Naruto: Starting with Tsunade

Chapter 456 Aokiji Suffering from a Terminal Illness + Two Years Later

Itachi Uchiha was completely taken aback by Tsunade's sudden remark and looked astonished.

"I already know everything..."

"I see, does that mean Tsunade-neechan and Aokiji-san...?"

In the past, Itachi Uchiha called Tsunade "Auntie," which sounded too old-fashioned to Tsunade, so he asked her to call him "Sister."

Tsunade stared intently into Itachi's eyes: "Tell me..."

Uchiha Itachi sighed softly, closed his eyes, and opened them again, revealing three tomoe on his blood-red irises: "I can't comment on this matter; you should make your own judgment."

Tsunade frowned, and suddenly felt a surge of chakra connecting with her vision.

As expected, it was likely Itachi in front of us who used the ninjutsu.

Tsunade did not resist; the surroundings turned pitch black, then brightened.

She found herself in an environment, in a room, where four old men were telling a story to a black-haired boy.

"This, this is..."

The people standing before him were none other than Konoha's high-ranking officials and Itachi Uchiha. At this moment, they were making a ruling on the Uchiha clan's planned coup.

Immediately afterwards, the scene shifts, and Danzo orders Itachi to kill his entire clan.

Then, just as Itachi was about to make his move, images of Aokiji descending from the sky flashed before his eyes.

Aokiji had told Tsunade about this before, but seeing it with his own eyes now brought him a completely different feeling, his eyes filled with pain and complex emotions.

After leaving the environment, as if to vent her emotions, Tsunade swung her arm, broke a tree with a punch, and was panting heavily.

Uchiha Itachi watched quietly, wondering what that incredibly unlucky tree had done to deserve this.

Tsunade said with a pained expression, "Why did it have to come to this?"

"If Tsunade were alive, she would definitely not agree to or even stop Uncle Aokiji from doing this."

Without hesitation, Tsunade replied, "Of course."

"Tsunade is too kind. I think Uncle Aokiji knew that, so he didn't want you to be caught in the middle and suffer. He took care of everything before reviving you..."

Tsunade remained silent.

Just then, a crow flew over and landed on Itachi Uchiha's shoulder.

This caught Tsunade's attention.

Itachi Uchiha did not offer any explanation, but truthfully stated, "Uncle Aokiji may be coming to see you soon."

"Looking for me?"

Tsunade was still a bit angry: "I'm not seeing you."

That's true, but when the appointed time came, she still showed up as promised.

Tsunade walked up a small hill and looked down at the white-haired boy, who appeared to be about twelve or thirteen years old.

"How did you become like this?"

Hearing the voice, Aokiji turned around and looked at Tsunade expectantly: "My original appearance was too conspicuous, and I don't want to become a stranger."

"snort……"

Aokiji stepped onto the stairs, intending to approach.

Tsunade snapped, "Don't come any closer!"

Aokiji stopped in his tracks.

Tsunade's eyes reflected a resolute determination: "Give up, I'm not going back with you."

Aokiji paused for a moment, then said in a humble tone, "I didn't come here to ask you to come back with me."

Tsunade frowned, wondering what Aokiji was up to.

"I've come to say goodbye."

"Saying goodbye?"

"Yes."

"What trick are you playing now?"

Aokiji took a piece of paper out of his pocket, held it with both hands, and handed it over respectfully.

"A letter of repentance or a guarantee?" Tsunade gave him a symbolic glance, but didn't even look at it. "Do you think something like that will work on me?"

Having said that, he planned to tear it up in front of Aokiji, so that he would give up on the idea as soon as possible.

"Wait a minute, don't tear it yet. I have something to say, just one sentence." Aokiji held up one finger, his humble tone carrying a pleading tone.

"What are you saying?"

"I...I had a medical check-up a few days ago and found out I'm sick."

Tsunade crossed her arms: "What illness?"

Aokiji spoke haltingly: "It's incurable. The doctor said it's a terminal illness, that's about it. I didn't want to bother you, but I couldn't help coming to see you one last time..."

"What's wrong? Let me take a look."

Aokiji didn't seem to be acting. Tsunade put her hands down, unfolded the medical record that Aokiji had just handed her, and her eyes were filled with worry.

If you don't understand it at first glance, flip through it again.

Konoha Central Hospital

Medical record sequence page

…“Whiteness syndrome”, dryness and blurred vision syndrome………………………………………………………………

Preliminary diagnosis: Dry eye syndrome.

Attending Physician: Jingyin

Tsunade looked completely bewildered: "Dry eye syndrome? What kind of incurable disease is that?"

Aokiji nervously touched his eyes: "The doctor said I've used my Sharingan too much, and there's currently no cure. I have to use eye drops frequently..."

"Are you looking for death?"

Tsunade tossed the medical record onto Aokiji's head, crossed her arms, turned her face away, and gave him an "I'm ignoring you" look.

"It's not contagious, you don't need to worry."

Tsunade lowered her hands speechlessly and took a deep breath: "You tried to scare me to death, didn't you?"

"No, this really is a terminal illness."

Tsunade didn't want to talk to Aokiji, so she turned around so he wouldn't see the corner of her mouth.

"It's truly incurable..."

Tsunade turned around and looked at Aokiji's nonsense.

"I rushed over here, and I accidentally dropped my money on the way. Could you lend me some food, just a bowl of noodles?"

"Are you crazy?"

"Oh, why are you swearing at me out of the blue?"

"Idiot, you've ruined my tolerance for idiots with your terrible lying."

"I really didn't lie."

Tsunade's expression turned solemn as she said earnestly, "What exactly do you want from me? This is your last chance."

"I'll take you back."

Aokiji raised his palm and promised, "I promise I won't do anything reckless again. If I do it again, may I be struck by lightning."

Anyway, with my physical condition, a mere lightning bolt wouldn't be enough to kill Aokiji.

Aokiji's expression changed completely: "Wife, come back with me."

Tsunade turned and left, showing no respect to Aokiji: "I'm not going back. If you tell me to go back, I'll lose face."

That being said, Aokiji already knew that Tsunade's anger had subsided considerably, otherwise she wouldn't have said that, so he quickly caught up: "Wait for me, give me a chance!"

"Get lost! If you follow me again, I'll report you for sexual harassment."

"Okay, I'm coming back."

"???"

Not far away, Itachi Uchiha shook his head with a wry smile. If outsiders saw Aokiji, who was usually domineering towards outsiders, doing such a ridiculous thing, they would probably be so shocked that their jaws would drop.

Uchiha Itachi looked at the azure sky and murmured, "I'll leave the rest to Uncle Aokiji. I'll head back to the village now."

Having said that, he vanished on the spot.

◎

cinema.

In the seating area, Aokiji and Tsunade sat next to each other.

Aokiji held the popcorn, using it as a human-shaped support.

Tsunade reached for popcorn while looking ahead.

On the big screen, a young and beautiful woman with black hair and red eyeshadow is fighting a strange-looking monster with a long sword.

The actress, named Fujikaze Yukie, was a newcomer, but her acting skills were very mature, and she didn't look like a newcomer at all. In addition, she was young and beautiful, and she immediately captivated the audience in the movie theater. They whispered among themselves, thinking that this newcomer would become an instant star.

Aokiji stared at the actress, feeling a sense of déjà vu.

Tsunade noticed Aokiji's expression and, overcome with jealousy, her eyes crinkled with a hint of coquettishness: "You like him, don't you?"

Aokiji's thoughts were interrupted, and he let out an "Ah?"

"If you like her, just take her home as your wife. Anyway, you're all that powerful now, you can just say a few words."

Aokiji admitted defeat, "I wasn't looking at her."

Tsunade pointed her finger at Aokiji's eyes and said sternly, "You still say you didn't see it? Your eyes are practically popping out of your head! And you still say you didn't see it?"

"..."

Tsunade's reprimand was quite loud, immediately drawing the attention of those around her.

Mature woman and cute boy?

Damn it, you social butterflies can go to hell.

"Hey, can you two be quiet for a second?"

Aokiji: ...

Tsunade:……

After watching the movie, the two left the theater and walked down the street. Aokiji said, "Tsunade, when are we going back to the village?"

"What's wrong? Are you annoyed? If you find it annoying, you don't have to come along."

"Look at what you're saying."

Tsunade suddenly asked, "How did that movie work?"

"What, you want to be an actress?"

Aokiji looked Tsunade up and down. With Tsunade's looks, she had the potential to become an instant sensation in every sense of the word.

"How could that be? I don't like being in the public eye. I'm just curious if the sex scenes in movies are real? If they are, wouldn't their partners mind?"

"Who knows?"

"..."

After exchanging a few casual words, Qingti brought up the old topic again: "What do you think of my suggestion from last time?"

Tsunade was taken aback: "What?"

Aokiji reminded him, "It's a daimyo."

"Oh, you mean this?"

"I've cleared the way; all you need to do is take office."

"There will be objections, won't there?"

"Who dares to object? I..."

Tsunade gave him a look: "Don't forget what you promised me."

Aokiji shut his mouth.

"My vision is not broad enough to be of this position."

Tsunade sighed, "You should go find someone else."

"Others?"

Aokiji flatly refused, giving way to others. What a joke! "Great people are not born great, but become great through continuous self-improvement and hard work."

Aokiji was adamant, and Tsunade knew she couldn't dissuade him: "Alright then, but I have a condition."

"What are the conditions?"

"I want to travel some more and look for the answers."

"Looking for answers? Mine is the standard answer, what's there to look for?"

Tsunade stared longingly, and Aokiji couldn't stand that kind of look: "Fine, fine, whatever makes you happy."

Tsunade nodded.

"Where are you planning to go next? I'll go with you, but you need to hurry, there are still many things to take care of back home."

During the following period, Aokiji accompanied Tsunade on a journey through various countries, large and small. Along the way, they also took in orphans who had suffered from war. One of them, Guren, left a deep impression on Aokiji. Guren possessed the Crystal Release bloodline limit.

Back in the village, Aokiji summoned the village's leaders and announced his intention to abdicate, leaving everyone speechless with shock.

What kind of mental illness has Aokiji Uchiha developed?

"In light of the rumors circulating in the world, and in order to prove my innocence, I have decided to abdicate and hand over the throne to Tsunade as the ruler of the Land of Flame, retaining only the position of captain of the First Division."

The abdication process was somewhat bumpy, but overall it went relatively smoothly, especially with the strong support from the Ino-Shika-Cho trio. In their eyes, Tsunade, a member of the Senju clan and the granddaughter of the First Hokage, was far more kind and approachable than Aokiji, that madman, and was simply too upright and righteous.

At this point, the part of the village that had previously been afraid of Aokiji's power completely submitted to him.

At the Hokage inauguration ceremony, under the hopeful gaze of the entire village, Tsunade received the straw hat symbolizing the Hokage from Aokiji, looked at the statue of her grandfather on the Hokage Rock with a determined look in her eyes, and secretly vowed to lead Konoha and the Land of Flames to a better tomorrow.

◎

Two years later...

P.S.: With this, the female protagonist is finally officially an adult, and I can finally push her forward with peace of mind... If there's a next book, I'll definitely pay close attention to this age issue and absolutely avoid falling into this trap again.

(End of this chapter)