Uzumaki Mito

"Let's eat. Quit talking," Jiraiya said, picking up the grilled meat and digging in.

Tianqi and the other two joined him, while Sarutobi could only stare in shock. In less than two minutes, they'd wiped out all the meat on the table.

"Boss, bring us twenty more servings!" Jiraiya called out.

"Twenty won't be enough. Bring us fifty!" Tianqi demanded, going even further.

Tsunade and Orochimaru stared at Tianqi in shock. Twenty servings for Jiraiya was understandable, but could Tianqi really eat fifty?

They'd clearly underestimated Tianqi's appetite. The seventy servings arrived, and before long, they were gone too.

"Keep it coming! More!" Tianqi urged the owner of the barbecue restaurant, his mouth still full.

The others could only stare at him in disbelief. Jiraiya had nearly had his fill, while Sarutobi covered his face and said, "I forgot how much this guy eats. Looks like my wallet's going to be empty again."

"You two have spent the day with Tianqi. What do you think of him?" Sarutobi asked his two favorite students.

"Hmm? How should I put it? He's all right, I guess, but he can be exhausting." Tsunade told Sarutobi everything that had happened that day, while Orochimaru chimed in from beside her.

"Hahaha, don't hold it against Tianqi. That's just how he grew up, and I'm relieved he's teaching you this way." After hearing Tsunade out, Sarutobi laughed.

"Your big brother Tianqi never went to school as a child. I was the one who taught him later. He's the most gifted person I've ever met. Even the Second Hokage, I don't think, could match him." Thinking of Tianqi, Sarutobi couldn't help but sigh in heartfelt admiration. At least he'd made the right choice back then. If they'd pushed Tianqi into turning against Konoha, the village would be facing an immensely powerful enemy.

Hearing Sarutobi say that Tianqi had never gone to school and that even her granduncle couldn't match him, Tsunade was hooked. "Teacher Sarutobi, what happened? Tell us!"

Orochimaru was a genius himself, and Tianqi had piqued his interest too.

Jiraiya was always interested in anything to do with the Hokage, especially a story about someone surpassing one. "Come on, old man! Tell us!"

Seeing how interested his students were, Sarutobi thought of the way the village had treated Tianqi when he was young and replied, "There's nothing to tell. Just know that Tianqi's strong." He was afraid that bringing it up would remind Tianqi of the unfair treatment he'd suffered at the village's hands—and what if he turned against them? That couldn't happen.

When Sarutobi refused to say more, the others muttered, "He starts a story and leaves out the rest. Hope he never gets a partner."

Sarutobi was worrying over nothing. If Tianqi had wanted to turn against the village, he'd have done it long ago. Right now, he was focused solely on devouring the food in front of him.

An hour later, Tianqi was finally full and stood outside the restaurant, picking his teeth with a toothpick. Sarutobi was settling the bill, speaking to the owner as he paid.

"Boss, I didn't bring enough money today. Would it be all right if I sent the rest over later?" Sarutobi apologized. He truly hadn't expected Tianqi to empty his wallet and still leave him short of the bill.

"No problem, no problem. Pay me later, Lord Hokage. I trust you." The barbecue shop owner knew Sarutobi. He'd planned to treat the new Hokage to a free meal, but the moment he saw the total, he changed his mind. It was nearly a month's net income. If he waived the bill, he'd have worked for nothing all month.

"Good. Thanks, Boss. I'll have someone bring the rest over later." With that, Sarutobi walked out.

"Thank you, and please come again!" The owner sent Sarutobi off with a smile.

Outside the restaurant.

"Big Brother Sarutobi, what took you so long to pay? You're not past it already, are you?" Tianqi said.

"Yeah, old man. You're way too slow," Jiraiya added.

Sarutobi ignored them, put his now-empty wallet back in his pocket, then walked off without looking back.

"What's wrong with Teacher Sarutobi? He's acting strange today," Tsunade said, watching him leave in confusion.

"He's probably gone home to mourn his money. Don't worry about him. A Hokage invites us to dinner and still pinches pennies. What a miser." Tianqi called Sarutobi cheap. If Sarutobi had heard him, he might have cried himself to sleep. Was he really the miser here? Tianqi was the one who could eat like there was no tomorrow!

"All right. Tomorrow, meet me at the entrance to the Mission Hall at eight sharp so we can take a mission. Now go home." Tianqi vanished from in front of the three of them.

The other three went home as well.

Tsunade was curious about Tianqi, and Sarutobi had only told them half the story. She decided to ask her grandmother about him. Tsunade's grandmother was Hashirama Senju's wife, Princess Uzumaki Mito of the Land of Whirlpools, and the current Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.

Tsunade soon arrived at Uzumaki Mito's home. She pushed open the door and found Mito sitting alone in the room.

"Little Tsunade, you're here! Come sit down." Seeing Tsunade come in, Mito greeted her warmly. Her husband Hashirama, Tobirama, and she all doted on their granddaughter.

"Grandma, don't trouble yourself. I just wanted to ask you about someone." Seeing Mito about to get her something to eat, Tsunade hurriedly stopped her and got to the point. She'd just eaten grilled meat and couldn't manage another bite.

"Oh? Who is it? I know everyone in Konoha, so go ahead and ask, Little Tsunade." Hearing that it was such a simple question, Mito confidently promised she could help.

"Grandma, do you know anything about Uchiha Tianqi's past?"

Hearing Tsunade ask about Tianqi's past, Mito paused. "Little Tsunade, why are you asking about him?"

"I'm just curious. Do you know or not?" Tsunade asked, looking at her grandmother with curiosity. She didn't know why, but her grandmother's expression had changed at the mention of Tianqi.

"Since you want to know, Little Tsunade, I'll tell you."

When she heard her grandmother was going to tell her, Tsunade rested her chin on her hands and listened.

"To understand Tianqi, we have to start with his father, Uchiha Madara. Madara married late, and by the time your parents were already grown, he finally had a son. And then..." The next ten thousand words have been omitted.

"That's what happened." Mito told Tsunade everything about Tianqi's birth and the way the village had treated him.

"So that's how it was. I can't believe Big Brother Tianqi, as strong as he is, went through all that. Granduncle went too far. Granduncle was a bad person!" After hearing Tianqi's story, Tsunade immediately started insulting her granduncle.

"All right, Little Tsunade. Your granduncle was thinking of the village. And didn't he let Tianqi go in the end? So he wasn't a bad person." Hearing Tsunade insult Tobirama Senju, Mito stopped her. Tobirama had indeed been in the wrong, but he'd changed his mind later. After all, he'd only died recently; as his junior, Little Tsunade shouldn't insult him at a time like this.

"All right, Grandma, I understand. I'll head home now." With that, Tsunade made her way home. It was right next to Mito's house. Her parents, descendants of Hashirama Senju, had died young, leaving behind only a younger brother a few years her junior.

"Take care, Little Tsunade. Come visit again," Mito said, watching her leave.

"I will!" Tsunade waved and went on her way.

Back home, Tsunade spent the whole night thinking about Tianqi. Big Brother Tianqi had no parents and had been shunned by the people of the village. She couldn't imagine how he'd made it through all those years.