Four-in-One, How Did You One-Shot Me?

Naruto Uzumaki's mother made lunch.

It was incredibly exquisite.

At first, Natsume ordered takeout.

But once they became familiar with each other, Naruto Uzumaki's mother took the initiative and offered to cook herself.

Unexpectedly, it was quite good.

If Tsunade's cooking battle power was only one thousand, then Naruto Uzumaki's mother's was at least ten thousand.

The gap between them was even greater than the gap between a human and a dog.

Natsume really wasn't making things up about Tsunade. It was based on his personal experience.

Some people really weren't suited for the kitchen.

After eating, Karin was sent off by Natsume to study again.

Being able to turn the Analects into the Brawling Analects could be considered a talent in itself.

This little girl was only three, yet she was already displaying the hot temper she had in the original work.

Natsume felt that Karin and Tsunade should have plenty to talk about.

"Comfortable."

He lay on the sofa made by Naruto Uzumaki's mother, his entire body warm and cozy.

It wasn't advisable to exercise after a meal, so he simply gave up and lazed around.

Naruto Uzumaki's mother stared at Natsume tenderly. She held him with her left arm while slowly massaging his forehead with her right hand.

Every now and then, she would rub his little head and take advantage of him a little.

Such an adorable human cushion felt wonderful to rub.

Naruto Uzumaki's mother liked it quite a lot.

So did Natsume.

Who didn't like a soft, squishy cushion?

Happy times always passed quickly.

Natsume got up and prepared to go home.

He suddenly remembered something else and said, "I'm already a Genin now, so I'll be going out on missions regularly. If I don't come over for several days, you don't need to worry."

But after he said that, Naruto Uzumaki's mother became even more worried.

Her usually submissive personality rarely showed any firmness as she said, "I'll go with you. I can protect you."

"Genin missions won't be too dangerous, and my team leader is Tsunade, one of the Sannin."

A smile appeared at the corners of Natsume's lips. He reached out and pinched her cheek, coaxing her like he did Karin. "Just be a good girl and wait for me to come back."

Naruto Uzumaki's mother seemed to want to say something, but ultimately nodded.

Hashirama Senju's Former Residence.

Natsume had just been about to open the door when he suddenly stopped.

He had almost revealed his chicken feet.

He hurriedly put away the protective charm Naruto Uzumaki's mother had given him.

"We'll eat dinner later."

Tsunade was in the main hall. She wasn't watching television, but looking through various documents.

Natsume went over and found that they were intelligence reports related to Kumogakure.

For example, which powerful Cloud shinobi were participating in the war, what special ninjutsu they possessed, and in which areas they were active.

They were extremely detailed.

Clearly, Tsunade was learning about the battlefield in advance so she could choose missions for them.

Natsume glanced over them and picked up a report.

Eight-Tails Jinchuriki Killer Bee.

It said that he was an extremely dangerous shinobi and should be avoided whenever possible.

However, he was currently in the Valley of Clouds and Lightning in Kumogakure and had not joined the battle.

As the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, he could almost be considered their strongest combatant. If he joined the war, the situation would change completely.

A localized war would become a full-scale war, and might even develop into the Fourth Shinobi World War.

When two tigers fight, one is bound to be injured.

The other villages would never pass up an opportunity to take advantage of their weakness.

Although everyone in Kumogakure was reckless, they did have a few shinobi with brains.

Mabui, for example.

The Fourth Raikage's secretary was calm and highly capable. She was no worse than the Nara Clan, which was famous for its high intelligence.

What left the deepest impression was her dark, almost black skin.

It suited certain people's tastes.

In truth, with the money he made from Gunma Casino and Gunma Bank, it didn't matter whether Natsume did missions or not.

But making money couldn't save the Shinobi World.

If Nagato dropped a Shinra Tensei one day, all his efforts would be wasted.

No matter what, he had to reflect it back.

Strength was the foundation of one's standing.

Natsume put down the documents and watched Tsunade, who was completely absorbed in her work.

A serious man was handsome, and a serious woman was beautiful too.

Especially when she leaned forward.

The slight swaying of her peaks was truly a breathtaking sight.

After a while, Tsunade stretched and turned around to affectionately pinch Natsume's cheek. "Let's go eat."

Shizune had already brought the food over.

Two years had passed, and her cooking had gotten better and better.

However, Natsume increasingly felt that she was more like a maid Tsunade had hired. She was especially busy.

Late at night.

Tsunade led Natsume to his room.

Ever since her Hemophobia had stopped acting up two months ago, the two of them no longer slept together.

Natsume could only lament, What a bad woman. You throw me away after using me. My giant figurine is gone.

"Good night."

Tsunade tucked him in and rubbed his head. "It's winter now, and the nights are cold. Don't kick off the blankets."

Natsume felt wronged. That was because sleeping with you made me too hot, so I threw them off.

What do you think caused it? Don't you know?

But he said nothing and nodded.

Tsunade looked at him, her gaze somewhat complicated.

She was actually very unused to this.

But she had already realized that Natsume was no longer a child. He was about to turn ten, and he was only a dozen centimeters shorter than her.

In a few more years, he could be considered an adult.

Because of the number of cells in their bodies, people in the Shinobi World matured earlier in the first place.

Although Tsunade had a carefree personality, there were some things she still understood.

For example, the matters between men and women.

Her relationship with Natsume was that of a teacher and student, with the addition of siblings, or at most adoptive mother and son.

No matter how one calculated it, they couldn't be considered lovers.

Sleeping in the same bed again would be problematic.

Tsunade sighed.

Even if she didn't care about their ages, what about Natsume?

He still didn't understand much right now. In a few years, once he understood, he wouldn't cling to her like he did now. Instead, he would be attracted to young girls.

But it was so painful.

Whenever she imagined Natsume growing up and leaving her, she felt unable to accept it.

If only I were twenty years younger.

Tsunade returned to her room, unable to fall asleep for a long time.

Natsume slept until dawn.

As soon as he climbed out of bed, he hurriedly shrank back into it.

He looked out the window.

It was snowing.

The white season had come again.

Not long after breakfast, Kabuto Yakushi arrived.

With Shizune added to the group, Tsunade's team was officially complete.

However, this wasn't the mission assignment Natsume had expected. When he opened the scroll, he discovered that it was a summoning scroll.

"My summoning beast is Katsuyu of Shikkotsu Forest, one of the Three Great Sage Lands. As my disciples, you naturally have the right to form a contract with her too."

Tsunade looked at the three of them. "Sign your names."

Unlike the snakes of Ryūchi Cave and the toads of Myōboku Mountain, Katsuyu was an auxiliary-type summoning beast.

Combined with a Medical Ninja, she was like adding wings to a tiger.

But even ordinary shinobi could make good use of her. She was extremely useful.

Katsuyu was not a species.

Every Katsuyu was merely a split body or clone of the Slug Sage.

They could transmit information among themselves.

By giving Katsuyu to Natsume and the others, Tsunade was naturally adding another layer of protection for them.

As for the Sage Mode of Shikkotsu Forest, she wasn't keeping it secret. They simply didn't meet the requirements.

For example, the first requirement was that anyone training in Sage Mode had to possess a massive amount of Chakra.

That was because senjutsu Chakra was a mixture of Chakra and Natural Energy.

If one had too little Chakra, the Natural Energy would devour them.

Natsume signed his name on the scroll.

He was delighted.

Tsunade, Kabuto Yakushi, Shizune, and Katsuyu.

Four protecting one. How did you one-shot me?

I won't mistreat the protagonist. Tsunade definitely needs a period of mental adjustment. But don't you think this transition period is actually more exciting?