Becoming Hokage
By Azure Orbis
Summary : Sometimes, the achievement of a dream is far more terrible than when the dream was still being pursued.
A/N - And much thanks to Ayra-chan345 for spotting my mistake!
"Don't worry, I won't die before I become Hokage."
How many times had she heard that? How many times had he said it with so much confidence with that boyish grin, cocky and innocent, on his face? How many times had he proved it right and how her heart broke the one time he did not.
She believed in him, believed in that unnamed promise he had made, that he would indeed become Hokage before entertaining any ideas of death. No matter the mission, no matter how long overdue his team was, he would come back. Limping, badly wounded or dead drunk, he would always come back. That was the promise.
She bet on him, placing all her remaining faith on this young boy who reminded her so much of her dear younger brother. She was never good at gambling. She knew it was wrong to put so much hope on this one boy, but she wanted so much to see him grow up (like Nawaki never did) and become what he promised to be (like Dan wanted to do.)
She was a lousy gambler, always have been. Since the day young Tsunade bet that a certain drop-out would not be able to hang onto the wall with only one foot and lost miserably by having to drink a foul concoction which made her sick, her luck had only went downward. It seemed like it was a sure bet that an idiot like Jiraiya would never be able to grasp the concept of releasing chakra continuously, let alone be able to focus enough at the sole of only one foot. But then again, he had proven her wrong many times since then, just like his latest student.
She did not want to believe in him, fearing that her faith was some sort of bad talisman that would cause his untimely death. But somehow, that little blonde bundle of hyper energy and brash confidence made her believe in him, made her want to believe in him and in extension, the fragile bond between humans called trust. She even started to believe he would be the Hokage to put an end to all the fighting between all the hidden villages, simply by befriending each Hokage.
Only a month before his inauguration as the proud sixth Hokage, Naruto went on a mission that required his unique brand of techniques, i.e. unlimited power. The soon-to-be Hokage went with some of the top elite of the village. None of them returned. Their collective funerals were held on yet another rainy day; it seemed to pour hardest when the village's morale was lowest. Konoha's council granted Naruto honorary Hokage status moments before he was buried. It was with the heaviest of hearts that Tsunade laid the Sixth's remains into the earth, and took on the Hokage's burden again, eerily following the footsteps of her teacher, the third Hokage.
It was clear in the time when Tsunade acted as interim Hokage that the death of the young man weighed heavily on her. She cursed death for snatching him away at the very threshold of achieving his greatest dream. Tsunade was a changed woman, spending her time attacking the never-ending pile of paperwork on diplomatic problems and mix-ups, rather than medical quandaries that used to fascinate her. Relations with other hidden villages were never as friendly as when the she held the helm as temporary Hokage. In the yearlong time she had as acting head, the alliances she forged would remain unbroken for several decades. The medical community also flourished under her tutelage, becoming the pride of Konoha. What was unknown to the world and the villagers was that Tsunade never touched a drop of her favorite sake afterwards, and that she never gambled again.
A/N – Another tragic ending, which I feel would not be so out of place if NARUTO was not destined to have beloved Naruto as Hokage. I just always wondered what would happen to Tsunade if she lost all her faith. I would like to think, or hope that it would not break her. Having gone through such traumatic times before, I think she would use all her strength to fulfill her and maybe Naruto's wish.