Uzuki Yuying

"Minato, don't worry about it. Being happy is what matters most. As a jonin of the village, I have that much money to spare."

Li Yu felt a pang of heartache inside. While this amount of money was nothing to a jonin, it was a different story when he had a sister who gambled every single day and constantly came looking for his funds.

Li Yu had been living quite comfortably after completing many missions, but he had the misfortune of being saddled with Tsunade, who lost every bet she made and was known far and wide as the "Big Fat Sheep."

Li Yu let out a sigh.

In truth, ever since Tsunade left the village, she had remained in contact with Li Yu through Katsuyu.

The reason Tsunade had left the village in the first place was because of a letter Li Yu had hidden under her pillow before he left. At the time, Li Yu had been unable to gather chakra, and his right hand and left foot had been completely numb.

The letter told Tsunade not to worry, that he had already found a way to heal himself, and suggested she use the excuse of searching for him to leave the village; once his body was healed, he would find someone to notify her.

Li Yu had signed a contract with Katsuyu, and they had been communicating through her ever since, keeping him informed that Tsunade was traveling with Shizune, indulging in gambling and drinking every day, and living a carefree life.

During the time Tsunade had been away from Konoha, she had managed to gamble away almost all the family fortune left behind by the First and Second Hokage.

The Senju Clan was still in existence, after all.

On the streets of Konoha, Li Yu walked absentmindedly, holding Uzuki Yuying's slender hand.

He felt a persistent, nagging sensation in his heart—like he was on the verge of realizing something but couldn't quite grasp it. It was as uncomfortable as a sneeze that refused to come out.

He spent the entire walk back to the Senju Clan compound lost in thoughts about Tsunade. Seeing the massive crest of the Senju Clan, he finally returned home.

Li Yu couldn't help but shout out loud.

"I understand now."

In the original timeline, the Senju Clan had faded into obscurity after the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, died in battle, eventually being forced to integrate into the village.

During the Second Shinobi World War, Tsunade had left the village after developing hemophobia following the tragic deaths of her brother, Senju Nawaki, and Kato Dan. The Senju Clan had lost Senju Nawaki, and without him to act as a unifying force, Tsunade had gambled away the wealth left by the Hokages. Coupled with the fact that she hadn't returned to Konoha for decades, the clan had fallen apart.

Without money or a spiritual anchor, the members had gone their separate ways, integrating into various parts of Konoha until they vanished entirely. Even after Tsunade became the Fifth Hokage, decades had passed, and most of the ninjas from her uncles' generation had already died.

They didn't have the high recognizability of the Uchiha Clan's bloodline limit, which meant that even after a long time, there was still a possibility of reunion.

"The disappearance of the Senju Clan must have been the result of political maneuvering."

"It seems that not only did the ninja world fear the power of the Senju, but the high-ranking officials of Konoha did as well. They dispersed the Senju bloodline to ensure that no new Wood Release ninjas would appear in the future."

"This explains why the lineup sent to ambush me last time was so powerful: three Tailed Beasts and three Kage-level powerhouses. That was enough to suppress any nation, and they even had poison specifically tailored for me."

"The three nations were already on bad terms; how could they have reached a consensus so quickly and mobilized so many ninjas?"

"The mission itself was also suspicious. They knew for certain I would participate, and it was arranged by the Third Hokage."

"The moment I left Konoha, I had already stepped into a trap that had been laid out long ago."

Li Yu, who had been confused for a long time, felt a sense of absolute clarity now that he had straightened out the logic. Even his control over his chakra seemed to have improved by a notch.

Uzuki Yuying, having heard Li Yu muttering all this to himself, covered her mouth with her delicate hand, forming an 'O' shape, unable to say a single word.

Li Yu had been so caught up in his own thoughts that he hadn't noticed her at all. He turned his head, looked at her adorable expression, and couldn't resist pulling her into his arms.

A startled "Ah!" escaped her lips.

He sat her on his lap, his right arm wrapped around her slender waist while his left hand gently stroked her cheek. Feeling the warmth radiating from her, he couldn't help but feel his heart race.

Suppressing the heat rising within him, he lifted her chin with one hand and met her gaze.

"Yuying, these are secrets between us. You can keep them for me, right?"

Yuying's face turned bright red. "Mm."

Hearing her reply, Li Yu moved his right hand from her waist to caress her soft purple hair, then leaned in to kiss her cherry lips, silencing whatever she was about to say with a muffled "Mmph."

The next day.

Morning sunlight streamed into the room. Li Yu held the soft body in his arms, unwilling to get up.

Uzuki Yuying was draped over him like an octopus. Li Yu gently adjusted her position to make her more comfortable.

By noon, the two were awakened by hunger. They rose one after another and dressed in a hurry. After finishing lunch, Li Yu donned his black cloak and mask, then rushed out to report to the Anbu.

Inside the Anbu office, a palm-sized slug appeared on the desk.

"Tsunade asked me to give this to you."

Li Yu's face turned dark the moment he saw the note the slug handed over. Resisting the urge to tear it to shreds, he opened it: "Nawaki, I owe twenty million ryo recently. Get the money to pay off your sister's debt."

The slug in his hand spoke up.

"Tsunade also said you need to raise the money quickly; it must be paid off within a month."

With that, it vanished in a puff of white smoke.

Li Yu's face was covered in black lines. He couldn't help but sigh, "Is this really how we siblings communicate? That's a painful realization."

Over the past few years, he had helped Tsunade pay off nearly one hundred million ryo in total.

"This cannot go on. Tsunade's gambling habit is impossible to change."

"If things continue like this, the Senju Clan will be dragged into the mire."

"There's no helping it. Tsunade is likely still angry."

She was still furious at Li Yu for leaving without a word all those years ago and for forbidding her from returning to Konoha.

Currently, the Senju Clan of the Forest consisted of three jonin, one special jonin, twelve chunin, five genin, and sixty-four ordinary civilians.

Most members of the Senju Clan lacked distinct physical traits, unlike the Sharingan of the Uchiha or the red-haired, stout members of the Akimichi Clan, who possessed obvious appearances and characteristics.

The search for the Senju began with the clan registry, looking for names like Senju Toka, who was once a capable subordinate of Hashirama and a master of genjutsu.

For many years, Li Yu had used his authority as clan head to secretly contact Senju clansmen scattered throughout Konoha. Due to the policies of the First and Second Hokage, which had dispersed the Senju throughout the village, Li Yu had been forced to spend a great deal of time identifying them.

"The time is almost right. It seems that plan needs to be put on the agenda."

Konoha Main Street

Donning his green flak jacket once more, Li Yu headed with a clear objective toward a Japanese dango shop.

"Rika, you're at the shop."

"Is your sister here?"

A man with black hair tied in a braid, his bangs long enough to cover a third of his face, and skin as fair as a woman's, looked up.

He spoke to Li Yu in a low voice, "Clan Head, my sister is in the kitchen. I don't have any missions these past few days."

"That's perfect. Come help me for a while; don't take on any missions for the time being."

Entering the kitchen, Li Yu saw a young woman with her hair tied in a bun, wearing a plain white cooking uniform that could not hide her fine figure, her waterfall of black hair secured by a headscarf.

She looked like a gentle, domestic girl, and the sight of her brightened Li Yu's eyes.

She stopped making dango, turned around, and asked, "Brother, who is this ninja?"

"Toko, this is Senju Nawaki. You met him when you were little."

"So it's Nawaki-nii-san. It's been a long time."

"That's right. Ninjas spend most of their time out on missions. I came here today specifically to ask for your help."

Rika cut in before she could answer, "Whatever help you need, we will certainly provide."

"I've heard your brother mention that you are very good at management. I'm planning to open a hot pot restaurant and would like to ask Toko to help manage it."

Fearing his sister might decline, Rika jumped in again, "No problem. It's not a difficult task; my sister can handle it. Even if we have to close this dango shop, we will support you."

Hearing Rika say this, Toko was very surprised, not understanding why her brother was so supportive.

Hearing that Rika intended to close the dango shop, Li Yu hurriedly said, "There's no need to close this shop. Otherwise, a certain someone won't be able to eat their favorite three-colored dango anymore."

Toko, curious as a child, asked impatiently, "Then who is it that loves three-colored dango so much?"

Li Yu coughed awkwardly.

"Ahem."

Li Yu quickly changed the subject, "It's settled then regarding the hot pot restaurant. I've already chosen and purchased the location, and I'll be preparing for renovations over the next two days."