It's better to be a rebel ninja than to be a Hokage

"First."

As the young man finished his calm words, a corpse twisted in an abnormal posture was thrown in front of Tsunade.

"the second."

In just a breath of time, the second corpse appeared in front of Tsunade.

Tsunade stared blankly at the two corpses wearing animal masks in front of her.

The dead were all members of the guard squad directly under the Hokage who were assigned to guard her with her special approval.

"The third."

The third corpse was thrown towards Tsunade again. His mask had been shattered in the battle, revealing a pair of empty and lifeless eyes, which happened to "look" at Tsunade.

This kind of scene is just too...bad taste.

Full of the instigator's boasting, sarcasm and hatred.

If they were just ordinary Konoha ninjas, ordinary ANBU members... at least they wouldn't be humiliated even in death because of their own reasons.

Tsunade gritted her teeth and tried her best to get rid of her current cowardice.

But whether psychologically or physiologically, Tsunade, who suffered from hemophobia, couldn't muster any strength.

Perhaps their deaths will ultimately become meaningless because of Tsunade.

"Hokage-sama! Please cheer up!"

But Tsunade is the Hokage, a trusted Hokage.

The Hokage guard squad consisted of four people with a captain and three members, and the last person was fighting desperately with a seriously injured body.

Taking into account that Tsunade is a woman, a female ninja was specially selected from the Anbu ninja of the Hokage's guard team. Fortunately, when Tsunade, as the Hokage, encounters a crisis, she can help Tsunade deal with some situations that are inconvenient for male ninjas to provide assistance.

This young female ninja's code name in the Anbu is "Antelope". (In the anime, she has purple hair so most people think she is Uzuki Yugao. Here we follow the official book. If you need to verify it but don't want to bother, you can directly search for "Konoha Anbu" on Baidu Encyclopedia and scroll to the end to find her official book screenshots)

She was standing covered in blood in front of Tsunade, who was kneeling and had lost her will to fight due to hemophobia.

Excessive blood loss caused Antelope's hand, which was holding the ninja sword, to tremble a little, but she still tried to awaken Tsunade's fighting will with words, while staring at Naruto who suddenly stopped attacking.

"…Why did Uzumaki Naruto suddenly stop attacking?"

The antelope's expression behind the mask was full of confusion.

The previous fight had already made her aware of one fact.

They were selected as elites to join the Hokage Guard Squad, and they were always called strong men, but they were ridiculously weak in front of Uzumaki Naruto.

Uzumaki Naruto is extremely powerful.

She - couldn't defeat Uzumaki Naruto, and didn't even have a chance of escaping from Uzumaki Naruto.

However, in such a battle with no uncertainties, Uzumaki Naruto stood still, contrary to his usual behavior.

Through intuition and years of experience in the Anbu, Antelope could sense that there was other deeper meaning behind the logic behind Uzumaki Naruto's actions.

What has Uzumaki Naruto prepared? And who is he targeting?

She couldn't figure it out.

So she decisively gave up deep thought and chose to grasp the fact that she was still alive.

"Hokage-sama, I need your help."

Antelope pleaded with the frustrated Tsunade in a hopeless voice, looking from Naruto to Tayuya who was occupying the northern position of the Four Purple Flame Formation, and continued to whisper to Tsunade:

"It is impossible to defeat Uzumaki Naruto now, but there is still a chance to break free from the imprisonment of the barrier."

What we lack most now is time, so we need to make any decision in a hurry.

In order to escape from imprisonment, they must break the balance of the four Sound Ninjas who become the Four Purple Flame Eyes. The fat Jirobo, the multi-armed Kidomaru, and the two-headed Sakon and Ukon all seem so difficult to deal with just by looking at their appearance.

Therefore, Antelope chose Tayuya, the only female with normal appearance among the four Otoinin, as the target to break the balance of the barrier.

"As long as you get rid of the barrier, the ninjas who have discovered problems in various parts of Konoha and are gathering around you will definitely be able to protect you, and Uzumaki Naruto will not be able to attack the Hokage easily. But this requires your cooperation..."

She needed Tsunade's cooperation in treating her.

Her injuries were too serious. Without Tsunade's emergency treatment, her plan, which had a low success rate to begin with, could not even be carried out and could only be a pathetic thought in her mind.

Tsunade looked at the Anbu ninja who still held on to hope even in the face of despair.

She is like other Konoha ninjas. Even though Tsunade is now in a terrible state due to her hemophobia, she still believes in Tsunade, the Hokage, from the bottom of her heart.

Naruto.

Naruto...

Even though she is the Hokage, Tsunade still feels a little confused deep down.

Senju Hashirama, Senju Tobirama, Rope Tree, Dan, Sarutobi Sensei...

Everyone around her died because of this false name called "Shadow".

"Shadow" has never changed the ninja world, and the pain tortured Tsunade day after day.

So Tsunade fled.

She abandoned the village, at least she thought she no longer had any attachment to Konoha or to the title of "Hokage".

But is it really so?

If she really gave up everything in the past, why did she keep Shizune by her side?

Why when Jiraiya came to her and wanted her to become the fifth Hokage, she did not block Jiraiya's hope, but instead chose to complain about the dissatisfaction that had accumulated in her heart for many years in the izakaya.

And why——

——"Does Lady Tsunade like to cry?"

Three years ago, the question raised by the young Haruno Sakura suddenly appeared in Tsunade's mind.

Of course she would cry.

When the rope tree died.

When the death occurs.

Tsunade stretched out her hand tremblingly and used the Palm Magic Technique on the antelope: "Leave it to me from now on..."

Like her disciples, she harbored resentment towards the "Hokage", but she had never denied the existence and significance of the "Hokage".

The ties I experienced in Konoha were real. Ropetree, Dan... and the others, they were so glamorous and dazzling.

It is under the protection of the "Hokage" that they become so gentle and strong, and that Tsunade still has a strong attachment to them until now.

How could Tsunade, who loves and believes in "Hokage", deny "Hokage"?

There has always been a place for Konoha in her heart.

And now Tsunade has fulfilled the dreams of the two most important people in her heart, becoming the Hokage and the one who is trusted. Only then did Tsunade finally understand what "Hokage" means.

She had been crying for too long, it was time to wipe her tears, stand up and move on.

When Konoha was invaded, she had to respond to the expectations of everyone in Konoha.

Because she is the Hokage.

"I am the Fifth Hokage of Konoha!"

Antelope noticed that although the sequelae of hemophobia still caused Tsunade's hands to tremble physiologically when she performed the Palm Fairy Technique, Tsunade's originally distracted eyes began to become firm.

"Uzumaki Naruto! Your invasion of Konoha was wrong!"

As the fifth Hokage, Tsunade must protect Konoha.

Tsunade's recovery of her fighting spirit made Antelope feel a little relieved. The situation finally showed some signs of improving. If Tsunade, as the Hokage, could fight, the situation would not have tilted towards Uzumaki Naruto as it did before.

But Antelope forgot that she was able to live until now only because of Naruto's "charity" in a moment.

"If the person who invaded Konoha was your brother Nawaki, or Kato Dan, whom you still love deeply... would you use an absolute word like 'wrong' to deny them?"

"Whether it's Rope Tree or Dan, they are both excellent ninjas who have inherited the Will of Fire - you are not qualified to put yourself on the same level as them!"

Many years have passed, and the two people who have long since passed away are still the pain in Tsunade's heart, and it is a past that she cannot let go of.

She would never allow anyone to insult them, let alone the person who spoke rudely to them was a traitor of Konoha.

"I am not interested in putting myself in the same position as those losers you mentioned who talk about their dreams but can't even save their own lives." Compared to the emotional Tsunade, Naruto seemed much calmer. He said, "Since you mentioned their origins, then the civilians of Konoha are unaware of my situation. Are you also going to act crazy and stupid?"

Naruto's question left Tsunade at a loss as to how to refute it.

Uzumaki Naruto, everyone in the village only regards him as the incarnation of the nine-tailed demon fox that brought disaster to Konoha sixteen years ago.

But to Tsunade and other Konoha high-ranking officials who knew the truth, he was also the only orphan left by the fourth Hokage Minato Namikaze, the hero who sealed the Nine-Tails and saved Konoha sixteen years ago.

He is the son of a hero without any falsehood.

"Before you criticize others' mistakes as the Hokage, think carefully. Is everything Konoha does really fair?"

Until Naruto invaded Konoha, wasn't Danzo Shimura still living well as a high-ranking official in Konoha?

If Jiraiya and Tsunade said that they knew nothing about what Danzo had done, I'm sure neither of them would believe it.

"We are enemies, but there is no need to justify our actions in a high-sounding way."

"Since you don't understand my pain, I certainly don't need to care about your pain."

The hot and wet blood splattered all over Tsunade's face without her being prepared.

That is——Flying Thunder God!

And the Rasengan!

Before Tsunade performed the Palm Fairy Technique, Antelope, the last person in the Hokage's guard squad, had her abdominal cavity, which was supposed to be filled with internal organs, turned into a huge hole in an instant by the Rasengan.

It was the same at that time - a Konoha elite named Kato Dan was the only one who praised his proposal for medical system reform. Like Tsunade, he was tired of war and longed to become Hokage to end the suffering in the world. He was also the gentle man whom Tsunade loved deeply - but when Dan was dying, Tsunade also used the palm magic on his empty abdomen with both hands, but she could not save Dan no matter what.

"the fourth."

Just like how Naruto had previously eliminated the other three Anbu members of the Hokage's Guard Squad, the four members of the Hokage's Guard Squad were confirmed by Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage, to have all died at the hands of the traitor Uzumaki Naruto.

The hysteria of hemophobia, which Tsunade had finally controlled, relapsed.

The symptoms were even worse than at the beginning.

"No... the rope tree is broken..."

Tsunade, unable to break free from her hysteria, muttered incoherently, and Naruto in front of her had become her new nightmare in her hysteria.

Faced with Naruto's relentless advance, Tsunade simply huddled back in fear.

As one of the legendary three ninjas and the fifth Hokage of Konoha, it was ridiculous that he couldn't even think of resisting the enemy before him.

Tsunade's death at Naruto's hands seemed to be a foregone conclusion.

But Tsunade, who originally had a look of fear on her face, briefly revealed an expression as if she had grasped a life-saving straw.

Tsunade, who was trapped in a dead end, actually had a chance to survive.

She was supposed to be imprisoned in the barrier by the Four Purple Flames Array, but she disappeared right before Naruto's eyes.

Naruto was very familiar with the way Tsunade disappeared, it was a space-time ninjutsu.

Psychic art!

Someone used Tsunade's blood as a medium to summon Tsunade out of the Four Purple Flame Formation.

Naruto immediately expanded his range of perception.

The person who performs psychic magic is nearby!

"Hey! What the hell happened?!"

Duoyou, who had realized that she was being targeted to break out of the Four Purple Flame Formation and was secretly on guard, asked from the direction of the barrier she was responsible for maintaining.

Naruto however had no intention of paying any attention to Tayuya, everything was as Naruto had expected, and he simply disappeared from the barrier.

"Damn it! Things are getting complicated! Go support him!"

Naruto's disappearance without explanation instantly made Tayuya feel irritated.

Now that Naruto and Tsunade had both disappeared into the Four Purple Flame Formation, there was no need to maintain the barrier used to imprison them.

Tayuya was the first to untie the barrier. They had to hurry to support Uzumaki Naruto. They couldn't let Konoha find out that they and Naruto were just making a feint to hide Lord Sasuke's actions!

Tayuya was trying to sense Naruto's movements hastily, but unexpectedly noticed an attack directed at her!

Tayuya instinctively jumped away from where she was standing, and her judgment was correct.

The shadow that was supposed to restrain her silently came to nothing.

"Sensitive women are really troublesome."

Then Tayuya heard the harsh comments made by her attacker.

At the same time, Tayuya also noticed that as the Four Purple Flame Array barrier was lifted, Konoha's ninjas gathered around Sakon Ukon, Jirobo and Kidomaru.

They were obviously planning to tie up the Four Sound Ninjas and prevent them from supporting Naruto.

Under the current circumstances, it is impossible to avoid war.

Duoyouya gritted his teeth as he made his judgment on the current situation. It was that guy's procrastination that caused such a big change in the original plan!

Tayuya pulled out the flute that served as a weapon from her waist, and without hesitation used the curse seal to enter the first stage. Irregular black curse spots that appeared like zigzag lines covered her skin.

"You gloomy boy with a pineapple head is putting on airs here!"

She put the flute to her lips and blew a short note:

"I'll kill you right now!"