After more than a day of forced marching, the delegation led by Nara Shikashin finally arrived at the Konoha main camp.
Although he had already received plenty of intelligence from Hiruzen Sarutobi back in the village, Shikashin knew it was essential to walk the grounds, see the state of the front with his own eyes, and—most importantly—listen to the perspectives of the two frontline commanders, Orochimaru and Tsunade, before the formal negotiations with Amegakure began.
Since Hanzo had been the one to initiate the alliance, the "Demi-God" would likely refuse to travel to Konoha for the signing out of concern for his own pride and safety. Conversely, Konoha would never agree to sign the treaty within the Hidden Rain Village itself. Therefore, the Konoha camp was the most logical neutral ground for his temporary stay.
The next step in the process was simple: coordinate a neutral location with the Rain, move both parties to the site, and begin the long, tedious process of haggling over the details. Having lived through the First Shinobi World War, Nara Shikashin was intimately familiar with the dance of diplomacy.
After consulting with Orochimaru and Tsunade, and offering words of encouragement to the camp's shinobi on behalf of the Hokage, Shikashin finally allowed himself a moment of respite. He sat down, hoping to enjoy a decent meal, soak his feet, and get a good night's sleep.
However, before he could even take a bite, his tent flap was thrown open, and a visibly irritated Tsunade marched in.
She had previously sent word to Hiruzen specifically regarding the status of Nawaki, Hatani, and Dan Kato, who were recovering at Jiraiya's hideout. Her goal was to ensure the Hokage sent an escort to bring them home immediately. Yet, since Shikashin's arrival, he hadn't made even a passing mention of the matter, and her patience had reached its limit.
"Tsunade, your temper is as explosive as ever," Shikashin noted, sighing as he put down his chopsticks. He looked at her with a weary, resigned expression. "I thought after everything that happened, you might have learned a bit of restraint."
"Uncle Shikashin, do you really need to ask why I'm so anxious?"
"Ai, do you really have so little faith in the Third?" As Hiruzen's right hand, Shikashin understood the nuances behind the Hokage's current silence. While he didn't entirely agree with Hiruzen's decision to keep Tsunade in the dark, his role was to bridge the gap.
"Until Nawaki is safely back in the village, I won't have a moment's peace," Tsunade replied bluntly.
It's easier to move mountains than change one's nature. It seemed her fiery temperament was a permanent fixture.
"You... truly," Shikashin shook his head helplessly. "Rest easy. The Third has already arranged everything. You'll hear good news soon enough."
Tsunade felt a slight weight lift from her chest, but it was immediately replaced by a fresh wave of suspicion and resentment. "What about the guy hiding in the dirt? Has he actually decided to play nice this time?"
"One shouldn't make accusations without evidence," Shikashin's face darkened slightly. He checked the surroundings before offering a low-voiced reprimand.
"Heh. You didn't even have to ask who I was talking about to know exactly who I meant. That tells me everything I need to know about what you think," Tsunade countered with a light, mocking laugh. She knew Shikashin was only trying to protect her.
"Hmph. Fair point." Shikashin's stoic expression faltered for a second before he let out a chuckle of his own. "Your temper hasn't changed, but your wits have certainly sharpened. At least you didn't suffer through that ordeal for nothing."
In truth, even though Konoha had gained a massive advantage from Tsunade's reckless move, the leadership—including Shikashin, Hiruzen, and the two advisors, Koharu and Homura—were in total agreement: Tsunade's actions had been far too impulsive. She deserved a stern reprimand to ensure it never happened again.
From a strategic standpoint, Konoha was already in a position to win the war of attrition. They only needed to wait for Suna to bleed out before the Sand would have been forced to sue for peace. Had Orochimaru not made his desperate, high-stakes gamble and succeeded, the outcome could have been disastrous. The death of four Jonin—including a member of the newly famous Sannin—would have been a crushing blow to Konoha's morale. Suna might have seized the momentum, and a war that was nearing its end would have flared back into a bloody conflict.
It was like a game that was already won—a "guaranteed win" where one only needed to farm safely and wait for the right moment to push the high ground. Instead, a teammate suddenly lost their mind and decided to dive the enemy's fountain to settle a laning-phase grudge, forcing the rest of the team into a messy, unnecessary team fight. Even if they won the fight and the enemy called "GG" five minutes early, that kind of behavior was nothing to celebrate.
After all, history was full of people who threw away a certain victory and handed the championship over to their opponents on a silver platter.
Rarely getting such a perfect opportunity to lecture her, Shikashin began to hold forth, offering earnest advice. To get the intel she wanted, Tsunade could only grit her teeth and listen in silence. Whether she actually took any of it to heart was anyone's guess.
"Aburame Shikuro," Shikashin finally said, dropping the name once he saw Tsunade was on the verge of snapping.
"Aburame Shikuro?" Tsunade tried to recall the members of the delegation. She couldn't picture a man in sunglasses and a trench coat. However, considering the Aburame clan's presence was about as noticeable as an active camouflage jutsu, she assumed she had simply overlooked him.
But Shikashin's next words made her tense up instantly.
"He left the delegation early, claiming he needed to contact Root spies embedded in the Rain."
"A lie. A blatant lie!" Tsunade spat. "He must be operating on orders from that bastard Danzo. I have to—"
She stood up abruptly, looking ready to storm out of the camp.
"You have to what?" Shikashin cut her off. "I just praised you for showing progress, and here you are losing your cool again."
"But—"
"There are no 'buts.' Trust me. And if you don't trust me, trust your teacher, the Third." Seeing that Tsunade was still vibrating with anxiety, Shikashin lowered his voice to give her the real bottom line. "The escort team responsible for the wounded is led by Namikaze Minato. His two teammates are Akimichi Choza and Yamanaka Inoichi."
Shikashin left it at that. He didn't need to explain further; he knew Tsunade was smart enough to piece together the implications of sending the heirs of the Ino-Shika-Cho alliance.
While Tsunade was questioning Shikashin, the Root agent known as Inu—still wearing his dog mask—had quietly slipped back into the Konoha camp behind the delegation. After a brief, unnoticed rendezvous with Tori, he glided through the shadows and entered Orochimaru's tent.