"Shizune, this is the fifth time you've sneaked a look at me."
"If you do it again, I'll use the teaching stick on you."
Shishou, with his face altered to resemble Tsunade's, sternly addressed Shizune, who was studying at the desk. Using his Phosphorus Beetles, he had not only transformed his face to look like Tsunade's but had also made some adjustments to make it appear more masculine.
With a blonde ponytail wig, Shishou now looked like a gender-swapped version of Tsunade, which captivated Shizune, whose cheeks remained flushed.
"I'm sorry," Shizune stammered, her face bright red. She then lowered her head and continued to study the Ryūchi Cave's Sage Mode scroll that Shishou had given her.
However, it only took a few minutes before Shizune couldn't resist stealing another glance at Shishou.
"Show me your hand," Shishou commanded sternly.
Shizune looked up at him timidly before hesitantly extending her right hand.
"Ah!" Shishou struck her hand with the teaching stick, causing Shizune to yelp and quickly withdraw her hand.
"Will you do it again?" Shishou asked, raising an eyebrow as Shizune hid her right hand behind her back.
"No, I won't," Shizune whispered, sneaking another glance at him.
"Good, let's move on to the next part of the lesson," Shishou said, starting to explain the basics of Ryūchi Cave's Sage Mode training. Although he didn't intend for Shizune to learn Ryūchi Cave's Sage Mode, he had to use its scroll to explain the basic points and precautions of Sage Mode, given her lack of understanding.
However, Shizune stared blankly at Shishou's gender-swapped Tsunade face, lost in thought.
Seeing this, Shishou sighed. Although he had initially planned to tease Shizune, her reaction was more exaggerated than expected.
Shizune, it seems you indeed have some indescribable feelings for Tsunade, Shishou thought to himself.
Leaning closer to Shizune's ear, he whispered, "Shizune, if you can learn Sage Mode within six months..."
"Tsunade-nii-san will grant any wish you have."
Shishou blew gently into Shizune's ear after speaking, causing her cheeks to turn an even deeper shade of red.
He's not Tsunade-sama... He's not Tsunade-sama... Shizune repeated to herself, feeling dizzy as she stood up shakily.
"Shishou-sama... I... I feel a bit dizzy... I need to rest," Shizune murmured before stumbling towards the door.
As soon as she stepped outside, she bumped into the real Tsunade, who had just returned from Shikkotsu Forest after releasing the reverse summoning technique.
This is the real Tsunade-sama... Shizune thought as she felt the softness of Tsunade's chest, looking up at her mentor before fainting from the overwhelming emotions.
Shishou chuckled at Shizune's reaction, amused by the situation.
"You really have a knack for impersonating me and teasing Shizune," Tsunade said, her forehead veins bulging with anger.
Shishou, sensing her rage, quickly reverted to his normal appearance and smiled sheepishly. "How was your training at Shikkotsu Forest?" he asked, trying to change the subject.
"I'll deal with you later," Tsunade snapped, not answering his question. She carried the unconscious Shizune to her room and laid her on the bed. However, Shizune clung tightly to Tsunade's clothes, refusing to let go.
After much effort, Tsunade finally freed herself from Shizune's grip and glared at Shishou, who was watching the scene with amusement.
"This is all your fault," Tsunade growled. "Shizune is becoming more and more clingy."
"Calm down," Shishou said, raising his hands in surrender. "How did your training go at Shikkotsu Forest?"
"Let's talk in the living room," Tsunade said, leading the way.
In the living room, Tsunade got straight to the point. "Was that battle outside the Sand Village your doing?"
"Yes," Shishou admitted. "I was fighting the leader of the Akatsuki organization. When the Sand Village forces arrived, we retreated."
"Was it your idea to spread the rumor that it was an internal conflict within Akatsuki?" Tsunade asked, referring to the information that Kirigakure's Mizukage, Mei Terumi, had disseminated.
"Sort of," Shishou replied. "Don't tell anyone about this."
Tsunade nodded, handing him a scroll. "Seeing how much you value Sage Mode, I decided to try learning it as well. Here's the training scroll from Shikkotsu Forest."
Shishou was surprised. He hadn't expected Tsunade to bring him a training scroll.
"Don't get the wrong idea," Tsunade said, turning away. "I'm just repaying you for helping me increase my chakra reserves."
Shishou watched her leave with a smile, then opened the scroll to study it. Mastering Sage Mode, like Hashirama Senju, and opening his own Sage Mode was still a ways off, but every bit of progress helped.
Half an hour later, Tsunade, having finished her bath, saw Shishou still engrossed in the scroll. She pursed her lips and headed to the training room to resume her long-neglected training.
If Shishou, who was already so powerful, was still working hard, she had no excuse to slack off.
Three days later, at dawn, Shishou, now transformed into a burly man with a scruffy beard, returned to his secret lab.
He retrieved Obito Uchiha's severed leg from a storage scroll and extracted a White Zetsu from it, using his Mangekyō Sharingan to control it.
"Only one left..." Shishou murmured, feeling a pang of regret as he looked at the leg. Obito's severed leg had been incredibly useful to him.
Placing the leg back in the storage space, Shishou had the controlled White Zetsu lead him to Obito's secret base. The White Zetsu, planted by Black Zetsu to monitor Obito, knew the exact location.
Moments later, Shishou's figure disappeared and reappeared inside a massive cavern.