Hanekawa watched her weaving gait and stepped forward, extending his hand. Tsunade tilted her head, studying him with an unfocused, silly smile.
"Stop falling," he reminded.
She understood and draped her arm across his shoulders—a heavy, warm weight that made him grunt slightly. When she didn't grab his hand, he wrapped his arm around her waist instead to steady her.
"You... you did... really well today!" Tsunade smiled and ruffled his hair.
"Yes."
"You have such a cute face, but you're so... so uncute!" She poked his side with one finger, giggling at her own observation.
Hanekawa glanced at her hand and resisted the urge to bite it. Okay, drunk Tsunade is a menace.
"Really... can't you change the word?" Tsunade leaned heavily on his shoulder, her hot breath washing over his face.
"Go back and rest, Teacher."
Hanekawa's eyes shifted slightly. He could see the faint shine of oil on her lips and the way her eyes were struggling to stay open. How much sake did she drink?
"Oh." Tsunade's eyes closed as he guided her forward.
The moment he lowered her onto the bed, she collapsed like a puppet with cut strings.
Bang.
Hanekawa shook his head helplessly and removed her shoes. "I'll come back tomorrow," he said to the unconscious woman, then closed the door and left.
---
The Yuhi residence was still lit when he arrived. Though it was late, the household hadn't retired for the night yet. Hanekawa raised his hand and knocked—he had a key, but after being gone nearly two weeks, he felt it was better to announce himself.
"Who's knocking so late?" Yuhi Shinku's voice came from inside, tinged with confusion.
"Maybe it's Hanekawa!" Kurenai's excited voice followed immediately.
The door swung open to reveal the young girl, her ruby eyes widening in surprise. For a moment she froze, then she launched herself at him with a delighted cry.
Hanekawa caught her easily, smiling as he reached up to ruffle her long black hair. It was soft and carried a faint floral scent—completely different from Tsunade's sake-soaked presence.
"Cough cough!"
Yuhi Shinku's violent coughing fit interrupted the moment. His face had turned distinctly dark.
"Uncle Shinku, do you have a cold?" Hanekawa blinked innocently. "I know a little medical ninjutsu. I could help."
"Brat!" Shinku glared at him.
"Dad, why are you scolding him?" Kurenai asked indignantly, still clinging to Hanekawa's arm.
Shinku opened his mouth, closed it, and said nothing. This is hopeless.
"Hanekawa, why are you back so late?" Kurenai's eyes curved into crescents as she smiled up at him.
"I was just sending Teacher home," he explained.
"Come inside, it's too windy at the door," Shinku sighed, accepting his fate as a third wheel in his own home.
Hanekawa patted Kurenai's back, signaling her to let go. Only then did she realize what she was doing, and her face flushed crimson. She quickly stepped back, creating distance between them.
Cute, Hanekawa thought, suppressing a smile as he closed the door.
In the living room, Shinku settled into his chair across from them. "What was the mission this time? Why did it take so long?"
"I can't discuss the details," Hanekawa said carefully. "Village rules."
Shinku's eyes widened. "A-rank?"
"S-rank," Hanekawa corrected.
"What?" Shinku's jaw dropped. As a jonin, he hadn't completed many S-rank missions himself. The fact that a ten-year-old had just finished one was staggering. "Are you serious?"
"Hanekawa must be telling the truth!" Kurenai declared like a devoted fan.
"My teacher and Uncle Sakumo were leading the mission," Hanekawa explained. "I was probably equivalent to A-rank work."
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After using the dark medical ninjutsu, his combat capability had definitely reached jonin-level, though his limited jutsu repertoire kept him from being truly elite.
"Even A-rank is impressive for your age," Shinku admitted, shaking his head in wonder. "Each generation really does surpass the last."
He trailed off, studying the easy intimacy between Hanekawa and his daughter. There was something both reassuring and unsettling about it. Well, he thought with a resigned sigh, at least our family came out ahead.
"Go to bed early. You have classes tomorrow," Shinku said, changing the subject.
"Right." Hanekawa nodded. Two hours of drunk Tsunade had exhausted him more than any mission.
After a shower, he exchanged a meaningful look with Kurenai before retreating to his room.
---
"Hanekawa!"
Kurenai's voice woke him the next morning. He rubbed his eyes, dressed quickly, and opened the door to find her in white athletic wear, her black hair tied back in a ponytail. She practically vibrated with energy.
"Go for a run!"
"Yeah." He nodded and stepped out.
They'd started this routine to escape Might Guy's insistence on green tights. It had worked—Guy had welcomed Kurenai's participation but accepted their refusal to wear the ridiculous outfit.
"Hanekawa!" Guy's enthusiastic voice greeted them as they approached. "You're back! Let's have a youth showdown to celebrate!"
"I have class today," Hanekawa said quickly. "Can't do strenuous exercise."
"Ah, I understand." Guy looked disappointed but accepted it.
Thank god, Hanekawa thought. I don't have the energy to deal with his enthusiasm right now.
After three laps around the village and breakfast, they headed to the academy. The moment Hanekawa walked into the classroom, he was mobbed.
"Hanekawa!"
"Where have you been?"
"Tell us about your mission!"
If you didn't know better, you'd think a celebrity had arrived.
"Punk," Asuma muttered, shaking his head with obvious envy.
Kakashi glanced up, then returned to his book. He'd been the center of attention once, before Hanekawa arrived. He was grateful for the reprieve.
Rin's eyes lit up. "Hanekawa! I have so many questions!"
Obito's jaw clenched as he watched her expression. His hands curled into fists.
"Haven't seen you in a while," Hanekawa said, finally breaking free of the crowd.
"That man asked me to ask you something," Asuma said suddenly, remembering. "He wants to know when you're planning to graduate."
Kakashi's head snapped up immediately.
"The Hokage?" Hanekawa raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah. He said to ask when you're graduating."
Hanekawa considered it. Minato was already fighting the AB combination from the Hidden Cloud—his survival was uncertain. Next year would be fifth grade. Starting a year early wasn't unreasonable.
"Next year," he decided.
"Then I'm graduating next year too!" Asuma declared immediately. "We'll be on the same team and become the next generation of Konoha's Legendary Sannin!"
Did he just say 'Kobe and I scored 82 points together'? Hanekawa's mouth twitched.
"Impossible!" Kurenai stepped forward, grabbing his hand. "His teammate has to be me!"
"Maybe it's me!" Guy joined in enthusiastically.
Rin bit her lip, clearly wanting to say something but holding back.
"I'll protect you, Rin!" Obito said quickly, desperate to prevent her from speaking. "We'll be teammates!"
Rin looked at his hopeful expression and couldn't refuse directly. "The division depends on the arrangement," she said carefully.
"I believe in our bond!" Obito said confidently.
"Stop," Hanekawa interrupted. "It's too early to talk about team assignments. Besides, we don't decide these things ourselves."
That's a lie, he thought. But they don't need to know that.
Kurenai started to protest, but one look from Hanekawa silenced her. She understood—he'd promised she'd be his teammate, so his words were just misdirection.
After chatting a bit longer, Hanekawa returned to his seat and fell into thought. Since Tsunade was his teacher, he could choose his teammates. Kurenai was confirmed. For the third member...
Kakashi, Guy, and Asuma were all powerful. Rin and Obito had potential but were weaker. Obito was out—not only were their relations average, but if Uchiha Madara targeted him, he'd become cannon fodder for eye awakening.
What's my role? he wondered. A standard three-person team had a medical ninja and two combat specialists. He could be either. Fighting was more fun, so combat it was.
That meant choosing Rin. If she teamed with Obito like in the original timeline, her survival rate was about 1%. Changing teams might save her life.
The school bell rang. Eiichiro entered and began his lecture. Hanekawa set aside his thoughts and opened his textbook.
---
School ended in the afternoon. "Let's train!" Asuma said excitedly.
An unexpected figure appeared in the doorway—Hatake Sakumo.
Kakashi looked up, confused. "Father? What are you doing here?"
"I'm not looking for you. I need to speak with Hanekawa."
After the others left, Sakumo produced two passbooks. "Your reward from the Land of Demons mission. Two million ryō."
"Thank you," Hanekawa said, surprised by the amount.
"The other million belongs to your teacher. She wasn't home, so I'm giving it to you to deliver."
"I understand. Thank you, Uncle Sakumo."
After Sakumo left, Hanekawa didn't immediately join the others. Instead, he headed to the largest casino in the village.
He found Tsunade immediately, staring intently at the gambling table.
"Perfect timing!" She grabbed his arm and pulled him close. "Watch this—I can feel my luck turning!"
She absolutely cannot, Hanekawa thought.
"I need to ask you something," he said.
"Later. The game's not over."
"Help me get the Rasengan."
Tsunade blinked. "Minato's ninjutsu? The one Kushina mentioned?"
"Yeah. It's a no-seal jutsu. I think it'd be useful."
"Done." She agreed without hesitation. "Go train. We'll handle it later."
As Hanekawa turned to leave, Tsunade reached out to grab him, but he was already gone.
She pouted, turning back to her cards. That brat.
---
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