The golden chakra tail felt warm.
Tsunade rolled over to look at Naruto Uzumaki sitting beside her. She gently rested her head on the boy's lap and slowly closed her eyes. This was a boy she could trust.
Orochimaru had once told her that the trauma from Nawaki's and Dan Kato's deaths had given her post-traumatic stress, and her hemophobia was just one of its symptoms. For so many years, she hadn't had a single good night's sleep. Whenever she drifted into a light slumber, the color of blood would fill her vision, and the ghosts of Nawaki and Dan would appear one after another, never letting her rest.
Only by numbing her mind with alcohol or pushing her body to sheer exhaustion could she manage to sleep for a few hours.
After their earlier talk, Tsunade had decided to trust the boy beside her. She would place her past hopes on him, hoping he could change this ninja world and prevent the tragedies of Nawaki and Dan from ever happening again. With that thought, she finally allowed herself to fall asleep next to Naruto.
Unfortunately, someone seemed destined to ruin her sleep.
"Naruto! Tsunade!"
Jiraiya's shout echoed throughout the valley. The golden fox tail was like a beacon in the darkness, allowing Jiraiya, Hashirama Senju, and the others to quickly spot them at the bottom of the cliff.
Naruto looked up happily. "Pervy Sage, have you guys eaten? I haven't had dinner yet..."
"This idiot!"
Before Naruto could finish, the blonde kunoichi, who had just been showing a rare moment of vulnerability, violently threw the fox tail off her. She shattered the ground with a single step and shot up the cliff face.
A pale fist, carrying unimaginable power, smashed directly into Jiraiya's face, sending him flying.
Tsunade cracked her knuckles, her voice cold. "Hey, Jiraiya. If you've all already placed your hopes on Naruto, then what's this about making me the Fifth Hokage? Are you using me as a temporary substitute?"
This was seriously infuriating. If Hashirama hadn't told her that Jiraiya had already refused the position, and if she hadn't had that long talk with Naruto, she might have foolishly agreed to become Hokage after a few days of thinking it over.
After her conversation with Naruto, Tsunade roughly understood Jiraiya's thinking. Her old friend had transferred the hope he once placed in Minato Namikaze onto his son, Naruto. Wasn't this just him shirking responsibility and pushing it onto her? What use was a man like that?
"Ah... hahaha..." Jiraiya's face was already swelling. He awkwardly held up his hands and said cautiously, "Don't say that. Naruto is still too young. He needs to train hard, and being Hokage is a difficult job..."
"Hmph?" Tsunade gave him a look of pure confusion, then glared irritably. "So you're making me the Fifth Hokage? If you don't know how to talk, then keep your mouth shut!"
"Little Tsuna, are you alright?" Hashirama sized up his granddaughter and couldn't help but exclaim, "To think you could come out of a fight with Naruto unscathed. Little Tsuna has really become strong!"
The First Hokage knew Naruto's strength. Even without Sage Mode, the Nine-Tails' power, or Wood Style, the Rasengan-derived jutsu he developed himself was enough to contend with Tsunade.
Hashirama's blunt honesty only made his granddaughter's face darken further. Listening to him, Tsunade looked like she was about to bite through her teeth. Shizune quietly tried to soothe her from the side, terrified she would fly into a rage and beat everyone up. "Lady Tsunade..."
"Hmph..." Tsunade took a deep breath. The more she looked at the people around her, the more annoyed she became. She slapped her own face and said coldly, "Find a place. We're going to have a good talk about who is most suitable to be the Fifth Hokage!"
"O-okay..." The men nodded, trembling.
Naruto, who had just climbed up from the bottom of the cliff, saw this and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. "Granny Tsunade, didn't you just say you were going to be the Fifth Hokage? And that you were going to make me a genin for life..."
"Hehe..." Tsunade played with her lips, a small chuckle escaping. "Ha, that was the idea before. Now I have a new one. A position where you just sit in an office all day, with no drinking or gambling... I don't really like the sound of that..."
Hashirama drily retorted, "The duty of the Hokage is to protect everyone in the village..."
"Great-Grandpa!" Tsunade pointed a finger at Naruto. "With this kid's strength, isn't he enough to protect Konoha?"
A sudden wave of malice seemed to land squarely on Naruto's head. The others looked at each other, but no one answered. Only Jiraiya looked thoughtfully at Naruto, his brow slightly furrowed. He knew his friend; no matter how absurd she sounded, she was more than capable of following through.
-----
At a late-night diner, Tsunade sat at a table, pouring herself drinks and occasionally glaring at Jiraiya, which left the white-haired man utterly confused. Naruto sat next to Jiraiya, his chopsticks a blur as he shoveled down his dinner.
"Eat slower..." Tsunade said, her brow furrowed as she watched the boy devour his food. Thinking about the bold idea forming in her mind, she tapped her fingernails against her cup and decided to start a new topic. "Naruto has a lot of talent for medical ninjutsu..."
This part wasn't wrong. Ordinary medical ninjutsu stimulated a patient's cell activity, allowing them to heal with the help of chakra. But the medical ninjutsu Naruto had just used on her arm was peculiar. It could actually replicate a person's cells to fill in damaged tissue.
As a master medical ninja, Tsunade was naturally curious. "Naruto, want to be my disciple?" she offered. "I can teach you all my medical ninjutsu, including the Mystical Palm Technique. I can also help you sign a summoning contract with the slug sage, Katsuyu..."
"Tsunade, Naruto is my disciple..." Jiraiya slapped his forehead. Tsunade's behavior seemed familiar. He recalled how he had confidently taken Naruto on, only to find that the jutsu he knew was a bit inadequate for teaching him. This kid had practically pushed the derivatives of Rasengan to their limit. Even Jiraiya couldn't find any fault with them. Faced with a disciple who could develop S-rank ninjutsu on his own, was he supposed to teach him B-rank techniques?
"He doesn't need a summoning beast, either," Jiraiya added, glancing at the still-wolfing-down Naruto. "He can summon all the toads of Mount Myoboku, including the Great Toad Sage, and he can already practice Sage Mode on his own..."
"Naruto's Wood Style training is also going very smoothly," Hashirama chimed in, a bit embarrassed to be raining on her parade. "And with Naruto's abilities, learning medical ninjutsu would be a step backward, right? The Yang Power he can use is purer than the Yang-nature chakra I can refine..."
"..."
Tsunade blinked, then slammed her fist on the table decisively. "Since he's already so strong, why not just let him succeed as the Fifth Hokage?
"Anyway, right now, Konoha just needs a strong Hokage. Whether this Hokage has a brain or can govern the village isn't that important, right!"
-----
Bonus:
Tsunade: I propose Naruto as the Fifth Hokage. Who agrees, who objects?
Jiraiya: I agree. After all, this is related to my cram school enrollment...
Hashirama: I don't know if I should agree. I already said you can't become Hokage through connections...
Tsunade: He's not using connections! Naruto is very strong!
Hashirama: It's not a question of strength...
Tobirama: Minato Namikaze was the Fourth Hokage, and Naruto Uzumaki is the Fifth. Isn't this just the son succeeding the father after he dies?
Kushina Uzumaki: After the First died, the Second took over. Isn't that just the younger brother succeeding the older? Besides, the Third Hokage ruled between Minato and Naruto!
Minato Namikaze: I'm in the Reaper's stomach, bad signal... hanging up.
Hiruzen Sarutobi: I'm inside the Totsuka Blade, don't call. I only recommend three people: Jiraiya, Tsunade, Kakashi. Please consider them.
Tobirama: Then what is there to consider! All three of them approve of this brat succeeding! Monkey, why did you have to die so early!
Hiruzen Sarutobi: Teacher, how did I die? Don't you already have a clue?