Looking at the floor covered with bright red flowers, Shinji, who was sitting in a chair with his hand on his cheek, felt deeply saddened that this world didn't have Christmas.
It was clearly December 25th, and he had prepared so many red flowers, yet he could only celebrate alone.
"Seriously, I don't feel like celebrating at all."
Shinji sighed lightly, then slowly stood up, carefully finding gaps between the flowers to place his feet, and avoiding the flowers on the floor, he walked over to the dozen or so "flower planters."
…
Tsunade, who had been traveling along the coast all night, realized she had been going in the wrong direction just as she was about to step into the Land of Fire. There were no traces of human activity from the past few days.
Thinking it over, she felt it was beneath her to be competing with a child. She turned around and boarded a passenger ship heading to the Land of Hot Water.
Competing with a child was unnecessary, but she couldn't just waste her 500 ryo!
Losing was fine; after all, Konoha's Sannin Tsunade was known throughout the ninja world for being someone who accepted her losses with grace. But in this situation…
She couldn't just let it go!
"How much to the Land of Hot Water?" she asked the boatman.
"One thousand ryo per person."
"One thousand ryo?"
Frowning, Tsunade casually tossed two 500-ryo coins, mentally adding this cost to Shinji's tab, determined to get it all back with interest!
The boat didn't travel fast, stopping at the Land of Waves for a half-day rest and resupply. By the time they reached the border of the Land of Hot Water, it was already the evening of the next day.
During the journey, Tsunade had lost another 30,000 ryo playing dice with the boat's passengers. She grumbled about her bad luck, blaming it on a certain annoying kid she'd only met twice, as she disembarked.
The Land of Hot Water, though it had a ninja village, was reportedly in decline, so Tsunade wasn't too worried about ninja attacks.
After walking a bit, she spotted a solitary hot spring inn near the border. Inns in such places generally had two purposes.
One was to attract guests, the other was to rob them.
The former was a legitimate inn hoping to draw in newcomers, while the latter was a black inn aiming to kill and loot. Such things were common in the ninja world.
But today, this inn seemed off.
If it were the type to attract or rob guests, someone should have come out to greet her eagerly. But it was eerily quiet…
Before she got closer, Tsunade smelled the thick scent of blood seeping from the inn's tightly closed doors. She stopped immediately, judging from the strong scent that there were many dead.
I can't go in! I can't go in! I absolutely can't go in!
A voice in her head warned her, and countless images flashed through her mind—her brother blown to bits, her boyfriend's organs missing…
Feeling her body start to tremble, Tsunade quickly shook her head, dispelling the images. She turned around to leave.
If she went in, she would see a scene of hell with no survivors.
The chaotic footprints at the entrance proved the blue-haired kid had been dragged in the night before, but no footprints leading out and the smell of blood confirmed it.
"Unlucky kid…"
Tsunade sighed, not feeling much pity for such a young life. In this world, such things were common; every day, many lives were taken.
As she walked toward a nearby fishing village to gamble and soak in a hot spring, she saw a somewhat familiar figure…
…
In the hot spring inn, Tsunade soaked in the women's bath, deep in thought.
She had clearly smelled the blood from the inn, and there were only footprints going in, none coming out. How did that kid survive? And where did the original inhabitants go?
The more she thought about it, the more mysterious the clean-shaven, neatly groomed boy seemed. She couldn't sense his chakra, but it was likely he had killed and dealt with the original inhabitants.
Even though the bloodstains and signs of struggle had been cleaned up, her instincts told her that boy was far from weak.
What Tsunade didn't know was that a gentleman was in the inn's lobby, pondering whether he should offer the inn's only guest a back rub and other considerate services.
"Maybe I shouldn't, since she didn't pay. I don't do free services."
Shinji shook his head, dismissing the fleeting thought of climbing mountains, and picked up the large steamed buns and stir-fry he had brought back from the nearest fishing village, eating heartily.
This was indeed a black inn, something Shinji had figured out upon seeing the two women. For someone who had only seen such inns in TV dramas and news, he had to experience it firsthand.
That night, after kindly closing the door to the inn, Shinji turned to express his feelings to the two women, only to see their expressions change as they mocked him, arms crossed.
Suddenly, a dozen burly men appeared behind him, arms crossed, mocking him with their expressions, as if to say—Not only did you not run, but you also closed the door. How naive can you be?
Feeling pity for the two women, Shinji noted their well-trained bodies and healthy sun-kissed skin…
Sighing deeply, Shinji finished his lunch—two large steamed buns, two side dishes, and a can of soda-like drink.
Indeed, the technology in this world was strange. There were vending machines, cans, air conditioners, fans, televisions, refrigerators, and utility poles from the Second Hokage's era!
Yet, hot air balloons were only being experimented with in the Boruto era, despite having airships. Shinji couldn't understand it.
Looking at the vending machine against the wall and the TV with an antenna at the front desk, Shinji was speechless.
This technology was beyond skewed.
Shaking his head to clear his mind, Shinji decided that since he had a base to rest in, it was time to go out and gather information.
At the same time, Tsunade, having soaked in the hot spring and donned the inn's women's yukata, walked into the lobby.
Seeing the towering Tsunade, Shinji marveled at her deep love for her brother and that man, as it was all written on her chest, bottomless!
"Do you want to die, kid?"
Noticing Shinji's gaze, Tsunade frowned and scolded him.
Though they hadn't spoken much, Tsunade felt this kid was worse than Jiraiya.
Jiraiya would only sneak peeks, but this kid openly stared, not hiding his desires at all.
"Alright! I've decided!" Suddenly, as if he had an idea, Shinji smiled and announced, "I won't kill you because…you're my type of woman."
Tsunade froze, then her aura exploded. The first half of the sentence proved he was an arrogant brat, and the second half was teasing her!
Damn it!
Crack—!
Looking at the cracking wooden floor beneath Tsunade's feet, her clenched fists, and her angry face and killing intent, Shinji sighed and said:
"Oh dear, what a scary woman~ Fixing these floors will cost a lot..."
"Kid! Do you want to die?"
"…Yes, of course!" Shinji thought for a moment and nodded seriously, then added with a touch of trouble, "But I might not be able to. Even I can't do such a thing..."
"Hmm?"
Hearing Shinji's last words, Tsunade frowned, gradually retracting her aura and thinking. From his behavior, he didn't seem to be lying. But what did he mean by 'even I can't do it'?
Immortal? Are there such monsters in the ninja world? Or was he bluffing?
As Tsunade pondered this, keeping a wary eye on Shinji, she suddenly realized he had vanished again, just like before!
…
In a simple yet prosperous fishing village on the coast of the Land of Hot Water, most villagers lived by fishing, and trade was good due to the coastal location.
Though the village seemed small, it had everything, covering all the shops typical in the Naruto world at this time.
As soon as Shinji entered this seemingly upscale…cough, intelligence house, he was warmly greeted by an elderly lady.
After hearing Shinji's strange request, the elderly lady—the proprietress—took it in stride, took his tip, and went to select a girl for the young customer.
A beautiful young lady well-versed in history, that was Shinji's request.
There were always customers who liked to chat with cultured girls and didn't mind spending money, calling it academic exchange and historical discussion. The proprietress had seen such people before.
To cater to such special customers, the proprietress had trained a few girls to read more books, earning over three times the usual pay. Both the proprietress and the girls were more than happy.
For them, they loved such gullible customers!