Shizune hugged Tonton as she stood in front of Ichiraku Ramen, staring at her completely empty wallet—and then at the ramen bill. Her cheeks puffed red with humiliation.
That bastard!
He made her pay… and then ran off!
But when she recalled what she'd just seen at Training Ground Three—how that boy, clothes in tatters and covered in ash, had walked out of the blasted crater alive—her anger inexplicably dulled.
He looked… kind of pitiful, actually.
Shizune herself was a war orphan. That feeling of being alone in the world—she understood it better than anyone.
Maybe… Lady Tsunade only helped him because she felt sorry for him?
Yes. That had to be it!
…
Inside Chigen's small house.
The rich aroma of ramen was like an invisible hand, forcing its way into the frozen air between them.
Tsunade stared at the three steaming bowls on the table, then at Chigen—who had started eating like nothing was wrong. Her hand, still holding the bedsheet, hung stiffly in midair.
He was still wearing the clothes that had been shredded during the exam. His face was smudged with grime, his hair a mess—he looked downright battered.
And yet the way he ate, there was a strange, genuine satisfaction to it, like that bowl of noodles was the best thing in the world.
It made Tsunade, for a moment, think of someone else.
Her little brother—Nawaki.
Back then, Nawaki had been the same. No matter how exhausted or filthy he came back from a mission, if there was a hot bowl of ramen waiting, he'd grin like an idiot—exactly like this.
And just like that, the nameless fire in her chest went out without a sound.
Tsunade quietly lowered the bedsheet, pulled out a chair, and sat across from him.
Chigen lifted his gaze, mildly surprised.
He'd expected to come home to rubble.
Instead, she was sitting here like this.
"I thought you'd tear my bedsheet to pieces."
Chewing his noodles, Chigen tossed it out, words slightly muffled with food.
"So what—couldn't bear to? Or are you trying to do something to your little brother?"
"How could I do anything to Nawaki—"
Tsunade snapped back on instinct, then froze mid-sentence. Her face drained pale.
She'd slipped.
Chigen stopped his chopsticks and offered her a napkin.
"Stay alone too long, and your head starts filling with nonsense."
Tsunade didn't take it. She just bit down hard on her lower lip.
Alone?
In her mind, she gave a bitter laugh.
What do you know about being alone?
Have you ever watched your brother's body go cold right in front of you?
Have you ever felt the warmth leave the person you loved… in your own arms?
If you want to compare scars, you're still green.
But she couldn't say any of it—not a single word.
In the end, she simply picked up her chopsticks and ate in silence.
"…Thanks for the ramen."
After a long while, she finally spoke, voice low.
"And… about last night."
A faint, unnatural blush surfaced on her flawless cheeks.
Chigen finished the last sip of broth and set his bowl down, satisfied.
"So when are you planning to marry me?"
"PFF—! Cough—cough—cough!"
Tsunade choked so violently it was almost explosive. She snapped her head up, eyes wide as saucers.
"What did you just say?!"
"I said, marriage."
Chigen repeated it with a straight face.
"Are you insane?!"
Tsunade looked like she'd just heard the funniest joke in the world.
"How many years apart are we? Who do you think I am? Who do you think you are? Last night was an accident! A ridiculous, drunk—one-night thing!"
Chigen's expression collapsed instantly, his eyes filling with wounded grievance.
"Oh. I get it."
He lowered his head, voice dull.
"So you look down on me. You look down on a nobody genin with no money and no backing."
"That's not what I meant!"
Tsunade's irritation spiked at his act, and she blurted out before thinking:
"I was drunk—I thought you were… I thought you were a gigolo!"
"A gigolo?"
Chigen's head snapped up. Something dangerous glittered in his eyes.
"Lady Tsunade, you might not realize this…"
He leaned forward, closing in on her, enunciating every word.
"I'm only eighteen."
Eighteen?!
Tsunade's brain buzzed.
"You did that to a bright, healthy teenage boy…"
Chigen's voice dropped into a low murmur—almost like a devil whispering.
"In the Land of Fire, that's a serious crime."
Tsunade's face cycled from red, to white, to an ugly shade of green—rapid-fire.
She stared at that face, still carrying traces of youth, and her mind went into chaos.
She—one of the Legendary Sannin—Tsunade of the Leaf… had done that…
If this ever got out, she'd be finished for life.
"Since you took me for a gigolo,"
Chigen leaned back, utterly at ease now, spreading his hands.
"Pay up. Service fee. Emotional damages. And the cost of these three bowls of ramen."
"Lady Tsunade!"
At that moment, the door was shoved open from outside.
A frantic girl burst in—
And then—
With a sudden whoosh and a short shriek, Shizune triggered the trap Chigen had set at the doorway. A net snapped tight around her, yanking her upside down to the ceiling. Tonton tumbled out of her arms, hit the floor, and spun in a daze.
The silence that followed was painfully awkward.
Chigen sighed, got up, and walked over. With practiced ease, he loosened the rope and lowered Shizune back down.
Shizune wobbled, dizzy, her face so red it looked ready to bleed.
The first thing she did after steadying herself was rush in front of Tsunade like a mother hen shielding her chick.
"Lady Tsunade, are you alright?! Did this man do anything to you—"
She stopped halfway, eyes landing on the third bowl of ramen.
Untouched.
Wasn't that the one she paid for?!
Tsunade covered her face, wishing a hole would open in the floor and swallow her whole.
Right now, she only wanted to sew Shizune's mouth shut.
If Shizune hadn't been babbling in her ear yesterday about "finding a young gigolo," how would she have mistaken this brat in the first place?!
Shizune immediately understood something. She glared at Chigen, eyes practically shooting flames.
It was all this man's fault!
He must've seduced Lady Tsunade!
Chigen lifted both hands, innocent as can be.
"I'm the victim here."
Tsunade drew a deep breath, as if making a life-or-death decision. She looked at Chigen, guilt flickering in her eyes.
"Gigolo… how much for one night?"
"Lady Tsunade!"
Shizune panicked.
"Being with you is his honor! He should be paying you!"
The moment the words left her mouth, she realized what she'd said. She slapped a hand over her lips and bowed sharply toward Tsunade.
"I'm sorry!"
Tsunade ignored her. Her gaze stayed locked on Chigen.
"Say it. How much."
Shizune hesitated, then tested a number.
"O-one thousand ryō?"
Chigen gave a scoff.
"Fifty thousand ryō."
"What?!"
Tsunade and Shizune shouted in unison.
"You're robbing us!"
Shizune snapped.
Tsunade touched her empty pocket, grit her teeth, and reached for the necklace at her throat.
"I didn't bring money. I'll pawn this with you first—"
"No!"
Shizune slammed a hand down, stopping her.
"Lady Tsunade, that's the First Hokage's keepsake! You can't give it to him! Worst case—worst case we just… we just take it for free!"
While the three of them argued fiercely over the "fee"—
On the roof, two figures landed without a sound.
"Oh?" Orochimaru licked his lips, golden snake eyes gleaming with amused interest.
"Three chakra signatures… Tsunade, her apprentice, and that boy who survived."
"Sensei," he added lightly, "seems we came at a bad time. We've interrupted the young folks' fun."
Hiruzen didn't bother responding to the tease. He adjusted his Hokage hat and robe, then leapt down from the roof, landing steadily in front of the door.
Knock. Knock. Knock.
He raised his hand and rapped on the thin wooden door.