Tsunade's Concern for the Village, Their Weary Journey

Ino, and she couldn't say anything.

Naruto's gaze was so intense it could melt anyone. She turned her head away, looking towards the entrance, her heart pounding, unable to settle down.

"Thank you," she said, her voice barely audible.

"Thank me after things are settled. It's too early to say it now." As Naruto spoke, his gaze was fixed on Ino's waist, his fingers holding a round glass.

A silence fell over the living room. Ino avoided his gaze, but glanced at his clean, slender hand resting on the table. She immediately looked away, thinking to herself that she couldn't stay any longer.

She got up to say goodbye, Naruto prepared to take her home, but Ino looked nervous instead. She waved her hands and refused, then ran away like a mouse seeing a cat.

The date of the Five Kage Summit was approaching, and it was time to depart.

The line of people seeing her off stretched from one end of Konohagakure Street to the other. Tsunade, bearing the title of the Princess of the Senju Clan, was about to represent Konohagakure at the Five Kage Summit for the first time.

Everyone rushed out, shoulder to shoulder, eager to catch a glimpse of the stunning beauty. The scene was as bustling as Shanghai's bustling Bund, with the streets practically deserted.

"Lord Tsunade, please be careful!"

"I heard it's the Five Kage Summit. They're trying to make Konohagakure's reputation resound among the Five Great Nations again!"

"Why are you only training such a young kid? Is he even capable?"

"The Land of Iron is a long and arduous journey. Will Naruto be able to fulfill his duty of protecting the Lord Hokage?"

"Who knew that guy would act like he hadn't woken up yet! Hey! Naruto, Qidian a bit!"

Looking at the dense crowd, Naruto immediately deflated and muttered something.

"Trouble."

Summer is almost over, and the sweltering air always makes it hard to breathe. And with so many people crammed together, waves of heat keep hitting you.

Tsunade smiled at him and patted his arm.

"Let's go, what's with all the complaining? The Land of Iron is far away from here."

"Oh," he replied, and slowly followed.

The Five Kage Summit was held in the neutral Land of Iron, a nation composed entirely of heavily armored warriors situated between powerful nations.

That place has a cold climate all year round; often, while Konohagakure is still in late summer, the Land of Iron has already entered the dead of winter.

"Why isn't Shizune coming along?" Naruto asked Tsunade, who was walking along the road with his arms crossed, looking ahead at Tsunade. "Usually, the Kage of each village brings two bodyguards, right?"

"Shizune is in charge of the Medical Unit. I've asked her to stay in the village and keep an eye on things. If anything happens, she can notify me through the Slug," Tsunade said slowly, holding her Hokage hat.

"Being Hokage is such a hassle; even leaving the village takes forever to think about," he complained.

"You talk too much, but I didn't make you Hokage." Tsunade casually put the Hokage hat on his head, grabbed Naruto's neck and dragged him forward, warning him.

"Don't cause any trouble in the Land of Iron, or attract some princess again. You'll have to figure out how to deal with it yourself."

"No, no, I'm not a princess collector." Naruto chuckled awkwardly, feeling the plump softness pressing against his face, and immediately dared not move.

Konohagakure.

In the open-air corridor on the second floor of the Hokage Building.

Wearing Chunin uniform, Shikamaru slumped with dead fish eyes, one leg hooked on the railing, gazing at the distant, sun-drenched green forest, and the phrase "the sun is blazing" popped into his mind.

A scorching afternoon wind blew by Choji stood to the side, holding a potato chip, and snapped it in half with a crunch. His small, beady black eyes darted around, and he asked a question.

"Shikamaru, do you think Ino has changed recently?"

"Who knows?" He looked up at the cloudless blue sky, his face showing boredom. "Haven't she always been the same? Nothing's changed, still as irritable as ever."

"It's different. She's a completely different person in front of us than she is in front of Naruto." Choji crunched on potato chips. "My father said that if a girl changes a lot, she's probably in love."

"You still care about this kind of thing?" Shikamaru glanced at Choji. "I thought you only cared about potato chips and barbecue."

"I just think it's great. Father said it's something to be happy about," Choji said. "Shikamaru, you should find someone you like too, and then tell me what's so fun about dating."

"Tch, why don't you go?" Shikamaru leaned against the wall, turning to stare at Choji. "You'd better find someone virtuous, definitely not someone like my mom, she's just awful."

"My mom is the same," Choji said with a chill, "Let's not think about these things anymore."

Shikamaru nodded, leaned back against the vermilion wall, snapped his fingers, and uttered that famous line with a flourish.

"Women are all troublesome."

The wind blew, and the leaves rustled and danced in the air.

"Congratulations, Ino, you're now Chunin," Asuma said with a smile.

Ino received her Chunin uniform and a smile appeared on her face.

"Teacher Asuma. I will continue to practice diligently."

"Cultivation is one thing, but you can't be careless in your daily life either." Asuma said solemnly, patting Ino on the shoulder with the expression of someone who had been through it all.

"Love is also a form of spiritual practice."

"Ah!" Ino was stunned for a moment, her solemn expression vanishing instantly. She waved her hands frantically, explaining, "Teacher Asuma, it's not what you think!"

Ino didn't know how to explain it; it wasn't really a relationship. Nothing had been said, nothing was confirmed, she had just felt a tiny bit of attraction.

But Naruto someone whose mind is unpredictable, making it impossible to fully understand his thoughts. And, to put it another way, it's impossible for anyone to like such a womanizer.

Impossible! Well, except for Hinata.

Thinking about this, Ino felt a little frustrated again. She really didn't know what kind of bewitching drug that guy had given Hinata, that such a beautiful Hyuga's eldest daughter clan had to fall for someone like that.

Forget it, I don't want to think about it anymore.

She shook her head and looked at Asuma with a solemn expression.

"Teacher Asuma, I'm definitely not in a relationship!"

"Achoo!" Naruto sniffed, took out two Konoha white robe from the Sealing Space, put one on, and turned to hand the other to Tsunade.

The further west you go, the colder it gets; the temperature difference becomes significant after dark.

"I don't need it." Tsunade looked at him teasingly. "What? Is your body giving out? The Land of Iron is a long way away, what are we going to do then?"

She was wearing a blue robe and acted as if nothing had happened.

"Let's just do it this way. You're so young, why don't you take care of your health?" He swallowed the flirtatious remark about decreased sperm motility, not daring to show off in front of Tsunade.

"You'll suffer a great loss later," he said.

Seeing that Tsunade didn't take his robe, Naruto simply put the white robe on her by hand, saying, "Ninjas aren't masochists, there's no point in forcing yourself to endure it."

"Can't you keep warm by speeding Chakra?" Tsunade rolled her eyes and said, "You should have been taught that at the Ninja Academy."

"I skipped class, I didn't listen," he said sullenly, walking ahead with uneven steps.

Tsunade clicked her tongue, but didn't take off her robe.

Night falls.

The two rested around a fire, the Kakkō illuminating Tsunade's youthful, collagen-rich face. Ninjutsu was indeed amazing; in the hands of different people, it produced different effects.

Orochimaru saw a glimmer of hope for immortality, Tsunade decided to preserve her youth and life. The Senju Clan's bloodline is incredibly powerful; living to be a hundred or two hundred years old under normal circumstances wouldn't be a problem.

Every time Naruto sees Tsunade, he automatically imagines a female cultivator from a cultivation novel, someone in her forties or fifties who looks like a young girl, wholeheartedly devoted to her.

He was still lost in thought when Tsunade frowned at the Kakkō, seemingly pondering something. Information had been continuously relayed along the way via birds; even far away, she remained concerned about the village.

Naruto found it rather pointless; he was already out there, yet he still had to worry about that wretched village.

He got up, took out a tent from the Sealing Space, and slowly set it up. He also prepared water for washing up and almost took out the bathtub.

Ninjas usually carry Scroll of Seals to store their belongings when they go out. Tsunade herself had one, but it was just some clothes and such. She knew Naruto could carry a lot of things, so she tossed his luggage to him before leaving.

He reluctantly set up the tent, feeling like a lowly eunuch in the palace, attending to a noblewoman as she left. As for why not the Empress, it was because Tsunade had said no man could catch her eye.

Okay, that's true.

Who can outdo her? She's been dabbling in this for twenty years, and when she comes back, people still recognize her as the Senju Clan Princess. Everyone says that debut is the peak, but this lady has never gone down.

After traveling for about half a month, they were getting closer and closer to the Land of Iron, and the temperature was getting colder and colder.

Fortunately, the two found a small inn in the Land of Land of Iron to rest at. At least they didn't have to camp in the wild anymore. Although there was no downside, sleeping in a tent was still a real ordeal for Naruto.

Tsunade probably didn't take him, a mere man, seriously. After taking a shower, she casually grabbed a piece of clothing, wrapped it around herself, and went back to her tent to continue reading the intelligence reports.

Information about Konohagakure traveled all the way, and Tsunade dealt with it all the way. Konohagakure was away from Tsunade for almost half a month, Danzo didn't even make a ripple.

The disappearance of the Nine-Tails didn't have much impact on Konohagakure due to Sand's alliances. On the contrary, Danzo's series of actions backfired, leading to his own demise.

Tsunade relentlessly crack down on Root, her spearhead clearly aimed at Danzo. Naruto, too, had been keeping a close eye on Danzo, waiting for the day he would lash out.

Land of Iron, Inn.

Outside, it was a world of ice and snow, with a howling wind.

At Naruto's insistence, two rooms were booked, and Tsunade had no objections. The two went back to their respective rooms for a while, and when Naruto came out, he saw that the door to the next room was also open.

Tsunade, carrying a white bathrobe and a bottle of sake in her right hand, glanced at him with an expression that remained unchanged.

"Shall we chat?" she asked.

"Okay." Naruto nodded.

Steam rose from the bath, Naruto plunged into the water with a splash, letting out a soft groan. All the weariness of the journey was soothed in that moment.

Besides