Tsunade shot Hoshiyomi an exasperated glare.
"You, out. Go wait outside the trees. I'm taking a bath—when I'm done, I'll come find you."
Hoshiyomi looked her up and down, not budging an inch, clearly in no hurry to leave—his whole demeanor radiated playfully stubborn.
Three sharp stress lines popped onto Tsunade's forehead. Through clenched teeth, she growled, "You better cut it out right now."
She casually picked up a smooth river stone about the size of a fist, curled it into her palm—and with a light clench, the rock crumbled to dust. The fragments drifted down like ash from her hand.
…Okay, so maybe that whole "her chakra hasn't recovered yet" thing was just wishful thinking.
Thinking back to the crater she'd left in the swamp, Hoshiyomi flinched and shrank his neck in instinctive caution. Better not push his luck.
He cast one final, reluctant look at Tsunade—his expression somewhere between pleading and pouty—but she just folded her arms and turned away with a firm "not negotiable."
In the end, Hoshiyomi wisely gave up on his little rebellion. With a slight pout, he turned to leave. But just before stepping away, something occurred to him. He pulled out a spare outer robe from a summoning scroll.
"You probably didn't bring a change of clothes. Wear this for now."
With that, he didn't linger. He activated Body flicker and vanished into the trees in a few swift steps.
He knew that if he stayed any longer… he really might not want to leave.
Watching his sulking retreating back, Tsunade couldn't help letting out a soft giggle.
"Just a moment ago he was all stoic and cold… and now he's acting like a lovesick kid."
She glanced down at the robe he'd left behind, picked it up, and gave it a quick sniff. A clean, pleasant scent of soap still clung to the fabric.
"Hmph… At least he's not completely hopeless."
Looking again in the direction Hoshiyomi had disappeared, and confirming he was gone, Tsunade finally began to unfasten her clothing, slowly peeling it off to reveal her curvaceous figure.
She first took care of some wounds she hadn't been able to address earlier in front of Hoshiyomi. Then, barefoot, she stepped gently toward the water.
The stream here seemed to be a tributary leading to the ocean—fresh, flowing water that remained crystal clear despite being near the swamp.
It was still spring, and recent rain had left the water slightly cold.
As she dipped her toes into the river, a small shiver ran through her. The expression on her face—caught between surprise and delight—was unexpectedly adorable.
The cold didn't bother her much though. For a shinobi in wartime, being able to bathe at all was already a luxury. Who had time to be picky?
After taking a moment to adjust to the water, Tsunade didn't dive in right away. Instead, she studied her reflection on the river's surface.
"…Did they… get bigger again?"
She lightly poked at her impressive bust and smiled with satisfaction.
Vanity wasn't exclusive to ordinary women. Even Tsunade took pride in her well-developed figure. Like a guy flexing in the mirror during a shower, she struck a few poses over the water, admiring her silhouette.
She mentally rated herself, evaluating what could use improvement.
No woman is completely immune to a touch of self-admiration—and Tsunade was no exception. Once she gave herself a very high score, she slipped into the water, fully content, and began to bathe.
Her slender fingers brushed over her body, guiding the cool river water across her skin. The cold gave her a little jolt, and she let out a quiet, unguarded laugh.
…
Elsewhere, just outside the treeline, Hoshiyomi leaned against a tree with a dark cloud over his head, eyes cast toward the overcast sky.
He had to admit it—he was seriously smitten.
But Tsunade wasn't giving him a single chance.
Damn it all.
With a frustrated shake of his head, Hoshiyomi tried to clear away the alluring images swirling in his mind.
Unfortunately, his brain wasn't cooperating today.
Well then…
Jiraiya once said:
"If I'm peeping and I don't get caught—then it's not peeping."
And come to think of it—his old man didn't teach him the Transparent Escape Technique for no reason, right?
Wasn't this the perfect time to put it to good use?
As Master Lee might say (a popular internet saying): "If Transparent Escape isn't for peeping… then it has no purpose at all!"
So as long as he didn't get caught… it should be fine… right?
After a long internal battle between desire and reason, Hoshiyomi finally made a major life decision. Just as he was about to activate Transparent Escape, a massive boom echoed from the direction of the river.
Startled, Hoshiyomi didn't even bother with stealth—he immediately dashed toward the source of the sound.
…
Tsunade had just finished rinsing off when she began washing her soft golden hair. As she lowered her head and brushed her fingers through her locks, the water's reflection seemed to flicker—flashing with images of Hoshiyomi's earlier massacre.
Thinking about his cold ruthlessness… and the way he'd practically claimed her with that confident line—her heart grew flustered all over again.
Her chest fluttered with both sweetness and embarrassment, and for a moment she forgot about everything else, staring dreamily at the water.
Until she heard a faint rustle nearby.
Snapping back to reality, she immediately assumed the worst—that Hoshiyomi had actually dared to sneak over and peek.
But when she turned around—
It wasn't him.
A large salamander had crawled out of the undergrowth and was now drinking at the river's edge.
Poisonous salamanders often lived in swamps—but that didn't mean they liked dirty water. In fact, they were notoriously picky about water quality. The swamp was simply moist and full of food.
This one was larger than the ones she'd seen earlier. Its poison sac looked particularly developed—definitely worth harvesting.
Tsunade's instincts kicked in.
She didn't even bother getting dressed—too much movement might startle it. These things were notoriously skittish.
As she crept closer, the salamander sensed the change in the water's flow. It raised its head, and its vestigial eyes scanned the area with caution.
Tsunade knew she'd hit the approach limit.
Any closer, and it'd flee.
Without hesitation, she lifted one foot and unleashed her Heavenly Foot of Pain.
Her bare foot slammed into the riverbed with explosive force. A deafening boom followed. It was like a depth charge detonated underwater—spraying a geyser into the air.
The riverbed near the shore instantly cratered. The shockwave sent a chunk of the bank collapsing into the water. The poor salamander didn't stand a chance—it was knocked into the crater mid-sip.
Tsunade didn't miss a beat. Before it could even release its poison, she moved in and dispatched it cleanly.
Dragging the limp salamander back onto the bank, she turned around, ready to retrieve her clothes and extract the poison sac…
…Only to find Hoshiyomi standing there, frozen like a statue, staring at her.
Tsunade reflexively looked down—and immediately dove back into the water with a yelp, arms crossed tightly over her chest.
Hoshiyomi flailed for words for several seconds before blurting out:
"I swear I didn't see anything, do you believe me?!"
A thick shadow fell across Tsunade's face. She glared at him, then let out a sharp, icy hmph.
"You got lucky this time. One warning."
"Next time… it's Chakra Enhanced Strength."