Chapter 143: Defending One's Own

"Lord Third, Konoha Jounin Kato Yufukaze, alongside his girlfriend, Konoha Jounin Tsunade, reporting for duty!"

Seeing Kato Yufukaze bowing respectfully before him, Sarutobi Hiruzen sat behind his desk and cast an unamused, sidelong glare at him and Tsunade.

Just at that moment, the anxious voice of Secretary Chizuru Yamanaka could be heard shouting Uchiha Yashiro's name from outside the office door.

Sarutobi Hiruzen raised a hand and pointed a finger in the direction of Kato Yufukaze, but before he could say a word, Tsunade spoke up first.

Tsunade had also heard the commotion outside, but she cared very little about what might have happened to Uchiha Yashiro. She figured the man simply had too thin a skin and had been provoked to the point of fainting by her boyfriend—quite possibly fainting intentionally.

Noticing that Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression behind the desk was rather grim, Tsunade took the initiative. "Old man, your most adorable female disciple has come to see you! It's been so long, did you miss me?"

Cutting off whatever scolding Sarutobi Hiruzen was about to deliver, Tsunade walked around behind him. Reaching out with her delicate little hands, she began lightly patting, kneading, and thoroughly massaging her master's shoulders.

These massage techniques were all learned from her boyfriend, Kato Yufukaze, who had previously tested them on her. According to Kato Yufukaze, he had learned these methods from the robust and majestic sister duo at the green hot springs.

Sensing the situation outside the office, Sarutobi Hiruzen realized that Uchiha Yashiro had merely passed out from a temporary bout of mental shock and was not seriously injured.

With that, Sarutobi Hiruzen dismissed the commotion outside. This was the Hokage's Mansion in the Hidden Leaf Village, and countless eyes within the village were fixed upon it at all times.

If word got out that a member of the Uchiha clan had been severely beaten right outside the Third Hokage's office by the Third's own female disciple and her partner, it would be an absolute scandal.

Interrupted by Tsunade with her playful pampering and shoulder massage, Sarutobi Hiruzen ultimately refrained from chewing out Kato Yufukaze and Tsunade for their reckless behavior.

Shooting a fierce glare first at Kato Yufukaze standing before the desk, and then at Tsunade behind him, Sarutobi Hiruzen grumpily demanded, "You two never fail to bring me trouble! Now that you've both shown up here together, state your business quickly, and then get out of my sight!"

"Hehe." Kato Yufukaze touched his nose and chuckled softly, putting on an innocent, harmless expression without saying a word.

Standing behind Sarutobi Hiruzen, Tsunade poked out the tip of her tongue when she realized her master hadn't brought up the incident outside. She shot Kato Yufukaze a glare of her own before picking up the conversation.

"Master, how is your disciple's shoulder massage? Does it feel comfortable?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen replied, "Enough with the act, just spit it out if you have something to say!"

"Hehe, what's wrong with a disciple giving her hardworking master a massage? My technique is top-notch..."

As she spoke, Tsunade increased the pressure in her small hands, even subconsciously channeling a trace of her Strength Enhancement jutsu.

"Ouch, these old bones of mine can't handle you pressing that hard. Go massage your boyfriend instead."

As Tsunade increased her strength, Sarutobi Hiruzen felt the comfort on his shoulders abruptly turn into actual pain. He quickly shooed Tsunade away from his back and toward Kato Yufukaze standing in front.

"Hmph! It's rare for this princess to offer a shoulder massage, and you unappreciative old man don't even know how to enjoy it. No wonder you're always so exhausted every day!"

Curling her lips into a mischievous smile, Tsunade returned to her boyfriend's side, not forgetting to take a final swipe at Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Reflecting on how her filial devotion had been spurned, Tsunade stuck out the tip of her tongue and made a cute, mocking face at Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Standing before the desk, Kato Yufukaze breathed a silent sigh of relief upon seeing that Sarutobi Hiruzen did not intend to pursue the matter of the conflict between him and Uchiha Yashiro outside the door.

Although Kato Yufukaze wasn't afraid of being interrogated by Sarutobi Hiruzen—confident that the subtle technique he had left behind wouldn't be easily detected—less trouble was always better than more.

With that thought, Kato Yufukaze cast an affectionate, pampering look at Tsunade as she returned to his side.

He had to admit that Tsunade's lighthearted banter just now had played a massive role, drawing away a huge portion of Sarutobi Hiruzen's attention. Otherwise, Kato Yufukaze wouldn't have gotten away with it so easily.

Just as Kato Yufukaze had instinctively stepped forward to protect Tsunade outside the door, Tsunade had now unconsciously taken actions most advantageous to Kato Yufukaze. It was a reflex of fiercely protecting one's own, which naturally shielded him in the process.

Tsunade probably hadn't even realized that her subconscious actions stemmed from a desire to protect Kato Yufukaze; she had simply felt that doing so was the best course of action.

The tacit understanding between lovers—or rather, the unspoken bond of a family—was forged precisely through these subtle, everyday accumulations of mutual affection.

Similarly, Sarutobi Hiruzen's omission of the conflict between Kato Yufukaze and Uchiha Yashiro was also a manifestation of protecting his own.

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"You're already a grown-up, a young woman of twenty-two or twenty-three, yet you still act so unruly all the time. Now that you even have an official boyfriend, you don't look like a proper young lady at all."

Sarutobi Hiruzen wasn't truly angry at Tsunade. He pushed himself up from his chair, pulled out his pipe from the drawer, and lit it. Seeing Tsunade make a face at him, he took a puff from his pipe, reached out to rub his sore shoulder where Tsunade had pinched him, and couldn't help continuing to lecture his precious female disciple.

Perhaps because he was genuinely still smarting from Tsunade's grip, Sarutobi Hiruzen added another remark: "You don't have an ounce of the dignity a Princess of Konoha should have. Only Kato Yufukaze could possibly put up with your impossible temper."

"Speak up, what brings the two of you here together today?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen took another puff of his pipe, and as if suddenly remembering something, quickly added a preemptive strike against any requests for money. "Let's get one thing straight first: I don't have any money to lend you. Your master's wife, Biwako Sarutobi, just confiscated my private stash. I don't even have enough cash left to go to that green hot spring behind the Hokage Rock..."

Hearing Sarutobi Hiruzen mention borrowing money, Tsunade—retaining a sliver of her maidenly pride—blushed and muttered softly, "Hmph, who wants to borrow your money? I have plenty of my own."

"Ow!"

It turned out Kato Yufukaze had reached out and lightly flicked the bridge of Tsunade's upturned nose.

"Show some respect! Is that any way to talk to Lord Third?"

Borrowing Sarutobi Hiruzen's imposing authority, Kato Yufukaze decided to lecture his own girlfriend as well. He had been wanting to do this for a long time, and today he had finally seized the opportunity.

Without waiting for Tsunade to react, Kato Yufukaze formally and seriously began reporting to the Third Hokage the purpose of their visit.

He recounted the whole story of Nawaki taking him on as a master from beginning to end, and laid out all of his and Tsunade's reservations before Sarutobi Hiruzen without holding anything back.

Sarutobi Hiruzen puffed on his pipe, quietly listening until Kato Yufukaze finished speaking.

He then replied, "Is that so? No problem at all. Once the date is finalized, I will attend."

"After all, Nawaki is the grandson of the First and Second Hokages. It is entirely appropriate for me, as the Third Hokage, to attend his apprenticeship banquet."

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PS: Chapter 142 is still trapped in the reviewing room... Sigh! Such is the miserable fate of a minor rookie author.

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