The Mission, Tsunade

"Even though the target is a Hokage candidate, they gave us an A-rank mission just to find someone?"

Sakura guessed, "Is that person really strong, and unwilling to return to the village?"

"You can't become Hokage without being strong."

Jiraiya explained, "The person we're looking for is named Tsunade. She's the granddaughter of the First, and she was also my and Orochimaru's teammate."

"Orochimaru, and the First's granddaughter?"

Sasuke quickly caught on. "Who was your team leader back then?"

"The Third Hokage."

Jiraiya said, "He was our teacher, too."

"Quite the impressive lineup."

Sakura said, "Every one of them is a big name, and they were all on the same team."

"Back then, the old man was already Hokage, but we were still kids about your age. We were much weaker than you are now, too."

Jiraiya looked at them, but his thoughts drifted back to the past. "That year..."

"Hold on!"

Naruto promptly cut Jiraiya off. "I'm really interested in your past with Orochimaru, but the important thing right now is Tsunade. What happened to her in the past, and why did she leave the village? If we don't figure those two things out, it'll probably be difficult to convince her to come back."

"By the way, why did Grandpa Third suddenly decide to appoint a Fifth Hokage?"

Naruto asked, "He seemed to be in pretty good health, didn't he?"

"The old man... The Third Hokage is very old. When he fought Orochimaru, if you hadn't shown up in time to help, he would have died from using a forbidden jutsu, even if Orochimaru hadn't killed him."

Jiraiya sighed. "Rather than saying I want to bring Tsunade back, this mission is more like the Third Hokage forcing me to go find her."

"Well, something like that."

Kakashi looked at Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura. "What do you plan to do?"

"Once we find Tsunade, how about Naruto just uses the Flying Thunder God Technique to bring her back?"

Sasuke suggested, "She's been away for years, so she probably doesn't know about Naruto. When we meet her, we can make up some excuse to get Naruto close enough to grab her, then use the Flying Thunder God Technique to return to the village."

"That's worth considering."

Naruto thought it over very seriously. "To stop her from escaping right away, we can also set up a Sealing Jutsu in advance. As soon as I bring her back to the village, we activate it and seal her in place."

"Hey, hey, hey!"

Hearing the two of them get more and more outrageous, Jiraiya couldn't help interrupting. "I asked you to bring her back, not kidnap her!"

"What a pain..."

Naruto scratched his head and asked Kakashi beside him, "Kakashi-sensei, can we turn down this mission?"

"Probably not."

Kakashi scratched his cheek. "The Third Hokage gave me this mission directly. If I refuse, I'll have no choice but to become a rogue ninja."

"Don't go thinking about all that nonsense!"

Jiraiya took a deep breath. "Listen to me, then come with me to convince Tsunade to return. Otherwise... those old men really will make me become Hokage!"

Sasuke and Sakura didn't know Jiraiya well, so they didn't react.

Naruto said, "That would be terrifying!"

"Right?"

Jiraiya wasn't even angry. Instead, he agreed with Naruto. "I'm completely unsuited to being Hokage."

"It's not a question of whether you're suited to it."

Naruto said, "If Grandpa Jiraiya became Hokage, the first thing he'd do after taking office would definitely be to turn all of Konoha's hot springs and bathhouses into mixed bathing."

"Hm?"

Jiraiya's expression instantly turned serious. He said earnestly, "Now that you mention it, the Hokage really does have that kind of authority... Maybe I should try for the position after all?"

"Lord Jiraiya..."

Kakashi offered a feeble protest. "If the Third Hokage found out you became Hokage for that reason, he'd cry."

"I'm joking."

Jiraiya laughed a couple of times. "Mostly."

"You're serious about half of it?!"

Sakura's eyes widened, as if some notion had just been turned on its head. "Someone like him can become Hokage... What even is a Hokage?"

"My master once said that a person's abilities and character aren't necessarily connected."

Naruto consoled her. "Besides, the Hokage is a person, too. It's perfectly normal to have things you like. Doesn't Kakashi-sensei spend all day reading that indecent book with 'Paradise' in the title?"

"It's called Icha Icha Paradise."

Kakashi suddenly perked up and said solemnly, "It's an excellent book. Children like you aren't quite old enough to appreciate its finer points."

"Exactly."

Jiraiya nodded again and again, giving Kakashi's words his full approval. "When you're a little older, you'll understand."

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura exchanged glances and said nothing.

"We've gotten off track. Let's get back to the mission."

Jiraiya brought the conversation back around. "To understand what happened to Tsunade, we have to start with the Ninja World War..."

From Jiraiya's explanation, the group learned about the tragedy Tsunade had suffered—both her younger brother and her fiancé had died in the war.

The latter's death had been especially painful. After he was gravely wounded, Tsunade tried to save him, but his injuries were too severe, and he died in front of her. After that, Tsunade's mental state became somewhat unstable. She developed a fear of blood, and whenever she saw it, she would tremble all over and be unable to move.

For a ninja—and especially a medical ninja—this was undoubtedly fatal. Fortunately, the war ended soon afterward. Tsunade left the village under the pretext of clearing her head and had wandered outside it for years.

"Come to think of it, there's something I've always wondered about."

Naruto suddenly said, "The First and Second Hokage were both from the Senju Clan, but why isn't there a single 'Senju' in the village now? Even that Tsunade person—you don't call her 'Senju Tsunade.' She hasn't married, has she?"

Sakura and Sasuke silently looked at Kakashi and Jiraiya.

"I can't really say."

Kakashi shook his head. "At least when I was a kid, I could still see members of the Senju Clan in the village."

The others turned their eyes to Jiraiya.

"...I asked Tsunade about it once."

Jiraiya hesitated for a moment, then told them. "She said it was the First's decision. I don't know the reason, but the First personally erased the name 'Senju Clan' and had the Senju marry people from other clans, and even ordinary people. Among Konoha's ninja today, many of those from civilian backgrounds may not have inherited the Senju name, but most of them have inherited some Senju blood."

Sasuke looked thoughtful. "So he chose to prioritize passing on the bloodline over the clan name and surname."

Sakura silently affirmed to herself, As I thought, even if it's not much, I must have inherited some Senju blood.

Naruto asked, "So Tsunade has no family or clan members in the village in the truest sense of the words?"

Jiraiya silently nodded.

"I suddenly think it'd be better to let that old lady Tsunade clear her head outside."

Naruto said very seriously, "Grandpa Jiraiya, you should become the Fifth Hokage. Even if you turn every bathhouse and hot spring in Konoha into mixed bathing after taking office, I'll support you."

"I suppose I should be happy, but the way you put it leaves me with mixed feelings."

Jiraiya held his forehead. "The whole reason I came to you to commission this mission was to avoid becoming Hokage. I know Tsunade. She's always cared about the village; she just can't be honest with herself. All she needs is the right opportunity, and she'll come back."

"An opportunity... Ah, I think there actually is one."

Naruto turned to look toward the Hokage's office.

Jiraiya followed his gaze and realized what he meant. "The First..."