Ryosuke's Wood Release

No. 2 Training Ground

Ryosuke stood in the field, surrounded by Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Naruto.

"Wood release: Deep Forest Emergence!"

Ryosuke clapped his hands and shouted.

Boom!!!

Towering trees rose from the ground one after another.

In an instant, the open space transformed into a dense forest.

Even the trees in the surroundings grew wildly.

Within moments, a dense forest spanning over one or two kilometers appeared at Training Ground No. 2.

Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Naruto stood within the newly formed forest, watching this scene with astonishment.

Especially Naruto and Jiraiya.

Tsunade was relatively calm as she had seen her grandfather use this ninjutsu before.

But Jiraiya and Naruto were witnessing this for the first time. Their mouths hung open in shock.

"So… huge!"

Every tree in front of them was massive. They were at least fifty or sixty meters tall.

It would take more than a dozen people to grab just one tree.

Just a moment ago, the training ground was only covered in knee-high weeds, and the surrounding trees were merely ten meters tall.

Is this Wood release?

Naruto curiously examined the enormous trees, wondering what their actual purpose was.

Suddenly!

Whoosh!

Whoosh!!

Vines shot out at lightning speed.

Before Naruto could react, he was tied up and left hanging upside down from a tree.

"Put me down! Let me down!!"

Naruto struggled and shouted.

Whoosh!

Ryosuke appeared on a nearby tree, and smiled as he looked at Naruto.

He asked, "Naruto, how does it feel?"

Naruto pleaded, "Ryosuke, put me down already!!"

Ryosuke smirked and released Naruto.

After regaining his freedom, Naruto cautiously eyed the surrounding trees.

"Ryosuke, is this the Wood release you learned from Tenzo?" Jiraiya asked in astonishment.

He knew that Tenzo's Wood reease wasn't nearly this powerful.

"Not exactly. I learned a much weaker version of this from Captain Tenzo. When I use it, it turns into this."

Jiraiya said, "...I see."

So this was the difference between real Wood release and the artificially replicated version.

Jiraiya suddenly had the urge to bring Tenzo over to witness Ryosuke's version of wood release.

Compared to Tenzo's small, and feeble wood release, Ryosuke's wood release was on an entirely different level.

Tsunade explained, "This is my grandfather's ninjutsu. Tenzo's Wood release is too weak, so it gets degraded when he uses it. But Ryosuke has pure Senju blood, and he awakened Wood release naturally. Of course, his power is different!"

Tsunade looked at the towering trees with a nostalgic expression.

This reminded her of when her grandfather had shown her this technique as a child.

Back then, it was just as shocking, if not more so.

Senju Hashirama's version was even grander in scale. But that was to be expected.

He was the God of Ninjas, and he had already learned Wood release for years when he had demonstrated it.

Meanwhile, Ryosuke had only just awakened his abilities.

Even so, the fact that he could perform it at this level proved that his Wood release was authentic.

It was just like Senju Hashirama's!

What Tsunade didn't realize was that Ryosuke was holding back.

If he unleashed his full power…

With his current vitality that was comparable to an intermediate Sage Body, combined with the enhancement of Wood release, his technique wouldn't be any weaker than Senju Hashirama's.

In fact, if he went all out, the range would be three to four times larger.

But that wasn't necessary.

Today, he was only showcasing his Wood release to Tsunade and the others.

He wasn't trying to fight anyone. So it didn't matter if he held back.

Tsunade happily said, "Ryosuke, you're incredible!"

Tsunade suddenly hugged Ryosuke excitedly.

As she wrapped her arms around him, Ryosuke bent down slightly.

Then, he was immediately enveloped in softness.

For a moment, he could barely breathe.

But… this feels so good!

Ryosuke was tempted to stay like this a little longer.

Unfortunately, Tsunade soon let go.

He couldn't just stand there motionless, could he?

That would be disrespectful.

And it would make him look like a total pervert.

Ryosuke had always maintained an image of dignity and strength in Konoha.

He couldn't let people misunderstand and think he was a lecherous old man.

That title belongs to Jiraiya!

Ryosuke, on the other hand, was different. He wasn't lecherous at all.

In fact, he didn't even like being around women that much.

…

Why did he have multiple girlfriends?

Well...

His explanation was simple.

He was just too kind-hearted.

He wasn't good at rejecting people, and he couldn't bear to see them cry because of him.

So in the end, he sacrificed himself to fulfill their wishes.

Yes! That's it!!

...

Back at the Hokage's Office

"Where did you just go?"

As soon as he entered, Ryosuke saw the two Hokage advisors waiting in the office.

When they noticed Tsunade and the others returning, they frowned and asked unhappily.

"It's nothing. We were just at Training Ground No. 2 watching Ryosuke's Wood Style."

Tsunade answered without hesitation.

She had no intention of hiding the fact that Ryosuke had Senju blood and had awakened Wood release.

Because she knew that once the news spread, Ryosuke's reputation would skyrocket again.

This was Tsunade's way of promoting him.

She was paving the way for Ryosuke to become the Sixth Hokage!

After all, no one understands what the combination of Senju blood and Wood release means better than Tsunade.

At this rate, Ryosuke's prestige might even surpass her own as the Fifth Hokage.

But did that matter?

She's not Sarutobi Hiruzen. She has no fear of her subordinates growing too strong or too famous.

And besides, Ryosuke is a descendant of the Senju clan.

He is the hope for the Senju's revival!

Tsunade wanted Ryosuke's reputation to grow even higher.

She was even willing to let him become the Fifth Hokage himself.

If it had been up to her, Tsunade never would have taken the Hokage position in the first place.

"What? Wood release?!"

Homura and Koharu stared at the four in shock.

"How is that possible? Isn't Ryosuke a civilian? Could it be related to Orochimaru's…"

The two Hokage advisors immediately recalled Orochimaru's past experiments on Wood release.

But after Tsunade explained, they realized that they were completely wrong.

Ryosuke had awakened Wood release on his own.

The reason?

Because he carries the pure blood of the Senju clan.

Ah… this…

Homura and Koharu exchanged uneasy glances.

They could see both shock and concern in each other's eyes.

They were shocked because someone had awakened Wood release again.

And this time, it wasn't some weak imitation like Tenzo.

They were worried because this meant that Wood release had truly returned.

Coupled with Ryosuke's pure Senju bloodline, would the Senju clan rise to power once again?

Would Konoha soon be ruled by the Senju clan again?

What about them?

What would happen to the advisors?

What would happen to their families?

What would happen to their power?

Homura and Koharu couldn't help but feel anxious.

Before today, they had no ill will towards Ryosuke.

Unlike Danzo, they didn't actively try to suppress rising talents.

If anything, they liked recruiting those with powerful bloodline limits.

But now that Ryosuke was confirmed to be a true Senju, and would likely continue the Senju clan's lineage, this changed everything.

They couldn't help but feel uneasy.

After all, how much effort had they, along with Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo, put into erasing the Senju clan's influence from Konoha?

And now, they were being told that the Senju clan was about to make a comeback?

They couldn't accept this.

But!

Tsunade and Ryosuke were both Kage-level fighters.

With their old bodies, could they possibly take them on?

Not to mention, Jiraiya was here too. And Jiraiya would always side with Tsunade.

That made three Kage-level ninjas!

And Konoha only had three Kage-level ninjas right now.

Realizing this, the two Hokage advisors felt worried.

What now?

Was the Senju clan's revival already unstoppable?

"These two old men keep shifting their eyes around. What are they scheming?"

Ryosuke noticed the strange behavior of the two Hokage advisors.

It only took a moment of thought for him to figure out what was going through their minds.

"Heh! Are they worried that the Senju's return will push them out of power?"

"Even though I don't care about any of that, these two are really overthinking things."

To be honest, among the old Konoha Council, Homura and Koharu were by far the weakest.

Danzo at least had Root, and the Shimura clan was strong.

But these two?

They had no real power in the village.

Even their personal guards were mediocre at best.

Despite having access to massive resources, they had failed to nurture any real strength.

Simply put, they were useless.

"The matter of Wood release can wait. Let's discuss Tsunade's succession as the Fifth Hokage first."

Homura and Koharu exchanged glances, silently agreeing to delay the issue.

And if things didn't go their way?

They would have to find other methods to deal with it.

One way or another, they would not allow the Senju clan to rise again.

Just the thought of it made them shudder.

Because no matter how glorious the Senju once were, the fear they inspired was just as great.

Homura and Koharu had worked so hard to establish their own families in Konoha.

And now, they didn't want to lose all that.

In fact, they had already decided that they would "fully support" Tsunade as the Fifth Hokage.

And in doing so, they would use their positions as advisors to extract as much power and wealth as possible.

With Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo gone, nobody was standing in their way.

Now, Homura and Koharu finally had a chance to seize real influence.

And compared to Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo…

Surely, they could handle a mere junior like Tsunade, right?

Yes!

They would manipulate her, just like Sarutobi had once manipulated Minato.

They had already made their plans. But they were forgetting one thing.

Tsunade wasn't like Minato. Tsunade wasn't someone they could control.

She had a fiery temper and wouldn't tolerate their schemes for even a second.

So, if they really thought they could handle her, they were gravely mistaken.

Over the next two days, news of Tsunade's return spread throughout Konoha.

Tsunade, one of the Sannin.

The princess of the Senju clan!

Stories of her legendary feats began circulating once again.

Even the younger people who had never seen her in action knew about this legendary Sannin.

They knew that Tsunade was the strongest medical ninja in the world.

They knew that she possessed unparalleled medical skills.

The older ninjas, who had once received her medical aid celebrated.

They openly voiced their support for Tsunade.

In just two days, Tsunade's reputation skyrocketed.

And now, if anyone who dared to oppose her status as the Fifth Hokage, they would be drowned out by the overwhelming support of Konoha's people.

Even if Danzo was alive, he wouldn't have been able to stop this.

And if even Danzo couldn't do anything.

Then who else would?

No one.

Because no one could.