Chapter 21: Tsunade's Not-So-Great Mood

"Tsunade-sama, what do you think?" Kiyono Makoto asked as he glanced at Tsunade, looking for her opinion.

"Don't worry, this kid is out of danger," Tsunade replied, waving a hand dismissively, though her eyes avoided the blood on the ground and landed on Fūka instead. "But this one... Already using medical ninjutsu at such a young age? He's worth training."

Fūka turned and forced an awkward smile. "Uh, just so you know, I'm from the Uchiha clan."

Smack!

Tsunade's mood shifted in an instant. Without hesitation, she knocked Fūka on the head, sending him sprawling to the side. "You little brat! If you're a Uchiha, stick to playing with fire!"

Fūka didn't have time to react. He tumbled across the ground, picking up a fair amount of dust on his clothes as he rolled.

'Tsunade, you'll get yours one day!' Fūka fumed silently. 'One day, I'll knock you out!'

"Kiyono-sensei, thank goodness you're back! Mizuki was so awful earlier—he tried to stop Fūka from saving Inoshita, and he claimed you told him to do it."

"Yeah! Mizuki was the one who got distracted and stabbed Inoshita, but he turned it around and blamed Inoshita! Then, to cover up his lie, he tried to stop Fūka. If it weren't for Asuma, Inoshita might have died!"

"Kiyono-sensei, Mizuki doesn't deserve to be our classmate. He's a terrible person!"

The other students finally snapped out of their shock and rushed over to complain.

"No, I didn't! I-I was just following Kiyono-sensei's orders not to let anyone touch Inoshita. I didn't do anything wrong!" Mizuki trembled as he loudly defended himself, tears streaming down his face, trying to appear as pitiful as possible. But the other kids weren't letting him off that easily, and they all started berating him.

"You're shameless!"

"This is the truth, so stop trying to deny it!"

"Just wait until Inoshita wakes up—let's see what you'll say then."

"Get Mizuki out of the academy!"

Kiyono Makoto frowned, caught off guard by the situation.

"Alright, everyone calm down. I'll get to the bottom of this. Asuma, take everyone over there for some regular training. We'll handle things here."

"Yes, Kiyono-sensei." Asuma nodded. As the son of the Second Hokage, his leadership was unquestioned. With a wave of his hand, the other students followed him away from the scene.

Only Tsunade, Kiyono Makoto, Inoshita, Mizuki, and Fūka were left behind.

Fūka had planned to leave with the others, but he suddenly felt as if someone was watching him, making it impossible to move. It was a subtle but very real feeling.

He didn't need to guess—it had to be Tsunade.

'What's the big deal about having… um, that kind of physique? They'll sag eventually!' Fūka cursed Tsunade with all the malice his six-year-old mind could muster. But his gaze kept drifting back to her.

"Tsunade-sama!" A figure suddenly appeared in the clearing, kneeling before Tsunade.

"This child," Tsunade indicated with a nod.

"Understood!" The ninja, a medical specialist, crouched beside Inoshita. With hands glowing with chakra, he mimicked Fūka's earlier actions, but his technique was far superior—he used the Mystical Palm Technique. Under the glow of the chakra, Inoshita's wound began to heal rapidly, the scab already falling away.

But Fūka wasn't paying attention to the healing process.

'Wow! She is… enormous!'

Fūka was incredibly thankful that he was only six years old. Otherwise, he might've embarrassed himself right there. If something like that happened… given Tsunade's temper and his Uchiha lineage, he probably wouldn't survive to see another year.

'I don't wanna, I don't wanna, I don't wanna grow up… 'Cause growing up just means getting beat up…'

After a moment, the ninja stood up, nodded at Tsunade, and vanished in a puff of smoke.

Tsunade tilted her head slightly and gave Inoshita, who was still lying on the ground, a gentle kick. "Get up!"

"Yes, ma'am!" Inoshita sprang up, his face alight with amazement. "Wow, I'm okay! I lost so much blood just now!" Having narrowly escaped death, Inoshita was overwhelmed with relief and began to cry.

"It's simple. The medical ninja just used the Mystical Palm Technique to stimulate your blood cells and replenish the blood you lost. But your body's still weak, so make sure to eat well and recover." Tsunade kept her head turned away, not making direct eye contact. Since the death of her lover, Dan Katō, she had developed a severe fear of blood. Although she still held a position at Konoha Hospital, she mainly served as an advisor and rarely treated patients directly.

"Yes, thank you, Tsunade-sama!"

Inoshita thanked her earnestly before turning to Mizuki, his face twisting with anger.

"Kiyono-sensei, I heard everything they said. This guy, Mizuki, it was him who got distracted during training and stabbed me. Then he blamed me for being careless and even stopped Fūka from helping me. I… I almost died because of him!" Inoshita was overcome with emotion and began to sob again.

Seeing this, Mizuki panicked. If he didn't get Kiyono-sensei's sympathy, he'd be in deep trouble. So he started crying too, as loudly as he could.

"I didn't! I didn't! I didn't!"

"You did! You did! You did!" Inoshita shouted back, pointing at Mizuki.

"I didn't! I didn't! I didn't!" Mizuki wasn't about to back down, tears streaming down his face.

Nearby, Fūka's eye twitched. Why does this sound like a scene straight out of a soap opera?

Just then, Fūka suddenly felt his body lift off the ground as if he were flying.

"Kiyono, I'm taking this kid with me. I'll bring him back later," Tsunade said as she grabbed Fūka by the back of his collar, lifting him like he was nothing more than a fancy handbag. In an instant, they were gone from the academy.

…

Fūka wore a thoroughly disgruntled expression as he looked around, realizing that the place seemed familiar. It was, in fact, the Hokage Rock—Naruto's favorite hangout in the original series!

And right now, he was sitting on the head of the Second Hokage, Tsunade's granduncle.

This is the worst.

Fūka felt like he'd hit rock bottom.

"Uchiha brat, what's your name?" Tsunade stood nearby, high above the village. The wind here was strong, whipping strands of her hair around her face. Her clothes fluttered in the breeze, outlining her impressive figure.

Fūka's gaze drifted again… Uh, ahem, I'm just a normal six-year-old boy!

Fūka quickly shifted his eyes to the village below and answered, "My name is Uchiha Fūka."

"Fūka? That's what you're called? Hmph! Do you even know what the 'fire' in your name means?" Tsunade turned, her fierce eyes locking onto Fūka.

Fūka instinctively took a couple of steps back. This question felt like a trap, and a wrong answer might lead to an untimely and accidental fall.

"My parents chose my name, and as for the meaning of 'fire,' well, fire is just fire, right?" Fūka decided to play innocent.

As young and innocent as I am, Tsunade, could you bring yourself to hurt me? Just think about it, and you'll be too embarrassed to follow through!

"Kids who haven't hit puberty yet don't have a care in the world, do they? Hmph." Tsunade suddenly covered her face with her hand, letting out a bitter laugh, but her tone was laced with helplessness.

Fūka froze, his thoughts racing.

Tsunade was one of the legendary Sannin, her fame spreading throughout the ninja world due to the Second Shinobi War. What could have her feeling so defeated?

Could it be the deaths of her brother, Nawaki, and her lover, Dan Katō?

But that was years ago.

Fūka blinked, still confused.

'Come to think of it, Tsunade is the princess of the Senju clan. Hmm, wait… I get it. After the Second Shinobi War, the Senju clan began to decline, eventually fading from Konoha's history. As the last princess of the Senju, Tsunade must feel terrible about that!'

Then, Fūka's mood soured.

The decline of the Senju left a power vacuum, which the other clans, including the Uchiha, were quick to fill. With the Uchiha's growing influence, especially in the Konoha Police Force, resentment was inevitable.

Fūka couldn't shake his frustration—he was beginning to realize that he might end up being the unfortunate target of all that simmering anger.