Chapter 168: Natsuro vs Tsunade

Natsuro watched as Tsunade attacked without giving him a chance to refuse. Her moves held no secrets for him.

Dodging her attacks, he spoke, "Lady Tsunade, please, the Hokage succession ceremony is about to start."

"Hmph, I'm not joking." Seeing him easily evade every attack, Tsunade's eyes narrowed in annoyance.

With a single fist, she struck the ground, shattering it and causing the whole training field to tremble.

Feeling the shaking ground, Natsuro couldn't help but click his tongue. While her attack patterns were predictable, her strength was not something to be taken lightly.

Getting hit by one of those punches without a guard would mean death or serious injury for anyone below the level of a Kage.

It was clear Tsunade's intent was to disrupt his footing so he couldn't evade.

But Natsuro thought she was overestimating her effect.

He continued dodging her attacks with ease and said, "Lady Tsunade, to be frank, you're not my match right now."

"Whether I am or not, let's decide that after we've fought. Just dodging won't let you win!" Tsunade huffed.

Ignoring her retort, Natsuro continued, "Even though you are one of the Sannin, Lady Tsunade, I'd guess you've hardly fought since leaving Konoha, right?"

"And so what?" Tsunade replied, tacitly admitting his guess. Although she hadn't completely avoided combat, many of her encounters were one-sided, barely worth calling battles.

"You're well aware of the concept of 'use it or lose it,' I'm sure. The same applies to combat. Years of inactivity have dulled your battle instincts—your fighting prowess is far from the Sannin level it once was," Natsuro stated bluntly.

Tsunade didn't respond, but Natsuro could see her clenched fists tighten, her strikes gaining in force as she grew visibly irritated.

Watching nervously, Shizune thought Natsuro might be right, but saying so now would only infuriate Lady Tsunade!

Natsuro continued, "Of course, your physical strength is unchanged, so your combat sense will return quickly. I can even see you improving right now, but it's not something that can be fully regained in just a few moments."

"Enough talk! What are you trying to say?" Tsunade, now thoroughly irritated, leapt into the air to deliver a powerful kick.

"Heavenly Foot of Pain!"

But once again, her attack didn't reach Natsuro.

The intensified shaking of the training field, the plumes of dust, and the shattered ground attested to the power of that kick.

When the dust settled, Tsunade stood in a deep crater, her foot still in the spot where she'd landed.

Meanwhile, Natsuro stood at the edge of the crater. "What I'm saying is, if you want to quickly regain your combat experience, you can always come to me for sparring. But right now, you should attend the ceremony—it's about to begin."

"If you want me to take the Hokage position, stop dodging," Tsunade replied.

"Very well, how about one decisive blow, Lady Tsunade?" Natsuro proposed, having finally achieved his aim.

"Fine!" Tsunade agreed.

They locked eyes, one standing in the crater and the other at its edge, both gathering power.

Shizune swallowed nervously, realizing that if either of them got hurt on what should be a celebratory day, it would be a disaster.

But she could only stand by and watch, silently praying for their safety.

Lightning flickered around Natsuro's right arm, forming a blinding white glow that engulfed his arm entirely. Not only that, he concentrated his Wind Release Armor on his right arm alone, creating a compact, almost solidified layer of chakra.

A faint blue-green armor materialized around Natsuro's arm, looking fierce and intimidating, especially at the hand, where it took on a menacing appearance.

He was surprised, glancing at his arm, feeling like he'd obtained some mystical weapon from a fantasy world.

With such power… surely it would be enough to clash with Tsunade.

He met her gaze, both of them ready for the final charge. In an instant, their fists collided.

The impact caused the ground to shake violently. The already fractured earth seemed ready to disintegrate into dust, the debris and sand forming a dense cloud around them.

Lord Natsuro actually dared to take Lady Tsunade's punch head-on?!

Shizune struggled to steady herself, utterly shocked. She had never seen anyone willingly go blow-for-blow with Lady Tsunade, knowing her strength.

Then she saw Natsuro's figure emerging from the dust, his body knocked back. But in mid-air, he flipped and landed on his feet.

He's fine?! Shizune was even more stunned. Though Natsuro looked a bit pale, it was far better than having his arm shattered by Tsunade's punch.

As for Lady Tsunade, Shizune didn't worry, she knew that in a clash of raw strength, Tsunade wouldn't lose.

When the dust finally settled, Tsunade stood there, unharmed.

Natsuro, meanwhile, glanced at his right arm, now completely numb, and gave a wry smile.

As expected of Tsunade. Even with his full strength, he couldn't win against her in a pure clash of power.

But he was satisfied with the result, having anticipated this. Despite Tsunade's strength, he had only been knocked back, not defeated. How could he not be pleased?

After all, he could tell Tsunade hadn't held back much. Facing her at her strongest, he had only been pushed back. It was proof of his own strength.

Tsunade, meanwhile, stared at Natsuro. Her hand trembled slightly.

Although she had sent him flying, she had also been forced back by a single step in their clash.

To make her step back in a contest of raw power, especially with an opponent who clearly wasn't focused on hand-to-hand combat. Just what kind of monster was he?

At last, Tsunade admitted to herself that even at her peak, without using certain jutsu, she wouldn't be able to defeat Natsuro.

Not to mention, he had Flying Thunder God. In a life-or-death fight, even if she used her full power, she would likely lose.

What an impressive junior, Tsunade thought with a sigh, turning to walk toward Shizune.

Having confirmed what she needed, there was no reason to continue.

"Lady Tsunade…" Shizune called out.

"Yes, let's go. It's time for the Hokage succession ceremony," Tsunade said.

Shizune's eyes lit up as she nodded enthusiastically, "Yes, Lady Tsunade!"

She glanced at Natsuro, her eyes filled with admiration. He'd actually managed to convince Tsunade!

"Hey, are you still able to move?" Tsunade asked Natsuro.

"Of course." Natsuro approached the two, his arm almost fully recovered.

Tsunade looked at his right arm with renewed interest. "It's a shame you didn't pursue medical ninjutsu further."

Natsuro blinked, then smiled. "When I was studying Genjutsu dispels, my teacher said the same thing."

Tsunade paused, realizing he was serious. She couldn't help but marvel again at his talent.

Compared to him, her own widely-recognized genius felt insignificant.

"Let's go."

Finally, the three of them headed toward the Hokage succession ceremony.

"Lady Tsunade, about the repair costs for that training ground…" Shizune hesitated.

"Huh? That place actually needs repair costs?" Tsunade replied, surprised.

"Usually, it doesn't. There's a budget specifically for maintenance, but…" Natsuro began, leaving his sentence unfinished.

Tsunade suddenly recalled the state of the ground, thoroughly destroyed by her punches and kicks, and her expression turned grim.

She had just returned to Konoha and hadn't had a chance to earn any money yet—now there was a new bill. Since she had caused most of the damage, she couldn't very well make Natsuro pay for it…

"I'll cover the repair costs."

Before Tsunade could dwell on it, she heard Natsuro's offer.

Her eyes widened as she looked at Natsuro, who had volunteered to handle the costs, seeing him almost as a guardian angel.

What a wonderful kid!

Tsunade felt only gratitude, realizing how poorly she'd treated him, yet he'd responded with such genuine kindness! She was a little ashamed.

Natsuro didn't know what Tsunade was thinking. Covering the repair fees was no issue for him, especially since he'd gained a portion of Gato's assets.

If offering to pay would ease Tsunade's irritation, why not?

Little did he realize how well this would work. Tsunade hadn't been overly serious about her grievances from the beginning.

…

Meanwhile, Danzo examined the latest intel reported by his subordinates, a smile on his lips.

To avoid detection, his men had stayed far back. At first, they thought they hadn't discovered anything unusual, but… even from that distance, they felt the tremors!

So, a battle had taken place—and an intense one at that!

This pleased Danzo greatly. If Tsunade was already this aggressive toward Natsuro before officially taking office, she would likely target him even more once in power.

With Danzo's own plans supporting this from the shadows, he was confident Natsuro wouldn't stand a chance of becoming the Sixth Hokage.

After all, wasn't Natsuro known as "Little White Fang"? In that case, Danzo saw no reason not to replicate White Fang's story.

If Natsuro didn't face the same fate as White Fang, how could he live up to that nickname?

Even if it didn't fully succeed, he could at least ruin Natsuro's reputation.

Danzo knew how easy such matters were with Hokage's tacit approval, White Fang's case was proof enough.

A dangerous glint flickered in Danzo's eyes. This was the price for standing in his way!

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Currently on Chapter 218 - Planning against Danzo and Prophecy?