Konoha Notes

Chapter 113 Another Mission
After discussing business, because of Danzo's intervention, Shuji decided to escort Itachi for a while.

The two hadn't gone far when they came across a figure leaning against a lamppost at a fork in the road.

Upon seeing Shuuji and Itachi, he straightened up and smiled.

"Shuji-kun, Itachi," Uchiha Shisui greeted.

"Shisui."

Although Uchiha Shisui was also there, since he was accompanying them, it wouldn't hurt to walk a little further, so Shuji wasn't in a hurry to leave.

"Today, I really owe you a debt of gratitude, Shisui."

Without Shisui's arrival, even if Itachi could deal with Danzo, he would inevitably be at a disadvantage.

Shisui shook his head and said with a smile, "Itachi and I are both from the Uchiha clan, and he's like a younger brother to me."

"Compared to what we have done, what Shuji has done for the Uchiha is truly worthy of our gratitude."

"If it were just Itachi and me, we would probably still be wandering and groping outside the right path even now."

As one of the few people who could gain the trust of the village and the clan, he knew very well how hard-won everything he had was.

"The road ahead is still long and won't be easy," Xiu Si said slowly. "Many things that will follow will likely require your help, Shisui."

Upon hearing this, Shisui's expression turned solemn. Without any hesitation, he solemnly replied, "Please give me your instructions. I will do my utmost for the village and the clan to have a better future, Shuji-kun."

Shuji said, "You can just call me by my name, Shisui."

Shisui paused for a moment, then his smile brightened even more: "Alright, Shuji."

Itachi watched quietly from the side, feeling a sense of peace in his heart. With Shisui and his senior by his side, they would surely succeed on this path.

After walking for a while, when the outline of the Uchiha clan's territory came into view, Shuji stopped.

Saying goodbye to Shisui and Itachi.

After seeing the person off, he didn't go straight back to his western suburban residence. Instead, he turned and headed towards the Hokage Building.

At this time, Tsunade was probably still handling official business.

Upon arriving at the location, they found Tsunade there, but in a small, separate room next to the office. She would stay there when she was impatient to share a room with the old man or when she was in a bad mood.

I guess I saw some annoying reports again today, so I'm alone again.

After receiving a response to his knock, Shuuji pushed the door open and entered. Tsunade wasn't working; instead, she was leaning back in her chair, toying with a wine glass in her hand, and the room was filled with a faint smell of alcohol.

"What are you going to ramble on about now?" Even though she said that, Tsunade still pointed to the chair opposite her.

For Shuji to come to the Hokage Building to find her, it must be something significant.

Shuji briefly explained the issue of the list submitted by Fugaku Uchiha.

Tsunade scratched her hair, clearly annoyed. "How old are you? Why do you need someone to worry about this? How did Fugaku become the clan leader? Does he really not understand the significance of the list, or is he just pretending?"

"Alright, I understand. Have him revise the list tomorrow, expanding the scope to include at least twenty people for screening and evaluation."

Shuji continued, "Another matter concerns Advisor Shimura." He told Tsunade about Danzo's interception of Itachi, attempting to coerce and bribe him.

Before she could finish speaking, Tsunade's brows furrowed instantly, and she slammed her fist on the table.

"It's that Danzo guy again. There are a bunch of unaccounted accounts in his Root organization. Every time we question him, he won't say anything, and the old man just lets it go."

Princess Thousand Hands was particularly dissatisfied with this: "What do you mean by my pile of messy accounts? The real problem is that large sums of money have gone missing in the root accounts."

“Back then, my great-uncle didn’t need the Root organization at all. They were doing things that should have been done by the Dark Division.”

"The old man is getting more and more senile with age! The older he gets, the more..."

She complained a few times, her chest heaving, and it took her a while to force herself to suppress her anger.

"However, now is not the time to make a move against him; the old man is still protecting him."

"Furthermore, there are still some things that haven't been sorted out yet, and I can only take action after I officially become Hokage."

She gulped down the wine in her glass with a fierce gulp, and a hint of drunkenness appeared in Tsunade's eyes.

She tossed the empty wine glass onto the table and pointed to the stack of documents that had clearly not yet been reviewed: "I'm tired, I'll rest for a bit. These... you're free anyway, could you take a look at them and check the data for me?"

Before Xiu Si could respond, she added vaguely, as if talking in her sleep: "Don't run away... I have things to tell you when I wake up..."

As her voice trailed off, she slumped onto the makeshift sofa beside her and fell into a deep sleep almost instantly, her breathing becoming heavy and even.

My vacation isn't over yet...

I don't want to deal with files either... but...

Upon entering, seeing Tsunade's posture, he expected her to vent her anger on him, so Shuji unusually remained silent.

Unexpectedly, Tsunade did not complain about him again. In fact, the only time he was dragged into complaining and dissatisfaction was at the old house in the western suburbs. After that, there was no more.

Shuji glanced at Tsunade's exhausted sleeping face, then walked behind his desk, sat down, and picked up the top document.

His gaze swept across the paper, and he quickly understood the source of Tsunade's irritability.

Although the war is over, the mess hasn't been cleaned up even this year. There are still issues like compensation and family resettlement for fallen ninjas, welfare and support for wounded and retired personnel, the transfer and reassignment of ninjas at all levels, and the post-war mission system…

At the end of last year, a backlog of high-level tasks was cleared up, but this year there is a significant shortage of low-level task quotas.

In order to fulfill the terms of the alliance with Sunagakure and Kumogakure, a portion of the missions in the Land of Rivers and the Land of Hot Springs have been ceded.

The surrounding small countries already have their own ninja villages, so the number of missions they can spare is limited. However, the new batch of genin graduating this year will create a huge demand for low-level missions.

Lower-level tasks involve more than just money; they also affect the growth of new recruits and the stability of the team.

Shuji picked up his pen and began to read through the pages. He couldn't overstep his authority and make approvals on Tsunade's behalf, but he could handle tasks such as assisting with data verification, organizing the documents, and marking any points of doubt. Once he got engrossed in it, his efficiency wasn't low at all.

About half an hour later, a faint noise came from the sofa.

Tsunade rubbed her eyes and sat up. After resting for a while, the effects of the alcohol had worn off considerably. She looked around sleepily.

Seeing that Xiu Si was still sitting behind the table, pen between his fingers, comparing the numbers on the file, she was clearly taken aback for a moment, then a satisfied smile appeared on her lips.

"Tsk, don't write anything carelessly, I'll have to revise it again later..." she muttered as she stood up and stretched her stiff neck.

"How was it experiencing handling village affairs?"

Not so good... Shuji thought.

No wonder Tsunade ran away as soon as Kakashi was ready to take over; and Kakashi also retreated decisively as soon as Naruto was ready to take over.

In a world where power belongs to oneself, the life of a shadow is truly a pure act of love.

Safety is secondary now; the real headache is the endless and difficult-to-handle village affairs.

Moreover, it is obvious to the naked eye that as the village grows larger and the tasks that need to be handled become more complex, the pressure on the shadow will only increase, not become easier.

After all, to be a Shadow, the most important thing is to be good at fighting; it's not that your fighting skills can drop just because you're handling official duties.

Therefore, Shuji's assessment was that this position was nobody's business.

"It's very difficult."

"Hmph, good to know." Tsunade walked to the table, looked at the empty wine glass, and pouted with some dissatisfaction, but still got down to business, "These are just internal troubles. The main event this year is outside."

"The village has decided to expand the scale of this year's Chunin Selection Exam and formally invite other ninja villages to participate. Moreover, they must be ninja villages from major powers with significant influence."

Xiu Si raised his eyes, waiting for the next part to continue.

"What's the point of Konoha just conducting its own closed-door assessments and promotions?" Tsunade explained, arms crossed. "Without comparison, how can we showcase the strength of Konoha's new generation?"

"Especially this year, with Itachi Uchiha participating. This is a perfect opportunity to show the world that even after a series of great battles, Konoha's foundation remains strong, the growth of the new generation has not stopped, and the future is still promising."

"Of course, most importantly, without the opportunity to compete against other ninja villages, without direct comparison and pressure, the daimyo and wealthy merchants will not easily accept the redistribution of the annual mission quotas, especially the quotas for low-level missions."

"We need to increase the quota quite a bit this year, otherwise it will be difficult to get through this period smoothly."

"We've already sent a letter to Iwagakure to test the waters, but they've clearly rejected it."

"The Hidden Mist Village is still the same as always, shrouded in mystery. I don't plan to get involved."

"It doesn't matter to either of them, whether they come or not, it won't make a difference."

"The key lies with Sunagakure and Kumogakure. As for Kumogakure, I plan to have Shizune lead a team to deliver the invitation and conduct negotiations. As for Sunagakure..." Tsunade's gaze fell on Shuji, "You've dealt with them before, Ebizo and Rasa both know you, so you'll be in charge this time. Make sure they send a decent team to participate."

Shuji stared at her silently for a moment.

"Lady Tsunade, I just finished a mission to deliver a message. Could I please choose another one?"

“Perfect timing, I know this place well.” Tsunade waved her hand, then seemed to remember something, “Oh right, Amegakure replied a long time ago that they would participate.”

"There's still no definite answer from Kusagakure. After you finish your trip to Sunagakure, since it's on your way, you can also visit Kusagakure and sound them out."

"Haven't you looked at a map in a long time?" Kusagakure and Sunagakure are hardly on the same route.

"That's about it, I'll arrange someone for you tomorrow." Tsunade said dismissively, then got up, grabbed Shuji by the back of his collar, and threw him out the door. "Get out of here, I have official business to attend to."

(End of this chapter)