Konoha.
Under the scorching heat of August, while the Great Ninja War had begun, most of it was localized. Konoha was still enjoying a brief period of peace.
On a rooftop, leaning against a railing.
Having returned to the village, Tsunade had tied her hair into a ponytail and changed into a refreshing, crop-top shirt with a fishnet top underneath.
"Happy 12th birthday, Nawaki."
Standing on the rooftop, Tsunade spoke her congratulations with a smile. Across from her was Nawaki, with a Konoha forehead protector tied around his head.
When he saw his older sister congratulating him on his birthday and taking out a gift from her hand, he immediately acted a little prideful.
"I'm not a child anymore. You don't have to give me any birthday presents."
Although he said that, the smile in Nawaki's eyes couldn't be hidden, and his hand had already reached for the gift.
Seeing this, Tsunade let out a chuckle and teased:
"Hurry up and open it. Maybe it's a gift you'll like."
With a teasing laugh, Tsunade leaned against the railing, dotingly watching Nawaki open the gift. In her eyes, however, a hint of seriousness was hidden.
It was a beautifully packaged metal box. When it was opened, Nawaki's expression immediately became one of shock.
"Big sister, could this possibly be...!"
Nawaki's face was filled with shock. He was simply too familiar with this gift.
Tsunade smiled lightly and said:
"That's right. This is the First Hokage's necklace, our grandfather's."
Upon hearing her confirmation, Nawaki's face broke into an excited smile.
"I love it so much, big sister!"
Seeing Nawaki's excited expression, Tsunade casually asked in a teasing tone:
"Nawaki, since it's your birthday today, I heard you'll be going on an outside mission tomorrow?"
Tsunade's question was so casual that Nawaki, in the midst of his excitement, didn't notice her probing tone at all. Instead, he nodded enthusiastically and, without the slightest hesitation, told her everything.
"That's right, big sister. I accepted this mission yesterday. I'll be leaving tomorrow with Teacher Orochimaru."
As if to reassure his older sister, Nawaki even looked up and gave a sincere smile.
While Tsunade smiled, a trace of gloom appeared deep in her eyes.
So, was Orochimaru involved in this matter or not?
She didn't dare to think about it, but this was her own little brother, the future of the Senju clan.
With the sound of Nawaki's laughter echoing in her ears, Tsunade casually teased:
"Alright, I know that Uchiha kid from your class outranked you to become the top student. Otherwise, you would've already been a subordinate of mine."
Upon hearing this, Nawaki immediately smiled.
"Don't worry, big sister. Even if I was the top student, I still would have chosen Teacher Orochimaru. But I think Uchiha Yoru will definitely give you a headache."
When he mentioned Uchiha Yoru, Nawaki couldn't help but reveal a look of glee.
The brother and sister spent the day, Nawaki's twelfth birthday, with laughter.
Yesterday had been scorching hot, but the next day was overcast.
It was as if the weather was a reflection of what was about to happen.
At the Konoha gates, Orochimaru led Nawaki's squad as they quickly dashed out of the village to execute their mission.
After the group left, Tsunade, who had been hiding in the shadows, appeared from behind a large tree outside the village.
Tsunade, standing in the tree's shadow, had a serious expression as she looked at the scroll in her hand.
"A simple C-rank mission, with a group of wandering samurai lurking nearby. During wartime, we should be paying more attention to intelligence within the Land of Fire. Such a low-level mistake shouldn't happen!"
"Especially not so close to Konoha!"
Tsunade looked at the information in her hand. No matter how she analyzed it, she couldn't find anything unusual about this mission.
If someone hadn't told her, she would never have believed it.
It was too simple. The mission could be completed and returned to the village in a single day. What ninja would be reckless enough to sneak through multiple patrol lines in the Land of Fire and get this close?
This was wartime, after all!
But this concerned her brother. Tsunade's expression became solemn, and she vanished into the shadows. She chose not to follow Nawaki's squad.
After all, with Orochimaru there, it would be too easy for her to be discovered.
Instead, she chose to get to the destination first, since Orochimaru's team would be a burden, and she was sure she was faster than them.
...
Half a day later.
In a gloomy forest, several dark figures moved swiftly.
A scream rang out as one figure's eyes lost their color. A large snake had severed his neck.
The snakes then retreated into his sleeve, and Orochimaru let out a sinister chuckle.
The next moment, a black figure flashed past Orochimaru from behind. It was an excited Nawaki and his two teammates.
Orochimaru looked at them with a smile and muttered:
"Nawaki is already building up his fighting spirit. It seems it won't be long before he adapts to the battlefield."
As expected of a member of the Senju clan, Nawaki's chakra, both in quality and quantity, far surpassed that of other ninjas of the same rank. Once he adapted, he would definitely be an elite chunin-level fighter.
However, just as Orochimaru was smiling and feeling proud of his disciple, an explosion rang out. The blazing fire illuminated his pale face.
In that moment, Orochimaru's golden snake eyes widened in shock as he looked at the distance in disbelief.
"How is this possible!"
The two genin were scared senseless. It wasn't that they hadn't faced life and death before, but this time, the person who had died was different!
The blazing fire lit up the faces of the three.
In the distance, within the blaze, Tsunade's eyes were filled with fury!
"Why are there explosive tag traps here?! And so many of them!"
She had arrived more than an hour before Orochimaru and had observed from the shadows, finding nothing wrong with the wandering samurai.
But now, she was witnessing this with her own eyes!
The explosive tag trap had been used by the wandering samurai to lure Nawaki in.
So there was only one truth!
This trap had been set long ago!
Could there be such a huge coincidence in the world?
"Nawaki!"
A panicked shout came from his two teammates. But in the midst of the fire, Tsunade suppressed her anger and threw out a corpse she had prepared in advance.
At the same time, she threw the necklace she had given to Nawaki yesterday onto the ground.
She originally thought she wouldn't need it, but she never expected to!
Whoosh! Whoosh!
In the light of the fire, Tsunade, carrying Nawaki, quickly vanished, leaving nothing but the blazing inferno behind her.
At this time, the three Sannin had not yet made their names!
Right now, Tsunade was the strongest in terms of power, followed by Orochimaru, with Jiraiya in last place.
After all, ninjas require resources. Orochimaru had not yet begun his research into forbidden jutsu and had not yet achieved his near-immortal constitution. (Orochimaru was nearly killed by explosive tags when he defected).
Jiraiya had not yet learned Sage Mode.
As a princess of the Senju clan, the resources Tsunade had were something an average person couldn't even imagine.