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"At this moment, kneeling before you is—"
"The descendant of Konoha's most esteemed, the granddaughter of the Ninja God, the last inheritor of the Senju, the peerless Medical Sage praised throughout the Ninja World, the one who has topped the 'Most Desired Partner Ranking' published by the Konoha Youth Male Association for ten consecutive years.
She is currently under the quadruple debuffs of 'weakness,' 'hunger,' 'mental exhaustion,' and 'no combat ability.'
She is the newly widowed Lady Tsunade, who only managed to find her first boyfriend at nearly thirty, only to return to golden singlehood as swiftly as lightning!"
"Now, she looks at you with the most sincere gaze in this world, making a request that must be fulfilled at any cost!"
"Clearly, prayer isn't the only thing she does after kneeling."
"Sawara Kiri, choosing me as your system means your life is set for good!"
"Even if your skills are poor, your strength is lacking, your back and knees are sore, and your spirit is willing but your body is weak, I have thirty-six steel-hard secret techniques to salvage the situation!"
"One volume makes the rod stand tall, two volumes make the gun spray and shower, three volumes grant eternal life."
"Text 1 to receive, free delivery to your home!"
"Now!"
"Abandon reason, embrace beastliness, let me see your limits, come on!"
"Take it off, take it off, take it off, take it off, take it off!!!"
"I want to see the best—"
Suddenly, the System, which had been silent in the panel for a long time, seemed to go mad, spewing a barrage of nonsensical words that instantly covered Sawara Kiri's entire field of vision.
He almost wavered.
However, he clearly hadn't lost his head yet.
Looking at Tsunade, who was kneeling before him with a desolate expression, he seemed to sigh with a hint of pity, lowering his voice:
"Lady Tsunade."
"Because this soul secret technique is passed down within my clan, after today, I must trouble you not to spread this matter casually."
"Furthermore,"
He spoke, his tone seemingly hesitant: "It's best not to disturb those who have passed on to the Pure Land."
"Even if there are residual soul imprints in the necklace after this secret technique is used, my help to you will likely only be this one time."
"…"
Tsunade, clutching his clothes, was momentarily stunned.
But after a long silence, the emptiness and heavy pain deep within her still made her agree:
"Even if it's only once, it's fine!"
"Please."
Seeing her utterly trusting and obedient demeanor, Sawara Kiri felt a slight relief in his heart.
Since it was so easy, then resolving Tsunade's inner turmoil while simultaneously forming a bond didn't seem so difficult, did it?
Thinking this, he extended the blue crystal at the top of the necklace towards Tsunade, speaking gently:
"Please hold it and look into my eyes."
"I am about to begin the jutsu."
Tsunade knelt there, even the act of raising her head seemed a bit frail, yet she tightly clutched the crystal.
The moment she met the gaze of the young man whose name she hadn't even had time to ask, she suddenly noticed a brilliant light flash deep within his clear blue pupils.
"Shatter, Kyōka Suigetsu."
The next moment.
Her mind stilled, and the world inverted.
When she opened her eyes again, she had appeared in a pitch-black world.
Three familiar figures stood silently before her.
Just seeing their faces, Tsunade, who was extremely vulnerable at this moment, couldn't help but cover her mouth, afraid that her sobs would disturb their peaceful slumber.
"Grandfather, Nawaki, and… Dan."
Tsunade looked at the three figures, her steps trembling as she approached, raising her hand with difficulty, wanting to touch them.
She still remembered the young man's reminder.
These three were merely residual soul imprints left in this world.
But she couldn't help herself.
However, when her fingers touched their bodies, Tsunade suddenly froze.
Real sensation.
Although slightly unusual, there was still a clear sense of touch, the temperature of their skin, the subtle softness of scars, the gritty feel of calluses on palms and knuckles, a faint scent of sweat…
It all felt as if it truly existed.
This clear sensory feedback made Tsunade instinctively grab Kato Dan's shoulder, shaking him twice forcefully, tentatively calling out:
"Dan? Dan!"
Almost instinctively, that body suddenly opened its eyes.
Tsunade couldn't help but be startled.
Deep within his pupils, however, was a clear, sky-blue hue.
The moment she met that gaze, Tsunade felt a massive surge of memories, like a waterfall, pouring into her mind, causing her entire brain to let out an unbearable wail.
Scene after scene from Kato Dan's life continuously flashed through her mind like a slideshow.
Meanwhile, outside.
Sawara Kiri stood before Tsunade, slowly exhaling.
Although he had anticipated the amount of Chakra of this last descendant of the Senju, and had specifically chosen a relatively weak time to come, even the remaining Chakra exceeded his expectations.
His hypnotic will was almost pushed out.
Thankfully, he managed to complete it for now.
Sawara Kiri looked at Tsunade, who was holding his hand in a mysterious 'praying' posture, and felt a great sense of relief.
He had read the original work and knew that Tsunade carried a strange guilt and longing in her heart for those who had died after wearing this necklace, as if her brother and lover had died in the war because they wore the necklace she had given them.
It wasn't until the appearance of the original protagonist, Naruto, that this baseless 'curse' was broken through his actions.
'Since the root of the problem lies here, then as long as these deceased individuals can communicate with her, and make this item, which she considers a cursed object, into a token that connects her soul with theirs, making it the most important thing in her life.'
'I suppose… it should at least alleviate some of the symptoms, right?'
Sawara Kiri's demands weren't that high.
As long as he could resolve this inner turmoil, it would be pure profit for him.
If he could gain Tsunade's friendship and officially get on board with the Hokage faction, his future prospects would be even smoother.
This way, he would soon be able to clear his spy identity, then get promoted and a raise, become a general manager, serve as the Ninja Village CEO, marry a beautiful and wealthy woman, and reach the pinnacle of life!
"Perfect."
Mr. Sawara lightly swung his fist.
However, this thought had barely flashed through his mind.
"Ding."
A strange sound suddenly echoed in his ear.
The next moment, his gaze instantly fixed on Tsunade's head.
He saw that on top of the original single white halo, a blue halo suddenly appeared.
This was the sign of a mid-level inner turmoil.
Within a few seconds, a red halo also appeared.
"!?"
Seeing this, Sawara Kiri was instantly stunned.
What's going on?
Before he could react, another line of proper notification appeared on the panel.
[First activation of 'Deep Inner Turmoil']
[Host can query more information ↑]
['Bond Path' activated]
While he was still bewildered, he heard the System's sarcastic voice in his ear.
[Congratulations, Master~!]
[You've advanced another step in the long hell of bonds]
[Didn't I tell you? Just press her down and give her a good beating, and all her inner turmoil will be resolved. But no, you had to cause trouble.]
[Go on! You've run into big trouble today!]
"Huh?"
Hearing her say that, Sawara Kiri also immediately felt a sense of foreboding.
Although all the "Shallow Inner Turmoil" he had encountered since obtaining the system were relatively easy to solve minor problems, his caution towards the unknown still made him hold a slight reverence for the deeper world.
After all, he didn't know what consequences would arise if he couldn't resolve the deeper inner turmoil.
With this uneasy feeling, Sawara Kiri anxiously clicked on the newly appeared "Bond Path" option, instinctively selecting Tsunade's image.
A long string of information immediately popped up on the panel.
[Final Bond Path 1: Fourth Hokage]
[The reason why the war has progressed to this point is because only insects remain in high positions, accomplishing nothing! Only the most thorough cleansing can completely eradicate the darkness of this Village!]
[Kiri, you will always stand by my side, won't you?]
[Final Bond Path 2: Mature Hime]
[Kiri, breakfast is ready. Remember to take Su and Keiko to school later… You knew it was a workday, yet you stayed up so late last night!]
[Ugh~ The room smells so strong, quickly open the window. I'll wash the sheets later.]
[You're still laughing! It's all your fault! (Annoyed)]
[Final Bond Path 3: Ten-Tails Jinchuriki]
[Mere Five Kage, do you truly think you can block my path? Dance as you please."
[No matter what… I must create a world where Kiri exists.]
[Final Bond Path 4: Island Remainder of Life]
[From now on, let us spend the rest of our lives here.]
[Cut off from the mortal world, away from those meaningless people, in a world where only the two of us exist, a world of only… Kiri and me.]
[Subsequent world lines undecided]
[Bond calculation continues running…]
Looking at this long string of information, Sawara Kiri was first stunned for a long time, then his eyes widened, and widened again!
What is this?
What is this path?!
Are the names on it wrong?
As he was astonished, the System's voice continued to nag in his ear.
"You actually opened the inner turmoil to the deepest level in one go, you idiot, you have nowhere to run even if you want to interrupt!"
"You're done for!"
"You're tied down by this woman!"
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