Eight Gates, Acquired!

An hour later, Tsunade came out of the bathroom.

She wore an expression she couldn't quite describe.

Three parts comparison.

Three parts savoring the experience.

Three parts wanting more.

And one part acceptance.

"Sigh..."

Tsunade shook the water from her hands.

She glanced down at her lower body and sighed.

"Looks like I'll have to get used to squatting to pee."

She quickly shook her head, driving the image from her mind.

Then she pulled herself together.

I can't keep thinking about it.

With that taken care of, she needed to consider what came next.

Tsunade walked to the window, pushed it open, and took a deep breath.

The air in Konoha was relatively fresh, at least.

In the distance, Hokage Rock bore only three faces: the First, Second, and Third Hokage.

I'm eighteen-year-old Tsunade now. The Second Great Ninja War breaks out in two years.

Time's tight!

She counted on her fingers.

I can learn the Yin Seal from Mito.

I can develop Medical Ninjutsu myself.

Monster Strength comes naturally with a Senju's physique...

Those are covered, but is there anything that could make me dramatically stronger in a short time?

Tsunade narrowed her eyes, her mind racing.

In the end, her thoughts settled on that figure in green.

Might Duy!

The eternal Genin!

The man who possessed the Eight Gates!

Right now, he was probably still a little brat barely into his teens!

Tsunade searched the fragments of memory left by the original Tsunade.

Might Duy was quite a bit younger than she was.

He was probably around eleven or twelve now.

I remember Might Duy saying something when he taught Might Guy the Eight Gates...

Tsunade's eyes lit up.

He said he'd practiced the Eight Gates for twenty years.

Guy had been about ten then, and Duy had been in his thirties.

Working backward...

That meant Duy, though barely in his teens now...

Might already know the Eight Gates!

If I don't seize this chance now, when will I?!

The Eight Gates, a Senju's physique, and Creation Rebirth!

That combination was a cheat stacked on top of another cheat!

Her body couldn't withstand opening a gate?

A Senju's physique recovered fast!

Opening a gate tore her muscles?

Creation Rebirth could repair them on the spot!

Opening a gate would kill her?

...Well, forget the eighth gate. That one really would kill her.

But I can open the first seven whenever I want!

With my Monster Strength, I could take them down one punch at a time!

The more Tsunade thought about it, the more excited she became.

"I'm going to find Might Duy right now!"

She took a deep breath, pushed open the door, and headed straight for the Rear Mountain Training Ground.

According to Tsunade's memories, the boy in the green jumpsuit usually trained there at this time of day.

She passed through several streets, moving farther from the busy parts of the village until there was hardly anyone around.

Konoha Village was neither particularly big nor particularly small.

But the training ground on the Back Mountain was an unmaintained patch of land nobody bothered with.

Most ninja avoided it because the facilities were poor, while ordinary Genin weren't allowed into the proper training grounds.

So it had become a gathering place for all sorts of outsiders.

Tsunade jogged along and rounded the final corner.

Her eyes lit up.

At the edge of the training ground, a group of teenagers had surrounded one boy.

He wasn't tall and wore a distinctive green jumpsuit.

He had a bowl cut, thick eyebrows, and a bruised face.

Might Duy!

Tsunade suddenly realized what she was seeing.

She stopped short, eyes widening.

Holy crap, what perfect timing!

The others had Duy surrounded and were shoving him around.

Their leader was fifteen or sixteen and wore a ninja forehead protector.

He appeared to be a Genin.

He stood with his hands on his hips, looking insufferably smug.

"Might Duy! You can't even use a single ninjutsu. How do you have the nerve to strut around dressed like that?"

"Yeah! You think wearing a jumpsuit makes you a ninja?"

"Hahaha! Look at his face. He's about to cry!"

Duy kept his head down and his fists clenched, but he didn't fight back.

Tsunade watched, her eyes growing brighter.

The legendary daily life of Konoha villagers?!

An actual bullying scene?!

She'd found exactly what she needed without even looking for it!

Now was the time to swoop down and save the damsel...

No, save the boy in green!

What better way to win him over?!

Without another word, Tsunade bent her knees and launched herself off the ground.

"Hah!"

She shot into the air!

Her body traced a graceful arc overhead.

Then she roared at the top of her lungs:

"Leave that boy alone!"

CRASH!!!

Tsunade landed hard.

Her foot smashed straight through the stone paving.

Fragments flew everywhere!

She straightened amid the billowing dust.

One hand on her hip, she pointed the other imperiously at the boys.

"What do you think you're doing?!"

The boys stared at Tsunade, stunned by her sudden arrival.

Their leader stammered, "Wh-who are you?"

Tsunade grinned, showing a flash of white teeth, and gave him her name.

"Tsunade."

They froze for a moment. Then every face changed.

Tsunade!

The First's granddaughter!

The princess with Monster Strength!

Rumor had it she could shatter a wall with one punch!

"Run!!"

The boys were scared out of their minds.

They scattered at once, scrambling away as fast as they could.

But their leader still seemed unwilling to back down.

Defiance flickered in his eyes.

The Will of Domination!

He jerked his head up and glared at Tsunade.

"Hmph! Even if you are—"

"Get lost!"

Tsunade didn't waste another word.

She punched the ground, and cracks spread across it instantly.

The Genin swallowed hard. After a moment's hesitation, he ran off too, still looking resentful.

Tsunade couldn't be bothered to chase him.

She dusted off her hands and turned around.

Duy was still crouched on the ground, his face bruised and streaked with tears as he stared up at her.

Sunlight streamed down behind Tsunade, bathing her in gold.

Duy's astonishment turned to gratitude, and tears spilled from his eyes.

"L-Lady Tsunade!"

He scrambled up and bowed ninety degrees, nearly banging his head on the ground.

"Thank you so much for saving me!"

Tsunade waved a hand.

"Hey, don't do that. Just call me Tsunade. No need for 'Lady.' It makes my skin crawl."

Duy raised his head, eyes brimming with tears.

"But... you're the First's granddaughter!"

"He's my grandfather, not me."

Tsunade pursed her lips.

"You can call me that when I become the Fourth Hokage."

As she spoke, she discreetly looked Duy over.

Then her gaze settled on something inside his jacket.

The shoving had left one side of it hanging open.

A stiff corner protruded from within.

It looked like a rolled-up book or notebook.

Tsunade's pupils contracted.

She could just make out two characters on it.

[Eight Gates...]

Her heart raced.

He really has it!!

Tsunade stepped forward and reached straight inside Might Duy's jacket.

She pulled out the notebook!

The movement was so swift and smooth that Duy didn't even have time to react.

"Lady Tsunade?!"

Tsunade had already opened the notebook.

The first thing she saw was a line of crooked but painstakingly written text:

"First Gate: Gate of Opening. Channel Chakra into the brain to lift its restrictions. The specific procedure is as follows—"

Tsunade skimmed a few pages, unable to keep the corners of her mouth from lifting.

This was it!

The Eight Gates! Right in my hands!

Only then did Duy realize what had happened. His face flushed bright red.

"Lady Tsunade! That... that's...!"

Tsunade closed the notebook, weighed it in her hand, and tilted her head at him.

"This looks pretty good. I'm borrowing it for a few days. Any objections?"

Duy waved his hands frantically. "N-no! It's just..."

He hesitated, then lowered his head and said uneasily:

"This Taijutsu... it's a Forbidden Jutsu."

"Training in it is incredibly painful, and the strain on the body is immense... I'm worried you might..."

"Worried I won't be able to master it?"

"No, no! I'm worried you'll get hurt!"

Tsunade burst out laughing.

She reached out and flicked Duy on the forehead.

"Kid, how old are you?"

Duy answered, confused, "T-twelve..."

"You can train in it at twelve, but you think I can't at eighteen?"

Duy was stumped. For a moment, he had no idea what to say.

But what Tsunade had said...

Well, he couldn't really argue with it.

Tsunade paid him no mind and kept flipping through the notebook, marveling as she went.

"These notes are pretty detailed. You've written down the Chakra pathways for the first few gates, how much they hurt, how long recovery takes... Not bad."

Duy blushed.

"I-I just figured it out and wrote it down as I went..."

"That makes it even more impressive."

Tsunade tucked the notebook into her clothes.

Then she turned to Duy with a broad grin.

"You're pretty good. I'm taking this for now, okay?"

"O-okay!"

There was a trace of reluctance in Duy's voice, but far more excitement at being recognized.

Seeing him like that, Tsunade felt a sudden pang of emotion.

This guy's a fool too.

He was only twelve, bullied and mocked by kids his own age, without a single friend.

Day after day, he practiced a Forbidden Jutsu alone in a corner.

All because he firmly believed Taijutsu was a kind of ninjutsu too.

All because he firmly believed hard work could surpass genius.

Tsunade took a deep breath, placed a hand on Duy's head, and gently ruffled his hair.

"Duy."

"Huh?"

"Remember this."

Tsunade bent down to meet his eyes, her expression serious.

"You don't have to be able to use ninjutsu to be a ninja."

"The direction you've chosen isn't wrong. This path of yours can take you somewhere."

Duy froze.

The tears in his wide eyes finally spilled over, streaming down his cheeks.

"Lady Tsunade..."

"Just Tsunade is fine."

"Tsunade...!"

"There you go."

"And if anyone bullies you again, just tell them my name! I've got your back!"

Tsunade straightened, patted his shoulder, and strode away.

After a couple of steps, she looked back and flashed a toothy grin.

"Keep working hard. Don't let your youth go to waste."

Sunlight happened to catch Tsunade's white teeth.

They flashed brightly.

Might Duy stared, transfixed.

In that moment, it felt as though the flash of those white teeth had healed every injury on his body.

Tears burst from his eyes.

"Lady Tsunade..."

"I won't let you down!"

"Youth!! I'll keep burning until the very end!!"

Might Duy clenched his fists as he watched Tsunade walk away.

Then he threw himself back into training.

"Today, I'm running another five hundred laps!!!"