➷wherein Uzumaki Naruto would never trade Uzumaki Shira for anything else. To him, she was that constant in his life that he would never want to disappear.
("Acts1-33: Under Construction")
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"OLD HAG!"
.
.
Tsunade had been deep thought ever since Jiraiya left. The information he got about the Akatsuki remained to himself. No matter how many times she pestered him about it when they went out for a drink, he never said. And when Fukasaku arrived gravely wounded and almost dead, ice cold water embraced her from head to toe.
For Fukasaku to come back without Jiraiya, it only meant one thing and it caused Tsunade's heart to pound.
Jiraiya had lost.
Before she could make sense of the code etched on the now better-looking Fukasaku, someone had suddenly appeared inside her office, screaming that nickname she never liked.
Yet it was another surprise but this time, it was a good one. However, a group of ANBU appeared out of the shadows and surrounded the intruder, weapons ready to take her down.
"Dammit, you old hag! Pervy Sannin needs to be treated!" Uzumaki Shira barked out before sweeping the ANBU with a sharp glower. "You bunch of idiots! I could have killed you for surrounding me, 'ttebane!" That familiar girl with hair as crimson as blood; the ANBU who had always been stationed in the Hokage's office for more than six years were familiar with her.
It was the stupid sneaky brat.
But that surprise of seeing her was overshadowed by the bloody body on her back.
"Shira..." A painful look crossed Tsunade's eyes. One look and she already knew. No matter how great of a medical ninja she was, to bring someone back before they could take one more step in death's door; it was already impossible. The blood loss... the infection... the duration... it was already too late. Jiraiya was no longer breathing at all.
Shira had seen the dark glimmer in Tsunade's eyes but her mind threw it to the back, acting as if she never saw that helpless look on the old hag's face. "What are you still standing there for? Help him! We can still save the Pervy Sannin!"
"... Shira."
"Stop dawdling around already, old hag! I'll take him to the hospital and you can—"
Ringing echoed in the redhead's ears, her cheek stinging. Tsunade slapped the frantic girl; slapped her so she could finally get out of that illusion she put herself in. The Hokage took back her shaking hand. Her eyes fixed on the body— the corpse, she corrected herself— in Shira's hold.
"There's nothing I can do."
Tsunade watched the frantic Uzumaki freeze.
"Shira, Jiraiya... Jiraiya's dead."
Almost instantly, the redhead stumbled forward in disbelief. The closest ANBU reached out to grab the Sannin's corpse before it could weigh on Shira whereas another grabbed the redhead's elbow tightly to keep her balanced. "No," she denied under her breath. "That's not possible. I was fast... fast enough to come here so... so why..."
