"What do you plan to do next?" Tsunade sat in her chair, rubbing her throbbing temples as she looked at the unfathomable black-haired boy before her.
Shengu Xuan sat back down on the sofa, yawned, and said with utter nonchalance, "Staying in the village is too boring. All day, I'm either helping old ladies find their cats or being watched by a bunch of self-important old geezers. I'm planning to wander around, travel the Shinobi World, and see if I can find anything fun along the way."
"You're leaving Konoha?" Tsunade abruptly raised her head, a trace of reluctance and worry flashing in her eyes.
Although Shengu Xuan had behaved outrageously just now, even threatening Konoha's leadership in public, Tsunade knew perfectly well that this boy was currently Konoha's strongest fighting force, bar none! With him stationed in the village, Konoha could put up a fight even against a combined attack by the other four great ninja villages.
"What? Can't bear to part with me, Lord Hokage? Or are you afraid I'll run off to another village and become a rogue ninja?" Shengu Xuan looked at Tsunade with a faint, ambiguous smile.
"Stop grinning at me like that!" Tsunade shot him an irritated look. "You're a Special Jōnin of Konoha now. Besides, your strength has been proven through this mission to retrieve Sasuke. I was going to make an exception and promote you to Jonin, or even appoint you an ANBU squad leader. Won't you at least consider it?"
"ANBU? A department that wears masks all day and carries out missions in the dark like sewer rats? I'm not interested." Shengu Xuan refused without hesitation. "Lord Hokage, don't waste your energy. I'm used to doing as I please. I can't stand restrictions. If you really want what's best for me,