Don't Cover Down There! Cover Your Face!!

Outside the women's bathhouse.

Two figures stood there, one tall and one short, one white-haired and one blonde.

In almost perfectly synchronized, lecherous poses, they stuck out their backsides and pressed themselves against the wall.

They craned their necks, trying to peer through a crack.

Both pairs of eyes were wide, gleaming with the same fascination.

Jiraiya was utterly entranced, letting out a foolish "heh heh heh" now and then.

He hadn't noticed someone appear beside him.

Tsunade had forgotten why she'd come, too.

Only one thought remained in her head.

So that's what the women's bathhouse looks like inside...

Nice waist...

Wow! She's about the same size as me...

Without realizing it, she leaned even closer.

A good while passed.

Jiraiya seemed to decide the view from this angle wasn't satisfying enough.

He shifted slightly, intending to try another crack.

His elbow accidentally bumped someone.

"Sorry..."

The words slipped out.

Halfway through, he froze.

Wait.

Beside him?

Hadn't he come alone?

Jiraiya turned his head stiffly, inch by inch.

And there, right next to him, was a familiar profile pressed to the crack, staring inside with rapt attention.

Blonde hair. Familiar features.

Who else could it be but Tsunade?!

"Tsu—!!!!"

"Tsunade?!"

Jiraiya's voice cracked.

Cold sweat burst across his back and ran down his spine.

I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead, I'm dead!

He'd planned to use his newly written Intimate Tactics to confess to Tsunade today.

He'd even washed his hair and changed his clothes.

He'd rehearsed his opening line three times!

And now she'd caught him peeping into the women's bathhouse?!

Did his confession stand a chance?!

"Tsunade, l-let me make excuses... No! Let me explain!!"

Jiraiya instinctively covered his head, curled into a ball, and shut his eyes to wait for the beating.

Sure, he'd learned Senjutsu and grown much stronger.

But more than a decade of living in fear of Tsunade's Monster Strength punches

had etched that terror into his DNA!

And yet...

He waited one second.

Two seconds.

Three seconds.

The expected punch never came.

Jiraiya cautiously opened one eye.

Tsunade hadn't even raised her head.

She was still clinging to the crack, staring inside with a fascinated—and lecherous—expression.

Jiraiya: "???"

What's going on?!

Tsunade is... peeping?

What the hell is she peeping for?!

She's a woman herself!

If she wants to look, she can just go in!

If she's going to peep, it should be at the men's bathhouse... Ahem!

"Hey... Tsunade?"

Jiraiya called to her softly, testing the waters.

Tsunade didn't respond.

Jiraiya blinked. Then blinked again.

He confirmed that Tsunade really hadn't noticed him.

Is she... that absorbed?

Can a woman really get this absorbed in watching a women's bathhouse?

Is this even Tsunade??

Jiraiya felt his entire understanding of the world shaken.

But he didn't dwell on it.

Only one thought occupied his mind now.

If I don't run now, when will I?!

Holding his breath, he bent low and began backing away on tiptoe.

One step.

Two steps.

He moved quietly.

But his earlier shout had alerted someone inside the bathhouse.

A shapely young woman was washing near the outer wall.

She seemed to hear the faint noise outside.

Curious, she stopped and turned toward the crack.

Then she unconsciously took two steps closer.

Through the billowing steam and narrow gap,

a pale, alluring profile

suddenly filled their entire field of vision!

Holy shit... She's coming closer... Closer...

"Gulp!"

Tsunade clearly heard herself swallow.

The sight was too much!

She trembled with excitement.

For a moment, she completely forgot to hide.

Instead, she instinctively pressed her face harder against the crack.

She wished she could push her eyeballs through it for a better look.

Closer... Just a little closer... Almost...

Crack!

A faint snapping sound rang out.

Beneath Tsunade, the wooden outer wall, built with ventilation in mind rather than strength,

gave a groan.

Then, under her relentless pressure,

it finally...

Boom—!!!

The entire outer wall, along with a small section of roof, collapsed inward!

Dust billowed!

Wood splinters flew!

A thick cloud rose!

Tsunade pitched forward, nearly tumbling in after the wall.

Fortunately, she reacted quickly and stamped her heel down to steady herself.

But the wall in front of her

was gone.

Just like that, it was gone.

The steaming interior of the women's bathhouse lay completely exposed.

It had become an "open-air bath with a panoramic view"!

The hot pool, the washing area, the edge of the changing area...

Everything was laid bare, including the dozen or so women soaking or washing inside!

Time seemed to stop for a second.

Every woman froze.

All of them turned toward the enormous hole that had appeared.

The dust thinned a little.

Then they saw—

Tsunade, closest to the breach, still clutching her change of clothes and washing supplies.

And not far away,

a hazy figure in the dust. They couldn't make out much, but it looked... like a man.

"Aaah—!!!!!!!!"

"A-a pervert—!!!!"

"Run!!!"

Screams of every pitch erupted at once!

Water splashed! Figures scrambled! Towels flew!

The bathhouse descended into chaos.

Pale, pink, and tan figures ran wildly through the steam.

Everything they were trying to cover was on full display.

Jiraiya happened to turn his head.

Pfft—!!!!

Two jets of blood shot straight from his nose.

They traced bright red arcs through the sunlight.

But Jiraiya was still Jiraiya.

Even as his nose bled, his survival instinct suddenly returned.

He wiped his nose hard and turned to run.

No one's seen my face yet.

Get out of here!

But the instant he turned,

another figure moved even faster!

"You bastard, peeping into the women's bathhouse!!"

"Die!!!"

With a righteous roar,

a heavy fist charged with Monster Strength tore through the air.

It struck Jiraiya square in the stomach!

Pfft—!!!!

Jiraiya felt as though a rhinoceros charging at full speed had hit him head-on.

His insides seemed to shift all at once.

Blood sprayed from his mouth, mixing with the nosebleed he hadn't finished wiping away!

He didn't even manage a complete scream.

His whole body flew like a baseball struck with all the batter's might.

With a whoosh, he streaked across the sky.

It shrank to a tiny black dot in the sky.

Then vanished into the last light of the distant sunset.

Tsunade lowered her fist.

The whole thing had been swift and clean, without a wasted motion.

By then, the women in the bathhouse had come scrambling out.

Some were wrapped in towels, some had only managed to throw on an outer garment, and some were still clutching bars of soap.

Bare skin flashed everywhere. The scene was utter chaos.

Worse still... plenty of people outside had heard the commotion and come running.

Seven or eight heads poked out from the men's baths, their owners craning their necks to see what was happening.

Passing villagers stopped in their tracks too.

Everyone froze.

For half a second, the air went still.

Then the women came to their senses and shrieked as they tried to cover themselves—

One hand over the top left the bottom exposed.

Cover the bottom, and the top was exposed instead.

Their faces burned red, tears welling in their eyes.

There was no way to cover everything!

The scene grew even more chaotic and mortifying.

Just then, Tsunade—the woman who had sent the "pervert" flying with one punch—

Darted straight to the front of the panicked women.

She slammed her foot down on the shattered bricks beneath her!

Bang!!

Dust billowed up again, blocking the men's view.

While they couldn't see, Tsunade turned around.

She bellowed at the frantic women behind her:

"Stop covering yourselves down there!! Cover your faces!! Get to the changing room!!!"

Her shout cracked through the air like thunder.

It drowned out the chaos and crying in an instant.

The women froze, then seemed to find someone to rally behind.

Of course! Cover our faces!

The most important thing is that no one recognizes us!

As for our bodies... we're all women here anyway, and there's no time to worry about that!

Every woman moved her hands from below to her face.

They covered their faces and ducked their heads.

Like a flock of startled rabbits, they rushed for the changing room.

Tsunade stayed where she was, sweeping her gaze over the villagers who had gathered to watch.

Then she punched the ground.

Bang!

Her fist blasted a deep crater into the earth.

"All of you, get lost!"

At the sight of such ferocity, everyone swallowed hard.

They forgot all about watching the spectacle.

Each ran off as fast as they could.

Only when everyone had scattered did Tsunade finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"Phew..."

"After that performance, no one should suspect me, right?"

She glanced around, feeling a little guilty.

With a reaction that flawless, I should be fine!

Tsunade glanced back and hesitated for a moment.

Then she strode toward the women's changing room.

She couldn't help it.

After all, the girls had just had a fright.

She had to go comfort them!

It was what she ought to do as a woman!