Chapter 64: I Woke Up in the Middle of the Night... and Realized I Had Become the Heroine
June had arrived, and the flowers were in full bloom.
Brilliant blossoms painted the streets with vibrant colors, while lush green leaves showcased the beauty of early summer. Birds sang among the branches, insects buzzed through the warm air, and every living creature seemed to be enjoying the season.
"Damn it!"
A beautiful woman wearing a tea-green haori trimmed with black kicked a pebble down the street.
Beneath the coat she wore a sleeveless kimono-style top secured with a black sash, while dark-blue cropped pants completed her outfit.
Although the rain had left the air fresh and pleasant, her mood remained thoroughly miserable.
What a terrible day.
First I lost all my money...
Then I ended up drowning in debt.
"Tsunade-sama!"
A young girl with short black hair hurried after her.
Looking at the mature, fair-skinned kunoichi with her striking beauty and voluptuous figure, she called out anxiously,
"Please wait for me!"
"Hurry up, Shizune."
Without slowing down, Tsunade glanced over her shoulder.
"Our creditors will catch up if we waste any more time."
The corners of Shizune's mouth twitched helplessly.
This...
Wasn't quite the ninja life she'd imagined when she graduated from the Ninja Academy.
A real ninja used practical ninjutsu to battle enemies head-on, or specialized in disguise, infiltration, and assassination.
A fake ninja...
Used the Transformation Jutsu to deceive debt collectors.
If escape was possible, they ran.
If escape wasn't possible...
They relied on Oscar-worthy acting to lure their creditors into lowering their guard...
...then ran anyway.
She never imagined Tsunade's legendary ninja career would be so...
Ordinary.
Looking at Tsunade's broad, masculine stride—which lacked even the slightest trace of feminine grace—Shizune lowered her head and muttered,
"Tsunade-sama..."
"We don't even have enough money for an inn tonight."
"Don't say things like that yet."
Tsunade looked behind Shizune once more before quickening her pace.
"Let's leave this city first."
Sigh...
Shizune lowered her head.
"So..."
"We're sleeping outdoors again?"
"We're ninja."
Tsunade waved dismissively.
"Sleeping outside is perfectly normal."
"If we get the chance later, I'll even let you experience what it's like sleeping inside the stomach of a toad at Mount Myōboku."
"Tsunade-sama..."
"When are we finally going back to the village?"
As she silently counted the little money they had left, Shizune's expression darkened.
They were completely broke.
She knew Tsunade would never listen to her advice.
But...
If things continued like this...
They might have to survive on wild game all the way back to Konoha.
"Tch."
Tsunade clicked her tongue and waved a hand.
"No one's looking for us anyway."
"We might as well keep wandering."
"As for money..."
She slipped a hand into her robe, searched around for a moment, then casually pulled out a gold nugget hidden inside her cleavage and tossed it to Shizune.
"I've got more money than I could ever spend."
"...But all we ever do is spend it."
Remembering that Tsunade had only won a handful of bets in her entire life, Shizune's expression became even gloomier.
Even reckless spendthrifts usually had some source of income.
They...
Only had losses.
Suddenly, Tsunade placed both hands on Shizune's shoulders.
Smiling brightly, she asked,
"Shizune..."
"Don't you think someone who can become the strongest in both gambling and medical ninjutsu is incredible?"
"...Yes..."
Shizune's reply was weak.
"In that case..."
"Give me back the gold I just threw to you."
"Huh?"
Shizune instantly became alert.
She hugged the gold tightly against her chest.
"Tsunade-sama!"
"That's tonight's lodging money!"
"I'll win it back."
The moment Shizune hesitated...
Tsunade snatched the gold away, spun around, and dashed straight into the casino ahead.
She hadn't expected there to be two casinos in this town.
Perfect.
Tonight's dinner money had arrived.
---
Night fell.
Shizune stared at the pitiful amount of money left in her hands, her face darker than ever.
That enormous gold nugget...
Had become nothing more than the price of a single dinner.
She had never seen anyone lose money this quickly.
In fact...
Only Tsunade herself could surpass Tsunade's own records.
She hadn't won even a single round.
"Ahem..."
Tsunade coughed awkwardly while looking away.
"Shizune..."
"Tonight we'll finally experience what real ninja life is like."
"Hm?"
Before she could finish speaking, a sudden commotion erupted in the distance.
Tsunade froze.
Did I just hear... Jiraiya's voice?
Jiraiya!
A smile immediately spread across her face.
She patted Shizune on the shoulder.
"You poor kid."
"Looks like you won't be experiencing the true ninja lifestyle tonight after all."
Without another word, she sprinted toward the source of the noise.
---
"As expected of my master..."
A sickly-looking man leaned against a wall with a blissful expression.
"Yeah..."
Another man, bent over with a bright red face, slowly squatted down while muttering,
"Just two illustrations..."
"And my imagination is already running wild."
"I'll read this tonight."
"I'd lose all my dignity reading something like this in broad daylight."
"What the hell?"
After arriving, Tsunade searched the area twice.
There was no sign of Jiraiya.
The smile vanished from her face.
Looks like I'm sleeping outside after all...
"Wait."
She frowned as two suspicious-looking men walked past her.
"Which one of you just shouted Jiraiya's name?"
"Jiraiya?"
The two exchanged puzzled glances.
"Who's Jiraiya?"
"If you don't know Jiraiya..."
"Then what exactly were you shouting just now?"
"I Came Too."
Seeing no trace of deception on their faces, Tsunade clicked her tongue and turned away.
Her final shred of hope had disappeared.
The two men watched her leave strangely before one poked the other in the chest with a book.
"You'd better finish the Catgirl one quickly."
"Then we'll trade."
"Fine."
"And don't get anything dirty on your Kato Dan one."
"Excuse me."
A soft voice suddenly sounded behind them.
Both men shivered violently before slowly turning around.
The twin-tailed woman had returned.
She was smiling.
Somehow...
That smile terrified them.
"You..."
"Who exactly is this Kato Dan you're talking about?"
"Gulp..."
For no apparent reason, both men suddenly felt a chill race down their spines.
Their breathing quickened.
It was as though some ferocious beast had fixed its gaze upon them.
Goosebumps erupted across their skin.
"Th-That's..."
"A Konoha... jōnin..."
The two stammered so badly they couldn't even form complete sentences.
Looking at Tsunade's smile...
They were on the verge of tears.
They were absolutely right.
Books like these should only be read secretly beneath a blanket.
And discussions about them...
Should happen far away from other people.
"Hmph."
Tsunade let out a slow breath.
Her eyes had already locked onto the thin booklet clutched tightly in one man's hands.
It was thinner than an ordinary book.
And on its cover...
Was the face of the man she thought about day and night...
Yet no longer dared to hope she'd ever see again.
By the time Shizune caught up, Tsunade had already snatched the booklet from the two men.
...
Has Tsunade-sama finally resorted to robbery?
Panicking, Shizune hurried over.
"Tsunade-sama!"
"Let's go back."
"I'll take on missions and earn us some money."
Before she could finish speaking...
Tsunade's expression darkened until it resembled the bottom of a burnt pot.
Shizune quietly swallowed the rest of her words.
Tsunade-sama...
Looks terrifying.
The surrounding air seemed to freeze.
Shizune instinctively stepped backward.
BOOM!
The ground beneath Tsunade's foot exploded into a massive crater.
Cold sweat slid down Shizune's face.
That was close...
Way too close.
If Tsunade had stomped with her left foot instead...
Shizune might already be reunited with her uncle.
With a furious expression, Tsunade tore the booklet apart page by page.
Rip.
Rip.
After reducing it to confetti, she growled through gritted teeth,
"I'm going to kill him."
"...Huh?"
Shizune blinked in confusion.
"I Came Too?"
Did I hear that correctly?
Wasn't Tsunade-sama looking for Jiraiya?
How did it become "I Came Too"?
---
Near midnight...
Outside the city.
Shizune leaned against their luggage.
She looked at Tsunade lying nearby...
Then at the countless craters scattered throughout the once-peaceful forest.
Finally, she let out a long sigh.
Ever since arriving here, Tsunade had vented her rage nonstop.
A tranquil forest that had stood undisturbed for a century...
Had been reduced to complete devastation.
At least...
It was finally over.
...Or perhaps not.
Watching Tsunade grit her teeth one moment and frown the next as if trapped inside a nightmare, Shizune gently poked the campfire before fanning away mosquitoes.
She couldn't help wondering...
What exactly had Tsunade seen that afternoon?
Whatever it was...
It had made her furious beyond anything Shizune had ever witnessed.
BOOM!
The ground suddenly trembled.
Shizune stared at the fresh crater that had appeared beside Tsunade.
A bead of cold sweat rolled down her cheek.
That was another close call.
If Tsunade had slammed her fist down just a little farther to the left...
Shizune would've gone to meet her uncle tonight.
"No..."
"Has he lost his mind?!"
Tsunade suddenly sat upright, glaring ahead in fury.
"Tsunade-sama!"
Hearing Shizune's cautious voice behind her, Tsunade slowly suppressed her anger.
"Oh..."
"It's you, Shizune."
"Sorry."
"What happened?"
"I had a nightmare."
She shook her head.
Ever since seeing that magazine featuring Dan that afternoon...
Her mind had been completely occupied by those images.
And when she finally fell asleep...
She'd dreamed another story entirely.
Somehow...
She had become the heroine.
Was it because she envied Dan?
Because her subconscious had accepted those fictional events as if they'd truly happened?
"No."
"This is all that damned Uchiha brat's fault!"
"If he hadn't drawn me in a swimsuit..."
"Why would I dream about becoming the heroine?"
"And why would the male lead become that little brat?!"
Watching Tsunade grind her teeth in frustration, Shizune nervously licked her dry lips.
"Tsunade-sama..."
"Would you like to talk about it?"
"Hmph."
Tsunade snorted.
"Tsunade-sama..."
"Who was the 'he' you mentioned just now?"
After taking a deep breath, Tsunade looked at Shizune's curious face before turning toward the distant direction of Konoha.
"There was an Uchiha ninja..."
"He specialized in medical ninjutsu."
"You should know who he is."
Shizune nodded.
"Uchiha Asuka."
"An Uchiha jōnin."
"A combat jōnin."
"A medical jōnin."
"The genius who created an S-rank ninjutsu."
"The monster who completed over three thousand D-rank missions."
"They say his medical ninjutsu is second only to yours, Tsunade-sama."
"That's basically correct."
Tsunade pursed her lips.
She disliked the brat...
But she couldn't deny that he excelled in certain areas.
"Back then..."
"I proposed establishing dedicated medical ninja on every team."
"Although the proposal wasn't adopted immediately..."
"Dan supported me."
"That's how we met."
A trace of bitterness crossed her face.
"Actually..."
"That Uchiha brat supported me too."
"He even gave me money to help train medical ninja."
Shizune's eyes lit up.
"Really?"
She had never heard this story before.
So...
Konoha's greatest and second-greatest medical ninja had formed a connection all those years ago?
But...
Thinking back over all the years she'd spent with Tsunade...
She couldn't remember Tsunade ever speaking with anyone from the Uchiha Clan.
Had they fallen out?
Unable to contain her curiosity, she leaned closer.
"What happened next?"
"Did he become your disciple?"
"My disciple?"
Tsunade shook her head while gazing up at the stars.
"He supported me in the morning..."
"And by the afternoon..."
"He was in the hospital."
Shizune blinked.
"...Why?"
Tsunade slowly clenched her fist.
"Because I put him there."
"...Why?"
A cold laugh escaped Tsunade's lips.
"He claimed he was my fan."
"He said he supported my dream."
"I was foolish enough to believe I'd finally met someone who truly understood me."
"Shizune..."
"Do you know how touched I was back then?"
"I never imagined a four-year-old child..."
"Especially an Uchiha..."
"Would understand me."
"Then he said he wanted to learn medical ninjutsu too."
"He wanted to help carry my burden."
"Since so few Uchiha studied medical ninjutsu..."
"I spent days searching through ancient medical texts for him."
Suddenly remembering something, Tsunade's face darkened.
"But..."
"That afternoon, when I went to tell him the good news..."
"He wasn't home."
"So I waited in his room."
"And then..."
"I discovered that rotten brat's secret."
Shizune leaned even closer.
"What secret?"
"There was a stack of sketches on his desk."
"The drawings were crude."
"It was obvious a child had drawn them."
"When I started flipping through them..."
Tsunade inhaled deeply before speaking each word through gritted teeth.
"...Every single one..."
"...Was of me."
"...?"
Seeing Shizune's bewildered expression, Tsunade stared toward Konoha once more.
Her voice gradually returned to its usual calm.
"The moment he stepped through the front door..."
"I kicked him straight into the hospital."
"That scheming little Uchiha brat."
"He actually thought he could win my affection that way."
Back then...
She had genuinely believed that a four-year-old boy who supported her dream truly understood her.
She had been happier than she'd ever admit.
Then she'd walked into Asuka's room...
Only to discover those indecent drawings.
The enormous gulf between reality and her expectations...
Had completely shattered her composure.
And...
She'd found herself utterly unable to resist kicking a certain four-year-old child into the hospital.
A malicious...
Thoroughly evil...
Little Uchiha.
Even now...
Thinking back on it still made her furious.