Adopted by Tsunade [73-74] (Patreon)

Chapter 73: That Sweet Nectar

Tsunade didn't dare meet Natsume's gaze at that moment.

She lifted her chin slightly, looking at the sky, pretending to be deep in thought.

"Hmm, let me think, what kind of reward should I give you?"

"It has to be a big reward!"

Natsume put extra emphasis on the word "big." Rarely did he get such a chance—he wasn't about to let it slip by.

"You little rascal, you've even learned to bargain now?"

Tsunade couldn't help but laugh, habitually pinching his cheeks.

"No, I haven't!"

Natsume caught her hand taking advantage of him, turned it back, and started tickling her palm. "I'm just making a reasonable request."

"That tickles a little."

Tsunade shivered and instinctively pulled her hand back. "I've already decided your reward. I'll let you go to Shikkotsu Forest to train in Sage Mode."

"…?"

Natsume's eyes widened.

Was that really a reward?

You villain! You're not keeping your word!

Noticing his expression, Tsunade felt a twinge of guilt.

It really was a bit much to trick a kid.

"During your Sage Mode training, it'll be like when you helped me with my hemophobia."

As she looked at him, she suddenly spoke on impulse.

Before, Natsume had helped her train.

Now, things had flipped.

In other words, she'd continue using him as a body pillow.

Tsunade instantly regretted saying it, but for some reason, she also felt a hint of anticipation.

Maybe this was her deepest desire.

"All right, let's go back."

Suppressing her inner panic, Tsunade walked outside.

Natsume quickly followed.

…

Back home, Tsunade returned to her calm self. "Tomorrow, I'll take you to meet the Slug Sage."

In the original story, Mount Myoboku and Ryuchi Cave's Sage Modes are described in detail.

But there's little info about Shikkotsu Forest's Sage Mode.

Neither the training methods nor the Senjutsu are mentioned.

Even Hashirama Senju's Sage Mode and the Senjutsu he used were never clearly stated to be from Shikkotsu Forest.

Because he never summoned the Slug.

Now, though, Natsume would be able to investigate for himself.

That night, dinner was quite lavish.

Shizune had added two extra dishes to celebrate Natsume becoming a Chunin.

Years had passed, and her cooking was only getting better.

Natsume ate with great satisfaction.

Night fell.

After her bath, Tsunade lay on the tatami, unable to sleep—caught in a bout of insomnia.

She was thinking about what had happened during the day. How did she end up saying something like that?

People might misunderstand… Just then, there was a sound nearby.

Like a door sliding open.

A thief?

Who'd dare sneak into my room?

Tsunade was already in a bad mood.

But when she got up with a fierce look, she saw it was Natsume.

Her expression shifted to confusion, and she asked gently, "Can't sleep?"

"Sis, you can't have forgotten what you promised earlier today, right?"

Natsume crawled into the futon without a hint of guilt, instantly surrounded by a warm, fragrant embrace.

Tsunade realized what was happening, but it was too late.

Her bright brown eyes looked at the curled-up Natsume, her heart suddenly softening.

She pulled the blanket to make sure he wouldn't catch cold, then closed her eyes.

For some reason, her insomnia seemed to vanish.

Listening to the steady breathing nearby, her body relaxed and she quickly drifted off to sleep.

Sure enough, she was more used to things this way.

In the middle of the night.

Natsume suddenly woke up.

Tsunade wasn't a very still sleeper.

Her golden hair swept across his face, bringing a cool sensation.

But that wasn't what startled him.

Natsume opened his eyes and saw her gently nibbling on his fingertips.

Maybe she was having a sweet dream, as a faint smile rested on her delicate face.

What are you treating my fingers as?

Please don't let it be food.

If you bite down, I'll be a nine-fingered beggar for sure.

Still, it felt nice.

Warm.

Forget it, just let her be.

He closed his eyes again.

But soon after, he woke up once more.

He and Tsunade were so close their noses were almost touching.

With every breath, he could feel her breath on his face, tickling him.

It was like he was wrapped in a warm futon, or maybe tangled up by an octopus.

His whole body was sending one message: softness.

He was completely surrounded—Tsunade on every side.

He couldn't move his arms; there was nowhere to put them.

Natsume stared at her sleeping face, a bit lost in thought.

In the faint moonlight, she looked like a midnight flower, blooming with a special beauty.

What should he do at a time like this?

Didn't Tsunade always say he was already an adult?

Enough is enough!

Natsume hesitated, heart pounding, then let instinct guide him. He leaned in, letting his lips brush ever so lightly against hers—a fleeting, feather-soft touch, filled with all the daring he could muster. It was so quick, so delicate, it almost felt like a dream. But the sensation lingered: a tingle, a sweetness, the taste of warm breath and honeyed skin.

A few seconds later, he licked his lips—there seemed to be a lingering fragrance.

Good night.

Natsume snuggled into her arms, and in that comforting scent, slowly drifted off.

He didn't notice the blushing, enchanting face in the darkness.

Tsunade slowly opened her eyes.

Her gaze held both shyness and confusion.

She could have pushed him away.

Why didn't she?

Tsunade bit her lip lightly, then let out a soft sigh.

If only she were twenty years younger…

The night passed without incident.

…

Natsume struggled to crawl out of the futon.

Tsunade was woken up by his tossing and turning.

She stretched, letting out a cat-like yawn, exposing her smooth, toned stomach.

"Morning, sis."

Natsume greeted her with a smile.

Tsunade's eyes widened as she suddenly remembered last night, and she snapped fully awake.

"Morning."

She quickly regained her composure.

After all these years, she'd weathered every storm. Was she really going to be undone by a little brat?

"I'm going to wash up."

Natsume opened the door and left the room.

Tsunade stood dazed for a few seconds, then came to her senses, put on her jacket, tied her twin ponytails, walked a few steps, and then turned back to grab the necklace from her bedside table.

It was a gift from Natsume.

She never took it off, except when sleeping.

Shizune was already in the kitchen.

Tsunade greeted her and went into the bathroom.

She looked at the toothbrush with toothpaste already squeezed on it, and the cup filled with warm water, and couldn't help but smile.

Why are you so good at this?

How many girls are you going to ruin in the future?

Tsunade picked up the toothbrush and cup.

After breakfast.

"Shizune, I'm taking Natsume to Shikkotsu Forest. If anything urgent comes up, have the Slug notify me."

Tsunade had actually wanted to bring Shizune and Kabuto along.

But they were younger, and in terms of chakra, far inferior to Natsume.

Training in Sage Mode—if you don't have enough chakra, you'll die.

She was only letting Natsume try it.

If there was any danger, she'd stop him immediately.

Of course, he had to have a talent for Sage Mode first.

Otherwise, it was all pointless.

Tsunade didn't have Sage Mode, not because she didn't want to learn, but because she couldn't.

Otherwise, with Yin Seal, plus Sage Mode, her combat power would skyrocket.

She'd be a weaker version of Hashirama—except for not having Wood Style.

Even weakened, she'd still be Hashirama.

No ordinary person could beat her.

Reverse Summoning!

Tsunade and Natsume vanished at the same time.

Moments later, they arrived at Shikkotsu Forest.

Mount Myoboku is a beautiful valley.

Ryuchi Cave is a cold, winding cave.

Shikkotsu Forest, meanwhile, is a forest.

Natsume opened his eyes to see dense woods all around.

Unlike normal trees, these were bone-white, like actual bones.

At the same time, Natsume felt a refreshing energy.

No doubt—it was natural energy.

Chapter 74: Tsunade's Test

Natsume took a gentle breath, immediately feeling comfortable all over.

To him, natural energy was like the spiritual energy in cultivator novels—a power that existed within the world itself.

While chakra was a foreign system.

But because the threshold for the former was so high, it was never widespread.

Natsume guessed that Sage Mode was each of the three great sanctuaries' attempt to mix natural energy with chakra, successfully lowering the difficulty.

Otherwise, why wasn't the native system based on pure natural energy?

"Let's go."

Tsunade led the way confidently.

Natsume looked around, everything was new and fascinating.

"Tsunade-sama."

A slug, half as tall as a person, greeted them with a gentle voice that didn't match its appearance.

Natsume had always wanted to say—the voice was really nice.

He remembered in the anime, it was voiced by Mamiko Noto.

"This is Natsume-sama, isn't it?"

The slug twisted its feelers and asked.

"Just call me Natsume."

Natsume hurriedly bowed. "It's an honor to meet you, Slug Sage."

The whole of Shikkotsu Forest looked like it had countless slugs, but there was only one consciousness.

That was the thousand-year-old Slug Sage.

The Great Toad Sage and White Snake Sage were both powerful and famous; the Slug Sage, equally so, stood at the pinnacle of the ninja world.

But compared to the other two, the Slug Sage had a milder personality.

"Don't mind it. I call every contract holder 'sama'," the slug said, tone rising a little. "It's been a long time since a human has come to Shikkotsu Forest. I'm glad to see you both."

Natsume could understand.

If he lived alone in one place for a thousand years, he'd go crazy.

And there was no internet.

The Great Toad and White Snake Sages had pupils and disciples, but the Slug Sage had none.

"Natsume wants to try training in Sage Mode," Tsunade explained their purpose.

"Go see my true body," said the slug, pointing the way and turning to leave.

Tsunade and Natsume continued deeper into the forest.

Along the way, they saw many slugs, big and small.

Clearly, despite being a single consciousness, the Slug Sage had split itself into countless clones—out of boredom, it seemed.

Left hand fights right hand.

After passing through the pale forest, Natsume finally saw the Slug Sage's true body.

It was… huge.

So huge it was endless.

Natsume's entire vision was filled with white.

The Slug Sage's massive head lifted slightly, looking at the two of them—tiny as grains of sand—and spoke in a gentle, feminine voice: "Long time no see, Tsunade-sama. And the new contract holder, Natsume-sama, you're quite interesting."

"Interesting" referred to him using the slug for a reverse summoning date.

Of all the contract holders in its long life, only Natsume had done such a thing.

But it thought it was amusing—something to pass the time.

Natsume blinked.

He hadn't reacted yet.

Why did it say he was interesting?

Could the Slug Sage read minds?

No, that couldn't be it.

Otherwise, it wouldn't have called him interesting, but something else entirely.

"To train in Sage Mode, the first requirement is a large amount of chakra. You barely qualify," the Slug Sage sized him up. "Second, and harder, is the talent to sense and absorb natural energy. Many ninja are blocked by this and can never access Sage Mode."

"How do I know if I have the talent?" Natsume asked at the right moment.

"Take off your clothes," the Slug Sage replied.

"…?"

Natsume paused. Apparently, Naruto trained this way too.

Fine, it's not even human—no big deal.

Wait, Tsunade's here too.

Natsume instinctively looked at her.

Tsunade's lips curled into a smirk.

You were so bold last night—why shy now?

Natsume gave her a look.

Tsunade pretended not to understand. "What, is there something you want to say?"

You wicked woman—so greedy for my body.

"I need to take off my clothes," Natsume said directly.

"Sensing natural energy is dangerous. With me watching, I can help if anything goes wrong," Tsunade offered, giving a reasonable explanation.

"Tsunade-sama, since that's the case, you help him apply it," the Slug Sage decided before Natsume could answer.

A big wooden bucket appeared out of nowhere.

It was filled with a clear liquid.

Mount Myoboku used toad oil to enhance sensing.

This must be Shikkotsu Forest's unique product.

What was it?

Natsume thought it was best not to ask.

Tsunade was instantly embarrassed, frozen on the spot.

She'd only meant to tease Natsume, never expected to actually see him.

Now she had to help apply it all over—wasn't that worse?

Natsume took off his clothes and sat cross-legged.

If he hesitated now, he'd hardly be a man.

Tsunade's heart pounded with a nervousness she'd never felt before.

She swallowed and reached out, gently applying the liquid to his back.

It was cold.

Natsume shivered slightly.

But Tsunade's hands were soft and warm.

"Close your eyes. Listen with your ears, feel with your heart," the Slug Sage instructed.

Natsume complied at once.

As the mysterious liquid was applied to his back, he felt natural energy slowly seeping in.

"You can do the front yourself," Tsunade hesitated, then said.

Natsume raised an eyebrow.

You were so bold just now—why back down now?

"Don't move," the Slug Sage added helpfully. "Once you're sensing, you can't move. Tsunade-sama, you'd better help him."

"…"

A slight blush crept onto Tsunade's face.

After a moment, she scooped up more liquid and slowly applied it to his body.

Natsume couldn't concentrate at all.

Any old man would fail such a test!

"Keep your mind empty," the Slug Sage said, noticing his expression. "Become one with nature. Sense the movement of natural energy by being perfectly still."

Too hard!

Natsume tried his best not to notice Tsunade's hands.

Thankfully, the ordeal ended quickly.

Half a minute later, Tsunade backed away, her heart finally settling a little.

But she couldn't calm down.

Why was it like this?

She'd bathed her younger brother before, but never felt anything like this.

Was it a mindset issue?

Tsunade looked at Natsume, sitting in meditation, lost in thought.

"Not bad," the Slug Sage said, clearly pleased. "At last, another contract holder who can train in Sage Mode."

The three great summoning lands were rivals, especially over their contract holders.

Recently, Mount Myoboku's had the upper hand.

Hearing this, Tsunade couldn't help but smile.

Sage Mode's power boost didn't need explanation.

Look at Jiraiya—Sage Mode took him from an ordinary Jonin to one of the very best.

Natsume already had Wood Style. With Sage Mode too, the revival of the Senju clan was in sight.