke and why Naruto had not taken action against him despite his status as a rogue ninja.
Naruto and Yoruichi just looked at each other, not doing anything about Sasuke. 'Don't worry, Sai, he's not planning to attack the leaf village, at least not yet,' Naruto reassured, glancing quickly at his old friend and then back at Sai.
'Sasuke is here because he heard what happened to Soifon and had visions about who she is. So he's here to help us find her,' Naruto explained, stepping in front of Sai to prevent any attacks, but Sai showed no signs of aggression.
Sai shook his head, remembering why he was there, and realized he should fill them in so they could help. 'I was actually on my way to the Hokage tower to inform her about Soifon,' he said, looking at them.
'Have you located her?' Yoruichi asked, a hint of hope in her voice as she took a step closer to Sai, trying to stay calm in case they needed to strategize to rescue the small captain.
"Okay, so I didn't know about it until Danso mentioned wanting to see me," Sai said, noticing Sasuke's angry eyes, Naruto's clenched fist, and Yoruichi's unreadable expression.
"Go ahead," Yoruichi urged, eager to hear Sai's account so they could devise a plan to rescue Soifon now that they knew who had her.
"When I arrived, I saw Danso and Ava, an anbu on his side, taking her to his private medical wing," Sai explained. Seeing Sasuke angrily approaching him, Sai flinched as Sasuke stood in front of him with a clenched fist.
"So you were there but didn't do anything to help her?" Sasuke demanded. "I wanted to, but it wouldn't have been helpful If both of us got hurt. I came to get help, which seemed like a better choice," Sai responded, stepping away from Sasuke who seemed ready to snap his neck.
Yoruichi stepped in between the two, her golden eyes narrowed. 'Chill, guys. Fighting each other won't help Soifon,' she said, glancing at both of them. Naruto approached, asking, 'What's the plan?' He studied Sasuke and Yoruichi as they thought.
'How about Sasuke and I go with Sai to check out the situation, while you and Akira go inform Tsunade and Captain Ukitake,' proposed Yoruichi.
Sasuke and Sai exchanged glares but agreed to the plan. Naruto knew Tsunade would trust him to handle the situation with Sasuke at the hokage's office. With a nod, Naruto motioned for Akira to follow him as they departed, leaving Yoruichi, Sasuke, and Sai to rescue Soifon.
"Sai, lead us to where Danso has Soifon," Yoruichi said, allowing the pale boy to guide them. "Let's not attack recklessly; we need a plan to rescue Soifon without harming her."
Sasuke proposed a plan to Sai, suggesting he lure Danso away while Yoruichi and Sasuke distract him, allowing Sai to safely extract Soifon.
Yoruichi hoped this plan would succeed. "Okay, let's go with this plan. Why don't you proceed, and we'll follow you," she said as Sai, Sasuke, and herself began to make their way.
· Naruto *
Naruto and Akira made it to the Hokage tower since it was nearby. 'Grandma Tsunade!!!' He burst into the office almost crashing into Jushiro, who was talking about Soifon's whereabouts.
'Naruto? Why the hell would you just barge in here without knocking?' Tsunade asked, glaring at the blond ninja who gave her a serious look with his blue eyes. 'And who's that?' She questioned, eyeing Akira.
Naruto caught his breath before responding, 'Sorry, Grandma, but I wouldn't burst in if it wasn't important.' He looked at Jushiro.
'And it's good that Jushiro are here too because they need to know this.' Tsunade nodded as she leaned forward, signaling Naruto to spill the news. 'We found Soifon, well, Sai did,' Naruto began, swallowing. 'Sai said Danso has her.'
Naruto saw how surprised everyone was. 'Yoruichi and Sasuke are on their way with Sai to bring her back,' he explained.
Tsunade and Jushiro exchanged looks. 'Should we send some backup?' Tsunade asked, and Jushiro agreed, 'Yeah, they'll need support. I'll ask Rukia and the others to join.'
'Naruto, grab Sakura, Neji, and Kakashi to assist,' Tsunade instructed because a lot of ninjas were away on a mission and they only had a handful left.