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Chapter 80 - Chapter 82: Tsunade's Forehead Kiss

When Haneul woke up again, it was already night. He was still in Tsunade's arms, his face pressed against her shoulder, a faint, pleasant scent lingering around him. He opened his eyes to the sight of a bustling, brightly lit street—still the Tanzaku Quarters. He glanced to his left and could see Tsunade's snow-white neck and her cascading golden hair.

"Are we going back now?" Haneul shifted his body, immediately feeling the soft cushion of her chest.

"Go back for what?" Tsunade raised an eyebrow, a wide grin on her face. "After winning so much money today, we have to celebrate properly."

"Then where are we sleeping tonight?" Haneul yawned.

"Don't worry, there will definitely be a place to sleep," Tsunade said, stopping in front of a lavishly decorated izakaya.

"Welcome, esteemed guests," a young woman in a cheongsam greeted them as soon as they stopped.

"Bring me your best sake!" Tsunade declared grandly.

"Right away!" the woman said with a smile. "Please, come in."

"Get down," Tsunade said, looking down at Haneul and bending over to let him go.

"Thanks, Master," Haneul thought with a hint of regret, having lost his pillow.

Tsunade ruffled his hair and walked into the izakaya. She glanced around at the crowded room and asked, "Do you have any private rooms?"

"We do, but there's an extra charge," the woman replied immediately.

"That's fine," Tsunade said, heading towards the private rooms.

"Master, drink a little less," Haneul advised, sitting opposite her.

"I know my limits," Tsunade said, flicking his forehead. "How many times have I told you? The teacher manages the student, not the other way around."

"I hope so," Haneul said, not believing for a second that she could control herself.

Tsunade shot him a glare. Just then, the sake arrived, and she couldn't be bothered to argue with the little brat any longer.

An hour later, Haneul was completely exasperated.

"Come on, come on!" Tsunade, already drunk and her face flushed, pulled him into a hug. "You... you drink with me!"

"We should go, Master," Haneul said, snatching the sake cup from her.

"N-no rush!" she slurred, shaking her head. "J-just one more... the last... the very last one!" She reached out to grab it back. Haneul refused, and she ended up tackling him to the ground. His vision went black as he was buried in her outrageously large assets. Fortunately, once she had the cup, she got up and released him.

"Master!" Haneul couldn't help but shout.

"Why are you yelling so loud?" Tsunade was startled, the shock sobering her up a bit.

"No more drinking!" Haneul said with a cold expression.

"Fine, fine, I won't," Tsunade said, meeting his gaze for a few seconds before backing down with a wronged look.

Haneul sighed. Question Shizune, understand Shizune, become Shizune. Tsunade really did need someone to look after her.

"Let's go, time to pay the bill," Haneul said, getting up from the table, only to see Tsunade stealthily reaching for the sake cup again.

"One sip, just one," she said, holding up her index finger.

"No!" Haneul walked over, grabbed her hand, and pulled her towards the exit.

"You annoying little brat!" Tsunade grumbled. "I'm your teacher!"

Haneul ignored her completely. He paid the bill and dragged her out of the izakaya. Even though another hour had passed, the streets were still as crowded as ever, the streetlights illuminating the Tanzaku Quarters as if it were daytime.

Tsunade looked at Haneul's stern face and suddenly burst into a brilliant laugh.

"Let's stay here," Haneul said, looking around and choosing the largest inn in sight. He went in and booked two rooms.

"Master," he said, stopping at her door and looking at the tipsy Tsunade. "Are you okay?"

"Now you're concerned about your teacher?" she huffed.

"I'm always concerned about you," Haneul said, then added, "I'll go ask the owner to prepare some sobering soup."

"No need," she said, flicking his forehead again. "This little bit of alcohol is nothing." This was true. With her Strength of a Hundred Seal, sobering up was just a thought away. She just enjoyed the feeling of being drunk.

"Stop flicking my forehead," Haneul complained. "It'll affect my IQ."

"Alright," Tsunade said with a smile. She bent down, kissed him on the forehead, and said, "Goodnight." She then opened her door and went into her room.

Haneul was left frozen in place, stunned by her sudden action. It took him several seconds to react. His first thought wasn't that he'd scored, but that he was in danger! In the original story, everyone Tsunade kissed on the forehead ended up dead. It was just like the First Hokage's necklace. He now had both death flags. Who could possibly survive that?

He sighed. He was tempted to set up traps around his room for protection, but decided against it. His fate was strong enough. After all, he had the one-in-a-million Trait System.

The next day.

After breakfast, Haneul and Tsunade returned to Konoha.

"Let's go to the Hokage Building to get our pay," Tsunade suddenly remembered. "It's a B-Rank mission's reward, after all. We can't just leave it."

"Mhm," Haneul glanced at her. She was already back to her usual self, as if she had forgotten everything from last night. Tsk, what a player.

Hokage's Office.

The door once again suffered a heavy blow from Tsunade's foot. But it didn't break, a true hero among doors.

"Old ma... huh, Sakumo is here too," Tsunade said, noticing the tense atmosphere as she walked in. "What happened?"

"I... I failed my mission..." Sakumo Hatake, his usual calm demeanor gone, looked completely defeated.

"Failed?" Tsunade was surprised. For someone of Sakumo's caliber to fail a mission was a rare occurrence. "Victory and defeat are common in battle. Just try again," she said comfortingly.

"It's not that simple, Tsunade," Hiruzen sighed. "This has caused a great loss for the Land of Fire. Even the Daimyo has been alerted."

Haneul's heart sank. This was clearly the mission from the original story that led to Sakumo's suicide. He never thought he'd witness it live. But thinking about it, it made sense. He was an unexpected butterfly; any of his actions could cause a ripple effect. Besides, in the original story, Tsunade had long since left Konoha due to her hemophobia, let alone speaking up for Sakumo.

"Let me see the situation," Tsunade said, walking over and reading the mission scroll. Sakumo's report was very detailed. Besides the high difficulty, another reason for the failure was that he had chosen to save his comrades at a critical moment.

"What's done is done. We can only try to salvage the situation. I will go and speak with the Fire Daimyo," Tsunade said grimly, putting down the scroll. "Old man, accusations won't solve the problem."

Hiruzen was taken aback. At this moment, Tsunade seemed more like the Hokage than he did. Upon hearing of the failure, his first thought had been how to answer to the Land of Fire and Konoha, even considering handing Sakumo over to appease the Daimyo's anger. In the world of Naruto, ninja served the daimyo. The key to this matter lay with the Land of Fire, not Konoha. Tsunade's approach was the correct one.

Sakumo instinctively looked up. In Tsunade, he seemed to see the Will of Fire burning brightly.

"Then I'll have to trouble you to make the trip," Hiruzen said, composing himself. "Don't anger the Daimyo, or next year's budget will be affected."

"Don't worry, it's not a big deal," Tsunade said with a light laugh. "The Daimyo still owes me several favors."

"That's true," Hiruzen said, sighing in relief. As a medical ninja, Tsunade had cured the Daimyo's family of several serious illnesses and had saved their lives.

"...?" Sakumo listened, completely stunned. It's resolved just like that?

"Sakumo, you've had a near-death experience and worked hard. Go home and rest for a few days," Hiruzen said. Mistakes had consequences, but he never intended to have him killed. Sakumo was a powerful asset, and losing him would weaken the village.

"Uncle Sakumo," Haneul said, catching up to him outside. "Kakashi has been worried about you."

"Kakashi?" A warmth spread through Sakumo's heart. "Where is he now?"

"It's Sunday. He's at my master's house, training with Shisui and the others," Haneul said.

"Thank you," Sakumo said with emotion. "Kakashi is luckier than I am to have a friend like you."

Please don't talk like you're giving your last words! Haneul thought, then said, "Not necessarily friends. Kakashi is always trying to beat me, but his swordsmanship is still a bit lacking."

"You dare look down on our family's sword style, you little brat?" Sakumo was taken aback, then laughed. "I'll have him start special training when I get back. You'd better watch out!"

"I'll be waiting," Haneul nodded firmly.

After a few steps, it dawned on Sakumo. Haneul seemed to be intentionally trying to cheer him up. They weren't particularly close, so was he doing this for Kakashi? "Kakashi, you've really made a wonderful friend this time," Sakumo couldn't help but say.

Haneul waited at the door instead of going back into the office. A moment later, Tsunade came out. "How did it go?" he asked.

"Got the money!" Tsunade said, waving the bank book.

"I mean about Uncle Sakumo. Are you confident?" he corrected.

"Of course," Tsunade said, putting the bank book away. "You don't know the Daimyo. As long as his rule isn't threatened, a loss like this is nothing."

Haneul understood. In the war-torn ninja world, the Fire Daimyo couldn't afford to be without Konoha. As long as it wasn't an open rebellion, it wasn't a problem.

"Good, you can come with me," Tsunade said, patting his head. "If you get the Daimyo's approval, your path to becoming Hokage will be much easier."

"Okay," Haneul said, curious to see the prosperous Fire Capital.

"Let's rest for a night and leave tomorrow," Tsunade said after a moment's thought. "Things are as they are. There's no use in rushing."

Haneul was about to speak, but stopped. With no public opinion to worry about, there really was no rush. After all, fewer than five people knew about Sakumo's mission failure.

Just then, the sound of hurried footsteps approached. A middle-aged man with a grim expression appeared.

"Tsk," Tsunade showed her disgust openly. "Haneul, let's go." "Yes," Haneul followed her.

"Tsunade!" Danzo Shimura snorted, his gaze falling on Haneul with regret. He should have been more forceful back then and snatched him from Hiruzen. Now, he could only watch as Haneul's fame as a genius grew. His kenjutsu was on par with Kakashi's, his genjutsu with the Uchiha's, and his medical ninjutsu was unparalleled among his peers. Every time Danzo thought of him, his heart ached.

He looked away, took a deep breath, and walked into the Hokage's office. "Hiruzen," he said seriously, "Sakumo Hatake must be severely punished!"

"That's not necessary," Hiruzen said, shaking his head. "What do you mean, not necessary?" Danzo frowned. "Do you have any idea how great a loss he has caused?" "I know," Hiruzen said calmly. "Tsunade will explain it to the Daimyo." "Tsunade? She's being foolish too!" Danzo's face darkened. "If we don't give an account to Konoha and the Land of Fire for this, how can we maintain public trust?" "This is the account, Danzo," Hiruzen said faintly. "As long as the Daimyo doesn't pursue the matter, it's over." "What about Konoha?" Danzo argued. "Sakumo Hatake violated the ninja code!" "Rules are rigid, people are flexible," Hiruzen paused, then countered, "Do you remember how many ninja codes you've violated yourself?" "I'm different!" Danzo immediately put on a righteous expression. "Everything I do is for the good of Konoha!" "..." Hiruzen was speechless. You can lie to yourself, but don't lie to your old friend. Some of his actions were indeed for Konoha, but others were highly questionable.

"Enough! I am the Hokage!" Hiruzen, tired of arguing, ended the conversation. "You will regret this!" Danzo said instinctively. "On this matter, you had better behave yourself!" Hiruzen stared at him, his voice low and firm. "I am not old yet!"

Danzo's expression stiffened. He knew Hiruzen wasn't joking. Though it pained him, he had no choice but to comply. This was the reason he had been able to act so willfully for decades: on critical matters, it was still Hiruzen who made the final decision.

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