So I'm going back and revamping this story chapter by chapter. This was the first story I wrote so I feel like it deserves to be cleaned up a bit. If you've read the story already, I'll be adding a lot of stuff and if this is your first time, enjoy the ride.
I Don't own Naruto
Tsunade glared at the pile of paperwork that loomed before her. She hated this part of the job, hated it with a burning passion that shined brighter than the combined might of a thousand suns. The only thing that kept her sane was a good friend that she knew as alcohol. Without it, she would have surely killed everyone in the general vicinity. If she had known two years ago that this is what being Hokage entailed, she would have turned down Jiraiya even faster than she did originally. It's no wonder he kept denying the offer of being Hokage despite being the obvious choice, he must have known about all the bullshit paperwork you had to do.
She turned in her chair and stood, hands clasped loosely behind her back, to gaze out the large window behind her absently, letting her eyes roam over the horizon of the village below. There she went again, thinking about Jiraiya. She'd been doing that a lot lately, completely against her will of course. He had been gone for nearly a week and a half now, and there was something about the way he departed that unsettled her, though she couldn't figure out why. They had gone out drinking like they normally did, but there was a certain… finality in his voice when he said goodbye to her. Sure, he had been laughing and joking like always, but she could sense something underneath it all, something like worry, or perhaps even fear.
But of course it wasn't fear. This was Jiraiya she was talking about. Jiraiya was a headstrong idiot, especially when it came to something as severe as his own life being on the line. She'd seen it literally thousands of times, him barging into a fight without so much as a thought towards his own well being. He was the sole reason she became so adept at medical ninjutsu, because he was constantly hurting himself and refused to let his injuries slow him down, even with Tsunade trying to hold him back. When they were younger, half of their missions would end with her healing him then immediately beating him senseless for making her, Orochimaru, and Sarutobi-Sensei worry about him.
The sun was setting now and Konoha was illuminated beautifully in the glow, yet the Godaime had a grimace on her face at the thought of her teammate. No, he wasn't her teammate anymore, there was no team to be had for the Sannin. She wasn't worried as his Hokage either, but rather as his dear friend. She was the only one that knew about his mission, as he insisted on it being secretive, and so she was the only one left to worry about him. It made her sick seeing the village carry on peacefully when her best friend was risking his life for it's sake. If only he hadn't been so damn proud. She could feel her heart constrict at the dark thoughts of what could have happened to him, of things turning out for the worst, of never seeing him again. Lately, these thoughts had been invading her mind more and more frequently. With every minute that passed, she felt her friend slipping away from her, and just when she had decided it was about time she talk to him.
There was a knock at the door that pulled her out of her thoughts. glancing back at the door, she yelled for whoever it was to come in. Shizune entered cautiously, sensing her mentor's mood by the tone of her voice. "Tsunade-sama, there's someone that's here to see you," she said, hiding half her body behind the door.
"Tell them I'm busy," Tsunade replied sharply. She hadn't even bothered turning around to look at her assistant, she wasn't exactly in the mood to talk, not even to Shizune. In truth, she wasn't doing anything, and should have been finishing her paperwork in fact, but the last thing she wanted right now was to have some shinobi come in requesting her signature or complaining about how a mission went or any of the trivial things she never had the patience for. Now was just not the time.
A clacking sound resonated from near the entranceway, and Shizune was politely ushered out before the door closed with a definitive click. Tsunade could feel her temper flare dangerously at whoever had the gall to invite themselves into her office against her will, and chakra instinctively pooled into her clenched fists. "Tsunade," came a calm voice, traveling through the air to pierce her eardrums like a cannon even though her name was said in barely a whisper.
Immediately, her hands unclenched and her breath caught in her throat. She knew that voice, had known that voice all her life in fact, and she thought she was crazy for hearing it now. Maybe she had finally lost it, and she was so desperate to hear from him again that her brain was playing cruel tricks on her. Turning slowly, hesitant to confirm if this was who she really thought it was, she focused her gaze onto the person standing across from her. There stood a tall figure, much taller than anyone else you'd see in Konoha, blocking the path to her doorway, arms crossed. She soaked up the image of him, long white hair hanging down his back, red cloak tattered and torn from years of battle and traveling, streaks of red running down each cheek like tears of blood, and a sideways grin to top it all off. It was the pinnacle picture of Jiraiya, very much alive. Tsunade's mouth hung open and her view of him had begun to blur as unwelcome tears rolled hotly down her cheeks. She instinctively lowered her head down, not wanting him to see her cry, trying to hide her emotions behind her long blonde bangs. She knew she wasn't fooling anyone though.
Jiraiya smirked at the sight of her crying. It brought him guilty pleasure to see her try to keep her sobs contained. If it were any other time, he would feel his heart drag at seeing her in such a state, but these tears were for him, and he felt so cared for seeing his stone-cold Hokage openly sobbing just because of him. "Nice to see you too Tsunade," he said at her lack of greeting, laughing softly to himself. Was it wrong to be laughing at her when she was feeling like this? No, he decided, I just want my fun with her.
"How can you come back like nothing happened?" Tsunade asked as she pressed the back of her hand to her mouth in an attempt to bight back the sobs. "How can you pretend you haven't caused me hell by going away on that mission? You were gone for so long and I thought… but here you are now, standing in front of me with that obnoxious smirk on your face, the one that you always give me when I'm worried sick about you." Her head shot up and she glared at him with puffy red eyes that had tears burning their way down her face. Her fists had balled up at her sides once more and all the worry and grief that had been building up inside her for the last week and a half quickly transformed into rage, and it was bursting out of her.
He was a little taken back at the hurt that could be heard in her strained voice. He took a few careful steps forward, hand outstretched in an attempt to console her at the very least. He couldn't think of any reply, nothing that would help ease her fury at him anyways. If he was smart, he would have ran out the door while he still had a head start, but Jiraiya admitted that he was not a smart man, and would soon be a dead man by the look of it.
Tsunade swatted his hand away once he came into arms reach of her, probably cracking a few bones with the force of her slap. With a growl, she stomped towards him, landing a solid punch into his gut, effectively sending him sprawling onto his back. There were small dents in the floor where her heels left the ground. Something like a whimper escaped his throat as she lifted him up by the lapels of his kimono top, ignoring the obvious size difference between the two of them to bring his frightened face up to hers.
"Oi, oi! Tsunade, I know you're mad and all, but have mercy on me, I'm still a bit fragile," he pleaded, stopping her just as she pulled her arm back for another punch, this one aimed right at his face.
"Fucking asshole," she muttered as she dropped him to the floor with a loud thud. She walked back to her desk, feeling another wave of tears threaten to spill down her face again, but instead took a steady breath and slowly composed herself. She sank down into her chair angrily, refusing to look at the man that was struggling to get his legs under him again. Funny how you can wish with all your heart for someone to come back to you only to want to kill them as soon as they return. If only it hadn't been Jiraiya, she wouldn't have reacted this way, but this is how she'd been greeting him for 50 years now.
The sound of a chair scrapping the floor could be heard in the tense room and she soon found Jiraiya sitting across from her, which was strange to begin with. He would always lounge somewhere inappropriate like on her window sill or on the corner of her desk when he came in to talk to her. Having him directly across from her, staring intensely at her without saying a word, was making her uncomfortable, even through her anger towards him. She decided she would rather have him talking than boring holes into her with his heated gaze. She also knew that he was annoying enough to just stare at her until she decided to talk.
"So what did you learn," she asked tensely, still fuming. He leaned forward and rested his face in his hand, breaking his serious expression to give her his signature grin. She always hated that grin. It made her want to punch his stupid face. Admittedly though, she'd missed it, and it made her stomach flutter happily to see something so typical of him. It only helped cement the fact that he was okay.
"Well," he drawled, obviously trying to get on her nerves, which didn't take much, especially for him. "It's a lot to say and I think I would rather discuss it somewhere more," he paused to look around, "formal, than this. You are the Hokage after all, and I feel that, as a shinobi, I must treat my Hokage with the utmost respect, loyalty, and appreciation." She rolled her eyes, wondering when his "respect" would look up from her chest. "So how bout' it Hime," he said with a sly half smile, purring out her nickname just to see how her eyebrow would twitch in response "will we continue this at din-"
"No. Either tell me what you found out now or send it to me in a scroll so I can look at it later."
"I think you're going to want to hear what I have to say Tsunade, instead of just reading it on a piece of paper anyways," he insisted firmly, losing his grin for a more serious expression. She looked at him full on for the first time, staring into the obsidian eyes that she knew so well. She noticed his face was weary, not as full of life and laughter like it usually was, and it worried it her slightly. She kept her look firm though, shooting him the icy glare that she perfected so long ago just for him. She opened her mouth to make another retort, but was quickly cut off.
"I met Pain," he stated bluntly, his mouth a hard line. Tsunade choked on whatever words she was about to say and stared at him with wide amber eyes, too shocked to speak. "I fought him actually," Jiraiya corrected casually. Tsunade's eyes grew even wider, if that was possible.
"w-w-w-w-," she rubbed her temple by habit and let out a shaky breath. "Jiraiya!" she exclaimed, startling him as she slammed her hands down on the table, standing over him menacingly. "You're telling me this now? What the hell is wrong with you, you stupid, stupid idiot!" He didn't even flinch at her harsh words, but rather slouched back into his chair in amusement, allowing her to continue her rant. "Pain, Konoha's biggest threat, could be out there right now, planning our demise and you want to talk about it over dinner?" she looked at him expectantly, waiting for a reply.
He nodded his head, "Yeah, that's about right."
Tsunade dropped her hands at her side, not believing what she was hearing. "You're and idiot. The biggest idiot I've ever met in fact. Congratulations." She started to pace, running a hand through her hair to push her bangs back. Jiraiya watched, clearly entertained as she muttered to herself, mostly calling him crude names that he would rather not repeat. Finally, she stopped and glared at him before stomping around her desk to smack her deceivingly small fists against his chest with every word she said. "You. Are. So. Annoying! Ugh!"
He grabbed her wrist, mostly because he would rather have his already aching body in less pain, halting her assault, keeping his grip firm. "Calm down Tsunade," he complained, instantly regretting it when he saw her murderous intent click behind her eyes.
"Don't tell me to calm down you big oaf. I worry about you when you go on missions like that just because you're so stupid. Let go of me!" she struggled in his grip but couldn't get out no matter how much she squirmed. Well, she could have if she really tried, but she was in emotional turmoil at the moment, and that always made things a bit difficult. Jiraiya held her arms above her head, watching her enraged form start to give up.
"You done?" he asked as she scowled up at him.
"I hate you," she seethed through gritted teeth.
He smiled and leaned in just to bug her, "I know. Now I'm taking this as a yes to dinner, so I'll pick you up tomorrow. Wouldn't want to wait on information this vital," he said with a wide grin as her look darkened. He let go of her wrists, letting them drop to her side as she restrained from bringing her knee up hard to hit him where it matters. He wasn't going to take no for an answer, that much she knew. He was a persistent bastard, that much she could give him credit for.
"Fine," she said with a sigh. That was all her needed for his heart to go soaring.
"Come on Hime, it won't be that bad! And besides, it's not like this is the first time you've ever had dinner with me." And hopefully not the last, he noted to himself. Tsunade didn't even want to know why he was so giddy all of a sudden. She was still just trying to come to terms with the fact that he was actually alive, standing right in front of her in one piece.
"Just pick somewhere good. I need to unwind after all you've put me through this past week," she said with a groan.
"All the more reason for you to go. Have I ever shown you a bad time?"
"Do you really want me to answer that?" she asked with her eyebrow raised.
"Not really," he replied cheerfully. The sun was setting quickly behind him and he didn't want to keep her up, so with a quick kiss to her forehead, right where her diamond was, he hopped out the open window, leaving a sputtering Tsunade alone in her office.
Tsunade leaned out the window angrily to find him giving her a wave from a nearby rooftop. "Night Hime," he called out, getting a rather crude hand gesture in response before the Hokage slammed her window shut. She sat back down at her desk, covering her face with her hands as she moaned loudly. Her head was pounding and her brain was having a hard time catching up with her eyes. Jiraiya was here, sitting in the now empty chair on the other side of her desk, completely alive. She knew she should be feeling relieved, and she was really, but she was too shocked by his sudden appearance to really appreciate the fact that he had survived somehow. As she calmed down more and more though, she felt her heart warm at the memory of his face from just moments ago. A few stray tears slipped from her eyes, but the intent behind them was completely different than before. She was happy, happier than she'd been since the day he left.
As she was packing her things to go home she found a small, folded up piece of paper on her desk. The untidy handwriting inside was unmistakable. Jiraiya left her a note reading: I'll pick you up at 8:00. Dress sexy because it's a date! Underneath the writing was a small drawing of a frog winking as it blew her a kiss. Wondering when he had time to write it without her noticing, she crumpled it into a small ball and threw it with more force than necessary into the recycling bin. "Asshole," she grumbled as she locked the office door, "tricking me into a date like that." Not that I had much of a choice, she thought sullenly. A smile involuntarily formed on her lips at the thought of going out with him, despite her annoyance. She was so torn between crushing him in a hug or just crushing him period. On one hand, she was relieved to see him again. On the other, she hated him for leaving in the first place and putting himself in danger when she explicitly told him not to. In short, nothing had changed between them.
Why did the best ninja in the village have to be her perverted teammate? Why couldn't Kakashi be the one to get the information? Because no one's as good as Jiraiya, she answered herself with a frown, knowing from firsthand experience what he was capable of despite the way he carried himself, seeming like nothing more than a perverted dork. She plopped onto her bed once she changed and cleaned up for the night. All she could think about was the date that she had the next day. When was the last time she'd been out on a date?
She didn't even want to know. Her lack of a love life was something she preferred to not think about. She hadn't even graced the thought of finding someone else to love after Dan died, she felt as if that would be betraying the memory of him. But this was Jiraiya, and she'd known Jiraiya years before Dan even existed for her. Even though it was with just Jiraiya, someone who knew her better than herself, she couldn't help but feel anxious, excited even. The thought of going out on a date with him also made her shudder. She resolved to confess her feelings to him when he got back, to admit that maybe she could give him a chance, so why was she finding it so difficult to do now?
Easier said than done, she thought as she turned over violently in her bed to get comfortable again. Was she seriously losing sleep over that idiot? No, she refused to accept that. However, even through her denial, she eventually fell asleep with Jiraiya in mind, as well as the promise of a real date with him, one that she'd been waiting years for.
Thanks for reading, reviews are very much appreciated, and have a nice day. :)