Sasuke looked visibly surprised when he saw Ryo.
But it wasn't surprise at Ryo's sudden appearance, nor at how effortlessly Ryo had blocked his attack.
What truly stunned him… was Itachi's attitude toward Ryo.
In Sasuke's mind, Itachi was a powerful and arrogant figure—someone who wouldn't back down even in front of the Hokage.
Ryo, unaware of Sasuke's inner turmoil, glanced at Itachi and Kisame, then waved a hand and said, "Alright, alright. You two go to the back. I'll handle Sasuke."
This situation couldn't really be blamed on them—after all, who could've expected Sasuke to show up at this exact moment?
Itachi and Kisame exchanged a brief look with Sasuke, then turned and walked toward the backyard.
"Itachi! Stop right there! I'm going to kill you!" Sasuke shouted and charged again, not even thinking clearly anymore.
Ryo's head began to ache. He spread out his psychic power once more to restrain Sasuke.
"Sasuke, calm down."
"Let me go! Itachi! Don't you dare run!"
Sasuke fought to break free of the mental restraint, his eyes locked firmly on the direction Itachi had gone.
Ryo rubbed his temples in frustration. "Sasuke, calm down. Do you really think you're a match for Itachi right now?"
Sasuke froze. His clenched fists trembled slightly.
He hated to admit it—but it was true. No matter how hard he tried, he wasn't Itachi's match. Not now. Not even if there were ten of him.
Seeing him calm down, Ryo slowly released his hold and asked, "Alright, tell me—why are you here?"
Huff—
Sasuke exhaled sharply. "Boss, give me five packs of mid-grade energy cubes, ten packs of high-grade ones, and five healing salves."
"Huh?" Ryo raised an eyebrow. "That much all at once?"
Sasuke nodded. "Yeah."
Ryo studied him for a second, but didn't push it. He turned to prepare the requested items.
Once Sasuke took the goods and paid, he glanced once more at the path Itachi had taken, then turned and left the store.
Inside, he repeated to himself: One day… I will kill him.
Watching him leave, Ryo murmured, "Looks like Orochimaru's started moving."
Sasuke buying that many energy cubes and healing items clearly meant he was preparing to leave. And given the timing, this was the infamous defection arc.
Ryo had thought that storyline wouldn't happen anymore—especially since the appearance of Pokémon gave Sasuke an alternative source of strength to rival Itachi.
But apparently, the plot was snapping back into place.
"Orochimaru must've done a hell of a job persuading him," Ryo muttered.
After all, with knowledge of Pokémon and their power, Sasuke wouldn't just leave for the sake of strength. There had to be more to it.
Ryo shook his head. "Well, if he's leaving, he's leaving."
With that, he turned and called Itachi and Kisame back to the front to continue managing the shop.
As for himself—he returned to the backyard to resume training.
But while things were calming down on Ryo's end, Konoha itself was far from peaceful.
Inside the Hokage's office—
Tsunade, who had just taken on the role of Hokage, stared at the towering pile of paperwork with deep regret.
"I never should've come back… let alone agreed to become Hokage."
Cough cough—
Jiraiya coughed beside her. "Tsunade, it's too late for regrets. You're Hokage now."
She nearly punched him.
Bang bang bang—
Suddenly, there was a knock on the door.
"Come in," Tsunade called out, looking toward the entrance.
The one who entered was Shikamaru's father, Shikaku, the advisor Tsunade had just appointed to assist her.
He nodded at Jiraiya and Shizune, then turned to Tsunade. "Lady Hokage, the Anbu have detected foreign shinobi inside the village."
"Hm?" Tsunade frowned. "Foreign shinobi? Any details?"
"The Anbu only caught a glimpse before they fled. But their behavior was highly suspicious."
Jiraiya also furrowed his brow.
Foreign shinobi in Konoha weren't unheard of—other villages always had spies lurking about.
But the fact they fled so quickly after being spotted… that was strange.
"Tell the Anbu to keep a close eye and tighten security," Tsunade said after a moment's thought.
Shikaku nodded. "Understood."
With that, he turned and left to begin deploying the Anbu.
After he left, Tsunade's expression darkened. "So much trouble, and I just got the job…"
Jiraiya added, "I don't think this is going to be simple, Tsunade."
"I know," she said quietly.
She knew all too well this was just the beginning. Konoha had only just completed its reconstruction after the last crisis.
And now… something new was brewing.
Tensions were still running high in Konoha. Everyone had been suppressing their frustration since the previous attack—nobody had even dared to breathe too loud.
Now, with the village still recovering, anyone trying to stir up trouble would be making a very unwise choice. They might just end up becoming a convenient target for Konoha to vent its pent-up anger.
Given the situation, even the major Hidden Villages wouldn't dare provoke Konoha right now.
And yet, something was happening. Clearly, this wasn't going to be simple.
Jiraiya nodded solemnly. "I'll head out and take a look."
With that, he leapt out the window—again.
Tsunade couldn't help but twitch at the sight. "After all these years, why hasn't he broken that habit? There's a perfectly good door right there, and he insists on diving out the window…"
"Lady Tsunade! Lady Tsunade!"
Just then, a loud voice called out from outside. A moment later, Might Guy burst into the room in a panic.
Tsunade frowned at the sudden commotion, but seeing how flustered Guy was, she held back her irritation. "Guy? What's wrong?"
Although she had been away from Konoha for a long time, she still recognized most of the village's shinobi.
"Lady Tsunade—no, Hokage-sama! Please save my student!"
"Hm?"
Tsunade's expression became serious. "What happened?"
Guy quickly explained Rock Lee's injury.
As he listened, Tsunade's brows furrowed—then her eyes lit up slightly. "No need to worry. I'll go take a look right now."
She turned toward Shizune and said, "Shizune, I'm leaving the documents to you. If you don't know how to handle anything, just leave it for me."
"Eh? Huh?"
Shizune was stunned as she watched Tsunade walk out. She didn't even know how to react.
Why did it suddenly feel like she was the one being punished here?
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