Who Would Get Their Way? Tsunade's Temptation

"Hmph! You should be thinking about how to thank me!" With that, Tsunade tossed a scroll to Uchiha Dan.

Curiously, Uchiha Dan opened the scroll. His expression changed abruptly, then brightened with excitement.

After a long journey, he'd finally taken the first step. With such a good start, things would be much easier from here on out.

It hadn't been easy!

That guy Hiruzen Sarutobi had actually allowed him to practice the Chakra Extraction Technique.

He already knew how to do it, so he didn't need anyone's permission. But this was a sign that the restrictions on him were about to be gradually lifted!

Once they were loosened a little more, he'd make his escape at once. Then the sea would be wide enough for fish to leap, and the sky high enough for birds to soar.

"How could the Third..." Uchiha Dan pretended to be puzzled. Then, as if he'd suddenly realized something, he looked at Tsunade in surprise.

Tsunade was so pleased with herself that she couldn't help laughing. Uchiha Dan's reaction had gone exactly as she'd expected.

That was how it was supposed to go!

"Tell me, why are you helping me?" Uchiha Dan reined in his emotions and asked Tsunade seriously—a rare occurrence.

"Because I don't want to see you waste your talent. Is that reason good enough?"

"That's good enough!" Uchiha Dan sighed. "I owe you one, so I have to repay you."

Before Tsunade could refuse, Uchiha Dan began hurriedly stuffing things into a cardboard box. "And the first step in repaying you is to let you have this best office. I hope you'll be happy!"

With that, Uchiha Dan grabbed the box in both hands and made for the door.

But when he reached it, he found that it wouldn't open, no matter what he tried. In a panic, he set the box aside and twisted the doorknob with both hands, sweat beading on his forehead.

Just then, Tsunade's sinister voice came from behind him. "Need a hand?"

"Sure, it'd be great if you could help... Ow..."

Uchiha Dan was tossed right back into his chair. He looked at the smug Tsunade with a resentful expression.

Tsunade, meanwhile, was happier than ever.

For the past five years, she'd always been the one to lose out to Uchiha Dan. Now, at last, it was his turn.

To Tsunade, this felt even better than celebrating the New Year.

And she'd found a way to keep Uchiha Dan in line.

You want to stay away from me? I won't let you have your way. That'll teach you!

You think you can bully me in Konoha?

Even as she savored her victory, Tsunade felt a little annoyed.

So many people went out of their way to get close to her, yet Uchiha Dan was the only one she'd approached of her own accord—and all he wanted was to run away.

"You really don't want to see me that badly?" Tsunade broke the silence and asked first.

"You've got some nerve asking that," Uchiha Dan said, disgruntled. "I wouldn't complain about bumping into you now and then."

"But in the five years I've been at the hospital, we've run into each other forty-nine times, and you've caused me trouble every single time."

"So whenever I see you, my scalp starts tingling. I always feel like something bad is about to happen."

"Hmph! Then give me back the scroll!" Tsunade held out her hand to Uchiha Dan, pretending to be angry.

"No way. I'm not giving it back!" Uchiha Dan quickly clutched the scroll to his chest and turned away, guarding it as tightly as he could for fear Tsunade would snatch it. "Why should I give you what's mine?"

Tsunade was speechless at Uchiha Dan's shameless behavior.

How could anyone like him exist?

If he weren't so talented and a civilian, she'd have wanted to beat him to death ages ago.

Uchiha Dan felt quite the opposite.

Ever since he'd decided three years ago to make use of Tsunade, he'd gotten everything he wanted so far.

He couldn't help composing a little poem in his heart:

"I passed the test and became a medical ninja; everything's going according to plan. I'm getting closer and closer to Sister Tsunade, and my mood's better than ever!"

Of course, there had been a few twists and turns along the way.

He'd had to rack his brains to avoid making Tsunade truly dislike him, while still managing to anger her every time—and make sure it all seemed natural and reasonable.

Poor, innocent Tsunade had no idea. Uchiha Dan had spent all these years learning to read people just to survive, and he'd played her like a fiddle.

There was no helping it. His Second Grandfather had made the mess, and she'd have to pay for it.

His hope of escaping Konoha rested entirely on her.

"So..." After a while, Uchiha Dan ventured, "You really are going to work at Konoha Hospital from now on?"

"What else?" Tsunade asked with a smile.

"Then why do you have to share an office with me?" Uchiha Dan asked, his face falling.

"Of course, it's so we can discuss Medical Ninjutsu more easily." Tsunade's eyes gleamed. "I'm very curious about that technique you used earlier."

You've finally taken the bait!

Uchiha Dan sighed inwardly.

This had been so damn difficult.

"Heh, forget it. That's my secret technique," Uchiha Dan said without hesitation.

"I'm not asking you to teach it to me for free!" Tsunade said earnestly. "I'll trade you something."

"What could you possibly trade me?" Uchiha Dan looked her up and down, his tone faintly disdainful.

"I learned the Mystical Palm Technique just by watching it once. I don't need you to teach me that."

"I don't have enough Chakra yet to learn the technique with the blue diamond-shaped mark on your forehead."

"As for the technique you use to summon Katsuyu, that's the Summoning Technique, right? Could you even teach me that?"

"And even if you were willing to teach me, wouldn't the Third leave you alone and make my life miserable instead?"

"So here's the question: what can you trade me?"

Before Tsunade could reply, Uchiha Dan spoke first. "And don't you dare say something like offering yourself to me. Even if you agreed, I wouldn't!"

"Drop dead!" Tsunade snatched up the pen holder beside her and hurled it at Uchiha Dan. Her face flushed red. "Even if every man in Konoha were dead, I still wouldn't be interested in you."

"You should've said so earlier! You nearly scared me to death. I thought my life was over!" Uchiha Dan dodged the pen holder and patted his chest in relief, taking every chance to needle Tsunade.

"So don't even think about it. I'm not interested in anything else, either."

"I can give you money!" Tsunade suddenly thought of something and said earnestly. "A lot of money!"

"Do you really have no idea how much I make in a month at Konoha Hospital?"

"I get a cut. Every day, countless people line up and beg me to treat them, no matter the cost. Do you think I'm short on money?" Uchiha Dan scoffed.

"And do you even have money? I heard that you, Tsunade, go gambling whenever you get the chance—and always lose."

"That was in the past!" Tsunade immediately protested. "I haven't gambled in three years, and I've saved up a lot of money."

With the rumor confirmed, Uchiha Dan felt even more certain of his theory.

When someone could suppress their own desires, it meant they had something more important to do.

Tsunade had even quit gambling.

That meant that, under his influence, she was desperately eager to improve her Medical Ninjutsu.

This laid a solid foundation for Uchiha Dan's next move.

"Offer me something else. I don't need money!" Uchiha Dan shook his head.

"When you have enough Chakra, I'll teach you the Yin Seal," Tsunade said seriously.

"How long will that take? What if you go back on your word by then?"

"Would I, Tsunade, really be the sort of person to break a promise?"

"I wouldn't know. We're not exactly close. Offer me something else!"

"I can let you sign a Blood Contract with Sage Katsuyu—secretly. You might even get the chance to learn Senjutsu," Tsunade coaxed.