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After that, Tsunade turned around to leave, but then a familiar figure appeared at the entrance of the gambling hall.
"Tsunade…" Jiraiya called firmly, trying to stop her.
Upon hearing that voice, Tsunade froze. She turned slowly, eyes wide in surprise. For a second, she seemed to lose her breath upon seeing her old companion.
Tsunade hadn't expected to see him there.
However, before either of them could say anything, Naruto's voice suddenly burst in.
"Ah, Pervy Sage! Good thing you made it! I've got to admit you were right! Just like you said on the way, Tsunade is incredibly beautiful!"
Tsunade raised an eyebrow and slowly turned her head toward Jiraiya, narrowing her eyes with a hard, challenging expression.
"What else did Jiraiya say about me, brat?" Tsunade asked, her sharp gaze locked on the target of her wrath.
Jiraiya began to sweat coldly. He swallowed hard, slightly raised his hands, and shook his head rapidly—a silent plea directed at Naruto.
"He said you had huge breasts and that he'd like to bury himself between them someday!"
A tense silence overtook the room.
While the first part was undeniably true, the second... was a complete fabrication by Naruto.
Naruto was still taking revenge on the Pervy Sage for not having looked after him when he was a child.
"What I'm not sure about is whether he meant burying his face… or something else." Naruto added.
Tsunade closed her eyes for a moment. A vein pulsed dangerously on her forehead. Even Shizune took a step back, holding Tonton in her arms, as if she already knew what was coming.
When Tsunade began to walk slowly toward Jiraiya, her hair fell over part of her face, shadowing her gaze.
To Jiraiya, it was like watching death approaching.
"Tsunade, wait, please!" Jiraiya stepped back, raising a hand in front of himself. "It's all a lie! I know you won't believe me, but at least don't hit me here! You could destroy the building!"
Tsunade stopped. She glanced quickly around: slot machines, nervous waiters… Her expression relaxed… but only a little.
"I still have to keep playing," she muttered. Then she turned toward the exit, cracking her knuckles calmly. "So let's move somewhere else. I'll welcome you, Jiraiya… Just like old times."
Jiraiya followed her like a lost soul, head down, releasing a resigned sigh. With each step, he seemed more convinced his fate was sealed.
This was nowhere near the reunion he had imagined.
For years, he had fantasized about Tsunade running into his arms, eyes full of tears and a radiant smile, hugging him tightly.
Instead… he was going to get a beating.
And it was all Naruto's fault…
Naruto watched in amusement, alongside Karin, as Jiraiya knelt in front of Tsunade, his face swollen and full of bruises.
Jiraiya cried silently, wishing the punishment was over already.
Tsunade, arms crossed, kept glaring at him with a deadly stare.
"So? Why were you looking for me? This better not be about that nonsense of offering me the position of Fifth Hokage…"
Jiraiya forced a nervous smile.
"Actually…" he muttered.
Tsunade brought a hand to her face and let out a long sigh.
"I have no intention of being Hokage, Jiraiya. You can keep the position for yourself, you're more suited for it… I think."
She didn't sound very convinced at the end.
"Did you hear about the Third Hokage…?" Jiraiya asked, standing up with a frown.
Tsunade looked at him so harshly that Jiraiya shrank back… and knelt again.
"The brat told me. And no, I don't care. That old geezer is where he always belonged: underground."
Jiraiya let out a long sigh. It wasn't a surprise. Tsunade still held resentment toward the old man.
"That's exactly what I think! He took too long to die! Too bad Orochimaru beat us to it!" Naruto exclaimed from where he sat on a rock next to Karin.
More than angry at Orochimaru, he was angry at himself.
He would have loved to be the one to finish off Hiruzen with his own hands. But he didn't want to become an enemy of the village.
It might sound stupid, especially considering he didn't plan to stay in Konoha for long.
But he still had reasons not to turn against the village…
Ichiraku Ramen was the main reason.
The friends he still had in the village were the second.
"So, Tsunade? The village awaits your answer. Will you accept becoming the Fifth Hokage?" Jiraiya insisted.
"I…" Tsunade opened her mouth to refuse, but then a child's voice interrupted her.
"Huh?" Naruto turned around, surprised by the familiar voice that broke the tension.
Karin, beside him, smiled slightly. "Oh. He's late."
Only then did Naruto realize: Karin hadn't just gone to fetch Jiraiya as he asked… she had also called Nawaki.
Tsunade turned slowly, almost disinterested, expecting to see anything but what she saw.
A boy. Short hair, bright eyes…
But above all, that carefree smile she had memorized so many years ago and still saw every time she closed her eyes.
Her heart stopped for a second.
The world seemed to blur.
"No…" she whispered to herself, between a choked sob and disbelief. "It can't be…"
Nawaki ran toward her, as fast as his legs could carry him.
And during that instant, Tsunade remembered everything:
She saw him training under the sun, panting, cheeks flushed with pride after mastering a new technique.
She saw him giving a thumbs-up with that determined expression, promising her he'd become Hokage and protect everyone.
She saw him turning to smile at her before leaving for the last time, so full of dreams… so terribly young.
And now she saw him again.
But then, Nawaki tripped.
"Ah—!" Nawaki fell to his knees on the ground with a cry of pain. "Agh! I scraped myself… it stings a lot!"
Tsunade shuddered upon hearing his voice—the same one she'd heard so many times when he got hurt playing, when he came to her for healing.
Without thinking, Tsunade ran toward him.
Her legs moved on impulse.
Her heart pounded with an impossible mix of hope, fear, and despair.
She knelt beside him as she had so many times in the past, and when she touched him, her heart trembled.
It wasn't an illusion. It wasn't a dream. He was warm.
Nawaki was breathing. His heart was beating.
"Nawaki…" she whispered, her voice cracking, barely audible. "It's you… it's really you…"
She wrapped her arms around him, trembling, unable to speak further.
Her fingers tangled in his hair, her forehead rested against his.
But then she felt it. A warm wetness in her hand.
Tsunade looked down. It was blood.
A thin thread of blood ran down Nawaki's leg from his scraped knee.
And just seeing it made Tsunade swallow hard. She froze.
Her eyes widened, fixed on the blood.
The memories of the Third Great Ninja War returned: blood in the mud, screams in the distance, Dan's body wrapped in a sheet.
Tsunade's body began to tremble. Her lips moved but made no sound. The world around her shrank.
"Big sis…" Nawaki looked at her, confused, clutching his leg. "Can you heal me? It hurts… why aren't you doing anything?"
Tsunade couldn't look at him. She could only see the blood. The same blood that always meant loss.
The same blood that had haunted her all her life.
"Tsunade…?" Nawaki tilted his head, not understanding.
He didn't understand why his sister—the strong one, the invincible one, the best medic in the world—was trembling like a child, unable to touch a simple wound.