Unfortunately, Akira was an incredibly laid-back bodyguard.
Every day, he either read books… or read more books.
Once in a while, when he was in the mood, he would take an S-rank or A-rank mission, wander out for a bit, earn some spending money, and buy Tsunade a few bottles of good sake.
Because of Akira, Tsunade had even quit gambling, the one hobby she had once refused to give up.
Still, whenever something major happened, she habitually pulled out a deck of cards or a pair of dice and used them to "read her luck."
As for drinking, that habit had not changed, and probably never would.
Akira did not mind anyway. Besides, with a shinobi's constitution, alcohol passed through the body like water. As long as Tsunade did not want to get drunk, she could drink as much as she liked and stay perfectly sober.
Their private relationship remained one of Konoha's highest-level secrets for now. Akira insisted on waiting until he was eighteen before making anything public. Tsunade did not care much about public opinion, but she respected his decision.
After all, the feelings between them had already been settled. What did a formal announcement matter?
The two chatted and laughed as they left the Senju estate. Their manner was close, but to outsiders, it looked like normal interaction between a Hokage and her personal guard.
The villagers passing by looked at the pair with quiet admiration.
Tsunade was stunning and graceful. Akira was handsome, tall, and steady.
Plenty of older women whispered among themselves that if not for the age difference, the two would look like a perfect match.
But because that age gap was so obvious, no one seriously thought in that direction.
Besides, Akira had been following Tsunade around like a shadow for years. Everyone was long used to it.
Only today, some of the sharper villagers noticed that Tsunade-hime seemed different. There was less sharpness between her brows and a softer warmth in her eyes.
The two strolled all the way to the Hokage Tower.
The moment they pushed open the office door, Shizune was already pacing in circles with Tonton in her arms.
Seeing her saviors arrive, Shizune nearly burst into tears.
"Tsunade-hime! You're finally here! The two advisors have already gone through three pots of tea in the conference room! If you didn't come soon, they were going to eat me alive!"
Whenever Tsunade disappeared, Shizune was always the one who suffered.
Those two old advisors normally did not dare push Tsunade too far. After all, this woman would genuinely flip a table if provoked. She was the exact opposite of the Third Hokage's mild temper.
And now that Danzō had been dealt with, Tsunade held real power. Her backbone was harder than ever.
Tsunade swaggered behind her desk and sat down, sneering.
"Those two old fossils do nothing but stick their noses where they don't belong."
Shizune's heart nearly jumped out of her chest. Only Tsunade would dare say something that outrageous out loud.
Akira calmly walked to his own seat. One side of Tsunade's desk belonged to Shizune and the paperwork. The other side had long since become Akira's personal reading spot.
Over the past few years, Akira had read everything he could get his hands on, from Hokage records to obscure shinobi histories. He enjoyed it immensely and never found it dull.
Just then, the office door was shoved open with a loud bang.
Tsunade and Shizune looked up at the same time.
When Tsunade saw who it was, she froze for a moment before a delighted smile bloomed across her face.
"Jiraiya? What wind blew you back here?"
At the doorway, the white-haired Sannin grinned.
"Tsunade. Three years away, and I missed you terribly."
Akira closed his book and stood, walking over.
"Jiraiya-sama. It's been three years, but you're still as lively as ever."
Seeing Akira, Jiraiya's eyes lit up. He strode over and slapped Akira on the shoulder with considerable force.
"You brat! These past three years, I've heard your name everywhere. Single-handedly suppressing a tailed beast, huh? People out there are calling you Konoha's human tailed beast now. Quite the reputation you've built!"
In the shinobi world, there were people capable of suppressing tailed beasts, but most were Kage-level monsters or members of Akatsuki.
Someone as young as Akira pinning the Three-Tails down and beating it into retreat was practically unheard of.
Still, Jiraiya was not too surprised. He had known for a long time that this kid was a monster. Akira had even mastered Sage Arts. Handling a tailed beast did not seem impossible for him.
What truly unsettled Jiraiya was that after three years apart, Akira's aura had become utterly unfathomable.
In the past, he could still sense the kid's chakra fluctuations. Now, standing in front of Akira felt like standing before a bottomless sea. There was no telling where the depths ended.
What did that mean?
It meant this kid's strength might already be above his own.
Akira smiled faintly.
"It's all just reputation. More importantly, Jiraiya-sama, you've been traveling outside the village for three years. Do you have any new intelligence on Akatsuki?"
As Akira and Jiraiya talked naturally, Tsunade stood quietly beside Akira with a gentle smile on her face.
The more Jiraiya spoke, the more his eyes darted between the two of them.
That strange feeling in his chest grew stronger and stronger.
This atmosphere…
Why did it feel like a loving couple welcoming an old friend from far away?
Especially the way Tsunade looked at Akira. It was so gentle that it gave Jiraiya goosebumps.
He immediately slapped himself in his mind.
What am I thinking? Tsunade is old enough to be this kid's mother. Impossible. Absolutely impossible. I'm imagining things!
Forcing down the fire of gossip in his heart, Jiraiya dragged Naruto out from behind him.
"I've spent the last three years training Naruto from the ground up. I heard you took Sakura as your apprentice?"
Standing beside Naruto, Sakura's gaze had been fixed on Akira the entire time.
Watching him laugh and talk with one of the legendary Sannin, she could not help thinking of another cold figure.
If only Sasuke could become as strong as Akira…
Naruto, meanwhile, was already cracking his knuckles. He had been holding himself back for three years.
Countless times, he had asked Pervy Sage whether he could beat Akira now. Every time, Jiraiya had dodged the question.
In truth, Jiraiya knew perfectly well.
Forget the current Naruto. Even he himself was not confident he could defeat Akira.
Letting Naruto challenge him would be nothing but self-inflicted suffering.
But that did nothing to stop a hot-blooded idiot from wanting to prove himself.
Tsunade gave a slight nod.
"Yes. Sakura has inherited my medical ninjutsu."
Her gaze shifted to Naruto.
"Since we're on that topic, I suppose I should see what Jiraiya has taught you over the past three years."
Naruto threw a fist into the air and shouted, "Sure! Granny Tsunade, test me however you want!"
As he spoke, his battle-filled eyes locked straight onto Akira, who stood nearby.
For a brief moment, the air in the Hokage's office seemed to freeze.
Tsunade's lips curved into a meaningful smile.
"The person responsible for testing you isn't here right now. And it won't be Akira. If you fought him as he is now, you wouldn't have any chance of winning."
The moment Jiraiya heard that, his pupils shrank. His gaze snapped to Tsunade's face as if searching for signs that she was joking.
"You mean… in these short three years, that kid's strength has exploded again?"
This went beyond Jiraiya's understanding.
By ordinary logic, Akira had already been absurdly powerful three years ago. Someone at that level should have reached a bottleneck by now.
After all, those who advanced too quickly early on usually faced long periods of stagnation later. That was one of the iron rules of the shinobi world.
Akira's talent was the greatest Jiraiya had ever seen. It might even be unprecedented. Even he, one of the legendary Sannin, felt ashamed comparing himself to him.
But no matter how monstrous the talent, Akira was still supposed to be flesh and blood, still human.
Thinking back to three years ago, Jiraiya had already lacked confidence in defeating him, and that was with some understanding of Akira's techniques.
In a sudden battle with no prior intelligence, Jiraiya felt he might not even have a fifty percent chance.
If Akira had truly climbed even higher over these three years, then wouldn't that mean he had completely surpassed Jiraiya?
Could something that defied common sense really happen?
Facing Jiraiya's shocked and suspicious stare, Tsunade nodded calmly.
Her tone, however, was like dropping a bomb.
"Stronger? That barely covers it. He's at least ten times stronger than he was before."
Although Akira's raw chakra reserves had only increased by around three times, an increase in that kind of foundation translated into terrifying, exponential growth in actual combat ability.
Of course, Tsunade's "ten times" was only a rough estimate based on intuition.
The truth might be even more absurd.
Jiraiya froze completely.
His mouth hung slightly open, and after a long moment, he barely forced out a few words.
"Ten… ten times?!"
His mind buzzed.
If anyone else had said that, he would have laughed in their face.
But this was Tsunade saying it.
That meant Tsunade had definitely confirmed Akira's strength through some method.
And that was what made it terrifying.
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