C221

The bathroom door was pulled open, and Tsunade panicked upon seeing Kain standing outside.

He wore only a pair of shorts, revealing his perfectly sculpted upper body. Tsunade had just managed to calm the heat in her heart, but at the sight of him, it flared up again.

"You… what are you going to do?" she asked dryly, momentarily forgetting that she was in the bathroom. A trace of fear flickered in her heart—not for her safety, but for the possibility that Kain had discovered her eavesdropping outside the door moments ago.

She had drunk too much tonight, and in her intoxicated state, she had acted impulsively. Though she had just come to her senses after… that, she was now deeply worried about what she had done.

Regaining her composure, Tsunade tried to brush it off with a strong front. Lowering her voice, she said, "This is the bathroom. I'm using it."

"You were eavesdropping outside the door, Tsunade."

Kain's words cut through her rising confidence like a blade, making her panic instantly. If he spread this around… How would she face Kushina? And if others found out? Tsunade didn't even want to imagine the consequences.

"What are you talking about? I was just in the bathroom, and you suddenly—"

Kain interrupted with a smirk. "The water mark on the corner of the second floor hasn't dried yet. Want to go check?"

Tsunade's face turned crimson in an instant. It was as if her throat had been squeezed shut—she couldn't utter a single word.

In her flustered escape earlier, she hadn't had time to clean up the evidence. Now, Kain had caught her red-handed. This was beyond humiliating.

 If Kushina had been the one to find out, it would've been a hundred—no, a thousand—times better than this.

Kain stepped closer, lowering his voice as he whispered in her ear, "You don't want Kushina and the others to know about this, do you?"

Tsunade's fragile defense shattered. Everything she feared was happening—first, she had been caught, and now she was being cornered. If she wasn't careful, she might let something even more damning slip.

But before she could think further, she suddenly realized she was being held in those strong, powerful arms. Her body tensed as she asked in a flustered whisper, "What… what are you doing…?"

A wave of suffocation hit her again—but this time, it was different.

For the first time in over thirty years, Tsunade experienced something like this.

After graduating from the ninja academy, she had thrown herself into missions. As a teenager, she had fought in the ninja wars. The only person who had ever openly pursued her was Jiraiya, but he was never her type.

Now, despite her youthful appearance—maintained through the Hundred Healings Mark—Tsunade had, in reality, been single for decades. She had no experience with this kind of intimacy.

Especially now… The way Kain's fingers moved against her skin felt electrifying, like tiny shocks that sent tingles through her entire body.

"Stop… stop… I can't… Kushina…"

An intoxicating blush spread across her face. She clung weakly to Kain's arms to keep herself from collapsing. Somewhere in the chaos, her clothes had slipped off, revealing a large expanse of pale, flawless skin.

But before she could form another thought, that suffocating sensation returned. And this time, it was accompanied by an electric pleasure that made her unconsciously clamp her legs together.

"You… I won't say anything about you and Nono," she whispered breathlessly, "but you have to stop—"

"No."

Tsunade's voice grew weaker and weaker until she could no longer speak at all. Just like her student had in the past few days…

Meanwhile, downstairs…

"Ha~ I slept so well last night. Oops! I forgot to feed Naruto!"

Kushina strolled into the kitchen, greeting Kain as she passed. But suddenly, she froze.

She had a son.

Panic set in as she rushed upstairs to grab Naruto from the nursery.

Luckily, he was still fast asleep—completely oblivious to the chaos that had unfolded in the house the night before.

Kushina looked around and asked, "Where's Miss Tsunade?"

"She wasn't feeling well, so she went to Konoha Hospital," Kain replied calmly. Internally, he couldn't help but praise a classic quote from a soldier boy.

"By the way, Kushina, I'll be heading to the capital in two days. The Fire Country Daimyō may need to elect a new leader, and all prominent nobles are required to attend."

"Then what are you planning to do? Oh—wait! You're the Minister of Propaganda," Kushina suddenly recalled, then leaned in with a teasing smile. "If you become the Daimyō, does that mean I'll be the Daimyō's wife?"

Kain chuckled. "Of course. I'll use Sky City as the new Daimyō's mansion. After so many nobles perished recently, my chances of being chosen are quite high. Just wait for the good news."

There were very few nobles in the Land of Fire who could rival Kain. Not long ago, those with deeper connections had all died, leaving behind only scattered "landlord nobles" from various regions. With the Daimyō's seat now up for grabs, Kain could practically sit back and relax.

Meanwhile, Kirigakure had been completely repelled by Konoha. They had lost the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, and Uchiha Fugaku had led a full-scale counterattack, forcing the Mist Shinobi to retreat back to the Land of Water.

That said, it was unlikely that Kirigakure would sign any sort of peace agreement. Thanks to their natural sea barrier, the Mist Shinobi could always retreat safely to their homeland. But if Konoha dared to pursue them, they would be forced into an unfavorable battle at sea, where Kirigakure's water-style ninjutsu excelled.

Kirigakure had always followed a hit-and-run strategy—harassing their enemies periodically but retreating the moment a strong counterattack was launched. 

However, under Uchiha Obito's control, they had suffered devastating losses this time. Even if they wanted to continue the war, they simply lacked the means.

Cloud Shinobi had also fully retreated. It had taken them a long time just to gather the ransom Konoha demanded, and their military strength had been significantly weakened. For the next three years, they would have no chance of engaging in an arms race.

However, after successfully trading the ransom for the Fourth Raikage, Killer Bee, and Dodai, the Cloud Shinobi soon made a shocking discovery—the Eight-Tails inside Killer Bee was gone.

Furious, the Third Raikage bellowed at Konoha's representatives, "Konoha scum! You violated the exchange agreement and stole the Eight-Tails!"

But Nawaki, undaunted by the Raikage's rage, responded loudly, "Third Raikage, the agreement only included the return of Killer Bee. The tailed beast itself was never part of the deal. We delivered him to you alive. If you're going to make unreasonable demands, then let's go to war!"

To ensure the smooth completion of the trade, Orochimaru had personally sent Hatake Sakumo, elite Uchiha and Hyūga clansmen, and even thirty Ryūchi Cave fire dragons hovering in the sky.

If the Third Raikage dared to start a fight, the outcome was clear—of the nearly 1,000 Cloud Shinobi present, only about 30% would manage to escape.

The fire dragons alone were enough to leave Cloud Shinobi at a complete loss.

"Damn bastards… Damn it! Damn it!!"

The Third Raikage clenched his fists, his face contorted with fury. He knew he couldn't afford to start a war, but swallowing this humiliation felt like choking on broken glass.

Finally, after his subordinates persuaded him, the Third Raikage gave the order to withdraw. They needed to return to their village as soon as possible—if they delayed any longer, their next supply shipment wouldn't be ready in time.

In a small town's bathhouse, a blond young man and a white-haired middle-aged man lay comfortably in the warm water, enjoying themselves.

This town wasn't particularly wealthy, and most residents bathed in their own homes. As a result, when they arrived, the bathhouse was completely empty—almost as if it had been reserved just for them.

However, the blond young man's expression was far from relaxed. After hearing the news from outside, how could he possibly enjoy himself?

"Mr. Jiraiya, I failed this mission again. Once I'm recalled to the village, I'll either be reprimanded or end up like Senior Shikaku," Namikaze Minato sighed, speaking to the white-haired middle-aged man beside him.

He had genuinely wanted to complete this mission properly—after all, it was one of the few tasks he excelled at. The failure to track Jiraiya was understandable to some, but failing to monitor the Eight-Tails would directly affect negotiations.

Worse still, the Eight-Tails' Jinchūriki had appeared near Konoha Village and nearly destroyed it. Although the attack had been stopped, Minato still felt uneasy about the situation.

"Don't stress over it, Minato. That was the Eight-Tails' Jinchūriki. Without proper intel, even if you pursued him alone for months, you wouldn't be able to stop him," Jiraiya reassured him.

He had almost said, "No one could have done it," but then he remembered that Orochimaru had taken down the previous Eight-Tails Jinchūriki within two months. Changing his tune, he continued,

"Speaking of which, Minato… if things aren't working out, maybe you should consider leaving Konoha. To be honest, I don't believe Danzo was the one who poisoned the Daimyō's heirs and nobles. Someone else is behind it."

Jiraiya wanted to say Orochimaru or Kain, but without proof, he held back.

"No, sensei," Minato quickly shook his head. "As long as I still have a chance in Konoha, I won't leave. Without Konoha, we may never get another opportunity to turn things around. Besides, Lord Third Hokage would never allow it."

Despite his crushing defeat in the previous Hokage election, many Jōnin in the village still felt guilty about how things had turned out.

Even Kakashi had reached out to him recently, offering a few warnings.

That alone gave Minato hope. Money can buy loyalty for a time, but it can't buy people's hearts—at least, that's what he believed.

"Do what you want. When you return to the village, give this to Lord Sarutobi."

Jiraiya summoned an information frog, a special breed from Mount Myōboku used for storing scrolls. Handing over the scroll, he continued,

"This contains recent intel on the Kain Chamber of Commerce, including activities in the Land of Wind and the Land of Water. Once Lord Sarutobi reads it, you'll know what to do."

He then added, "For now, I'll be heading to Mount Myōboku to train in Sage Mode. The two Great Toad Sages have agreed to give me intensive training. If I can fully master it, my strength will increase significantly."

Minato nodded and smiled. "I understand. Then, I wish you success, sensei."

Having already mastered Perfect Sage Mode himself, Minato knew firsthand how powerful it could be.

However, Sage Mode didn't suit his fighting style. A regular Rasengan was already enough to take down 90% of ninjas or leave them completely incapacitated.

….

patreon.com/Vks_sh