In the ninja world, finding Tsunade was simple.
All one had to do was go to a casino.
She was the famously easy mark known as the Legendary Sucker. She basically never won. Even if she did win, it usually meant something bad was about to happen.
Minato and the others wanted to find Tsunade because Konoha needed a new Hokage. The Third Hokage was already far too old and was no longer suited to continue serving as Hokage.
"So big…"
When Lumine saw Tsunade's chest, she was shocked. Tsunade's bust was even more astonishing than she had imagined.
"Uh, Tsunade-nee's chest really is huge," Kushina said after thinking about it. Among all the people she knew, no one could compare to Tsunade.
She had no idea how Tsunade had grown like that.
But Kushina was not jealous. Breasts that large looked like they would be exhausting for the shoulders.
Since they had no intention of hiding or avoiding notice, Tsunade had discovered them long ago. However, she had not sensed any malice from them, so she directly led the people following her into an alley.
"You've got guts, daring to follow—"
Before she could finish speaking after turning around, an expression of astonishment appeared on her face. She stared at them in disbelief.
"Minato? Kushina?"
She was far too familiar with those two faces.
One was the younger sister who had lived in her home when they were children. The other was the disciple of that perverted Jiraiya.
As for whether this could be the Transformation Jutsu, Tsunade did not think so. After all, these were the characteristics of Edo Tensei, and she had heard of that forbidden jutsu before.
"You're the caster?" Tsunade frowned, her sharp gaze landing on Koji.
Although she also had people she wanted to revive, Edo Tensei was far too cruel a ninjutsu. It could be called a desecration of the dead.
"Tsunade, do you think this is the right place to talk?" Koji said with a smile.
Tsunade nodded. There was no hostility, so they probably were not enemies coming after her.
In a private room at a restaurant, Kushina set up a soundproof barrier seal.
"Explain, then. What exactly is going on with you? Why did you suddenly come back to life?" Tsunade had not brought Shizune with her. It was better for Shizune not to get involved in something like this. She could simply stay at their lodging.
"I'll explain, Tsunade-sama," Minato said with a slight smile.
The reason he did not let Kushina explain was because he was worried Kushina would get more and more worked up as she spoke. By then, Tsunade would probably end up unable to understand the situation properly.
"…"
Minato explained everything that had happened after they were brought back through Edo Tensei.
Tsunade's expression grew increasingly silent and complicated. Yet she did not seem too surprised. It was almost as if she had already grown accustomed to this sort of thing.
She sighed deeply in her heart.
As Hokage, Minato was someone she had actually held high hopes for. He had possessed the chance to change Konoha's current state.
But who could have expected that the Masked Man would attack Konoha and cause the Nine-Tails to go berserk?
"You want me to go back and become Hokage? Minato, have you thought this through properly?" Tsunade said speechlessly.
Who did not know that she did not want to become Hokage?
She even had hemophobia. She had absolutely no interest in getting involved with something like the Hokage position.
Her current life was perfectly fine. There was no need to become Hokage and give herself that much work.
"Tsunade-sama, I'm only a dead man. Once I finish what I need to do, Kushina and I will leave this world. If possible, I hope that you, as Hokage, can look after Naruto," Minato said with a bitter smile.
"…"
"Do the two of you regret it?"
Tsunade fell silent for a moment. She did not answer the question of whether or not she would become Hokage. Instead, she posed that question to them.
A happy, complete family had been shattered because of duty, leaving behind an infant with no parents and no one to rely on.
Minato and Kushina both fell silent.
How could they not regret it?
But they could no longer change the past. All they could do was try their best to change the present.
"I understand. But I won't become Hokage. You should find someone else," Tsunade said.
Minato had asked around. The situation with Konoha's younger generation was difficult to put into words. There were barely any outstanding candidates.
Konoha clearly had a Ninja Academy, yet none of the talent it produced had reached the level required to serve as Hokage.
That was right. He was talking about strength.
To become Hokage, one needed hard power surpassing a jonin's at the very least. Otherwise, forget leading anyone. They would not even be able to convince the people to obey.
"Go find Jiraiya. His reputation and strength are both enough," Tsunade said casually.
"Jiraiya-sensei? I don't know where he is either."
Minato shrugged. Compared to Tsunade, who only moved around within the Land of Fire, Jiraiya ran all over the world. Who knew where he had gone to peep at someone bathing?
Although it was possible to find Jiraiya through Mount Myoboku, Minato was ultimately an Edo Tensei body. If too many people learned about it, some unexpected changes might occur.
That was why he could only come find Tsunade, who was relatively easier to locate.
"Jiraiya, huh… I don't know where he is either. The last time I saw him was almost three years ago."
Tsunade thought for a moment. Jiraiya's books sold extremely well, and his royalties were not small. The last time they met, she had asked him for some money and used it to repay some of her debts.
"Tsunade-nee, the two of us definitely don't want to see that old geezer, the Third, continue sitting in the Hokage's seat," Kushina said.
"Tsunade, I can let you meet your younger brother, Nawaki. How about it?" Koji said.
"Nawaki?"
When Tsunade heard that name, her expression went blank for a moment. She fell into hesitation.
She knew Edo Tensei was a jutsu that desecrated the dead.
But she truly wanted to see her most beloved younger brother.
"Tsunade, if we look at it from a conspiracy-theory angle, your brother's death might be related to Danzo. Who wouldn't want the power of Wood Release? As for whether Hiruzen was involved, you should already have your own guesses, right?"
This was not Koji's personal guess. Many Naruto fans had speculated this way before, and Danzo was also the famous king of taking the blame in the ninja world.
Any dirty work Hiruzen could not personally do would be handed over to Danzo. Danzo did not have any major objections anyway. He was already used to it.
After all, he wanted to do those things too.
"…"
Tsunade's hand tightened around her chopsticks.
If one viewed it as a conspiracy, then it really did seem related to Danzo.
If they wanted to experiment with Wood Release, Senju blood was the perfect choice. Her younger brother, as the biological grandson of Hashirama, the God of Shinobi, undoubtedly had blood very close to Hashirama's.
Then there were all those dead and disappeared members of the Senju clan. Without a doubt, the trail pointed toward their own people.
She had vaguely guessed this, which was why she had chosen to leave Konoha and wander outside. The water in this matter was too deep, and Konoha's roots had already rotted.
If Danzo truly had done something like this, would her teacher Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, really have known nothing?
He most likely knew.
He simply had not stopped it and had tacitly approved of that method.
"…"
"Fine. I agree."
Tsunade took a deep breath and made her decision.
She wanted to see her younger brother.
(End of Chapter)
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