Naruto: We Agreed on a Simulation, But They Actually Came to Life?

Chapter 77: Chapter 77: Uncomfortable

Third-floor office.

Tsunade leaned back in her chair, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Opposite her, Nonou sat at a low table organizing documents, glancing up at her every so often.

Silence stretched between them for a long while.

"Any more surgeries scheduled recently?"

Nonou flipped through the schedule.

"There are currently no cases that require your personal intervention."

She closed the folder and chose her words carefully.

"Lady Tsunade, you’ve performed thirteen surgeries in a single week, including three the day before yesterday. If you keep this up, your health will suffer. Since there are no major surgeries right now, please take some time to rest."

Tsunade didn’t respond.

Thirteen surgeries. She hadn’t even been counting.

Ever since her last conversation with Kushina, she hadn’t figured out how to approach Kitahara Kaede.

She had tried following him twice. Once, she was too far away to see his face; the second time, she saw him clearly, but he didn’t match her memories, which only served to frustrate her further.

Eventually, she simply stopped thinking about it.

Schedule surgeries, perform surgeries, write reports, schedule more surgeries.

As long as her hands were busy, her mind wouldn’t wander.

But now Nonou was telling her the work was done.

The moment she stopped, those fragmented memories began to surface again.

Tsunade finally spoke. "Fine. I’m going to the casino."

Nonou opened her mouth to speak but didn’t stop her. There was no stopping her anyway.

"I’ll take my leave then."

Nonou stood up and quietly closed the door behind her.

Tsunade sat still for a few seconds, then grabbed her coat, draped it over her shoulders, and headed down the side stairs.

A few rounds of gambling to clear her head.

As she reached the corner of the first floor, her peripheral vision caught the reception waiting area.

Her footsteps stopped.

A man and a woman.

The man wore a Chunin vest. He had black hair, a lean build, and a clean, sharp profile.

Tsunade’s breath hitched.

It was him.

Subconsciously, she took a half-step forward.

But then she saw the girl beside him, and her feet froze.

Black curly hair, red eyes, and bandages wrapped around her right shoulder.

She was sitting right next to him.

Kitahara Kaede turned his head and said something to the girl.

The girl nodded slightly.

It was a normal distance for teammates; it was a normal way of conversing.

Yet, Tsunade felt a sudden tightness in her chest.

She couldn’t put a finger on the feeling—it was just... uncomfortable.

Seeing that girl sitting beside him made her feel inexplicably irritated.

The moment she realized this, Tsunade was stunned.

’Why am I reacting like this?’

She gripped the coat on her shoulders tightly and turned back up the stairs.

...

The office door was pushed open and slammed shut.

Tsunade flung her coat onto the back of her chair and sat down.

After two seconds, she stood up and pushed the pen holder aside.

She sat back down, picked up a pen, then put it down again.

Irritating.

She leaned back and closed her eyes.

She couldn’t shake the image from her mind.

For no apparent reason, that suffocating feeling remained lodged in her chest.

Then, another thought crept through the cracks.

He was downstairs.

Tsunade stared at the desktop, as if suddenly struck by an idea. She stood up and walked to the door.

"Nonou."

The footsteps at the end of the hallway paused and then turned back.

"Lady Tsunade?"

"There are two people in the downstairs waiting area," Tsunade said, leaning against the doorframe. "A man in a Chunin vest with black hair. A woman with curly hair, red eyes, and an injury on her shoulder."

Nonou tilted her head.

Hadn’t she just said she was going to the casino? Why bring this up now?

"Go down and see what’s going on."

"...Understood."

Nonou didn’t ask any further questions and headed downstairs. After a few steps, she looked back.

Tsunade had already closed the door.

...

First floor, waiting area.

As Nonou approached, Kitahara Kaede’s gaze shifted toward her first.

Short brown hair, round glasses, and a gentle smile.

Yakushi Nonou.

Code-named the "Wandering Shrine Maiden," she was one of the Hidden Leaf’s top spies and the adoptive mother of the future "Master of Dreams," Kabuto. However, her current official identity was that of a hospital medical ninja and an orphanage director.

"Hello. I am Yakushi Nonou from the Medical Department."

Kitahara Kaede glanced at her.

"We’ve already registered at the front desk."

Nonou smiled, showing no sign of awkwardness.

"My apologies. This case has been transferred to me, so I need to re-confirm the specific details. Cleaning a poison-coated blade wound requires a very precise approach. I’d like to understand the situation personally to handle the details correctly."

Kitahara Kaede thought about it; it made sense.

Purging toxins wasn’t something that could be handled by simply following a standard procedure. It was normal for the attending medical ninja to ask again.

He handed over the medical record he had received at the front desk.

"Teammate has a blade wound on the right shoulder. It was poison-coated. Preliminary suppressive treatment was done on the front lines, but it needs a thorough purging."

Nonou took the records and flipped through a few pages, her gaze lingering on the "Toxin Type" and "Preliminary Treatment" sections.

"The initial treatment was very well done."

She looked at Kurenai Yuhi.

"Follow me for a detailed examination. I’ll get you set up quickly."

Kurenai bowed slightly and followed. After a few steps, Nonou looked back.

"Captain Kitahara, please wait here. I’ll come back to notify you once I’ve confirmed the process."

Kitahara Kaede nodded.

...

Third floor.

Nonou placed the files on Tsunade’s desk.

"The two of them just returned from a mission. The girl is Kurenai Yuhi, a Genin, with a poison-coated blade wound on her right shoulder."

She paused.

"The man is the captain, a Chunin named Kitahara Kaede."

Tsunade opened the file and scanned through the pages. A moment later, she closed it.

"Have the second examination room handle Kurenai Yuhi. Full detoxification and a physical exam. Be thorough."

"Yes, ma’am."

"Additionally—"

Tsunade’s voice remained flat.

"Once the detoxification is complete, send the report to me."

She paused for a beat.

"And have the captain come up here to sign for it."

Nonou pushed up her glasses.

Detoxification reports didn’t require a captain’s signature; they could be collected right at the front desk.

She glanced at Tsunade.

Tsunade had already picked up her pen and was writing something else, showing no intention of explaining.

"Understood."

Nonou turned to leave.

Lady Tsunade was acting very strange today. Extremely strange.

...

First floor.

Nonou guided Kurenai Yuhi to the second examination room.

"The full detoxification and physical will take about an hour."

Before entering, Kurenai looked back.

"Captain, I’ll be a little while."

"It’s fine. Go ahead."

Kurenai nodded and followed her down the hallway.

Kitahara Kaede leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes.

About forty minutes passed.

Nonou appeared before him once again.

"Captain Kitahara, the detoxification is complete. She is still undergoing the follow-up physical, so it will be another half hour or so."

"Mm."

"The report requires the captain’s signature for confirmation."

Nonou’s smile was identical to before.

"Please come up to the third floor. Turn left at the end of the hallway; it’s the second office."

Kitahara Kaede opened his eyes.

The third floor?

When he had registered earlier, he noticed that reports were collected at the first-floor reception. Furthermore, in all the missions he had run, he had never encountered a "captain’s signature for confirmation" process.

Kitahara Kaede looked at Nonou.

Her expression was flawless, her smile warm and gentle.

"Alright."

Nonou nodded and turned to leave.

Kitahara Kaede stood in place, his gaze falling on the stairs leading to the third floor.

He felt that something was off.

But he couldn’t quite put his finger on what.