Eyes closed. Then open.
What entered his sight was a sea of green.
Judging by the shape, it was the peak of a tent.
Shifting his gaze downward, he saw one white and one black head resting on his left arm.
From their hairstyles and hair colors, Takeshi could tell it was Kakashi and Obito.
Looking farther into the distance, he could make out three small figures curled up in a corner, resting with their heads down. All familiar faces.
The green one was Might Guy, the black one was Ebisu, and the one still clutching a senbon even in his sleep was Genma Shiranui.
"You're awake, Takeshi."
A slightly surprised voice came from the right. Following the voice, Takeshi saw Rin standing beside the tent.
Rin's voice wasn't loud, but it instantly woke the others from their slumber.
Obito raised his head, looking dazed, and saw Rin supporting Takeshi's upper body to help him sit up against the bed.
With a pitiful pout, Obito dove forward and hugged Takeshi tightly, tears and snot streaming down his face.
Why did this scene feel so familiar?
"Let go already, that hurts—eh? It doesn't?"
Takeshi, expecting his injuries to cause pain, pushed Obito away with a look of disgust—only to realize he didn't feel any pain at all.
"Takeshi, it's great that you're awake! We can continue our youthful contests!"
Guy and the others crowded over upon hearing the commotion. Seeing Takeshi safe and sound, they all sighed in relief—especially Guy, who flashed his big white teeth so brightly that Takeshi nearly went blind.
"Spare me the contests. I don't want to move a muscle right now—I just want a proper vacation." Takeshi waved his hand weakly, then suddenly remembered something.
"I think I ran into one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. Who saved me?"
"Hmph—" Obito puffed up with pride, ready to show off, only for Kakashi to push him aside without mercy.
"It was the ANBU who found us. They asked where you were. Once they learned you had left camp, they took us with them to search."
"You don't know how nervous we were when ANBU approached us."
"Takeshi, to have escaped from one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen... I acknowledge your youth and passion!"
The group chatted noisily, leaving Takeshi unsure who to respond to first.
And what did they mean by "escaped"?
If I'd had chakra back then, I would've taken that guy down no problem. Do you believe me or not?
"Hey, brats, what's all the noise?"
A bold voice came from the entrance of the tent, instantly silencing the group.
Accompanied by steady footsteps, Tsunade entered, wearing standard Konoha shinobi gear.
Even with her chest covered by armor, its graceful curves were still evident.
"Yo, brat. Only out for a day before waking up—I thought you'd be out for longer. But good, now that we know you're okay, your troublesome dad can finally settle down a bit."
Raising her eyebrows, Tsunade pushed aside Kakashi and Obito, who were closest to Takeshi. She lifted the blanket covering Takeshi and was about to examine his wounds.
"Not in front of everyone, Tsunade-sama..."
Seeing Tsunade about to lift his shirt in front of so many people, Takeshi suddenly felt embarrassed.
"You're all just kids. What's there to be shy about? Alright, since the patient insists, the rest of you, out!"
With a gentle slap to Takeshi's head, Tsunade stopped her hand, gesturing for the others to leave and keeping only Rin to assist her.
When she lifted Takeshi's shirt, Tsunade instinctively averted her gaze. Only after confirming with her peripheral vision that there was no blood did she turn back.
"Such impressive recovery."
Seeing that Takeshi's back didn't even have a scar, Rin couldn't help blurting it out.
"Hmm..."
Hearing Rin's comment, Tsunade frowned and nodded slightly.
"All healed?"
Takeshi was a bit confused. When he was struck by the shuriken, he distinctly remembered the pain, and there was supposed to be a wound piercing his abdomen...
Could it have been the work of Isobu?
"Rin, step outside for a moment."
Recalling the exact location of the wound, Tsunade calmed herself and told Rin to leave the tent.
"Start talking. Judging by your expression, you know what's going on."
Tsunade, having seen something in Takeshi's face, crossed her arms and sat by his bed. She crossed her left leg over her right and raised her chin, signaling for him to speak.
"Uh..."
Takeshi began brainstorming.
Tsunade should be trustworthy. After all, she was his senior, and from what he knew from the original story, she was willing to take over the mess left behind by the Third Hokage, showing that she truly believed in the so-called Will of Fire.
Just... she was impulsive and had a serious gambling problem.
"It probably has to do with Isobu inside me—the Three-Tails..."
Takeshi didn't go into detail, simply explaining that he'd been ambushed and, turning the situation around, had sealed the Three-Tails within himself.
He also informed Tsunade that one of his attackers appeared to be a mysterious Uchiha member.
"Speaking of which, Tsunade-sama, weren't you supposed to be supervising the rear medical division? Why are you here?"
Taking advantage of the moment while Tsunade was still processing all the information, Takeshi curiously asked why she had come.
"Hmph, didn't you hear what I just said? That troublesome dad of yours caused quite a stir when he found out you were injured."
Tsunade smacked her hand onto Takeshi's head and gave it a good rub, clearly annoyed.
She'd been doing just fine in the rear—directing medical-nin on treating the wounded. Sure, overtime was common, but the environment was still far better than the frontlines.
But on the very day Takeshi was ambushed, just after she had a few drinks and was sleeping soundly in the hospital's on-call room, Danzo kicked open the door with his men, slapped her with a direct order from the Third Hokage, and sent her rushing to the front lines at Kirigakure.
"Your dad is unbelievable. With injuries like yours, any decent medical-nin could've handled it. But no, he had to call me in personally. Thanks to him, I'm now stationed here long-term until the war ends."
Scratching her head in frustration, Tsunade grumbled aloud, though she wasn't actually upset.
The situation on the front lines was worse than expected. As a healer with compassion, seeing so many wounded, even without the Third's or Danzo's orders, Tsunade wouldn't have considered leaving.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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