บท 115: The Legends Meet (Part II)
"One finger, granny? Sure, what do you say about a bet ~ttebayo?"
"Huhuhu, a wager? Now we're talking, gaki."
"When I win-"
"That's an unlikely outcome." Tsunade chuckled.
"If I hit you at least once, we're immediately leaving for Konoha."
A glint in her eye twinkled, "... Sure. And if I win, you will give me your wallet. I saw it's filled to the brim."
"Gama-chan?! No way, that's my birthday gift from Hina-chan!" Naruto squeezed his frog-shaped wallet to his body, "I can give you the contents ~ttebayo."
"Why would I want to get so many pennies, huh, gaki? For calling me a granny, I'll take something you hold dear away."
"Tsunade-hime, in the last casino we looked for you, Naruto won the big prize on the slot machine. Despite your distant blood ties, this brat has amazing luck - his wallet isn't filled with pennies but bills." Jiraiya explained, "Putting it aside, am I going to wait for long until you kick the brat's arse? It's getting late."
"I will show you two to never underestimate-" from out of nowhere, Naruto's head was powerfully flicked, sending the blonde tumbling on the ground and crushing into the crates left at the side of the road.
"Hoo~" the Toad Sannin mused, "Tsunade-hime's brutal strength didn't wane any bit. I still remember thirty years ago getting blasted off in Konoha and waking up in a village three hours away by foot..."
"Shut up, pervert. You tried to peak on me bathing! That was a justifiable punishment."
"Justifiable? Hime, your punch broke eight of my ribs, both shin bones, and my right wrist…"
"I broke only your ribs. The fall did the rest, pervert." Tsunade shot back.
Naruto groaned, digging himself out from a destroyed heap of wooden planks, squashed vegetables, and fruits.
"Heh, men twice your size got knocked out after a single flick, not bad gaki."
"As a future Hokage, I trained my endurance!"
"Hokage, huh?"
"I'm not finished yet, granny." The teen pointed his hand at the woman, flicking a piece of pineapple from the top of his head.
"Say, gaki. Why do you get your panties in a twist every time you hear the word Hokage? It's such a shitty job. It makes you a meat shield against all kinds of threats."
"Unlike you, I want to be a Hokage, and I will..." Naruto smiled, thinking of a plan, "Because it's my dream to become Hokage."
'He is just like them...' Tsunade was stunned, hearing the same words from the boy in front of her as from Dan and Nawaki.
"<Kage Bunshin no Jutsu>!"
"Hmm~ Stubborn mule… Six shadow clones while being this young? Not bad, gaki."
"Get her!" About fifty yellow chakra chains shot out from Naruto's side and headed straight at startled Tsunade.
"Ha!" In response, Tsunade impaled and dragged her finger across the ground, creating a deep gorge and shooting a rain of rocks. The clash between Naruto's chains and a hail of stone bullets produced a lot of dust in the air, sabotaging everyone's sense of sight.
'Huh? This chakra pulse? It seems like my echolocation technique?' Jiraiya felt the entire area being scanned by Naruto's chakra. 'How did he-... Damn you, Kana-chan, Naruto will become as insane as you.'
"Have some of this!" He shouted, dropping like a hawk at the back of Tsunade's head with a small blue orb in his extended hand.
Quickly identifying the technique in the boy's palm and the danger it posed, Tsunade caught his arm and impaled it into the ground. Naruto, with his incomplete Rasengan, created a feet-sized hole in the soil.
"Hehe, I won, Granny. Instead of your finger, you used your hand to divert me ~dattebayo!" Tsunade narrowed her eyes at the loudmouth.
With a sonic boom accompanied by her finger breaking through the sound barrier, Naruto was once again flicked into a heap of mashed food scraps.
"Why the fuck are you teaching this gaki the Fourth's jutsu, pervert?"
"You mean the Rasengan? It wasn't me that started it, Tsunade-hime."
"Don't bullshit me! You're the only alive one that knows of it."
"Hah, it seems that drinking yourself to a stupor doesn't let you follow the news around the world, Hime."
"Do you want to get your ribs broken again?"
"Orochimaru attacked Konoha. He resurrected all the previous Kages as his weapons to crush us."
"So it's true…" Tsunade murmured.
"Hmm?"
"No, it's nothing…"
"Right… If you still didn't guess who Naruto's father was-"
"Minato-kun. I'm not blind, pervert."
"Thanks to his older sister, Minato-kun wasn't made into a doll playing of Snake's orders. Later, after the invasion, he started teaching his son the Rasengan." he shrugged, "I believe that brat's sister was the only reason that day didn't end in a disaster."
"Her? And not your: 'Minato the genius among geniuses?' Hah, an Uzumaki through and through." She chuckled.
"... Yeah…" Jiraiya scratched the bottom of his chin.
"You're hiding something - spill it!" [AN: Uchiha and Senju have… tense relations, to say the least...]
"Maybe later. She got heavily wounded - that's the second reason we came here. So what, when are you ready to set out, Hime?"
"You two can go." She groaned in reply.
"Ugh... That wasn't the deal, granny." Naruto dug himself out for the second time.
"You can't win against an experienced gambler, gaki. You didn't specify who are 'we' in your 'we're immediately leaving for Konoha' deal." Tsunade explained, "Despite all your bravado, you didn't even master the Rasengan. Don't even joke about your foolish dream of becoming a Hokage."
"Granny, give me a day, and we will talk again about Rasengan."
"A day? Hahaha, don't fool yourself. The last step in mastering that technique is the hardest. Even Yondaime had problems with it."
"A day. I never go back on my word." Naruto argued, smiling confidently at the woman.
"Hmm. You know what, gaki? I like your boldness." Tsunade reached behind her neck, unhooking her necklace. "Catch, gaki. It's a gift."
"TSUNADE-SAMA?!" Shizune shouted out.
Naruto yanked the green trinket out of the air and looked at it closer. In his hand, he held a tiny black string with a blueish green gemstone dangling in front of his eyes.
"You sure about that, Hime? That's the Shodaime's Hokage's necklace."
"Zip it, pervert."
"Hey, granny, what's this?"
"A gift I received from my grandfather. Someday it may help you with your big furry problem."
"You knew?" the boy shouted.
"Naruto, you could buy half of Konoha with this necklace." Jiraiya added.
"Tsunade-sama... So this is your choice?"
"Hey, Hime. What would you say about a drink just the two of us? For old times sake."
"Hmm, sure. Shizune, go with Naruto, find yourself a hotel room. Goodbye." Tsunade dismissed her.
'So after all those years, that's how it ends? She's just dropped me off to someone else?' The pig-holding woman barely held back her tears, "G-goodbye, Tsunade-sama." Shizune took hold of Naruto's arm, turned on her heel. A trace of tears marred her cheeks.
"Huh? What?"
"*Sniff* Let's go Naruto-kun. The adults need to talk." She pulled the boy with her.
------
"Hey, Nee-chan. Can you tell me what just happened?" Naruto questioned the black-haired woman.
"I'm sorry, I don't want you to misunderstand Tsunade-sama. Before that, she had a caring heart and loved Konoha." Shizune explained, "Tsunade-sama lost all her hope and dreams, watching the death of her loved ones."
"What are you talking about?"
"Haa... To understand it, you need to know what is this necklace she gave you, Naruto-kun."
"Yeah, I heard you talking about it. Shodaime's Hokage, why would she pass it onto me?"
"I don't know, but you shouldn't have it around your neck. This necklace is cursed - everyone else Tsunade-sama gave it to died."
"Whaa-?!"
"When Tsunade-sama was younger, she gave it to her little brother Nawaki. It didn't take long before Jirayia-san and Orochimaru found the boy's body among the casualties of the Second Shinobi War. Her lover, Dan, died similarly, with this necklace around his neck and his bloodied body in Tsunade-sama's arms."
'Damnit! A little brother? A lover? Would Sis be as grumpy without me and Utakata? No, there is Kushi and Haru, but such a loss would surely break her.'
"Do you see now? From that moment on, Tsunade-sama is struggling with her life. Huh? Where are you going?"
"What do you mean where? I'm going to finish my training ~ttebayo."
"Forget it, Naruto-kun. Even I heard about the Rasengan. It isn't a technique that can be mastered in a day."
"Watch me."
------
[The next day]
"Hey, Cheater-kun. Wake up." Itachi threw a bucket over the boy's head.
Spouting the water out of his mouth, Naruto stood up immediately, "What the heck, Itachi-nii?"
"It's morning already, Cheater-kun. I stood guard when you fell asleep, but I need to find Ero-sen-... Jiraiya-san. He disappeared somewhere, most likely in some kind of brothel."
"Huh? Why would you call me a cheater?"
Itachi pointed his chin at the closeby rock-hill destroyed by thousands of human-sized holes.
"Hehe~" Naruto laughed, scratching the back of his head, "What? Never seen a new mine being dug out, Itachi-nii?"
"Hmm." the young man grunted in reply, "Have you finished the Rasengan already?"
"Pretty much, but I feel something is missing ~ttebayo. I don't know what, I will have to talk with Sis about it."
"Good. Let's go now. We need to find Jiraiya-san somewhere in the town."
"As our teacher and leader, shouldn't it be him that looks for us, Itachi-nii?"
"... Someone has to be an adult in this group, Naruto-kun."
Twenty minutes later, the duo found the snoring white-haired old man in a pile of trash next to a bar.
"Ugh?!" Jiraiya swiped the water dumped on his head, "The- *Glug-glug*" Naruto splashed another bucket of water on him, making him gag on the cold liquid.
The soaked Toad Sannin looked angrily at the boy in front of him, "You smell, Ero-Sennin." Naruto laughed.
"I don't feel any chakra... She must have put drugs in the sake." Jiraiya gasped tiredly.
"GAAH! And where is this coolness of yours, Ero-sennin?! She just bewitched you with her big balloons!"
"Jiraiya-san!" Shizune flickered towards them, "I can't find her! I thought Tsunade-sama was with you?!"
"No. That fool must have run out to meet with Orochimaru." he grumbled back.
"Stand up, Jiraiya-san." Itachi pulled the man back on his feet, "We need to find your missing teammate."
"Huh? Who are you?"
"Itachi-nii is with us, Shizune-nee." Naruto explained.
"Itachi Uchiha, now that we're finished with greetings, can we go? We still need to complete the mission."
"U-Uchiha?!"
------
"Huhuhu. So what Tsunade-chan, have we got a deal?" Orochimaru chuckled, looking at his downtrodden teammate.
Tsunade nodded her head slightly, "I can try to remove the seal now."
"Hoh~, so quickly?"
"I have only a single question. Who did put that seal? Was this Naruto's older sister?"
"Naruto's? Ah, the Kyūbi boy... Yes, Kana-chan did put it on me."
'Kana-chan? I heard that name somewhere. Hmm, didn't that pervert mention someone named Kaname while he was drunk?... It's rare for Orochimaru to use diminutives - it seems they're very well acquainted?' Tsunade walked towards the white-skinned Sannin, "Open up, I need to see the seal with my own eyes." she requested, lightning her hands in a white-ish hue of chakra.
"Huhuhahaha!" He exploded in laughter, then his voice turned much darker, "I would if you even attempted to hide your killing intent, Tsunade-chan."
"Uh?!" She jumped away when she noticed a silver-haired young man flickering to her side.
"So? You don't want to meet with Nawaki and Dan, Tsunade-chan?"
"You know that I do. From the bottom of my heart, I would give up my life if I just could hug them once more." she growled her response.
"I can resurrect them for you. But only after you help me with this seal."
"And then what?! This seal complexity is above anything I ever had the pleasure to deal with - it would take my decades to unravel it. I was a total fool to trust your words. Heh, you were a fool too if you thought I could even find a way to break it, Orochimaru. It seems we're just old fools now." she smirked, "Even if I joined you, and with your immeasurable amounts of kindness you would bring back Dan and Nawaki, I would never forgive myself. Their dream was to become a Hokage and protect Konoha. You, flobby scumbag, want to destroy it. See the difference?"
"Huhu~ so the deal is off?"
"I came here only to end you, Orochimaru. Once and for all."
Tsunade jumped above the duo and slowly raised her leg above her head. For Kabuto, it looked like she almost invited him to block her ax kick. 'That's a Sannin? I don't even have to try hard to-' Orochimaru's most trusted subordinate lifted his hands, trying to catch the kick, only for someone to pull him away.
"RAAH!" Tsunade's roared.
In front of Kabuto's eyes, the earth lost its duel against a woman's leg. Tsunade's kick created house-sized wreckage of stones and concrete walls all around them.
"Fufufu, Kabuto-kun, you can't block Tsunade-chan's strikes." Orochimaru put him back on the wall they stood now upon, "She is known as the strongest kunoichi for a reason."
"Yes? Thank you, Orochimaru-sama? Now I'm not sure which one is easier to challenge, her or Kaname."
"Tsunade-chan is much stronger but way easier to confront. Her fighting style is very straightforward and easy to predict. You just can't allow yourself to get hit." he chuckled, "Fighting Kana-chan is way more insane."
"Come, Orochimaru. It's time to die."
"We need to move away first, Orochimaru-sama. This close to town, he may come down to help her." he charged at the woman with kunais in his hands.
"Stop screwing around, assholes!" With a tick mark on the side of her face, Tsunade punched the wall the two stood upon, evaporating it from existence.
"Hmm, who?" Orochimaru questioned him, dodging the woman's strike.
"Jiraiya the Toad Sannin."
"Huhuhu, Sarutobi-sensei's team together once again?" the white-faced man chuckled, leading Tsunade away from the town.
"Do you want to fight her, Kabuto-kun? Decades of drinking left Tsunade-chan the weakest of the Sannin. You should be able to deal with her. I will deal with the Toad if he comes by."
"As you wish, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto nodded.
They jumped around the forest, dodging the strikes straight from hell for ten minutes. When they reached a small plateau, Kabuto turned around and attacked Tsunade. Blow for blow, Kabuto struck her waist, and Tsunade drove her fist into his plexus. Somehow, the silver-haired man withstood the punch - he wasn't turned into a liquid red paste.
Tsunade instantly noticed the problems with putting out her herculean strength. Deciding quickly, she chopped at Kabuto's nape with her second hand.
He blocked it and instantly replied by striking his glowing with sickly purple hue hand at her heart. Both combatants broke apart from the force of their blows. Tsunade coughed out a small trickle of her blood. 'He cut my abdominal muscles?'
Kabuto looked at his opponent with a small dose of amazement, 'She is still alive? That punch should kill a human.' His eyes traveled to the woman's overbearing bust, 'Damnit, she has too much fat there...'
"You're not so strong now, are you?" Kabuto chuckled, "I thought a legendary Sannin would be a little better than a jōnin. Color me unimpressed." he tried to take a step forward but missed his footing and faceplanted the ground.
"You're one to talk, fuck-boy." Tsunade swiped the droplet of blood from her chin with her thumb without even looking at it.
'What?! If I try to move my left leg, my left eyelid closes? Guh!' Tsunade punched him.
"Like this? My chakra just made a mess of your nervous system." she smirked, walking towards him.
'Think fast! The right thumb is the left arm. The jaw is left knee...' Kabuto brainstormed, learning to walk from the start.
Standing above him, Tsunade rose her arm to end Orochimaru's subordinate. Kabuto reached to his pouch, drew a kunai, and slashed his wrist - spurting the blood all over Tsunade's face.
She tried to cover her face from the life-giving liquid, but once Kabuto slowly stood up, she looked at her bloodied hands and started uncontrollably trembling at the sight.
"You're terrified of blood. An iryōnin that can't stand a sight of blood, that's rich, hahaha!" He threw the kunai at Tsunade's neck, ending their duel.
The kunai was hit by a shuriken with a loud *Chink*. Jiraiya with Naruto and Shizune flickered in front of Tsunade.
"*Tsk* It was getting interesting, Toad. Couldn't you wait for ten seconds?"
"I'm an expert at disappointing you, so no, Snake Bastard."
------
[At the same time - Konoha]
"Impossible?!" Izumi shouted out, checking the newest test results.
"Hush, you will wake up the babies. How is Kana-chan making them sleep so easily is completely beyond me..."
"You don't understand. Sensei's body is burning up!"
"Is that good or bad?"
"It's good, very good in fact. But it shouldn't be possible. It means that sensei's body has started fighting back against the effects of Orochimaru's seal. It must have identified it as a poison of some sort and begun creating antibodies. With her working against it, it's only a matter of time before she regains consciousness."
"Well, Kaname-sensei did take lots of poisons in prep-" Koji joined in.
"As I said, it's medically or even scientifically impossible! A seal is not a poison, Koji-baka. It's more of a program controlled with chakra."
"But we're talking about Kana-chan here." Utakata shot back, pointing her index finger at the sleeping beauty.
"Huh?" Izumi's responded unintelligently.
"You said it's impossible, Izumi-chan. But we're talking about Kana-chan here." the kimono-clad jinchūriki echoed his words.
"What?"
"... We're talking about Kana-chan here."
"He repeated it thrice, hehehe. But Utakata-san is right. If it's Kaname-sensei, nothing is impossible." Koji laughed.
"... Fuck." Izumi facepalmed, "Okay, let's not mind the details. We're not home yet, I need to lower her body's temperature, or she will boil from inside out..."
"It won't be necessary, Izumi-chan." Kaname groaned out, slowly opening her eyes. Hearing Kaname's voice, both Haru and Kushina woke up, immediately smiling and trying to climb over Kaname's stomach, "This is the first time I saw them smile."
"Welcome back, my love." Utakata greeted her, delicately caressing Kaname's cheek.
"What the fuck do you mean it's not necessary? You're over 40 degrees!"
[AN: 104 degrees F for my US viewers :-) If you're a Perseverance rover and live on Mars, it's 313 degrees K :-P]
"I need to go... Naru-chan is standing ten steps away from the Snake." she explained.
"You need to rest, Kaname-sensei! Itachi-kun is there. I'm sure he will protect Naruto-kun."
"I'm sorry, Izumi-chan." Kaname gasped back.
"Are you sure you can do that, Kana-chan?" Utakata questioned her.
"Yeah, I have to." Kaname dropped her head, replying to her lover.
"Utakata-san, you too?!"
"You see, Izumi-chan. I learned one thing - once this stubborn mule has decided on something, absolutely nothing will sway her. You can only do your best to help." Utakata walked to the side and picked Kaname's body into his arms.
"Thanks, Utakata..."
"Wait, what about Haru and Kushina?"
Kaname took a long, tired breath, "What do you mean what? They're coming with us."
"Hu-?" The group of four blazed out in red flames.
ความคิดของผู้สร้าง 
dahnik
dahnik Kaname's back. Orochimaru's hell starts in the next chapter :-P As always I hope you liked the chapter. As you know PS don't work yet, instead, I hope you can comment and send me some ideas on what you want to see in this story, maybe one of you will open a new road for me to brainstorm through :-) Reviews are also always welcome (those good and the bad ones).
There is still a problem with power stones, but you know that I don't give a f* about them :-) Once they come back, I'm sure you will flood this story with those :-P
If you found any mistakes, please inform me :-) I don't like mistakes :-)