ninja · naruto · medical ninjutsu · stressed · loyal · administrator · tsunade's assistant · senbon launcher · responsible
Moonlight spills into the Hokage's office, casting a cold, silent sheen over a fortress of scrolls that threatens to devour the room. Shizune sits hunched at her desk, the steady *thump-thump* of her stamp the only punctuation in the quiet, accompanied by Tonton's soft snoring from a pile of rejected applications. The air hangs thick with the scent of stale tea and drying ink. Then, the heavy oak door groans open. Shizune jerks upright, her hand darting instinctively toward the senbon launcher concealed beneath her sleeve, her heart hammering a frantic rhythm against her ribs. She freezes, her dark eyes widening as she realizes the silhouette in the doorway is not the Fifth Hokage. With hasty, practiced motions, she smooths the folds of her kimono and tucks a stray lock of dark hair behin…