Departure, a Fateful Cycle with Tsunade, and a New Identity in Konohagakure

Tsunade didn't speak, but unconsciously extended her slender index finger and tapped the table twice, her heart suddenly tightening.

She hadn't had this habit before; she didn't know when she'd picked it up. Without time to think, seeing Naruto staring at her in astonishment, she knew she had to say something.

Where are you going (tomorrow)?

"Nowhere to go, I'm going back to wash up," he replied, unsure of Tsunade's meaning.

"Oh, okay." Tsunade nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

Nothing was said that night, and the next day...

Naruto was yawning and washing up when he turned around and happened to see Tsunade open the door and come out. She had dark circles under her eyes, clearly indicating she hadn't slept well.

"Lord Tsunade, what's going on?"

"Nothing."

At noon, the sun was high in the sky.

At the dining table, Tsunade was somewhat speechless. She propped her head up with one hand and gently tapped the table with the other. Her gaze swept back and forth between Naruto, as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.

"Aren't you leaving?" she couldn't help but ask.

"I don't have money for food, so I'll eat this last meal before I leave." Naruto showed no embarrassment whatsoever, glanced at Tsunade, and said with a smile.

Tsunade: "."

Shizune: "."

Sometimes, there's really no way to deal with shamelessness.

Naruto didn't care. He really didn't have money for food, and he couldn't leave on an empty stomach. Although he wasn't capable of starving to death, why not freeload if he could?

After lunch, Naruto said goodbye.

Tsunade stood at the window on the second floor of the inn, frowning as she watched Naruto's figure disappear little by little, feeling a sense of emptiness in her heart. The cards on the table were scattered, and the dice were empty.

Shizune sat on the tatami mat reading a book, glancing up at Tsunade before looking down again. At times like this, she didn't know what to say, nor what Tsunade was thinking.

Even if she asked, Tsunade wouldn't tell her the truth. Anyway, it's an adult's business, so she shouldn't worry about it too much.

In the afternoon, a torrential downpour, the worst in years, struck the Land of Hot Water, abruptly ending the two women's plans to continue their journey. Gazing at the white expanse of rain outside the window, they could only postpone their trip for another day.

A cool breeze was blowing, and the light inside and outside the inn was dim.

To read, Shizune had to turn on the small lamp on the table and carefully read while hunched over it. Outside, thunder and rain raged, and Tsunade sat by the window, drinking alone in silence.

Shizune was used to this. Sometimes Tsunade would drink alone in silence, and Shizune could just sit by and read; there was just too much to learn about Medical Ninjutsu.

She was thinking about working hard, but after reading for a while, Xiao Shizune, hypnotized by the white noise of the rain, started fishing. Her head drooped, her eyes closed and opened again.

A moment later, Shizune fell asleep on the table with a thud.

Hearing the sound, Tsunade to look in Shizune's direction, then quickly turned her gaze back to the downpour. The cool raindrops pattered on her delicate face, and her slender waist and legs accentuated her ample bust.

Her figure was so striking that it was hard to look away at just one glance, but her cold gaze made it difficult to keep looking at her.

Naruto didn't care and completely ignored Tsunade's gaze.

The rain poured down as if it were pouring down from the sky. Thunder rumbled incessantly, and visibility was completely reduced to a white mist over anything more than ten meters away.

Large raindrops pounded the ground, creating a spray of water half a meter high. The innkeeper was shouting something downstairs; something had probably been blown over.

The rain poured down like waves, splashing onto the ground and windows as if boiling water were pouring from a pot. Willow trees swayed wildly, and the inn trembled in this apocalyptic scene.

Tsunade, sitting by the window, didn't react much, continuing to slowly drink glass after glass while staring at the balcony. Her eyes were slightly vacant; she hadn't considered trying to persuade Naruto to stay.

Sitting here wasn't a state of self-pity or absentmindedness, but rather a gradual reflection on the experiences of the past few days. First, he thought about Naruto's origins, focusing on the vicinity of the Land of Wind.

But no matter how she thought about it, Tsunade never imagined that Naruto came from that small country of Rōran. A person of unknown origin. She silently took a sip of her drink.

He seemed to know himself very well, so well that every movement, glance, and gesture had a natural tacit understanding with him. Tsunade didn't believe in fate, but at this moment, she was also somewhat shaken.

It wasn't because of romantic feelings, it just felt so strange. Being with that person was unexpectedly comfortable, comfort that had nothing to do with anything else.

She seems to be able to forget even the worst things, and there's a sense of camaraderie about her. This is extremely rare for her; at her level, she has almost no friends.

Her status as one of the Legendary Sannin, along with her strength, destined her to have no friends. Having lost her family and lover, she could only live a lonely life.

Everyone else can be happily reunited with their families, but she can't. Tsunade knew this all along, and she understood it perfectly, so she never considered returning to that village; she just wanted to keep traveling the world.

Even if I keep gambling and keep losing, at least I have something to hold onto. A life that's predictable from beginning to end is just too lonely and too boring. But it's alright, I've gotten used to it.

Suddenly, this strange person appeared, laughing and joking as he came and went, like a passerby in someone's life, causing no great ripples.

As Tsunade thought this, her fingers unconsciously tapped lightly on the table. She knew she was leaving a mark, and at least for now, she just wanted to get some fresh air.

At least the heavy rain has blocked out the sky and earth, so we can only wait a little longer.

A jumble of confused thoughts made Tsunade frown, and a phrase inexplicably came to mind. He said they would meet again someday, but it would be a long time from now.

How long is "a long time"?

Bored, she couldn't help but speculate about the length of time. A long time? Probably not a year or two, perhaps four or five years?

However, no matter what, Tsunade could not have imagined that this "long time" would be fourteen years. When they met again, that person had not yet grown up.

There was no playful smile on the boy's face; his eyes held a deep, savage glint, as if he were about to devour someone. His expression was cold and indifferent, filled with hostility towards the world.

"With such heavy rain, should we go find him?" Tsunade on her hand, her beautiful eyes fixed on the torrential rain, pondering that the Land of Hot Water wasn't that big.

After thinking it over for a while, she finally gave up on the idea.

Even if I probably won't sleep well for the next two months, I'll get used to it eventually. Anyway, I might never see you again, so oh well.

At this time.

Naruto was sheltering from the downpour in an abandoned cave, having changed his clothes. He clutched a newly made, wet mask in his hand.

"Oh ho, to avoid suspicion, let's give Konohagakure a little shock with the Book of the Red Moon beforehand."

That's perfect, he didn't want to leave any evidence against him. After all, stealing information can easily turn into robbery, or even a fight.

If a fight breaks out, Naruto is actually a bit weak. The Third Hokage isn't old yet, Danzo, Konohagakure is brimming with talent, experiencing a second spring.

With Shisui Uchiha in the lead and Fugaku Uchiha in the rear, plus the Hyuga Hiashi brothers Hiashi and the Ino-Shika-Cho trio providing backup, who would dare to storm Konohagakure?

He wasn't particularly afraid, just found it troublesome. After all, others might have all sorts of dangerous motives for invading Konohagakure, but he just wanted a few top-secret documents.

Ask someone in the know carefully, and we can call it a day.

His plan was this: after all, searching the whole world for Orochimaru wasn't realistic. At this time, Orochimaru hadn't yet mastered the core technology and had just defected from Konohagakure.

Staring at the dense rain outside the cave, he fiddled with the mask he had made while thinking about how to sneak into Konohagakure unnoticed.

He had already spent half a month on the road with Tsunade, and he didn't have much time left. However, if he was just looking for information around Konohagakure, it shouldn't be too difficult.

After all, information about multiple personality disorder is relatively obscure, and it might just be gathering dust in some corner of the internet. However, even the most obscure information is still top secret, something that is not to be revealed.

To avoid trouble, he'd definitely need to change his appearance before heading to Konohagakure. Although he usually used Sasuke's appearance to accumulate merit, that was clearly inappropriate now.

I'll just create a new account for myself, Zhumoon.

Anyway, the Road to Ninja is probably not going to happen; he won't give Obito Uchiha the chance to open the Tsukuyomi World. Since nobody knows anyway, he can just change his appearance, put on a mask, and go for it.

Just as the rain was about to stop, Naruto put on his mask and silently considered his next plan.

The rain has stopped.

Naruto didn't hesitate and took a step forward.

After traveling for a while, he gradually moved towards Konohagakure. He evaded numerous sentry posts in the Konoha Forest, where relations between Konohagakure and the surrounding major powers were still very tense.

The major powers are on the verge of war over resources.

Forcing their way in would inevitably disturb Konohagakure and potentially cause unnecessary trouble for their mission. This was something Naruto didn't want to see, so he quietly lay in wait outside the Konoha Forest.

This is the outer edge of the Konoha Forest, quite a distance from Konohagakure itself. Naruto concealed his presence to avoid being detected.

He silently watched as squads of Genin passed by, the most recent one being a female Genin walked past him without even glancing at Naruto.

He was still waiting; this was one of the few roads he had to take back to Konohagakure. In these times of war and conflict, it was common for ninjas to be injured.

A day passed, Naruto would occasionally leave that place to find something to eat, only to return and patiently wait there. Another day or two passed, but he ultimately found nothing.

Although he waited for two days without finding a suitable opportunity, he unexpectedly discovered the remains of a Jonin while waiting in a different location.

The person had become a skeleton, with only a green vest that was almost completely corroded and a Forehead Protector remaining.

These days, Jonin less than dogs; ninjas are nothing more than expendable resources for Konohagakure. Even if his disguise says Jonin, his actual skill level might only be Chunin.

After sighing for a while, Naruto lost interest in examining the skeleton and moved to another spot to wait.

Strangely enough, he waited for a day or two without seeing a seriously injured ninja. Perhaps it was a matter of instant wealth, because after seeing the skeleton, his opportunity finally arrived.

With a splash, a blood-covered Genin fell into the woods. Naruto waited there for ten minutes. After confirming that no one was around, he quietly crept over.

He was a ninja of about fifteen or sixteen years old, with an unremarkable appearance. He was severely injured and almost entirely covered in blood. He seemed to know he was about to die, and he kept muttering cries for help.

He vaguely saw Naruto's figure, and his will to survive surged. Even though he was barely clinging to life, he forced his eyes open and grabbed Naruto's clothes.

The boy's hands were like pincers, blood stained Naruto's clothes, and his eyes bulged out.

"Help me!!"

The potential of the instinctive will to survive is immense. Faced with life and death, the boy almost instinctively grasped at any straw he could find. Even if he didn't know the identity of the strange Masked Man in front of him, he wanted to live.

Looking at the boy whose face was covered in blood, he exuded a survival instinct that screamed, "I can't die!"

Naruto's compassionate heart immediately came to the fore. He looked at the boy and sighed.

"You're too badly injured, there's nothing I can do. If you want to live, there's only one way left. I just don't know if you can accept it, and if you can't..."

"I can!!" The boy's last burst of energy was fleeting, leaving him with no choice.

"Alright, young man, do you believe in Evil God?" he said quietly.

About half a minute later, the system's synthesized voice rang out with a "ding." A panel popped up, and a row of red text appeared in the task list.

[This action violated regulations; the follower is invalid and their credentials will be erased after the host's timeline is reversed.]

Seeing this, Naruto's lips curled into a slight smile.

He didn't care about qualifications or anything like that, as long as it was effective now. Even if the number of believers didn't increase after he prepared to go back, at least this person had come back to life.

Of course, Naruto isn't some kind of living saint.

He saved the boy only because he needed the boy's identity to infiltrate Konohagakure. As the blood on the boy's body slowly disappeared, Naruto threw him into the Sealing Space.

Following the memory, they found the skeleton buried under fallen leaves and immediately used the Impure World Reincarnation to awaken the Jonin. Without a word, they sucked them into the Sealing Space, then Jonin the healed boy and the Impure World Reincarnation onto the empty Evil God Altar.

They brought nothing with them when they traveled through time, but fortunately the Sealing Space and the Evil God Altar are still usable.

The boy was just a Chunin who had just been on the verge of death but had now recovered. While his mind was still a little dazed, he was thrown into the Evil God Altar, and he was immediately filled with panic.

What was even more terrifying was that a corpse fell from the sky, and damn it, it was still moving.

The boy instinctively reached for his lower back, only to be shocked to find his kunai gone. Just as he was stunned, a masked figure appeared above the Evil God Altar.

Without saying a word, the man immediately started beating him up. When the boy was on the verge of death, he was astonished to find that his wounds were healing.

He looked up and saw the mysterious masked man staring at him.

"Who... who are you?" The boy's mouth was dry, and his voice trembled slightly.

"You don't need to know. What you need to do now is tell me everything about yourself." Naruto drew his sword and said coldly.

"Relatives, friends, teachers, classmates, people you like, enemies, all of them! Tell them all honestly and clearly, without missing a single one."

"Otherwise, you will experience what it means to be worse than dead."

"You! What do you want to do!" The boy retreated repeatedly, knowing he was no match for the masked man. "What do you intend to do to Konohagakure?"

"You can't know anything!"

"Heh, you're pretty stubborn." Naruto twirled his sword and walked step by step toward the boy. "Trust me, you'll talk."

"Without me, you would have died long ago."

Ah, I didn't mean to start writing a story with Tsunade right away. It's not like I'm a Monday bird, and I don't have that strong a thing for Tsunade.

The outline was written beforehand, and it was something that had to be written. I'm focusing more on a corresponding cycle.

When it was released, it was said that Tsunade's line was slightly longer, not that Chao's line was slightly longer, but that it was the fate line.

Writing this here will echo what came before; Tsunade's kindness to the protagonist wasn't without reason.

P. S. Fun fact: Zhou Yikou is Qidian on Qidian (a Chinese online literature platform) who promotes every book by its authors, often to the point of ruining them.