Baffling

With different thoughts on their minds, they finished off two jars of Sauce Fragrance wine.

Nayuki drank less and could still move around on her own.

Kawafune-kun and Tsunade were both carried back to their rooms by servants, one room each.

Most of Sakumo's weight rested on Nayuki as the two staggered back to their room.

Sakumo leaned close to his wife with a mysterious look and whispered something.

"I discovered a secret."

"Kawafune-kun wanted to become Hokage."

"Now he's giving the position to Tsunade."

After saying that, he waited for Nayuki's astonished reaction.

Who would have thought she had never noticed that her brother-in-law had such ambitions? She found the idea of him backing Tsunade for the position far more believable.

Had anyone ever seen a Hokage who loved petting dogs?

Nayuki ignored her husband's drunken nonsense.

She helped him continue toward their room. They probably would not be making babies tonight—his brain was clearly not working properly, and that might affect the child.

The night passed without incident, and dawn came again.

Tsunade woke up in the guest room and looked around at the furnishings. This was not her room.

She immediately realized what had happened and looked at the bed again. Thankfully, she was the only one there.

Her clothes were neat and tidy. Nothing unexpected—or pleasantly surprising—had happened.

After getting up, she ran into Kawafune-kun outside, towel-drying his hair.

His upper body was bare, his eight-pack abs especially eye-catching, while his short silver hair was still dripping wet.

He also carried a pleasant, fresh bathing scent.

"Morning, Kawafune-kun."

"Morning. I was just about to check whether you were awake."

"Go wash up. My sister-in-law prepared some clothes for you."

Kawafune-kun took the towel off his head and gave it a shake.

Tsunade lowered her head and walked past, even forgetting to ask where the bathroom was.

"Go straight and turn right. That's the bathroom."

Kawafune-kun called out a reminder from behind her.

"Okay."

Tsunade had already disappeared from view, leaving only that single word echoing in his ears.

After washing up, Tsunade emerged from the bathroom and entered the dining room wearing a purple qipao.

Kawafune-kun's eyes went wide. He had not expected his sister-in-law to prepare such a beautiful outfit.

The qipao made Tsunade's figure look even more alluring, especially those full curves that drew the eye.

Tsunade rolled her eyes at Kawafune-kun and sat down beside him.

"Isn't this a little inappropriate for a construction site?"

Kawafune-kun took a sip of porridge. It was beautiful, yes, but not exactly suitable for staking people out.

"I have combat clothes too. Tsunade can change into them later."

Nayuki spoke up at just the right time, saving Tsunade the trouble of going home to change.

Throughout breakfast, Kawafune-kun's gaze barely left Tsunade.

In the end, Tsunade got so creeped out by his staring that she hurriedly finished eating and pulled Nayuki away to change clothes.

"You're too young. Acting like this damages the Hatake family's reputation."

Only then did Sakumo, who had been sitting as still as a meditating monk, open his mouth to reprimand him. Had this pathetic little brother never seen a woman before?

"What do you know? That was Tsunade in a qipao."

Kawafune-kun tore at a fried dough stick. He and this older brother had no common language.

After breakfast, the same four people and one dog from yesterday returned to stake out the area from two adjacent trees.

The construction crew had all arrived. Whether it was due to their sense of responsibility or Tsunade's intimidating presence was unclear.

After watching for roughly two hours, something finally happened.

"Someone went in."

Nayuki and Kawafune-kun spoke at the same time—one relying on herself, the other on the dog.

No one had appeared in their sight yet, but neither Tsunade nor Sakumo chose to doubt them.

They stared intently at the construction crew on the site.

A three-man squad soon appeared at the site and began negotiating with the Construction Team.

"They're Uchiha."

Tsunade spotted the clan crests on several ninjas' shoulders.

"The Uchiha Clan really has gotten involved."

There was no surprise on Kawafune's face. He had already considered the possibility when he saw the approval document.

The group continued watching, but they could see the people without hearing what they said.

After the three-man Uchiha squad approached, the Construction Team's only ninja—the dark-skinned man—stepped forward to negotiate.

"What business do the three Uchiha-sama have here?"

"What are you doing here?"

The lead ninja looked arrogant. Could a ninja reduced to construction work even be considered a ninja?

"We were hired by Tsunade-sama to survey the terrain. Construction on a hospital will begin here shortly."

The dark-skinned man answered truthfully. He could not afford to offend the Uchiha Clan.

"I see. This place is close to our Uchiha Clan's Police Force. I saw some activity and came to investigate."

"Carry on with your work. We'll be leaving first."

With a wave of the leader's hand, the three of them left directly.

The dark-skinned man was completely baffled. Was that really it? Such a dramatic start for such an anticlimactic ending?

Unable to figure it out, he stopped thinking about it and turned back to continue surveying.

"What does the Uchiha Clan mean by this?"

Even Kawafune could not make sense of it. He frowned, feeling things slipping out of his control.

"This place is so close to the Police Force. It's normal for Uchiha people to come over and ask about it."

With his limited mental capacity, Sakumo clearly did not think this was anything unusual.

Nayuki remained silent at the side. She also felt that things were not so simple, but she could not pinpoint what was wrong.

"What should we do next?"

Tsunade spoke up to ask. Kawafune was still the backbone of the group.

"You stay here. I'll go take a look."

Kawafune decided to investigate personally. He left a Flying Thunder God Technique Formula on a tree branch before vanishing in a flash.

He quietly followed the three Uchiha.

They were heading back toward the clan grounds. Suddenly, Kawafune sensed someone ahead. That Chakra felt somewhat familiar.

He stopped and watched how the situation unfolded.

The strongest of the three Uchiha was only a Chunin, and none of them noticed a thing.

They continued toward the clan grounds without a care.

As they passed beneath a large tree, the massive howl of a Fūma Shuriken descending from the sky forced them back.

"Who's there?"

The three retreated at once, wary expressions on their faces. They formed a triangular formation, Kunai in hand as they vigilantly scanned their surroundings.

The Uchiha might have been arrogant and conceited, but their individual combat qualities were still excellent.

"The Uchiha Clan is nothing special. You even dare lay hands on a hospital belonging to my Senju Clan?"

As the words fell, a Black-robed Person with his head covered by a hood appeared before them, his face hidden from view.

Kawafune was utterly confused. Where had this Senju clansman come from?

"We didn't do anything. We only asked some routine questions."

The lead Uchiha hurriedly defended himself. The person before them was not someone they could contend with.

"This is a lesson for you. Stay away from the hospital construction site."

The Black-robed Person did not wish to waste words. He flashed forward and engaged the three in battle.

Kawafune could tell that he was not a taijutsu expert. His movements were full of openings.

Even so, he was still more than the three Uchiha could handle.

Before long, the three ninjas lay on the ground, all injured. The most severely wounded had merely been struck by Kunai a few times in non-vital areas.

"Go back and tell your clan head that my Senju Clan is not something you can touch whenever you please."

With that, the Black-robed Person vanished in a flash in the opposite direction.

Kawafune was now even more interested in this Black-robed Person who claimed to be from the Senju Clan.

So he concealed his presence and followed after him.

The Black-robed Person took a long detour through the forest before entering the Uchiha Clan grounds and disappearing.

Kawafune did not venture deeper. Things seemed to be getting more complicated—and more interesting.

After standing there and pondering for a while, he activated the Flying Thunder God and returned to Tsunade's side.