Tsunade's body stiffened for a fraction of a second, then slowly relaxed.
She closed her eyes, her hand resting on his shoulder.
Mirai's hand slid from her face to her back, tracing down her spine and pulling her entire body into his embrace.
The hot water was still running, splashing against their bodies, and the steam in the bathroom grew even thicker.
What followed next happened naturally, as water flows to a canal.
Tsunade's sharp cry of pain drifted out from the bathroom while Kushina was chopping vegetables in the kitchen.
The knife paused for a beat.
She cocked her head and listened for a second, then continued chopping.
The carrots on the cutting board were sliced into uneven pieces, but she didn't mind.
Konan poked her head in from the courtyard. "Big Sis Kushina, is Sister Tsunade hurt? Her voice sounds so distressed."
Yugito ran over as well, tilting her head up with round eyes. "I think I heard Sister Tsunade yelling—"
"It's nothing, nothing." Kushina didn't look back, her knife continuing to chop the carrots as the corners of her mouth pressed down with a hint of mischievous amusement. "Mirai is just helping Sister Tsunade with her treatment."
"Treatment?" Konan tilted her head. "What kind of treatment makes someone yell like that?"
"It's... you know... the Flesh Style Healing Technique." Kushina kept a straight face. "It hurts a lot. You kids shouldn't go bother them."
"Oh..." Konan nodded, half-understanding, and pulled Yugito back to the courtyard to continue playing string figures.
The sounds from the bathroom drifted out intermittently, Tsunade's voice a bit higher than usual, carrying a suppressed gasp.
Kushina dumped the chopped carrots into the pot, stir-fried them for a moment, then added a ladle of water and covered the pot with a lid.
She leaned