In Konoha: Three Choices at the Start

"Grandma wants to see Liuyun!" Senju Nawaki spread his hands.

"What? Grandma Mito wants to see Liuyun?"

Kushina cried out, her eyes wide.

She looked Liuyun up and down as if she had discovered some rare creature.

"Do you have to look at me like that?" Liuyun squirmed under her gaze.

"Of course I do! Do you know who Grandma Mito is? Apart from me, you're the first young person she's asked to see by name in years!"

Kushina pursed her lips, looking as though she thought he had struck gold.

Beside her, Mikoto's mouth fell open. She was every bit as shocked as Kushina.

"Young Clan Leader Nawaki! Does Lady Mito really want to see me?"

Liuyun pointed at himself, utterly baffled.

Mito Uzumaki was Hashirama Senju's wife and the first Nine-Tails Jinchuriki in history.

In strength and prestige, she could leave Hiruzen Sarutobi in the dust. Why would she want to see him?

"Yes!" Senju Nawaki nodded earnestly.

"I don't know the exact reason either. Just come with me!"

"And one more thing!" Senju Nawaki paused, his face breaking into a sunny smile.

"Since you're my sister's students, call me Brother Nawaki like Kushina does! 'Young Clan Leader Nawaki' sounds too distant!"

"Okay!" Liuyun and Mikoto nodded in turn.

Liuyun would have preferred calling him his future brother-in-law.

"We're coming too!" Kushina pulled Mikoto over to Liuyun's side.

"That's fine, but we'll have to wait outside," Senju Nawaki said.

"Fine."

They crossed Tsunade's courtyard and followed a corridor farther inside.

After so many twists and turns that Liuyun was nearly dizzy, a narrow path covered in moss appeared before them.

Dew still clung to the moss.

It brought to mind that line from the book: the shaded path you longed for was wet with white dew every night and morning.

They followed the path to its end, where an old house, weathered by the years, stood before them.

"All right! Grandma's inside. Go on in. We'll wait out here." Nawaki pointed at the house.

"Mm." Liuyun nodded to the two girls and walked inside, his expression calm.

Mito Uzumaki truly lived up to her reputation as Konoha's most respected figure. Liuyun could sense eight guards hidden around the house alone!

Judging by their Chakra, each was at least as strong as an Elite Jonin.

And that wasn't counting the other guards hidden along their route.

Frankly, without Senju Nawaki leading them, they might not even have made it past the first corridor.

Creak!

Liuyun pushed open the door. An elderly woman with a gaunt face, snow-white hair, and a vigorous bearing sat cross-legged before him.

She wore a kindly smile, and her eyes held a depth tempered by the years.

The moment Liuyun entered, a powerful sense of danger ran through him.

It felt as though he could hide nothing from her.

"Lady Mito, you wanted to see me?" Liuyun closed the door and bowed his head respectfully.

His respect was genuine. After all, she was Kushina and Tsunade's grandmother.

She had raised both of his future wives. How could he not show her respect?

"I wanted to see you because that girl Kushina keeps talking about you.

I wanted to see the boy she can't stop mentioning!"

Mito Uzumaki's face was kind, her tone gentle as any ordinary grandmother's.

"Then I suppose I should thank Kushina!"

Mito Uzumaki narrowed her eyes and continued as if thinking aloud.

"You carry Hashirama's scent, though it's faint. It wasn't transplanted, so you must have awakened it yourself!"

"Your Mental Energy is exceptionally strong too. It doesn't match mine, but you're certainly among the rare few in all of Konoha."

"You've definitely awakened the Sharingan. Whether you've reached the Mangekyo, I can't tell!"

"And Kushina told me about your Ice Release bloodline. Three bloodlines in one person. What a miracle!"

"One day, you could achieve as much as Hashirama! Am I right, child?"

Mito Uzumaki opened her eyes after speaking. Her expression had remained kindly throughout.

"I don't know what you mean, but I have indeed awakened Ice Release and the Sharingan!"

A storm raged inside Liuyun, but his face remained calm.

"Good! Good! You're careful. No matter the circumstances, you must never reveal all your trump cards!"

"You're far more levelheaded than the two children in my family."

"If they had even half your caution and care, I wouldn't have so much to worry about."

Liuyun fell silent. Tsunade and Nawaki did have their shortcomings.

Either would be fine as an ordinary clan member, but neither was quite suited to leading the clan someday.

"Child, you're different from the others in the Uchiha Clan. I sense no ill will from you or the girl outside!"

"There's something this old woman would like to ask of you!"

Mito Uzumaki looked at Liuyun. Her deep eyes turned cloudy again, and hope showed on her aged face.

"Tell me, Lady Mito. If it's within my power, I'll do it," Liuyun said quietly.

"Call me Grandma Mito, like Kushina does. It feels warmer!"

"Grandma Mito!"

"Good! What a good child!" A smile returned to Mito Uzumaki's gaunt face.

"What I ask is simple. In the years ahead,

if Nawaki or Tsunade faces danger, I hope you'll lend them a hand!"

(Send flowers and Airi will take care of you tonight. Send rating votes and Tsunade will take care of you tonight! Send both and they'll both take care of you tonight!)

Mito Uzumaki's Generous Gift! (Part 1!)

"Lady Mito, surely you're joking. Tsunade is the Third Hokage's prized student, and Brother Nawaki..."

"...is the future leader of the Senju Clan. How could they be in danger?"

Liuyun shook his head with a warm smile.

Mito Uzumaki shook her head and sighed, sadness in her eyes.

"Whether you understand or not, if it ever comes to that, I hope you'll help them!"

Liuyun nodded firmly. "I will!"

He understood the Senju Clan's predicament. It came down to eight words: their achievements threatened their ruler; their fame had grown too great.

Put simply, in Konoha, you might not know who the Hokage was, but you certainly knew where to find the Senju Clan!

With prestige like that, what ruler wouldn't move against them? Liuyun would have done the same!

Worse, since Tobirama Senju's death, the Senju Clan had failed to produce even one Kage Level fighter.

Or perhaps they had, and that scheming bastard Hiruzen Sarutobi had quietly disposed of them.

For all the Senju Clan's standing, they still served under the Hokage.

Assign a few deadly missions, add Danzo's cooperation, and getting rid of them would be easy.

When a clan's prestige outstripped its strength, its decline was inevitable—especially with a pack of hungry wolves watching from the shadows.

If not for the venerable woman before him, the Senju Clan might have fallen apart long ago.

But knowing it was one thing. Saying it aloud was another.

Liuyun could only pretend he knew nothing.

"With your promise, I can rest easy!"

Mito Uzumaki seemed to have set down a great burden. Her wrinkled face creased with a deeper smile.

"I won't ask this of you for nothing!"

Mito Uzumaki took a scroll from her robe and gave it a light tap!

Poof!

Smoke billowed, and a huge scroll appeared.

"This... what is it?" Liuyun asked, puzzled.

"It contains every forbidden technique Tobirama developed, all of Hashirama's Wood Release jutsu, and the Sealing Jutsu I've spent years developing, along with my notes!"

Mito Uzumaki smiled. "It's the best payment I can offer!"

"Lady Mi—no, Grandma! You don't need to give me this! It's far too valuable!"

"Tsunade is my teacher, and that makes Nawaki family too. If they're ever in danger, I'll help them!" Liuyun shook his head firmly.

He was tempted, but he could resist.

Developing his Ice Release and Genjutsu already took enough of his attention. Taking on all this would only hold him back.

"Ah! Your character impresses me again. To refuse such a tremendous temptation at your age... Perhaps you'll even surpass Hashirama one day!"

Mito Uzumaki looked at him with still greater approval, like a mother-in-law sizing up her son-in-law. It made Liuyun uncomfortable all over.

Mito Uzumaki sealed the large scroll back into the storage scroll and handed it to Liuyun.

"Take it! If something happens to me, or the Senju Clan truly meets with disaster someday, you can return it to them then!"

"Think of it as something I'm leaving in your care! Or as my wedding gift to you and Kushina!"

After that, Liuyun would have been a fool to refuse.

He tucked the sealed scroll into his robe.

"That's better!" Mito Uzumaki smiled, the lines in her face deepening. She was clearly pleased.

"You should go now, child! Grandma won't keep you!"

Mito Uzumaki breathed a little heavily, though her expression remained gentle.

"All right! Take care, Grandma Mito!"

Liuyun bade Mito Uzumaki a polite farewell, then turned and went out.

He closed the door behind him and saw Kushina and Mikoto a short distance away, their eyes shining.

"Well? Well? What did Grandma Mito want?"

As soon as Liuyun reached them, Kushina leaned in, her face full of curiosity.

"Someone keeps mentioning my name to Grandma Mito every day. She's heard it so often her ears must be worn out.

"So when she heard I was visiting the Senju Clan Compound, she wanted to see what I looked like!"

Liuyun rolled his eyes at Kushina.

"So it was because of me! Honestly, Grandma Mito!" Kushina covered her blushing face and ducked behind Mikoto.

She murmured, "How could Grandma Mito do that?"

Tsunade was asleep, and Liuyun and Mikoto had accomplished what they came for. There was no reason to stay.