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This scene, however, made Mito laugh as soon as she stepped through the door.
"Alright, stop racking your brains. That mouth of yours is just as clumsy as your grandfather's."
Tsunade could only scratch her head and give an awkward smile. There was nothing she could say. Grandma was the real head of the household.
Besides, nothing Mito had said was wrong. She was right, so Tsunade had no grounds to argue.
"Grandma, sit."
Tsunade pointed at the tatami, slipped on a layer of silk clothing, then obediently went to kneel on the other side, waiting for her grandmother's lecture.
The moment she knelt, her movements were full of natural allure, her chest giving the slightest bounce, making Mito shake her head helplessly.
Mito didn't press the issue. She knelt down opposite Tsunade, posture elegant and movements composed.
Her noble bearing as a proper lady stood out even more in contrast with Tsunade.
"So, what did that monkey Hiruzen call you in for?"
Mito was the first to speak.
Her gaze locked onto Tsunade, who raised her head and met her eyes with a calm expression.
"Grandma, sensei said he wants me, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya to each lead a thousand troops to the Land of Rain to crush their forces.
If necessary…"
Tsunade hesitated.
"Say it."
Mito's tone was light.
Tsunade let out a small sigh.
"If necessary, we're to intercept Hanzo of the Salamander and buy time for the rest of the army in the main battle."
Mito narrowed her eyes and fell silent for a long moment.
Her gaze alone was enough to make Tsunade tense up, her hands unconsciously clenching into fists.
"Hanzo of the Salamander is called a 'demigod' for a reason. His strength is not something you three little brats can simply block. A reputation like that is never baseless."
Mito's voice was calm.
Tsunade bit her lip.
"Grandma, this is the first major mission sensei has entrusted to us. I don't want to turn tail and run.
I know Hanzo is a Kage-level fighter, but if we don't at least try, how will we ever know what we're capable of?"
There was a light in her eyes now, something called determination, shining brightly.
But seeing that, Mito didn't smile. She only sighed.
"Since you've decided, I won't try to talk you out of it. Just make sure you come back alive."
Mito closed her eyes as she spoke.
"I don't want to lose this granddaughter of mine as well."
Her soft words left Tsunade momentarily dazed, and she couldn't help recalling Mito's life.
Marrying away from her homeland, coming all the way to Konoha, far from her clan. Widowed in middle age. Losing her son in her later years.
Now, the only blood relatives she had left were Tsunade and Nawaki.
And now, both siblings were heading onto the battlefield. For an elderly woman, how hard must that be to accept?
Tsunade had been fixated on proving her strength, proving that the granddaughter of Hashirama was a true powerhouse.
She had forgotten that, at home, her grandmother only wanted the two of them to be safe and happy.
"I will, Grandma. I'll come back alive."
Tsunade's eyes were slightly red, and her voice trembled.
Suddenly, something occurred to Mito.
"Tsunade, as I recall, a captain is allowed to pick one personal aide to accompany them, isn't that right?
Have you chosen anyone?"
"Eh?
Grandma, I haven't decided yet. Someone did recommend a boy from the Kato family. I heard his Reika no Jutsu (Spirit Transformation Technique) is pretty unusual."
Tsunade wiped away her tears as she spoke.
"Reika no Jutsu?
It's an interesting trick, but ultimately just a minor path."
Mito shook her head.
"I think that Uchiha boy is the better choice."
"Kotarou-kun? But his strength is only at the genin level!"
Tsunade exclaimed.
Mito rose and walked toward the door, then suddenly turned to look back at her.
"That kid's Sharingan may only be one-tomoe, but the aura inside it is stronger than most two-tomoe Sharingan, and almost at the level of three-tomoe."
Tsunade froze.
Three-tomoe?
Wouldn't that mean Kotarou-kun already had at least jōnin-level combat power?
Even so, that Kato boy was supposedly also at jōnin level, and on top of that he had the unique gift of Reika no Jutsu.
By comparison, Kotarou still seemed weaker.
While Tsunade was still puzzling over this, Mito added:
"That kid also has Jiton (Magnet Release)."
Tsunade's pupils shrank.
Magnet Release!
The kekkei genkai formed from combining wind and earth chakra, supposedly unique to their old rivals from Sunagakure.
How could it appear in an Uchiha?
"Kotarou can use Magnet Release… then why didn't he use it before?"
Tsunade was confused. She couldn't understand why Kotarou, with that kind of talent, would hide it instead of showing it.
"That's where he's better than you. 'The tree that stands above the forest is the first to be felled.' In his clan, he isn't valued, maybe even discriminated against.
And in the village, he's an Uchiha. Who exactly is there that he can trust?"
Mito chuckled softly.
"Even I only noticed something was off thanks to Kagura Shingan (Kagura's Mind Eye)…
So, little Tsunade, try to bring Kotarou with you tomorrow. I have a feeling that boy is anything but simple."
Mito's tone carried weight.
Then she turned and left Tsunade's room without looking back, returning to her own room to sleep.
Tsunade, meanwhile, stripped down and thought things through carefully. Reika no Jutsu was indeed special.
But it had serious drawbacks. The user's body had to be protected at all costs.
If someone pierced the body while the soul was out, and the soul couldn't return, the user would die.
And against a Kage-level opponent, Reika no Jutsu was little more than a child's trick. Its floor was high, but its ceiling was low.
Magnet Release as a kekkei genkai was a different story.
Even before Sunagakure was founded, they'd had Magnet Release users.
And without exception, every Magnet Release user ended up at Kage-level.
The current Third Kazekage was a Magnet Release user, and not just that, he wielded a special Iron Sand Magnet Release.
On top of that, Kotarou had the Uchiha clan's Sharingan.
With that alone, he had a real chance of reaching Kage-level.
Compared side by side, the position of personal aide was clearly more suitable for Kotarou.
Thinking that, Tsunade made up her mind.
Even so, she still wanted to ask Kotarou-kun for his own thoughts tomorrow. After all, a melon forced off the vine is never sweet.
With those thoughts, Tsunade drifted off to sleep.
The night passed quickly. Stars wheeled overhead, and a new day arrived.
Around five in the morning, Kotarou woke up.
That was the biological clock of this body.
The first thing he did after getting up was fold the bedding neatly and put it back in its original place.
Then he went to wash up. Clear water flowed from the tap.
Kotarou cupped his hands under it, and a chill shot up from his palms.
He shivered involuntarily.
Then he splashed the water full-force onto his face.
Ice-cold, straight to the soul.
It stung for a moment, but once he got through that first shock, his body quickly adapted, and it even felt pretty refreshing.
(End of Chapter)
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