Shizune Katō

"Lady Tsunade..."

"Call me Sis!"

Uchiha Hikari had barely said her name before Tsunade immediately cut her off. Calling her "Lady" sounded so distant. "Sis" felt much better.

How could she, as the older sister, not see what kind of relationship her little brother had with the girl before her?

Besides, as the strongest medical ninja in the Ninja World, she could easily examine the girl and get a general idea of her lineage.

So she was an Uchiha. It might be a little troublesome, but who was Tsunade?

Konoha Sannin, Princess of Konoha, strongest medical ninja. If she wanted, she could even refuse to show the Daimyo any respect. Why should she be afraid of a mere Uchiha?

Besides, the girl before her had feelings for her little brother, too. She was just suppressing them because of her body and other circumstances.

Still, that brat of a little brother had been gone for twenty years, and the first thing he did after showing up was bring home a young girl. An Uchiha, no less. All she could say was, That's my little brother.

I approve of this sister-in-law. Even if that old Third Hokage comes here, he won't stop me. I said what I said!

At Tsunade's words, Uchiha Hikari's little face flushed, but she still said softly, "Tsunade... Sis."

Hearing that, Tsunade's eyes narrowed into slits, and her mood improved considerably.

She reached out and patted Uchiha Hikari's head. "All right, don't be shy. I really like you, you know."

Her little brother, whom she had thought dead long ago, had come back—and brought along a sweet girl.

Tsunade was in an excellent mood. She felt like she could eat two extra bowls of rice and drink two more bottles of liquor tonight.

At her words, warmth welled up in Uchiha Hikari's heart. Sensing the sincerity in them, her eyes reddened.

Uchiha Hikari didn't want to hide anything from this older sister.

So she said, "Tsunade... Sis, I don't want to hide anything from you. Actually, I'm..."

Before Uchiha Hikari could finish, Tsunade raised a hand to stop her.

"You don't have to tell me. I don't care about that. Instead of telling me all this, why don't you tell me what you and my little brother went through all these years?"

Hearing this, Uchiha Hikari was stunned for a moment, then began telling her about the time she and Tokiju had spent together in the Sealing Space.

She described the strange nature of the Sealing Space and explained why Tokiju hadn't grown at all.

She told her how Tokiju had trained diligently in Sealing Jutsu, trying to decipher the sealing symbols in the Sealing Space until he'd nearly torn all his hair out.

She also complained that if Tokiju used all his Sealing Jutsu, she wouldn't stand a chance against him.

Tsunade listened in astonishment. It felt just like reading some power fantasy titled Twenty Years of Cultivation in the Sealing Space: One Move Breaks the Seal, Invincible Under Heaven.

That also explained why she hadn't sensed Tokiju's chakra at all earlier, when they were out on the street.

Tsunade knew that before Tokiju disappeared, he had managed to swipe a whole bundle of Sealing Jutsu scrolls from their grandmother.

After twenty years of hard training, she could hardly imagine how skilled Tokiju had become in Sealing Jutsu.

And according to Uchiha Hikari, that brat Tokiju had even developed a bunch of Sealing Jutsu specifically targeting the Uchiha Clan, just to use against her during their sparring matches.

Hearing that, Tsunade rubbed her forehead and sighed helplessly. She was also taken aback by the brat's behavior.

Hey, hey, hey! Wasn't this the person you liked? Who taught you to bully her like that?

Meanwhile, Tokiju, leaning against the wall outside the room, wore an awkward expression. He felt like his toes might dig out a whole three-bedroom apartment at any moment.

Although he was embarrassed, Tokiju didn't push the door open and interrupt the chat between the older and younger girl (the "older" one being Uchiha Hikari, and the "younger" one being Tsunade).

Just as Tokiju was eavesdropping with a rueful smile, a series of quick footsteps sounded from the end of the hallway.

Hearing them, Tokiju looked up and saw a black-haired girl in a black kimono walking over, holding a pink pet pig.

The moment he saw her, Tokiju recognized who she was.

Shizune Katō, the niece of Tsunade's lover, Dan Katō. Not long after her uncle's death, Tsunade had taken her away from Konoha.

After that, she had traveled with Tsunade from country to country, returning to Konoha only after Orochimaru's Konoha Crush had ended.

Then Tsunade had taken over as the Fifth Hokage, and Shizune had become the Hokage's secretary, rising straight to the top.

As Tokiju watched her, she was watching him, too.

She had thought today would be just an ordinary day: dodging creditors and taking care of Lady Tsunade as usual.

But today, while waiting on the street for Lady Tsunade to finish evading her creditors, she had unexpectedly heard some news...

A blonde woman with a very curvy figure had held a child in her arms and cried for a long time in the street.

The moment Shizune heard the news, she knew the blonde woman had to be Lady Tsunade.

She just didn't know what Lady Tsunade was up to this time. Why was she holding a child and crying?

Unable to figure it out, Shizune started searching the streets for Tsunade.

When she couldn't find her there, she decided to return to the inn and look.

As soon as she got back, she saw a somewhat familiar-looking little boy leaning quietly against the wall outside Lady Tsunade's room.

She couldn't say what seemed familiar about him. She just felt like she'd seen him somewhere before.

Just as she was about to ask him, she saw him knock on the door and call inside, "Sis, someone's here. They're probably looking for you!"

At Tokiju's shout, the conversation inside the room stopped at once.

Soon, the door opened, and Tsunade stepped out with an annoyed look on her face. She and Uchiha Hikari had been in the middle of a lively conversation.

"Oh, Shizune. Come on in!"

Seeing that it was Shizune, Tsunade said casually, then turned and went back into the room.

Seeing this, Tokiju shrugged and followed Tsunade inside.

Shizune was still a little dazed. She had no idea what this child's relationship to Lady Tsunade was. Could he be an illegitimate son?

At the thought, Shizune immediately shook her head, quickly casting away such a disrespectful idea.

Whoever the child was, Lady Tsunade would surely explain once she went inside.

With that thought, Shizune entered the room, too.

Once inside, Shizune was surprised again. Why was there another person in the room? And a girl, no less.

Seeing Shizune's puzzled expression, Tsunade cleared her throat and pointed at Tokiju. "Ahem. Shizune, this is my little brother, Tokiju. You should have seen him in the photos."

Hearing that, Shizune finally understood. So he was Lady Tsunade's little brother. She knew she'd seen him somewhere before.

Just as Shizune was thinking, So that's who he is, she suddenly realized that something didn't add up.

Since Tokiju and Nawaki were both Lady Tsunade's little brothers, they should be around the same age.

That meant Tokiju should be in his twenties or thirties by now. But the child in front of her didn't look anywhere near that old.