"Uh... I'll take responsibility?"
The hand resting on his shoulder, the orchid-like breath, and the faint fragrance drifting to the tip of his nose made it difficult for Seiryū to think clearly, so he answered subconsciously.
Since he had seen it, he naturally had to take responsibility. That was what a good man did!
How else was he supposed to handle this? Pay money? Absolutely impossible!
"..." Tsunade's expression stiffened for a moment. Then she narrowed her eyes and said in a heavier tone, "Responsibility? What kind of responsibility?"
This kid had too much nerve. He really dared to say anything!
He had not been around Jiraiya for that long, so how had he already learned to be bad from him?
Responsibility? What kind of responsibility? Did he mean it the way she understood it?
"Uh..." After saying what was on his mind without thinking, Seiryū finally snapped back to reality. He said stiffly, "You've seen me completely a few times before, and this time I only saw it by accident. It was just your back. If you really calculate it, I'm the one who lost out..."
Tsunade squeezed Seiryū's shoulder, smiling very brightly. "Can it really be calculated like that?"
Seeing a little brat's body was one thing. It was not as though Seiryū had been injured and unable to move. Could that be the same as the current situation? The nature of it was completely different!
The small hand on his shoulder applied more and more force, making Seiryū afraid to act rashly. He laughed dryly and said, "W-well... what else?"
Tsunade leaned down slightly and whispered into Seiryū's ear, the corners of her mouth curling into a smile. "If it's not one million Ryō, this matter isn't over!"
"What?" Hearing "one million Ryō" seemed to trigger a conditioned reflex in Seiryū. All fear and guilt vanished in that instant.
He took a step back, escaping Tsunade's grasp. Turning to look at her, Seiryū's face was already filled with gritted teeth. "What did you say? One million Ryō? Impossible, absolutely impossible!"
"I only saw your back, and you want to scam me out of one million Ryō?"
"Is your back made of gold or silver?"
"You've seen me completely several times. Not only did you look, you also touched. I didn't even ask you to take responsibility, yet you actually have the nerve to say something like this?"
Why was this bad woman always coveting his little stash of money?
One million Ryō for one glance at her back? Even though her back was quite pretty, was it made of gold or silver?
Anyway, he had no money, but he had one life!
Tsunade: "..." Why did this kid get so agitated the moment money was mentioned?
Elegantly playing with her fingers, which were painted with transparent nail polish, Tsunade stared at Seiryū and smiled playfully. "Then tell me, how should this matter be handled? If you can't satisfy me, heh heh..."
"Don't 'heh heh' me!" Seiryū shook his head frantically. "I know what you're thinking. You want to scam away the favor you owe me, but that's absolutely impossible!"
"Anyway, I'm standing right here. Kill me or cut me up as you please. I have no money, and there's no way I'll let you use this method to go back on that favor!"
He had previously found an "excuse" to make Tsunade owe him a favor. Now, Tsunade was finding an "excuse" to make him use up that favor. That bad woman Tsunade definitely had this in mind. He absolutely could not fall for it!
"Kill or cut you up?" Tsunade elegantly adjusted her hair, her beautiful eyes looking at Seiryū as she snorted coldly. "Are you sure?"
In her heart, she silently cursed. This kid actually guessed what she was thinking? His mind worked too fast!
Seiryū stiffened his neck and said indignantly, "Lay out the path. Whatever tricks you have, I'll take them. If you have the ability, beat me to death. If you can't beat me to death, you'll be miserable in the future, I'm telling you!"
"You really are impossible to reason with!" Looking at the brazen Seiryū, Tsunade also gritted her teeth a little. He was actually threatening her back? Very well! This matter was not over!
"This isn't me being impossible to reason with. This is you going too far! You were the one who told me to come in, and seeing your back was... an accident!"
"Not only do you lack the magnanimity of an adult, you also intend to use this to scam me! Tell me, is that reasonable?"
Seiryū spoke with complete conviction. Without waiting for Tsunade to answer, he emphasized his tone and answered himself, "It's unreasonable!"
Tsunade crossed her arms and grabbed onto one point to begin her attack. "I don't care. Anyway, you saw my body, and you should know what that means..."
Seiryū interrupted her with the look of a dead pig unafraid of boiling water. "Then we're even. You saw me, I saw you, we're square!"
Tsunade was so angry she laughed. "Can this kind of thing even be squared?"
Seiryū nodded very seriously. "What else? Let me tell you, it's a new era now. We emphasize equality for everyone. There's no distinction between men and women."
"You saw me completely, so you need to take responsibility too. I kindly didn't pursue the matter, but you're actually turning around to extort me. That's where you're wrong!"
He had not even asked Tsunade to take responsibility. This bad woman was actually turning around to extort him? Too excessive!
"Oh? I take responsibility?" Tsunade narrowed her eyes and said with a fake smile, "Tell me, how do you want me to take responsibility?"
"Aren't we even? What else is there to take responsibility for?" Seiryū looked puzzled, then suddenly realized something. "Oh, I know!"
"You finally realized that what you did to me before was wrong, and you want to make it up to me, right?"
"That's easy. Just give me money!"
"You saw me completely three times, and I saw your back once, so that counts as one time being even!"
"Naturally, you still owe me twice!"
After thinking for a moment, Seiryū said seriously, "One million Ryō per time will do!"
Tsunade raised an eyebrow. "So according to that, I actually owe you two million Ryō?"
"If you calculate it like that, then yes!"
"I don't have money. Why don't you tell me how I should take responsibility for you? I'm a little curious!"
"Of course it's by giving money. Could there be any other solution?" Seiryū said as if it were only natural. "It's not like I can marry into your Senju Clan, right?"
"I'm from the Uzumaki Clan. Although marrying into your Senju Clan would be adding kin to kin, I'm still young, after all. If that's what you want, you'll have to wait until I grow up a little..."
Tsunade interrupted with a dark face, "You're getting more and more outrageous. Marry into my Senju Clan? Are you suggesting I should marry you?"
"I can marry you too..." Seiryū replied subconsciously, then snapped back to reality and coughed lightly. "Ahem... no, that's not it. Anyway, it's about the same meaning..."
"I'll emphasize it again. I don't have money. This time is considered even. "
Tsunade squinted at Seiryū and did not speak. "..." This kid's words... was he "acting up" again, or was it...
"I can't be bothered to argue with you about this." Exhaling, Tsunade waved her hand. "Don't be so reckless next time."
"It's only because it's me. If this kind of thing happened with someone else, you would definitely be beaten to death!"
She did not intend to continue this topic. She had originally just been thinking about whether she could use this to scam Seiryū. She was not actually that angry. She also did not think much of it. After all, Seiryū was just a little brat. If it had been Jiraiya, it would not have been as simple as breaking a few bones.
Double standards!
"..." Seiryū looked at Tsunade. This bad woman was letting the matter slide just like that? That was not her style! Seiryū said with some uncertainty and hesitation, "Then... we're even?"
"Do you really think I would beat you to death?" Tsunade smiled in amusement, then stroked her chin and nodded. "However, I still have to teach you a lesson. When we return from this mission, I'll punish you by making you... hmm, wash my feet!"
"Hmph, I knew you bad woman weren't that kind!" Seiryū snorted coldly. Then, as if feeling that he was somewhat "in the wrong" this time, he sighed in a "resigned" manner. "But forget it. Since I was 'in the wrong,' I'll accept this 'punishment'!"
Looking at her own feet, painted with the transparent, non-toxic nail polish Seiryū had given her, a thought inexplicably rose in her heart. This kid... could he be into women's feet? That was impossible, right? Could there be such a weirdo? What was the deal with liking women's feet?
But this time, and the last time too, Seiryū seemed to show behavior different from usual when it came to "washing feet." Plus, for her birthday before, the transparent nail polish Seiryū gave her... was it because he did not like the red nail polish she usually wore, so he gave her transparent nail polish?
Thinking of this, Tsunade narrowed her eyes and said slowly, "I thought about it, and I feel this punishment is a bit too much. After all, you are my dearest disciple. How can I make you do such a thing?"
While saying this, she kept staring at Seiryū's expression, as though wanting to see something from it.
Upon hearing this, Seiryū waved his hand grandly and said righteously, "Although I don't have money, I admit I was somewhat wrong. I shouldn't have barged in recklessly. Am I the type of person who refuses to admit when I've done something wrong? Absolutely not!"
Tsunade's eyes flashed, and her expression became a bit strange. This kid really was not right. He actually really liked her feet?
In just these few seconds, this kid's gaze had shifted downward three times without leaving a trace... Where was he looking? There was no need to say!
Tsunade stared at Seiryū. Not knowing what she had thought of, she chuckled. "Are you sure you want to wash my feet? Don't you think it's dirty? Don't you think I'm oppressing you?"
"This isn't like your personality. Or is it... do you actually have some conspiracy?"
"What kind of conspiracy could I have?" Seiryū scoffed. Who was he? He was the type of person who would admit it when he was wrong! His tone was full of righteousness. "I'm just different from a certain bad woman who won't admit when she's wrong and even has the nerve to bite back!"
"How does that saying go? To recognize one's mistakes and correct them is the greatest virtue!"
"Really?" Tsunade said noncommittally. As if her feet were uncomfortable from standing too long, she slightly raised the tip of her right foot, making the curve of her fair, flawless jade-like foot look even more graceful.
Tsunade noticed... In that instant, Seiryū's gaze shifted downward again without leaving a trace. If Tsunade had not been staring at Seiryū's eyes the whole time, she really would not have noticed.
This made Tsunade certain in her heart. This kid really liked her feet! She had discovered Seiryū's secret!
In that case, letting Seiryū wash her feet... would that not be a punishment for him, but a reward instead?
Ah, this...
Tsunade suddenly showed a very strange expression. "Heh, interesting. To think such a thing could happen..."
Seiryū was a bit confused and asked strangely, "What kind of thing?"
"Nothing." Tsunade looked at Seiryū with a smile. She did not say anything else and instead brought up the mission. "Let's go. After breakfast, it's time to set off. This time, our mission is to escort a merchant caravan to the Land of Grass..."
As she said this, she walked around Seiryū and headed outside. Seiryū followed behind Tsunade and asked, "Land of Grass? What's the mission rank?"
"B-rank. The difficulty isn't very high. As long as we don't encounter the same situation as before, it's just a simple, normal mission for us."
"I'm begging you, stop raising random flags. I'm scared!"
"As long as you don't mess around like before, there won't be any mishaps. Remember, this time, without my permission, you are not allowed to do anything dangerous!"
"You people are really strange. You say it like I often do dangerous things. Weren't they all accidents?"
Tsunade stopped and turned her head to look at Seiryū, who had almost bumped into her. The corners of her mouth twitched. "Weren't all those accidents caused by you? If you encounter danger this time, use the Flying Thunder God Technique to leave immediately. The mission is not as important as your safety."
"This time, I must make sure you return to the village safely without any accidents!"
She did not believe it. Could this long-distance mission really encounter danger?
Hmm. Because Seiryū had been training during this period, their team's recent missions had been relatively simple, and they had not left Konoha. They were just necessary daily missions to avoid gossip from others.
She thought to herself. It could not be that every time they went on a mission outside the village, they would encounter some mishap, right? That could not be!
Hearing Tsunade's words, Seiryū suddenly felt a toothache. "I'm begging you, stop talking... If you keep talking, even aliens might appear!"
What was this? Was she starting to raise flags now? No, don't do that!
"What aliens? Always talking nonsense!" Tsunade was very confident this time. She had done her research. She said with a smile, "Rest assured. This time, there definitely, absolutely, certainly won't be any mishaps!"
She said as she walked, "I've investigated. Other shinobi teams have also taken on the same mission. Aside from encountering some rogue shinobi, robbers, and bandits, there haven't been any other mishaps!"
Missions to escort merchant caravans were common. The danger level was not high. The vast majority of danger came from rogue shinobi, robbers, and bandits. And for them, these people posed almost no threat at all!
Seiryū's mouth twitched. "..."
Damn it. Now there was trouble! The more she said things like this, the more likely a mishap would happen. What should he do if he did not want to go on this mission?
Looking at the silent Seiryū, Tsunade snorted with some dissatisfaction. "What? You don't believe me? If any mishaps happen this time, I'll write my name, Tsunade, backward!"
Seiryū covered his face with his hand. "I know, Lady Edanust..."
Tsunade: "?"
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)