"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune hurriedly stepped out from the shadows, her face filled with a mix of disapproval and embarrassment as Tsunade knocked Deidara unconscious.
"Tsunade-sama, how could you do something like this? If this gets out, it'll be so humiliating!" Shizune's cheeks flushed red as if she could already feel the judgmental stares of others.
Tsunade dispelled her transformation jutsu and waved dismissively. "Relax, Shizune."
"No one will ever find out about this."
"Hehe!" She rubbed her hands together, her eyes lighting up as she glanced at the chest sitting next to Deidara.
"I wonder how much we've scored this time?"
Unable to contain her excitement, Tsunade grabbed the chest, placed it on the table, and skillfully unlatched it. Slowly lifting the lid, she felt like this was one of the happiest moments of her life.
Hiss!
Suddenly, a dozen clay white snakes shot out of the chest, lunging at Tsunade with lightning speed.
"What the—!"
Reacting instantly, Tsunade channeled chakra into her hands, slicing through the clay snakes as if her hands were blades, cutting them cleanly in half.
But while she was occupied with the clay snakes, Deidara, who had been lying motionless, suddenly sprang to life. With a Clay Serpent Hands technique, he caught the unsuspecting Shizune.
"Who are you, kid?" Tsunade demanded, stepping back to put distance between herself and Deidara.
Deidara expelled the sedative-laced alcohol from his body. Thanks to his Clayification ability, he had transformed his body into clay beforehand, preventing the drug from being absorbed.
"Tsunade, Orochimaru sent me to ask you to treat one of his subordinates," Deidara explained.
"Ridiculous!" Tsunade snapped.
Her feelings toward Orochimaru were already complicated, and the recent news of him killing Hiruzen Sarutobi only made things worse. If she saw Orochimaru, her first instinct would be to fight him, let alone help treat one of his subordinates.
"But I've got your subordinate here," Deidara said, tightening his grip on Shizune. "Whether you want to or not, you'll have to come."
He knew it was impossible to persuade Tsunade with reason or emotion. Even Jiraiya had failed to convince her, and it ultimately took Naruto's protagonist-level charm to succeed.
"Tsunade-sama, don't worry about me!" Shizune said, her voice trembling with fear.
Tsunade's hemophobia was a significant weakness, and she couldn't risk getting involved with someone as dangerous as Orochimaru.
Ignoring the situation wasn't an option, but Tsunade wasn't about to let herself be manipulated so easily. After decades in the ninja world, she wasn't someone who could be cornered without a fight.
"Let's arm wrestle. If you beat me, I'll agree to your request," Tsunade proposed, turning the situation around with a bold demand.
"Don't joke around. Everyone knows you're the strongest in the ninja world. How could I possibly win in arm wrestling?" Deidara refused outright.
Tsunade nodded subtly. From Deidara's reaction, she could tell he wasn't a completely ruthless person. He had taken Shizune hostage only to force her compliance, not to harm her.
"Tsunade, don't look at me like that," Deidara said, seeing through her thoughts.
"I might not actually kill your subordinate, but I can take her away. Whatever happens to her at Orochimaru's place won't be up to me."
Tch!
This kid is tougher than I thought.
"Then let's have a sparring match. If you can defeat me, I'll agree to your request. How about it?" Tsunade suggested, raising the stakes.
"Fine. Let's head outside the city," Deidara agreed. He was confident he could defeat Tsunade in a fight. Even if she activated her Byakugō Seal, he still had her hemophobia as a trump card.
"Alright, follow me," Tsunade said, momentarily surprised by his quick agreement.
The sparring match was meant to be another test, a way to buy time and find a way to deal with him. She hadn't expected him to agree so readily.
Hmph!
So be it. This arrogant brat needs to learn what true power looks like.
Outside the city, Tsunade stood with one hand on her hip, her golden hair flowing in the wind.
"Alright, kid. Show me what you've got!" she declared confidently.
"I'm not like those small fries you've dealt with before!"
Deidara smirked. "Tsk, tsk, tsk."
"Calling me a kid, huh? Weren't you just sweetly calling me your handsome big brother earlier?"
Tsunade: "!!!"
"You little brat! Die!"
Her face flushed with embarrassment, Tsunade clenched her fist and unleashed a punch with unimaginable force, aiming for the spot where Deidara had been standing.
Boom!
The sound of the impact resembled an explosion. The ground caved in, leaving a massive crater. Dirt and debris flew everywhere, and the resulting dust cloud obscured the battlefield.
C1 Standard Type: Snake Swarm!
A swarm of clay white snakes shot out from the dust cloud, lunging at Tsunade.
This time, she didn't use her chakra scalpel. The sheer number of snakes made it impossible to cut through them all.
Heavenly Foot of Pain!
Tsunade stomped the ground with incredible force, causing a massive rock to rise and form an Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall, which blocked the incoming snakes.
"Kid, are you Orochimaru's apprentice or something?"
"Why do you keep using these disgusting things?" Tsunade said, her tone filled with disdain.
"Of course not. Orochimaru and I are collaborators," Deidara replied.
"And my art is explosive, you know!"
"Hah!"
Boom!
The rock wall shattered into pieces, and more clay white snakes slithered through the gaps. Tsunade was startled but reacted quickly, retreating to create distance.
"Watch your step, little sister," Deidara's voice taunted.
From beneath the ground, several clay sand worms emerged, launching an attack on Tsunade.
"Shut up, you brat!"
Completely enraged, Tsunade punched the ground with full force. The earth caved in, crushing the lower halves of the sand worms.
She had literally smashed the ground to destroy the worms.
But Tsunade had no time to catch her breath. For Deidara, this level of clay attacks didn't even count as a warm-up.
C2 Special Type: Spider Queen!
"Tsunade Shock Value +2000" "Shizune Shock Value +500"
"Your strength is impressive, but what if your opponents are all these little creatures?"
"No matter how strong you are, getting rid of all of them won't be easy, will it?"
As the clay spiders spread across the mountains and fields, Tsunade's expression grew serious.
Where did this monster come from? How is he this powerful?
~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~
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