Chapter 2: Of Gods and Goddesses

Walking alongside each other, Sakura, Naruto and Yamato talked about all sorts of things. Yamato seemed to be his usual self, scary and secretive, but also open at the same time. Quite a curious combination. Must be due to so many years spent in the Anbu.

But as fine as he tried making things be, Sakura couldn't help but notice the exhaustion in Yamato's spirit.

She truly worried about him so it wasn't long until she broke the ice and asked the man about his general state of being, without taking a no for an answer.

For a moment, Yamato thought about keeping it evasive, but then he remembered Sakura's determination when she truly wanted something.

of secrets. And at the end of the day, those weren't the children he once used to captain. But full-blown soldiers that had just been through a war. It had been only a week and a half since the war ended, but it felt like a lifetime ago.

"I'm fine, Sakura," he finally responded. "Just a bit tired and truthfully I'd need a break from everything that has happened, especially in the war," Yamato ended his response with his signature bored face.

"Taichou, I understood from Tsunade-sama that you were used as a power source for the enemy's army... is that true?" Sakura asked while Naruto's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Eeeh? Yamato-taichou is that really true?" he was quick to add right after Sakura. So much had happened in the war and after it, that Naruto still hadn't had the time to catch-up with everyone and everything that occurred. The war ending, the formalities after the end of it, the funerals of Neji Hyuga, as well as Shikamaru and Ino's fathers, Tsunade stepping down as Hokage and Kakashi taking over… a lot had been going on in such a short period of time.

Yamato groaned a bit, after which he looked in Sakura's and Naruto's direction. "Yes, it is. Apparently having Hashirama-sama's cells meant a bull's eye target on my back all along," he shrugged it off at the end.

Speaking of which, that quickly reminded Sakura about what Tsunade was working on and Naruto's hurt hand. Or well, lack of it since his battle with Sasuke.

She quickly turned away her gaze from Yamato towards Naruto.

"Oh, since we're talking about Hashirama-dono… Naruto, listen up! After we're done with the final mantle transferation from Tsunade-sama to Kakashi-sensei, you should come down with us at the hospital," Sakura informed him.

"Eeeh, but why?" Naruto asked in his usual why do I have to fashion. Some things were bound to never change, she thought as her breath slipped a small sigh.

"Because of your arm, you idiot!" she snapped at him in their usual bickering ways. Naruto might have been a walking God amongst mortals since the war, but in certain regards he was just as dense as ever.

"But I don't need it fixed! Sasuke didn't get his either!" Naruto responded back to Sakura in his usual childish ways. For some reason, for him it was enough motive to keep his arm the way it was. So what if half of it was missing anyway?

"Naruto…!" Sakura shouted while her gaze frowned, darkened, and fixated him. It was in that moment that Naruto recalled what he had promised himself in the war: never to talk back to Sakura. Ever again. So, it didn't last long until that gaze was followed by a scolding as well.

"When will you start to think about yourself, you idiot? I've had enough with one idiot who refused to wait to have his arm fixed, I'm not having the other one do the same. Plus, you should really start to put yourself first once in a while, okay? You were about to die in this damn war, then you and Sasuke had to go fight to finally put your differences to the side and like two idiots that you both are, you broke your arms!" Sakura ranted continuously at Naruto with no pause.

"Plus, it's a matter of being able to properly mold chakra. How do you think you'll be able to do it with half an arm missing, huh?" she continued as Naruto barely managed to put in a word or two, no matter how much he tried.

"Sakura-chaaan…!" Naruto tried to interfere so he could make her yield her scolding; but she was having none of it.

"No! I don't even want to hear it. You're coming with me and Tsunade-sama to get your arm fixed. End of story! You hear me?"

For a moment it was like they forgot Yamato was also there, but he had no issues with it. He just watched the two bickering like in the old days, in their old ways. Some things do change, but as much as they change, as much as they stay the same.

And Sakura and Naruto were no exception. A war had passed and they had participated in it, having gone through pain and loss, and yet, at their core, they still remained those two bickering children who would flame into a quarrel the next second, but would put their life on the line for one another if anything danger were to befall any of them.

Knowing what they had been through, Yamato smiled relieved at the sight of them getting along just fine. What had happened before the war had been quite a delicate situation for both of them.

But at the end of the day, like always, they seemed to find a way to work things out through any hardship that comes their way. Be it made by their own hands or at the hands of external forces.

It wasn't long until everyone arrived at the Hokage's office. Yamato was just content with letting them express themselves and have a go at whatever they had to sort out with one another, while Naruto and Sakura were so immersed in their little bickering.

He left a subtle cough or two out so that the two could realize how much they have derailed from their initial talk, and get back to normality since after all, they were about to head into the Hokage's building.

The next moment Naruto and Sakura stopped, as both of them looked towards Yamato's direction, then at the building. That's when they realized how lost they've been in their small exchange of nags, to put it mildly. Realizing the fact, they quickly apologized to Yamato and returned to their serious selves.

"You two go ahead!" Yamato directed them as all three of them entered the premises.

"I have to write the report first before going to the office to give the verbal reporting as well."

Naruto and Sakura nodded at Yamato in agreement as they headed towards the Hokage's office, while Yamato continued his path towards the report filling room.

Boxes filled with a lot of paperwork slammed the desk's surface as others came along and got piled up one over the other.

"This is the missions reports box, this one's the general incidents reports, this..." she waved her hand towards where the box was "the general inquiries, this one here is the academy reports, while this one over here is the general military expenses reports, while next to it war costs report and on top of it is the village reconstruction costs report," Tsunade told Kakashi as she kept pointing at all the different boxes placed on his desk.

"These would be the ones you need to take a look over first things first, while others are on their way", she added with a smirk, after witnessing Kakashi's whole being slowly draining on the Hokage's seat as his eyes betrayed his spirit and revealed the cry of help inside of him.

When she ended up with the whole box set presentation, she slammed her hand over the desk, between the remaining space in front of Kakashi, her and the boxes and leaned forward, looking him directly in the eyes.

"Buckle-up, Hatake! You're in for a wild administrative and political ride!" She ended her sentence with a big grin.

"Godaime-sama… You seem to enjoy this a little bit too much, aren't you?" He responded while a metaphorical sweat drop streamed down his mind. And boy wasn't he right?

Tsunade was thoroughly enjoying her time off the Hokage duties. She had decided after the war that she has had enough leadership for the moment and it's time to step down and have the younger generation deal with these administrative matters.

Having no one around from her generation to be able to count on also took its toll. Plus, who better to be a Hokage in a newly formed alliance, if not the man who led the team who managed to seal Goddess Kaguya into oblivion?

He was the one chosen to be her successor back when Pein had attacked anyway. Of course, back then he respectfully declined and backed down, as he considered such tasks to not be suited for someone like himself. But sometimes life has other plans for one...

The original team 7 and its former team gained a lot of recognition in the war. They were the new legends that managed to bring hope to what looked like a doomed world.

Besides that, it was a time for change, and Tsunade saw herself as a relic that stood between two worlds.

She found it more fitting like this. Change was coming their way, like she and Orochimaru had talked in the war.

She was about to embrace it and that meant a new generation was to take the mantle now.

Sure, she had hoped that Naruto would be the one succeeding her, but the knucklehead still had to learn a thing or two about administrative and political tasks. Other than that, he was more than fit to be a Hokage.

That was the reason however Hatale Kakashi was taking the mantle until Naruto was prepared enough. Plus, in the meantime, it would be enough for Naruto to get used to the ins and outs of the job.

Not to mention, Tsunade had other reasons for which she chose to do this.

From her experience as a Hokage, she knew how hard it's for a young aspirant when relics of the past interfere with futuristic vision. She wanted to make sure that such a thing would never happen while she's still alive.

And as long as she'll be around there, she'll certainly not allow that. But such things were to be of future preoccupation…

Now all she had to do was to just pass on the mantle. And it was going oh so well.

Her slight smudged smirk turned into a curious expression when she heard a knock on the Hokage's door.

"Come in!" she invited the guests. For some reason, she was still used to being the one commanding the room.

Naruto and Sakura opened the door and entered the room as Tsunade apologized to Kakashi. "Sorry about that. It's well… a force of habit" she explained herself while turning back to Naruto and Sakura again.

"Right on time, you two!" Tsunade stated happily. "Just finished with Kakashi here, put him on track with all the things that he has to take care of, so I'm all ready to set. Naruto, ready to have your arm fixed?" Tsunade asked.

"Yes m'am!" he responded quickly as he felt Sakura's gaze over his head. Having Sakura on his back was one thing, but her master as well? These two were way scarier than any enemy he had fought before, so no thanks, he wasn't risking any of that.

"Okay then, let us proceed!" Tsunade commanded as she moved away from Kakashi's desk towards Naruto and Sakura.

"Oi, Kakashi!" she turned around when she got in line with the two. "One more thing I'd advise you to do, though…"

"What's that, Godaime?" Kakashi asked, slightly exasperated at the thought of the burdening administrative tasks he had to take care of, and now one more. He even wondered for a second how Tsunade even managed to do all of it, while also training Sakura. "And to come out of it so well, still," he thought.

But his inner questioning was quickly interrupted by Tsunade.

"A ceremony. Objective? Simple: to promote your soldiers for their efforts and achievements in the war" she said. "This one here is still a genin, as far as we can remember" she said waving her hand up and down Naruto's silhouette.

"He's supposed to be the next in line after you, remember? Me, you, every person on this earth and their grandpas, mine included, heard about how he wants to be a Hokage someday. So, naturally, he'll be one. In terms of power at least, that's not even questionable." Tsunade said with the same confidence she always had in Naruto. Especially since the start of the war. She was the first one to bet on him and his dependability and the asset he'd turn out to be. Oppositions existed, sure, but in the end, she proved them all she was right, as he was the key component in defeating Kaguya.

"But who's gonna anoint Hokage a genin, though? Are you?" she asked, raising her eyebrows.

Kakashi didn't even get to let out a breath because Tsunade was quick to interrupt him once more.

"And this one?" she said while moving slowly towards Sakura's side of the room, positioning herself next to her.

"This one deserves a promotion for all she accomplished in this war!" Tsunade said with a big grin of pride on her face. She turned her gaze towards her student and looked her in the eyes and said to her "I always knew you had it in you!". And she meant every word of it.

Ever since she started training Sakura, Tsunade could see her potential. Shizune had been a great apprentice, too, but there was something about Sakura that reminded her of her young self. You could say she was looking in a mirror, in certain ways.

Sure, despite her determination, Sakura highly doubted her skills when first stepped into her office, and Tsunade saw that. She recognized that doubt from her own past. But she knew the antidote to it, as well. Tsunade applied it to Sakura with no remorse whatsoever. She was to be a diamond, and if she would shine, she'd have to take the hard pressure diamonds are born under.

And she did. Sakura shone in the darkest of times and the hardest of pressures: those of a war.

And what harder times than those, where death knocks at your life's door at every step of the way? When at every move it accompanies your spirit, waiting for it to trespass the gates of the world beyond the mundane life?

Tsunade knew that very well… How it is to know the horrors of war and how it can absolutely break your spirit. But instead of getting hers broken, Sakura's spirit turned into a diamond and shone its light on the battlefield.

She awakened Byakugo, summoned Katsuyu, held her ground against the very God Tree and punched a God itself in the face. That was her girl! And Tsunade couldn't have been prouder of it.

So, a promotion was truly well deserved. In her eyes, Sakura was perfectly capable of being a Jonin. She did all those things by the time she was sixteen. What an achievement that was.

"Are we clear on the recommendations, Hatake?" Tsunade ended asking.

He watched the imagery in front of him and with all things considered, Tsunade was once again right.

Especially when it came to Sakura. A flash of the old days passed through his mind's eye as he heard Tsunade speaking of Sakura's merits. She was indeed surpassing every expectation. The girl he met back in the academy days was no more.

Now, a young lady was in front of him. One that deserved all the praise and reccomendation for her contribution in the war, indeed.

Who would've thought that the little lovestruck girl back then would become this unwavering warrior? Sure, he had known it ever since her preliminaries with Ino Yamanaka. In that respect, Sakura was much as a fighter as Naruto was. Their refusal to never give up was something to be reckoned with. He had all the reasons to expect greatness from Naruto, due to his lineage. But with Sakura, well… besides her genjutsu affinity and smarts there was nothing apparently out of the ordinary with her and her lineage. And in a village filled with clans, each with their own special techniques, that seemed to not count for much.

She was a girl from a civilian family. Not many things were known about the Harunos anyway. They weren't ninjas at least. For some unknown reason, they stayed away from this path unlike their daughter. And for Sakura to raise herself out of the shadows of anonymity, that was truly something.

He was truly proud of her. But he took no credit for it, as he knew deep down inside of him he had failed Sakura. She had been lucky with Tsunade's return to the city, that was for sure.

But those were things of the past and now they were all looking towards the future.

"Your advice is much appreciated, Godaime," Kakashi said bowing his head in gratitude. "I will start the preparations as soon as possible."

"You do that, Hatake. Best of luck!" Tsunade said, turning her face to the door and walking towards the exit. "You know where to find me if you need me," she added as she opened the door and made her way out of the corridors.

Naruto and Sakura wished Kakashi good fortune in his new endeavor and they followed Tsunade in a heartbeat.

The hand's scan had just finished when Tsunade returned to her file about her grandfather's cells. Despite being part Senju herself, all of this was new to her as well. Sure, she had met the man and had heard all those tales about him that seemed more like tales of gods and goddesses, but in actual reality? She knew very little about his genetic makeup, because by the time she ended-up being a medical ninja, Hashirama was long gone.

However, since this last war and Madara's schemes, this had become a top priority for her. Everyone seemed to be after her grandfather's genes. Even in death, he seemed to not be able to enjoy peace.

And what better way to dwell more on this if not by trying to help others, Naruto especially? Since his last fight with Sasuke Uchiha at the Valley of the End, half of his right arm was missing. And since everyone and their ancestors made it a point in sustaining their bodies with her grandfather's cells, she thought this would only be fitting for his case, too.

After closely studying the data though, things seemed to go on a good path.

"Naruto, you'll have to go now to Shizune's lab to get one more test made to you before attaching you this prosthetic arm," she informed the youngster.

"From what it seems, you wouldn't have any problems with having attached my grandfather's cells to you. It would also seem that they wouldn't overwhelm you like it happened for example in Danzou's case. However, we need to be absolutely certain about it. We need to confirm that the chakra production cell ratio between your body and my grandfather's remains one are equal so that you don't find yourself overwhelmed by this and his cells to take over."

Naruto scratched his head in confusion. Those terms were too pretentious for him to understand.

"Naruto, simply put go to Shizune-san, take another test, wait for her to complete the results and get back here with them," Sakura instructed him, seeing the confusion on his face. When it came to formal terms, Naruto wasn't what you'd call so book smart. But he was intriguingly smart. Sometimes even she wondered from where it came. He was such a walking paradox at times. But an endearing one nevertheless.

"Aaah, okay Sakura-chan, got it!" he replied grinning while buttoning back his sleeve. "Well then, I should get going," he said before Tsunade interrupted him and proceeded with handing him the file so he can take it to Shizune to have it as base comparison data for the examination.

He quickly stormed out of the office, while Sakura and Tsunade remained there.

As Naruto finally left and she had a time off with her master, Sakura couldn't help but want to unload a bit, after everything that had been happening.

Sure, Tsunade had been all but your usual confidante, but whenever Sakura needed it, she was someone Sakura could come to.

But she didn't even start to speak her mind because Tsunade already asked her what was up. She knew the little kid like the palm of her hand. And she knew very well when was the time to clench it into a fist, or be a hand lent for helping. This situation was the latter, as she could see Sakura's mind was bothered by something.

"What's on your mind, Sakura?" the master asked. Sakura raised her gaze from the floor, where she had put it, drew a deep breath and started to slowly open up.

"Tsunade-sama… how should I say this? It's just that…" she said while moving forward towards the desk where Tsunade was seated.

"I don't even know how to say this but I'm going to try my best," she continued while seating herself on the chair in front of her master's desk.

"With everything that has happened in the war… sometimes it all feels too much. I feel so overwhelmed," Sakura kept going when she closed her eyes and a flash of Madara and Kaguya made its place into her mind's eye.

"When we fought Madara Uchiha and then that goddess they called Kaguya Otsutsuki," she kept talking as she felt once more the heaviness she did back when she first encountered them. In the meantime, Tsunade watched her student real closely, her body language, everything.

Sakura was good at keeping it inside of her and focusing on the task at hand. That's what made her such a good medic. That despite everything else that was going on around her, she had the ability to keep a sharp mind and focus it all on what she had to do.

But this time, the youngster seemed caught by surprise. And Tsunade fully understood that. Having gone through a war was something, but a war that was about to end the world as they knew it, where even godly ninjas appeared? That was a thing in its own league.

Tsunade knew what toll the usual wars took on her, so for Sakura to keep it so level headed up until now given what she had been though, was quite a feat in itself. It was clear that her student needed to unburden herself from all of that, and with the free time she had now, Tsunade was happy to listen.

"I mean sure, I finally awakened Byakugou and I am so happy about that," Sakura quickly changed the direction of her speech, smiling for a second and touching her forehead, "but it feels like I am once again, walking behind Naruto and Sasuke", she ended her sentence as her figure turned sad and her gaze started falling to the ground.

"I mean, like you know master, I always wanted to fight alongside them. To be able to stand my ground on the battlefield and not be protected by them. That happened for the most part of our genin days, and I hated that," Sakura continued spilling her soul, clenching her fist as Tsunade watched her and remembered in the back of her mind the young girl who took herself to her office and asked to be her apprentice.

But as much as that little girl grew and changed, some things seemed to stay the same. Without even finishing what Sakura had to say, Tsunade guessed what Sakura was about to tell her. But she let her student speak.

Folding her hands and resting her face in them while letting her elbows rest on the desk, Tsunade watched and listened as Sakura continued.

"In this war, when the Ten Tails started getting loose, I was finally able to be there and fight with them. I was even thinking about you as I joined them," she told her master as a fond smile found a seat on both her face and her master's one.

"I was the happiest I could've ever been in this life, I swear. But then, all the other things happened, like you know: Madara Uchiha got revived, Naruto almost got killed by him, but thankfully we managed to save him, and then, when Madara initiated the Infinite Tsukuyomi and we thought we escaped him because of Black Zetsu's betrayal, another one appeared.

The one we told you about, Kaguya Otsutsuki.

It was like one thing after another. Not having an end. And it wasn't even that, but their levels…

Shishou, I'm telling you, you could literally sense the power of their presence on your bare skin, like a scorching fire. So, so overwhelming..." Sakura left out a big sigh as if she could barely catch a breath in from all the weight of those events.

"I mean, if it wasn't for Naruto and Sasuke-kun's techniques, which truth be told seem to be from the realms of the Gods themselves, we would've all been doomed.

I mean I could barely breathe when I first encountered Marada Uchiha, imagine how it felt afterwards when Kaguya came. She felt tenfold stronger than him.

These weren't normal ninjas like you and I, Shishou. These were otherworldly beings at this point. Walking gods among mortals. And once again the only ones who could fight were Naruto and Sasuke-kun, while me and Kakashi-sensei stood on the back, doing almost nothing.

How are we even supposed to fight something like that?" She ended her ranting with an ask as a slight sign of desperation could be read on her face.

And wasn't she right, though? The world had enough problems as it was with a rotten system that made all children go to war when they barely left their parent's houses to go study about the world. But now this?

How is anyone supposed to fight the worldly and otherworldly problems at the same time? Normal skilled ninjas were already a problem as it was. Enough coups, wars and deaths had happened for such a long time.

But add this on top? How was anyone supposed to fight it? It was hard enough as it was for humans and ninjas fighting each other due to the wretched system in place. But add ninja gods on top of that and the equation already changes from the get-go.

As Tsunade looked Sakura in the eyes as she finished pouring her heart out, she unfolded her hands and took it upon herself to share with Sakura some of her own hidden thoughts.

These were shadows of her own past that somehow Madara Uchiha had also managed to bring back in Tsunade's mind when she met him.

"I know what you're saying. Although I didn't fight that Kaguya Otsutsuki you speak of, I briefly had to fight Madara Uchiha," Tsunade started unfolding herself to Sakura.

"I fought him in a truly powerful form, and to hear that he went even higher than that form, I cannot even begin to imagine what you had to go through," she reassured her student.

And she meant every word of it. Sure, Sakura was a big girl now and she was a great ninja, but such a foe like Madara Uchiha could strike fear in anyone's spirit, especially for someone with no experience of a war.

So many factors added to her student's situation that it was a wonder that she even stood there and kept continuing her life normally. After this war, there weren't many people and ninjas that one could say were living a normal life. This war had left a lot of people physically, mentally and spiritually scarred.

Not to mention Madara had more ways than one to attack a foe. His fighting style also involved a mental component to it. Because it was well known that when you break an opponent's spirit, that's when you've won the battle.

She had been at the receiving end of that mental play that Madara had tried with her. As the granddaughter of the great Hashirama Senju there was always this weight that everyone kept above her head.

She was after all the granddaughter of the Hashirama Senju, known all throughout the ninja world for his Mokuton technique and recovery abilities. A walking god among mortals, himself.

It was expected that his successors would inherit such power theirselves, yet… they didn't. Or she didn't at least.

Maybe Nawaki would have been the one to do it, but sadly he was taken from this world way to early. He didn't even get the chance to bud. All that was left was her, but being a woman in such a male dominated field which never took into consideration the casualties of wars and how to reduce them, also took its toll.

Men didn't think about going to the war and survive back then. They were thinking they are going to the war and they give their life on the battlefield. They rarely thought of nurturing life, because they were too busy to lay it off on the battlefield. Such a stupid way of thinking, she often thought.

One that her younger brother had and got him killed. And for that, she hated the men's way of thinking and found it in herself to change those ways. It was back then when she vowed to herself that she won't leave things stay like that and so, she started to look more into recovery ninjutsu. That is how she ended-up wanting to give birth to medical ninjutsu, and the first person who she looked towards was her grandfather and his legacy. His recovery techniques were known all throughout the world.

But that ended-up being a bigger problem than a solution. The frustration, the impotence, the feeling of not being enough. The same feelings that were now experienced by her student before her.

"I know very well the things you're experiencing right now," Tsunade told Sakura.

"There was a time when I was in the right same place you are right now," she added as she recalled her past self.

"Let me tell you a story, one that I have never shared with you until now," Tsunade said, preparing herself and laying on the back of her seat.

"Since we're talking of gods and goddesses, I had one in the family, too. One whose techniques even to this day I couldn't figure out. My grandfather, Hashirama Senju, was one of those people who you can very well call a god.

People used to say that he was a myth, a legend in itself like the Sage of Six Paths. Here and there were some that even called him the second sage. His power was so tremendous that even the great Uchiha clan feared him. And that includes the very Madara Uchiha you and I have met."

When Sakura heard that, she couldn't help but feel a great admiration and amazement. The same foe she had fought a moment in time ago, had feared Hashirama Senju? Sure, like anyone else Sakura knew the general tale about Hashirama Senju, and even a thing or two about his techniques from all that research that she had done besides what Tsunade had made her do. But now, she was about to hear his story from none other than the source of greatness itself.

"So, imagine being a successor of someone with such great power, and having none of it yourself," Tsunade stated in a bittersweet tone, a face that betrayed slight disappointment and eyebrows raised for a brief moment. It somehow soothed Sakura, as she listened to her master.

She had always considered her this great ninja, and never imagined that her master could have gone through such things herself. But seeing her now like this, it somehow taught Sakura that maybe she isn't that crazy for feeling that way. Because a symbol of power standing in front of her was also coming from the same place as she was.

"Even now, my grandfather's greatness follows me," she said. "You know what Madara Uchiha told me? Not only that I am a weak woman, but a weak Senju. And that weak Senjus are ugly," Tsunade continued while her gaze betrayed a little bit of sadness once more, the same that took over Sakura's one as she heard the horrendous things her master had to go through at the hands of Madara. What a despicable man he was, Sakura thought to herself with an expression that read wrath on her face, as she listened to her master's narration.

But then a smirk appeared on Tsunade's face as she continued telling the story to Sakura "Sure, I proved him wrong and showed him that I am not a weak woman like he so conceitedly stated, but… in one regards he was right.

I was never able to attain my grandfather's greatness," Tsunade concluded this part of her speech, as once again her look unveiled a drop of sadness.

"I mean, look where we are today, still analyzing my grandfather's cells, so many years after his death. It's like he became life itself, even after being gone from the world of the living for such a long while.

All you know about Byakugou is that it's a medical technique, and sure, now it is one, but you know from where that started? From my very own desire to become like my grandfather.

The pressure for me to perform was always there.

I was the granddaughter of Hashirama Senju and Mito Uzumaki, so surely, I must hold greatness in me, right? Except that I didn't and the only reason I ended-up looking into recovery ninjutsu was because of my dead younger brother, Nawaki.

He died too young, from that stupid pride men have to give their lives on the battlefield, like that makes anyone any good, but anyway, that's not the point here. The point is, like I said, I ended-up wanting to touch that greatness my grandfather had, to be able to help and protect people.

But as much as I was a bud sprouted from the legacy of Hashirama Senju and Mito Uzumaki, coming anywhere near my grandfather's level was downright impossible. Not by usual means anyway.

So, I started searching and searching, more and more how to be able to master recovery jutsu. Sure, I got the basics of it, but that wasn't enough to save someone from death. I had learned that all too well going through the first war.

So then, by the time the second war happened, I had already tried to invent a way to bring this recovery technique closer to my grandfather's levels. At least close, if not the same levels.

By that time, I had lost most of my precious people, but I still had one left. His name was Dan.

But the technique wasn't yet ready when he died in my arms. The usual recovery ninjutsu, which we now call medical ninjutsu wasn't enough. The first love of my life took his last breath as I tried to stop the blood and life to flow out of him.

I was unsuccessful," Tsunade paused for a bit, closing her eyes as she recalled that wretched memory.

"I couldn't come anywhere near my grandfather's skills which were necessary to get remotely close to save someone's life", she added.

Sakura's heart started aching more and more with every word her master was saying. Thinking at the horrors she went through, and seeing her here, standing now in front of her, Sakura had a newfound respect for her master. She had it forever but now it got strengthened hearing what her master had been through.

So many losses in her life and she still found the courage to get through all of that. How she even managed that was a question that stumbled in Sakura's mind as her master told her the story.

"You mean Byakugou, Shishou? The technique..." she asked her master with a pained look.

"No, I mean Creation Rebirth," Tsunade told her.

"Its predecessor," she added.

"When you joined me and took an interest in medical ninjutsu, I had already created the restoration technique Creation Rebirth, but given the short duration of such technique, I wanted to take it further, because I wanted to find a way for the technique to work for a longer period of time.

At first Creation Rebirth was a one-time jutsu. But after studying my grandfather's technique, I learned that his skills made it so that he would heal his wounds continuously in a fight, no matter how many times he was injured.

In a battle you don't get hurt just one time and that's it the enemy walks happy and leaves you alone, so what I knew that Creation Rebirth is a last resort move, but it won't help you the second time as the necessary chakra to even perform such a technique is huge.

Performing medical ninjutsu requires an enormous amount of chakra, as you know. Creation Rebirth on the other hand…" Tsunade continued her story as she gestured something to strengthen an idea they both knew, anyway.

"Even I, a Senju and Uzumaki descendant wasn't able to amount to such reserves.

When I first took an interest in learning more about my grandfather, he was already gone from our world. I only had my grandmother alive, really old and on death bed's door.

Upon learning more and more about my grandfather, I came to the conclusion that the chakra reserve levels necessary for a restoration technique of his caliber are absolutely out of this world for any human being. It was then when I started to understand why people would look at my grandfather as if he was a god among mortals. He really seemed as such.

So, I tried to look for a workaround. Some way that could get me access to that level of healing levels when you don't have those very levels in your pool.

That's when I started to search through the old scrolls filled with a vast knowledge my grandfather and grandmother were keeping in the old Uzumaki compound. It was then when I first learned about a technique called Creation of All Things."

Sakura's interest peaked when she heard the name of the technique, so she couldn't help but ask her master about it. What was such a technique, anyway? It sounded so fancy and old, and eerily similar to Creation Rebirth. Surely there had to be a connection.

"Yes, Creation Rebirth is based on Creation of All Things. It's an old jutsu from the times of the Sage of Six Paths himself", Tsunade answered Sakura. Upon hearing that name, Sakura couldn't help but be triggered by a memory of the war. She had met the legend face to face.

He was as old as time itself, or so the saying was. So, what was the connection between that technique and her master's one?

"Creation of All Things was based on Yin and Yang chakra molded together. Imagination that creates physical form from nothingness with the help of the spiritual energy of the Yin principle and breathing life into being with the vitality aspect of the Yang principle", Tsunade said as she started explaining to Sakura the basics of how she came to invent Creation Rebirth.

"So, I figured that at the basics of a restoration technique, there should be something similar, because this is the principle of life itself being born. It's like the creation of all life itself. But for such a technique to even happen, one would need extreme amounts of chakra to use and a mind that doesn't falter. Sharper than any razor out there.

I tried somehow using Creation of All Things myself, but I just couldn't.

I didn't have the necessary levels of chakra to do so, sadly. The curse of my grandfather's levels of power once again followed me.

I figured that this surely would've been the technique he would use for his restoration technique or something very similar in nature, but he was a powerhouse.

I was just a failed predecessor. So, for a while, I gave-up", Tsunade concluded that part of her tale.

When Sakura heard that she couldn't help but once again feel the bond with her teacher strengthen even more than before. It was like with every new side of her master's story she could see herself in it.

"But you didn't give-up for good, right Shishou? After all, we're here! And Byakugou works very much like Hashirama-donno's technique now, which means…"

"Of course, I didn't give-up for good!" Tsunade responded to Sakura with a grin. "Remember what I told you when you first set foot in my office? That I won't go easy on you. And I taught you later that what it takes to be a medical ninja is the ability to never give-up, most of all."

"I do remember," Sakura smiled fondly at the memory of that time.

Taking a quick mind tour since then until now, she couldn't help but feel a tad bit proud of herself. That's when the eagerness to know more hit her so she asked her master to continue her story of how she managed to do it after all.

"It was thanks to my grandmother, Mito Uzumaki," Tsunade said. Upon hearing that name again, Sakura couldn't help but wonder if there would be a connection between Naruto and her. At least the names were similar. But… that would be another thing for another time.

"She was the one who helped me find a workaround so I can invent Creation Rebirth," Sakura's master continued.

A warm smile appeared on the blonde woman's face as she remembered her grandmother. Sure, the world knew mostly her grandfather, but little did it know that the reason he ended-up being so strong was because of Mito's great support.

She had been a reserved woman, not meddling in business that weren't hers and focused on the things she could change. Stoic like a high mountain, but warm like the sun shining on one, from the first day Tsunade knew her to the last.

"It's thanks to her that I was able to gather enough chakra that was necessary to come-up with the jutsu," Tsunade stated when Sakura interrupted her out with a remark of her own.

"Basically, to come-up with a container so one can gather enough chakra necessary to mold such a technique, right Shishou?"

"Yes, that's right. My grandmother's seal was the container for a very important spirit back in the day," Tsunade told Sakura as she once again folded her hands and rested her face in them, watching Sakura straight in the eyes, knowing that what she was about to tell the student would very much surprise her, being that this wasn't a fact known to many.

"That's where she contained the demon fox," she told her, knowing very well the connections that her student was about to make.

Sakura's eyes widened in amazement. The Kyubi, Yin seal, Creation of All Things, Creation Rebirth... All this seemed so much info to take onto.

Sure, she learned the technicalities of Byakugo and was able to attain it based on what her master made her to study, but she never thought there would be so much history behind such a jutsu.

"It was also thanks to that seal that I was able to finally get a contract and summon Katsuyu," Tsunade said. "You well know that to summon Katsuyu, the seal is a prerequisite, otherwise there's no chance in the world she can be summoned, and the reason why that is."

Sakura's mind instantly started to make connections over connections as she heard her master speak, but for the moment this was too much trivia for her mind to process. She'd have to think about all of this in silence, later on.

But then she recalled that Naruto's seal looked different and that's where he had Kurama stored, so how did Mito Uzumaki stored Kurama inside the Yin Seal to begin with? This was just one of the many questions that started roaming inside of Sakura's mind.

"So yes, in the end I was able to come-up with a way to mimic my grandfather's technique" Tsunade continued.

"However, there was one problem with it. The drawbacks of that jutsu. And you know them very well".

Sakura nodded, being reminded of the fact that for as much as Byakugou made them impossible to kill in battle, the price one has to pay is quite grandiose.

"Yes, I do. We have to pay with our own life to even make use of such a technique…" Sakura responded to her master, being slightly saddened at the thought of that.

Sure, her master was still a descendant of two great clans, but her? She was nothing more than a girl coming from a civilian clan with no special ability. If only she could've had something special about her…

"Yes, that is the one issue with the jutsu I couldn't solve up until now. For as much as I managed to create something similar to my grandfather's technique based on Creation of All Things, I still couldn't get past this impediment.

Creation of All Things makes use of Yang chakra, but I have no such affinity for that. Yang chakra has been a mystery to us all. So then, the only way I could mimic the effects was to make use of the body's own vitality, and push it to heal itself by cell division, like you know.

But we're only human at the end of the day and our life is bound to end someday. Cells can only divide for so long before it becomes… well you know what it becomes.

And in our case, using such jutsu only means that our lives will end sooner rather than later," Tsunade concluded her story.

Both master and student sighed in unison as the fact of that reality hit them.

All the answers seemed to lay in Hashirama Senju's technique but how can you find the answers when the person in cause is dead, yet his vitality still lingers years after his passing into non-existence?

Still, Tsunade found it in her to take out a smile and look towards her student.

"I don't know if I will be able to find the answer to this matter. I've tried it for years now with no success.

Yet, I still feel that the answer lies somewhere in my grandfather's remains, but with neither him, nor my grandmother around, that seems near too impossible to solve.

It was hard enough when one of them lived. Took me so many years to come-up with all of this, so who knows how many it would take to finally understand everything?"

As Sakura heard those words coming from her master's mouth, she couldn't help but feel the heaviness of the situation. How can one manage to do this? To find the answer to an impossible question? Yet somehow, she felt it was necessary to do so if medical ninjutsu were to be evolved to the next level. But for now, she had no answer. Her master didn't and she had so much experience behind her, how could she, a simple student, have one?

Tsunade got up from her chair and went to the window waving her hand at Sakura to follow her, as the pink haired girl complied.

When Sakura got in front of her, Tsunade's face painted a big grin on her face as she looked at Sakura.

"Sadly, I don't have the answer to this dilemma right now, as I told you. But I have hope that you will. No, cut that, not hope. I have full faith that you will definitely do it!

If you came forth in the war, managing to finally awaken Byakugou and summon Katsuyu on the battlefield, you will definitely find a way to solve the mystery to these godly powers.

After all, you, a human, fought a god itself, didn't you?" Tsunade told Sakura as she patted her head. Sakura was quick to try and interrupt her, telling her master that it was mostly Naruto and Sasuke that did the job, but Tsunde interrupted her back immediately.

"And who lent the final punch that made it possible for those two idiots to seal her, eh?" Tsunade asked, not allowing her student to get down on herself.

"You have a strong spirit inside you, Sakura!" she continued, "I'm sure that one day you'll find the solution to all of these problems. But it will be a path you must take yourself. I've taught you all that I've known up until now, so maybe now it is time for me to give the mantle to you. So you can find your own path.

And I'm sure that you will, and you'll even surpass me. That strong spirit and determination got you where you are here, today, didn't it?"
Sakura couldn't help but feel a bit of pride hearing her master's words, yet she still wasn't convinced enough of that fact. Not after what she had witnessed once again in the war.

"But Shishou, I'm merely me, a simple girl, with no respectable clan background to uphold me. How can I even…" compete was what Sakura was about to ask but Tsunade wasn't having any of it.

"I might have had a little luck being a descendant of Uzumaki and Senju to be able to create Creation Rebirth and then develop it up to Byakugou.

Sure, I was nowhere near my grandfather's level, but a slightly larger pool than the average helped me get where I am thanks to what I told you.

But you and your knack for chakra, your understanding of it and efficiency in using it, is already surpassing mine. Stop putting yourself down and give yourself some credit, eh?" the blonde told her student with a warm smile on her face as she took her hand off Sakura's head.

A thank you with a big grin soon followed as Sakura took in all of Tsunade's praise, which was so rare. But she knew that when receiving praise from Tsunade you really did well, as she wasn't a woman of free praises. No, you had to earn it. With hard work, sweat and perfection, or else you were getting none of it.

And that's what made Sakura work so hard for all that she got. Because to her, getting the praise of someone so respectable meant that she at least did something well as a ninja.

Their time of confessions ended as soon as Naruto entered the office once again with the results from Shizune.

The news were good: Naruto was compatible with Hashirama's cells which means the prosthetic arm she was preparing was going to be working.

"Prepare for tomorrow, then!" Tsunade commanded.

"We're gonna attach the prosthetic arm to you and from now on you'll be able to use ninjutsu again. Next time, don't be that stupid, though!" she warned him referring to the battle he had with Uchiha Sasuke.

Naruto's bring grin made an appearance on his face as his over excitedness took hold of him, jumping around and messing a thing or two in the office. It wasn't long until Sakura brought him back to earth again.

"You stupid!" Sakura shouted as she cleaned the mess after him, a little pissed at his ever-present negligence when he got excited.

"Stop messing around things! Not to mention, didn't you have somewhere to be today?" she asked as Naruto's face got clueless.

"Hinata, you idiot!" she bumped him. "You're supposed to go check and see if there's anything else she needs for Neji's one-week burial ceremony all of us Konoha eleven talked about doing by ourselves, remember? So, stop messing around and go!" Sakura pushed him towards the door and after she rearranged all the dossiers and reports that Naruto had messed-up earlier on Tsunade's desk.

"Oh, yeah…!" Naruto said straightening his figure, and getting a more serious approach. "Well, I'm off to Hinata's now, see you two another time!" he saluted both while leaving for the door.

"Don't forget you have to be here tomorrow morning for the arm, Naruto!" Tsunade shouted as Naruto got out the door.

"You idiot…!" Sakura mumbled to herself with a bitter sweet smile that followed her soon after, watching him as he got out of that door.

Tsunade couldn't help but notice the subtle tension that had just happened in the room. That packed with the fact that for all the discussion her student forgot to mention what had happened to Sasuke Uchiha who was also supposed to get his arm fixed, and the fact that Sakura excused herself soon after that scene strengthened her belief in what she had just seen even more.

"My mom will scold me once again if my room isn't cleaned spotless," she said with one her her trademark fake smiles when she wanted to avoid a certain situation. She had some thoughts she wanted to shrug off her mind, as this was already a busier day than what she had envisioned it to be.

"Sure, go ahead and do what you have to do, you're dismissed!" Tsunade responded knowing very well what Sakura was hiding under that smile. She had had a tough time today, so any more weight on her shoulders wasn't needed.

But she couldn't help to be reminded of a certain scene she had seen in the past, when she first came to Konoha.

Only that this time around, it was the other way. The one smiling bittersweet now was Sakura instead of Naruto.

She thought to herself how times had truly changed since she was in Konoha. How newer ones were about to commence and who knows what they would bring forth.