Naruto: Starting with Tsunade-san

Tsunade was lost in her thoughts when suddenly a wave of warmth spread across her chest.

Looking down, she froze, her wide eyes locked onto a certain someone's hand.

"..."

Her mind went blank, her body heated up, and her ability to think plummeted.

It was probably because this was the first time a boy had touched her body.

Thump, thump…

Her heartbeat felt like it was going to leap out of her chest…

"Should I keep going?"

Tōshirō met Tsunade's dodging, evasive gaze and asked with a mischievous grin, "I heard that this kind of contact helps with blood circulation and even promotes growth~"

"That's… that's impossible…" Tsunade stammered, her voice trembling.

"There's no need to hold back your voice; it's fine…"

His coaxing tone was like a devil tempting Faust.

"Letting you hear an embarrassing sound… no way, I'd rather die."

Tsunade bit her lip and suppressed her voice, making only a faint, mosquito-like murmur.

"Don't worry, nothing bad will happen…"

Tōshirō's hand rested on her chest, though he hadn't begun to do anything inappropriate.

Suddenly, the air was broken by a loud voice that interrupted the scene.

"Stop! You can't continue this anymore!"

The older Tsunade burst into the room in a panic, nearly tripping as she pushed the door open.

Tōshirō: ???

Tsunade: ???

The two froze in shock and hurriedly separated.

The older Tsunade was drenched in sweat and out of breath, as if she had just finished a marathon.

The younger Tsunade, still flushed, stared at her in surprise and called her name, "Why are you back, Rangiku?"

"Rangiku" was the name the older Tsunade had deliberately used to conceal her identity from her younger self.

It wasn't a big deal, though.

The real issue was… what had she just walked in on???

The older Tsunade's mind was spinning, as if someone had hit her over the head with a wooden stick.

What she had just witnessed was probably something only she in the entire world could encounter.

Swallowing hard, she stammered and tried to divert the topic. "This… this kind of thing is too early for the two of you."

Caught red-handed, both Tōshirō and the younger Tsunade looked embarrassed.

"You two are still young. Don't let the temptations of romance distract you from your training." The older Tsunade coughed twice, offering sincere advice.

It made sense…

But wasn't she meddling a bit too much?

Tōshirō shot her a strange glance.

Noticing his look, the older Tsunade explained, "I'm speaking from experience. Romance is a deep and complicated thing, and I'm worried you might lose control."

Nearby, Shizune gave her a peculiar look. Lady Tsunade, aren't you still single yourself?

Tōshirō observed the blonde-haired, brown-eyed beauty. Based on what Tsunade had mentioned earlier, it was she who had saved him.

This suggested that her medical skills were exceptional, likely far surpassing those of the younger Tsunade at this stage.

His mind raced, recalling any woman in his memory who was both beautiful and skilled in medical ninjutsu.

A beautiful, strong kunoichi with medical expertise narrowed the possibilities considerably.

Even so, Tōshirō had never heard of a female medical ninja named Rangiku.

Could she be an original character not present in the canon?

As he pondered, his gaze fell on the blonde beauty's companion, a short-haired woman dressed in black with a fishnet underlay, holding… a pink pig?

The little pink pig sniffed and snorted: ^(*￣(oo)￣)^

Realization struck Tōshirō , and he stared blankly in thought.

Misunderstanding his reaction, Shizune quickly clarified, "Just so you know, this isn't food. It's a ninja pig."

A ninja pig?

Tōshirō's thoughts clicked, and he asked her name.

"I'm Shizune," she replied, hesitating briefly, "a disciple of Lady Rangiku."

Shizune?

With her name and the pig as clues, Tōshirō glanced between Tsunade and Rangiku. Suddenly, everything became clear.

The golden hair, the diamond-shaped mark on her forehead, and that distinctive…

What the heck? Rangiku?

This is obviously the older Tsunade!

Tōshirō was now 200% certain that the woman in front of him was Tsunade.

But wait…

Why was the future Tsunade here, and why was she deliberately hiding her identity?

Tōshirō connected the dots to Roran's Dragon Vein. Could this be time travel?

But that didn't make sense. If it were time travel, why weren't they still in Roran?

From what he remembered, if there had been a time-travel event, they should have been in Roran, not some random place.

Unable to figure it out, Tōshirō looked confused and asked, "Tsunade, where are we right now?"

Hearing his question, the younger Tsunade grew curious too.

When Tōshirō was unconscious, she had been too worried to ask. Now that he was awake, it was time to confirm their location.

With this question lingering, she turned to her future self for answers.

The older Tsunade hesitated. If she told her younger self, it might alter history, potentially causing her own existence to vanish.

After careful consideration, she finally replied, "This is Tanzaku Town in the Land of Fire."

She wasn't trying to hide it; she simply couldn't.

Instead of keeping secrets, it was better to directly tell them the truth and take control of the situation later.

Tsunade thought she had misheard: "This is Tanzaku Town?"

She had been to Tanzaku Town before, but the changes here were far too drastic. "What era is this now?"

She suspected she might have traveled through time. How else could such dramatic changes be explained?

The older Tsunade hesitated for a moment before answering: "Year 63 of Konoha."

Tsunade's eyes widened in disbelief.

The older Tsunade feigned ignorance: "Why are you asking such strange questions?"

Tsunade stayed silent, unsure how to respond. Telling the truth would just make her sound like a lunatic.

At the same time, curiosity about the future gnawed at her. She began to wonder if she should visit Konoha to see what her future self was like. She was also curious to know whether Jiraiya and Orochimaru would recover from their injuries.

These were perfectly natural thoughts for anyone in her position.

The older Tsunade suddenly asked, "Tsunade, you said earlier that you two are ninjas from Konoha. Why have I never seen you before?"

Tsunade looked surprised. "Sister Rangiku, are you also a Konoha ninja?"

"Yes," the older Tsunade replied coldly. Her tone grew sharper as she demanded, "Who exactly are you two?"

The younger Tsunade flinched at her imposing demeanor and shrank back slightly, murmuring softly, "Sister Rangiku…"

"Don't call me that," the older Tsunade interrupted.

Tsunade fell silent.

The older Tsunade pressed on coldly: "Tsunade, when we first met, you introduced yourself with that name, didn't you?"

Tsunade nodded, confirming it.

"The Hidden Leaf Village is large, and it's possible there are children your age I haven't met before. However, the name you introduced yourself with… I can say with 100% certainty that there is only one person in the entire village with that name."

Tsunade's face froze. "That person…"

"Yes, that person is none other than the granddaughter of the First Hokage!"

Tsunade: …

How could she have overlooked that? Her name was quite well-known in the village.

"Tell me who you two really are!" The older Tsunade's cold, intimidating aura was so overwhelming that both Tōshirō and Tsunade felt breathless.

Tōshirō , still recovering from his earlier exhaustion, glanced at the younger Tsunade and sighed inwardly. She was doing a great job of pretending. He finally spoke up: "You might not believe this, but the two of us are actually from the past."

As expected...

The older Tsunade maintained a calm exterior, though her expression grew more serious. She waved her hand dismissively. "What nonsense. If you're going to lie, at least come up with a more believable story."

Tōshirō stole a glance at her, realizing she was still playing along.

If he didn't already know she was Tsunade, he might have believed her act.

Unsure what her endgame was, Tōshirō explained everything in detail to the older Tsunade, even mentioning how Orochimaru and Jiraiya had sustained such severe injuries that they were left crippled.

The mention of Orochimaru and Jiraiya's injuries stunned the older Tsunade. Though her expression didn't change, her disbelief remained. "Hearing about it is one thing, but seeing it is another. Do you have any proof?"

Tōshirō sighed. "If the Tsunade of this era is still alive, then her two specialties are medical ninjutsu and superhuman strength, right?"

Tsunade, feeling like he was jinxing her, pouted. "Hey, is that any way to talk about me?"

"I was just giving an example."

"Indeed," the older Tsunade admitted, closing her eyes briefly as she carefully considered her next words.

Tōshirō turned to Tsunade. "Tsunade, why don't you demonstrate your two specialties for Sister Rangiku?"

He added, almost as an afterthought, "Oh, and don't do it here. Your super strength is so destructive that this room might not survive."

The older Tsunade found his reasoning sound and gestured for them to step outside.

Reluctantly, Tsunade followed her out. At this point, proving herself was the only way to convince the older Tsunade.

Not long after, the two returned. The older Tsunade's expression had softened considerably. "I never expected that you two truly came from the past—and that you, young lady, are the past version of Lady Tsunade herself."

"Sister Rangiku, I told you I wasn't lying," Tsunade pouted.

"Apologies," the older Tsunade said with a hint of guilt.

"By the way, Sister Rangiku, can you tell me about my future? And about Konoha?" Tsunade asked eagerly, showing unprecedented enthusiasm.

Tōshirō and Shizune, both aware of the older Tsunade's true identity, watched her closely, curious as to how she would respond.

The older Tsunade hesitated, her expression troubled. "I'm sorry, but I can't answer that."

"Why not?" Tsunade asked, confused. "If I know about the future, can't I prevent bad things from happening?"

Her words struck a nerve, stirring painful memories in the older Tsunade.

If only I could have prevented it… those two people…

Her gaze flickered away involuntarily, landing on the black-haired boy nearby. He was staring at her curiously, his innocent expression almost unsettling.

Wait…

Why didn't she recognize this boy at all?

There was no doubt the younger Tsunade was her past self, but this boy… no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't recall anything about him.

"You're not wrong, but have you considered that if you change the past, the future might also change? And not necessarily for the better—it could become worse."

Hearing this, Tōshirō realized the older Tsunade's intent. All her earlier buildup was simply a way to find a reasonable excuse not to disclose any information about the future.

Her reasoning made sense, but Tsunade was still unwilling to give up. She clung to the older Tsunade's arm, her big, pleading eyes sparkling. "If that's the case, can you at least tell me a little about my future? Just a small part, please?"

She was genuinely curious about what her future self was like—and, more importantly, whether she ended up marrying Tōshirō and having children.

Faced with her younger self's persistence, the older Tsunade sighed in resignation. "Fine. You're impossible to deal with…"

Sometimes withholding everything could backfire, only fueling her curiosity further.

Overjoyed, the younger Tsunade beamed, eager to finally learn about her future.

Tōshirō and Shizune, both in the know, watched intently. They were curious about how the older Tsunade would describe herself.

(End of Chapter)

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