The next day.
It started raining suddenly in the early morning, and Naruto slept in until noon. He didn't wake up until the sun was high in the sky. After realizing he had to meet Tsunade in the afternoon to learn Summoning technique, he decided to get up and wash up.
After having a quick bite at noon, he leisurely strolled to the Hokage Tower.
Estimating the time was about right, he made his way up to the fifth floor as usual. He didn't bother knocking and directly pushed open the door to the Hokage's Office.
Tsunade had just lifted her hand to take a sip of sake when the corner of her eyes caught Naruto's entrance. The sake didn't even make it past her lips. Instead, it trickled down her throat, past her mountainous bosom, and into the valley below.
Naruto blinked, his eyes unable to pull away. To mask his awkwardness, he couldn't help but clear his throat.
"Tsunade-sama, it seems you're enjoying yourself. Since Shizune-san is not around, you're already starting to…"
"What?" Tsunade hurriedly stashed the sake cup into the drawer, along with the jade porcelain bottle, and fanned the air around her, "Those two, Kotetsu and Izumo, are just too much! Coming in to deliver documents while reeking of alcohol."
"Now that they have left, the smell of alcohol is still lingering."
Naruto was really impressed by Tsunade, You're the Godaime Hokage, yet your ability to lie so smoothly was almost instinctual, as if it were perfectly natural, with no sense of shame.'
"What did you come here for?" Tsunade suddenly asked.
"." Naruto looked up at the ceiling, "Shizune-san asked me to keep an eye on your work, Tsunade-sama, and also confiscate your tools of crime."
"What tools of crime? I have no idea what you're talking about." Tsunade tried to say calmly, yet her voice tinged with guilt.
"The bottle and cup in the drawer. Don't bother hiding it, just hand it over." Naruto said with a straight face, making it sound like Shizune had actually instructed him, "Hurry up, or I'll go find Shizune-san."
It just so happened that Naruto and Shizune were indeed quite close with each other, so he deliberately mimicked Shizune's tone and said, 'Hand it over', adding to Tsunade's guilt. She didn't doubt him and reluctantly took out the bottle and cup.
"I'll keep these safe for you, Tsunade-sama." Naruto took the bottle and cup and stuffed them into his pocket.
"Such a killjoy." Tsunade propped her head up with one hand, glaring at Naruto with a hint of resentment, while Naruto kept a straight face.
"Tsunade-sama, I want to learn Summoning Technique!" Naruto said.
"Here!" Tsunade, clearly irritated, tossed a scroll over and turned her chair around, "The hand seals are all in there. Figure it out yourself."
"Huh? Tsunade-sama, you're not going to teach me?" Naruto asked, a bit confused.
"Not in the mood!" Tsunade waved her hand dismissively, "Either train on your own, or give me back the sake. Your choice."
"This…" Naruto took the scroll, looked at the bottle, then at Tsunade.
"I'll train on my own then."
Tsunade: "…"
She hadn't expected Naruto to actually take the scroll and leave. Staring at the now empty office, Tsunade frowned slightly, 'It was still raining outside, where would that kid go to train?'
On the rooftop balcony of the Hokage Tower, Naruto stood under the dry shelter of the roof, avoiding the rain. He unrolled the scroll in his hands, a puzzled expression appearing on his face.
'It's just a few simple hand seals? But I can't really make sense of this!'
'Should I go back and ask?'
'Forget it! I could just figure it out myself. I can learn Summoning Technique at any time, but this is the first time I've seen Tsunade get beaten. It would be a shame if I gave in now!'
'Anyway, it's just a sequence of hand seals… it can't be that hard.'
'Is this the Boar seal? Dog – Bird – Monkey – Ram?'
"What are those two hand seals in the middle?" Naruto was a little confused, so he simply crouched down and laid the scroll on the ground, "I'll just imitate them. It shouldn't matter too much."
"At worst, the summoning will fail, right? It's just a failure, nothing more."
After fumbling through a few hand seals, Naruto finally started getting the hang of it. The last step was to inject Chakra and complete the Ninjutsu.
"Boar – Dog – Bird – Monkey – Ram!" Naruto's fingers moved swiftly, like weaving strings.
He mixed in a few unfamiliar hand seals in between and completed the sequence in one fluid motion. Suddenly, his hands felt unusually heavy, like they were weighed down by a balance scale, teetering on the brink of losing control.
Unable to hold back, Naruto shouted loudly!
"What kind of monster are you? Reveal your true form!"
Side Story: A Rainy Day
Heavy rain poured outside.
The sound of rain completely soaked the air in the living room, making everything feel damp.
"Hey, Ino, can I have a bite of the grilled meat on your plate?" Naruto suddenly looked up and asked.
"No way!" Ino, sitting at the dining table, refused without hesitation, muttering, "Don't you have some on your plate?"
"What's the big deal?" he said. "It's a rainy day!"
"What does the heavy rain have to do with you wanting to eat what's on my plate?" Ino sighed, thinking that she shouldn't have come here to hide from the rain.
It was as if the God knew she was passing by, as the rain started pouring the moment she arrived.
"Of course it matters." Naruto lifted his head and boldly stared at Ino's fair neck. "In this kind of weather, there will definitely be lovers confessing their love."
"You... What nonsense are you talking about!" Ino's shoulders tensed, her face flushed for a moment, and her eyes darted nervously.
"You know, that kind of scene… missing someone makes you suddenly tender, and the other half rushes over in the pouring rain, standing there, staring at them."
He casually twirled his chopsticks, speaking with a nonchalant manner.
"And then they confess in the middle of the downpour, soaking wet, and without waiting for a response, they just turn and leave."
"Ew, that's so cliché." Ino said with disgust.
"Isn't it romantic? It's idealism… capturing the purest and most beautiful part of love." Naruto tilted his head and said, "It turns out that girls are completely indifferent to this kind of thing, huh?"
"Of course not! It's exactly like you said… so silly." Ino said.
"If it were me, I'd still do it, even though you're right, it is kind of silly." Naruto said after pondering for a moment, "But there's definitely something about it that can capture the other person's heart."
"Sure, but if you can't feel the other person's feelings, it would still seem kind of baffling, right?" Ino said, but the knuckles of her hand gripping the chopsticks turned slightly white.
"Maybe, but that youthful purity is still pretty moving." Naruto said, "If it hadn't rained, maybe there wouldn't have been a confession."
"The rain will stop soon, and that impulse might disappear with it."
"That kind of thing… Um..."
"Ino."
"Ah!" She was startled, like a frightened rabbit.
"Can I have a bite of the grilled meat on your plate?" Naruto asked again.
"Do whatever you want!" Ino suddenly stood up, and her chopsticks clattered to the floor. She wanted to pick it up but suddenly felt something was wrong, and said through gritted teeth, "I don't care anymore!"
With that said, Ino stormed into the bathroom with her head down.
"Hmm?" Naruto looked confused.
In the bathroom, Ino slumped on the floor, breathing heavily, with the tips of her ears and face completely red.
"Seriously, what kind of weird stuff is he saying?"
"Talking about confessions… just because it's raining?"
"Actually... a rainy day like this…"