"Don't look at me like that. All I did was analyze what Shimura Danzo might be planning. I never said you were afraid of Uchiha Itachi."
Yoruha gave Tsunade a helpless glance.
Alright, alright.
You're amazing.
You can fight Uchiha Itachi for 300 rounds, no rest, no sweat. Got it.
"Of course! I'm the Hokage of Konoha and a descendant of the Senju clan! Why would I ever be scared of an Uchiha?"
Tsunade smirked, clearly full of pride.
"Yes, yes… you're powerful. Totally," Yoruha muttered with a crooked grin.
"But hey, you're not exactly a spring chicken anymore. Maybe it's time you thought about reviving the Senju clan?"
He leaned forward, a thoughtful expression on his face as he shamelessly gave Tsunade a once-over.
"If you really need help with that... I might be able to assist."
Tsunade had a pure Senju bloodline.
She mastered monstrous strength.
Incredible stamina.
If she just let go a little... reviving the Senju clan would be a breeze.
And if no one else was stepping up?
Yoruha didn't mind playing the hero.
Bang!
Tsunade shattered the coffee table in front of her with a punch.
If Shizune hadn't held her back, she might have gone full beatdown mode on Yoruha.
"You little punk! What the hell did you just say? Are you calling me old?!"
She was furious.
People still called her miss when she walked down the street!
Now here comes this brat calling her ancient?
"Lady Tsunade, please calm down," Shizune pleaded.
"I'm sure Yoruha didn't mean it like that. He just meant—"
She stopped herself mid-sentence.
Actually, how could she spin what he said in a polite way?
Yoruha hadn't exactly been subtle.
But weirdly enough…
The age comment is what Tsunade latched onto? Not the other, far more suggestive part?
Shizune sighed.
"I don't care what he meant! He's been teasing me about my age for way too long!"
Tsunade finally shook free of Shizune's grip.
Boom!
She lunged forward and punched Yoruha square in the face.
Poof!
In a puff of smoke, Yoruha's body vanished—just a Shadow Clone.
A moment of silence.
Then a furious roar echoed through the room.
"That bastard! He actually sent a clone to handle official Hokage business? What the hell!"
Meanwhile…
Back at home, Yoruha was relaxing with Hinata, arms wrapped around her as he told her a story.
When the Shadow Clone got dispelled, the pain and memory came rushing back.
Yoruha winced slightly.
"So much drama in the Hokage office today…" he muttered.
"If I don't leave now, that old woman might actually storm over here herself."
He leaned down and gave Hinata a kiss on the forehead.
"Hinata, I'll head out now. I'll finish telling you the pirate story when I get back."
"Mhm… be safe, okay? You still owe me the ending of that basketball story too."
Hinata's face flushed red, but she was reluctant to let him go.
To her, this was happiness.
Lying in his arms.
Listening to him share stories.
It was perfect.
Of course, from Yoruha's perspective…
This position was great—but telling stories definitely wasn't his top priority.
Back at the Hokage Office…
Tsunade's rage had finally cooled.
Shizune was quietly cleaning up what remained of the shattered coffee table.
She sighed.
These two were out of their minds.
One bold enough to say it. The other bold enough to throw punches.
If they ever became a couple, her house would probably be leveled in a week.
"Lady Tsunade, if this mission really has deeper layers of conspiracy behind it… shouldn't you assign backup to support Yoruha and his team?" Shizune asked cautiously.
"Hmph! Why should I?" Tsunade scoffed.
"That little punk is always so smug. Let him go experience the pain of getting caught between Danzo and Orochimaru."
She turned to gaze out the window, toward the village gates.
"…Though to be fair, it'll probably end with Danzo and Orochimaru being the ones getting beat."
At the gates of Konoha…
Yoruha had just submitted the mission clearance and was leading Team 7 out of the village.
"Man, I've never done a mission with friends before. Kinda looking forward to it," Yoruha said with a smile.
There was a time—back when he first arrived in this world—when Yoruha dreamed of being on a normal ninja squad.
Maybe with a goofy sensei.
Preferably a pretty one.
And two teammates—one a devoted fangirl, the other a loyal sidekick.
It sounded like fun.
But reality was different.
He'd become an elite ninja way too young.
And now he was covering for Kakashi?
Honestly, kinda boring.
They traveled quickly, each using their unique ninja techniques to move at high speed.
Well… all except Yoruha.
He ran with his arms swinging.
The only other ninja in the world who ran like that was probably Orochimaru.
"Yoruha, thanks for getting us this mission," Naruto said gratefully.
"If not for you, I don't know when I'd get the chance to see Sasuke again."
"Yeah, I heard from Lady Tsunade," Sakura added.
"The elders were going to assign this mission to someone else, but once they knew you would be leading us, they gave in."
"Don't mention it," Yoruha smiled.
"We're friends. Helping each other's what we do."
He and Naruto had known each other for over ten years now.
Their bond ran deep.
Even though this mission didn't give Yoruha any system rewards…
He still agreed to it without hesitation.
For friendship.
"It's just a shame Sai had to come along," Naruto muttered.
"That guy gives me the creeps."
"Sai," Yoruha called.
"Sir?"
"Danzo assigned you, didn't he? He must've given you another mission besides the official one."
Sai turned to look at Yoruha, his expression unreadable.
But a twitch betrayed his surprise.
"Captain Yoruha… I don't quite understand what you mean."
But inside, Sai's thoughts were swirling.
"He… already figured it out? How terrifying…"