Chapter 176: Families

~Jiraiya~

Jiraiya arrived at his home, with him going inside to be encountered with the sight of his three children each lying asleep on his couch.

He smiled at the sight, with him gently picking up the three and taking them to their bedrooms.

If you had asked him after the end of the Second Great Shinobi War if he was ready to be a father, he would have immediately shot down the idea.

Being a parent was something he never though he would have the opportunity to experience, especially since he could never work up his courage for Tsunade yet he also wouldn't give any other woman the true time of day.

Even his perverted attitude never went too far, as his love for Tsunade eclipsed anything that could have been perceived by him.

But, when he returned to Konoha with the three orphans and was told that the three would be sent into the orphanage, he made the abrupt (and at the time, foolish) to adopt the three as his children.

And so, he began the task of raising the three.

From enrolling them into the Academy, to making sure they got their annual checkups, to ensuring that they would always have whatever they needed.

While they didn't open up to him immediately, the group of four eventually grew into a tight-knit family.

And the trio had made him proud immensely over the years, from having graduated at the top of their Academy Class, to them each branching out into their own unique yet insightful pathways.

Konan possessed a unique Kekkei Genkai that seemed to be a merger of Yang and Earth Chakra.

Tsunade had diagnosed that it would make her nearly immune to Taijutsu if she mastered it to the highest degree, whilst the girl also seemed to be interested in Fuinjutsu and Medical Ninjutsu.

Yahiko seemed to be extremely headstrong, with his fighting style being the most similar to Jiraiya's own, making him able to train the boy a bit more closely. 

Jiraiya had already been planning to propose for the boy to sign the Toad Summoning Contract, though he needed to speak with Ma and Pa first.

However, while he could see the two doing exceptional things in the future, the one who seemed to excel the furthest had to be Nagato.

The boy soaked up Elemental Ninjutsu at a rate that trumped that of even Orochimaru's, something that made the Toad Sage very proud.

His Uzumaki heritage gave him a chakra amount that rivaled some of the best of that clan.

And, on top of all of that, he also owned the eyes that the Sage of Six Paths once wielded.

He felt that his student may even be the one to bring peace to this world, even if the Great Toad Sage had stated otherwise.

But even with all the greatness he knew that they would bring to both the Village and the World, he viewed them as no more than his great children.

And as he packed for the mission that could decide the fate of the Shinobi World, he knew he had to succeed so that they may continue to enjoy their current lives.

~Tsunade~

Tsunade sat at the edge of Naruto's bed, a soft smile upon her face as she glanced at her son's sleeping face.

A boy who in another world had gone through an unfathomable amount of trauma had latched on to her, and she had refused to let him go afterward.

Honestly, she was a bit amused by the situation with him and Kushina having a sibling relationship even though she was his mother.

But the love that her family had given him was something that she appreciated greatly, with all of them viewing him as if he had always been a part of the family.

If not for the fact that she knew he slightly missed his friends, she probably wouldn't allow him back to his timeline due to how dangerous it was.

But she would definitely train the boy in every aspect she needed to so that she could ensure he survived by skill rather than by luck.

Even in the short time she had been training him, she had already noticed his latent talent in Fuinjutsu, as well as the ability to excel in Elemental Ninjutsu that surpassed merely being his Wind Affinity.

And even then, she had 2 more years to help guide and train him until some may view him as the next 'God of Shinobi' in his world.

But the love and care she held for him was something that she had not experienced before in either of her two lives, yet it gave her a sense of peace or purpose that eclipsed that of her joy from being a Shinobi or Medic.

However, seeing how her world was teetering towards the beginning of the next Great War, she refused to allow it to do so until after Naruto was back in his own timeline.

'I refuse to make him suffer through the horrors of war.' She thought silently.

As she exited the bedroom, she bumped into Tobirama, with the man apologizing in his usual way, by pretending nothing occurred.

"Are you ready for your mission tomorrow, Tsuna?" He asked softly.

Tsunade nodded with a smile on her face, happy to see that her Grandfather still seemed sentimental about her safety even after all this time.

"You know it's only one person who could have accomplished this, right?" Tobirama asked.

While she wished she could just chalk it up to being the thoughts of an elderly man, she knew he was correct in his assumption and she could only nod again, though this time it possessed a trace of solemnity in it. 

"After the inevitable Third Great War, I'll be placing my full focus on ending him, once and for all." Tsunade said.

Why she wanted the Third War to happen was a thought for another time, but Tobirama seemed to understand her as he nodded in agreement before the duo hugged each other and headed to their respective bedrooms, a chance to sleep before the eventful days ahead of them.