Evening, the kitchen.
Tsunade leaned against the refrigerator door, watching Minato's back as he chopped vegetables, and suddenly spoke up, "You brat, you did that on purpose, didn't you?"
"Why do you say that, Teacher?"
As if he had long anticipated Tsunade's reaction, Minato's movements didn't pause for a moment. He casually gathered the chopped vegetables onto a plate before turning to look at Tsunade.
Seeing Minato's reaction, Tsunade's suspicion was further confirmed, and she couldn't help but sigh.
"Between the three of them, there were over twenty wounds, yet not a single one hit a vital spot. If it weren't for the loss of vitality, they could even be classified as minor injuries."
"Why couldn't it be the result of the Wood Clone doing its best to save them?"
"Because you are the most brilliant Genius I've ever seen. Getting your ankle grabbed and your movements restricted is something that wouldn't happen to you, not even to a Wood Clone."
Tsunade's tone was complex. Minato's calm attitude made her suddenly realize that her understanding of this Disciple seemed somewhat lacking.
After spending over two months together, the impression Minato gave her had always been one of kindness and gentleness, yet without losing his principles or edge.
Today's events had truly exceeded her expectations.
"Asking me to take you out to Cultivate today was also to find a suitable excuse for this, wasn't it? Why did you do it?"
Tsunade didn't get angry immediately. Instead, she looked at Minato with great confusion. "You clearly could have just given them a beating. Why did you have to be so heavy-handed?"
"How could just a beating vent my frustration? Seeing them lying in the hospital ward makes me feel pleased in both body and mind."
Minato chuckled. "Besides, I gave them chances. It wasn't me looking for trouble from the start; rather, it was their repeated provocations. People always have to pay the price for their actions, don't they?"
"To be honest, if I weren't Teacher's Disciple, the consequences of this matter might have been even more severe. Or rather... my original intention was to cause even more serious consequences, and I only showed mercy because of my status as Teacher's Disciple."
If you strike a snake but don't kill it, you'll only suffer for it later.
He didn't care if they were children. As a transmigrator, he felt he had already failed in his duty by not pulling them up by the roots.
"You..."
Tsunade looked incredulous. She had thought Minato would just make up some random excuse.
Even if the excuse was flimsy, she would have found a reason to convince herself. She hadn't expected Minato to be so honest!
Her brow furrowed slightly. It wasn't that she thought Minato was wrong to fight back against bullies, but she was worried that her Disciple might be blinded by extremism and violence.
"Teacher, don't tell me things like everyone in the Village is family or comrades. I don't care who they are or what their reason is; anyone who attacks me is my enemy."
As if seeing through Tsunade's concerns, Minato gave a barely perceptible sigh.
"Being helpful is my moral upbringing, but in reality, even if Konoha were blown sky-high, I wouldn't care. The only one I care about is you, Teacher!"
!!!
Hearing this, Tsunade, who had been full of inner conflict, suddenly felt her heart skip a beat.
But before she could react, Minato's voice continued.
"Nawaki, Kushina!"
...
Tsunade immediately felt her mood plummet like a roller coaster.
A strange sense of embarrassment and annoyance surged in her heart, making her unable to resist pinching Minato's cheek. "You haven't spent much time with Kushina either, have you? How did she become someone you care about?"
"Eh? Aren't we a family now?"
Minato said indistinctly, "When I first arrived, Teacher and Nawaki were very good to me too, weren't they?"
"Then tell me!"
Tsunade puffed out her cheeks. "Between Kushina and me, who do you care about more?"
...
What a death trap of a question!
Minato didn't hesitate. "Of course, it's Teacher!"
In terms of proximity, that was indeed the case. Although he had the bonus favorability for Kushina from the original series, he had spent more time with Tsunade.
Furthermore, he was twenty in his past life, so he naturally preferred an older sister figure like Tsunade.
Not to mention Kushina was only five years old. Even with the CP bonus, she was just a child in his eyes.
"Hmph, that's more like it~"
Having received a satisfactory answer, Tsunade let go of Minato's cheek and put her hands on her hips tsundere-style, though the upward curve of her lips couldn't be suppressed.
"I couldn't tell before, but you brat are actually quite devious!"
"Does Teacher not like it?"
Minato tilted his head slightly, looking very innocent.
Feeling the contrast in his personality, Tsunade felt as if something had gently poked her heart, giving her an indescribable sense of excitement.
"I don't mind it. If you had a simple personality like Nawaki, I'd actually be more worried. However, your methods are still too extreme. Just as you care about me, I care about you too, which is why I worry about you heading down a radical path."
Ruffling Minato's little yellow head of hair, Tsunade spoke gently.
Minato nodded. Tsunade was still pressing down on the crown of his head; regardless, he would agree first and deal with the rest later.
"I feel like you're being a bit perfunctory."
Tsunade leaned down and looked directly into Minato's eyes. "You must remember, Teacher cares about you just as much!"
She was emphasizing 'caring', not anything else.
Gazing at that bright and moving face, a different kind of emotion suddenly rose in Minato's heart.
It was only then that he realized his feelings for Tsunade weren't simple.
As luck would have it, as Tsunade leaned over, a glimpse of snowy-white scenery was quietly revealed from her neckline.
Catching a glimpse of that snowy white from the corner of his eye, Minato turned his head away somewhat unnaturally.
Noticing Minato's movement, Tsunade also realized something. She glanced down, a playful smile flashing in her eyes.
"Precocious little brat..."
Tsunade turned Minato's face back, forcing him to look at her, and then gently kissed him on the forehead.
It was just a brief moment, a fleeting touch, yet it felt as if a long time had passed.
"Alright, hurry up and cook. I'm hungry."
Tsunade stood up, waved her hand, and turned to leave, leaving Minato standing there dazed.
Returning to her room, Tsunade impatiently searched for a scroll.
"Yin Seal"
This was a sealing technique passed down by the Uzumaki Clan, which she had obtained from her grandmother, Uzumaki Mito.
The specialty of this technique lay in the fact that it broke the restriction that Chakra could not be stored after being refined, allowing the user to release stored Chakra at critical moments.
Furthermore, by regulating the Chakra, one could keep the body in its Peak state.
Tsunade had originally wanted to use this as a foundation to develop a technique that would allow Medical Ninjas to fight as well. By now, she had already achieved some results, confirming the feasibility of the development.
But now, she suddenly felt that developing it so slowly was a waste of time.
"I'd better succeed in cultivating the Yin Seal first. After all, practice brings true knowledge, and it'll provide an extra means in battle..."
In the room, Tsunade muttered to herself as if hypnotizing herself, her eyes quickly sweeping over the scroll.
She had read the contents of this scroll countless times and already knew it by heart.
However, to be safe, she read through it carefully once more.
One year!
With her Senju Clan Chakra, it would take a year at most to successfully Cultivate the Yin Seal!