Chapter 301: I Choose You, Katsuyu!
"Become Shikkotsu Forest's successor?"
Nara Keisuke's brow quirked. He hadn't expected Tsunade to make such an offer. "Are you serious, Tsunade-nee?"
Although Nara Keisuke had long admired the Three Great Sage Lands and would love to accept Princess Tsunade's invitation immediately, a summoning contract for Shikkotsu Forest was priceless.
Even ordinary summoning beasts were considered rare in the shinobi world.
It didn't matter that Konoha had so many shinobi with summoning jutsu, with all sorts of dog summons to show off.
One just had to look at Sunagakure. In that entire, vast village, only the Kazekage's daughter possessed a small summoning beast.
They possessed wisdom comparable to humans, were skilled with various ninja tools, and some could even use ninjutsu…
In a sense, for a shinobi, a summoning beast was a "partner" more trustworthy than most village comrades.
In Nara Keisuke's own ability system, his summoning contracts with the Five-Tails Kokuō, the Three-Tails Isobu, and the Two-Tails Matatabi might not be his most important abilities, but they absolutely qualified as his core "inheritance."
For Tsunade, the Shikkotsu Forest contract was the same kind of "core inheritance."
Aside from blood relatives, only a truly recognized personal disciple would be qualified to inherit such a "legacy."
"Do I look like I'm joking?"
Facing Nara Keisuke's hesitation, Tsunade just glanced at him, feigning displeasure.
"Nara, I'm not a monster genius like you, who can learn any jutsu just by dabbling, and even research something like [Wood Release] so quickly.
"And I won't hide it from you: Shikkotsu Forest definitely has a Senjutsu inheritance, but I don't know it at all."
She said this with a surprising amount of confidence.
"You can always learn," Nara Keisuke advised.
"Senjutsu looks hard, and in reality… it's also not simple, but as long as you find the right method, it's easy to handle."
But Nara Keisuke's words didn't convince Tsunade; they just earned him another eye-roll.
"Nara, just learning the A-Rank [Welcoming Approach: Thousand-Hand Kill] is already an extremely difficult task for me. Learning Shikkotsu Forest's [Sage Mode] would certainly be even harder.
"I'm satisfied with my current strength, and I have so many [Wood Release] ninjutsu waiting for me to learn. I don't have the spare energy to learn other high-difficulty ninjutsu right now."
Tsunade looked squarely at her own shortcomings and present situation, then turned the argument back on Nara Keisuke.
"Since you think Shikkotsu Forest's [Sage Mode] is useful for [Wood Release], why don't you sign the summoning contract with Shikkotsu Forest yourself and go find Katsuyu to learn?
"And if I remember correctly, you've mastered many other Kekkei Genkai. The effect of [Sage Mode] would definitely be even greater for you.
"You can forget about Jiraiya's [Sage Mode]; that's Mount Myōboku's ability, and he has his own disciples. But for Shikkotsu Forest's inheritance, I can at least put in a word."
Tsunade's words came from the heart.
Before Nara Keisuke had charged into her world like a stag in heat, Tsunade felt her life was a gray void.
As a Senju descendant, her strength wasn't enough to revive the clan's glory.
As one of the Sannin, she suffered from hemophobia, a career-ending diagnosis.
The fall of her clan, the disappointment from the village, the death of her lover, the farewell of her family, the estrangement from her comrades…
One layer of pressure after another had been piled onto Tsunade's slender shoulders. The mountain-like weight left the shinobi world's greatest medical-nin struggling to breathe.
If the Third Great Shinobi War hadn't broken out, Tsunade had planned to take Shizune and leave the village to "get away from it all."
But Nara Keisuke's appearance had completely disrupted her life…
Although Princess Tsunade's life now couldn't be called "glorious," at the very least, the external pressures had been all but eliminated.
Especially now that Nara Keisuke had successfully researched the synthesis method for [Wood Release].
Even if Tsunade dropped dead on the spot and went to the Pure Land, she could face Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju with a clear conscience and proudly announce that she had found a good grand-son-in-law!
[Wood Release] as an inheritance of bloodline and genetics was extremely unstable; this had already been proven by the Senju Clan. After Hashirama Senju, no other Wood Release user had appeared in their clan.
Even his direct blood descendants, Tsunade and Nawaki, had not inherited the power of [Wood Release].
But now Nara Keisuke had researched the [Wood Release Chakra Production Method].
Even a non-Senju shinobi, as long as they had the aptitude for Water and Earth Release, had a chance to obtain the [Wood Release] Kekkei Genkai through study.
He would let the glory of [Wood Release] bloom in Konoha once more.
The true Senju of the Forest, why must they be born a Senju?
For Tsunade now, her current life goal was to learn and master [Wood Release] as quickly as possible, and then go beat the crap out of Orochimaru and Shimura Danzō.
As for the rest of her life...
What was wrong with leaving it all to Nara Keisuke!?
"Tsunade-nee…"
Nara Keisuke called out softly, causing Tsunade to look over.
"Hm?"
"Hold on."
The [Shadow Manipulation Technique] was forcibly ended by Nara Keisuke. His consciousness withdrew from Tsunade's body. The first thing he did upon returning to his own body was to stride forward.
Tsunade's vision blurred, and she felt the presence of her body once more.
But in the next instant, a pair of strong, powerful arms wrapped around her waist.
"Mmph—"
Tsunade yelped, but before she could say anything, her nose was filled with a familiar scent, and her soft red lips were roughly sealed.
The quiet room was silent, save for the faint sounds of lips and moisture. It was like a stag in spring, bowing its head to gnaw on a fresh strawberry—full, ripe, and bursting with juice.
Some words, only when spoken mouth-to-mouth, can truly be filthy to the core.
After an unknown amount of time, Tsunade, face flushed and breathing ragged, pressed her hands against his chest and forcibly pushed the shameless man away. Her glistening, moist lips struggled to get a few words out.
"You—lewd!"
Nara Keisuke licked his lips, his gaze fixed on Tsunade, shimmering with a predatory light, not hiding his true thoughts at all.
"Tsunade-nee, I want to kiss you again."
"N-No! You can't!"
The usually dominant Tsunade actually took a step back, crossing her arms in front of her chest in a defensive posture.
"Absolutely not today!"
Had any other person in Konoha been present, they would have been floored by the vulnerable, soft side Princess Tsunade was showing.
Nara Keisuke was different.
He became even more excited.
"Tsunade-nee!"
Nara Keisuke took another step forward, closing the distance between them once more.
If not for those damned arms blocking the way, he would have been able to "unite" with Princess Tsunade physically.
"What about tonight?"
"What on earth is in your head, Nara Keisuke!"
The crimson-faced Tsunade mustered her strength again, barely pushing the aroused stag away.
"Porn?!
"Can you not be so ridiculous? We were just talking about Shikkotsu Forest's Senjutsu! How did you suddenly start using your mouth? And your hands—Pei!"
"How can mere Senjutsu compare to you?"
Nara Keisuke said righteously.
"Besides, you started it!
"If you hadn't spoken so sincerely and movingly, I definitely... might have been able to control myself."
Hearing this, Tsunade's heart was filled with both joy and wariness.
As Konoha's foremost "great" beauty, Tsunade was well aware of her appeal to the opposite sex.
She was delighted by the affection and desire Nara Keisuke showed.
But she was genuinely worried he would pounce right here...
If Nara Keisuke really decided to do something, given the power gap between them, Tsunade wouldn't even be able to refuse.
But no matter what...
Tsunade would absolutely not allow herself to give her body to him in this underground research lab!
How debauched would that be?!
"No means no. Not today, and... not tonight!"
Tsunade stood firm, rejecting Nara Keisuke's invitation for "co-bed competition."
"Nara, get a grip! You're the frontline commander!
"I can accept you sneaking back from the front, that's already a fact. But I won't accept you fooling around in the rear while a war is still going on.
"Now, be serious! Do you or do you not want to sign the summoning contract with Shikkotsu Forest—or rather, with Katsuyu?"
Seeing Tsunade's resolve, Nara Keisuke could only sigh internally.
How can I refuse the 'fat sheep' meat delivered right to my mouth?
But since Tsunade had put it that way, Nara Keisuke couldn't force her against her will.
He liked to be proactive, but he wasn't willing to use force.
"Aigh, of course I want to sign a contract with the Sage of Shikkotsu Forest."
Nara Keisuke's shoulders slumped, and he spoke listlessly.
"But signing a contract requires mutual consent, doesn't it?"
"Alright, stop acting like a child."
Tsunade had intended to hug Nara Keisuke to soothe his disappointment.
But just as she raised her hands, she forced herself to change the motion, patting his shoulder instead.
Must not let the gun go off!
"I have the Shikkotsu Forest summoning contract scroll. I'll bring it over."
Tsunade cleared her mind, briefly explained the situation with Shikkotsu Forest, and then added seriously,
"You just need to sign your name in blood and put your handprint. I'll handle the rest.
"Katsuyu's personality is very gentle and compliant. Based on my understanding, she rarely refuses anyone's request.
"With me vouching for you, Katsuyu shouldn't refuse."
Faced with such a Tsunade, what could Nara Keisuke say?
Eating this 'Big Fat Sheep's' soft rice is delicious!
Tsunade quickly left the underground lab and returned a short time later with a massive scroll.
"Are these names on the scroll the past contractors of Shikkotsu Forest?"
Nara Keisuke looked at the giant scroll unrolled before him. Blood-red text and five-fingered handprints were distributed evenly in each square.
The "freshest" name on the scroll was "Nawaki."
Before Nawaki was, naturally, "Tsunade."
But looking further back, he did not see the name he had been looking for, nor did he see any other familiar names.
'Great-Grandpa's' (Hashirama) name isn't on the Shikkotsu Forest summoning contract scroll, so he wasn't a contractor. So... where did his Senjutsu come from?
"Mm. Katsuyu gave me this scroll herself. It records every contractor of Shikkotsu Forest over the past thousand years."
Tsunade's gaze passed over "Nawaki's" name, her eyes dimming for a moment before she quickly masked it.
"Nara, use your blood to write your name and press all five fingerprints on it. You shouldn't need me to teach you the rest... I'll step aside first."
Tsunade, who couldn't stand the sight of blood, proactively left.
Nara Keisuke followed her instructions, leaving his blood imprint on the Shikkotsu Forest contract scroll.
After the blood had completely soaked into the scroll, Nara Keisuke silently molded his chakra. Without waiting for Tsunade to return, he pressed his hand down for the [Summoning Technique], infusing a Chūnin-level amount of chakra into the summoning array.
Poof!
A cloud of smoke exploded above the array.
As the smoke gradually cleared, a palm-sized, blue-and-white slug appeared on the floor of the underground lab.
Along with it, a gentle voice emerged.
"Excuse me, are you my summoner?"
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