The Fifth Hokage

An ordinary izakaya in Tanzaku Town.

Naruto, Jiraiya and I sat across from Tsunade and Shizune. We all looked at one another without saying a word.

After a long silence, Tsunade finally spoke. "What an unusual day... Running into two familiar faces!"

"Tsunade, Orochimaru met with you because he wanted you to heal him, didn't he...?"

"That's right, but I refused... Never mind that! Jiraiya, what did you want to see me about?"

"I won't beat around the bush. You already know what happened to the Third Hokage, don't you?" Jiraiya said gravely. "Tsunade, the village needs you... Come back and become the Fifth Hokage!"

Pfft! Naruto sprayed a mouthful of hot tea!

"What!? Weren't we looking for her to treat Kakashi and Sasuke? Why are we asking her to become the Fifth Hokage?!"

"Shut up, Naruto!" I reached out and clamped my hand over Naruto's mouth. "Lady Tsunade, Uncle Jiraiya and Orochimaru are known as the Sannin! She's not only powerful, but also well respected. She's the most qualified person to become Hokage!"

"Don't rush to answer that," Jiraiya said, seeing Tsunade hesitate. "There's another reason I came to see you..."

Tsunade frowned and rested her chin on her crossed hands. "...What is it?"

"I'd like you to take this child, Sakura Haruno, as your apprentice!" Jiraiya said, pointing at me.

"This brat?!" Tsunade looked both surprised and puzzled. "Why come to me to be her master? Is there really no one in all of Konoha who can teach this brat?"

"The truth is... there really isn't!"

Tsunade lowered her eyes and said quietly, "Another genius like the Fourth Hokage, Jiraiya?"

"Brat, did you know? The best talents are always the first to die. A brilliant genius like the Fourth Hokage died at twenty... Life isn't like money. It's foolish not to cherish it..." Tsunade turned her gaze on me, her voice dark. "If you become my apprentice, you'll die a terrible death someday... I think you'd better put the idea out of your head!"

Tsunade actually refused... Should I have persuaded her to go back and become Hokage first after all? Without Naruto's talk no jutsu and his desperate fight to move her, Tsunade was really hard to deal with. But thankfully, Tsunade had still refused Orochimaru, which showed that she still cared about Konoha. She just had too many painful memories there... Still, seeing that my future master was actually like this right now really pissed me off!

Jiraiya had probably noticed that too. He knew Tsunade wasn't willing to return to Konoha, where the sights would bring back painful memories... So he wanted to make a breakthrough with me first. But with Tsunade like this, I could only use drastic measures... I took a deep breath.

"I don't think their sacrifices were foolish... Life is precious, but some things are more important than life, worth risking your life to protect!"

"Lady Tsunade, I think that for someone who lives a mediocre life, even one more second is just polluting the air...!" I said expressionlessly. "I'd rather die young like the Fourth Hokage than be interested in..."

I shot Tsunade a cold look.

"...still running away from life in my fifties!"

"Brat..." Tsunade's expression was so dark it looked as though water could drip from it. "Do you know... who you're talking to?!"

"Princess Tsunade..." I paid her intimidating presence no mind. "Princess Tsunade, one of the Sannin, alongside that Orochimaru I beat like a stray dog!"

Crack!

The teacup in Tsunade's hand crumbled to powder!

"Brat, don't get too cocky, or I'll kill you!" The fury on Tsunade's face was like a volcano about to erupt!

But having already felt Orochimaru's killing intent, I didn't care about this kind of pressure at all! I said calmly, "Don't wreck someone else's shop. Whatever you have to say, let's go outside!"

"Hmph!"

Tsunade, furious, Jiraiya, looking helpless, Shizune, at a loss, Naruto, who had no idea what was going on, and I, outwardly cold but just as annoyed inside, left the shop and went to a deserted street.

"Brat, I'll give you one chance to take back what you said...!"

"Speaking my mind... is my ninja way." I ignored Tsunade's threat. She wouldn't really hit me anyway. "Lady Tsunade, you left Konoha because you couldn't accept the deaths of your lover and younger brother... didn't you?"

"You investigated me...?!"

"I only looked through some information on the Sannin after running into Orochimaru... Just like the Fourth and Third Hokage, they died on the battlefield, protecting Konoha. If you think the deaths of the two Hokage were foolish, aren't you insulting your lover and younger brother too?!"

"Shut up... What do you know! It was because they had those foolish ideas that they died on the battlefield!"

"Dan and Nawaki sacrificed themselves for Konoha. That wasn't foolish!"

Boom!

Tsunade punched the ground, blasting a crater two meters deep!

"Don't you dare mention... their names, brat!" Tsunade gave me a dangerous look. "...Or I'll kill you!"

"I've been sick of you for a long time too... Tsunade!" I said through clenched teeth. "If you want me to shut up, then make me with your fists! Since neither of us can convince the other, let's fight it out!"

"Are you tired of living...?"

Tsunade suddenly charged over and leaped high into the air, raising her right leg before bringing it down at me in a vicious kick!

"Taijutsu: Hands and Feet!"

Thud! Tsunade's foot slammed into my water shield with a low, chilling sound! The first layer of the shield actually broke, and only the second stopped her attack!

Tsunade jumped back, then threw another punch with all her strength! This time I used more ultra-pure water to form the shield, but her punch sent wave after wave rippling across the otherwise rock-steady barrier!

Thud, thud, thud! As though venting her feelings, Tsunade kept attacking my water shield, but she could never break through Azure Water Release's defense!

"Huff, huff! Is this strange Water Release why you dared provoke me?!" Tsunade panted after venting her anger.

"Lady Tsunade, even without that Ninjutsu, I would have challenged you... simply because I don't agree with what you said!"

"Huff... Brat, don't you admire the kind of sacrifice the Hokage made? If you've got the guts, don't use that water shield. Take one of my punches head-on! If you dare do that, I'll admit you're right. I'll go back to Konoha and take on the responsibilities of Hokage!"

"Tsunade, what are you saying?!" Jiraiya interrupted with a frown.

"Shut up, Jiraiya. This is between us!" Tsunade looked back and glared at him, then turned to me. "What's wrong? Are you scared? Or were your words just lies you don't even believe yourself? Take one of my punches and you get a Hokage in return. Isn't that the sacrifice you were talking about?"

"Tsunade, that's not a funny joke!"

"Uncle Jiraiya, please stay out of this! This is between us..." I said to him.

I dismissed the water shield.

It felt stupid to do this, but people always liked doing stupid things. If someone could live rationally all the time, could they still be called human?

I had been transmigrated for so long now. Under the erosion of time and the influence of hormones, I had gradually grown used to being a girl. But I still retained those precious qualities I had possessed as a man in my previous life, and I would never throw them away.

"If you call this a sacrifice, then so be it," I said calmly. "I've done as you asked, Lady Tsunade."

I was ready for everything. Tsunade probably wouldn't kill me... That was enough.

"You'll die... I won't hold back, you foolish brat!" Tsunade said stiffly.

But I could already feel her hesitation. Perhaps she really had only been trying to scare me just now. So, faced with my resolve, she really did feel she had backed herself into a corner. This woman had fabricated that whole line of reasoning because of the tragic past in which her lover and family member had died one after another, using it to avoid the wound in her heart... If she threw this punch, what it would shatter was the lie she had woven with her own hands!

"Come on..." I said softly.

Then Tsunade really did punch me!

Boom!

I was sent flying more than ten meters and crashed heavily to the ground! The instant I was hit, everything went black, and I almost thought I was about to transmigrate again!

I struggled to my feet. My whole body ached, and the bones in my entire left shoulder felt as though they had broken. Wave after wave of stabbing pain sent cold sweat dripping from my forehead! Blood flowed from my mouth and dripped onto the ground.

But that wasn't the power the Monstrous Strength Technique should have had... At the instant she hit me, Tsunade had held back.

"I won, Lady Tsunade..." Holding my injured left shoulder with my right hand, I shuffled over to her, one step at a time. "You lost. You promised you'd go back and take on the responsibilities of Hokage..."

At the sight of my blood, Tsunade's fear of blood flared up. She trembled and clutched her head in both hands. The blood reminded her of the moments when Dan and Nawaki had sacrificed themselves, and at that moment, Tsunade's defenses came down.

"Dan and Nawaki dreamed of becoming Hokage, and that's why they died on the battlefield for nothing... What's so great about being Hokage? Only a fool would want to be one!"

Drip. Tears ran down Tsunade's face and fell to the ground.

"Orochimaru came to you for treatment and offered to bring Dan and Nawaki back to life in return, didn't he...? He used that same technique to kill the Third Hokage, bringing the dead back to fight for him. But... you refused. Why?" I asked Tsunade softly.

"Because Orochimaru would definitely keep seeking revenge on Konoha. The Konoha Dan and Nawaki loved and sacrificed themselves for. The Konoha you love too."

"You can't let Orochimaru destroy their dreams!"

I wiped the blood from the corner of my mouth onto my right hand and held it out in front of Tsunade. Her eyes widened, and she stared at my hand in fear!

"Look, this is blood shed for a sacrifice, just like the blood Dan and Nawaki shed..."

"Things with form will eventually wither away... But dreams will remain. Becoming Hokage... was the dream they risked their lives to achieve. Please... help them fulfill the wish they left unfinished."

Tsunade gradually stopped trembling, but her tears flowed even more fiercely!

"Enough... Don't... say any more..." Tsunade was already sobbing too hard to speak!

"That's enough. Leave the rest to me..." Jiraiya walked over. "Shizune, sorry for the trouble, but could you treat Sakura? Let's leave Tsunade alone here for a while..."

The three of us left.

Since Tsunade hadn't hit me very hard and Shizune's Medical Ninjutsu was exceptional, my injuries were soon treated. I only needed one night's rest to recover.

I was mostly fine, but Naruto seemed a little strange. He hadn't said a word, which was nothing like him.

The three of us sat together and ordered dinner again.

"Naruto, is something on your mind?" I asked as I ate.

"Sakura, was what you said true? Granny Tsunade's lover and younger brother both died while pursuing their dreams of becoming Hokage?"

"That's right... What, are you scared? Your dream is to become Hokage too, isn't it?"

Naruto fell silent for a moment, then suddenly slapped the table!

"I've known all along that becoming Hokage isn't something you can do just by shouting about it! The road to my dream was never going to be smooth. It's a hard road I have to risk my life to travel!"

"Even if you might die?"

"That's right." Naruto looked at me with determination. "Sacrificing yourself for a dream is never foolish!"

The next morning.

"Good morning, everyone!" Tsunade greeted us, looking refreshed. "Starting today, you'll call me-"

"Lady Fifth Hokage!"

"Huh?" She had changed this much overnight? Did I have a talent for talk no jutsu too? Come to think of it, since Tsunade had refused Orochimaru's deal, that meant she still loved Konoha deep down, didn't it?

"What are you so surprised about, Sakura?" Tsunade asked with a smile.

"G-good morning, Lady Fifth Hokage!" I said a little nervously. I had only just fought Tsunade yesterday afternoon and said so many things to provoke her. Now I had to face her already. How awkward! And she would be my master too!

"What nonsense are you talking about? You should call me Master!"

"Huh? Ah! Good morning, Master!"

All right, could someone tell me whether a girl who had just cursed out a woman and fought her, only to become her apprentice the next day, would get treated badly for it?! My future looked bleak!

"Why are you sitting over there with them? Sit next to me!" We were just about to sit down for breakfast when Tsunade pulled me away from Jiraiya's side. Sitting next to the smiling Tsunade, I felt so much pressure!

"From today onward, I'm your master. I look forward to working with you!" Tsunade smiled at me. Though she was already in her fifties, she still looked like a gorgeous woman in her twenties! And sitting so close, I could feel how magnificent and imposing her chest was-

"I look forward to working with you too!" I said, bracing myself. "Um, Master, uh... about yesterday evening, that-"

"What happened yesterday," Tsunade said, her smile fading as she looked at me seriously, "is in the past. Thank you for bringing me to my senses. I've forgotten everything else."

"Mm, Sakura, by the way, has your injury healed?"

"It's almost healed... What about you?"

"I'm... almost healed too."

Tsunade's smile was warm.

It seemed... to be a perfect ending.

Suddenly, I really wanted to get back to Konoha soon.

Two days later.

Konoha Hospital.

After Tsunade finally completed the formalities for taking over as the new Hokage, she came to check on Sasuke and Kakashi at once. Under Tsunade's superb Medical Ninjutsu, Sasuke and Kakashi soon woke up.

"Sasuke, congratulations on recovering!" I said with a smile after Tsunade left.

But Sasuke didn't look happy to have recovered at all. Instead, he gave me a cold look-

"Sakura... Let's duel!"

"Huh?!" I froze. "You've only just recovered!"

"It doesn't matter... Let's just fight!" Sasuke looked at me and actually activated his Sharingan!

"Sasuke... If this is about me holding you back and stopping you from speaking before, I'm sorry..." I said with an apologetic smile.

"That has nothing to do with it, Sakura!" Sasuke grabbed my hand. "I just want to know exactly how big the gap between us is now!"

"And don't think you saved me last time..." Sasuke's voice was dark. "I don't need you meddling!"

All right, Sasuke was having another chuuni episode. I wasn't really in the mood to fight him right now, and I was still waiting to learn Ninjutsu from Tsunade... But if I refused, he would definitely sulk again!

"Then let's fight... Are you sure you don't need to eat something or change clothes first? At least change your shoes?"

"No need... We're doing it now! Don't think you can make excuses to run away!"

Bang! The hospital room door suddenly burst open, and Naruto rushed in, shouting, "Sasuke, I heard you were awake-"

Naruto saw Sasuke holding my hand, and the words he was about to say caught in his throat.

"You two-?"

"Hmph, perfect timing, Naruto. I want to fight you too!"

Naruto froze, then smiled confidently. "Sure! I wanted to have a match with you too!"

The rooftop of Konoha Hospital.

"Crackle!"

Blue Chakra gathered in Sasuke's hand, making a sound as loud as a thousand birds chirping!

"Chidori!"

"Using Chidori right from the start... Sasuke!" I watched him gravely.

"I don't have a choice... Chidori is the only way I can think of to break through your defense...!" The lightning in Sasuke's hand shone with a blinding light-

Charge!

Sasuke rushed at me at high speed with Chidori!