After over fifty years sealed away, the son of Tobirama Senju, legendary Second Hokage, has returned. With his unparalleled mastery of Water Release and strategic genius, his emergence reignites hope for the long-dormant Senju Clan. Will his return...
The journey back to Konoha was grueling. Tetsuya, Itachi, Tsunade, and Shizune had been traveling for over a week across the Fire Country. The lush landscapes and serene countryside seemed to mock the turmoil within Tsunade's heart. They had stopped for a brief rest, just outside a small village, when the ambush occurred.
Out of nowhere, masked shinobi attacked. They were skilled, moving with the precision of experienced assassins. Tetsuya and Itachi immediately jumped into action, protecting Tsunade and Shizune.
"Tsunade, stay back!" Tetsuya shouted as he engaged the attackers.
Itachi's Sharingan flared to life as he took on two enemies at once. Tsunade, despite her fear, began to fight off the attackers, her strength and skill in taijutsu clear even in the chaos. But then, a particularly large and brutish enemy got a lucky strike on Tetsuya.
"Tetsuya!" Tsunade screamed as she saw him fall, a kunai embedded deep in his side. Blood poured from the wound, soaking his clothes.
Tsunade froze. Her hands shook, her vision blurred. The sight of blood, so much blood, brought back memories she had tried so hard to forget. Dan, Nawaki – the people she had lost, the people she had failed to save.
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"No, not again," she whispered, her body trembling.
"Tsunade!" Shizune's voice was desperate, pulling her back to the present. "You have to help him!"
Forcing herself to move, Tsunade stumbled towards Tetsuya. Her hands hovered over his wound, but the blood, the sight, the smell – it was too much. She couldn't do it. She couldn't lose another loved one. Her mind swirled with images of Dan and Nawaki, their lifeless bodies haunting her every thought. The weight of her past failures pressed down on her, making it hard to breathe.
"Tsunade, you can do this," she told herself, but her hands wouldn't stop shaking. She remembered the promise she had made to herself, never to let anyone close to her die again. Yet here she was, on the verge of losing another.
"Come on, Tsunade," she muttered, trying to steady her hands. But the fear was paralyzing, an insidious force that gripped her heart and mind, threatening to pull her under. She felt a rising panic, the kind that suffocates and consumes.
"Tsunade..." Tetsuya's weak voice cut through the fog of her fear. "You... can do this... I believe in you."
His words pierced through her panic, and something shifted inside her. She couldn't let Tetsuya die. Not him, not another. Her hands steadied, her mind focused. She couldn't let fear win.
With a deep breath, she began to heal him, her chakra flowing into his wound. She fought through her fear, her panic, using every bit of her strength and skill to save him. Slowly, the bleeding stopped, the wound began to close.
When it was done, Tsunade collapsed beside him, her body shaking with exhaustion and relief. She had done it. She had saved him. But as she looked around, she realized something was off. The attackers were gone. Itachi and Shizune stood by, watching her with an intensity that made her uneasy.
"Tsunade... look at me," Tetsuya's voice was stronger now, but there was a strange edge to it.
She turned to him, confusion and suspicion growing in her mind. "What... what is going on?"
"This," Tetsuya said softly, "is a genjutsu."
The world around her seemed to ripple, and then it all made sense. The ambush, Tetsuya's wound, her desperate attempt to save him – it had all been an illusion.
"You... you tricked me?" Tsunade's voice was a mix of anger and betrayal.
"It was the only way," Tetsuya said, sitting up perefctly fine. "You needed to face your fear, to overcome it. You did it, Tsunade. You saved me."
Tsunade's eyes filled with tears of anger and relief. "You had no right!"
"I had every right," Tetsuya replied calmly. "You are too important to let fear control you. Konoha needs you. I need you. And now, you can be the medic you were meant to be."
Tsunade looked away, her emotions a whirlwind inside her. She wanted to be furious, but she couldn't deny the truth in his words. He had forced her to confront her deepest fear, and she had conquered it. But the pain of the deception still stung.
That night, as they sat around the campfire, Tsunade's anger had cooled to a simmer. She stared into the flames, her mind replaying the events of the day. The images of Dan and Nawaki were still there, but now there was also Tetsuya, lying in a pool of his own blood. The memory was seared into her mind, but it was different now. She had saved him. She had done what she couldn't do before.
"Thank you," she said finally, her voice quiet but sincere. "I hate that you did it, but... thank you."
Tetsuya nodded, his expression softening. "I only did what I had to, Tsunade. You're too important to lose to fear."
As the fire crackled and the night deepened, a sense of peace settled over the camp. Tsunade had taken a crucial step towards reclaiming her place as one of Konoha's greatest shinobi, and for the first time in a long while, she felt whole again.
