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Chapter Thirty-Eight: A Very Long Minute…
Name: Tsunade Senju
Title: "Princess of Konoha"
Occupation: Jonin of Konoha
Level: ?
MP: ?
Chakra: ?
STR: ?
VIT: ?
DEX: ?
INT: ?
WIS: ?
LUK: ?
Naruto suddenly paled as he realized who he just challenged. The very person they have been searching for during the past week. One of the legendary Saanin.
The future Fifth Hokage.
"What's wrong, brat? Scared?" Tsunade said with a smirk and crossed arms.
There's no way Jiraiya didn't manufacture this meeting. Naruto thought with a sudden realization. He must have known Tsunade was going to come to this bar and left it to me to somehow interact with her. I'm not sure whether to be annoyed for being tricked or happy that he keeps that much trust in me.
The Jinchuuriki, for a brief second, entertained the idea of running away.
Surely that would be the best way out of here. Maybe he could come back a later day once they forgot about this whole instance, and somehow persuade her to come back to Konoha.
But then he realized.
It didn't matter who she was. Naruto, at that moment, was genuinely mad at that woman. Her views on the position of Hokage were callous and irresponsible. He didn't care if he needed to persuade her right now—he was Naruto Uzumaki, a future Hokage as well. What kind of Hokage would he be if he couldn't stand on his own beliefs?
"Of course not. Let's do this…" Naruto said, starting his warmup stretches.
Tsunade looked taken back before her expression went away. "Do you even know who I am?"
"I don't care if you're the granddaughter of the first Hokage or one of the Saanin…you've disrespected the old man Hokage and all of his predecessors. I may not be able to change your opinion, but I'll sure as hell win this bet!"
Shizune looked flabbergasted. "Y-you already knew who Lady Tsunade was?!"
Not until now. It was kinda obvious now that I think about it. There's a presence that Tsunade has that can't be denied. A larger-than-life aura signifying strength.
"Sure I did. There's no point in being stuck in the past." He pointed at Tsunade. "Are we going to fight or not?"
"…follow me."
They walked outside the bar, with Shizune following timidly behind while carrying the bottles of sake in a basket. She's seriously addicted to alcohol… Naruto thought in disbelief. Are all the Saanin messed up in the head somehow? Orochimaru is a murderer, Jiraiya is a pervert, and Tsunade is an alcoholic.
He was also slightly surprised that he hadn't received a quest for this event. Normally fights like these against stronger opponents resulted in a bold quest notification with a plentiful of rewards or some experience at the very least.
Now they were in the middle of a deserted road that didn't have any buildings near them but wasn't too far off from the bar. Naruto kept his hands in the correct position, looking at the tall woman that was his opponent. She had a smirk on her face, overwhelming confidence seeping through her expression.
She had no fighting position.
Tsunade merely lifted a finger at him. "Shizune. Keep track of the time."
It was evident that Shizune didn't want this fight to occur, mostly afraid of what Tsunade would do by accident. There had been many instances in the past where her sensei's anger and rash decisions led them both to even more peril.
Her apprentice reluctantly nodded before looking between the both of them. "Begin!"
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto immediately cast his favorite technique and dashed forward.
All he needed to do was land a single hit—that would be much easier with multiple copies of him that could distract or land a strike of their own. This mission was an easier version of Kakashi's bell exercise
Tsunade kneeled and pressed into the ground with her finger.
The earth beneath the clones immediately separated into two halves as a massive crack spread from her fingers, disrupting the running clones at the same time. Naruto couldn't help but feel awe at the sheer strength she possessed—he knew she was famous for her medical ninjutsu prowess, but it seemed that being a Saanin entailed even more than he thought.
The clones continued their uphill journey, only to be dismantled by a swift finger that turned them into smoke with the briefest of contact.
The Saanin laughed. "Is that all you got, brat?"
Naruto gritted his teeth. 50 seconds left…
He ran ahead this time, not bothering to call clones. The issue with summoning all those clones was that she would sense the danger for what it was and begin to actually try to end the danger early on. The only advantage Naruto had at the moment was that Tsunade had no way of knowing all of his capabilities, whereas he knew that, in her rightful hubris, the legendary kunoichi would stick to her finger.
Now in the striking zone, he leaped forward in the hope of catching her with surprising speed.
Of course, that didn't go to plan.
His sailing fist that went as fast as he could possibly send it was stopped by a single finger.
Another flick.
Naruto lost control of his body as he was sent backward with his legs and arms dangling in the air helplessly. He bounced on the dirt road multiple times before crashing into a sturdy bush that managed to stop his momentum. He breathed heavily as he hurriedly brought himself back up to his feet.
What the—what was that? Was that really just her finger? Naruto thought incredulously.
"Forty seconds left!" Shizune mentioned loudly so that he could hear.
Direct confrontations are a no-go, obviously. I need to somehow trick her…but how? He looked nervously at Shizune who continued to count in her head. The time constraint isn't helping much either. Let's see—Iron Clones are pretty much regular clones in front of her. I obviously can't pull off Perfect Henge in the open.
A distraction?
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto intoned for the second time.
Thirty clones manifested into thin air, filling in the cramped space.
Tsunade chuckled. "You have a lot of chakra, brat. But that won't be enough."
Activate Iron Clones.
[Activating… ]
[Skill: Iron Clones - Lvl 1 Activated]
[Usage takes 30 MP and lasts for a variable time before skill cooldown applies.]
Sure, the skill might not have much effect in front of her monstrous strength, but it's better than nothing.
The clones charged with reckless speed, bumping into one another and tripping along the way due to the already-formed cracks in the ground beneath them. If even one of them landed a hit, it would be enough for him to win the bet. Naruto secretly hoped that Tsunade managed to slip up and get hit, but knew his atrocious Luck stat wouldn't let that happen.
Then came the fight.
WHOOSH!
Tsunade flicked her finger right at the incoming horde of clones, causing a burst of air that knocked the clones right to their feet. The iron clones were more durable than their normal counterparts, who would have been destroyed after such an attack. Naruto couldn't help but marvel at her strength, being able to replicate a wind bullet type of technique without any hand signs. It was obvious she was using an application of chakra, though he couldn't recognize how.
The clones got up as fast as they could, before being knocked back to the ground once more by another flick of her finger. Ten clones that were at the frontlines disappeared after that attack, which appeared to have been using more force than before.
The rest of the clones behind the main attacking force, however, were ready to continue their onslaught.
"Thirty seconds left!"
The clones jumped for Tsunade, who expertly evaded and left her starting position for the very first time. She dodged, ducked, and twisted her body in the perfect direction every time while making it look completely effortless. Then came her offense. With a swipe of her single finger, five clones went into nothingness. With another swipe, seven more poofed away.
"Twenty seconds left!"
Naruto didn't give her a chance to destroy the remaining clones. He commanded them to self-destruct, forming a large cloud of smoke. He had used a similar technique against Shikamaru in the Chuunin Exams to counter his shadow possession jutsu. It was a similar situation to fighting Tsunade as both had instant win conditions—Shikamaru's infamous technique and Tsunade's sheer strength.
Using the smoke as a distraction, Naruto made his move.
Tsunade flicked once more, penetrating the smoke wall with a circular hole that revealed a dangerously close Uzumaki.
Naruto surged his fist with chakra and took a page out of his opponent's book.
He took a quick breath.
And plunged his fist into the ground.
Activate Black Flash!
[Black Flash Lvl 1 Activated!]
[A phenomenon where space warps when chakra is applied within one-millionth of a second of a physical blow. When the user manages this feat, their chakra appears black, and the force of their attack is raised to the power of 2.5.]
The ground erupted and lifted into the air right in front of Tsunade as black sparks appeared around his arms and spread into the air around them. Fragments of earth and rock rose into the air blocking Tsunade's vision even further.
She flicked her finger one more time, exploding all of the airborne rocks into smaller pieces that launched toward Naruto.
Iron Skin!
[Activating… ]
[Skill: Iron Skin- Lvl 4 Activated!]
[Usage takes 7 MP and lasts for one minute before a skill cooldown of ten minutes applies.]
"Ten seconds left!"
The rocks slapped against the side of his skin uselessly, letting him get further into Tsunade's proximity.
Sleight of hand!
[Skill: Sleight of Hand Lvl 1 Activated!]
[Usage drains 10 MP points, with a cooldown of five seconds.]
A kunai flourished into his grasp.
The Saanin's eyes widened at the unexplainable appearance of the weapon.
"Six!"
The kunai drew closer.
"Five!"
Tsunade began moving her hand to intercept.
"Four!"
Naruto willed his hand to move even faster.
"Three!"
The tip of Tsunade's finger waited for the kunai to reach, prepared to split the steel in half with her brute strength.
"Two!"
Naruto felt a grin forming. Thanks for the timer, Shizune!
SLEIGHT OF HAND!
The kunai disappeared from his hand this time, leaving Tsunade's finger to strike against thin air. Another feeling of surprise filled her very being. She went against her trained instincts to drive her hand forward and punch Naruto into the ground with a brief struggle. She immediately began to move her finger down to block the next attack.
"One!"
Naruto's knuckles struck directly on the right side of her arm.
"YATTAAAAAA!"
His attack hit true, managing to knock Tsunade's arm to the side with a good amount of force. While the woman didn't seem too hurt (or damaged in the slightest), the look of shock on her face was more than worth it.
[Ding!]
[Special Quest: "Against the Odds" Completed]
[Details: Win the bet against Tsunade Senju.]
[Rewards: 2000 EXP.]
[Ding!]
[Congratulations! You leveled up! Player is now LV19.]
Sweet!
"I WON!" Naruto shouted with elation, pumping his fist into the sky as his heart rate slowed down from its previous breakneck speed.
Shizune gaped at what just happened. The moment she had begun counting down in the single digits she had safely assumed that the fight was over and that there was simply no way for Tsunade to lose in such a short manner of time.
She looked at the panting blond boy who merely stared at his hand and the contact that he made. Who the hell is he? Shizune was a Jonin-level shinobi, even if she had more accolades in healing than in direct combat, but she knew she could hold her own in a battle regardless. She found herself impressed by the boy's speed and ability. Shadow clones were already a surprise from the get-go, though Tsunade didn't seem to give them much attention. Then his ridiculous speed with the kunai…it seemed unnatural how fast he was able to bring the weapon out.
Tsunade was stunned by her loss. That last move…it was almost like the kunai disappeared out of thin air. Unless it was some sort of reverse summoning technique? Is it even possible to attach that to a kunai of all things?
More importantly, she just lost.
Naruto was able to reel himself back to reality. The adrenaline and exhilaration that was in his body slowly bled out, and instead came back stronger as triumph. He couldn't help but smirk at the tall woman in front of him. Sure, winning against someone who was barely trying was a poor tower to decide to yell on, but he was sticking to it.
A bet's a bet, after all.
He grinned widely. "Take it back."
Tsunade gritted her teeth. I can't believe I just lost to this brat…what's with my luck today? Well, it's always been terrible, but this is a new low. "I…retract my earlier statements."
"Which statement?" Naruto said, inspecting his nails.
"What?"
"How am I supposed to know what exactly you're retracting? It could be anything! I want to know what you're specifically talking about."
Tsunade coughed once. "The…ones about the Hokage. I officially retract them."
Naruto gave her a thumbs up, clearly pleased if his toothy grin was any sign.
Tsunade suddenly remembered the other part of the bet that she had foolishly mentioned. She brought it out and stared at it. Her grandfather's necklace was a source of many memories for her. Most of them were sad, but there were a few good times. This cursed necklace…can I really give it to another person?
Naruto saw her hesitation and was instantly curious. The ornament didn't seem too special or anything. Sure, the rock that it held was pretty shiny, but that was it. He was sure there were more valuable ores than he had seen before.
[Observing… ]
[Observation successful!]
[Item name: The First Hokage's Necklace.]
[Item Details: Crafted from a distant remnant of time, the necklace was created from a mysterious ore known as the Crystal Gem. Originally belonging to Hashirama Senju, the necklace was passed down the family before eventually landing with Tsunade. With its mysterious abilities and legendary status, the necklace is worth multiple fortunes.]
Naruto's eyes bulged. The First Hokage's necklace? Am I stealing someone's dead grandfather's relic?
He was torn.
On one hand, he kind of wanted something that was so rare. I mean who doesn't want something that the First Hokage had? He's practically everyone's hero in Konoha. He didn't really care about the price, because selling something like that to a random rich merchant was absolutely against his morals.
On the other hand, Tsunade had just kept that in her bet offhandedly, not expecting to lose. She clearly had some sentimental importance placed on the necklace if her meaningful look was any indication.
She began to move her hand which carried the jewel toward him.
He quickly made a decision.
"I don't want it."
Tsunade froze, clearly not expecting that response. "What?"
"I was joking earlier, but now I'm genuinely beginning to think your hearing is messed up. Like I said, I don't want that necklace," Naruto said, shaking his head in exasperation.
"But why?"
He scoffed loudly. "Who in their right mind would want that rusty-looking thing? I know nothing about jewels but I can tell it's not worth that much. You can keep it, granny."
He hated the fact that he had to lie so blatantly. The Uzumaki also somewhat hated the fact that he was so nice. Why couldn't he just be a regular person and accept the bet's reward? He had won it fair and square, after all. There were two aspects to the answer. The main one was that he felt somewhat like a scumbag.
The second was that he could turn this in his favor. While the fight had sidetracked the main objective, Naruto now knew why Jiraiya had sent him here.
It was to find Tsunade and convince her to come back to Konoha himself. He wasn't sure why the Pervy Sage had placed so much trust in him, but he wasn't going to let him down.
Tsunade looked affronted. "Rusty? Do you even know what this is—"
Naruto's eyes suddenly lit up. "Oh, so it's worth a lot? How much are we talking?"
"It's priceless…" She answered slowly.
He sighed slowly. "I see…. Regardless, I still don't want the necklace. How about you do something else for me?"
Shizune seemed to catch on. "You're asking Lady Tsunade for a favor? Tread carefully…"
"Don't worry, I'm not going to ask for anything too serious," Naruto said with a smile. "Just one favor. Something equivalent to the necklace, of course. According to the bet, the necklace should now be in my possession. So we could view this more as a trade than anything, really."
"What do you ask for?" Tsunade asked suspiciously, crossing her arms.
How do I do this? The slow way or the blunt way?
Naruto scratched his cheek with a single finger. "Uhm…could you come back to Konoha and be Hokage?"
Blunt way it is!
The silence was loud.
But it was not long-lasting.
Smoke appeared from nowhere with a loud 'poof' noise, hiding a shadow of a man who slowly, dramatically walked out. "The Legendary Jiraiya of Mount Myoboku is here!"
Tsunade's eyes widened, the sight of her teammate disturbing her train of thought.
Shizune gasped in recognition.
Naruto slapped his hand to his forehead, groaning at the same time.
Jiraiya was confused, which was a common thing these days.
Talk about terrible timing.
[—NTLS—]
"So you challenged him to a bet?" Jiraiya asked while laughing uproariously. "You should've known not to challenge someone considering your dreadful luck."
Naruto couldn't believe the turn of events. Five minutes earlier he was fighting against Tsunade and now here the four were sitting around a table in a nearby bar that Jiraiya ushered them all into without listening to any complaints. Shizune brought out the sake that she carried a second later.
Tsunade took a chug of the alcohol and grimaced. "Don't remind me about it. Enough of this beating around the bush—let's get to the matter at hand. What happened to sensei?"
Jiraiya sighed. "Matter at arm, to be more specific. He lost an arm."
Tsunade quickly swallowed down her drink before coughing continuously. "Huh? Are we talking about the same person here?"
"Is there any other sensei I should be wary of?"
She shook her head. "How did it happen?"
"Orochimaru…"
A dense silence filled the table, an unexplainable feeling that neither of them could bring to words. It came any time their former teammate was mentioned. Jiraiya wasn't sure if it was shame, regret, disappointment, anger, or a mix of all of the above.
"That bastard," Tsunade growled. "I knew he was up to something…"
She knew about the attack at Konoha. Who didn't? News spread fast these days, with how quickly paper was able to be printed and how big the market was for such major occurrences. She had found out a day after the ending of the Chuunin Exams that it was invaded by some of the
contending nations, an attack that was led by the infamous terrorist snake. Tsunade remembered drinking her worries away that day with a couple of strong bottles of aged wine.
Of course, she didn't know any specifics.
However, the fact remained.
While she was here spending her life away gambling and drinking, her sensei had lost an arm and potentially more from defending his village.
I hate myself…
She was brought out of her self-loathing by the quirky blond that sat near them.
"Granny, will you come and be Hokage or not?" Naruto asked out of the blue, eager to get this over with.
"That's Lady Tsunade to you!" Shizune corrected, outraged at the boy's gall.
Naruto blinked. "I would prefer to call her Hokage if I'm being honest. That's only if she comes with us, though."
Tsunade took a deep breath. "I…need time to think it through."
Jiraiya couldn't help but gape.
He had expected her to flat-out deny the entire offer, leaving him to get on his knees and beg her until she agreed. She would have caved in eventually—of that he was sure. The Toad Sage was fully prepared for a few shouting sessions that would have inevitably resulted in a few punches and damage to his body. Maybe even a few bribes or negotiations before she even began to think of accepting.
Why would she…
He looked over at Naruto, who had an annoyed expression on his face.
He's much more persuasive than I thought…I wonder what happened during the fight.
"I personally can't find how it's a tough decision to make. If I were you I'd take up the offer in a heartbeat," Naruto said. "How awesome would it be to be the first female Hokage? You'll be in the history books forever! Agh, I'm feeling jealous again."
Jiraiya took a sip of the sake. "Konoha needs you, Tsunade. Everything is a mess right now. Sensei is doing the best he can trying to cover all the holes, but those gaps are becoming bigger and bigger. We need someone that we trust and who is capable enough to take over while the Third can offer support. A team…like we were before."
"Yeah, and how did that turn out?" Tsunade said scathingly. "I said I'll think about it, so scram off before you close that window entirely yourselves."
Jiraiya winced. "Fair enough. Naruto, go back to our room and get some food, I'll be there in a moment."
"Eh?" Naruto eloquently responded.
"Just do it. I've got some words for the future Hokage here."
Alright. Don't think that I'm going to pay, though. I barely have enough to start with. Naruto said with a glare at his frog wallet. Wait a second, with this quest being officially listed as an S-rank, would I get the appropriate stipend as well? He daydreamed about all the ramen he could buy as he walked.
Jiraiya looked back at Tsunade once Naruto left. "Alright, why are you so okay with coming back?"
Tsunade raised a neatly trimmed eyebrow. "Shouldn't you be happy?"
"Yeah, but it doesn't make sense—"
"The boy…he's Minato's and Kushina's son, isn't he?"
A pause.
Shizune's eyes widened on their own. Minato…does she mean Minato Namikaze? The Fourth Hokage? But the boy said his name was Naruto Uzumaki, didn't he?
"Yes," Jiraiya confirmed. "He's their son. When did you figure it out?"
Tsunade chuckled. "During the middle of the fight, it suddenly clicked for me. I felt strangely familiar with the kid even though I'd never met him before. I think that was the reason I challenged him to the bet in the first place. He has all of Kushina's spunk and all of Minato's looks."
She wasn't as close to the family as Jiraiya was, but could definitely be considered as friends. During the Third Shinobi War, the Saanin had fought far away from the Yellow Flash as Konoha wanted to spread apart their most powerful shinobi as much as possible, so there wasn't much contact during the war.
She had met Kushina a few times as well and got an easy understanding of her character. Tsunade often conversed with Minato who was considered the brightest prospect for the position of Hokage at the time (alongside her ex-teammate) before the war had occurred. The position had all but been cemented once his war accolades were known to the public. Fugaku Uchiha was also a candidate but was swept aside in favor of Minato.
His rule was effective and progressive. A new golden age was upon Konoha after their toughest years were finally over.
Tsunade had left Konoha by then.
And then the Fourth had sacrificed himself.
Leaving behind a single successor.
Naruto Uzumaki.
The boy carried the 'Will of Fire' that Sarutobi had spoken so much about. It was obvious to anyone who had eyes that Naruto was different. He walked around like he was meant for something greater, and the confidence to challenge the gods themselves.
Dan and Nawaki were the same…. A traitorous voice in her head began to pour poison over her thoughts. And what happened to them?
Dead bodies flashed across her vision.
Red.
"Save me, Tsunade."
Blood.
"SAVE ME!"
She closed her eyes, willing the images away. Tsunade grasped her Grandfather's necklace for support.
"Please."
She opened her eyes to view the crystal.
I can't help but have a strange feeling that you'll find your true inheritor soon…
[—NTLS—]
Later that night…
[Ding!]
[Skill: Intermediate Chakra Control has increased by a level.]
[Intermediate Chakra Control is now Lvl 2]
Naruto stumbled to the ground once more in exertion, panting heavily as he fell to the floor. The rubber ball in his hand refused to break, but he could tell that he was almost there. He was merely missing the final piece of the puzzle; a piece that refused to be found.
Jiraiya was heavily snoring inside the room. Naruto tried to train inside but found himself completely unable to focus with how loud the man was. So currently he was on the balcony in the middle of the night trying to work on his technique.
He now had less than a week left. Naruto knew that Jiraiya would tell him about the Akatsuki sooner or later, but Naruto wanted the information now. No bullshit or cutting corners because he wasn't 'old enough' to know. If they were being honest, Naruto may not survive the next ten years of his life.
It was a brutal truth that he still wasn't accustomed completely to.
All of that made getting the Rasengan down even more important.
He got up again and placed the ball in his hand.
Naruto willed the chakra in his hand to move. Rotate! Rotate! Rotate! He poured more and more chakra into the ball, making the streams of energy forcibly move due to the lack of space it had. It was almost like the chakra was getting clogged somehow, refusing to rotate as it was stuck in the small expanse of the rubber toy.
Trial and error is key. I know I can't pour too much chakra—everything just fucks up. I need to pour the proper amount so that it still has the ability to rotate without getting clogged.
Sweat poured down his chin.
He closed his eyes and stopped pouring chakra once he felt that there was a good amount.
Turn!
A small wisp of chakra obeyed his command.
Then came another.
Then a few more.
Soon enough, the chakra was turning.
But that was the easy part—the part he already had locked down to a process. He was just more consistent with it now. Next came adding the speed to the rotation. Forcing his chakra to move faster than ever before…
The rubber ball began to tremble.
MOVE! FASTER!
POP!
[Ding!]
[Skill: Intermediate Chakra Control has increased by a level.]
[Intermediate Chakra Control is now Lvl 3]
[Ding!]
[Skill: Intermediate Chakra Control has increased by a level.]
[Intermediate Chakra Control is now Lvl 4]
He gritted his teeth.
Once more.
-end-
Yo!
My Pa tre on is back online for those who want to read THREE chapters ahead (chapters 39, 40, 41) and support my endeavor to become an author. So if you can't wait for the next update—check out:
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Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Chapters are getting longer again, which is always a good thing.
We're reaching a point where canon is going to be no longer a major reference. This won't be a fic where Naruto being a gamer is the only thing that is changed. It was already obvious from the International Chuunin Exams, but these characters *may* do different things from their canon counterparts, but still stay true to what makes them 'Kakashi' or 'Gai'. In the end, it's fanfiction, so really anything is fair game.
Question of the day:
What's your favorite skill/ability from any piece of media that you think this Naruto could realistically use? It could be from anime, video games, other written works, etc. I'm totally not fishing for more ideas :P
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Cya' next week ;)