"L... Lady Tsunade?!"
The Konoha Gate Guardians were dumbfounded.
And the news of Princess Tsunade's return quickly spread through various Ninja communications.
Shizune, holding Tonton, looked at Tsunade somewhat helplessly.
"Lady Tsunade... isn't this a bit too conspicuous?"
"Hmm?" Tsunade glanced back at her.
"You think I'm being conspicuous too?" Tsunade's tone was flat.
But Shizune detected a different nuance in her words.
She hurriedly said, "No, Lady Tsunade... According to the information given in the Communication Scroll... if Lady Kushina and Lord Minato really..."
"Hmph!"
"So what?"
Tsunade replied indifferently.
"Since I've already broken my vow and returned to Konoha."
"How could I possibly be the same as before?"
Shizune fell silent.
Looking at Tsunade's back... she sighed softly.
The place remained, but the people had changed, and besides... Lady Tsunade hadn't returned for many years.
"Alright."
"Don't worry."
"Do I need to report to anyone just because I've returned to Konoha?"
"Would they not let me into the Village if I don't report?"
Tsunade sneered.
Then she began to survey the current Konoha.
Unconsciously, she slightly furrowed her beautiful brows.
"Wait, Lady Tsunade, I think we should just go directly to the address given in the scroll."
Shizune spoke rapidly, blocking Tsunade's path, almost adding, "You can't drink!"
Tsunade hesitated for a moment.
Then she lifted her snow-white neck and nodded.
Indeed, it was better to first confirm whether the information about Kushina and Minato's resurrection was true.
If it was a trap...
A cold glint flashed in Tsunade's eyes.
She had already left the Village, yet they still kept harassing her, and with such an excuse... Would they use Nawaki next time?
"Let's go."
...
The sun was high in the sky.
Under an Old Apartment Building.
Shizune and Tsunade looked up.
They saw that despite being somewhat old, the large apartment seemed almost uninhabited.
However, upon closer inspection, differences could be seen.
A certain room on the first floor and another on the top floor clearly had more signs of life.
"This is the place, Lady Tsunade."
Gulp—
Shizune swallowed.
She looked at Tsunade cautiously.
Tsunade didn't speak, her eyes steadying.
Without hesitation, she strode toward the stairwell with her long legs.
"Let's go up and see, since we're already here."
Shizune hurriedly followed.
She steeled herself completely.
If it was a trap...
No.
Shizune shook her head.
She hadn't sensed any Barrier nearby.
Watching Tsunade's twin tails sway with each step.
Shizune took a deep breath.
The current Tsunade was practically half-crippled.
Even if her strength hadn't declined much.
But suffering from hemophobia...
Tobirama Senju: "Hemophobia?!"
Tobirama Senju: "Is it really true..."
Tobirama Senju: "A medical Ninja suffering from hemophobia... The granddaughter of the Hokage, the princess of the Senju, the princess of the Land of Fire..."
Tobirama Senju: "Actually developed hemophobia because of you damned people?!"
Tobirama Senju was furious.
Previously, Black-Framed Naruto had deduced it.
And collected related information.
But it was actually narrated through others' accounts.
Tobirama Senju had been furious at the time.
Now, seeing his granddaughter's disciple admit it firsthand.
His heart was a mix of emotions, but soon, the rising anger overwhelmed the complexity.
Tobirama Senju: "Monkey... you'd better pray your lifespan isn't long... really."
In his rage.
Izuna Uchiha didn't taunt him anymore.
Otherwise, if this kid really got worked up, he might search the entire Pure Land World for him.
Of course, Izuna Uchiha wasn't afraid either.
Back then, everyone was slacking off... only this kid kept developing new Ninjutsu, and he lost unexpectedly.
The black-framed large screen continued:
"This is it."
Shizune stepped forward, confirmed the doorplate and other details, then nodded to Tsunade.
Then she held her breath, ready to strike at any moment.
After Tsunade nodded in agreement.
Shizune stepped forward and knocked on the door.
Knock knock knock—
Silence.
Very quiet.
No one?
Or...
Just as Shizune was growing suspicious.
Click—
The sound of a lock turning came from the door.
Then, creak—
The door was slowly pushed open from inside.
"Who is it?"
Shizune almost couldn't resist attacking.
But at that moment.
A gentle female voice came from inside the room.
Hearing this voice.
Tsunade was visibly stunned.
Her body trembled, her Headlights swayed, a dazzling array of flowers...
This voice... Tsunade knew it too well.
One could say, she had heard it grow from childish to mature.
Behind the door, a strand of red hair drifted by.
Tsunade's mind went blank.
Old friends had passed away... yet now, one appeared completely intact before her.
That face... still exactly as she remembered.
Young... full of vitality.
"Ku... Kushina?"
Tsunade couldn't quite believe it.
From the start, she had thought it was a trap.
But... what if?
Yes, it was precisely to gamble on that "what if" that Tsunade had returned.
Moreover, the other party was extremely familiar with Kushina.
Knowing things only the two of them would know.
After all, Kushina was the little girl Tsunade had personally brought back from the ruins of the Land of Whirlpools.
The Senju and Uzumaki were distant relatives, with an excellent relationship.
By Hashirama Senju's generation, Mito Uzumaki had even married into the family.
Undoubtedly strengthening the bond.
Looking at the vivid figure before her.
Tsunade instinctively reached out, wanting to confirm if it was real.
However.
After seeing Tsunade.
Visibly, joy spread across Kushina's pretty face.
She grabbed Tsunade's small hand.
In the moment Tsunade was distracted.
She directly threw herself into Tsunade's arms.
Shizune, her mouth agape, was also filled with disbelief.
This... was too unbelievable.
During the Nine-Tails Attack... Shizune had repeatedly confirmed that even as a member of the Uzumaki Clan, Kushina couldn't escape death after having the Tailed Beast extracted from her.
Of course, what shocked Shizune even more was that the Fourth Hokage... had also died in the Nine-Tails Attack.
That day, Tsunade had drunk herself into a stupor.
Tsunade's hand froze mid-air.
Somewhat at a loss.
However, being an Old Maid after all.
She quickly recovered.
Gently patting Kushina's back, she said in a tone tinged with affection and reproach:
"How old are you now?"
"And... having died once, how are you still like when you were little?"
But.
When Kushina lifted her tear-streaked, smiling face, Tsunade was stunned again.
Her eyes turned sharp, her voice icy.
"What?"
"Who bullied you?"