Sakura showed up at the hospital ten minutes before her shift started and in desperate need of a shower. Her clothes were soaked, her boots caked with mud and many, many unidentifiable plants stuck in her hair, and she could feel a collection of bruises forming along her thigh where a large rock set loose by her new and improved Water Dragon had collided with her. The only benefit she could think of from this morning was not having to travel all the way out to the pool and back- Hiraishin was definitely an improvement. Oh, and the Second looked damn good in that navy longsleeve.
In contrast, Tobirama was having a great time. He had this excellent ramen for breakfast (cooking had improved greatly since his day, there were restaurants everywhere), a kid recognized his face and gave him a piece of candy, Haruno had stopped referring to him as Senju-sama and now used Tobirama-san, and now he was visiting his favourite grand-niece again. He only had one grand-niece, but whatever.
"What the hell do you mean all this is work you haven't done?"
Tsunade winced at the Nidaime's overly loud (in her opinion) voice. She could still taste sake on her tongue, and if her memory served her correctly, the bottle in her left bottom drawer was still a quarter full. She reached down while Tobirama was pacing around in annoyance.
"How does this village even function? How does it even exist? You're exactly like Hashirama was! Don't you understand you have to do all of this? It's not something you can just put aside-"
"Uncle," Tsunade groaned, "give it a rest. Shizune will take care of it."
"Shizune is enabling you! Do your own damn work for once instead of drinking like a fish!"
"I wouldn't know how to do it if I tried, Uncle. Besides, organizing things is Shizune's job. My job is signing random papers."
"I don't know why you wanted to be Hokage."
"I didn't, that little brat talked me into it." Tsunade sighed. "Everyone says he's like Grandpa, but this one's annoying as hell."
Tobirama sighed. "Yeah, well, Hashirama was annoying as hell too. You were just spoiled and didn't notice."
"He'll become Hokage though. I just hope he ends up like the Sandaime and not his father. He deserves to live a long time."
"About that…" Tobirama shifted into a standing position.
"What?" Tsunade irritably took a swig from her sake bottle and glowered at him.
"Have you done any training for Uzumaki? Because if anything, it's Haruno who's learning to follow in your footsteps."
Tsunade sat up. "Sakura won't be Hokage before Naruto. Even if she knows the workings of the government better, all the other village leaders expect Naruto. Hell, the entire world is just waiting for the day Naruto's announced Hokage."
"But does he know anything? Does he know a thing about what to do besides defeat the enemy? It was easy for my brother; make peace with the Uchiha, make peace with the other clans, and build a village. The details were all up to me. What will Naruto do when he's asked about foreign imports, or shinobi tax rates, or immigration policy? Every Hokage since my brother has been a thinker, not just a fighter."
"He'll learn," Tsuande insisted. "And he won't have to decide it all by himself. He'll have his council, me, Shizune, and yes, Sakura. Besides, Naruto's not just a fighter. He's the most convincing person I've ever met, and charisma, as you well know, is just as important as reputation. Sakura might be in the Bingo book, but she still has a ways to go before she has that reputation to boost her. But who knows, I wouldn't be surprised if Naruto retired and she took his place."
Tobirama nodded, and started to leave.
"Is that why you've offered to teach her? You want her to be Hokage?" Tsunade inquired. Tobirama glanced over his shoulder at her.
"Stop drinking and get back to work."
….
Tobirama and Sakura appeared in the middle of Sakura's living room, and for the first time since they had started training with the Second's Hiraishin, Sakura didn't stumble or fall over.
"You're improving," Tobirama noted. "I'll teach you the seals soon."
"Thanks," she said dryly, "It only took me two weeks."
"It took me two years to develop this jutsu," he stated lightly. "Time is a necessity."
Sakura nodded in return and collapsed on her couch. As she started healing a gash on her arm, Tobirama browsed her bookshelf. He passed over the medical textbooks and the history books, taking small interest in the novels and short story collections. Soon he came to a set of books that were turned so that their spines were not visible from outside of the shelf. Curious, he pulled one out. Its cover was a bright, lurid orange, and it was titled Icha Icha Paradise. He glanced behind him. Sakura was meditating or asleep; either way, her eyes were closed. Taking the book with him, he settled into the chair across from her and began to read.
Scarcely two chapters into the book, he paused abruptly. Times certainly had changed. During his life, books were rare, only increasing with the formation of the hidden villages, and they were always either solid information or respectable retellings of great legends, stories that were told with awe and wonder. This- this was a shameful use of ink and paper, and it was shocking that Sakura had it in her possession. Tobirama started to read again.
Sakura stirred, slightly surprised that Tobirama was still there. "I'll make some tea," she yawned, and then caught sight of what he was holding and shrieked.
"DON'T READ THAT! PUT IT DOWN RIGHT NOW!" Her eyes were wide and face the colour of a tomato.
"You really shouldn't have this habit of screaming, Sakura," Tobirama said mildly. "The neighbours will start to wonder."
"Oh my god, it's affected you already," she whimpered. "Put it back, please."
"I haven't finished," Tobirama objected. "Why do you possess this if you're so ashamed of it?"
Sakura hid her face with her hands. "You don't understand. My sensei…"
"Hatake? I'm judging him very harshly right now," he said.
"No, it wasn't like that! I mean," Sakura backtracked. "He just- I- I stole them-"
"I'm starting to judge you too. Maybe you should go make tea to calm yourself down and then explain."
Sakura groaned and left the room. A moment later, Tobirama sensed the mentioned Copy-nin enter through the door.
"Sakura, what happened to your WiFi- Nidaime-sama," Hatake greeted flatly, and then he too saw the book Tobirama held. "Scratch that, Sakura, why does Nidaime-sama have my book?"
"I fucking told you!" Sakura screamed from the kitchen, though no one quite knew who she was talking to.
"I found this on Haruno's bookshelf," Tobirama explained helpfully.
Hatake huffed. "Sakura, I told you and Naruto to stop stealing my books."
"We told you to stop reading them!"
Kakashi ignored her and turned to Tobirama. "May I inquire why you happen to be lounging in my student's apartment and selecting reading material from her bookshelf?"
"I happen to have taken her on as my student," Tobirama replied coolly, turning a page. "I can't say I approve very much of her previous teachers' habits of alcoholism, or, apparently, fornication literature. I certainly hope she hasn't picked it up."
"It's called porn nowadays," Kakashi pointed out, and retrieved the other similar books from the bookshelf. "These ones in particular are written by Jiraiya-sama."
Tobirama grimaced. "He was Uzumaki's teacher, was he not? What have shinobi come to?"
"Naruto has never quite appreciated his teacher's works."
"Thank god," uttered Sakura, appearing with her tea set. "Kakashi-sensei, please stop advocating your porn. Senju-san, please return the book to Kakashi before your mind degenerates."
Tobirama snapped the book shut obediently and held it out. "You'll have to… show me how it ends, Hatake," he insisted, flicking his eyes over Kakashi's hidden face, who raised an eyebrow as he received the book. Sakura stared at both of them with a disgusted look on her face.
"I can't tell if you're really that shameless or if you just have a twisted sense of humor, Senju," she wondered, and poured three cups of tea. Kakashi settled into the couch next to her.
"Look underneath the underneath, Sakura," Kakashi said.
"Yeah, that doesn't help. His face has one setting: emotionless."
"Flirting with a straight face is never very effective."
Tobirama threw them a bored look. "I usually don't feel the need to try."
Sakura made a face again and drank her tea. "Did you need something, Kakashi-sensei?"
"I just wanted to see my favourite student," he claimed.
"Sasuke's apartment is that way," Sakura stated dryly, her hand flung out to the side. Kakashi rolled his eyes.
"Sasuke's apartment is sad and empty-"
"So is yours."
"-which is why I come here."
"You're a mess. Did you want food?" Sakura was already standing.
"Yes please," Kakashi replied politely.
"What about you, Tobirama?"
He nodded an affirmative, and smiled at the informal use of his name when she disappeared.
"She doesn't call you sensei?" Kakashi asked. "I was under the impression you commanded respect."
"Indeed, I respect her enough to speak to her as an equal."
"I can hear you," Sakura yelled. "Stop your damn pissing contest or I'm kicking you out."
The two men obediently fell silent, resorting to giving each other icy stares.
Well, I got into college, so here's another chapter. I'm trying to figure out how to start causing events to happen, so I don't know if I'll be introducing a "villain" of sorts or just go with domestic issues, but eventually I'll write more. Don't hold your breath though, it'll be at least three months.
