Chapter 40 — What Goes Around, Comes Around
"No matter what you choose, no matter what you want to do, I'll stand behind you and support you unconditionally, trust you, and protect you always."
Jiraiya spoke slowly and calmly, his magnetic voice delivering the firmest of words.
He reached out and took Tsunade's hand. In the past, Tsunade would have punched him away like an enraged she-dragon, but this time, her face merely flushed red.
The two of them placed their hands on the dice cup, and Jiraiya said:
"Big!"
At this moment, Tsunade was in a daze, her mind wandering. She was no longer paying attention to the answer, only sneaking glances at Jiraiya.
The result was revealed: 666, big.
"Congratulations. May the God of Fortune always watch over you." Kinoshita Hikaru's congratulatory voice snapped Tsunade out of her trance.
"It really worked." Tsunade leaned over the table to look closely. After confirming it, she cheered with delight.
"Hurry and bring out the mysterious grand prize."
Kinoshita Hikaru took out two amulets. "These are blessed amulets bestowed by the God of Fortune. They can protect you. May you always be safe and happy."
Tsunade's expression froze, and she asked in disbelief, "This is the mysterious grand prize?"
"Of course. Only the luckiest people, and those who understand how to protect others, can win it from my hands."
Tsunade looked utterly disgusted. This was far too different from the mysterious grand prize she had imagined.
Still, after taking it, she realized it was actually rather pretty, and she handed one to Jiraiya.
"One for you too. May the God of Fortune protect you."
After the two of them left, Jiraiya secretly gave Kinoshita Hikaru a thumbs-up.
By this time, night had already fallen. Small surprises appeared from time to time, and at last the two of them stopped in the center of Konoha's central plaza.
"Boom!"
Fireworks rose into the sky, bursting into brilliant, multicolored light.
In a nearby corner, ten people had secretly gathered together, all watching the pair.
"So beautiful." Uchiha Mikoto looked on enviously. "This confession ceremony is so romantic."
Kushina nodded. "So romantic. Do you think Tsunade-onee-san will say yes?"
"She probably will. After going this far, if she still doesn't agree, then Jiraiya won't have any chance for the rest of his life," Kinoshita Hikaru said.
Women were emotional creatures. With the atmosphere built up this well, if she still didn't agree, then Jiraiya would only end up being a lifelong simp.
The others all thought the same. Although they didn't really understand love and romance, they still felt she would probably agree.
At the center of the plaza—
A strange feeling welled up in Tsunade's heart, something she had never experienced before.
Jiraiya's face was flushed red with excitement. He felt that he was just about to win Tsunade over at last.
This money had been so worth it. Even if it had cost ten times more, it still would have been worth it.
The fireworks, the flowers, the atmosphere—it had all been perfectly set.
If he didn't confess now, he'd be letting down the audience.
Jiraiya turned to face Tsunade, his eyes burning hot.
"Tsunade, I…"
At this moment, Tsunade's heart was pounding wildly like a startled deer. What should she do? Was he really about to confess his feelings?
He had changed so much. He was no longer as reckless and impulsive as before, no longer frivolous and careless. He wouldn't do those absurd things anymore, would he…? Should she say yes?
Jiraiya was trembling with excitement. "Tsunade… I…"
Blood rushed to Tsunade's head, leaving her dizzy. In her heart, the scales were slowly tipping toward acceptance.
In the ninja world, pursuing a woman was difficult—but once the other party agreed, then it meant never abandoning one another, staying together through life and death. That was why both of them were so emotional.
At that moment, an abrupt voice suddenly rang out.
"It's you?"
Jiraiya turned around and saw that it was an old woman. He was certain he didn't know her.
Who was this?
Did she have no sense at all?
Couldn't she see that he was in the middle of a confession?
Interrupting at a time like this—didn't her conscience hurt?
He forced a smile and asked in confusion, "And you are?"
The old woman didn't answer. She also knew this young man was in the middle of an important moment in life, but he looked far too much like the peeping tom from yesterday. To keep this girl from being deceived, she had to make sure.
She sized Jiraiya up from head to toe. The more she looked, the more convinced she became. Then she took a few steps back, clenched her hand into a fist while leaving a slit in the middle, and held it up to her eye.
"That pose…" Jiraiya immediately felt that something was wrong.
Tsunade also looked at the old woman in confusion, her mood souring. Someone had actually come to make trouble at a moment like this.
"It was you."
Jiraiya instantly turned to stone.
Tsunade asked in confusion, "What was?"
The old woman had already confirmed that he was the voyeur and quickly said, "Yesterday we were bathing at the bath house, when someone was peeping. A child warned us, and when I looked up, I vaguely saw a figure. It was him."
Peeping?
A child?
Tsunade formed hand seals and used chakra to sense the surroundings, only to discover ten clusters of chakra hiding in a nearby corner.
"Come out!"
Kinoshita Hikaru froze. The group exchanged looks, all sharing a single thought—
Under no circumstances could they let Tsunade catch them.
"Run!"
"That's the voice!" The old woman instantly recognized Kinoshita Hikaru's voice.
(︶︿︶)=凸
(д｀)
Tsunade exploded in fury. "You little brats had better think this through. A student may run away, but the school won't."
The group stumbled to a halt. Since they had already been recognized, there was no point in running anymore.
"We didn't do anything wrong, so what are we afraid of? This was a mission," Kinoshita Hikaru said loudly.
Jiraiya, you'll just have to be sacrificed. This is all karma of your own making.
The others immediately caught on. "That's right. This was a mission, so why run?"
...
"Speak. Is what this old woman said true?" Tsunade's face was icy cold.
Kinoshita Hikaru said nothing. He had strong professional ethics, but his eyes still inadvertently flicked toward Jiraiya.
"Tsunade, y-you—you have to listen to my explanation. It's not what you think. I was only gathering material." Jiraiya kept backing away, trying to cover up his sins.
"Ji…rai…ya." Tsunade gathered chakra into her right fist and strode toward him step by step, her voice mixed with fury and disappointment.
"I thought you had changed. I thought you had gotten better. I never expected you to still be like this."
She was truly disappointed. What she had just experienced, even though it had only lasted a few hours, had been something entirely new and beautiful to her.
But now, everything had changed.
Lies would always be exposed in the end. That so-called beauty had only been a bubble, fragile and unreal, like a dream.
"Go to hell…"
Tsunade's fist, infused with the Super Strength Technique, slammed brutally into Jiraiya's jaw.
With a loud crack, Jiraiya was sent flying instantly.
Without even turning her head, she spun around and walked away.
Everyone stared with mouths agape, completely stunned by Tsunade.
"Save him!"
Kinoshita Hikaru hurried in the direction Jiraiya had been blasted away.
They had clearly heard the sound of bones breaking just now.
He wasn't beaten to death, was he?
Would Jiraiya die before ever achieving his goal, leaving heroes everywhere in tears?
By the time they reached him, they found Jiraiya lying on the ground in an utterly miserable state, already unconscious. They hurriedly carried him to the hospital.
...
Meanwhile—
Tsunade walked down the street, staring at her own hands. Deep down, she was also a little worried about Jiraiya.
Although she hadn't used her full strength in that punch, the power behind it still wasn't something to scoff at. What was more, Jiraiya hadn't used chakra to defend himself.
Could he have died?
If he did, then good. Serves that old pervert right.
She wanted to go back and check on him, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. In the end, she could only use a sensing technique to check from afar.
She discovered that Jiraiya was indeed being carried to the hospital by Kinoshita Hikaru and the others.