"Pfft~~~ Hahaha!" Tsunade bent over with laughter.
Kushina also joined in, laughing along.
Seeing the two laughing, Minato Namikaze couldn't help but join in as well.
"You... you all! Wah! This is bullying!"
Nawaki cried even more bitterly.
He didn't like the gift, and the worst part was that he couldn't just get rid of it. He knew Tsunade would make sure he completed it.
The thought of finishing all those test papers made Nawaki want to just end it all.
"Ahem!" Takashi finally stopped laughing when he saw how distraught Nawaki was. Reaching into his bag, he pulled out a brand-new ninja tools pouch. "Alright, stop crying. Your real gift is the same as Minato's. The test papers were just a joke."
Takashi wasn't actually a devil and hadn't meant to torment Nawaki on purpose. The test papers were just meant as a harmless prank—though their devastating impact had been undeniable.
Well, this was enough teasing for now.
Seeing the ninja tool pouch, Nawaki's tear-streaked face lit up with a grin. He quickly tossed aside the papers, grabbed the ninja tool pouch, and hugged it to his chest, not even caring about the tears and snot on his face. He looked up at the blond boy proudly.
I have one too!!
Seriously? Showing off a New Year's gift to someone younger than you?
With an exasperated pat on Nawaki's head, Takashi took out one last box and tossed it to Tsunade:
"I did think about buying you a present, but I figured you might need this more."
"Need what?"
After laughing for so long that her stomach hurt, Tsunade was curious to learn she had a gift too. She opened the box.
She wasn't worried that there'd be exam papers inside—after all, Tsunade Senju didn't need those.
"What the—?!"
The moment she opened it, Tsunade let out a loud exclamation.
Takashi had initially planned to get Tsunade a proper gift, but after realizing she had already gambled away her salary, he decided to give her something more practical—money. A box filled with cash seemed more appropriate than any trinket.
So he put some cash inside a gift box.
As expected, Tsunade got even more excited than Nawaki upon seeing the money.
If it hadn't been for the three kids being present, she might have jumped on Takashi and rewarded him with a couple of kisses.
He truly understood her.
She was in desperate need of cash.
And here it was, money handed over as a gift.
"Alright, everyone has their gifts now, time to eat."
After distributing all the presents, Takashi clapped his hands.
Everyone gathered around the table, ready to start eating.
"Wait a second."
Just as they were about to begin, Nawaki suddenly said, "Sis, you're the oldest one here. Shouldn't you be giving us gifts instead of receiving them?"
Crack!!
Tsunade's expression changed, and the chopsticks in her hand shattered into splinters.
You little brat, why do you always have to say the wrong thing?
Gulp...
Nawaki swallowed nervously, realizing that he had just said something he definitely shouldn't have.
You just can't stay quiet, can you? You got your gift, now zip it. Why provoke your sister? Are you trying to get beaten up?
Your sister's broke—there's nothing in her pocket but some spare coins. What gift could she possibly give? Hand out a coin to each person?
"Oww!! Sis, I'm sorry, stop hitting me, it hurts!"
---
While the nations and villages across the Ninja World were celebrating the New Year with lights and festivities, the Land of Rain was the exception.
Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure had all sent ninja into the Land of Rain, and for the people of the Land of Rain, it was nothing short of a disaster.
At first, everyone was still keeping things somewhat under control, but as time went on, some of the ninja started causing trouble.
"Sir, according to the gathered intelligence, there have been reports of ninja raiding several villages in the west and taking a lot of goods."
"This is already the sixth time this month."
Bang!!
Upon hearing his subordinate's report, Hanzo the Salamander slammed his hand on the table in anger.
The intrusion by the three Great Shinobi Villages had thrown the Land of Rain into chaos, and now some of the village ninja had started targeting the people of the Land of Rain.
Based on intelligence, most of the raiders were from Sunagakure, followed by Iwagakure, while Konoha's ninja had mostly kept in line.
"All of you, leave. I will handle this personally!"
Hanzo was furious.
He had swallowed his pride to approach the Third Kazekage, only for the latter to treat him like a lapdog.
Not only had they humiliated him, but they had also let their village's ninja run wild, stealing supplies and food from civilians even before the war had properly begun.
Are the ninja of Sunagakure and Iwagakure really that poor? Why are they even here in the Land of Rain?
They must have assumed that Hanzo wouldn't dare retaliate.
This was beyond insulting.
After dismissing his subordinates, Hanzo paced back and forth in his office, growing more and more agitated.
"If you don't care about the people of the Land of Rain, then let me help you care less!!"
Not only had they humiliated him, but they had pushed him too far, and Hanzo could no longer endure it.
Currently, the ninja from Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure were all maintaining a cautious truce. Despite the heavy tension, there was no intention to escalate into a full-blown conflict.
There were constant skirmishes and small clashes, but no large-scale engagements.
Hanzo decided to stoke the flames.
If war was inevitable, then he might as well muddy the waters first. If he was going down, he wasn't going alone.
Hanzo gathered a group of skilled subordinates and quietly left the village.
That night, several Konoha and Sunagakure patrol squads vanished without a trace.
The disappearance of the patrol squads drew immediate attention from both sides. Konoha and Sunagakure sent ninja to investigate the area, and they ended up running into each other.
Neither side was willing to back down, which directly led to an intensified conflict.
After initiating one conflict, Hanzo shifted his focus to Sunagakure's ninja.
Without a strong leader present, the Sunagakure squads were no match for Hanzo's hunting parties.
Gradually, the losses for Sunagakure began to mount. The team leaders in the Land of Rain realized something was wrong and immediately sent word back to their village.
Konoha's teams were also encountering problems, as many Sunagakure ninja began targeting them within the Land of Rain's borders, leading to the unexplained disappearance of several Konoha squads.
In response, Konoha also sent word back to the village.
Reluctantly crawling out from under her blankets, Tsunade grumbled as she left her cozy bed, yawning all the way to the Hokage's office.
It was the same conference room as last time, though the seating arrangements had changed quite a bit.
Akimichi Torifu, the Hokage's advisor, was not seated beside the Third Hokage but next to Tsunade instead.
Ninja from several clans, led by the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, were also seated on their side of the table.
The Jonin Commander, who used to be Nara Shikashin, had now been replaced by Sarutobi Matsuda.
Sarutobi Matsuda, a stoic man with a perpetually serious expression, was as unreadable as the young Uchiha clan leader.
Once everyone had arrived, the Third Hokage gestured for Sarutobi Matsuda to distribute the printed reports.
"Everyone, the situation in the Land of Rain has begun to shift. Sunagakure has repeatedly encroached on the territories we control. Several patrol and mission squads have already been lost."
As everyone opened the reports in their hands, they quickly realized that the situation had grown more complicated.
"Aha, so Sunagakure can't hold back any longer?"