It was early in the morning when Tsunade awoke from her slumber. She looked down beside her only to see Shizune sleeping soundly, curled up with a warm blanket. She must have snuck into her room late last night after Tsunade put her to sleep. She looked so peaceful when she was asleep and of course, she looked absolutely adorable with her short black hair and rosy cheeks. Tsunade quietly got out of bed, trying her best not to cause too much stirring that would result in Shizune waking up. She stepped into her bathroom to prepare herself for the day and afterwards, she went downstairs to her kitchen, where she would prepare breakfast. She didn't usually eat breakfast for she wasn't an early riser but now that Shizune was with her, she changed her old habit. She searched her cupboards, hoping that she would have something that Shizune would like and stumbled across a box of pancake mix. She retrieved the box and settled on making pancakes. They were once Nawaki's favorite so she was an expert at making them. She mixed the batter in a bowl and then fried it in the frying pan. She now had a stack of pancakes ready to be eaten so she went upstairs to call Shizune down for breakfast.
When she entered the room, she was expecting to see Shizune still sleeping but instead, she was nowhere to be found. She looked in the bathroom but she wasn't in there nor was she in the guest bedroom. The only room that was left to searched was Nawaki's room so she decided to look in there, hoping that Shizune was there. She opened the door and saw Shizune sitting on the bed playing with Nawaki's old teddy bear. The sight was quite adorable for Shizune was smiling and hugging the bear close to her chest. It seems as if she never played with a toy like that before.
"Do you like that toy?" Tsunade asked, stepping further into the room and sitting on the bed beside the small girl.
Shizune nodded her head in agreement and hugged the toy tighter, "When my parents were alive we couldn't afford toys neither could my uncle so I never had anything to play with." She explained and then put the toy down, "Was this your brother's room?" She asked, suddenly remembering that Tsunade had a dead brother.
Tsunade nodded her head, "Yes, this was his room."
"I'm so sorry, I didn't know!" Shizune apologized at placed the toy in Tsunade's lap.
Tsunade looked down at the bear and then at Shizune. She was having so much fun playing with it that it would be criminal to take it away from her. Yes, it was Nawaki's toy but he was dead and therefore would never play with it again. Deep down in Tsunade's heart, she knew that Nawaki would want Shizune to have his favorite toy. After all, he always had a soft spot in his heart for orphaned, underprivileged kids. She smiled and handed the bear to Shizune, "You can have it."
Shizune looked down at the bear like it was a piece of gold, "B-But it belonged to your brother."
Tsunade nodded her head, "It did but I know that he wouldn't mind if you took care of it for him." She put the toy in Shizune's lap, "Take it but promise me that you'll take good care of it. It was my brother's favorite toy."
She took the soft toy in her hands and held it close to her heart, "I promise." She said and gave Tsunade a hug, "Thank you."
"No need to thank me." Tsunade said and ruffled Shizune's black hair, "Now, freshen up and meet me downstairs. I made breakfast."
"You did?" She asked happily.
"Yup." Tsunade nodded, "I hope you like pancakes."
"I-I never had them before."
"Well you're in for a treat." Tsunade smiled and went downstairs to set the table.
It wasn't too long until Shizune joined Tsunade at the table. She was wearing the navy blue dress that she picked out yesterday and her hair was no longer disheveled. She looked adorable and the dress fit her perfectly.
"You look so cute Shizune." Tsunade said while placing a plate of pancakes down before the six year old.
"Thank you." She said politely.
"Eat up."
Tsunade watched as Shizune ate her food and she could see that she was enjoying every bite of it. She knew that she would like pancakes. After all, children her age enjoy sweet things. After she finished her meal, Tsunade washed up the plates while Shizune played with her new toy. She would be lying if she said that she didn't enjoy Shizune's company. She was polite, well behaved and didn't complain about anything or throw unnecessary tantrums. She had a soft spot in her heart for her and wanted nothing more than to see her grow up into a wonderful person. But, she knew that watching her enter the different stages of her life would be impossible if she didn't speak to the Hokage about legally adopting her. She never thought about becoming a mother especially since she was only twenty one but she knew that Shizune needed her. She couldn't just drop her off at the alley she found her in and go about her life, never caring about what became of the small little girl she found rummaging through the trash. She couldn't do it and she wouldn't do it. She made the decision to legally make Shizune her responsibility. Plus, with Shizune in her life, she won't be alone.
"Shizune?" Tsunade said as she took a seat beside Shizune on the ground.
"Yes Lady Tsunade?"
"How would you like to live her with me forever?" Tsunade asked, a little nervous to hear Shizune's response.
Shizune paused for a moment and then started to cry. Tsunade panicked at the sight of her tears, "If you don't want to, you don't have to. Please don't cry Shizune. I'll take you back to where I found you if you want."
Shizune shook her head and started to laugh, "I'm not crying because I'm sad. I'm crying because I'm happy."
"Y-You're happy?"
"Yes." She nodded her head, "I would love to live here with you."
"Really?"
"Yes, that is, if you want me to."
Tsunade wrapped her arms around Shizune and smiled happily, "I would love you to live here with me."
"You'll be like a mommy to me?"
"Yes, but please don't call me that, it makes me sound old."
Shizune laughed at Tsunade words and hugged her back, "Okay, I'll continue to call you Lady Tsunade then."
Tsunade rose to her feet and took hold of Shizune's hand, "Come on, we have to go talk to the Hokage."
"Why?" She said while following Tsunade out the house.
"Because you can't live with me forever unless we have his permission." Tsunade explained.
"B-But what if he says no?" Shizune asked with a shaky voice, "Then I would have to live on the street again wouldn't I?" She said with tears in her eyes, "I don't want to back on the streets. It was dark and scary and I was all alone! Please don't let me go back Lady Tsunade!"
Tsunade stopped walking and crouched down in front of Shizune so that their eyes met, "The Hokage was my sensei Shizune so he'll honor my request. Don't worry about anything because I'll never let you go back on the streets. I promise okay?"
Shizune nodded her head and decided to trust Tsunade, "O-Okay."
"Great." Tsunade said while wiping away Shizune's fallen tears, "Just let me handle everything."
Jiraiya took a deep sigh as he stood before the large door to the Konoha Ninja Academy. He didn't want to be there but Sarutobi ordered him to go there because he was assigned a student. He hated to be around the academy because just standing before it brought back many bad memories of him being tormented by the other kids just because he wasn't as smart as them. If only those horrible kids could see him now. He was one of the Sannin now and he would kill to see the look on the faces of all those who bullied him. He cringed at the sound of the laughter of children and the sight of them running up and down the place, completely oblivious to the fact that they were in a serious war. Oh how he envied all of them. Children have nothing to worry about. They don't have to have the displeasure of having their hearts ripped out of their chest by the one they love the most neither do they have to watch their friends get slaughtered by the hands of the enemy at war. They were lucky.
He took another deep breath and walked into the academy, dodging running children as he walked down the halls to his destined location. He approached the room labeled '28' and stepped inside only to see the Academy teacher standing before a large class of thirty seven students. They all looked so young, so innocent. Some came from prestigious clans of the Leaf Village such as the Hyuga, Aburame, Yamanaka, Nara and Uchiha. Those children were destined for greatness for they had a tradition of fabulous ninjas to uphold and couldn't let down their clan by underperforming. Thankfully, Jiraiya wasn't from a well known clan therefore he didn't have that pressure to deal with. Tsunade on the other hand was living under the spotlight being the granddaughter of the first Hokage and a member of the strongest clan ever to grace the Leaf Village; the Senju clan. How stressful it must have been for her to go about her life being constantly watched by everybody in the village. However, she handled the stress well for she grew up to be a great ninja and the best medical ninja in the world. He was proud to have been on her team.
Jiraiya cleared his throat to get the attention of the ninja in charge. After he did that, the ninja turned his attention to Jiraiya and introduced him to his class, "Students, this is Master Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin. Say hello."
"Hi Master Jiraiya." The class said in union with each other.
"Master Jiraiya is here because one of you will have the privilege of being his apprentice. I have no idea who it will be but he does. Master Jiraiya, care to tell them who you will be teaching?"
"Alright." Jiraiya started, "Here's how it is. You see I don't want a student for I believe he will hold me back and interrupt my... Ummm... Research... But Lord Hokage wants me to teach one of you because I'm one of the best and we need to have well trained, strong ninja in case of another war or attack or whatever. Now that I've made myself clear, the student I'll be teaching is..." He said and pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket, opened it and read the name he saw, "Minato Namikaze."
He watched as all eyes turned to a little blonde haired boy with bright blue eyes. He looked no more than ten years and wore a look of complete innocence on his face. He seemed as if he was well mannered and never did a scrap of bad in his life. Really? Was this really the kid that Sarutobi wanted Jiraiya to teach? Jiraiya motioned for the kid to come closer and Minato did as he was told and walked up to Jiraiya. Jiraiya got a better look at him and saw that he was quite short and was shy. He sighed for he knew that this was going to be a challenge, "You're Minato Namikaze?" He asked, still finding it hard to believe that the third wanted him to teach such an innocent boy.
"Yes sir." He said respectfully.
"Don't call me sir kid. It makes me sound old." He rubbed his temples and guided the boy out the door by placing his hand on the kid's back, "Let's go."
They exited the building and continued to walk until they were at the training field. Jiraiya sat down and popped himself open a bottle of sake and motioned for the boy to sit in front of him, "So kid." He began, "Tell me about yourself."
"W-What should I say Jiraiya sensei?" He asked, unsure about what he should tell him.
"Just tell me your age, your likes and dislikes." He said and took a large gulp of his alcoholic beverage, "It's not rocket science kid."
"Oh." He said and continued, "Well, I'm ten years old. I like to train and I don't like mean people." He paused and asked, "What about you?"
"What about me?" Jiraiya snapped.
"I've read about you in books and in all of them they said that you have a happy, care free personality. Right now you're anything but happy and carefree. You're grumpy and not really nice. Why are you being like this? I did nothing wrong to make you unhappy."
"You read about me huh?"
Minato nodded, "Yes. I read about you and the other two Sannin. I really look up to you guys because one day I want to be strong like you."
"Don't bother trying to flatter me."
"I'm not trying to flatter you Jiraiya sensei, I'm just stating the truth."
Jiraiya put down the bottle and decided to tell the boy about himself, "Okay kid, you're right, I'm not usually like this. It's just that I had a really bad day yesterday and I still haven't recovered from it."
"Why did you have a bad day yesterday?" He asked, curious as to why his new sensei was being so grumpy.
"I don't think I should be telling a ten year old kid like you my problems. Not that you care anyway."
"But I do care." He said, "You're my sensei now so I care about you."
This kid had an affect on Jiraiya. He made him want to tell him his problems. Maybe this was why Sarutobi assigned him to this boy. He was caring and slow to judge. This child was exactly what he needed, "It's about a girl." He started, "I love her but she doesn't love me and she never will. That's why I'm in such a fowl mood." He explained, "Forgive me, I didn't mean to take out my frustrations on you."
"It's okay sensei."
"You know something kid." Jiraiya started, "I think we're going to get along just fine."
"Me too." He smiled.
"We'll start our training tomorrow. I hope you're ready because I won't go easy on you."
"I said that I like training so I'm more than ready sensei."
"Great." Jiraiya said and held out his hand to Minato for him to shake it. Minato grabbed hold of his sensei's rather large hand and gave it a rather firm shake. After they shook hands Jiraiya smiled, "It's official now, the beginning of you and me, master and student."
Tsunade and Shizune approached the gate to the Hokage mansion and were approached by the guard, "Do you have an appointment with the Hokage?" He asked. Obviously he didn't know about Tsunade's relationship with Sarutobi. If he did, he would have just let her through but he was following protocol and from the looks of it, he was new.
"I don't need a damn appointment, I'm his student." Tsunade informed the guard.
"You're Tsunade Senju?" He asked.
"Of course I am!"
"Oh, I'm sorry. I just moved here from another village. Please forgive me, I was just following protocol." He apologized, feeling like an idiot in the presence of one of the greatest ninjas ever to grace the earth.
"That's okay. Next time, you'll know better." She said and grabbed Shizune's hand gently, "Come on Shizune."
Together they walked through the mansion until they finally arrived at the Hokage's office door which was located on the top floor of the building. The mansion was crawling with ninjas and ANBU who were there specifically to protect the Hokage but the sight of them made Shizune nervous so she squeezed Tsunade's hand tighter, seeking out comfort in her grip.
"Is this the Hokage's office?" Shizune asked looking at the large door before her. She was so short compared to it that she couldn't even reach the door knob.
Tsunade nodded her head and let go of Shizune's hand, "I want you to stay out here for a little okay? I'll come and get you soon."
"O-Okay."
Tsunade put her hand on the door knob and turned around to see Shizune looking quite apprehensive, "I'll be right back." She turned the knob and entered the office, closing the door behind her. She saw Sarutobi sitting at his desk, so engrossed in his work that he didn't even realize that she was standing before him.
"Sensei." She said to grab hold of his attention.
After hearing her familiar feminine voice, he looked up from his work and looked at Tsunade with a somewhat surprised expression on his face, "This is a surprise." He said and motioned for Tsunade to take a seat in the chair in front of his desk, "How have you been? Good I trust?"
"I've been okay." She said, deliberately forgetting to tell her sensei about what happened between her and Jiraiya. She felt that certain things such as who she went to bed with should be left unsaid. After all, he was like a father to her and a father always wanted to believe that his daughter was a virgin.
"So did you get the closure that you needed from the funeral?" He asked, hoping to hear a positive answer. The war has reached it's climax and he needed Tsunade to be in the best mental and physical shape in order for them to come out victorious.
"I'm sorry to say that the funeral did nothing to help me but something else did." She informed him.
"Something else?" He asked.
"I should really say somebody else."
"Somebody else as in... Jiraiya?" He asked, hoping that Jiraiya was the person who helped her get through the death of her brother.
She blushed at his words, remembering the time that she spent with Jiraiya, exploring his body and sharing in his passion. However, he didn't help her get over Nawaki's death. Instead, a little raven haired girl helped her, "No sensei. Jiraiya had nothing to do with it!" She shouted, trying to hide her blush. She didn't want Sarutobi to find out about her and Jiraiya and she wouldn't allow her evident blush to give her secret away.
"But-"
"No!" She shouted, cutting him off, "Can we not talk about Jiraiya? He didn't help me okay!"
"Very well..." He said, wondering why she became angry with him when he mentioned Jiraiya, "So who helped you?" He asked, silently hoping that it wasn't another man. If Tsunade found a man to share her life with, it would surely break Jiraiya's heart and that was something he didn't want to happen for with a broken heart, one cannot perform to his highest potential out in the battlefield.
"I found a little six year old girl in a back alley, looking for food in the trash. I couldn't just leave her there to starve so I gave her something to eat. Afterwards, I took her home with me. I couldn't leave her on the streets by herself. She told me about how she got over the death of her uncle and she inspired me to let to of Nawaki. She was the one who helped me and for that, I'm entirely grateful to her."
"A little girl helped you?"
Tsunade nodded her head, "Yes she did."
"And what became of her? Is she still with you?"
"She is. All of her family died so she's alone in the world... And so am I."
"What do you plan on doing with her?"
"I want to adopt her. That's why I came here."
"You want to adopt her? But Tsunade, you're still so young. Are you sure that you're capable of raising a young child." He asked, wondering why his student suddenly wanted to adopt a child.
"I've taken care of Nawaki and I was even younger back then. This child has an affect on me that I can't fully explain buy she makes me want to be a better person. She trusts me and I trust her. I can't just let her go back to the streets! Who knows what will become of her if she does? I'm begging you sensei, let me adopt her. I don't want to be alone anymore! If I adopt her then I won't have to live in my solitude. Please!" Tsunade begged and pleaded her sensei to give her the opportunity to legally adopt Shizune. She promised her that they would live together forever and she refused to break that promise. She filled Shizune's head with hopes and dreams. It would be cruel to shatter those hopes and dreams. She just wanted to live happily with Shizune and would do anything to make that happen. If she had to get down on her hands and knees and plead before Sarutobi's feet, she would, if that meant that she could keep Shizune.
"I want to meet her."
"What?" Tsunade asked.
"I want to meet this little girl who helped you. Is she with you now?"
Tsunade nodded her head.
"Go get her then. I want to see her."
Tsunade got out of her seat and walked out of the office to retrieve Shizune. Soon after she walked in the room again but this time with Shizune by her side. She looked nervous for she has never seen the Hokage before but she always heard that he was extremely powerful.
"Hello there little girl." The Hokage said, greeting the girl, "What's your name?"
She looked up at Tsunade, silently asking if it was okay to tell him her name. Tsunade nodded, urging her to introduce herself.
"M-My name is S-Shizune." She said nervously.
"Hi Shizune, I've heard a lot about you."
"Y-You have?"
"Yes." He nodded and then looked up at Tsunade, "It seems as if my student here is very fond of you." He looked back at Shizune, "You're a lucky girl. Tsunade is a wonderful person."
"I know. She rescued me and gave me food, clothes and shelter. She's really nice and I would love to stay with her forever." Shizune said, "Lady Tsunade told me that I can't live with her forever unless you give her permission. Can you please give her permission?"
How could Sarutobi say no to such a sweet little girl? Sure he had his doubts about the idea of Tsunade raising her but it was clear that they needed each other. Tsunade was alone and so was Shizune. Who was her to separate them when it was clear that they already had such a close bond?, "Shizune, can you wait outside for a moment please?"
She nodded her head and left the room once again, leaving teacher and student alone.
"She adores you." Sarutobi stated, "I've only been with her for a few moments and I can see that as clear as day."
"She needs me." Tsunade said.
"And you need her." He added and got up from his chair and walked over to Tsunade, placing his hands on both of her shoulders, "I know you feel as if you have nobody else in the world and I can see that you have found all that you have lost in that child. I don't know what happened between you and Jiraiya to make you so angry when his name is mentioned and I'm not going to ask but I can see that you're happy with that girl and if you're happy then who am I to take away that happiness from you? I will grant your request." He smiled and she couldn't help herself but wrap her arms around him and embrace him in a tight hug that was more like a happy squeeze.
"Thank you Sarutobi sensei, thank you so much!" She said and pulled away from him to look him in the eyes, "You have no idea how much this means to me."
"I think I do." He said and walked back over to his desk and pulled out adoption papers. He wrote some stuff on the paper such as Tsunade's name and the name of the child she wanted to adopt. Afterwards he asked her to sign in a specific area of the paper and after she was done, he signed below her signature. It was now official. Shizune legally belonged to her, "Congratulations Tsunade, you're now a mother." He smiled.
"Not a mother." She said, cringing at the name, "More like friend or guardian."
"Whatever you call yourself, you are now responsible for the life of that little girl." He informed her, "Is that something you can live with?"
"Definitely. I'll lay down my life for her."
"I'm proud of you Tsunade."
Tsunade smiled at her sensei's words and thanked him one last time before she left his office and returned to Shizune. The little girl looked up at her with nothing but hope in her eyes. Only when Tsunade smiled, did Shizune run up to her to hug her, "Can I live with you forever?" She asked.
"Yup, I got the papers to prove it right here." She smiled, waving the papers in Shizune's happy face.
The girl squealed in delight and wrapped her arms around Tsunade once again, "Wherever I go, you'll go too because as of now, we're a team."
Jiraiya was walking Minato home when he saw Tsunade buying ice cream from a nearby ice cream stand. His heart immediately started to race when his eyes caught sight of her blonde hair and green jacket. He didn't know what to do but he was sure that he didn't want her to see him. Instead he tried to conceal himself behind a bush so that their eyes wouldn't meet.
"Why are we hiding behind a bush Jiraiya sensei?" Minato asked feeling confused by his sensei's sudden actions.
"Shhhhh!" He said and went back to silently observing Tsunade. He saw as she purchased two ice cream cones which seemed strange to him since Tsunade never had much of a sweet tooth but what surprised him the most was when she handed one of the cones to a small girl with jet black hair. Then when the girl hugged her, he became extremely confused, "Why did Tsunade buy that girl ice cream and why did she hug her?" Jiraiya asked out loud. As far as he was concerned, Tsunade was never too fond of children so it was quite strange seeing her be so happy in the presence of a little girl.
"Am I supposed to answer that question Jiraiya sensei? If I do, I have no idea what to say." Minato said and then got a better look at Tsunade, "Hey! Isn't that Tsunade Senju, your teammate?" He said loudly and soon he found Jiraiya's hand covering his mouth, preventing him from saying anything else.
"Would you keep it down? Do you want us to get caught?!" Jiraiya said in frustration. He had to know what was going on with Tsunade. Just yesterday their friendship ended and he knew that she was rather upset but now, she was laughing and genuinely happy. What was going on? He had to get to the bottom of it. He removed his hand from Minato's mouth, "Why won't you go ahead and go home. I have to pay our Hokage a visit."
"O-Okay." Minato said, still confused, "You're acting strange Jiraiya sensei. Are you alright?"
"I'm fine boy, just go on home and I'll see you to tomorrow."
"Alright. See you later Jiraiya sensei." Minato said and walked in the direction of his house.
If anybody knew what was going on with Tsunade, it was Sarutobi. He knew how close Sarutobi and Tsunade were so he could get whatever information about Tsunade out of him easily. He waited for Tsunade and the girl to leave the ice cream stand before he allowed himself to remove himself from behind the bush and head in the direction of the Hokage mansion. He ran all the way over there like a pack of wolves running after some poor unfortunate animal that would soon become their dinner. He ran and ran until he finally got to the mansion and instead of talking to the guard at the gate he ran past him and stormed through the mansion until he arrived at Sarutobi's office. Without knocking he burst through the doors and startled the Hokage by his sudden intrusion.
"Jiraiya, what's the meaning of this?!" Sarutobi asked angrily, "I could have been in an important meeting! How dare you just storm through here like a SWAT team!" He scolded but everything he said to Jiraiya came through one ear and went out the other. Jiraiya didn't care for what his old sensei had to say about his disrespectful intrusion, all he cared about was finding out why Tsunade was with a little girl and happy.
"What was Tsunade doing with a little girl with black hair?!" He blurted out, getting straight to the point, "I know it's none of my business but I want to know why she was so happy when I saw her. Just yesterday she was miserable and now it's like nothing happened between us! It's like she has forgotten that we had sex and she tore my heart out of my body with her words! Is she really that cruel to go on with her life as if she didn't just ruin mine?!" He rambled on, not realizing that he just told his sensei that he had sex with his other student.
"You and Tsunade... Had sex?" That's all he could say for he was lost for words. He always knew that Jiraiya had a crush on Tsunade but never did he think that they would actually participate in such an intimate act.
"Oh crap." Jiraiya said and slammed his hand into his face in embarrassment. He just realized what he admitted and he wished that he could take it all back. He never wanted Sarutobi to find out and yet he was so careless and revealed the truth that he so wanted to keep hidden. It was bad enough that Orochimaru knew but it was even worse now that Sarutobi knew.
"So... That's what happened between you two... That's why Tsunade was so upset when I mentioned your name..." He said, remembering how angry she was when Jiraiya was mentioned in their conversation, "Did you... Did you force sex upon her or-"
"What?! No! Never!" Jiraiya said feeling somewhat hurt that Sarutobi would even think that, "Tsunade's the one who came on to me!"
"Then why was she so angry when I mentioned your name?"
"She forgot to tell you the part that she simply used me for my body. I wanted to take our relationship a step further and all she wanted was pleasure." He explained and Sarutobi cringed at the thought of his students that he knew from their childhood having sex.
"This is too much information for me to handle... I think I need to have a seat." He said and took a seat, rubbing his temples and trying to allow the information to sink in.
"Enough about that sensei. I came here because I saw Tsunade buying ice cream for a little girl and the two of them looked as if they were going home together. Is that little girl Tsunade's student?" Jiraiya said, turning the conversation back to what he came here to ask.
"Tsunade came here not too long ago because she wanted to legally adopt that girl. Her name is Shizune by the way and she's very sweet."
"Tsunade adopted that girl?! Why?"
"Because Shizune is orphaned and she was found on the streets. Tsunade adopted her because without her, that little girl would surely die. But that's not the only reason why she adopted her." He stated, "She adopted her because she wants Shizune to save her from her solitude."
"Save her from her solitude..." Jiraiya repeated, feeling his heart ache with sadness, "I would have happily saved her from her loneliness only if she would have let me. Why can't she just love me? What's wrong with me?" He said, feeling so helpless.
Sarutobi saw the sadness on Jiraiya's face and he knew that he was deeply hurt. Instead of allowing Jiraiya to be in her life, she decided to adopt a little girl so that she wouldn't be alone. Yes what she did for Shizune was admirable, but Jiraiya was alone as well and so desperately yearned for Tsunade's affections, "Jiraiya." Sarutobi started, "I think it's time that you let go of Tsunade and move on with your life."
His heart stopped at his sensei's words. How could he simply let go of the person he loved most in the world? Sure, she rejected him and left him heartbroken, but he still cared deeply for her, "How can I do such a thing?"
"It's time that you think about yourself for once in your life. What you're doing to yourself isn't fair. You're chasing after a woman who doesn't love you and in return, you're sad and heartbroken. What you're doing isn't healthy. You need to move on."
Jiraiya took a moment to think about what his sensei was telling him. There was much sense in what Sarutobi was saying. It wasn't fair what Jiraiya was doing to himself. He was worth something too and deserved to be happy, to love and to be loved in return. It was time for him to let go of his childhood crush and move on with his life, "You're right sensei." He admitted, "It's time that I move on."
He was now embarking on a new journey in his life, the journey to fall out of love with Tsunade. She had Shizune now and he still had nobody. No, it was time for him to put himself on the market once again and find someone who would love him. He deserved that much after chasing after the same girl for so long who never loved him.
Poor Jiraiya.
I hope you guys had fun reading this chapter because I had so much fun writing it. I love this story and I love where it's going. I'm so excited for the next chapter and I'm going to try my best to make it perfect for you guys. Thanks for reading and reviewing. Until next time! Xoxoxo.