Evening, kitchen.
Tsunade leaned against the refrigerator door, looking at Minato's back as he chopped vegetables, and suddenly said, "You brat, you did it on purpose, right?"
"Why does Sensei say that?"
Seeming to have anticipated Tsunade's reaction, Minato didn't pause his movements at all. He casually swept the chopped vegetables onto a plate before turning to look at Tsunade.
Seeing Minato's reaction, Tsunade confirmed her suspicion even more and couldn't help but sigh.
"Three people with over twenty wounds, none of which were fatal. If it weren't for the loss of vitality, it could even be judged as minor injuries."
"Why can't it be the result of the Wood Clone trying its best to save them?"
"Because you are the most outstanding genius I have ever seen. Getting your ankle grabbed and movement restricted is something that cannot happen to you, even if it's just a Wood Clone."
Tsunade's tone was complicated. Minato's calm attitude made her suddenly realize that her understanding of this disciple seemed somewhat insufficient.
Getting along for more than two months, the impression Minato gave her had always been kind and gentle, yet principled and sharp.
Today's incident really exceeded her expectations.
"Asking me to take you out for training today was also to find a suitable excuse for this matter, right? Why did you do this?"
Tsunade didn't get angry immediately, but looked at Minato with incomprehension. "You could have just beaten them up directly. Why did you have to be so heavy-handed?"
"Just beating them up wouldn't relieve my anger. Seeing them lying in the ward made me physically and mentally happy."
Minato chuckled lightly. "Besides, I gave them a chance. From beginning to end, I didn't proactively cause trouble. Instead, they provoked me again and again. People always have to pay the price for their actions, don't they?"
"To be honest, if I wasn't Sensei's disciple, the consequences of this matter might have been more serious. Or rather... my original purpose was to cause more serious consequences. It was only because of my status as Sensei's disciple that I showed mercy."
Strike the snake but don't kill it, and you'll suffer later.
He didn't care if they were children. As a transmigrator, not eradicating the roots was already a dereliction of duty.
"You..."
Tsunade looked incredulous. She thought Minato would just make up an excuse.
Even if the excuse was far-fetched, she would find a reason to convince herself. She didn't expect Minato to be so honest!
She frowned slightly, not because she felt there was anything wrong with Minato fighting back against bullies, but because she was worried that her disciple would be overwhelmed by extremism and violence.
"Sensei, don't tell me that everyone in the village is family and companion. I don't care who they are or what reason they have. Anyone who attacks me is my enemy."
Seeming to see Tsunade's concerns, Minato sighed almost imperceptibly.
"Helping others is my moral quality, but actually, even if Konoha is blown to the sky, I won't care. The only one I care about is you, Sensei!"
"!!!"
Hearing this, Tsunade, who was originally full of tangled thoughts, suddenly felt her heart beat violently.
But before she could react, Minato's voice continued.
"Nawaki, and Kushina!"
"..."
Tsunade suddenly felt her mood drop like a roller coaster.
An inexplicable annoyance surged in her heart, making her pinch Minato's cheek uncontrollably. "You and Kushina haven't spent much time together, right? How did she become someone you care about?"
"Eh? Aren't we family now?"
Minato slurred, "When I first came, Sensei and Nawaki were also very good to me, right?"
"Then tell me!"
Tsunade puffed out her cheeks. "Who do you care about more, me or Kushina?"
"..."
What a death question!
Minato didn't hesitate. "Of course it's Sensei!"
From the perspective of intimacy, it was indeed so. Although he had a fondness for Kushina due to the original couple pairing, he had spent more time with Tsunade.
Moreover, he was twenty years old in his previous life, so he naturally preferred an older sister type like Tsunade.
Not to mention that Kushina was only five years old. Even with the couple bonus, she was just a child in his eyes.
"Hmph, that's more like it~"
Getting a satisfactory answer, Tsunade released her hand pinching Minato's cheek and put her hands on her hips proudly, but the upward curve of her mouth couldn't be suppressed no matter what.
"I didn't see it before; you kid are actually black-bellied!"
"Does Sensei not like it?"
Minato tilted his head slightly, looking very innocent.
Feeling the contrast in him, Tsunade felt as if something had gently poked her heart, giving her an indescribable sense of excitement.
"I don't mind. If you had Nawaki's simple personality, I would be more worried. But your methods were still too extreme. Just as you care about Sensei, Sensei also cares about you, that's why I worry about you going down an extreme path."
Rubbing Minato's head of yellow hair, Tsunade's tone was gentle.
Minato nodded. Tsunade still had her hand on his skull. No matter what, agree first, and talk about later things later.
"I feel like you are being perfunctory."
Tsunade leaned down, looking straight into Minato's eyes. "Remember, Sensei cares about you too!"
She emphasized caring, not anything else.
Staring at that bright and moving face, Minato suddenly felt a different emotion in his heart.
Only then did he realize that his feelings for Tsunade were not simple.
Coincidentally, with Tsunade's leaning movement, her collar quietly revealed a patch of snow-white scenery.
Catching a glimpse of that whiteness out of the corner of his eye, Minato turned his head away somewhat unnaturally.
Noticing Minato's movement, Tsunade also realized something. Looking down and sweeping a glance, a playful smile flashed in her eyes.
"Little pervert..."
Tsunade turned Minato's face, forcing him to look at her, then gently kissed Minato on the forehead.
In a short moment, a touch and separate, but it felt like a long time had passed.
"Alright, hurry up and cook, I'm hungry."
Tsunade stood up, waved her hand, turned and left, leaving Minato standing dumbfounded on the spot.
Back in the room, Tsunade couldn't wait to rummage out a scroll.
"Strength of a Hundred Seal" (Yin Seal)
This was a sealing jutsu inherited by the Uzumaki clan, which she obtained from her grandmother Mito Uzumaki.
The special feature of this jutsu is that it breaks the limitation that chakra cannot be preserved after refinement, allowing the user to release stored chakra at critical moments.
And it can also keep the body in peak condition by regulating chakra.
Tsunade originally intended to use this as a basis to develop a jutsu that would allow medical ninjas to fight, and now she has achieved certain results, confirming the feasibility of development.
But now, she suddenly felt that developing it slowly was too time-consuming.
"Let's master the Yin Seal first. After all, practice brings true knowledge, and it adds another means in combat..."
In the room, Tsunade muttered to herself, as if hypnotizing herself, her eyes quickly scanning the scroll.
She had read the content on this scroll countless times and could recite it backwards.
However, to be safe, she read it carefully again.
One year!
With her Senju clan chakra, she could master the Yin Seal in at most one year!