9:00 AM.
Natsuki walked into the Hokage's office, crossed to the window, and looked down at the village below.
He yawned.
Being Hokage did, in fact, feel like being able to do whatever he wanted.
His mind drifted to the previous night.
Kushina and Nonou's gift had exceeded expectations. Experiencing two entirely different sensations simultaneously was something he intended to make a recurring event.
He'd rewarded them both generously.
A knock.
"Come in."
"Good morning, Natsuki." Mikoto entered, smiling, and settled into her usual routine — kneeling by the coffee table to prepare tea.
"Didn't Kushina come to you?"
"I wrote out a guide to the secretary's duties yesterday. She's studying it now."
Natsuki watched the way her posture accentuated her figure — the kneeling position doing things that her uniform couldn't hide.
"If anything comes up, come to me right away."
"Mm."
She paused, hesitation crossing her face.
She wanted to ask about Natsuki and Kushina's relationship. But fear of overstepping held her back.
In the end, she decided it didn't matter. Even if her suspicions were correct, she wouldn't act on them. Knowing or not knowing changed nothing.
She'd do her job. That was enough.
"Natsuki." She raised the teacup with both hands.
"Thank you."
He took a sip, set the cup down. "You can get back to work."
Mikoto bit her lip. He hadn't made a single move toward her this morning. She turned and left — reluctantly.
Natsuki picked up the day's documents. Everything centered on the Cloud-Mist-Sand triangle. No significant shifts since yesterday.
After finishing, he opened an Air Door to the Kazekage's office.
He walked in and sat on the edge of Pakura's desk.
"Good morning."
"Morning is already over, Lord Hokage." She looked up and corrected him.
"If I say it's morning, it's morning."
He hopped off the desk and gestured for her to stand.
"Lord Hokage is truly imposing." Her tone carried an edge.
The moment she was on her feet, he gave her a push.
Caught off guard, Pakura folded over the desk — hips raised, palms flat against the surface.
"You seem to have some resentment building up."
His hand traced slowly down her spine.
"I don't."
"Really?"
He stepped forward and pressed against her from behind, his arms encircling her waist.
Pakura rolled her eyes, rose to her toes — and within seconds, tearfully admitted that yes, she did in fact have resentment.
"You... you haven't visited in days."
"That is entirely my fault."
Her skin felt like it was on fire. Every nerve ending had opinions.
"Where's the Puppet Brigade?" he asked, shifting topics mid-stride.
"The Land of Water." She was struggling to form coherent sentences. "They haven't selected a target yet."
"They don't need one. The unit's too small for sustained engagements — hit-and-run harassment is the mission."
"With Sasori's temperament... he'll want to use this deployment to build merit—"
"What he wants is irrelevant. You're the Kazekage."
His hand settled over her chest. Her heartbeat was racing beneath his palm.
"I'll send orders today—"
Her feet left the floor. The world tilted.
By the time coherence returned, Natsuki was gone.
Pakura steadied herself, dressed, and opened the window.
Half a month later, intelligence confirmed the Puppet Brigade was executing harassment operations across the Land of Water's southwestern coast exactly as ordered. The Third Mizukage had dispatched Ao with five hundred shinobi to contain them — with limited success. The Brigade adhered strictly to hit-and-run doctrine, never engaging Ao's forces directly.
Dealing with them properly required either more troops or stronger combatants. But the Cloud's pressure was too severe for the Mizukage to divert significant resources southward. He settled for ordering Ao to stall and accept minor losses.
Three months passed.
The war shifted again.
The Third Raikage, accompanied by Nii Yugito, launched a devastating surprise attack on the Mist's main camp. Yagura and the others repelled them — but the damage was catastrophic. Yugito had successfully deployed a Tailed Beast Ball, and the Mist lost over a thousand shinobi in a single engagement.
Under that pressure, the Third Mizukage was forced to deploy the Three-Tails jinchūriki to the front. The Cloud-Mist war had reached its most violent intensity.
None of this directly involved the Leaf.
Over the same three months, Konoha had undergone its own transformation. The village had settled into its new hierarchy. Civilians and shinobi alike had adapted to Natsuki's leadership and the restructured upper echelon.
A knock.
"Come in."
Kushina entered and, finding the office empty, threw herself into his arms.
"It's freezing out there."
She exhaled a puff of warm air against his chest.
"Winter will do that." He glanced at the heavy snow beyond the window and took her cold hands between his.
"At least the New Year's almost here." She looked up. "Does the Hokage get a holiday?"
"Technically, no. In practice — I'm the Hokage. If I want time off, who's going to stop me?" He smiled. "The Anbu will be on rotation. If anything critical happens, they'll find me."
"Good." Her grin turned mischievous. "We can stay in bed the entire holiday."
"Can you handle that?"
She froze. Then realized what he meant.
The glare she gave him could have melted the snow outside.
But he wasn't wrong. Even with Nonou's help, her stamina ceiling was a genuine constraint.
For a fleeting moment, she entertained the thought of recruiting a third. She dismissed it just as quickly. Nonou was tolerable — they were close, and Nonou had been first. A stranger was a different equation entirely.
"You think about nothing but that all day." She steered back to business. "I came because we've had a wave of chūnin applications for the jōnin exam."
"Batch them together. Schedule it for next Sunday — that puts it right before the holiday break."
"I'll have the Anbu send notifications. Who examines?"
"The Hokage Guard Platoon. They could use something to do."
"Too bad Guy and the others are still too young." She sighed. "Some of them are already at the level."
Kakashi, certainly. But most of the generation needed another year or two.
"One more thing — the New Year Festival."
"My first year as Hokage, so we scale it up. But not excessively. Same scope as when Sensei first took office."
"I'll handle the arrangements." She kissed his cheek, turned, and left.
Natsuki rubbed his chin.
New Year's gifts.
Especially for Tsunade.
Since the moment on the battlefield — his arms around her, the Air Door, the near-miss with the Mountain Earth Jutsu — something between them had shifted. The change was subtle, unspoken, and mutual.
He wasn't going to pretend otherwise. Pretending disinterest in Tsunade would be dishonest to a degree that bordered on self-delusion. If an opportunity existed, he intended to take it.
Regret was worse than rejection.
The Senji Muramasa template surfaced in his thoughts. He hadn't forged a specialized ninja tool in some time. Kakashi, Minato, and the others already had theirs. Kushina, Nonou, and Mikoto had their Clima-Tacts.
Tsunade had nothing.
What would suit her? Something that amplified Wood Release, medical ninjutsu, or taijutsu. The most impactful option was Wood Release augmentation.
The First Hokage's necklace came to mind — currently around Nawaki's neck. It contained Hashirama's chakra crystal, which resonated with Wood Release. In the original timeline, Yamato had used it to suppress a rampaging Naruto.
Natsuki didn't have Hashirama's crystal. But the Black Grail could generate a Wood Release chakra crystal from his own reserves.
He opened an Air Door and headed to his forge.
The New Year Festival arrived on schedule.
Evening fell. The group changed into kimonos.
Natsuki surveyed the three women.
Nonou — serene, understated, quietly beautiful.
Kushina — vibrant, crimson-haired, radiating energy even standing still.
Tsunade — impossible to ignore. Even a kimono couldn't fully contain her. The fabric strained across her frame in ways that drew the eye against all conscious effort.
Three completely different aesthetics.
"Hey — hurry up!" Nawaki called from the courtyard.
"The festival hasn't officially started. What's the rush?" Tsunade's pace didn't change. "You go every year."
"This year's different — I'm a Hokage Advisor! People will actually recognize me! I might even get asked for autographs!"
"If you get pretty female fans," Natsuki offered, "you could develop them into girlfriends."
"I'm not like that!" Nawaki shook his head immediately. "Besides — my sister doesn't even have a boyfriend. I'm in no hurry."
"Would you like to die?"
Nawaki's hands clamped over his mouth. He retreated several steps.
"Tsunade-sensei is beautiful enough that the only reason she's single is standards," Natsuki said smoothly. "No one's measured up."
"Exactly!" Kushina backed him without hesitation.
Tsunade snorted — but her mood visibly lifted.
"If we wait any longer, we'll miss the fireworks."
"Let's go!" Kushina seized his hand and pulled him forward.
Tsunade watched them leave together and felt, not for the first time, like a third wheel.
She glanced at Nonou. The woman's expression was perfectly calm — as though she hadn't noticed a thing.
Tsunade shook her head and followed.
The streets were packed. Their group was recognized instantly, and the crowd closed in like a living wall. Natsuki had to invoke Hokage authority to carve out breathing room.
"Finally. Nonou — let's try the takoyaki stand." Kushina grabbed Nonou's hand and disappeared into the crowd.
"I don't know why," Nawaki said, watching them go, "but they seem closer than they used to be."
Tsunade stiffened slightly. She'd noticed the same thing.
"Are you saying they weren't close before?" Natsuki asked.
"They were, but not this close."
"Seems the same to me." Natsuki blinked.
They'd seen each other naked at this point. Of course they were close.
The group intersected with Minato's team — Kae, Obito, Kakashi, and Rin. Pleasantries, brief exchanges, then everyone dispersed to enjoy the festival separately.
Nawaki spotted a goldfish scooping booth and headed for it.
"Go ahead," Natsuki told him. "I'll catch up."
"Why so secretive?"
Nawaki grumbled but went.
Tsunade looked at Natsuki.
"Do you have something to say?"
"I have a New Year's gift for you."
He held out his hand. In his palm sat a silver-white bracelet.
Tsunade went still.
Given their relationship... wasn't a bracelet the kind of thing you gave a girlfriend?
She hesitated for several seconds.
Then took it.
A soft sound of surprise escaped her.
She could feel it — a familiar resonance emanating from the metal. Chakra she recognized.
"It's a specialized ninja tool. It amplifies Wood Release." Natsuki smiled. "The core is a Wood Release chakra crystal."
"Where did you get a Wood Release chakra crystal?"
As far as she knew, the only one in the shinobi world was in the necklace her grandfather had given her — the one now worn by Nawaki.
"I condensed it from my own chakra."
The implications hit her immediately. A Wood Release chakra crystal was priceless in the literal sense — no market existed for something this rare. And condensing one required an enormous chakra expenditure. He'd spent a significant portion of his reserves to create this for her.
"I can't accept this."
She held it back toward him.
"You have to."
He caught her hand and pushed the bracelet back into her palm.
"You—"
Her heart lurched.
"I'm the Hokage." He affected a stern expression. "Gifts from the Hokage cannot be refused."
A long silence.
"Thank you."
She nodded.
She tried to withdraw her hand — and found his fingers still wrapped around hers.
"Sorry."
He released her, expression neutral.
Tsunade glanced at him, then slipped the bracelet over her left wrist.
Silver-white against pale skin. It looked as though it had been designed specifically for her.
"It suits you."
A smile found Tsunade's face — warm, unguarded, genuine.
"It really does."
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