Tsunade's reaction

"Eiji, stop bothering with that sissy! Let's go!"

Kushina hadn't forgotten that this guy had been snickering earlier, too. She didn't want Eiji hanging out with him!

Sorry, but Eiji is my friend now! Go find somewhere else to hang around!

Then Kushina grabbed Eiji's hand and tugged him hard toward the door.

"Sorry, Minato. I'm afraid I can't today."

Eiji turned back and gave Minato an apologetic look.

He wasn't just apologizing for being unable to join him today, but also for stealing his future wife.

Kushina and Eiji chatted back and forth as they left Konoha Academy together and stepped out onto the street.

Kushina deliberately slowed down, and Eiji matched her pace.

There was no denying that Kushina was a girl who could brighten anyone's mood. She discovered that she and Eiji had plenty in common, so they really hit it off.

Still, their routes home eventually diverged. Before they parted, Kushina held on to Eiji's hand, reluctant to let go.

"Then I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Yeah, see you tomorrow."

After parting with Eiji, Kushina headed toward the Senju Ancestral Home with a spring in her step.

As she entered the courtyard, she saw Nawaki practicing his shuriken throws. She waved to him in greeting and walked past.

Nawaki was a little puzzled. Hadn't she been all reluctant and unwilling to go to school that morning?

"I'm home!"

Kushina pushed open the door to the Ancestral Home and rushed inside.

She tossed her little schoolbag onto the floor, plopped down on a chair, and swung her legs happily.

"Well, look how happy you are. Did you find some money while you were out?"

Tsunade was lounging lazily on the sofa with a bag of barbecue-flavored potato chips in her hand, tossing one into her mouth every so often.

The sight made Mito Uzumaki shake her head in disapproval.

When Tsunade saw Kushina return, she sat up and looked her over.

Unlike the awkward, resistant girl who had left that morning, Kushina now looked as though she had just tasted some delicious candy.

"You made a good friend, didn't you, Kushina?"

The moment Mito Uzumaki saw Kushina return, a warm smile spread across her face, making Tsunade pout.

I'm the one who's her actual granddaughter.

"Yeah! And he's a really great guy. He even helped me fight when our classmates made fun of me!"

"Oh? Someone made fun of you? Want me to teach them a lesson?"

Nawaki walked into the room and grinned when he heard Kushina's words.

"No need. Those guys were no match for Eiji and me! Eiji punched them right into the wall, and they couldn't even be pried out!"

"Uh... couldn't be pried out?"

The corner of Nawaki's eye twitched, and he instinctively looked at Tsunade.

Beating up classmates when he's about my age—isn't that just another version of my big sister?

"Hmm? Was it a precursor to the Monster Strength Fist? Has your friend already learned precise chakra control at his age?"

Tsunade's interest was piqued. She hadn't expected the Eiji Kushina mentioned to be a little genius.

"Could you tell us more, Kushina?"

Mito Uzumaki spoke unhurriedly. Kushina would eventually succeed her as the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, so she needed to know all about the people around her.

"Sure! His name is Ryuuzaki Eiji!"

And so Kushina recounted everything that had happened in class that day.

At first, when she heard how Eiji and Kushina had fought their way through the crowd, Tsunade smiled approvingly. This kid takes after me!

But when she heard that Eiji's eyes had turned a vivid blue and that he had made a flying chair stop in midair, her expression grew serious.

"Hey, Sis! Could those eyes be...?"

As Tsunade's younger brother, Nawaki had seen quite a bit of the world. Of course he knew all about dojutsu kekkei genkai, but how had an entirely new dojutsu bloodline suddenly appeared?

"Grandma, this sounds like a pretty unusual ninjutsu!"

Tsunade grew solemn. Leaving aside whether he had awakened a dojutsu kekkei genkai, this technique sounded like Space-Time Ninjutsu no matter how she looked at it. Just how absurdly gifted did someone have to be to develop Space-Time Ninjutsu at that age?

"Kushina, did you get a clear look? Did Ryuuzaki Eiji use a technique that made the chair hover in midair?"

"Uh, I'm not really sure, but I definitely saw Eiji stop the chair that jerk threw... Is something wrong? Eiji only did it to help me!"

Thinking Eiji might be in trouble, Kushina tried to defend him.

"The reason for the fight doesn't matter anymore. The important thing is..."

"Kushina, when you have time, invite Ryuuzaki Eiji over to our house. Grandma would like to meet your good friend, too."

Tsunade wanted to say more, but Mito Uzumaki interrupted her.

Kushina didn't think much of it and nodded in agreement.

Then she took the jar of Honey Candy Eiji had given her out of her little backpack.

"This is a present from Eiji!"

"Oh? Candy, huh? It looks pretty good."

Nawaki leaned over as he spoke.

"Heh, that little guy is pretty interesting. He even knows to give presents."

Tsunade didn't stand on ceremony either. She took Kushina's candy jar, tipped out a piece, and popped it into her mouth.

Before long, Tsunade's expression shifted dramatically, and she looked at the jar of candy in surprise.

"This tastes really good. Which shop did he buy it from?"

Tsunade planned to buy some more once she found out.

"I want some, too!"

Nawaki tried a piece as well, then made the same face as Tsunade.

"Hehe, no shop sells it. Eiji said he made it himself after raiding a beehive."

Kushina proudly puffed out her chest, looking as though she were saying, Isn't Eiji amazing?

"That's pretty impressive. This kid isn't half bad."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow.

He was strong, had possibly developed Space-Time Ninjutsu on his own, and was good at making things, too.

"Then do you know a boy named Minato Namikaze? He has spiky blond hair. He's easy to spot."

"Oh, he's an annoying sissy!"

At Tsunade's question, the image of that blond idiot who only knew how to scratch his head and grin foolishly immediately popped into Kushina's mind.

She promptly pouted. That guy had made fun of her and interfered with her making friends with Eiji!

"Uh, haha..."

The corner of Tsunade's mouth twitched. She looked at Mito Uzumaki, who said nothing more and merely wore a knowing expression.

Tsunade knew a little about Kushina's situation. The old Third Hokage had placed her in that class intending for her to get to know Minato Namikaze and, through him, settle into the village.