"Who goes there?"
A guard at the Konoha camp spotted four figures—one adult and three children—approaching from a distance and immediately called out in alert.
Most importantly, he noticed the Konoha forehead protectors they wore.
Otherwise, he would have sounded the alarm and taken down the intruders right away.
"Konoha Chunin, Kamizuki Hikari!"
"Konoha Chunin, Nara Shikamaru!"
"Konoha Genin, Yamanaka Ino!"
"Konoha Genin, Akimichi Chōji!"
Hearing their introductions, especially the names of the Ino-Shika-Chō trio, put the guard somewhat at ease.
Members of the Ino-Shika-Chō clans were undoubtedly staunch supporters of Konoha.
As for Kamizuki Hikari, the guard thought for a moment, then scrutinized him closely before shouting, "Well, if it isn't Konoha's eternal gatekeeper, Kamizuki-san!"
The noise here soon drew the attention of others in the camp, and more shinobi quickly gathered.
"Akagi, what's going on?"
"Nothing serious. It's just our Eternal Gatekeeper and the Ino-Shika-Chō team."
"Is that so? I'll go report to Shikaku-sama!"
Seeing how disrespectfully these shinobi treated Hikari, Shikamaru shot him a meaningful glance.
'Hikari-senpai, how can you tolerate them treating you like this?'
Hikari responded with a look of his own: 'What, you want me to beat them up?'
Shikamaru: '…'
There was no denying the efficiency of shinobi. In less than three minutes, Nara Shikaku appeared before Hikari.
He first glanced at his son to confirm his safety, then turned to Hikari.
"Hikari, glad to see you back safely!"
"Safe and sound, thank you for your concern, Shikaku-senpai!" Hikari replied politely.
Shikaku glanced at the surrounding shinobi and said sternly, "Stay vigilant! Just because Tsunade-sama achieved a victory doesn't mean you can let your guard down. Understood?"
"Yes, sir!"
With Shikaku's reprimand, the shinobi quickly returned to their posts, saying nothing more.
As Hikari entered the camp, his mind wandered for a moment before he shook his head and chuckled.
Times had certainly changed.
Back when he first entered the battlefield, Konoha was at a low point after consecutive battles. Now, however, the village was riding high on its recent successes—the atmosphere was completely different.
The news of Tsunade defeating the combined forces of the Tsuchikage and Raikage would undoubtedly send shockwaves throughout the shinobi world.
After first settling the three young shinobi, Shikaku quietly led Hikari to Tsunade's tent.
"Hikari, Tsunade-sama's been holed up in there for two days straight. You need to get her out."
What?
Hikari froze for a second, then took a step back.
"Uh, actually, I just came here to see you. Now that I've done that, I should head back to Konoha. The village gates still need my protection!"
"Cut it out. You're the only one who can handle this. If you can get Tsunade-sama to come out, I'll record this as an A-rank mission for you." Shikaku said, stating his terms.
Hikari's expression turned serious, his eyes flashing with a mix of indignation and anticipation. "Will I get paid?"
Shikaku nodded. "Of course. Missions come with pay. As for the exact rank, I'll evaluate your performance. If you can get Tsunade-sama out within half an hour, I'll give you a top-tier A-rank evaluation!"
With that, Shikaku pulled out a timer, shook it in front of Hikari, and pressed start.
Damn it!
Without wasting another moment arguing, Hikari lifted the tent flap and strode inside.
"Who is it? I said no one comes in without my orders—how many times do I have to repeat myself?!" Tsunade's voice was sharp with anger, clearly displeased at the intrusion.
If this intruder didn't give her a good reason, she wouldn't hesitate to throw a punch.
"Ahem!"
Hikari cleared his throat softly.
"It's you... you're back..." Tsunade's tone shifted, but then her face darkened. "Wait, how dare a mere Chunin enter my tent without permission!?"
In front of Hikari, Tsunade demonstrated the art of a woman's mood swing.
First, a flicker of joy at seeing him, then embarrassment, and finally, rising fury.
The complex shift in expressions left Hikari bewildered.
[If I remember correctly, things weren't this tense with Tsunade when I left Konoha! Could it be... her lifelong enemy, that time of the month, is making her unstable?]
Hearing Hikari's inner monologue again, Tsunade nearly lost her composure.
Bastard!! You're the one having "that time of the month"!
Though inwardly fuming at his tactless thoughts, Tsunade's anger subsided slightly.
"Well, look who decided to show up. Escorting the Land of Snow's princess didn't result in a kid along the way, did it?" Tsunade's tone carried a hint of jealousy she didn't even notice.
"What kind of nonsense is that?"
Seeing Tsunade's erratic behavior, Hikari sensed her mood had improved slightly compared to earlier.
[Women... Their moods are like storms at sea. Coming and going as they please...]
"Shikaku said you've been cooped up in this tent for two days, not stepping outside. What's going on?" Hikari asked, genuinely concerned about Tsunade.
She was his golden ticket, after all. To thrive in Konoha, he needed her backing. A little flattery wouldn't hurt.
"You..." At his casual tone, Tsunade immediately remembered the fragment of his spirit he'd left on her body—the one spying on her bathing. Her anger flared again. "Get over here!"
"Don't you think this is a little… inappropriate?" At that moment, Hikari felt he was enduring the greatest trial of his life.
Since ancient times, heroes have struggled at the gates of beauty. And Hikari, not even a hero, found the test even harder.
"Tell me—what exactly did you do to me?" Tsunade demanded.
This time, she wanted to hear directly from his thoughts what he had done to her and why that spiritual fragment was there.
Was he trying to control her? To manipulate her body and do… pleasurable things?
"I really didn't do anything! You're the Hokage—how could I possibly do something to you?"
[All I did was awaken the Wood Release genes in your body, and add a Sage Mode support imprint. What else? Who knew you were so hopeless you couldn't even sense natural energy on your own?]
This guy! How dare he insult me in his thoughts!
Tsunade gritted her teeth in anger, but at least she now understood the origin of the spiritual fragment.
"Then why was I able to use Sage Mode before, but after my battle with Raikage and Tsuchikage, I couldn't control it as freely? Did you do something to me?"
Hikari forced his gaze to stay fixed on her face. But the pressure from her chest, along with glimpses of fair skin, tempted his eyes downward.
[That just means you overexerted yourself and shattered the Sage Mark I gave you. In that case, my spiritual imprint should have disappeared too.]
Is that how it works?
Tsunade raised her left hand and gently touched the center of her forehead. The once-warm imprint was now gone, as if it had never existed.
Had Hikari's spiritual fragment really disappeared?
'Hey, are you still there?'
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