Chapter Ninety-Four: Ivy Blossom Perfume

By then, the hottest part of the afternoon had already passed. Warm sunlight poured through the broad, bright windows into Tsunade’s office at Konoha Hospital, spilling over the long sofa in the lounge area and over the entwined young man and woman locked in an embrace.

In the end, Tsunade had yielded to the shameless Kato Yufeng and his wicked condition. It was simply because the secret body technique he used held her far too tightly in his arms.

Tsunade even felt that the ample fullness of her chest was about to be pressed out of shape. She herself did not feel particularly uncomfortable, but judging from Kato Yufeng’s expression, he seemed thoroughly pleased.

If Tsunade did not kiss him, Kato Yufeng would not let her go, no matter how sweetly she pleaded or how softly she coaxed him. He insisted on a kiss.

With all her strength, she could break free of his control by using her monstrous strength technique, but Tsunade could not bring herself to do it. Even she did not know whether she was reluctant to strike the wicked man before her, or reluctant to leave his warm embrace.

After some hesitation, under Kato Yufeng’s domineering yet gentle advance, Tsunade did not choose his puckered lips. Instead, she softly kissed the center of his brow.

Under the bright, warm sunlight, on the coffee table before the sofa, the pair of hand-carved figurines showed the Tsunade figure kissing the Kato Yufeng figure on the brow; behind the table, on the sofa, the young man and woman were embracing in each other’s arms, and Tsunade was kissing Kato Yufeng’s brow.

Just as she had done before, at the great gate of Konoha Village, when she had seen him off. She had kissed the very same place.

...

Time slipped quietly by. Konoha Hospital remained as busy as ever, yet Tsunade’s office was strangely still.

Seeing that Tsunade had kissed his brow instead of the lips he had hoped for, Kato Yufeng was not especially disappointed. It was his sooner or later; there was no rush. They could take it step by step.

Looking down at the woman in his arms, at Tsunade’s shy, bashful, nervous expression, so unlike her usual bold and heroic demeanor, Kato Yufeng found it all immensely amusing.

He wanted to keep teasing her, to frighten her a little more, so he deliberately pressed down on her head and puckered his lips, leaning toward hers.

Yet just at the moment when their lips were about to meet, Kato Yufeng quickly lifted his head and gently kissed her brow instead, returning the kiss to the very same place she had kissed him.

In the end, he still would not go against Tsunade’s wishes and kiss her lips. He would wait until the day she took the initiative. He had all the patience in the world.

The best things were always saved for last, so they could be savored more fully.

After that, Kato Yufeng continued whispering tender words to Tsunade, while his body eased its control over hers, changing only to a more comfortable and relaxed position so they could hold one another more easily.

At last, Kato Yufeng simply held the alluring enchantress in his arms in silence, while his mind sank once more into the space of his own soul, there to absorb the special shard of soul that belonged to the White Zetsu clone.

...

In Tsunade’s eyes, after she had kissed Kato Yufeng’s brow, he had still stubbornly leaned in as if to press his own lips toward hers, and she had been tense to the extreme.

But in the end, Kato Yufeng merely kissed her brow lightly, then made no further move to invade her. He only held her quietly and spoke soft, loving words.

This eased the tension in Tsunade’s heart a little. It was not that she opposed going further with Kato Yufeng, but this was, after all, her office at Konoha Hospital. Someone could come in at any moment.

Sensing that Kato Yufeng had relaxed his hold on her, Tsunade did not struggle. She let him keep holding her. Listening to his gentle words, she felt a deep languor and ease, a desire to loaf about, rest, and be lazy.

Dazed and drifting in that drowsy, relaxed feeling, Tsunade actually fell asleep in Kato Yufeng’s arms.

Tsunade was truly asleep. Kato Yufeng, of course, was not dozing off or slacking around; he was doing something serious.

Yes, Kato Yufeng’s body remained perfectly obedient as it held Tsunade’s seductive figure, while his thoughts and soul were in the soul space, occupied with serious work.

...

Inside Kato Yufeng’s soul space, the shard of soul belonging to the White Zetsu clone floated quietly before him.

After checking it carefully one last time, Kato Yufeng confirmed that the shard carried no danger or hidden problem.

He then touched the brow Tsunade had just kissed and began to absorb the special shard of soul.

The soul power within it was not much, which was quite fitting for the dreadfully concerning intelligence of a White Zetsu clone.

The special green energy, however, was abundant. The amount of special green energy stored in this shard of soul was comparable to the contents of five ordinary patients in the Spring Base.

It seemed that if Kato Yufeng ever needed to catch up with the activation progress of his vitality-enhanced physique, capturing more White Zetsu clones could be included as a backup plan.

That would require careful consideration. He could not act rashly.

A memory shard!

Thank you, my dear wife. Truly, you are my lucky goddess.

Having found the target he wanted, Kato Yufeng touched his brow again, silently prayed for Tsunade’s blessing once more, and then began to absorb that precious shard of memory.

...

A fragment of memory flashed by.

"You are fortunate. You are the ones favored by the Rabbit Goddess... To be chosen to offer service to the God Tree is a blessing earned in a previous life... It is the God Tree’s protection that has allowed you to survive in this world. Devote everything you have to the God Tree with pious sincerity..."

Inside a tall, imposing temple-like building, a woman dressed like a shrine priestess stood on the high platform ahead and spoke these words.

Behind her, on an even higher dais, sat a richly dressed figure. The distance was too great to see clearly, but it was a young woman with exceptionally pale skin and hair. From afar, one could also vaguely make out a red vertical eye on her forehead.

"...Now, follow my movements. As I taught you before, kneel down and pray with me to the God Tree with sincere devotion, so that your descendants..."

"Great God Tree, please bless us..."

...

Another memory flashed by, not the bright scene from before, but a dark one.

Darkness. A sealed space. Around the body, one could dimly see a layer of soft white membrane wrapping it, as though it were inside a white cocoon.

An endless stream of life energy was being delivered into the body through a branch inserted into that sealed cocoon.

That life energy struck again and again against the interior of the cocoon. Lying within it felt as though, in a hazy state between sleep and waking, some masterful hand were continually massaging the body, so comfortable that it was almost intoxicating.

It also felt like being nourished in a mother’s womb: though the space was cramped, it was free of worry and care, making one unwilling to awaken.

No one knew how long that darkness lasted before the white membrane outside finally shattered and split apart under the control of that branch.

There was still not much light outside, but it was no longer a field of darkness and gray. At last, the surroundings could be seen clearly.

It was a vast cave, filled with roots and branches of varying thicknesses. Hanging from those roots and branches were one white cocoon after another. Turning around to look behind, there was a cocoon whose outer shell had shattered, just like the others hanging from those roots.

Ahead, standing on an open patch of ground, was a strange man whose body was half white and half black, with green hair on his head.

The instant this body saw the black-and-white stranger, an instinctive awareness arose within it: it must listen to this man’s words and obey his commands.

Looking around, there were also many other strange figures with white skin and green hair. Lowering its gaze to its own body, it found the same pale skin.

"Your lives were all bestowed by Lord Madara. He created you. Obey Lord Madara’s commands and serve him; that is the meaning of your existence..."

As it listened to the black-and-white figure speaking ahead, it felt something strange in its palm and raised one white hand to look.

At the fingertips, several tiny roots were breaking through the white skin, and a similarly small branch was growing out from the white fingertip.

...

In Tsunade’s office.

Lying on the sofa and holding Tsunade, Kato Yufeng abruptly opened his eyes. Within those languid eyes, a gleam of delight shone forth.

Then he saw Tsunade sleeping in his arms, and saw her slightly puckered lips, those soft pink lips.

A fragrance also drifted between his breaths, a scent unlike the perfume Tsunade usually wore.

It was the scent of the special perfume he had just brought back for her from the Land of Rain.

This perfume had been distilled from a kind of vine flower that grew alongside salamanders in the Land of Rain. The people of that country regarded the flower as a symbol of good fortune and auspiciousness.