The Scheming Little Brother's Act, Tsunade's Explosive Protective Instinct

The fragments of the gate had not even hit the ground before Tsunade stepped into the courtyard.

In less than a fraction of a second, her gaze swept across the entire Senju Clan Compound—the empty armory, the medicinal herb warehouse without a door, and the shade tree in the center of the courtyard that had clearly been grown temporarily with Wood Release.

Then she saw Nawaki.

The brown-haired boy stood beneath the rear corridor, with a red-haired girl beside him. The two had just separated from an embrace, and the red-haired girl's eyes were still rimmed with red.

Tsunade's steps paused for a beat.

Nawaki saw her too.

"Big Sis..."

Before he could finish that one word, Tsunade had already rushed before him. Her Kage-level speed erupted over a distance of ten meters. Nawaki had no time to react before he was yanked into a soft embrace smelling of alcohol and sweat.

Tsunade's arms locked around his back with such force that even Nawaki's Sage Body-enhanced ribs creaked.

"You brat."

Tsunade's voice came from above him, muffled and hoarse, dry from going a full day and night without water.

"You scared your sister to death."

Nawaki's face was buried in Tsunade's chest, making it hard for him to breathe.

Not just because of her strength—well, it was also because of her strength. The suffocating feeling of Tsunade's embrace was physical in the most literal sense.

But Nawaki did not struggle.

In 0.3 seconds, he completed a change of roles in his mind.

All his indifference, calculations, and ruthless decisiveness were put away and shoved into the deepest corner of his mind. In their place was a twelve-year-old boy who had narrowly escaped death on the battlefield and had finally seen his family again.

Nawaki slowly raised his hands and clutched the back of Tsunade's clothes.

His fingers trembled.

The trembling looked perfectly real—he had deliberately controlled the frequency of his muscles' minute twitches.

"Big Sis."

Nawaki's voice was soft, carrying just the right amount of tremor. "I thought... I'd never see you again."

Tsunade's body stiffened for an instant.

Then she hugged him even tighter.

"Who sent you to the front lines, huh? You're only twelve! How did those old geezers approve that mission—"

"Orochimaru-sensei led the team," Nawaki said in a small voice, muffled against her. "He said it was a routine patrol and there wouldn't be any danger."

Tsunade's breathing grew heavier.

Nawaki continued, sounding increasingly aggrieved. "But the Sand shinobi had buried an explosive tag array along my route. Only headquarters knew my travel route, Big Sis."

Tsunade's arms tightened by an inch.

"Orochimaru-sensei was only two hundred meters away. He didn't come save me."

They tightened another inch.

Nawaki's voice became even quieter, so quiet that only Tsunade, pressed close to his mouth, could hear him. "When I got back to camp, Danzō said I was a spy from an enemy nation and ordered Root to kill me on the spot."

Tsunade stopped breathing.

"After I returned to the village, the Anbu came to stop me too. They wanted to take Kushina Uzumaki away. They called her a 'strategic resource.'" Nawaki paused. "When I refused, they drew their swords."

Not far away, Kushina Uzumaki stared at the scene with her jaw hanging open.

She rubbed her eyes, making sure she was not seeing things.

This person... this person was Nawaki Senju?

The Nawaki Senju who had controlled a Wood Dragon one-handed outside the village and crushed Hidden Cloud Village shinobi in its jaws?

The Nawaki Senju who had nailed four Anbu to the wall with one kick at the village gates?

The Nawaki Senju who had forced the Third Hokage and two advisers back with half a hand seal in the Hokage's office?

And now he was curled up in his sister's arms, his voice trembling and his eyes red, just like something that had been bullied and run back to its den to complain—

A precise word popped into Kushina Uzumaki's mind.

A little fox.

He was an even better actor than the one inside her stomach.

Tsunade released Nawaki.

She took half a step back, placed both hands on his shoulders, and lowered her head to study his face.

The boy's eyes were red, his brows faintly furrowed, and he lightly bit his lower lip. His entire face screamed, "I've suffered so much, but I'm staying strong."

That expression struck Tsunade directly in the heart.

Even though she was a Kage-level ninja who had faced countless brushes with death, she could not withstand this sight—

Her only little brother had nearly died. And she had not been there.

For three whole years, this child had lived alone in this ransacked clan compound.

"Nawaki." Tsunade's voice flattened, so flat that it was somewhat frightening. "You said Orochimaru watched you die without helping?"

"Mm."

"Danzō ordered people to kill you?"

"Mm."

"What about the Third?"

Nawaki pressed his lips together and said nothing.

That silence worked better than any words could have.

Tsunade understood. The Third knew, or at least had tacitly allowed it.

She straightened and turned her gaze toward the empty courtyard of the Senju Clan Compound. The armory stood open, with nothing inside. Even the door to the medicinal herb warehouse had been newly made by Nawaki with Wood Release. The marks where things had once hung on the walls were plainly visible.

"Where are the things from the compound?"

"They were still here before I went to the front lines," Nawaki said. "When I came back, it was like this."

Tsunade remained silent for five seconds.

During those five seconds, she linked everything together from beginning to end—Nawaki being sent to the front lines, stepping into a fixed trap, Orochimaru watching from the sidelines, Danzō preparing to take over the inheritance, the compound being emptied, and the Anbu trying to seize someone.

A complete chain.

They were trying to wipe out the Senju line and take everything.

Tsunade smiled.

It was not a happy smile. It was the kind of smile that would put someone in the hospital afterward.

"Good. Very good." She said "good" three times, each word heavier than the last.

Nawaki gave his performance a ninety-five out of one hundred in his heart. He deducted five points because Tsunade had used too much strength, and his ribs still hurt.

"And who is this?" Tsunade turned toward Kushina Uzumaki, who had been standing nearby in a daze.

Kushina Uzumaki reflexively stood straight. Tsunade's presence was too overwhelming—the kind that would flatten you if you did not stand up straight.

"Kushina Uzumaki." Her voice came out crisp and fast, a typical nervous reaction.

"You're the one my little brother rescued outside the village?" Tsunade looked her up and down. "Red hair, from the Uzumaki Clan?"

"Yes."

Tsunade glanced at Nawaki. Nawaki gave her an innocent smile.

Tsunade understood.

The Senju and Uzumaki had always been one family. This girl's bloodline, constitution, and talent for sealing techniques were all exactly what the Senju Clan needed most right now. Not to mention—could an older sister fail to notice that little glint in her little brother's eyes?

Tsunade reached up and removed something from around her neck.

A green crystal necklace, a hexagonal prism that refracted a faint emerald glow beneath the sunlight.

A relic of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju.

Everyone in the ninja world knew the weight carried by that necklace.

Tsunade bent down and placed it around Kushina Uzumaki's neck.

Kushina Uzumaki froze.

"Lady Tsunade, this—"

"Call me Big Sis." Tsunade straightened, the corner of her mouth lifting. "Why would your sister-in-law call me 'Lady'? That's too distant."

Kushina Uzumaki's face instantly turned scarlet.

She instinctively looked toward Nawaki for help, only to find that the big jerk had his arms folded across his chest and was smiling with perfect innocence.

He offered no help at all.

"Um... Nawaki and I haven't..." Kushina Uzumaki's voice grew softer and softer, until the last few words were nearly inaudible. "...made things official."

"My little brother said you're under his protection." Tsunade raised a brow. "In the Senju family, that means it's official."

Kushina Uzumaki turned red from her face all the way down to her toes.

Tsunade patted her shoulder, controlling her strength perfectly this time. "From now on, if anyone dares call you a 'strategic resource,' tell them my name. If that doesn't work—"

She clenched her fist.

"Big Sis will go personally."

Kushina Uzumaki gripped the heavy crystal at her chest, her throat so tight that she could not speak. She nodded hard.

Nawaki stepped forward and stood beside Tsunade.

The siblings stood shoulder to shoulder, one a five-foot-seven blonde woman and the other a brown-haired boy barely over five feet tall.

Nawaki looked up at Tsunade, his expression serious again. "Big Sis, I've awakened Wood Release. From today onward, I'll protect this family."

Tsunade looked down at him.

The boy's eyes were bright, bright enough to remind her of the little brat who used to chase after her, shouting, "Big Sis, wait for me!"

But they were different now.

There was something more in those eyes. She could not say exactly what it was, but her instincts told her—this little brother of hers could shoulder more than before.

"Fine." Tsunade reached out and ruffled his hair. She failed to control her strength and pushed his head crooked. "You protect the family. Your sister will have your back."

She turned and headed out of the compound.

"Where are you going?" Nawaki asked.

"The Hokage Tower." Without looking back, Tsunade shook out her loosened ponytail. "That old man, the Third, owes the Senju a debt. Starting today, we'll settle it line by line. We'll begin with the theft case at the clan compound."

Her figure disappeared through the compound entrance.

Once her footsteps had faded, the courtyard fell silent.

The expression of a "wronged little brother" vanished from Nawaki's face within three seconds, returning to that calm, deeply calculating look.

He turned and met Kushina Uzumaki's gaze.

The red-haired girl stood with her hands on her hips, her lips pressed tight and her eyes glaring wide.

"Nawaki Senju."

"Yeah?"

"You were pretending just now, weren't you?"

Nawaki blinked, wearing an innocent expression.

"You should ask my sister."

Kushina Uzumaki drew a deep breath and seriously looked him over for three seconds.

"You," she said, enunciating every word, "are scarier than the Nine-Tails."

Nawaki smiled.

That night.

Inside the main house of the Senju Clan Compound.

Both Kushina Uzumaki and Tsunade were asleep. Tsunade had fought for an entire day and night—against the file cabinets in the Hokage Tower and the Third's shamelessness—and had collapsed into bed as soon as she returned.

Nawaki sat alone on the floor, his back against the wall.

He closed his eyes and summoned the system panel.

At the center of the panel, a line of large golden words flashed continuously.

[Detected the return of core family member "Tsunade Senju" (Kage-level combat power) to the clan compound!]

[Family Prosperity assessment updating... D-rank → C-rank! Breakthrough successful!]

[C-rank stage gift pack generated. Claim it?]

Nawaki's finger hovered above the word "Claim."

He pressed it.

Golden light exploded across the panel, illuminating the entire room.

[Congratulations, Host, you have obtained—]