Chapter 53
"Why are they fighting?" Shikamaru finally asks Jiraiya. They have stood on the side of a clearing for several minutes now, not interfering, just watching the two combatants hash it out for the second day.
Jiraiya grins before answering, "They're not fighting, boy."
"Doesn't seem like it to me." Shikamaru observes as the smaller of the two gets thrown again for the umpteenth time, no matter how many clones he has, he just can't seem to land a solid blow on the older woman. While the woman, with only her index finger, she can crack the earth and throw Naruto off balance with its resulting tremors. "Why are they doing this?"
Jiraiya , not taking off his eyes from the duel, watches as nine Narutos jump into the air with the aim of confusing Tsunade from above while the tenth one remains on the ground, undetected, ready to spring once Tsunade lifts her head to take care of the nine airborne clones.
But Tsunade is able to deal with the nine clones before the tenth one could even get close to her. With a quick kick with only the toe of her sandal hitting Naruto on the face, the blond boy is thrown several metres away, spinning in the air before skidding on his front as he lands.
Chuckling, Jiraiya remarks, "That boy is really persistent. If Tsunade hasn't stipulated that they can stop for food, bathroom breaks, and her beauty sleep, Naruto would be all mashed rice cake by now."
Shikamaru figures as much. What he doesn't get is why they are doing it.
Naruto picks himself up from the ground, creates another five clones and charges towards Tsunade from different directions. Jiraiya follows all six Narutos' progress, as he finally answers Kamaru's inquiry, "Notice that necklace cradled between Tsunade's—" a lecherous cough, "—nice breasts?"
Tch, the old man's really a pervert. "Yeah, I notice the necklace," Shikamaru mumbles. The necklace is easy enough to spot. It is made of a simple chain that held a greenish blue, elongated crystal gem bracketed by two silver globes.
Jiraiya chortles, unrepentantly patting Kamaru on the back; aware of the younger nin's obvious emphasis on the word necklace. "That's given to Tsunade by her late grandfather who happens to be Konoha's First Hokage. If Naruto is able to take it from her, Tsunade will finally accept the position of the next Hokage."
"Lady Tsunade seems to be at a clear advantage."
"Maybe. But she can only use her left foot and her two index fingers so we'll see…"
Jiraiya and Shikamaru continues to watch as Naruto tries and tries again to make a grab of the necklace, twice getting as close as a mere centimetre away from the necklace before getting thrown off again.
"That's an improvement. Yesterday, he could not even get close to the necklace before being flicked off… Too bad, Naruto has only three more minutes to 'convince' her now."
Shikamaru frowns as he again witnesses Naruto flying and then landing with a loud thump near where he and Jiraiya are watching. As Naruto lies on the ground getting his bearings, Shikamaru runs to his side. Reaching him, Shikamaru crouches low to murmur something into his ear.
Naruto then gets up, breathing in much needed air before sprinting into a run towards Lady Tsunade, this time not creating any clones. "I'm gonna get that necklace!" Naruto yells his battlecry.
Tsunade suspicious of Naruto's plan as he comes charging straight to her. "I'm not going to turn soft and allow you to just get this," Tsunade growls, caressing and indicating the pendant of the necklace around her neck. "I swear I'll kick your butt if you don't stop!" Tsunade threatens as Naruto continues, not deviating from his destructive path.
Naruto, finally close enough, makes a grab for the necklace and meeting Tsunade's flick on his forehead straight away, and this time, the concentrated chakra on the tip of her finger is such that Naruto is blown off. This is by far the strongest attack done by Tsunade and as Naruto's body lands, the sound of flesh and bones hitting the ground becomes deafening. Naruto then lies unconscious and blood tricking from his mouth, nose and from the wound above his left eye, in the area where Tsunade's index finger connected.
"Get up," Tsunade commands but the boy remains motionless.
It was only two days ago that Lady Tsunade had given Naruto the clean bill of health, and since yesterday the boy has been receiving her chakra-powered finger flicks and kicks. And the last one she has given him could smash the hard earth and leave it hallowed out. With her heart pounding, Tsunade dashes towards Naruto's side, seeing the blood trailing a red smear on his face, her hands tremble as she slowly crouches to the ground to check how bad his wounds are this time.
But as she sits on her heels hovering over Naruto, Naruto abruptly bounces up from the ground and lounges for the necklace, successfully grasping and pulling the prize object off from around the medic's neck while knocking her backwards.
Lady Tsunade, taken by surprise, can only make a ghost of a grab for her necklace, but too late, Naruto with the necklace within his grasp, retreats and now stands several metres away, grinning hugely as he dangles the necklace before his audience. "Ero-sennin, how much time do I have left?"
"Just less than a minute, my boy," Jiraiya replies, watching Tsunade sputters angrily and fisting her hand, she suddenly jabs at the earth, successfully splitting it in all directions. "Now, now, Tsunade, he won. You are now the Sixth Hokage. Congratulations."
"Shut it! You know he tricked me," Tsunade scowls at Jiraiya.
"He just used your weakness against you. He won," Shikamaru declares, casually defending Naruto.
Naruto bobs his head up and down, enthusiastically agreeing with the foreign nin. "Yeah, it was Kamaru who revealed you can barely stand the sight of blood but, hey, you still do your thing and heal people."
"Tch, stupid, you're not supposed to tell her that," Shikamaru grumbles.
"So that was what he whispered to you?" Lady Tsunade transfers her irritated gaze from Naruto to Shikamaru. She should have known. Shikaku's boy would be just like his father. He notices things, files them away and then uses them for strategy later. She thought she has successfully hid her aversion of blood when she was patching Jiraiya five days ago but Shikamaru must have still detected how her hands trembled ever so slightly.
"Yup. You're going to be a great Hokage, baa-chan!" Naruto hollers, reclaiming successfully Tsunade's attention from the past towards the future.
'..a great Hokage'…Somehow upon hearing Naruto's conviction behind his words, Lady Tsunade's doubt starts to disappears.
TBC
~5 13 12 AF~
~U 7 9 12~
A/N: Sandanio, here's Tsunade's trembling hands…
Twi-Smile, I think your 'Hint Hint, urge, push' works. Thanks for the reviews.
And yup, I accept reviews, comments and definitely concrits as bribe for faster updates.