Tsunade's Decision

"Sister Tsunade, if you're up for it, I'll accompany you to the casino tomorrow."

Takizawa Dan felt a stir in his heart, then said with a smile.

"Really?" A look of surprise appeared on Tsunade's face, followed immediately by suspicion. "No way, Takizawa Dan, you actually know how to gamble?"

"I've seen others do it, so I picked up a trick or two."

Takizawa Dan said with a smile.

In his past life, he had been quite fond of movies, especially the God of Gamblers series.

He had even specifically learned card techniques from others, which could be considered a minor accomplishment.

Of course, in this ninja world, he estimated that gambling skills were still at a very low level; he might actually be able to reign supreme!

Upon hearing this and seeing Takizawa Dan's confident expression, Tsunade couldn't help but take a few extra looks at him.

"Alright, let's head back inside first. If you really have the talent for it, it wouldn't be a bad idea to let you go win some back tomorrow."

With that, Tsunade pulled Takizawa Dan along, intending to head toward her front door, which was only about a hundred meters away.

"You've been waiting for me outside the door this whole time without going in?"

"Haha... for one, I was shy and didn't know how to greet Shizune. Besides, I figured I should wait for you, Sister. Otherwise, it would be too impolite to just go in myself."

"You child... don't be so silly in the future."

The two exchanged a few words as they walked away.

However, as they neared the scene of the recent battle, Tsunade couldn't help but furrow her brows.

She sniffed the air, then lowered her head to rake through the dirt on the ground, looking puzzled.

"Sister Tsunade, what's wrong?"

Seeing Tsunade act this way, Takizawa Dan's heart skipped a beat.

Could Tsunade have discovered the traces of his battle just now?

"I don't know why, but I have a very strange feeling..." Tsunade glanced at Takizawa Dan, then said with a sheepish smile, "Dan... don't laugh at me for saying this, but I feel as though I've sensed the aura left behind by my grandfather, the First Hokage."

Sure enough, she had discovered it!

As expected of Tsunade; as a medical ninja, her powers of observation were incredibly meticulous.

Furthermore, being the granddaughter of Senju Hashirama, this connection of bloodlines allowed her to sense the remnants of "Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence" in the ether—it wasn't that strange after all.

"No way... the First Hokage passed away many years ago, how could his traces still remain? Sister Tsunade, aren't you mistaken?"

Although he was nervous inside, Takizawa Dan maintained a perfectly normal appearance on the surface.

"I suppose so... Grandfather has been gone for so many years, yet here I am reminiscing about him. It really doesn't look like a Hokage's behavior."

Reminded by Takizawa Dan, Tsunade snapped out of it and shook her head with a bitter smile.

"I'm so sorry, Takizawa Dan, for letting you see me make a fool of myself."

Subconsciously, Tsunade still viewed Takizawa Dan as a little kid. Even if his temperament was exceptional and his abilities outstanding, in Tsunade's heart, he remained a pure and good-natured little guy.

She would never dream that Takizawa Dan would dare to kill, and that the commotion from earlier was caused by him.

"It's alright. The person is gone, there's no need to be overly sad. The key is to properly inherit the First Hokage's Will of Fire." Takizawa Dan nodded. "Sister Tsunade, you've only been back in Konoha for a few months; it's natural to feel a bit nostalgic."

"That must be it. I'm just being too sensitive." Tsunade accepted Takizawa Dan's explanation.

To put it bluntly, she didn't have any solid evidence, just an elusive, lingering feeling.

It wouldn't be strange to dismiss it as a mere hallucination.

Tsunade gently took Takizawa Dan's hand and left the scene of the battle, and Takizawa Dan breathed a slight sigh of relief in his heart.

He had managed to bluff his way through it!

The two arrived side-by-side at the door of the wooden house where Tsunade lived.

Takizawa Dan intended to knock, but Tsunade stopped him with a smile.

"No need to rush, they'll come out to greet us themselves."

Sure enough, no sooner had Tsunade finished speaking than the door was flung wide open!

"Lady Tsunade! You're back!"

A pretty girl with black hair, dressed in a black tunic, opened the door and looked at Tsunade with an excited face.

It was Shizune, Tsunade's current top disciple!

Poof... poof...

In Shizune's arms was a small, pink piglet wearing a little red outfit and a string of pearl necklaces around its neck. It looked very cute; it must be the pet, Tonton.

"Lady Tsunade, Tonton smelled your scent from ten meters away, so it told me to come out and welcome you!" Shizune looked incredibly excited, as if she were about to pounce on her. "Lady Tsunade, you've been working outside all day, you must be tired, right? Are you exhausted? Do you want me to cook for you? Boil some water? Or perhaps you'd like a hot bath..."

Watching her top disciple's overly attentive and excited demeanor, Tsunade helplessly pressed a hand to her forehead.

When she first took on this disciple, she had been drawn to Shizune's composure and calmness—the way she never panicked or grew impatient when facing problems, always finding a way to resolve them. This mindset was undoubtedly the most important trait for a doctor.

In fact, Shizune was indeed capable of that in her daily life, but the moment she was in front of Tsunade, she acted as if she had a split personality...

Tonton, nestled in her arms, seemed to have caught the mood as well, letting out a series of happy "oink-oink" sounds.

"Shizune, stop what you're doing for a moment. Look who I've brought back."

Tsunade sighed helplessly and pushed Takizawa Dan forward to stand in front of Shizune.

Only then did Shizune notice that Lady Tsunade had actually brought someone else home with her.

But the moment she saw Takizawa Dan clearly, her mouth dropped open into a wide "O" shape.

"Tsu... Lady Tsunade! You actually brought a man back! You actually brought a man home!"

Following Shizune's exclamation, Tonton in her arms let out a series of grunts; even though Takizawa Dan didn't speak "pig," he could tell this was an expression of unprecedented shock.

Takizawa Dan could only look at Tsunade with a helpless expression.

Considering Tsunade was over fifty years old, surely this kind of thing was easy enough to explain?

"What's the matter? I'm a woman, aren't I? Why can't I bring a man home?"

As soon as Tsunade finished speaking, Takizawa Dan immediately covered his face.

Fine, he should have just kept his mouth shut.

Not only did this fail to get him out of the awkward situation, but it was visibly making things even worse.

"Ah?!" Shizune looked like she wanted to bang her head against a wall, wailing, "This won't do, Lady Tsunade! He's still just a child!"

"Let him go, let me handle this!"