Tsunade turned the report back to the first page for the third time.
She hadn't absorbed a single word.
Before coming to the hospital, she had "stopped by" to check the village registration records.
Kitahara Kaede had returned to the village yesterday afternoon.
He was in Konoha.
Tsunade laid the report face down on the desk, propped her chin on both hands, and stared at the white wall across from her.
Go find him?
How?
Walk up to him and say, "Hello, I'm Tsunade. We spent over twenty years together in my dreams. Did you feel anything like that?"
She imagined the scene.
Goosebumps rose along Tsunade's back.
No.
If word of that got out, she'd never be able to show her face in Konoha again.
She couldn't go up to him directly.
She'd watch him first.
Just a glimpse from afar, to confirm what he looked like.
The next morning.
It was barely light when Tsunade crouched on the roof of a tall building two blocks away.
She folded her arms and let out a long yawn.
She was tired.
The day before, she'd asked around about his routine.
Then she'd tossed and turned until after two before finally falling asleep. When her alarm went off at four-thirty, she'd nearly smashed it.
Konoha's best medical ninja had climbed onto a rooftop before dawn just to spy on a Genin going for a run.
Tsunade tried not to think about how ridiculous it was.
Before long, a figure appeared at the end of the street.
Gray shirt, steady pace.
He was too far away for her to make out his face.
Tsunade leaned forward and squinted, trying hard to get a better look.
Still couldn't see him clearly.
After the gray figure had run a few laps, someone suddenly