Naruto: The Senju Patriarch

The shinobi in the meeting continued to flesh out the plan of action, assigning responsibilities, such as the Aburame acting as scouts, while being protected by Sarutobi and Senju clan members. The Nara clan were instrumental in creating plans and traps, Katsuro noted. Good luck that Ryo's dating one of them, he thought. Hopefully that strengthens our ties with them.

Once the meeting had ended, and people began to depart, Tsunade stayed to speak with Sakumo about her initiative and proposal with Iryo ninjutsu and medical shinobi. Katsuro gave a signal for the Senju jonin and leaders to also leave, who had cheeky smiles on their faces, almost making fun of Katsuro. 

Seeing Katsuro stay sitting, Tsunade was almost about to say something again, before remembering that she was meant to be ignoring him, and continued speaking with Sakumo. Sakumo, seeing this interaction, once again shook his head and sighed, although he was inwardly smiling. When their conversation finished, she simply got up and left, not paying attention to Katsuro at all. Katsuro, almost shocked at the cheek of her, also got up saying his goodbyes to his master. 

"Don't bother arranging a tent for me by the way, Sensei." He said, as he was leaving.

Both of them would have liked to have talked more and caught up but understood - Katsuro was on a mission. 

Tsunade made her way to her tent, which Katsuro found eventually while asking for directions from some Konoha shinobi. Her tent was big, worthy of the leader of the Medical Corps.

Katsuro didn't bother making his presence known, he simply walked in. 

"How dare you come int-" Tsunade began, but upon seeing who it was she snorted, "Hmph, so it's this pervert."

"Princess, will you really keep being like this after so long?" 

Katsuro was guilt tripping her with no remorse, but as soon as it started working, he ruined it. 

"Fine then, I see how it is! You've already replaced me, " he said, fake sniffling, 

"Is it Kato Dan? In that case, I will wish you two a happy life!" he pronounced dramatically, before walking out. 

For once in his life, Katsuro's instincts failed him, as Tsunade grabbed the back of his collar, forcing him to turn back to her. 

"Senju Katsuro, I dare you to say that again," she said with an expressionless face, but clear irritation leaking through her voice. Katsuro could swear he actually saw tick marks on her forehead. Realising the dire situation he was in, he almost began sweating. Tsunade was not happy.

Oh no, she used the full name like Granny used to do - I might be screwed. 

He hadn't even reacted like this when Onoki trapped him, so Katsuro did the only thing that would save him - he took her by surprise, and, quicker than she could react, placed a kiss on her lips.

Tsunade froze up, not expecting it at all, but folded almost immediately, melting into it after only a moment of hesitation. After they parted, she blushed and punched his chest playfully. 

"Don't say something like that again, you know you're the only one I love."

He laughed softly, hearing the confession, earning him another punch. 

"I love you too, Tsunade. I've missed you so much," he whispered, placing a kiss on his lover's forehead and hugging her close. Tsunade returned the words and gesture, and they both closed their eyes, grateful that they had been lucky enough to be together again. 

The moon, illuminating the sky, shone down on the campsite, but the night wasn't just for sleeping.

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

A few hours later, after they had fallen asleep, Katsuro woke up to the sound of Tsunade softly sniffling on his chest.

"Tsuna? Are you alright? What's wrong?" 

"Nothing, Suro… it's just, I miss him. I miss Nawaki. And Granny Mito. And my parents. And I just, Why couldn't I save any of them?" 

Tsunade quietly cried in Katsuro's arms, her voice breaking. Katsuro saw tears, dried on Tsunade's face. The faint light from the lamp nearby allowed him to stare deep into her eyes, puffy and reddened from her crying.

"Y'know, I feel the same way. It seems like no matter how strong I am, it never truly matters. I wasn't able to save my parents, or Nawaki, or Granny Mito. And, yeah, it hurts. A lot. But, none of them would want their deaths to be the reason I stayed sad or moping around. And, I'm still grateful for what I do have. I have you, Sakumo, Kushina, the rest of the Senju clan and the Leaf Village. Remember, Granny Mito told us not to blame us for the things we couldn't control. Well, I think we should take that advice and move forward. For ourselves, our family and for our village." 

Most people would agree that the Senju Patriarch had always been good with words, and knew what to say to people in situations that required careful thought, and to anyone else that heard what he said, they would think of it being nothing more than Katsuro just being Katsuro, saying the right thing to help the people he loved. But Tsunade knew him better - no, more than that, she knew him best - and she could see that behind his disguised strength and outward demeanour, her boyfriend was hurting.

Nawaki isn't just my little brother - he's Suro's too, she thought. He's trying to be strong, for my sake and the sake of the clan, but he's hurting. Not just because of Nawaki, but every other Senju that's passed. He thinks he's responsible for them, and for their deaths too. He's probably hurting more than I am right now, but he thinks he can't show it because he's our leader.

Tsunade took a deep breath, trying to be strong for the man she loved, not wanting to burden him any further. 

"Right … you're right. I have you, and Kushina, and Mr Sakumo, and everyone else. Besides," she said, still sniffling slightly, "Nawaki and Granny Mito wouldn't want me to stay sad and moping around - they would want me to be happy."

"Exactly, Tsuna," Katsuro replied, kissing her forehead.

Suddenly, she wrapped her arms around his body as tight as she could, and looked up into his eyes.

"Katsuro, no matter how annoying and stupid you sometimes - no - always are, I hope you know that I love you to death." 

The Senju Patriarch looked surprised at her sudden declaration, but before he could open his mouth to speak, she squeezed him further, and continued.

"Y'know, you're really good at giving advice, but sometimes I wonder if you take your own advice. Remember, they love you too, Katsuro. They would want you to move on and be happy too." 

Tsunade didn't have to say anything else for Katsuro to understand that she knew how he had been feeling. I'm so lucky, he thought to himself. Tsunade, despite her fiery temper and attitude, knew him well - more than that, she understood him well, in a way that no one else in the world could, and for that, Katsuro loved her even more than that.

"I love you, Tsuna," he said, pressing another soft kiss to her forehead.

They both laughed softly, and Katsuro smiled, grateful for Tsunade's words.

Mom, Dad, Granny, Nawaki, I hope I've made you proud.  

And soon, they fell asleep once again, finding comfort in each other's warmth, until the morning came. 

////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The next morning, Katsuro and Tsunade were woken up early by a messenger.

"Lord Katsuro and Lady Tsunade, the White F- I mean, Lord Sakumo, has summoned you to his tent. Please, get there as soon as you can!"

Minutes later, they had arrived at the tent, where Sakumo, Shikaro and Dan were already waiting for them, their expressions grim.

"They're here early," Sakumo announced, his voice steely.

"The Suna shinobi are assembling. The Kazekage has arrived. Prepare for battle."

AN: If you would like to view up to 20 chapters ahead, and would also like to support me, please visit my P@TR30N, at pa tr eon.com / GhidorahWriter (remove the spaces). Thanks for reading and make sure ADD to your COLLECTION and VOTE with POWER STONES! The target is 50 POWER STONES for the next BONUS chapter!