"Ahhh, this feels good."
Nawaki had a towel draped over his face, leaning back against the poolside and clearly enjoying himself.
This kid really was just like Kawaki—truly living up to the title of "Hokage's Top Brother-in-Law."
"Big bro Nawaki, I heard you went to the hot spring with Lord Jiraiya and had some fun activities going on."
"Why don't you tell us about it?"
Minato wiped himself down with a towel, smirking.
"What kind of fun activities? Don't make things up. I never go to the hot spring with Big Brother Jiraiya."
Nawaki sat bolt upright, the towel sliding from his face.
Whether it was from soaking in the hot water or some sudden thought, his face flushed bright red.
He looked exactly like someone hiding something guilty.
If Misaki ever found out about those unspeakable blemishes on his record, what would he do?
"Oh really? I heard it from Teacher's wife by chance."
Minato originally hadn't been sure, but seeing Nawaki react like this confirmed everything.
Lord Jiraiya really did have... unique interests. No wonder Teacher's wife hadn't taken interest in him.
"Don't believe my sister. I was just keeping watch."
Trying to defend himself, Nawaki played down his role.
"Hahaha, got it."
Minato burst into laughter. Since Nawaki had developed such a thick skin recently, it had been a long time since he'd seen that flustered expression on his face.
"So this is the real Nawaki big bro."
Both Yahiko and Nagato gave him looks filled with disdain.
Although Nagato's eyes were hidden beneath his bangs, Nawaki could still feel the deep contempt behind them.
"I didn't do anything!"
At this moment, Nawaki's desperate plea sounded painfully weak.
"This kind of behavior definitely won't be tolerated—it'll get you killed if you're caught."
Ichiro Aso shuddered, clearly recalling a memory he'd rather forget.
"No worries, we can run fast enough."
Nawaki blurted out too quickly, basically confessing without needing any pressure.
By the time he covered his mouth, it was already too late.
"This round's on you then, okay?"
Seizing the opportunity, Minato made an unreasonable demand.
Instinctively, Nawaki wanted to argue back but opened his mouth twice without uttering a single word.
Letting out a deep breath, he finally nodded, his face twisted in reluctant annoyance.
With someone holding evidence against him, all he could do was silently mourn for his poor wallet—for three full seconds.
Since there were few others around, they had the whole hot spring pool to themselves.
Meanwhile, Konan was in the women's bathhouse, chatting happily with several young ladies from The Snow Clan.
"Konan, how are you so amazing?"
The cheerful and adorable Konan was already very popular—everyone had grown close to her by now.
A woman around twenty years old was washing Konan's hair.
"I don't think I'm anything special—I give all the credit to Kawaki's teaching."
Konan didn't think much of her own abilities and believed it was all thanks to Kawaki's guidance.
She had no idea that Kawaki followed the original storyline so closely—he'd never steer her wrong.
"How powerful is he exactly?"
Everyone turned their attention toward her. Everyone knew her older sister was the Hokage, but nobody had actually heard details about Minato and the others' teacher.
"Kawaki Hatake—have you heard of him?"
Konan wasn't entirely sure whether people from Kiri who hadn't participated in the Second Shinobi World War would know about her teacher's reputation.
If no one else knew, it almost sounded like she was bragging about her teacher.
"Kawaki Hatake?"
"The Kawaki who killed Hanzō the Salamander?"
"I heard he also killed the Third Kazekage."
"He even defeated the Third Tsuchikage too."
"He even fought the Third Raikage!"
...
Women naturally enjoy gossip, and someone like Kawaki was naturally a hot topic everyone was familiar with.
"That's right, that Kawaki Hatake."
Konan looked proud, her smug smile made people want to pinch her adorable cheeks.
"No wonder you're his student. That explains why you're so amazing."
The following responses from the others made Konan feel slightly disheartened—wasn't she working hard too?
Sometimes, having such an outstanding teacher wasn't necessarily a good thing.
"You're already amazing. I was still just a Genin when I was your age."
The older girl helping Konan wash her hair smiled gently, giving Konan some final comfort.
"You're amazing too, Sister."
Konan turned around, and they both smiled at each other.
Gentle souls always seem to have a light in their eyes.
"Hey, is your teacher married yet?"
"The Snow Clan's bloodline is quite impressive too."
A few women nearby were unclear whether they were joking or had ulterior motives.
What she said wasn't wrong either—the Snow Clan generally had fair skin and delicate features.
With a Kekkei Genkai hidden beneath all that beauty, they'd definitely have no problem attracting suitors in Konoha.
"My teacher's wife is the Hokage."
Konan answered directly, instantly dashing their hopes.
How could these ordinary girls ever compare to him?
"Oh, really?"
"We shouldn't have brought it up."
The women withdrew their unrealistic fantasies.
Competing with the Hokage for a man? They'd probably never live long enough to even learn how to spell "death."
"It's fine. My teacher has very high standards."
Konan's remark made the girl behind her giggle quietly.
She might've been young, but her tongue was sharp.
Understanding Konan's meaning, the others felt embarrassed and lowered their heads.
The conversation fizzled out quickly, leaving only occasional exchanges between Konan and the girl behind her.
After bathing, Nawaki obediently went to pay the bill.
He took out his wallet and carefully counted the required amount.
Although he had prepared himself mentally, he couldn't help but wince inwardly.
The Land of Waves is poor and lacks its own currency system; Fire Country currency works just fine instead.
This chapter isn't over yet—there's more excitement ahead!
If you enjoy Naruto: Starting from Pursuing Tsunade, be sure to bookmark: (m.
Seeing the reluctance on his face, Minato couldn't help but turn away.
No one continued teasing after that, and they simply checked into this hot spring pool shop.
Compared to Konoha, this place was rather lacking, so none of them were in the mood for shopping.
After dinner, everyone returned inside to rest.
The accommodations weren't great—four people per room—but they were much better than staying on the ship.
At least they didn't have to deal with the rocking of the waves anymore.
That night, everyone slept soundly.
The next morning, after breakfast, the replacement ship arrived at the harbor.
Without further delay, under Ichiro Aso's leadership, they boarded the boat bound from the Land of Waves back to the Land of Fire.
As the ship slowly departed from the harbor, they had taken another step closer to completing their mission.
"Nawaki-nii, can I learn Water Release from you?"
Yahiko pulled Nawaki off to the side. He had already recognized his own lack of strength.
If he wanted to improve further in Water Release, his only path forward was to learn Tobirama's Water Release techniques.
He didn't want to keep depending on Konan to protect him—he was a man, after all.
"Of course you can. I thought it was a bigger deal," Nawaki said with a casual shrug. He had every right to teach Yahiko.
The only reason he was the one teaching instead of Kawaki was because Kawaki wasn't skilled in Water Release.
"Thanks, Nawaki-nii."
Yahiko, slightly excited, quickly thanked him.
"Why are you thanking me? We're family."
"But let me make one thing clear—Ikeda Nidaime's Water Release isn't something easy to master."
Nawaki clapped a hand on Yahiko's shoulder.
Tobirama's Water Release techniques were undeniably powerful, but they required substantial chakra reserves to perform.
If Nawaki himself hadn't inherited the bloodline traits of both the Senju and Uzumaki clans, he would've struggled to learn them too.
"I—"
Before Yahiko could finish speaking, Nagato's urgent voice interrupted him.
"Something's happening!"
"A powerful chakra presence is rapidly approaching us."
Nagato turned to look toward the rear of the ship. The chakra pressure coming from that direction was incredibly strong.
If you're enjoying *Naruto: Starting from Pursuing Tsunade*, please bookmark: (m.
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