After entering Konoha Hospital through a side entrance, Kagami did not disturb Rei, who was busy treating the wounded. Instead, he went alone to her break room and quietly waited there.
It was not until midnight that Rei finally returned, exhaustion written all over her face.
Seeing Kagami sitting inside, Rei was immediately startled.
"Kagami, what are you doing here?"
Kagami smiled. "There’s something I need to talk to you about."
"What is it?" After a brief pause, Rei asked curiously, "If you were looking for me, why didn’t you just come to the infirmary? How long have you been waiting here?"
Kagami stood up. "Not that long. You’ve been busy all day, so you must be hungry. Come on, let’s go get something to eat."
Rei obediently nodded.
After leaving Konoha Hospital side by side, the two found a barbecue restaurant that was still open.
Once they were seated in a private room, Kagami asked about the casualties from the incident.
Rei looked exhausted, and her voice was subdued as she murmured, "So many seniors survived the battlefield, only to die at the hands of their own Hokage. It’s really hard to accept... Kagami, do you know? Even among the seniors who were lucky enough to survive, many of them will never be able to serve as shinobi again."
Because far too many people had been involved in the incident, there was simply no way to keep it under wraps. In just half a day, news had spread throughout the village that Danzo, the Acting Hokage, had conducted an evil ritual and harmed hundreds upon hundreds of Konoha shinobi.
And Konoha Hospital, where both the wounded and the dead had been brought, had naturally become the main hub through which the news spread. So even without deliberately asking around, Rei had already learned the general course of what had happened.
Kagami casually asked, "I heard Kakashi was the first one to discover what was happening?"
Rei nodded lightly. "Mm. If it hadn’t been for Kakashi, the casualties probably would’ve been even worse. A lot of the injured brought into the hospital were people Kakashi rescued from the collapsing mountain."
Kagami had also heard during the senior leadership meeting that, at the instant the volcano collapsed, Kakashi had used the Flying Thunder God Technique to rescue more than a hundred people.
It could be said that Kakashi, having accomplished such a feat, was already no weaker than the Fourth Hokage had been during the early stages of the Third Shinobi World War.
This was a transformation—a transformation from an elite jonin into a Kage-level powerhouse.
After losing the Mangekyo Sharingan in his left eye, Kakashi seemed to have turned misfortune into a blessing. He had finally broken free of the shackles that had bound him in the past and found the shinobi path that truly belonged to him.
"Kakashi is growing too, huh..."
Kagami sighed softly, then shifted the conversation to the real reason he had come. Without beating around the bush, he said to Rei, "Rei, I need the Yin Seal!"
"What!?"
Rei was startled and stared blankly at Kagami.
Kagami explained, "I know it’s your sensei’s secret technique, but I genuinely need it. So I’m hoping you can help me obtain the technique. You’re the only one who can help me with this."
When it came to Rei, Kagami neither wanted to lie nor had any need to.
Rei immediately looked troubled. "Sensei hasn’t even taught this secret technique to Shizune-senpai yet. Even if I want to help you, there’s not much I can do!"
Kagami smiled. "It’s fine. Just give it a try. If you really can’t get it, I’ll think of another way."
Rei nodded.
"Alright. I’ll give it a try."
In order to minimize the negative impact of Danzo’s defection, the village made a formal announcement the very next day, stripping Danzo of his position as Acting Hokage and reinstating the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, as Hokage.
Immediately afterward, a delegation headed by Advisory Elder Utatane Koharu set out for the Land of Lightning to demand an explanation from Kumogakure.
Kagami did not remain idle either.
On one hand, he secretly ordered the Fourth Mizukage, Karatachi Yagura, to dispatch Kirigakure personnel throughout the shinobi world to gather any intelligence concerning Danzo.
On the other hand, he contacted Kurenai, Hayate, and Yugao—his former subordinates from his time in the ANBU—and used Konoha’s ANBU intelligence network to gather information on Danzo as well.
Then, on the third day after Kagami had asked Rei to obtain the Yin Seal, she finally had some good news.
After Rei’s persistent pleading, Tsunade’s heart eventually softened, and she ultimately passed the secret technique scroll of the Yin Seal down to her.
Late that night.
Looking somewhat guilty, Rei asked Kagami to meet her in a small alley outside the clan district. With an unusually serious expression, she said, "Kagami, you have to promise me one thing first!"
"Go ahead."
Rei hesitated before saying, "I can lend you the Yin Seal’s secret technique scroll, but you absolutely cannot pass it on to anyone else. This... this is Sensei’s secret technique, after all. Lending you the scroll without her permission is already a huge mistake. If you spread it to anyone else, I really wouldn’t be able to face Sensei anymore."
Kagami smiled. "And here I thought it was something serious. Don’t worry. I’m only going to study it and practice it myself. I absolutely won’t pass it on to anyone else!"
After receiving Kagami’s promise, Rei finally let out a long sigh of relief.
She then took an exquisitely crafted scroll from the ninja pouch at her waist and carefully handed it to Kagami.
After taking the Yin Seal’s secret technique scroll, Kagami gently rubbed Rei’s head.
"Don’t worry. I’ll handle everything. Hurry back."
"Mm."
Rei nodded, then quickly left the alley.
After Rei had gone some distance away, Kagami’s expression darkened.
"Come out."
At that moment, a figure stepped out from the shadows of the alley.
The figure wore a green robe, with her beautiful blond hair casually tied behind her. In the center of her forehead was the distinctive diamond-shaped mark of the Yin Seal.
There was no doubt that this figure was none other than Tsunade, one of Konoha’s Legendary Sannin.
Walking closer, Tsunade looked Kagami up and down before finally fixing her gaze on the Yin Seal secret technique scroll in his hand.
"You didn’t even activate your Byakugan, yet you still noticed me. Looks like I underestimated you."
Kagami calmly replied, "I apologize for what happened with the secret technique scroll. Rei had nothing to do with this. I forced her to do it."
Tsunade questioned him sharply, "And here I was wondering why Rei suddenly came begging me to teach her the Yin Seal. So you were the one behind it! Tell me, what exactly are you trying to do? Why did you steal my secret technique?"
Faced with the interrogation of Tsunade, one of the Legendary Sannin, Kagami remained perfectly composed and answered evenly, "I don’t have any other motive. I simply want to learn the Yin Seal. I know that the Yin Seal can accumulate chakra over time and then release it all at once during battle. If I can master this technique, it’ll greatly increase my strength."
Seeing that Kagami could remain so calm even after being caught red-handed, Tsunade was somewhat surprised.
Still, she said, "Even if everything you’ve said is true, as the Principal of the Ninja Academy, you should know better than I do what kind of crime it is to steal someone else’s secret technique."
Kagami pondered for a moment before saying,
"What do you want?
"Name your price."