Adopted by Tsunade [107-108] (Patreon)

Chapter 107: Came to Trick, Came to Kiss—I Let My Guard Down

Night fell.

Natsume and Tsunade lay on the ground.

The weather was pleasant today, and the night sky was dotted with many twinkling stars.

A cool breeze blew in from afar, dispelling the heat of the day.

Tsunade suddenly chuckled, feeling somewhat sentimental.

It seemed like it had been a very long time since she felt so at peace, or enjoyed such leisure time with anyone.

This feeling… wasn't bad at all.

At that moment, she turned her head slightly and noticed Natsume holding her hand, even giving it a little squeeze.

Tsunade didn't mind.

But Natsume, emboldened, not only squeezed her hand but started tickling her palm.

It was soft and fleshy—the sensation was wonderful—truly comfortable.

"What are you doing?"

Tsunade grabbed his mischievous hand and said, "Settle down."

Natsume took the opportunity to scoot closer to her and said, "There's nothing worth looking at up there."

"You're the one who wanted to come out and play!" Tsunade said with feigned annoyance. "Believe it or not, I'll toss you out."

"Because it's still not as pretty as you, sis."

Natsume started spouting corny lines.

Tsunade, not yet baptized by the internet's cringe culture, showed a slight change in her expression.

Was she maybe a little too harsh on him just now?

But before she could think further, Natsume had already nestled into her embrace.

Tsunade was speechless. Where did he learn these things?

She looked at Natsume, whose eyes were closed.

After all these days of senjutsu training, his once handsome face now carried a hint of determination.

Without a doubt, he looked even more mature.

For some reason, Tsunade's heart fluttered. She lowered her head and pressed her warm, moist lips to his forhead.

Natsume froze, totally unprepared, and opened his eyes—but it was already over.

He only heard three words.

"Go to sleep."

Natsume wanted to roll over and take charge in indignation.

How could he sleep after that?

What a wicked woman!

Natsume glared at her in protest.

But Tsunade really ignored him and actually drifted off to sleep.

The vacation ended.

…

Natsume returned to his normal training routine.

Back in Konoha, he could clearly sense the tense, stormy atmosphere.

It seemed the time was near.

Natsume had no interest in those radical Uchiha clansmen.

In his view, if he could recruit Shisui and Izumi under his banner, it would be far more worthwhile than dealing with the others.

Besides that, if he could also win over a batch of Uchiha women and children, the future would be promising indeed.

A week later.

Forest of Death.

"Hinata, I have something good for you."

Natsume, seeing her awaken from genjutsu, handed her a bracelet.

"I… I…"

Hinata's face instantly turned red, and she stammered, not knowing what to say.

This seemed a bit… misunderstood.

What Natsume actually gave her was not a bracelet, but a Flying Thunder God seal.

Thinking about what item she could carry on her person, he ultimately chose a bracelet as the vessel.

Natsume grabbed her delicate wrist and helped her put it on, saying, "Remember not to lose it, okay?"

Hinata nodded dazedly, not really hearing what he said at all.

Well, agreeing first was always the right move.

"How's Neji doing lately?" Natsume changed the subject, snapping Hinata back to her senses.

She replied, "He's sparred with me many times, but every time… he loses."

"That's not like you," Natsume said in surprise. "You didn't go easy on him?"

"No." Hinata lowered her head, embarrassed. "Natsume-nii, you told me not to go easy on him, or else he'd never accept it."

"Good girl." Natsume smiled. "Too bad I didn't get to see my Hinata's heroic side."

"Eep…"

The words "my Hinata" made Hinata's brain short-circuit, and she fainted.

Natsume quickly caught her and scratched his head in confusion.

I didn't even touch her just now…

Unable to figure it out, he could only take Hinata home.

With the Flying Thunder God technique, everything became simpler.

In almost an instant, he arrived in Hinata's room.

Natsume didn't leave immediately, planning to wait for her to wake up.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

"Hinata, are you asleep?"

It was Hyuga Rinka.

Recognizing her voice, Natsume instinctively hid in the wardrobe.

With no response, Rinka opened the door and saw Hinata lying on the bed.

"Why hasn't this child taken off her coat and shoes?"

She walked over, took off Hinata's coat and shoes, covered her with a blanket, and then left.

Natsume breathed a sigh of relief.

Opening the wardrobe, he saw that Hinata was already awake.

She'd been pretending to sleep.

"Natsume-nii."

Hinata's face was red as she hid under the covers.

Oh my, how cute.

Natsume kept reminding himself: "I'm a good person."

"Rest early," he said, then immediately slipped away.

Hinata hesitated, then suddenly looked regretful.

"I forgot to tell him to come to the ninja academy in a few days…"

…

Natsume didn't go straight home.

Now that he'd mastered the Flying Thunder God technique, he wasn't about to waste it.

With the Uchiha clan in turmoil, it was best to find a secret place to hide a Flying Thunder God seal.

If something happened, he could rush over in time.

Under the cover of night,

Natsume sneaked into the Uchiha compound.

With his current strength, few could detect his presence.

He stood atop a high utility pole, thinking about where best to place the seal for safety.

If discovered, it could cause trouble.

Natsume suddenly thought of Uchiha Izumi.

The next moment, he disappeared from sight.

Izumi's status within the clan was not high; she was marginalized.

Her mother, Uchiha Hazuki, had married outside the clan.

After her father died, the two of them moved back to the Uchiha clan and took the Uchiha surname.

Luckily, Izumi showed impressive talent, or else their lives would have been quite ordinary.

"Who's there?"

Izumi suddenly sat up, her eyes flashing red.

Since being ambushed by Orochimaru, she'd grown much more vigilant.

"It's me."

Natsume didn't hide his presence, so she sensed him.

"You… Why are you looking for me?"

Izumi hesitated, realizing she didn't know his name.

"It's nothing, just give me your hand."

Natsume said casually, but his eyes studied her—a small test.

Izumi hesitated, then rolled up her sleeve, revealing a stretch of pale skin.

"Don't resist."

Natsume pressed her arm, sending chakra in. A moment later, a honeysuckle flower—technically, a lonicera pattern—appeared.

Each Flying Thunder God seal was unique, depending on the user's preferences.

For example, Tobirama Senju used a pattern, Minato Namikaze used a script-based seal.

"What is this?"

Izumi looked at the pattern on her arm, feeling nothing unusual.

"It'll help me save you in time," Natsume smiled. "But using it comes with a price."

He left Izumi's room.

Just as he was about to use Flying Thunder God, he paused.

Not far away, he spotted three familiar people—

Uchiha Yashiro, Uchiha Inabi, and Uchiha Tekka.

Natsume recognized them from the original story. They could give him fate points.

The Uchiha clan seemed large, but only a handful of members were actually named in the story.

Naturally, Natsume paid attention to them.

These three, after Shisui's death, interrogated Itachi in the original.

In other words—they were die-hard loyalists.

"Tekka, don't be reckless," Yashiro said, holding his shoulder.

"What, are you scared?" Tekka growled. "Shisui's fate is unknown, and Sarutobi Seinosuke has Mokuton—he must be involved!"

"But that's Sarutobi Seinosuke, the Hokage's son."

Yashiro took a breath, knowing he couldn't stop them. "You can question him, but don't kill anyone."

"He'll be on a mission tonight. We can intercept him in the Forest of Death," Inabi said quickly. "No time to lose, let's go."

Chapter 108: Breaking Through Three Thousand Fate Points

Natsume hadn't expected to witness this scene.

It must be a reward for his daily good deeds.

He narrowed his eyes.

This was, in fact, related to him.

A butterfly effect, so to speak.

Because of his interference, Shimura Danzo and Orochimaru joined forces to steal Shisui's Mangekyo Sharingan.

But they failed—Jiraiya, in search of the child of prophecy, accidentally discovered their secret.

With no other options, Danzo revealed his Mokuton, and Orochimaru handed over Hashirama cell transplant technology as a bargaining chip.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, upon acquiring it, certainly wouldn't just lock it away.

After multiple experiments, he finally transplanted it into his own son, Sarutobi Seinosuke.

Unfortunately, both his sons had average talent—just regular jonin.

Even with Mokuton, all they contributed was to Konoha's landscaping.

Still, Seinosuke's power did improve somewhat.

Just recently, during a mission, Mokuton saved his squad's lives.

This was how the Uchiha clan learned of it.

Everything was connected—such is fate.

Natsume narrowed his eyes.

Seinosuke's status was special; if anything happened to him, it would trigger a chain reaction.

And perhaps, this was a chance to force Hiruzen Sarutobi to step down early.

With that thought, Natsume decided to help these three Uchiha ninja.

He left a shadow clone behind and teleported his real body to the Sarutobi clan compound.

Now, in Konoha, the strongest ninja clan wasn't the Uchiha or Hyuga, but the Sarutobi.

Backed by the Hokage, they enjoyed countless benefits.

With Hiruzen as Hokage, favoritism was guaranteed.

Even after his death, Kakashi, as successor, wouldn't mistreat them.

Not to mention, Hiruzen had long arranged for his grandson, Konohamaru, to become Naruto's companion.

Now, Natsume was determined not to let that happen.

Natsume quickly found Seinosuke and activated Kotoamatsukami with his right eye, causing a moment of confusion.

He didn't use the left eye's permanent Kotoamatsukami, not wanting to waste it.

The right eye's illusion was enough, and its cooldown was short.

Controlled, Seinosuke behaved as usual.

After a while, he left the Sarutobi compound.

"Who's there?"

Seinosuke leapt aside, dodging several kunai thrown at him.

After landing, he found himself surrounded by Yashiro, Inabi, and Tekka.

"It's you?" Seinosuke asked warily. "Why are you blocking my path?"

"Wait," Yashiro stopped the other two, stepped forward, and said, "I hope you can answer a few questions for us."

"That's no way to ask someone questions," Seinosuke pointed at the kunai on the ground.

"Sorry, we had no choice," said Yashiro, a jonin second only to Fugaku among the Uchiha.

He knew he shouldn't get involved with Seinosuke.

But he couldn't ignore Inabi and Tekka, so he wanted to keep the conflict to a minimum.

"Uncle Yashiro, why are you apologizing?" Inabi complained. "Just answer our questions, or you won't leave this forest tonight."

"Are you Uchiha planning a rebellion?" Seinosuke showed no fear at the threat.

"Inabi!" Yashiro glared at him, sighed, and asked, "Tell us, where did your Mokuton come from?"

"No comment," said Seinosuke, face stern.

Transplanting Hashirama cells was far too shocking.

The First Hokage's reputation was still sky-high in Konoha.

If this got out, it would cause a huge uproar.

And it might harm his father Hiruzen's reputation.

He couldn't bear that responsibility.

Inabi and Tekka attacked.

"Are you crazy?" Seinosuke was shocked.

He wasn't an average ninja, after all.

"Just as I thought—madmen," Seinosuke said grimly as he fought and retreated.

Yashiro gritted his teeth. Things had gone too far.

He opened his three-tomoe Sharingan.

Now, the priority was to subdue Seinosuke and get the answers they wanted.

A fierce battle broke out.

Even with Mokuton, Seinosuke performed worse than Yamato in the original.

Yashiro seized a chance and trapped him in a genjutsu.

"Where did your Mokuton come from?"

"From Lord Danzo and Lord Orochimaru," Seinosuke answered woodenly.

The three Uchiha showed various reactions.

"What about the mysterious strong man from three years ago—his Mokuton?" Yashiro pressed.

"Also given by Lord Danzo and Lord Orochimaru."

This was Natsume's manipulation, but technically not wrong.

Orochimaru did provide Hashirama cells, Mokuton drugs, and the transplant technique.

"Damn! They really are in it together!" Tekka gripped his kunai, his eyes showing signs of evolving from two-tomoe.

Yashiro was surprised, but it wasn't the time to celebrate. He stopped Tekka and asked, "Where is Shisui?"

"Lord Danzo took his eyes," Seinosuke said dully. "Once he lost his value, he was killed."

"Ahhh!" Tekka's Sharingan evolved to three-tomoe, and he stabbed Seinosuke in the heart with his kunai.

"Bastard!" Inabi snapped Seinosuke's neck in anger.

Only Yashiro felt a chill. He knew things had taken a turn for the worse.

But he kept his head.

"Take him back. We need to see the clan head," he said decisively.

The three carried the body away.

[Because of your actions, Uchiha Yashiro's fate has changed. You gain 50 fate points.]

[Because of your actions, Uchiha Inabi's fate has changed. You gain 49 fate points.]

[Because of your actions, Uchiha Tekka's fate has changed. You gain 47 fate points.]

[Because of your actions, Sarutobi Hiruzen's fate has changed. You gain 70 fate points.]

[Because of your actions, Sarutobi Konohamaru's fate has changed. You gain 30 fate points.]

[Because of your actions, Uzumaki Naruto's fate has changed. You gain 10 fate points.]

Natsume couldn't help but let out a breath.

So many unexpected gains!

With the fate points he'd earned tonight, his total finally broke through the 3,000 mark. He was getting closer and closer to becoming invincible.