Tsunade finally lost all five million ryō. She stood up and glanced around, then noticed Senju Rika was gone. After searching the second floor with her eyes, she suddenly spotted Rika chatting with a face that seemed both familiar and unfamiliar. Behind him stood two Senju Clan shinobi wearing their clan crest.
She sobered up at once, set down her bottle, and used the Body Flicker Technique to appear in front of Li Yu. Her voice choked as she asked,
"Nawaki, is that you?"
Seeing Tsunade, Li Yu smiled.
"Yes, Sister Tsunade. It's me, Nawaki."
As soon as he finished speaking, a fist like a sandbag shot toward his face. He shuddered and instinctively raised both hands to protect himself.
BOOM!
A thunderous crash rang out. Li Yu felt tremendous force slam into his hands. His hurried defense failed to hold, and he smashed through the wall behind him, skidding through the air for more than ten meters. When he landed, half his foot was buried in the ground, and he slid backward even farther.
Damn, she's brutal.
So this was how Tsunade showed affection?
A figure sprang through the opening on the casino's second floor and charged straight at Li Yu.
Again?
Seeing Tsunade's fierce momentum, Li Yu immediately took up a defensive stance, ready to weather her storm of attacks.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
Fists and feet collided with dull thuds. The once-smooth floor became pitted and uneven, with several large cracks running across it.
Tsunade had been unable to break through his defense. Li Yu had blocked and deflected every attack. She had even used the Strength of a Hundred, yet still couldn't knock him down. He had taken the blows head-on.
There didn't seem to be any scenes in Naruto of two people who used the Strength of a Hundred fighting each other. When their attacks clashed, the sound was like rolling thunder.
After attacking for so long, Tsunade was astonished by his strength. Seeing how much her younger brother had grown made her happy and excited, but in the end, it also left her feeling indignant.
After a while, Tsunade realized she couldn't take Li Yu down and stopped attacking. In a slightly pouty voice, she said,
"Hmph, you've gotten good. You won't even let your big sister land one punch. How stingy."
"My hands hurt from punching you. You have to make it up to me."
Li Yu's face was covered in exasperation. He felt like he couldn't get a word in edgewise. She was the one who'd been hitting him, and now she wanted him to stand there and take a beating? He was the clan head, for goodness' sake. Several people were still peeking through the hole in the wall upstairs. He had some dignity to preserve.
"Sister Tsunade, please hear me out. Let's talk this through."
"What's there to talk about?"
"Let's step aside and talk privately."
After speaking, Li Yu formed hand seals and activated a barrier that enclosed them both.
He slowly approached Tsunade. When he was only a step away, he said, "Big sister, actually, I—" Before he could finish, another fist came flying toward his face.
This time, Li Yu didn't have time to raise his hands and block the blow. Again? Women... Tsunade's fist punched through the spot where he'd been standing. Unable to stop herself, she stumbled forward several steps and nearly fell.
"The Flying Raijin Jutsu? Nawaki, you learned it too?" Tsunade stared at the spot where Li Yu had vanished, utterly stunned.
Li Yu came through the barrier from the outside, holding both arms out with his palms facing forward in a defensive pose.
"Sis, sis, stop for a second. Let me finish."
Tsunade looked thoroughly displeased. She'd realized she couldn't get the better of Li Yu at all, so she had no choice but to give in.
"Fine. Talk. I'm listening."
"Actually, Sister Tsunade, I'm just a Wood Clone right now. You can't hit me too hard, or the jutsu will end. Only a few people know about this, so you can't tell anyone."
Tsunade's eyes nearly popped out of her head.
"What? That's impossible. How come I couldn't tell at all?"
"That's right, Sister Tsunade. I asked you to come back because there's something important we need to do for the clan."
"We'll use the prestige the Senju Clan earned in the recent war against the Land of Wind to bring all the Senju scattered throughout Konoha back together. Like the other major families in Konoha, we'll establish our own clan grounds in the village."
Tsunade seemed almost numb after hearing all this. Her younger brother had astonished her so many times today that it felt as though she'd used up a lifetime's worth of amazement. She pondered for a moment, then said,
"First Hashirama's idea was for our clan members to conceal their identities and blend into the village. Wouldn't doing this go against what he wanted?"
"Sister Tsunade, all I know is that the First and Second Hokage made that difficult choice because the village had just been founded and circumstances were complicated. But times have changed. There are people in the village who can no longer stand the Senju name."
"Besides, the Senju Clan has such excellent talent. If we gather everyone together, we'll surely develop more jutsu and produce more outstanding shinobi."
What Li Yu really meant was that the Uchiha had Shisui Uchiha, Uchiha Obito, Uchiha Itachi, Sasuke, and others.
The Senju Clan would have outstanding shinobi just like the Uchiha did, but they wouldn't go to extremes for the sake of "love" like the Uchiha, eventually ending in the Night of the Uchiha Clan's Downfall and, by Boruto: Naruto Next Generations, dwindling to just two people.
"Sister Tsunade, this is what I'm asking of you."
After a moment's thought, Tsunade gave Li Yu the answer he'd hoped for.
"Fine. Since things have come to this, I'll go along with your crazy plan for once."
"Excellent!"
"But where exactly is your real body?"
"That's a secret. He has important things of his own to take care of."
"But don't worry about his safety. In the Shinobi World today, no matter how many people came or who they were, none could defeat him."
Watching Li Yu's Wood Clone speak with such smug pride and not the slightest hint of embarrassment, Tsunade couldn't help laughing.
"Look at you, showing off."
They lowered the barrier and left side by side, returning to the casino's VIP lounge on the second floor through the hole in the wall.
"Rika, find someone to fix this hole. It's really a bit too big."
The group went downstairs, left the casino, and returned to the Senju Clan.
Tsunade had met Uzuki Yuying before and knew she was her younger brother's girlfriend, and would one day be her sister-in-law. She was very warm toward her.
Uzuki Yugao was thrilled to meet Tsunade, one of the Sannin. She followed her around, calling her "Big Sister" again and again, and the house was filled with lively chatter.
The next day,
The Senju Clan sent out a message calling for all clan members scattered throughout Konoha, in the Land of Fire, whether civilians or shinobi, to return and reunite as the Senju Clan.
As soon as the message went out, villagers in the streets and alleys heard about it. The news spread at astonishing speed, setting the major clans of Konoha abuzz.
The Uchiha, Sarutobi, Hyuga, Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka, Aburame, and Inuzuka Clans all received the explosive news.
Vendors on the streets and people in the taverns began gossiping.
"Did you hear? The Senju Clan is going to reform!"
"We haven't heard about any Senju Clan members in the village for ages."
"They're the First's clan. They must be incredibly powerful."
Many members of the major clans couldn't sit still. They began holding clan meetings to discuss whether the Senju Clan was coming back and whether it planned to try to take control of Konoha again. They feared losing the power their own clans held.
After the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, died in battle, he verbally passed the Hokage Position to Sarutobi Hiruzen. Most of the village's clans opposed the choice. Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo's group had been entrusted with the mission on the battlefield. To secure more benefits for themselves, they had no choice but to support Sarutobi Hiruzen's rise to the Hokage Position.
To secure his position as Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen distributed power and benefits among the village's major clans. With their support behind him, he was able to solidify his position as the Third Hokage.