Sakura Haruno is Usefull

Nighttime

Haruno Residence

Sakura sat on the living room sofa with damp hair, flipping through a scroll on medical ninjutsu.

Behind her, a red-haired girl diligently dried Sakura's hair with a towel.

Initially, Sakura had wanted to refuse. In her opinion, it was sufficient to towel it off, shake her head a few times, and let it air-dry naturally.

After all, this had been her routine for years.

As for catching a cold?

Did people really think her body—capable of punching a wild boar to death—was so fragile?

Unable to resist Karin's enthusiasm, Sakura eventually gave in.

"Hehehe~~ Sakura's hair~~"

From behind her came a strange, eerie giggle, as though some unidentified creature was lurking nearby.

As time passed, Karin's true nature seemed harder to suppress.

The essence of her… obsessive personality was gradually surfacing.

"Karin?"

Sakura's voice rang out just in time.

"Huh?"

Karin snapped out of her trance-like state, wiping a bit of drool from the corner of her mouth before replying.

"By the way, how much longer will it take for your residency procedures in Konoha to be finalized?"

Karin scratched her head sheepishly and replied, "It's almost done. But Konoha's intelligence division is amazing—they even dug up information about my great-grandfather!"

"They also mentioned that I had a distant relative who used to live here. Apparently, her name was Uzumaki Kushina or something?"

"But it seems… she's already passed away."

Hearing this, Sakura froze for a moment.

"Oh… I see…"

Sakura's reaction was so obvious that Karin felt a bit puzzled. However, she didn't dwell on it and instead spoke with a tinge of melancholy:

"I guess it won't be long before I have to move out…"

Once Karin's paperwork was finalized, Konoha would assign her a place to live. At that point, she wouldn't have any reason to stay at the Haruno residence.

Sakura picked up on Karin's dejection. She closed the scroll in her hands, turned around, and looked at Karin.

"Well… if you can pass the Konoha genin exam…"

"…I could let you join my team."

"???"

Karin blinked, unsure of what Sakura meant.

She understood Konoha's team system—wasn't it usually one chunin or jonin with three genin?

Sakura pointed to a green flak jacket hanging by the entryway and smiled.

"Actually, I'm a special jonin."

Karin glanced at the green vest, then at Sakura, her expression shifting from confusion to delight.

"Sakura!"

The red-haired octopus—known for her inability to conceal emotions—pounced on Sakura, hugging her tightly.

Sakura, her mouth twitching, found herself pinned to the sofa by Karin and couldn't help but feel exasperated.

At that moment, the Haruno family's front door was knocked upon.

Sakura broke free from Karin's grasp and, with her still-damp hair, went to answer the door.

"Who is it?"

When Sakura opened the door, she was greeted by an Anbu wearing a mask.

"Haruno Sakura. The Hokage requests your immediate presence at the Hokage Office."

Sakura looked at the Anbu in confusion.

Nearly midnight? What could the old man possibly want at this hour?

This had never happened before.

Late Night

A petite figure darted through the night sky, heading toward the Hokage Office.

Though it was nearing 10 p.m., the Hokage Office was still brightly lit.

Even from a distance, Sakura could make out the silhouettes of staff busily working inside.

The sight caused her heart to sink slightly.

Walking briskly into the building, she greeted a few familiar staff members and made her way directly toward the Hokage's office.

Without hesitation, she pushed open the door—only to feel an immediate sense of suffocation.

A wave of pale blue smoke rushed toward her like a tide, engulfing her.

The entire office was shrouded in secondhand smoke, resembling a mystical "immortal realm."

Through the haze, she could barely make out Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shikaku Nara sitting amidst the smoke, puffing away.

"Oh, Sakura, you're here," Hiruzen said, his previously furrowed brows relaxing at the sight of her.

Just as he was about to invite her in, he noticed her frozen at the doorway, glaring at him with a disapproving expression.

Hiruzen blinked, then sheepishly realized what was wrong. Letting out an awkward laugh, he stood up, opened the window, and used a small Wind Release jutsu to clear out the "immortal aura" from the room.

Only then did Sakura step inside, her expression still displeased.

"You're almost seventy, and you're still smoking like this," she said bluntly.

"Careful, or you'll smoke yourself into an early grave."

Her emerald eyes shifted to Shikaku, who was seated nearby, as if to say, You're no better.

The pineapple-haired man glanced at her, then at the half-smoked cigarette in his hand. Silently, he stubbed it out in an ashtray overflowing with cigarette butts.

"So, what's the matter, old man?" Sakura asked as she sat down on the sofa.

"Well…"

Hiruzen took a deep breath of the now-fresh air and began explaining the latest intelligence.

Reports from the Land of Frost, corroborated by intelligence operatives in the Land of Lightning, had confirmed one thing:

Kumogakure was making its move.

Although they had been prepared for the possibility of conflict with Kumogakure, the speed and decisiveness of their actions caught Hiruzen off guard.

Sakura listened quietly, pondering for a moment before glancing at Shikaku, who had remained silent since her arrival.

"Kumogakure acted the moment the Kazekage left Sunagakure. Should I assume they've already reached some sort of agreement with the Sand Village?"

Her words caused Shikaku's eyes to narrow slightly.

It was a possibility he had considered, but without concrete evidence, it remained speculation.

Yet, if the Wind and Lightning nations truly allied, the treaty between Konoha and the Land of Earth would be significantly weakened.

"That's precisely what concerns me," Hiruzen admitted with a sigh, his previously relaxed brows knitting together once more.

"What's there to be worried about?" Sakura said, pouring herself a glass of water from the table.

"Didn't you anticipate this from the start, old man?"

Hiruzen couldn't help but reflect on his decades-long tenure as Hokage, spanning the Second and Third Shinobi World Wars.

Was it possible that, just as he was preparing to groom a successor, the Fourth Shinobi World War was about to begin?

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