Konohagakure, the renowned ninja hub of the Land of Fire, buzzed with activity as shinobi streamed in and out.
"Finally back." Anko's beaming at the village gates.
"Yeah, home." Tengen said, a touch of feeling in his voice. In a brief mission, his strength had soared from matching chunin to defeating jounin, a staggering leap in mere days.
He kept this power hidden, so others remained unaware.
Orochimaru couldn't possibly guess Tengen's terrifying progress. At eight, with jounin strength, Tengen surpassed even Kakashi's prodigious talent.
As for where Tengen had gone during his absence, Orochimaru didn't ask, sparing Tengen the need to lie.
He could hardly admit to soloing the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Killer Bee.
"Let's report the mission." Orochimaru said with a faint smile.
The team passed through Konoha's gates, where shinobi greeted, "Orochimaru-sama!"
As one of the Sannin, Orochimaru commanded high respect in Konoha.
Below the Third Hokage, Hiruzen, the Sannin were paramount. Though Minato Namikaze was a rising jounin, he hadn't yet achieved legendary status in the village's eyes.
After submitting their mission report at the administration hall, the team dispersed.
"Rest for three days. We'll take a new mission then." Orochimaru told Tengen, Anko, and Jurin. "Come to me with any questions."
"Yes, Orochimaru-sensei." They replied in unison.
Once Orochimaru vanished, Anko's lively spirit returned. "Tengen, let's grab some barbecue! Jurin, you're welcome too."
"Boring." Jurin said coolly. "Tengen, I'm heading home."
"Alright." Tengen nodded. Perhaps because Tengen had indirectly saved his life, Jurin's demeanor had softened slightly.
As Jurin left, Anko turned to Tengen.
"Uh, Anko, how about I treat you to barbecue tomorrow?" Tengen said, his eyes flickering as he sensed something.
"Tomorrow?" Anko scrutinized him. "You serious?"
"Absolutely." Tengen nodded. "We can invite Yūgao too."
"That kid?" Anko huffed, thinking of Yūgao Uzuki.
"Anko, you're only three years older than her." Tengen was amused at her attempt to act mature. She was barely a generation apart from Uo.
"I'm a ninja, okay?" Anko's cheeks flushed. "Fine, I'm off. See you tomorrow."
"See ya, Anko." Tengen waved, watching her disappear. Then, with a flicker, he vanished, heading in a specific direction.
He'd detected another video signal, a standard one. While standard videos rarely yielded top-tier rewards, Tengen relished the gamble.
Like a lottery, you never knew what might pop up.
Even the humblest videos occasionally delivered gems, as Tengen had learned early on, though such luck was rare.
Given the lower difficulty of securing standard videos, Tengen was eager to investigate.
With his current strength, unless facing a Kage-level foe, he could retreat unscathed.
"The signal's a bit outside Konoha's range." Tengen noted, speeding toward the target.
As he approached, white mist drifted into view.
"A hot spring?" Tengen paused. The signal originated ahead. Moving cautiously, he spotted a large hot spring pool shrouded in steam, where two figures were faintly visible, one petite, the other with noticeably ample curves.
"Oh, man." Tengen said with a wry smile. His luck was uncanny. The figures were Tsunade and Shizune.
Why were they here?
No time to ponder, Tsunade and Shizune sensed an intruder as Tengen spotted them.
In the hot spring, Tsunade lounged comfortably. "Shizune, isn't this nice? I stumbled on this spot while training."
She'd accidentally struck a hot spring vein during her strength training, creating this pool.
The temperature and secluded location were ideal.
Close enough to Konoha yet remote, it was perfect for a private soak, so Tsunade had dragged Shizune along.
"It's great." Shizune said, her face flushed from the warm water.
"Also, Shizune, I heard massaging your breasts in a hot spring can help it grow." Tsunade teased, chuckling. "You've got work to do."
"Got it, Tsunade-sama." Shizune glances at Tsunade's impressive bust compared to her own modest one, feeling a bit deflated.
Her youth played a part, but even grown, she'd never rival Tsunade's legendary figure.
Tsunade's assets were unmatched in the ninja world.
Okay, that tangent veered off.
As Tengen neared, Tsunade's expression shifted. She stood, grabbing a towel to wrap around herself. "Who's there?"
"It's me, Tsunade-sama." A familiar voice called. Tengen's figure emerged into view.
***
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