When Anya stepped out of Tsunade's laboratory with two massive dark circles under her eyes, the sky was already bright with dawn. This night had been pure torture for Anya. Compared to the time she spent researching poisons with Sasori, this felt like heaven versus hell.
She not only had to assist wherever needed but also endured occasional complaints and scornful remarks from Tsunade. That alone was bad enough, but the worst part came when Tsunade wanted Anya to test some poisons. With a gleam of expectation in her eyes, Tsunade practically whispered, "Come on, sweetie—just one bite. It's harmless, really."
Anya wasn't stupid. She noticed that Tsunade even summoned Katsuyu, clearly uncertain about the poison's potency. So she stubbornly refused until Tsunade finally gave up. However, Tsunade's attitude worsened immediately. Whenever Anya tried to argue, she'd mock her by referencing Hayate's condition—"Look at what happened to him!"—leaving Anya speechless and utterly defeated.
Fate must have it this way... I'm a ninja after all. I'll just endure it.
She made it through the night, enduring until dawn arrived and Tsunade dozed off. The moment Anya stepped outside, tears nearly welled up in her eyes.
Just then, the soft voice of Katsuyu resting on Anya's shoulder spoke: "Oh, by the way, Anya, Tsunade-sama said you must come again tonight—or face the consequences."
Damn it!
Anya almost felt tempted to storm back in and kill Tsunade herself. At this rate, she'd be completely ruined if things kept going like this. Time to bring in help—who though?
Jiraiya? Not in the village.
Orochimaru? Hmm... too scary.
The Hokage? Probably wouldn't help—might just assign me to work with Tsunade permanently.
My teacher, White Fang? Probably won't help—I've bothered him too much already, he's likely had enough of me...
Thinking it over, Anya found herself stuck without a single person to turn to. What now? No way I've reincarnated twice just to fall to such a trivial problem. There must be a solution.
After pondering a while, Anya truly thought of one clever idea—if I can't escape, drag someone else into this mess too! At least someone could share a bit of the pain. How smart of me.
And there was already a perfect candidate.
After returning to Konoha following the Second Battle, Anya had secretly checked up on her, knowing she was studying at the Ninja Academy but never disturbing her lessons. Now, however, she couldn't avoid involving her. This was none other than Shizune, Dan Kato's cherished niece entrusted to Anya before his death—the same girl destined to always follow Tsunade in the original storyline.
Putting on her Anbu mask and dispelling the summoning jutsu with Katsuyu, Anya made her way toward the Ninja Academy.
Arriving there, Anya hid in the shadows, observing familiar figures like Kurenai Yuhi, Konan, and naturally, Shizune as well. Yet Kakashi was nowhere to be seen, which struck her as odd. Come to think of it, since returning, she hadn't encountered that guy once—where could he possibly be?
Maybe he already graduated? Yeah, probably. That kid is full of himself anyway, trains hard every day. Must've long mastered the basics of the Ninja Academy.
Anya watched a little longer before resuming practice of a new sword art she had developed. She remained hidden, silently waiting for school to end.
"Ring ring ring..."
The school dismissal bell rang. Students swarmed the main entrance, being picked up one by one by their parents. Of course, there were also some students who had to walk home by themselves. Shizune was one of them. At this moment, she looked at classmates being collected by their parents with inevitable envy in her eyes.
Just as she walked alone on her way home, a dark shadow blocked her path.
Shizune raised her head and asked nervously, "An Anbu officer? Y-you... are you looking for me?"
Anya removed his mask, revealing an attractive face, and said with a bright, sunny smile: "Don't be afraid. I'm here specially to look after you, entrusted by your uncle. From now on, you can call me Uncle too."
"U-uncle?" Shizune looked at this face that didn't seem much older than herself, finding it somewhat difficult to say out loud. This should be a brother, right? Suddenly realizing, she asked, "You mean Dan Kato?"
Anya nodded, "Yeah, we were really close. Before he passed away, his only wish was hoping I could take good care of you. I promised him, and his family is now my family."
Though she already knew her uncle had died in battle, hearing about it again still made Shizune unavoidably sad. However, Anya's words brought her a touch of familial warmth.
She couldn't help asking, "So are you taking me to your house?"
"Erm..." Anya replied with slight nervousness, "It would be rather inconvenient for me, a single man, to take care of you. Don't worry though, I've found a great place for you."
Shizune didn't ask further questions and simply said, "Alright, I'll go with you."
You didn't even ask my name before agreeing to come with me. Sigh, little girl, you're definitely going to get taken advantage of like this.
"That's okay," Anya waved his hand generously, "you must be hungry after just getting out of school. Let me treat you to something to eat."
To make up for things a bit, Anya treated her to Konoha's fanciest restaurant. He ordered an entire table full of dishes. Shizune stared at the spread wide-eyed and asked nervously, "Seriously? There's no way we can eat all this!"
"Don't worry," Anya waved his hand magnanimously, "dig in! We can pack what we can't finish."
At that moment, Anya's rich guy demeanor was fully revealed. After hesitating briefly, Shizune couldn't resist the temptation of delicious food anymore and started eating heartily. Chatting while they ate, the two quickly became more familiar with each other, exchanging jokes and laughter.
After they both stuffed themselves silly, half the food was still left on the table — just like they thought.
"Packaging."
Anya grabbed all the leftovers in both arms and took Shizune to Tsunade's lab — the same one from yesterday — then kicked the door lightly.
Inside, Tsunade's voice came upon hearing the noise: "Just come in."
Anya, worried that bringing Shizune inside might scare her off with the lab environment, stayed outside and called through the door: "Come out first. I brought you something to eat. You're not seriously planning to eat in there, are you?"
"Now look at you being all thoughtful — not bad!" Tsunade teased jokingly and pushed open the laboratory door. Her eyes immediately spotted yet another child standing behind Anya.
"Who's she? Don't tell me you brought her here for medical treatment again," Tsunade asked curiously, her gaze becoming dangerous at the same time.
Anya said, "Her name is Shizune. She's Dan Kato's niece. You do remember her, don't you?"
"Oh, it's her," Tsunade's eyes softened as she stepped forward and gently patted Shizune's head in comfort.
Seeing Tsunade's friendly demeanor, Anya seized the moment and continued, "Well, I promised to take care of her, but since we're not family and genders differ, it's somewhat inconvenient. So... I hope you can accept her under your wing."
Tsunade raised her eyebrows, "You want me to fulfill your promise?"
Well then, the atmosphere shifted instantly.
But Anya wasn't one to back down. Not one to back down, Anya quickly countered, "[Medical Ninjutsu] – Shizune shows extraordinary talent in it. Besides, among everyone I know, only you, Tsunade-sama, have this capability. If not you, then who else should I ask?"
"That's true enough," Tsunade didn't bother being modest. As she glanced at the somewhat timid Shizune, she ultimately didn't say no: "Let her stay with me for a few days first."
Upon hearing these words, Shizune's eyes lit up. Ever since she realized this was Tsunade, her eyes had been full of admiration. Now, she blurted out excitedly, "Yes, Tsunade-sama!"
Beside them, Anya let out a soft sigh of relief...
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