"Yayoi, come with me to Konoha Hospital next. Your body still needs further adjustments."
Tsunade yawned lazily before gently patting Yayoi on the head like this... Everyone knows Haseo loves watching this action, but unfortunately, he's currently deep in communication with insects at Shikkotsu Forest and unable to see it now.
"Yes, Tsunade-sama."
Leaving the Casino behind, Tsunade took Yayoi straight to Konoha Hospital.
This child was unusually well-behaved. Tsunade smiled toward her while walking ahead... But as soon as Yayoi could no longer see her expression, she immediately wiped the smile from her face.
Yayoi's physical condition was rather poor—much more complicated than Tsunade had initially expected.
Although Tsunade's preliminary treatments showed significant effect, when Yayoi's body recovered slightly, it hit what seemed like a limit.
Subsequent treatment methods could no longer produce noticeable improvement—the girl's health remained at its current level without further progress.
Tsunade felt this matter needed explanation to those from the Uzumaki Clan.
The full head of white hair already evident in Uzumaki meant the outcome wasn't difficult to foresee—it was something that could be predicted.
After completing one treatment session at the hospital, Tsunade brought Yayoi back to Kagenami Base. Once they arrived, Yayoi was finally free to wander around on her own. Unfortunately, her playmate Kushina had recently been punished, so nobody was around to keep her company.
Meanwhile, Tsunade directly approached Uzumaki Shikou to explain Yayoi's situation.
"Even Tsunade-sama is helpless in this case?"
Shikou always cared about Yayoi—not just out of clan responsibility. After all, Yayoi's experiences were quite pitiable. Up until now, it had always been Shikou who looked after Yayoi; essentially, this homeless child had been living together with her.
"Though Tsunade was the greatest Medical Ninja, she was still only human—not a god. Besides, she always used conventional medical techniques instead of Orochimaru-style exaggerated Kinjutsu, so human effort inevitably has its limits."
"Then I'll leave her in your care, Tsunade-sama."
"Don't worry, it's my duty anyway... However, should we specially inform Haseo about this?" Tsunade asked again since Haseo previously showed considerable concern regarding Yayoi.
"For now, there's no need. Yayoi's condition remains stable without rapid deterioration, so whether we notify Lord Haseo or not makes little difference—he wouldn't really be able to help with such matters anyway."
This reasoning made Tsunade nod in agreement. Let Haseo continue his Sage Art training alone in Shikkotsu Forest for now—no need to disturb him yet.
Once finished discussing Yayoi's matters, an awkwardness developed between Tsunade and Shikou... They seemed to have run out of topics to talk about.
A long time ago, for a considerable period, Tsunade and Shikou Uzumaki were quite familiar with each other. After all, Shikou had always followed Mito Uzumaki, who was Tsunade's grandmother. Later on, however, for various reasons, they gradually grew distant... Tsunade mostly stayed at the battlefield, while Shikou actually took on a "housekeeping" role, so they rarely got to interact.
"Tsunade-sama seems to have much better color lately, and her spirit has returned..."
It felt somewhat inappropriate to simply turn and walk away, but Tsunade didn't immediately know what else to say. Fortunately, Shikou brought up a subject that wasn't really much of a topic.
"Mm, I suppose I've finally figured some things out. I do carry some responsibility, but guilt won't change anything. If you make a mistake, you must accept the consequences. Yet I can't deny that I feel relieved about getting away from it… Leaving Konoha isn't necessarily a bad thing—no news is good news."
Even if separated into different places, life must go on, whether as ninja or otherwise..." Tsunade was clearly referring to Nawaki.
At this point, her mood had already adjusted.
As for that faction of radical Senju that had been destroyed—truthfully, considering multiple factors, Tsunade no longer held any special feelings toward them. Their fate was self-inflicted; what right did she have to judge? Emotions naturally fade over time. When the Senju first plotted against the Third Hokage, Tsunade still grieved for their deaths—but now? Not anymore.
As for what happened to Nawaki, some failed in their duty to discipline him, some remained indifferent, and others actively encouraged him. As someone who failed to properly guide him, Tsunade herself harbored resentment even toward those who showed indifference—let alone those who instigated him.
"That's good then... About Lord Haseo's training, do you happen to know when it might finish? Sometimes I need to report certain matters related to the Uzumaki and Kagenami affairs to him."
"As for that, I'm not entirely sure either. During high-difficulty training, he can't really give an exact timeline. But if something urgent happens here, I can help relay the message to Lord Haseo." Tsunade replied casually and unobtrusively.
Truth be told, Tsunade was a little scared of the person standing before her.
It made sense, really — defenders are always at a disadvantage compared to attackers. No matter how many times defense succeeds, failure just once means total defeat. Meanwhile, regardless of how many losses the attacker suffers, success just once equals complete victory... Like how guarding against a thief for a thousand days doesn't compare to stealing just once and getting away with it. The offensive side holds clear advantages.
In other aspects, Tsunade felt confident enough—but looking at Shikou Uzumaki right now… Hmm, pretty tall, and with such long, straight legs too.
Being a woman with legs that long and perfectly proportioned—what exactly was the purpose? It was honestly unfair.
After a bit more courteous but empty conversation, Tsunade made her polite exit.
Shikou watched Tsunade's retreating figure and thought to herself: From her build alone, Tsunade-sama must be extremely popular. Her figure definitely falls into what people call the "childbirth-friendly" type. Looking at her facial features, Tsunade had a round face with delicate yet graceful features—not overly made up, but naturally elegant. In short, she exuded dignified grace. Logically speaking, someone like her should possess what legends call the "auspicious wife" look—said to bring fortune to her husband's fate. Yet in reality, things seemed to have gone completely the opposite way.
Especially regarding financial matters.
Where exactly did her luck end up leading?
Meanwhile, Haseo continued training for his Sage Mode. Remaining in Konoha, Tsunade also decided not to idle away her time. In addition to daily duties, she refined an idea she'd long considered and eventually turned it into an official written report submitted directly to the Third Hokage.
Her report targeted the rigid four-member team structure that had existed within Konoha for a long time, presenting several issues from the perspective of a medical ninja.
Several days later, the Third Hokage discovered this report on his desk.
Tsunade actually wrote something like this?
Initially curious, the Third Hokage gradually fell into deep thought after reading through the entire document from beginning to end.
"This gives me a bit of a headache…"
It wasn't that the content was nonsensical—quite the opposite. Some of the points she made were actually quite reasonable. If it were just meaningless drivel, he could have thrown the report away and given Tsunade a half-hearted response.
Introducing medical ninjas into the four-member team setup—this proposal obviously came with clear benefits. But while theoretically promising, practically speaking? Nobody could make any definite statements without trying it out first.
More importantly, such changes would disrupt habits ingrained among ninjas over time. Habits formed powerful resistance; innovation and reform had always been difficult endeavors.
Also, where would Konoha find so many medical ninjas? This change meant greatly expanding the existing medical system—training new personnel and equipping current medics with the capability to provide real-time support during missions—all of which entailed substantial funding.
His students always managed to stir up a fresh kind of trouble. Because of this, the Third Hokage occasionally experienced headaches—which indirectly caused him to smoke more frequently.
Yet when the Third Hokage habitually opened his drawer, he found that a large box of premium tobacco he kept inside had already vanished.
"Where's my tobacco? This was premium-grade given to me by the Daimyo."
Immediately afterward, the Third Hokage noticed something odd about the wall directly opposite him—it felt unusually bare. After all, hadn't there been a famous painting hanging there before?
"Where is my painting?"
"My collection of fine porcelain and gold items?"
"My…"
In short, every item the Third Hokage couldn't locate now had been expensive, artistic, and… valuable.
"Uh… Hokage-sama, you need to remember how that report ended up on your desk," one Anbu ninja weakly reminded from behind the Hokage's chair.
"What do you mean? How else would it get here?"
"It was personally delivered by Tsunade-sama."
"..."
He didn't come empty-handed, right? So how could he possibly leave that way?
The Third Hokage nearly clutched his chest in fury, almost suffering a heart attack.
"How old is she now? Is she still just a teenager? How could she steal... Why didn't any of you stop her?"
The Anbu said nothing — could they even stop her?
If Tsunade had been after the confidential documents in the Third Hokage's office, the Anbu would've given their lives to stop her. But all she took were some minor "decorations." They weren't stupid enough to risk angering Tsunade-sama over something like that.
Because the Haseo family had recently suffered heavy gambling losses, the entire household faced starvation — adults and children alike. So Tsunade naturally came to the Third Hokage's office for some extra "allowance"... Considering their teacher-student bond was like father and daughter, how could this be called stealing?
It's no big deal anyway.
After all, robberies at the Hokage's office have long been one of Konoha's quirky traditions.
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