Kakashi seemed interested too; he dragged a stool over, ready to listen.
Natsuki couldn't help laughing and crying. "When I was chasing after Tenten I was only six. What 'experience' could I have? Sasuke, you don't need to pick my brain. With that face, if you decide to pursue a girl, it's basically a guaranteed success. It just depends on whether you actually like someone."
Sasuke wavered at that. He'd never really thought about it, so there wasn't any girl he particularly liked.
And now they suddenly wanted him to find a partner, get married, have kids—way too sudden.
But it was for the revival of the clan. He had to do it!
Seeing his tangled expression, Natsuki suddenly thought of something. He fished out an old photo from a corner of the desk and asked, incredulous, "Sasuke, don't tell me you're into Naruto—because he stole your first kiss!"
Crack! Kakashi's chair snapped and he crashed to the floor. "Two-four-seven."
Just then Tsunade and Jiraiya pushed the door open. The office froze in a huge wave of awkward.
Sasuke roared despite himself, "No way! Don't talk nonsense!"
He yanked the photo over, ready to rip it—only for Tsunade to snatch it first. She and Jiraiya leaned in, then both widened their eyes.
"Oh! Spicy!"
"Tsk, tsk. Didn't expect the youngsters to be this wild!"
Sasuke reclaimed the picture and tore it to shreds in a flash.
He flared Susanoo (skeletal frame) and growled, "We bumped into each other, that's all. Just normal physical contact. It's not what you're thinking. If anyone spreads this outside, I won't hold back—got it?"
Everyone nodded seriously… while trying not to laugh.
Heh. Quite the eventful morning.
Jiraiya even thought to himself: maybe his novels could open a new lane—boy x boy? Bet there'd be girls who'd like that.
Kakashi quickly summarized the situation. Tsunade and Jiraiya both nodded in sudden understanding.
Tsunade patted Sasuke's shoulder. "Natsuki's right. To revive the clan, you have to increase the headcount first. Work hard. As Hokage, I won't skimp on the gift money."
"…"
Jiraiya pulled out an Icha Icha Paradise and shoved it into Sasuke's hands. "Here. You'll find it enlightening."
Sasuke glanced at the Icha Icha cover and instinctively shut his eyes.
He remembered Kakashi loved reading this stuff. Natsuki called it "Liu Bei"—Sasuke had no idea why the 'Imperial Uncle' was called Liu Bei, but it had to be some kind of birds-and-bees primer. If he read it, maybe he'd 'get' men and women.
He decided: Take it home first. If it helps, I'll do what Kakashi does and buy the whole set. It's not like it costs much.
Soon, Tsunade stamped approval on the Konoha Police Force roster. Sasuke took the paperwork and left.
He also tucked away Icha Icha in his clothes like it was the clan-revival treasure.
"Right—Jiraiya-sama," Natsuki said, remembering the main business. "Have you contacted the Great Toad Sage? Will he agree to hide a few Jinchūriki for a while?"
Tsunade and Kakashi both looked over—clearly concerned too.
Jiraiya hesitated. "The Great Toad Sage naps a lot. I could only reach Fukasaku and Shima. The two of them said it should be okay. So I plan to bring the people over first, and also show the Great Toad Sage the truth about the ninja world."
Oh? Then we're good.
Many had long suspected that the Three Great Holy Lands and the ninja world didn't exist in the same space-time.
To reach Myōbokuzan (Mount Myōboku), you sign a summoning contract, then have the toads perform Gyaku Kuchiyose (Reverse Summoning). Maybe there are other routes, but they're clearly hard to find.
If the Jinchūriki hide in Mount Myōboku, not just Nagato and Obito—even Madara—won't be able to find them.
Wouldn't the Tsuki no Me Keikaku (Eye of the Moon Plan) just collapse?
Still, just in case, the Jinchūriki needed to be stronger. So once they got there, they should intensify training. If each one was powerful enough, they'd be hard to capture—like Sasuke or Killer B. (Well, Bee can be countered by Samehada, but Samehada is currently sealed inside Tenten's gourd.)
And if you wanted a Jinchūriki to grow stronger quickly, the best solution was to become a perfect Jinchūriki—to perfectly wield a Bijū's (Tailed Beast's) power.
Like Naruto—he used just half the Kyūbi (Nine-Tails) and still defeated Pain.
So Natsuki suggested, "Jiraiya-sama, why not teach them to become perfect Jinchūriki?"
"Perfect Jinchūriki, huh?" Jiraiya scratched his head. "How do you even teach that? I don't know it. Why don't you do it?"
Arms folded, Natsuki thought it over. "It's basically about mutual understanding with the Bijū. Fū and Chōmei (Seven-Tails) did great… The prerequisite for understanding is to know a Bijū's name. They care about that—because those names were given by the Sage of Six Paths. If you call them by name, it should soften their attitude."
Jiraiya had an aha moment. "So that's it? True, names matter to people; they should matter to Bijū too!"
Tsunade offered, "Natsuki, you should teach them. Jiraiya's a baka—he'll botch it. You hate sitting in the office anyway. This job's yours."
Jiraiya and Kakashi nodded instantly. "Yes! Let Natsuki do it!"
"…Me?" Natsuki weighed the feasibility.
It might actually work. If names didn't do it, he could chat with the Bijū—about the Ten-Tails. They all wanted to live; they'd be reasonable.
He nodded. "I'll try. But since Jiraiya-sama and Kakashi-senpai agreed so fast, all the files on my desk are yours."
He split the two thick stacks of documents and dropped one each on Jiraiya and Kakashi's desks—then vanished in a flicker.
"Eh? Natsuki, you can't—"
Jiraiya and Kakashi reached out with 'Er Kang hands,' but Natsuki was gone. They could only accept their fate.
Kakashi remembered something. "Tsunade-sama, any replies from the other villages about the Five Kage Summit?"
Tsunade stayed calm. "No need to rush, Kakashi. A Five Kage Summit is big. Each village will discuss before replying. Use this time to prepare. Even if the other villages won't unite—if it's only us—we still have to stop the cataclysm."
Kakashi and Jiraiya both nodded solemnly, but their faces turned heavy.
If it's only Konoha… that'll be rough.
Meanwhile, Natsuki had already flashed to Sasuke's side—only to find Sasuke standing outside Shueisha, eyes locked on a shelf display of the Icha Icha series.
This brat… in just this short time, did he already get hooked on "Liu Bei"?
(End of Chapter)
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