"I'll go by myself."
Without having Kushina accompany him, Hyuga Wuye headed alone toward Tsunade's quarters in the rear courtyard.
"You don't need to follow either."
He waved off the maids leading the way, then pushed open Tsunade's door.
But aside from liquor bottles scattered all over the floor, he saw no sign of the familiar figure.
Wuye frowned, passed through the rear corridor, and entered the spacious bathroom, only to find bottles and jars strewn everywhere again.
"Byakugan."
He simply activated his eyes and scanned the area, only then discovering that Tsunade was in the cherry blossom garden behind the bathroom.
It was the most beautiful scenery in this Senju Estate reserved for Tsunade—a cherry blossom garden that occupied fully half the grounds.
The cherry blossom season was brief, but it was now just after the blossoms had reached full bloom, the season when a passing breeze would send petals dancing through the air.
Wuye deactivated his Byakugan and stepped into the garden, his feet making soft rustling sounds against the fallen blossoms.
Before long, he spotted Tsunade.
She sat alone on a tree root, leaning against a clean section of the trunk.
A bottle of liquor rested in one hand, while the other propped up her head at an angle.
Every so often, she lifted her fair wrist and took a sip, her gaze fixed on the space before her.
Her eyes were unfocused, yet strangely enough—
There was no hint of drunkenness in them.
"What are you doing?"
Hyuga Wuye walked straight over and crouched down in front of her, bringing his gaze level with hers.
He had expected to find a drunken Tsunade, a sleeping Tsunade, or a disheveled Tsunade. He had never expected to find one this strange.
She was not wearing her shinobi flak