Chapter 365

Chapter 365: Chapter 365

Just as quickly as we had appeared in the Hokage building, we were gone again. Tsunade’s teeth were grinding with residual anger all the way back to the Senju compound. The moment we entered my house, she sat down heavily and immediately fell into deep thought.

I looked around and noticed that Genta and Naruto were nowhere to be seen. I chuckled nervously, realizing I was now the only person present to face Tsunade’s legendary temper. Finally, she sighed and shook her head. "Kid, I can tell you are very talented with fuinjutsu. You are powerful as well, from what I can see of your physical strength and chakra reserves."

She stayed silent for a long time before speaking again. "Just take care of yourself. I have lost so much. I do not want you to experience the same."

I nodded, my expression completely serious as I laid out my true intentions. "I understand, Lady Tsunade. My only goal is to live happily with my loved ones here."

Suddenly, we both sensed a powerful chakra signature approaching rapidly. A moment later, the front door to my home swung open.

Naruto and Genta were hiding cautiously behind Takemura, clutching several grocery bags. The older man eyed the new guest with narrowed, protective eyes as Naruto spoke up. "Ojisan, this is the monster that attacked Noa and Genta. Good thing Noa is still alive."

Genta chimed in with the exact same frantic tone. "Yes, Father, save Noa."

Takemura’s powerful chakra instantly faltered. His eyes widened in absolute horror before he reached out and knocked both boys squarely on the head. "How dare you address Lady Tsunade that way." He then bowed deeply toward the table. "Lady Tsunade, they told me you were here, but I did not believe it. It brings joy to me and the rest of the Senju hearts to see our lady back in the compound."

He remained bent at the waist as the Sannin observed him closely. Slowly, a small smile graced her features. "I am glad to see you are still doing well, Takemura. You did a good job taking care of the elders who had no family outside the compound to move in with."

The man shook his head humbly. "It is only my duty." He looked up with hopeful eyes. "Are you finally back?"

Tsunade shook her head, causing Takemura’s face to fall in obvious despair. She paused for a moment, observing a very curious Naruto peeking out from behind the older man’s legs. "I am just here for a mission. However, I see things have changed. You haven’t given up on the clan and actually had a kid. Why didn’t you have more?"

Takemura closed his eyes in sudden, profound grief. Behind him, Genta shifted uncomfortably. Tsunade realized her mistake instantly and let out a heavy, regretful sigh. "I see. I am sorry to hear that."

She stood up abruptly. "Takemura, let us talk. I have a few things to ask." Her gaze flicked to me, then to Naruto, almost imperceptibly, but I caught the subtle shift. The two adults moved toward Takemura’s house, conversing in hushed tones with Takemura keeping his head respectfully lowered.

"I’ve never seen my father act that way toward anyone," Genta murmured, "not even the Hokage."

Naruto nodded in agreement as I replied, "Well, technically she is the Senju clan head. She is also one of the strongest shinobi in the village. As a legendary Sannin, her strength is on par with Lord Jiraiya and Orochimaru, which was proven by their incredible feats during the Second Shinobi War."

The boys’ eyes shone with excitement. "So," Genta asked eagerly, "do you think she would train us?"

I shook my head. "She’s just back to run a mission. Who knows what will happen after that, but she might just leave again for all we know."

A sharp knock on the door interrupted us. I rolled my eyes. "I can’t get a break, can I?"

I pulled it open to find three fully geared ANBU standing on my porch.

Naruto recoiled instantly. "Whoa. Noa, did you commit a crime?"

I ruffled his spiky blonde hair, shooting a glance at Genta. "Can you take care of him? I have some important work to do with these three." Genta nodded and dragged a resisting Naruto away, who was eager to observe Konoha’s strongest operatives.

After the door was securely shut, I wove a quick hand sign. A privacy barrier washed over the room, preventing anyone outside from seeing or hearing our conversation. Once it was up, I gave the ANBU a nod.

The first one removed his porcelain mask, letting his spiky white hair drop down slightly. Kakashi, the Copy Ninja, stood before me with a relaxed posture, his visible dark eye watching me carefully.

The next was Itachi. Although his stance was entirely formal, the hint of a genuine smile tugged at his lips. "Noa, I am very excited for this."

I grinned back as the last operative pulled off his mask.

"Look at you," Shisui laughed, patting my shoulder warmly. "Now you are the one teaching me. How the tables have turned. It is good to see you up and running once more." He took in my new height and increased muscle mass, almost whistling in appreciation. "Taller than me now, too."

A downcast shadow then fell over Kakashi’s face as he stepped forward, his usually cold demeanor softening into something much more vulnerable. "So, you mastered my sensei’s jutsu. He never had the chance to teach me. Between the Third Shinobi War, his busy schedule as Hokage, and then... what happened after, we simply ran out of time." A heartbreaking look of deep regret and shame crossed his features, the exact same sorrowful expression I had caught him directing at Naruto earlier.

I wordlessly formed a hand seal, producing a single shadow clone. The duplicate stared at me for a long time before dramatically rolling its eyes, exhaling a loud sigh, and dragging its feet toward the kitchen while muttering "Why are we here? Just to suffer?" under its breath.

Kakashi opened his mouth to ask, but Shisui waved it off casually. "His shadow clones are just weird like that. Don’t overthink it."

Kakashi took a seat, with Shisui and Itachi following suit. I brought out a large chalkboard and grabbed a piece of chalk, preparing to speak.

"The Flying Thunder God technique has a strict entry requirement," I began, tapping the board. "You must possess incredible spatial awareness via seeing more of the world, and reaction speed. For me, Lightning chakra helps with that. For you, the Sharingan will be your best bet. I advise keeping it active at all times while using the jutsu, assuming you manage to master it."

A proud grin touched Itachi and Shisui’s faces, though they tried their best to hide it. Kakashi simply nodded. He possessed a strong Lightning affinity and a Sharingan, so I wasn’t worried about him in the slightest.

"Second," I continued, "this is basically a summoning jutsu. However, instead of pulling something to you, you pull yourself to a target mark. So, you all need to sign a summoning contract if you haven’t yet. Then, you need to have that animal reverse-summon you to get the feeling right."

Itachi inclined his head. "I have a summon, so I know the sensation."

Kakashi murmured his agreement. Shisui, who had been diligently writing down notes like a top Academy student, suddenly froze. He scratched his cheek awkwardly. "I have a summon, but..."

He didn’t finish the sentence. Beside him, Itachi was suddenly holding the corners of his mouth to keep them from rising for some reason, while Kakashi said with impatience, "Just bring it out, Shisui."

Lowering his head in utter defeat, Shisui bit his thumb and slapped his hand against the floor. "Summoning Jutsu," he muttered, sounding deeply embarrassed.

A small puff of smoke covered a tiny section of the floor before slowly wafting away.

My jaw completely dropped. A turtle sat on the floorboards. Its shell was a dull, weathered brown, and its half-closed eyes looked incredibly ancient. It slowly opened a mouth missing absolutely all of its teeth.

"W... h... a... t... d... o... y... o... u... w... a... n... t... k... i... d..."

The creature spoke so agonizingly slowly that I thought we were going to be trapped in this room all night just waiting for the sentence to end.

Looking like he wanted the floor to swallow him whole, Shisui raised a hand. "Just, please, can you reverse-summon me?"

The turtle opened its mouth again. The movement was so glacial that I could track the millimeter-by-millimeter shift of its jaw. "T... h... e... c... o... s... t..."

Shisui hastily interrupted before we spent the rest of our lives waiting for the next word. "I know, I know. I will make sure to compensate you for the lost chakra. I know it will take you time to regenerate it."

The turtle nodded. The downward motion of its head was so ridiculously sluggish that a visible layer of dust actually started to accumulate on top of its shell. Then, it stopped moving altogether. It remained completely frozen. Kakashi, Itachi, and I narrowed our eyes, genuinely thinking the poor animal had died of old age right there on the floor.

Finally, after an eternity of absolute silence, it dissipated in a lazy puff of smoke.

I looked over at Shisui, whose face was so brightly red that I couldn’t hold it in anymore. I burst out laughing. The sound completely broke Itachi, who chuckled out loud, barely stopping himself from devolving into a full fit of hysterics while speaking, out of breath, "It gets slower every time you summon it."

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A/N: Remember when I made a poll for Noa’s summon and I suggested the turtle, and my suggestion lost horribly? Yeah, me neither, so this is definitely not me compensating for my bitter loss.