Chapter 2 - Tsunade

"Eh? A child?" The blonde woman mumbled to herself. Her shoulders relaxed, and a relieved sigh slipped from her lips.

The boy tilted his head slightly. He recognized the woman as a character from a supposedly fictional world he had read about in his last life, yet she looked far more real than he remembered. Her sharp brown eyes looked especially vivid and animated to him.

"Ah, are you injured?" The woman asked, walking over to him with her forehead wrinkled in concern underneath her Hidden Leaf forehead protector.

The boy remained silent while watching the woman approach. She wiped the tears from her eyes and knelt in front of him. A green glow emanated from her hand, and she placed it over his head.

"Did you hurt yourself while playing in the woods?" The woman asked.

Slightly distracted by the tingling sensation on his skull, the boy blinked a few times before frowning slightly and answering, "I don't know."

This time, the woman frowned.

"What's your name, kid?" She asked.

"...I don't know," He answered honestly.

Pressing her lips together, the woman hesitantly asked, "Do you know where you live?"

"Mm… Dunno," The boy casually answered. Since he didn't know the answers anyways, he just decided to admire the woman's face that was right in front of him. Her chest seemed a bit smaller than he remembered, though.

"My name is Tsunade. I'm a Leaf Jonin, so you can trust me."

The boy shrugged in response.

Sighing, she pulled back her hand since she finished healing his head. She stood up, held out her hand, and said, "Come with me. I'll help you find your home."

"Okay, onee-san," The boy replied, doing his best to fit into the culture here. He then placed his small hand within the woman's soft but calloused hand. The moment their hands touched, a small translucent square appeared in his vision. He raised a brow upon reading the words written there.

[Conjugal Apparatus rebooting. Please Wait.]

The boy blinked. Although slightly surprised, the box was not a far-fetched concept to him. As such, he tried to mentally dismiss the strange screen-like square. As he wished, it vanished from his sight.

Meanwhile, Tsunade paused at his remark. Her eyes trembled slightly. Taking a closer look at the boy, memories of her younger brother flashed through her mind. A few seconds passed while she stared at him silently. Although he did not look too much like her departed younger brother, just the fact that he was a young boy who called her an older sister reopened those old wounds. The boy didn't react much besides smile at her.

Another sigh slipping from the young woman's lips, she gently grasped the boy's hand as though afraid to hurt him. Lips rising into a slightly pained smile, she led him by the hand and said, "Let's go find your home."

A few hours quickly passed while Tsunade led the boy through the streets of Konoha. She asked several pedestrians if they knew him, but nobody recognized him. Eventually, she hesitantly led him to some of the orphanages as a last resort. The caretaker of the third orphanage they visited finally showed recognition toward the boy.

"Ah, Akio-kun! Where did you run off to, you little runt?" The middle-aged woman wearing rather plain clothes asked with crossed arms. Then, she noticed Tsunade frowning. Flinching and backpedaling, she stammered, "L- Lady Tsunade. What brings you here? Did this boy bother you in some way?"

"...No."

Tsunade looked down at the boy still holding her hand. Her heart panged upon seeing him looking around at the orphanage as though it was his first time here even though the caretaker recognized him.

Within his own head, the boy observed the noticeably old building and thought, 'So, my name's Akio this time? Cool. Guess I'm an orphan, too. Not as cool, but I'll make do, I guess.'

"W- well, if you say so, Lady Tsunade… Now, Akio-kun, come along and stop bothering her."

Noticing that Tsunade did not let go of his hand, Akio looked up at her. Upon seeing her narrowed eyes and conflicted expression, he tilted his head slightly. He didn't know what she was thinking, so he waited for her to either say something or let him go.

A few seconds later, Tsunade focused on Akio's green eyes and gently asked, "Akio-kun, do you want a family?"

The caretaker widened her eyes at Tsunade's question. She almost couldn't believe her ears.

At the same time, Akio smiled and answered in a slightly joking manner, "Yeah. I want a big family. Lots of wives and kids."

A fist tapped him on the skull, but he heard a small giggle next to him.

"Silly boy. I was asking if you want me to adopt you?"

"...You want to be my mom?" Akio slowly asked, raising his brows. Before she could reply, he blinked and said, "No."

"What is wrong with you?" The caretaker asked.

"Eh?" Tsunade froze, completely stunned by the denial. Then, with a wry smile plastered on her face, she wistfully said, "If you don't like me, then it's okay."

"It's not that. If you're my mom, then you can't be my wife, right?" The boy replied, showing his best smile. Since he was currently a child, he figured it was his best chance to entertain himself by making stupid comments like this. Instantly, another fist tapped his skull, though it didn't hurt.

"Is there even a brain in that head of yours?" Tsunade chided him, though her lips rose into a bright smile.

"Dunno."

"Pft. I'm still too young to adopt a child, but I can adopt you into my family as a brother or something, too. So, do you want to join my family or not?"

"I guess."

"Good," Tsunade said. Then, looking at the caretaker with a cold gaze, she asked, "Is that alright with you?"

The middle-aged woman nodded furiously in response.