This Was the Last Time I'd Spar with You

Boom!

Watanabe fell like a meteor, slamming into the ground and leaving a crater several feet across. Dust billowed everywhere.

Tsunade panted heavily, her beautiful eyes fixed on the spot where Watanabe had landed. She was extremely nervous.

Her attack could have leveled an entire street. Could Watanabe really have come through it unscathed?

"Tsunade, you're awfully violent today."

A reassuring voice soon came from the dust cloud. Watanabe brushed the dirt off himself and walked out with a wry smile.

Tsunade relaxed a little and pursed her lips. "It's not that I'm violent. You're just too weak, so you can only be my punching bag."

She said that, but in truth, she was impressed by how tough Watanabe was. He had withstood even her intense barrage just now. As far as defense went, there probably wasn't anyone in Konoha who could match him.

Even if he ended up on the battlefield someday, he'd be able to protect himself to some extent.

"You're Tsunade, after all. It's only natural that I can't beat you," Watanabe said with a wry smile, accepting defeat without a fuss and slipping in a compliment.

Tsunade lifted her chin proudly and walked over to a nearby rock.

Watanabe realized she was tired and wanted to rest, so he picked up the milk tea and hurried after her.

"Thirsty? Here, drink."

Tsunade took the milk tea without hesitation. After a couple of sips, she ordered Watanabe, "My legs are sore. Rub them for me."

"Sure."

Watanabe readily agreed. Tsunade had sparred with him, so it was only right that he do her a few favors. There was no reason to feel awkward about it.

He sat down too, lifted Tsunade's legs onto his lap, and began massaging from her calves, slowly working his way up.

Tsunade had beautiful legs, and she was wearing leather pants today, which hugged her thighs and made them look firm and rounded. They felt wonderfully soft under his hands.

Watching Watanabe massage her thighs, Tsunade's face turned slightly red. She held the milk tea out to him and turned her head away. "You must be thirsty too. Have a couple of sips."

Watanabe paused. A few droplets clung to the tip of the straw. He couldn't tell whether they were milk tea or Tsunade's saliva.

"No need. I'm not thirsty," Watanabe said, waving it away.

Tsunade frowned. "If I tell you to drink, then drink. Stop arguing."

"All right..."

Unable to refuse, Watanabe lowered his head and wrapped his lips around the straw, taking a long, noisy gulp.

The thought that Tsunade had just had the straw in her mouth gave Watanabe a strange feeling. Wasn't this a little too intimate for friends?

"This is the last time I'll spar with you," Tsunade suddenly said.

"Cough, cough!"

Watanabe choked without warning, spraying milk tea onto Tsunade's thigh. He hurriedly reached out to wipe it off.

"Such a klutz," Tsunade scolded him, then continued drinking the remaining half cup.

"Tsunade, are you graduating early?" Watanabe asked.

"Mm," Tsunade admitted.

"My grandmother originally planned to keep me in school until I graduated normally, but the situation in the Shinobi World has grown tense. Nobody knows when the Second Shinobi World War will break out. As the Senju Clan's pride and joy, I can't waste any more time at school."

Watanabe nodded.

He understood. Tsunade enjoyed privileges, but she also carried pressures far beyond those of ordinary people. She had to be better than anyone her age.

"Where will you go after you graduate?"

Normally, graduates were assigned to squads led by jōnin so they could gain experience on missions. Watanabe figured Tsunade would receive special treatment. He wouldn't have been surprised if she went straight to Konoha High Command.

Tsunade thought for a moment, then answered honestly. "The old Third wants to take me on as his student, and my grandmother wants me to run for Fourth Hokage. I've already agreed to it. The old Third spoke with me last night. He said he'd put me through intensive training in seclusion. I won't be able to go anywhere except to train with him."

Watanabe's heart sank.

In that case, this really would be the last time he sparred with Tsunade.

All good things came to an end. Tsunade had a much brighter future than he did, and she was more likely than anyone to become Fourth Hokage.

"How long will the training last?" Watanabe asked, unconsciously increasing the pressure of his massage. His ten fingers sank deep into the flesh of Tsunade's thighs.

Tsunade cradled her milk tea and glanced at him, understanding that he didn't want her to leave.

She didn't want to leave him either. But just as she'd said, she was the Senju Clan's pride and joy. Restoring her ancestors' glory was her duty, and there were many things she had no choice but to do.

"I don't know," Tsunade said, shaking her head. "Maybe a year, maybe two. Or maybe I'll keep training until the Shinobi World War breaks out."

"I see..."

Watanabe took a deep breath. "I hope everything goes well for you. If you run into any trouble in the future, you can ask me for help. I'd go through fire and water for you."

They might not see each other again for years. Watanabe only hoped that when he and Tsunade met again, they wouldn't be strangers—that they could still share a cup of milk tea like they did now.

After all, Tsunade was his only friend in Konoha.

Tsunade bit her lower lip. Watanabe's words made her nose sting a little.

"Now that we've talked about me, it's time to talk about you," she suddenly said, changing the subject.

"Talk about what?" Watanabe asked, curious.

"What else?"

Tsunade set down the milk tea and leaned her pretty face slowly toward Watanabe. She fixed him with a serious look and warned him, "After I leave for training, you're not allowed to spend time with other girls. If I catch you getting close to any girl, I won't let you off!"

Watanabe froze.

Why did that sound so strange?

Wasn't that the sort of thing only couples said?

"Tsunade, what do you mean?" Watanabe ventured.

"I mean exactly what I said!"

Tsunade spelled it out for him. "You were the one who pursued me, and I've already agreed to be with you. You have to wait here obediently until I come back."

"Uh..."

Her words struck like a bolt from the blue, leaving Watanabe completely dazed.

I pursued you?

When did I pursue you?

And when did you agree to be with me?

"I have to wait for you to come back?" Watanabe repeated, wondering if he'd misheard her.

Seeing his hesitant, uncertain expression, Tsunade angrily rapped him hard on the head.

[Attacked: Vitality +21, Defense +11, Pain -13...]

"You're rubbing my thighs like that, and you don't want to wait for me?"

She pointed at Watanabe's ten fingers, buried deep in the flesh of her thighs, and demanded indignantly.

If Watanabe dared say no, she'd fight him right then and there. She'd beat the shit out of him—or her name wasn't Tsunade!

Watanabe had been about to say that she was the one who'd asked him to massage her, but only an idiot would say that now.

"I'll wait. Of course I'll wait!"

Watanabe answered at once.

At the same time, it all felt like a dream, unreal. He'd once thought about pursuing Tsunade, but he'd never dared take the idea seriously. He was afraid he'd mess things up and end up losing even her friendship.

Yet somehow, he'd actually won Tsunade over. Even he was confused about how he'd ended up with a girlfriend.

"That's more like it."

Tsunade nodded with satisfaction.