A/N: This chapter is dedicated to Miss Laury, Guest, Hi, SquareMom, Dobbyhasnomastr, U3fan, and Lara500. Wow, guys! That was the most reviews I've ever gotten for a chapter. You all are so awesome! I'm going to start replying to each review individually at the bottom of each chapter, cause y'all are just the best. :) And a huge thanks to all my new followers/favorites!


Kakashi hadn't moved since he'd sat at Tsunade's bedside three hours ago. For the past two weeks, he'd been lost; in his feelings toward Tsunade, the uncertainty of the mission, even in what he really, truly, wanted.

In a single moment, everything had become clear. Now—as his laced fingers tightened—remembering Tsunade cradled in his arms, he understood.

Kakashi gazed at Tsunade's unconscious, yet peaceful face, with her loose blonde hair fanned out on her pillow, and his chest squeezed painfully. Her youthful transformation had slowly returned over the past few hours, but he hadn't forgotten how she'd looked when she'd collapsed in arms. Frail, and small. So small. He'd heard her Creation Rebirth jutsu aged her prematurely, but he hadn't known how much. Until now.

Likely, she'd strangle him if she knew he'd seen what she truly looked like, but it didn't matter to him. Tsunade was still Tsunade. And seeing who she really was only deepened his respect. It showed how much she'd given up for others. If only he could tell her that.

Kakashi exhaled heavily. Well. It wasn't as if he could do anything about it, no matter how much he wanted to. He focused on her red nails, unconsciously gripping the blanket, and grimaced. How had he forgotten the chakra-feeding seal? Not exactly forgotten—but he shouldn't have assumed she'd healed it. Instead, he'd let her use her the precious amount of chakra she had left to heal those hurt in the snake's attack.

His knuckles whitened. When she had collapsed, fear such as he'd never felt ripped through him, and that's when he knew.

He loved Tsunade.

Granted, he still wasn't exactly sure what he was going to do about it, but just knowing it filled him with purpose. He'd never known what he wanted, never had a dream. Now he did.

He wanted Tsunade. He wanted to make Konoha safe for her, wanted to fight with her to protect it. He wanted to find out her dreams, and make them reality. Most of all, he wanted her to want him too. But right now, none of that mattered. Not with Tsunade unconscious and near a coma. Not when Orochimaru could be heading for Konoha with a dangerous kekkei genki shinobi.

Kakashi lowered his head, fighting a sense of hopelessness. Normally, he didn't let his circumstances have an effect; reasoning there was always a way out. But, as usual since the very first day of the mission, Tsunade's presence had thrown his normal into a loop. A tangled, convoluted, emotional loop.

The door slid open, announcing Naruto's presence. "Ay, I'm back, Kakashi-sensei!" He held out chicken yakitori on a skewer, and frowned at Tsunade's motionless form. "Is Tsunade-baachan any better?"

"No." Kakashi took the yakitori from Naruto and let the skewer dangle between his fingertips. "Maa, thanks for the food. Have they locked Mao up yet?"

As soon as Tsunade had collapsed, Kakashi had ordered Naruto to watch Mao while he got Tsunade to a safe place. Once he'd gotten her settled, he had briefly returned to order Mao imprisoned by the order of the Godaime Hokage. He'd intended for Tsunade to give further orders when she awoke, but—he cut off the thought. No. She would wake up, and give Mao the sentence he deserved.

"Hai. He's not going anywhere." Naruto's gaze didn't move from Tsunade, and his jaw clenched. "How did this happen? Did that snake hurt her? If Orochimaru did this, I'll find him and take him out!"

Kakashi sighed heavily, and set the skewer to the side. Maybe he'd be hungry later. He'd promised Tsunade he wouldn't tell Naruto about the chakra seal, but now he might not have a choice. Because if Naruto got it into his head to go after Orochimaru... "It's the disease the villagers of Yamagawa had. She absorbed into herself in the form of a seal. It was the only way to heal them." He gripped his knees. "I never should have let her take on the snake. It was too much."

Naruto gaped at him. "What?" His shock shifted to hurt. "Why didn't you and Tsunade-baachan tell me? I'm on this mission too, believe it!"

Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck. Why did these things always fall to him? "Well... Tsunade-sama didn't want you to know. She didn't want you to worry about her."

Naruto's brows furrowed. He looked back at Tsunade, and his normally cheerful mouth drooped. "Kakashi-sensei... what will we do if Tsunade-baachan doesn't wake up? Is there someone we can find who will heal her?"

Kakashi opened his mouth to reiterated that she would wake up—but movement from Tsunade's bed caught the corner of his watchful eye. He was on his feet in an instant, gaze locked on Tsunade's face.

Naruto hurried to his side, peering at the hokage hopefully. "Tsunade-baachan?"

Tsunade blinked, and the sight of her golden-brown eyes flooded Kakashi with knee-weakening relief. She groaned, and pushed herself up slowly, rubbing her forehead. At last, her gaze fixed on Kakashi and Naruto. But instead of recognition, her eyes darkened with confusion and suspicion. Cold dread washed through Kakashi, taking every last vestige of relief with it. He knew that look.

Tsunade's gaze flickered back and forth from Kakashi to Naruto. She tensed, obviously ready to spring from her bed. "Who…who are you? Where am I?" Fire sparked in her pupils. "Nawaki, what did you do to your hair?!"

"Eh?" Naruto gaped at Tsunade. "What are you talking about, Tsunade-baachan?"

"What did you just call me?!" Tsunade's eyes widened. "Wait. You—you're not Nawaki." She threw back the covers and lurched to her feet. But her body was still weak, and she staggered, nearly falling into Kakashi. He instinctively caught her arms to steady her, but Tsunade pulled away sharply and steadied herself against the bedpost. She curled her fingers into fists, clearly trying to control her trembling. "What—what...?"

This was bad. Kakashi fought to keep his voice calm, when, inside, he felt anything but calm. "You don't remember us?"

Tsunade stared at him blankly. "What? Who are you?" Her gaze lifted to his forehead protector, and the deep furrow on her forehead smoothed a little. "You're a Konoha shinobi? But... I've never seen you before."

"What are you talking about, Tsunade-baachan?" Naruto blurted, clearly a little slow to catch up, as usual. "You know Kakashi-sensei!"

Tsunade rounded on him, and Naruto shrank back. "Stop calling me that, you little brat! Did Jiraiya put you up to this?"

"Pervy Sage?" Naruto scoffed. "No. I think you need to—"

"Naruto, quiet." For some reason, Kakashi couldn't make himself look at Tsunade. "Tsunade-sama has lost her memory. She doesn't remember either of us." How much did she remember? She'd thought Naruto was her brother Nawaki, which meant... worst case scenario, she'd lost over twenty-five years of memory.

"Lost...?" Tsunade paled, but lifted her chin. "You're lying. For what purpose do you have me here? If you're enemies of Konoha, I won't hesitate to take you both out. Explain yourselves, quickly!"

This wasn't good at all. Kakashi held up his hands, mind racing. How could he possibly convince Tsunade? "We are not your enemies. I am Kakashi Hatake of Konoha, and this is Naruto Uzumaki, one of my students. We are on a mission with you, but Orochimaru attacked this village and you lost consciousness after defeating his serpent and healing the people of the village. I can only assume that is the reason for your memory loss." That, and the chakra seal. He had no doubt that was the main cause.

Tsunade's eyes narrowed angrily. "Impossible. Orochimaru is my teammate, and he would never attack a village."

Kakashi winced. Fool. He should have known better than to mention Orochimaru.

"You should have come up with better aliases," Tsunade continued coolly. "I assure you that I would know if there was another Uzumaki alive, and there isn't. And the only Hatake in Konoha is Sakumo Hatake and his wife. Now, tell me your true purpose for bringing me here."

Naruto stomped his foot. "Stop being ridiculous, Tsunade-baachan! You're the hokage! When I'm hokage, I'll never forget that. Believe it!"

"Hokage?" Tsunade gave a disbelieving laugh. "Now I know you're lying. Don't—"

"The Sakumo Hatake you remember was my father," Kakashi said quietly. "The White Fang of Konoha."

Tsunade glared at him, but he caught the uncertainty in her eyes. "Impossible. You are—what? Twenty-six? Seven? That would make me..." Her mouth tightened. "I've had enough of this. I am twenty-two, and I just gave Nawaki his twelfth birthday present yesterday. You will regret desecrating the uniform of the Leaf!"

Only Kakashi's instincts saved him. He dove to the side, taking Naruto with him, as Tsunade's fist smashed the floor where he'd been a moment before. He leaped out the window, Naruto under his arm. The wall of the apartment exploded behind him, and Tsunade sailed out of the wreckage with a shout.

Kakashi hit the ground lightly, heart racing. He had to stop Tsunade before she used her chakra. He set Naruto down—and Tsunade's shadow fell over them. "Naruto, get away!"

Tsunade's landing cracked the pavement. She straightened, eyes burning. But when she took a step toward Kakashi, her legs buckled. She crumpled, barely catching herself on her hands and knees with a gasp. "What—what is this?"

Kakashi approached cautiously, but it was obvious Tsunade's strength was gone. It took all of his willpower not help her; instead, he crouched at her side. "We are not your enemies." He sighed. He hadn't wanted to use this, but... "You wear a, uh, youthful henge. If you just release it..."

Tsunade glared at him, sucking in gulps of air. Sweat beaded her forehead. "Liar. What—what have you done to... me?" Her eyelashes fluttered closed, and her quivering arms gave out.

Kakashi caught her before she hit the cratered street. He stood, Tsunade cradled in his arms. He gritted his teeth at her shallow breathing and pale, sweaty skin. If only he had realized what she was doing sooner...

Naruto ran over, blue eyes wide. "What are we going to do? Is Tsunade-baachan okay?"

Kakashi didn't have answer for either, so he just grunted. He needed to come up with a plan to convince Tsunade of the truth when she woke up. And he saw no other choice but to send a message to Konoha and notify Shizune. Perhaps she would know how to restore Tsunade's memory. Not to mention he needed to warn her about Orochimaru. "Let's find a hotel and get Tsunade-sama to a bed. Then... we'll figure out a plan."

Naruto nodded seriously, and brushed dust from his jacket. "Hai."


Tsunade woke in a strange bed. Again. She groaned at the throbbing in her skull, and slowly sat up, taking in the empty room around her. Why was she...? Everything from the past day rushed back, and she groaned again.

She was trapped by two shinobi who claimed to be from Konoha, though she'd never seen them before, and had the gall to call her—her—a grandma of all things, and say that she'd lost over twenty years of memory. Tsunade snorted. Ah, yes. And, she was apparently the Godaime Hokage.

How ridiculous. Still, the lies were so strange, she might almost believe they were being truthful—no. It wasn't true. She wouldn't let it be true. She would find out what they were planning, then take them out.

Tsunade dug her fingers into the blanket. They would regret trying to take advantage of Tsunade Senju. She needed to take care of this and get back to Konoha before Nawaki started to worry about her. She'd promised he could train with her today. With the village at war, she didn't have as much time for him as she used to. She slid her legs out of bed, but she had to grip the bed frame to keep herself upright. Why was she so weak? What had they done to her?

Tsunade closed her eyes, and focused on what her body was telling her. She was still developing new medical techniques, but being able to self-diagnose any part of her body was one she'd perfected. It wasn't poison or any drug... she stiffened. A strange, hungry presence pulsed inside, though it seemed concentrated around her stomach. Cold rushed through her. No, it couldn't be.

Tsunade pulled off the navy obi around her waist, then shrugged off her sleeveless kimono. She stared at her toned stomach, dread creeping down her spine. Sure enough, a black sealing circle branded her skin around her naval.

But how? Why couldn't she remember any of this? Tsunade pulled the strange clothes back on, since she didn't have anything else. She gritted her teeth. Had her captors put her in these? She certainly wouldn't choose to wear them. The style was something an older woman would wear, though slightly altered.

Tsunade pressed both hands to the sides of her head. Where were her captors, anyway? They weren't very good at this hostage business, if that's what they intended for her. In fact, now that she thought about it, they hadn't really acted like captors at all. Neither had fought back when she'd attacked them, and the silver-haired ninja who claimed to be Sakumo's son had been quite... respectful. She squeezed her eyes shut. What was it he had said?

"You wear a, uh, youthful henge. If you just release it..."

Tsunade swallowed. No one was here, so perhaps she should try it. Nothing would happen, of course, but then at least she'd know they were lying and gain peace of mind. She faced the mirror on the wall and formed the sign. "Release."

Her youthful face faded, revealing a... she looked like a... Tsunade stumbled back and sat down hard on the bed. She couldn't tear her gaze from her reflection. Impossible. She—she looked like a seventy-year-old woman. Hands shaking, she formed another sign, bringing her henge back.

Tsunade buried her face in her hands, unable to think straight. Did that mean the impostor Konoha shinobi were telling the truth? Because if they were...

That would mean the war was over. And Nawaki was likely a full-fledged jōnin by now.

Tsunade took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. She needed to talk to them. And perhaps apologize for reacting in violence prematurely. But first, she needed to feel like herself, and to do that... Her gaze fell on the open packs in the corner, and the silver-haired ninja's extra uniform.

Ten minutes later, Tsunade made her way down the hotel stairs. Her hair was back in her usual high ponytail and though the uniform was more than a little baggy, but she finally felt like herself. She had to hold on the railing like an old woman—except apparently, she was an old woman—but she felt stronger by the time she reached the bottom.

She spotted Kakashi Hatake and Naruto Uzumaki—who still looked so similar to Nawaki it disturbed her—as soon as she exited the hotel's front door. They sat at one of the tea house's tables just outside, one with an excellent view of her room's window and the hotel entrance. Tsunade approached, suddenly feeling a bit awkward.

Hatake spotted her first, and immediately stood, his single visible eye guarded. "Good morning, Tsunade-sama."

Naruto swiveled in his seat, blue eyes wide. "Ay! Are you going to attack us again?"

Tsunade winced. "No. And I'm... sorry about that. I've had time to think, and I believe you're telling the truth. But I want you to tell me everything." She pointed at her stomach. "How did I get this seal?"

Hatake didn't seem to hear her; his gaze was fixed on her uniform. He scratched the back of his neck. "Maa, is that my spare uniform?"

"Hai." Tsunade crossed her arms. "Have a problem with that?"

"Ah, no." For some reason, Hatake's ears reddened. He cleared his throat, and plopped back in his chair. "So, you believe us. I am relieved to hear that." His gray eye studied her again. "Are you hungry?"

Tsunade blinked. She hadn't exactly expected that response, but now that he mentioned it... her stomach growled. How long had it been since she'd eaten? "A bit. But what does that—"

Hatake stood, this time leisurely sliding his hands into his pockets. "Let's go find a bite to eat. I'll explain as much as I can on the way. But I think it would be best if I don't tell you your past, besides what is necessary. That is yours to discover."

Tsunade chewed her lip to hide her annoyance. He had a point, but she didn't even know how to bring her memories back. And there was so much she wanted—needed—to know. But for now... "Fine."

Naruto sprang up. "All right! Let's go find some ramen!"

Hatake explained their mission and the reason behind her seal in his calm, almost bored, voice as they walked. "...if I understand correctly, using your chakra will only increase the effects of the chakra seal."

They stopped outside of a ramen shop, but Tsunade's mind was spinning so fast she couldn't even think about food. The more Hatake talked, the more reality sank in. The war was over. She truly had lost half of her life's memories, she was fifty-one years old, not twenty-two. And she truly was the Godaime Hokage of Konoha.

The buzz of a city at peace surrounded her, but Tsunade closed her eyes and pressed her hand to her forehead, as if that would help her process what was happening. It was all too much.

Naruto had already run up to sit at the food bar, but Hatake stopped at the entrance and looked back at her, eye half-closed lazily. "Coming, Tsunade-sama?"

Tsunade's irritation at his laid-back attitude spiked through her growing panic. Did he not care that her life had been literally flipped upside down? "No, I'm not," she retorted, the pressure in her head increasing. "I have a lot to think about, so I'm going to go back to the hotel and—and process. Bring something back for me, if you feel so inclined."

She turned away, then realized she had no idea where the hotel was. But she wasn't about to admit that to Hatake, so she'd just have to find—

"Tsunade-sama." Faster than she'd thought possible, Hatake appeared at her side and touched her arm to stop her.

Reluctantly, Tsunade faced him. The intensity in his gaze startled her. There was no denying Kakashi Hatake was an attractive man like his father; even with the mask it was obvious. But that wasn't what made her heart skip a beat. For a moment, she saw it in the depths of his dark gray iris: that regardless of his feigned attitude, he cared very much.

But he only tipped his head and said, "Maa, at least let me summon an escort for you."

Before Tsunade could decide if she felt offended or touched, Hatake nicked his thumb with a kunai, and pressed his palm to the street. As the summoning smoke dissipated, Tsunade found herself staring at a... pug. Her lips curved up in spite of herself, though she supposed it made sense. From what she could remember, Sakumo's wife was from the Inuzuka clan. How unfortunate her son had ended up with such a small summoning. She coughed. "Your summoning is a lap dog?"

Hatake looked hurt. "Pakkun is the most trusted of my eight ninken." He nodded to the pug. "Escort Tsunade-sama to our hotel, please."

The pug bowed, at least, as much as a dog could bow. "It would be an honor, Hokage-sama."

Honestly. This was entirely unnecessary. Tsunade sent Hatake a sideways glare. "I don't need an escort, Hatake-san."

Hatake held his hands up, eye curved from an innocent smile. "Maa, humor me? Please?"

Tsunade's stomach gave an uncomfortable lurch. Fine. She jerked her chin at the pug. "Let's go, then."

She marched in what she hoped was the direction of the hotel, and Pakkun the pug trotted after her. Though she was briefly tempted to look back, she didn't. Slightly-heightened pulse or not, she wasn't giving Hatake any satisfaction.

Tsunade closed her eyes and sighed. Enough with Kakashi Hatake. Retrieving her memories was top priority, and once she got back to the hotel, that's what she intended to do.


Again, you guys are the absolute best, and thank you for your reviews! :)

Miss Laury: Ahhhhh! Thank you so much! It was tons of fun to write, so I'm so glad you enjoyed it. Thanks so much for all your encouragement and enthusiasm! You've reviewed nearly every chapter, and you don't know how much I appreciate it! I always look forward to your reviews. :D As for when I update-just in case you didn't get my pm-I usually try to update by 9 or 10 am on Monday. My time zone is CST. :)

Guest: Thank you! I'm so glad you're enjoying the story. What can I say? I'm a huge fan of slowburn. ;) And, hmm, looks like someone's prediction was correct. XD

Hi: Thank you so much for your review! And I quite agree; Tsunade is a good person, and a totally underrated character. I hope she recovers too! *evil laugh*

SquareMom: Wow, thank you so much! Your review had me grinning from ear to ear. I never thought someone would fangirl over my writing, but it's an awesome feeling! I absolutely love reading your reviews, so thank you! As for what Kakashi said to MaoI imagine he was threatening to remove more than just his mustache.

Dobbyhasnomastr: Thank you for your review! :) Hmm, hopefully Kakashi won't do anything dumb. Or Tsunade, for that matter. But we all know how stubborn she can be...

U3fan: Thank you so much! I am sorry about that cliffhanger...just kidding. I'm so glad you're enjoying my story. :)

Lara500: Thanks so much for continuing to review! I really appreciated it. :)