Tsunade gazed out of the window from her desk perched on the highest floor. Lost in thought, she stared at the distant mountains where the portraits of the previous Hokages had been carved into the stone. It always stirred something within her to see her face alongside legends like Minato Namikaze, the Fourth of his name, or Hashirama Senju, the first Hokage, founder of Konoha, and none other than her own grandfather...

 Suddenly, the door of her office burst open, abruptly pulling the young woman out of her thoughts. A breathless young man stood in the doorway, a scroll in his hands, and an anxious look on his face. A shiver ran down the young woman's spine as she rushed towards the shinobi.

- Well ? Speak ! What's happening ? Inquired the young woman, attempting to appear confident.

- Tsunade-sama, the shinobi gasped. He leaned against the door frame to try to catch his breath, and looked up at the Hokage, eyes filled with terror.

- Speak, damn it ! Tsunade impatiently demanded, her heart pounding in her chest. 

- The Kazekage... Gaara of the Desert... has been kidnapped. By members of the Akatsuki organization, he blurted out, his voice trembling.

Tsunade brought her hand to her mouth. It was as if the ground was crumbling under her feet.

Her greatest fear, the threat looming over the shinobi world for some time.

Her worst nightmare was coming true. 

She locked eyes with the shinobi and ordered, in a strict voice that tried to hide her worry. 

- Call Shizune. Tell her it is an absolute emergency. Quick !

He nodded. Wiping the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, he left the room in a hurry, while Tsunade, with vacant eyes, remained frozen on the spot. Information swirled in her head, and she sank into her chair, feverish. 

- The Akatsuki... she murmured, her eyes on the ground. And so it begins. 

At that moment, Shizune burst into the room. 

- Shizune, please tell me that it's not...

- It's real, she cut, shaking her head. We just received the message from Suna. It happened last night. They couldn't do anything...

- Don't tell me that...

- He's not dead, no, she reassured her, and Tsunade sighed, relieved. At least not according to the information we have received.

- They had no reason to kill him, a deep voice spoke from the back of the room.

The two women turned around sharply. The old hermit had made a habit of appearing without any warning in the young woman's office.

- Jiraya... What do you know ? 

- The Akatsuki's goal was certainly not to get rid of Gaara. Before being Kazekage, he is a jinchuuriki in the eyes of the organization. It's not him they're interested in, but what he possesses...

Tsunade nodded gravely.

- I almost wish they were after Suna's government, and not a much darker goal... she trailed off.

- We would all have preferred that, Jiraya admitted. But things are much more complicated than that, unfortunately. 

- We need to send our men to the Land of Wind, the Hokage decided firmly. The Sand Village is one of our allies, and we are all affected by this crisis.

The young woman turned to her second-in-command.

- Shizune, make sure to have three teams ready to leave as soon as possible. There's no time to loose. 

- Tsunade-sama... Shizune stammered. Our troops are limited... Most of our jonins are on reconnaissance missions, and many teams are away. Our numbers are extremely reduced...

- And what about our chunin teams? She replied, pacing back and forth in her office, under Jiraya's worried gaze.

- Teams 8 and 9 left on a mission to the Land of Waves. There's only... 

- Very well, then have Kakashi's and Asuma's teams ready for departure by tonight at the latest.

- Tsunade, you can't be serious, the old hermit exclaimed, rising abruptly from is chair. Haven't you forgotten a small detail ? I thought we already had this discussion ?! Sending Naruto and Yura after the Akatsuki ? Might as well serve them what they desire on a silver platter ! 

From the corner of the room, Shizune simply nodded in agreement with the old sage's words.

- And what do you suggest I do, Jiraya ? she retorted. Leave the Kazekage to his fate, and do nothing ? You know damn well that as soon as those two will learn of their friend's disappearance, they'll go searching for him anyway, whether we like it or not ! 

- Tsunade, you're not thinking clearly, Jiraya attempted, trying to reason with the young woman.

- They'll go either way. Whether it is with our consent or not, and you know that very well, she cut him off, sighing. And I'd rather have them supervised by experienced jonins and ninjas than alone.

Jiraya shook his head, unconvinced. 

- That's exactly what they want...

Tsunade ignored him and turned to Shizune.

- Have Kakashi, Asuma and five of our best available jonins ready to depart with teams 7 and 10. There's not a minute to lose.

The young woman swallowed hard and nodded. She glanced one last time at the old sage before leaving the room. Jiraya looked at Tsunade as the door of the office closed.

- I think we're making a huge mistake, he said sternly. 

Tsunade sat at her desk with a sigh, her gaze vacant.

- There's no right or wrong decision here, Jiraya. Whatever we do, the safety of our two young shinobi is compromised. 

- I hope you won't regret your decision, he said simply before slipping out the window, leaving the young woman alone.

- I hope not, she thought. I truly hope not.