The door of Konoha looked solemn and solemn in the early morning sunshine. There was an endless stream of ninjas and civilians coming in and out, full of the breath of life. Senju Chen stood beside Orochimaru, taking a deep breath of the air that belonged to Land of Fire and carrying the fragrance of vegetation, and felt that the fatigue of the entire body was swept away.
"Teacher, I will go home first." Senju Chen raised his head and showed a cute smile to Orochimaru.
Orochimaru's golden snake eyes stayed on him for a moment, nodded, and the corners of his mouth curved with an unknown meaning. "Go. I will personally explain this mission report to Lord Hokage."
"Thank you teacher!"
After receiving permission, Senju Chen could no longer hold back the mood of returning home. He turned around and flew away in the direction of Senju Clan Compound like a bird out of its cage.
'My sister must be impatient! I don't know if she has gone to the casino. If she loses all her money, she will definitely lie on the table and drink to drown her sorrows. This time when I go back, I must talk about her. After all, she is also one of Sannin. How can she be so decadent all the time.'
'And Sister Shizune, although the food she cooks is not as good as Mr. Kosuke, it is much more delicious than the ones outside. I miss her Anko soup...'
As he ran, he was thinking in his mind. Although this time he went out for a short time, he experienced a life-and-death fight, witnessed the twists and turns of Shinobi World, and his mind and strength have grown tremendously. But at this moment, he has left these heavy things behind, and only the purest longing for his family and relatives is left in his heart.
Familiar streets, familiar shops, familiar neighborhoods... Senju Chen ran by, and villagers kept greeting him enthusiastically.
"It's the young master! He's back from a mission?"
"Little Chen, you have grown a lot taller!"
"Would you like to come to uncle's place to eat Kushimaru?"
Senju Chen responded one by one with a smile, but his footsteps did not stop at all. Soon, the majestic and somewhat desolate Senju mansion appeared at the end of the line of sight.
He rushed up the steps in three steps and pushed open the heavy wooden door.
"Sister! Sister Shizune! I'm back!"
The clear children's voice echoed in the empty entrance hall, but it did not get the familiar response expected.
Senju Chen's smile froze slightly.
Something is wrong.
Usually at this time, even if Tsunade is not here, Sister Shizune will definitely be busy at home. The house should be filled with the aroma of food, or a faint smell of herbs.
But now, the entire mansion is eerily quiet, and there is only an old smell in the air emanating from the wooden structure itself.
He stepped lightly and entered the living room with doubt Earth Flow.
The living room was cleaned spotlessly, the tables and chairs were arranged neatly, and there was not even an extra bottle of wine in sight. This overly tidy scene made Senju Chen feel strongly uneasy.
Sister Tsunade When you were at home, when had the living room ever been so clean?
"Sister Shizune?" He shouted again tentatively.
"Little Chen?"
A slightly hoarse and tired voice came from the corridor on the second floor. Shizune was wearing casual home clothes and slowly walked down the stairs. Her face was a little pale and her eyes were slightly red, as if she had just cried.
Seeing Senju Chen, she tried her best to smile, but the smile was uglier than crying.
"You... you're back." Shizune walked up to him, squatted down, and stretched out his hand to rub his hair, but stopped midway, and finally let it hang down weakly.
He looked at Shizune's appearance, and Senju Chen suddenly felt panic in his heart.
"Sister Shizune," his voice was very soft. "Where is my sister? Where has she gone?"
Shizune's body trembled suddenly, and her gentle eyes were instantly filled with tears. She opened her mouth, as if she wanted to say something, but in the end it just turned into a choked sob, and big tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Sister Shizune, what happened?" Senju Chen stretched out his little hand, grabbed Shizune's sleeve, and his tone became a little heavier unconsciously.
Shizune looked at his black eyes filled with anxiety and uneasiness, and could no longer control his emotions. He hugged him tightly in his arms, and his suppressed cries finally broke out.
"Little Chen...Lady Tsunade She... she left the village..."
Boom!
This sentence, like a bolt from the blue, exploded in Senju Chen's mind.
Have you left the village?
What does it mean?
Is he on a mission? Or...
"Left? Why did you leave? Sister, where did she go?" Senju Chen felt extremely nervous.
Shizune's crying gradually subsided. She let go of Senju Chen, wiped her tears with her sleeves, and recounted the whole story in a choked voice.
It turned out that just after Senju Chen set out to perform the mission with Orochimaru, Shisui and Maruboshi Kosuke returned to the village in advance and reported to Hokage the entire experience of the ambush by Kusagakure.
When Tsunade learned that this so-called C-Rank Mission was a trap set up by the village's top management from the beginning, and Senju Chen was the "bait" that was pushed to the forefront to lure the enemy to the bait, she exploded on the spot.
"...Lady Tsunade had a big fight with Lord Hokage and the others in Hokage's Office." There was still fear in Shizune's voice, "She said... she said she couldn't stand this kind of thing anymore...Nawaki, that's for sure... now, they want you too..."
Shizune couldn't speak any more and just kept shaking his head.
Senju Chen listened quietly, the expression on his face was terrifyingly calm, but the knuckles of his clenched fists were already turning white from the exertion.
You know, when I first learned the truth, I was furious.
He could imagine how angry and desperate Tsunade was when he heard the news.
Tsunade regards herself as her only relative and her only sustenance, and she tries her best to protect him. But in the end, what hurts him the most is the village she has been loyal to and bled and sacrificed for.
"Lady Tsunade said that she knew that the village would not let her take you away." Shizune's voice became lower and lower. "She said that she couldn't stand staying in the village every day, waiting in fear for the news of your accident... so, she... she left alone."
"She said that this is her final bottom line. She values you more than her own life. If... if something happens to you outside, she will definitely come back and tear down those who made the decision... all into skeletons."
"I was originally going to follow Lady Tsunade, but..."
"Lady Tsunade Before you leave, let me stay and take good care of you..."
Shizune's words were like a heavy punch, hitting Senju Chen's heart hard.
Loss, emptiness, and an indescribable cold anger swept through his body in an instant.
He is not the child who needs his sister's protection. He has the soul of an adult and strength far beyond ordinary people. But Sister Tsunade she doesn't know.
In her eyes, he will always be the only brother who needs her protection.
For him, she would not hesitate to break up with the entire Konoha High Command.
For him, she would rather bear the infamy of running away from the village again and wander alone in Shinobi World.
In Senju Chen's mind, scenes flashed uncontrollably.
It was the sister who was lying drunkenly on the table, but when she saw herself, she suddenly woke up and nervously checked whether he was injured.
She was the sister who gave Second Hokage's sword "Thunder God Sword" as a graduation gift and proudly said, "Whoever dares to bully you in the future, use this to tell him that we Senju Clan are not to be trifled with."
It was the sister who would treat him like a child every time before going on a mission, nagging him to pay attention to his safety, and stuffing his bag with various toys and snacks.
The sister who was domineering, gambling, and had a hot temper, but who gave all her tenderness and love to him... was just gone.
No, my sister was forced to leave.
I was forced to leave by those old guys who sat in the office and decided the fate of others with just their words.
Hiruzen Sarutobi...Shimura Danzō...Utatane Koharu...Mitokado Homura...
Each name turned into a cold symbol in his heart.
'You... brought me into this world, the only person who was kind to me, the only person who cared for me as if I were my own brother... and then forced me to leave...'
An unprecedented sense of anger and loneliness overwhelmed him like a tide.
He slowly raised his head and looked out the window. The sun was shining brightly, and Konoha was still peaceful. But in his eyes, this peace seemed so hypocritical and dazzling.
"Little Chen... Don't be sad, Lady Tsunade she..." Shizune looked at his devastated look, feeling extremely distressed and wanting to comfort him.
"I'm fine, Sister Shizune." Senju Chen interrupted her.
He turned his head, and there was no trace of sadness or loss in his dark eyes, leaving only a bottomless calm that was so calm that it made one's heart palpitate.
Senju Chen remembers that in the original work, Tsunade also stayed away from the village, but that was because Tsunade suffered from hemophobia and could no longer perform any tasks. He always thought that his arrival had changed these things.
But I didn't expect that my sister would leave in the end.
"Sister just went out to relax, she will be back." His voice was very soft, but with an unquestionable determination, "She will definitely come back."
Shizune looked at him, opened her mouth, and finally said nothing. But she felt that from this moment on, there seemed to be something about the six-year-old child in front of her, which was completely different.