Leaving the Village

"Not necessarily, Sister Kushina. Why can't I be the one protecting you?"

Seeing how serious Nobuhiko was, Kushina felt a little touched and patted his head.

"All right, I'll be waiting for you to protect me!"

"But you'll have to work very hard, Little Brother Nobuhiko, because according to Kurama, I'll be getting stronger very quickly."

"Just you wait, Sister Kushina!"

Nobuhiko shot back, refusing to be outdone.

"I'm in a good mood right now. How about I treat you to barbecue, Little Brother Nobuhiko?"

Kushina stopped dwelling on the question and unleashed her money power.

"Sister Kushina, banzai!"

"Let's go!"

Kushina waved her hand grandly!

Inside the seal space.

Kurama, whose living conditions had clearly improved, curled his lip when he heard Kushina's smug words.

Though he was very confident in his own strength, it really was hard to say when it came to this kid he couldn't see through.

If they really lost when the time came, Kushina would be the one embarrassed. It would have nothing whatsoever to do with him, Senior Kurama!

That afternoon, after finishing their barbecue, Nobuhiko and Kushina returned to her home, laughing and chatting along the way.

As soon as he stepped inside, Nobuhiko slumped onto the couch as though he were in his own home, held his belly, and let out a burp.

"I can't take it anymore, Sister Kushina. That barbecue was so satisfying. How about we cancel today's training?"

Kushina, who was also sprawled on the couch, found Nobuhiko's suggestion very tempting.

But when she remembered how her Little Brother Nobuhiko had accused her of slacking off during training that morning, she got angry.

"No slacking off, Little Brother Nobuhiko. We'll keep training after a little rest. Didn't we agree to work hard and get stronger together?"

Seeing Kushina reject him so sternly, Nobuhiko felt he had rather shot himself in the foot.

"All right, Sister Kushina. You're right!"

"Good. Then we'll start training after a little rest."

And so, the two of them sprawled on the couch, chatting on and off.

Just like that, they kept chatting until evening.

"Ahem, Sister Kushina, when are we starting our training?"

Seeing that Kushina had chatted with him all afternoon without showing the slightest intention of training, Nobuhiko couldn't resist teasing her.

"Huh?"

At Nobuhiko's question, Kushina's cheeks flushed scarlet with embarrassment.

"Well, Little Brother Nobuhiko, although I've been chatting with you this whole time, I've actually been thinking about which Sealing Jutsu scrolls to give you so you can practice while you're traveling with Sister Tsunade."

The more Kushina spoke, the more assured she became.

"Really, Sister Kushina? Thank you so much!"

Although he knew perfectly well that Kushina had only just remembered, Nobuhiko was still deeply touched. After all, he had forgotten about it himself.

"Wait here and don't move. I'll go find the Sealing Jutsu scrolls for you."

Feeling like a genius for coming up with such a good excuse in so little time, Kushina hummed a tune as she went to find the sealing scrolls.

Watching Kushina walk away, Nobuhiko silently swore to himself.

Just you wait, Konoha F4. For your Jinchūriki policies alone, I'll sweep you into the dustbin of history sooner or later!

Except for Danzo, the rest of you can all fuck off somewhere!

"Here, Little Brother Nobuhiko. This is the Four Symbols Seal scroll, and this one is the Contract Seal scroll."

Holding four scrolls, Kushina tossed two to Nobuhiko first.

"These are both very powerful Sealing Jutsu. When you're traveling with Sister Tsunade, ask her plenty of questions if there's anything you don't understand. If even she doesn't know, you absolutely have to bring her back to the village and ask me. Got that, Little Brother Nobuhiko?"

"Got it, Sister Kushina."

Nobuhiko put the two scrolls away as though they were priceless treasures.

"And these two scrolls. One records the Memory Seal, and the other records the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal."

After watching Nobuhiko put those two scrolls away, Kushina hesitantly handed him the other two.

"Although these two Sealing Jutsu aren't very powerful, they'll come in handy if you and Sister Tsunade accidentally do anything bad out there."

Kushina's voice grew quieter and quieter as she spoke, and she suddenly felt that bringing out these two scrolls had been rather unnecessary.

"These are great, Sister Kushina! These two scrolls will be a huge help."

Seeing Nobuhiko take the two scrolls with an excited expression, Kushina felt that something was a little off.

"Don't worry, Sister Kushina. I'll definitely practice these Sealing Jutsu diligently while I'm traveling with Sister Tsunade!"

Seeing how much Nobuhiko liked the Sealing Jutsu she had given him, Kushina was delighted too, and soon forgot that slight sense that something was off.

After chatting a little longer, Nobuhiko happily took the Sealing Jutsu scrolls home.

Once he got home, Nobuhiko had intended to visit Yuhi Shinku's house to say goodbye and tease the little girl Kurenai Yuhi while he was there.

But after thinking it over carefully, he decided against it.

It had nothing to do with trust. It was just that, apart from those he was very close to and saw often, it was best not to let too many people know about this.

If he wanted to visit, there would be plenty of time once he returned to the village.

That left nothing else for him to do. He just had to wait for Tsunade to give the word.

No, wait. Nobuhiko suddenly felt that he might also need a pair of goggles. He would buy some at the ninja tool shop tomorrow. No, I'll buy them after leaving the village. Better not create any complications while I'm still here.

Just like that, another two uneventful days passed.

Over those two days, Nobuhiko only saw Tsunade at breakfast. At any other time, he didn't even catch a glimpse of her.

On the second evening, Tsunade returned relatively early.

Nobuhiko was a little surprised.

"Sister Tsunade, why are you back so early today?"

Tsunade said nothing and simply slumped onto the couch, looking rather tired. Seeing this, Nobuhiko immediately went behind her and began massaging her shoulders.

"I've said goodbye to everyone I needed to. Shall we leave first thing tomorrow morning, Nobuhiko?"

Feeling rather comfortable under Nobuhiko's massage, Tsunade asked him gently.

"All right, Sister Tsunade. I'm already packed and can leave anytime."

"Then do you need to go say goodbye to Kushina now?"

"No, Sister Tsunade. I've already talked it over with Sister Kushina. We'll leave quietly. If she notices one day that I haven't come to see her, it'll mean we've already left."

Nobuhiko spoke to Tsunade in a somewhat downcast tone.

"How about you stay here and keep Kushina company?"

After thinking for a long time, Tsunade tilted her head back to look at Nobuhiko.

"Sister Tsunade, Sister Kushina and I have already decided. You don't need to worry about matters between us kids."

The corner of Tsunade's mouth twitched, and she felt like laughing.

After he had massaged her for a while, Nobuhiko brought out a basin of hot water and began washing Tsunade's feet as usual.

Early the next morning, Tsunade and Nobuhiko, who had a bag on his back, arrived at the Konoha Gate.

Tsunade looked back at the village one last time, then left without another word. Seeing this, Nobuhiko immediately followed.