Naruto: Wooing Tsunade from Day One!

"Then, Minato, show me the Rasengan, and I'll see if there's anything I can improve."

Kawakaze looked serious as he spoke to Minato, carefully concealing his true intentions. It was a little embarrassing for a Sensei to seek advice from his own student.

"Okay."

Minato didn't suspect a thing—after all, his Sensei had been the one to come up with the concept of the Rasengan.

"The first step is to gather your Chakra in the palm of your hand and spin it."

Minato extended his right hand, and a swirling, irregular ball of Chakra began to form in his palm. It grew steadily, spinning faster and faster as it expanded.

"The second step is power, and the third step is killing."

With that, Minato firmly pressed the Rasengan into the ground.

Boom!

A massive crater appeared before them, leaving everyone momentarily stunned.

"What do you think, Sensei? Is there anything lacking?"

Minato looked at Kawakaze with a hopeful expression, eager for feedback. Nearby, the three children watching were wide-eyed with admiration.

"Wow! What an incredible technique! Brother Minato really lives up to his reputation!"

"That's it?"

The voice came from Sakumo, who had approached silently with little Kakashi in his arms. He seemed genuinely perplexed.

"Cough, cough... Minato, you need to explain it in more detail," Kawakaze muttered, realizing he hadn't fully understood it either. He urged Minato to elaborate further.

"It's like a water balloon in your hand, and then—bang—it pops!"

Minato paused, thinking carefully before offering this vivid analogy, even gesturing to mimic the action.

"Wait..."

Kawakaze froze, the words ringing a bell. Damn, he thought, isn't this exactly how Naruto explained it to Konohamaru?

It struck him: like father, like son—their explanations were equally abstract!

"Did you understand?" Kawakaze turned to the three kids and asked. They shook their heads in unison.

"It's not that difficult; even an idiot can understand it," Minato said, confident he had explained it clearly. He was just waiting for the chance to teach them hands-on.

"Idiot?"

Kawakaze and Sakumo exchanged glances. "We're not idiots."

"No need to say it, I understand," they both replied at the same time. The two stubborn men of the Hatake Clan were quick to speak, unwilling to risk being labeled as idiots.

"This technique is very good. Next, you can try making the Rasengan a bit bigger or incorporating Chakra Nature Transformation," Kawakaze said, pretending to be serious as he offered a suggestion for Minato's next steps.

"Yes, Sensei."

Minato nodded earnestly, taking the advice to heart. Meanwhile, the three kids stood silently, wrestling with self-doubt.

Am I really worse than an idiot? they wondered. But Sensei said I was smart. This technique of Brother Minato's is just too hard!

"Sensei, I'm going out for a bit."

Minato scratched his head, clearly eager to share his excitement with Kushina and Nawaki. Of course, a little bragging to Nawaki was part of his plan.

"Go ahead, go ahead." Kawakaze easily guessed Minato's thoughts and waved him off.

Nagato dutifully used an Earth Release to fill the hole created by Minato, while the others took care of the damaged tree.

"You guys practice on your own. I'm going for a walk," Kawakaze announced, noticing his brother's unfriendly gaze. It was clear that yesterday's prank was still fresh in his mind, so Kawakaze made an excuse to leave.

"Okay, Sensei," the three kids replied in unison, then scattered to continue their training.

"Trying to run?"

Sakumo gave chase, unwilling to let him off so easily.

"No, I just want to go out for a walk," Kawakaze laughed, casually brushing off the accusation as he avoided admitting his true intentions.

"We still have some unfinished business," Sakumo said, keeping a close eye on Kawakaze. Kakashi, watching curiously, wondered what these two jokers were up to.

"Morning, sister-in-law."

"Just now, Minato was practicing his new Ninjutsu. It's nothing," Kawakaze replied seriously, standing behind Sakumo.

"You're here," Sakumo said with a sudden smile, turning around to greet someone—only to realize there was no one there.

Even at home, his guard had slipped. He quickly spun back around, but Kawakaze was already gone without a trace.

"Little brat, just you wait!" Sakumo roared in frustration, furious at how easily he'd been tricked.

The three kids nearby were completely unfazed, continuing their training as if nothing had happened.

"It's Kawakaze who made you angry again, isn't it?"

A voice from the front door drew Sakumo's attention. He turned to see his in-laws arriving.

"No, why would I get angry with him?" Sakumo replied without hesitation, trying to maintain an air of dignity.

His response only made Shinku Yūhi smile knowingly. He'd witnessed plenty of their antics before.

"Kurenai."

"Kakashi."

The two children called each other's names in surprise. Sakumo set Kakashi down, and Kurenai's mother did the same for her. The two waddled over to each other, clasped hands, and beamed with delight.

"These two kids are quite a match," Sakumo said with a grin, clearly pleased.

"Of course, they've known each other since birth," Shinku replied, a hint of exasperation in his tone. He was beginning to understand what Kawakaze had been up to when he used to carry Kakashi around so often.

"Haha, come and sit down," Sakumo said, leading them to the living room. The two children followed, guided by Kurenai's mother, who kept a watchful eye on them.

"Ee-yah, ee-yah..."

The two toddlers babbled in baby talk that no one could understand.

Nayuki, having been notified by the butler, had already gathered her things and entered the living room. She greeted everyone warmly.

She and Shinku's wife had been close for years, often spending time together during the war while their children played. Nayuki affectionately ushered them to sit, and the group settled in for a lively conversation.

...

"Shinku and I were discussing the idea of arranging a marriage between the two kids, and he said he wanted to ask for your opinion," Sakumo said shamelessly, prioritizing Kakashi's lifelong happiness.

Shinku sipped his tea silently and glanced at his wife.

"He mentioned it to me, and I have no objections," Shinku's wife said with an amiable smile. "The two children get along very well."

She gently touched Kakashi's silver hair. Not sure if Kakashi understood, he happily grabbed Kurenai's head in his tiny hands and kissed her chubby, baby-fat face.

The gesture made everyone laugh.

"This must be something he learned from Kawakaze."

Even though Kawakaze wasn't present, his antics continued to leave a lasting impression.

Shinku didn't take offense; this kind of affectionate behavior between children was endearing. Kakashi and Kurenai played together cheerfully, making their engagement feel like a natural decision.

For both families, trivial matters were unimportant—what mattered most was that the children got along well.

"Achoo~"

Kawakaze sneezed as he walked along the road, wondering if Tsunade was nagging about him again. He bought some of her favorite snacks and, in the next moment, appeared in the research lab.

Inside, Tsunade was busy with her work, as she usually was during non-critical operations.

"You're here," Tsunade said without even looking up, already aware of Kawakaze's presence.

"I brought you something delicious," Kawakaze announced, casually pushing open the lab door without hesitation.

"Put it over there, and you can go now."

"Okay."

Kawakaze obediently set the snacks down, blew Tsunade a flying kiss, and backed out of the lab.

"Idiot," Tsunade muttered, a faint, unidentifiable smile playing at the corner of her mouth.

"What did you find out today?" Kawakaze asked, curious about the progress of her experiments on Hashirama's Cells.

"It's not that fast," Tsunade snapped, irritated by the assumption that research was quick or easy.

"I was just asking. So, what are you working on?" Kawakaze asked with a wry smile, shifting the topic.

"I'm going to cultivate Tailed Beast cells," Tsunade replied, her tone betraying her deep focus.

"Chōmei's?" Kawakaze asked uncertainly.

"Well, I'll try to extract it first," Tsunade explained. "My idea is to cultivate some of the cells and then seal them into a human body. That way, we could harness some of the Tailed Beast's power."

This concept clearly intrigued her; it was a project she seemed especially invested in.

"I think it's feasible," Kawakaze said, recalling how, in the original story, Orochimaru had cultivated the horn of the Eight-Tails, which Kabuto later used on Blue B during the Impure World Reincarnation.

However, Kawakaze also remembered that this was an unconscious clone of the Tailed Beast. Even if a complete Tailed Beast were cultivated, it would still differ significantly from the original.

Still, as a supplementary source of power, it was sufficient—it could even be called a lifesaving tool for chakra-deprived ninjas.

"This is a long-term experiment, and the growth of the cells is too slow," Tsunade remarked, fully aware of the challenges. She was young and patient, unfazed by the extended timeline.

The two spoke of the experiment as though it were casual small talk. If other villages caught wind of their plans, they would likely go berserk and launch an attack.

"Why didn't you get some cells from the Nine-Tails?" Kawakaze asked offhandedly, knowing Mito had full control over the beast.

"That's crazy. I'm afraid my grandmother wouldn't approve," Tsunade replied firmly, mindful of the implications and never having broached the subject with anyone.

"Let's start with Chōmei. He's easier to bully," Kawakaze suggested, noting that they would need a steady supply of raw materials if the experiment failed. It was clear that Chōmei wouldn't be able to refuse Tsunade.

"You're the one who's easy to bully, your whole family is!" Chōmei shouted from inside Tsunade. One of his wings was missing a piece, although his massive size made the damage almost imperceptible unless closely inspected.

"That's enough. I won't cut your wings again," Tsunade said, attempting to calm Chōmei down, as his incessant yelling was disrupting her work.

"When Orochimaru returns, you two can work on it together," Kawakaze suggested. "Progress should be faster."

Kawakaze could barely wait for Orochimaru's return and planned to ask Nawaki for updates. For now, Nawaki was the only one occasionally receiving news from Orochimaru.

"That's fine," Tsunade agreed. She still trusted Orochimaru, confident in his abilities.

Meanwhile, Nawaki was watching Minato demonstrate a new Ninjutsu. The huge crater left by Rasengan amazed him, but he didn't hesitate to ask Minato for advice.

Minato began explaining, but his words sounded like "clang and thud," leaving Nawaki thoroughly annoyed.

If you don't want to teach, just say so! What the hell is clang and thud?

"Haha~" Kushina laughed openly, finding Minato's awkward explanation endearing.

"I'll help Minato organize the key points of this technique and explain it to you," Kushina said, stepping in and putting her arm around Minato.

"That's more like it," Nawaki muttered, the metaphorical black cloud over his head finally lifting. Despite Kushina's temper, her competence was undeniable.

"Misaki, let's continue practicing Shurikenjutsu," Nawaki said, deciding to avoid Minato for the time being as he pulled Misaki along.