Bad business!!
While restoring Saiki's chakra, Tsunade noticed him staring at her intensely.
Thinking about how Saiki had persisted in bringing her breakfast every single morning lately, and the lingering ambiguity between them, Tsunade's face began to heat up.
Still, she maintained her forceful facade, glaring at Saiki. "What are you looking at me for?"
"Am I not allowed to look?" Saiki shot back with a question of his own.
"No, you are not," Tsunade replied with firm, ringing authority.
To this, Saiki merely offered a slight smile. "You're so beautiful, Sister Tsunade. It would be a tragedy not to look. I just... happen to love looking at you."
Seeing Saiki's look, and knowing she had no real way to handle him, Tsunade could only roll her eyes.
She fell silent and continued the medical treatment.
Just because Tsunade didn't want to talk didn't mean Saiki was going to stay quiet.
"Tsunade, didn't you have hemophobia? You're completely cured now. How did that happen?"
He knew her fear of blood was gone, he just hadn't found the right moment to bring it up until now.
Furthermore, Saiki had already guessed exactly why it was cured.
When Saiki mentioned the hemophobia, Tsunade was immediately reminded of the exact reason she was healed.
A deep crimson flush instantly painted her pale, beautiful face.
Determined not to let this brat see her weakness, she maintained her cold, dominant stare.
"Shut up. Don't speak. No one will think you're a mute if you keep your mouth shut. Just focus on recovering your chakra."
"What, I'm not even allowed to talk now? I'm just worried about you," Saiki countered, refusing to back down.
After playing the "Time Management Master" for a few days, Tsume's defenses had already begun to crumble.
He couldn't let Tsunade fall behind. Discussing the hemophobia was the perfect opening to delve into deeper topics.
Compared to Tsume, who had already been taken multiple times and put into various positions by Saiki, Tsunade—who had only spent one night with him—was desperate to avoid the subject.
"I don't need your concern. Let me heal you properly, or I'll just leave you here," Tsunade snapped, her eyes flashing with a mix of shame and anger.
Though her voice was icy, the faint blush on her face made her look incredibly adorable, a fact Tsunade was completely oblivious to.
Saiki put on an expression like he was looking at a "white-eyed wolf," speaking with feigned heartbreak.
"Wow, Tsunade. After everything we've been through? I bring you food every morning, and now I'm not even allowed to care about you? You're so heartless!"
But Tsunade's temper was much fiercer than Tsume's. She wasn't about to give an inch.
Getting genuinely annoyed by Saiki's pestering, she said flatly, "If you don't close your mouth this instant, you can finish your recovery on your own."
This was Tsunade's final ultimatum. However, Saiki wasn't about to yield either.
"And here I was, worried sick about you, rushing back to help... fine! I'll just recover by myself!"
With that, Saiki stood up abruptly, grabbed his sword, and vanished with a Body Flicker, heading toward the other sector of the battlefield.
Watching the spot where Saiki had vanished, Tsunade was stunned. She couldn't process what had just triggered him.
In reality, there was no "trigger." He was simply throwing a tantrum to signal to Tsunade that he was angry and hurt.
Of course, Saiki wasn't actually angry or sad.
He adopted this attitude specifically to tell Tsunade: If you don't give me a response, I will be miserable.
After the initial shock, Tsunade realized why Saiki was upset.
She let out a helpless sigh. She saw all of Saiki's attempts to curry favor and his constant attentiveness, but a future for them was impossible!
She was old enough to be his mother, for God's sake.
Heading toward the other battlefield, Saiki had to admit that Tsunade was truly the greatest "healer" in the Shinobi World.
Even with his monstrous physical durability, the speed of his recovery under her hands had been remarkable.
The fighting on the other front was already winding down.
Saiki sensed that Genhai and the others were currently transporting the wounded back toward the main camp.
Despite being in the Leaf, Saiki still felt zero sense of belonging.
Setting aside the bad impression the village left on him from the manga of his past life, in this life alone—Tsunade, Nono'u, and Kushina—all of them had lived tragic lives because of the Leaf's high-level leadership.
This made Saiki despise the village from the bottom of his heart.
However, he had nowhere else to go for now, so he went to help.
Saiki's hatred for the village leadership wasn't baseless.
After a long day of fighting, just as he was preparing to have a massive meal and a good sleep, he was summoned to Jiraiya's command tent.
Facing Jiraiya, Saiki didn't bother with titles like "Lord Jiraiya" or kneeling.
Jiraiya didn't deserve that level of respect from him. Saiki just gave a casual wave and a "Hi."
Then, he turned to Tsunade and Tsume, who were also present. "Sister Tsunade, Sensei Tsume, what are you two doing here?"
Being completely ignored, Jiraiya's mouth twitched, and his expression was one of pure helplessness.
But he didn't get angry; he was fundamentally a very broad-minded and easygoing man.
Minato Namikaze was also there. Despite them working together twice today, he was also completely ignored by Saiki.
Given the strength Saiki had just displayed—criminally wounding the Two-Tails with a single strike—Jiraiya knew he couldn't force the boy's respect.
Respect is earned through power, and Saiki had plenty of it.
Perhaps still brooding over the afternoon's argument, Tsunade ignored Saiki.
Tsume spoke up instead. "Lord Jiraiya has some business with me."
As for Saiki's total lack of social etiquette, Shinku Yuhi—who had led Saiki's squad—had already given up on teaching him.
Tsume couldn't convince Saiki to be polite either.
She found it a headache, but she didn't think he was a lost cause, because Saiki's interpersonal relationships with his friends were actually fine.
Did Saiki really not understand social etiquette?
He just didn't care about "political progress." He just didn't like being told what to do.
"Oh," Saiki grunted. He looked at Jiraiya. "What do you want? I haven't even had dinner yet."
Looking at the boy, Jiraiya felt a literal ache in his teeth.
But he knew that arguing with a child was a losing game.
He replied with a sigh, "The Hokage has sent his reply. Your attack on the Root operatives has caused a major diplomatic incident within the village hierarchy. You are being recalled to Konoha immediately. You will likely be assigned to the Anbu. This is to prevent any further 'unfortunate' conflicts."
"Recalled to Konoha? To join the Anbu?" Saiki's eyes narrowed into dangerous slits.
He looked at Tsume. "What about you, Sensei?"
Killing Root members could be a big deal or a minor one, depending on the politics.
For Hiruzen Sarutobi to pull a combat asset as massive as Saiki back to the village to be a "masked guard" was deeply suspicious to him.
As for joining the Anbu, Saiki didn't actually care. Not having to slaughter people on the front lines every day was a plus.
He might be a bloody fighter—usually bisecting his enemies—but that was just the reality of the battlefield.
It was kill or be killed. Saiki didn't actually enjoy the act of murder.
Returning to the village was good news in one sense: he hadn't seen Sister Nono'u or Kushina in a long time.
In the past, when he lacked strength, being forced into the Anbu would have terrified him.
But now? If Hiruzen Sarutobi tried anything funny, Saiki wouldn't hesitate to kill the Hokage himself.
However, he was worried about one thing: the safety of Tsume, Genhai, and Kurenai on the front lines without him.
Tsume was genuinely happy about the Anbu assignment.
In her eyes, the Anbu were the Hokage's elite honor guard.
Unaware of Hiruzen's true nature, she assumed this was a prestigious promotion for Saiki.
"We're going back too! This last mission had too many variables, so the Hokage has granted our squad some well-deserved leave," Tsume said with a bright smile.
"Is that so?" Saiki nodded.
He looked at Tsunade. She remained silent, her face clouded and grim.
It was obvious. Tsunade, like Saiki, knew Hiruzen's true colors.
The entire Senju clan had been systematically dismantled and buried under the leadership of Hiruzen and his peers.
Tsunade knew that while Root appeared to be Danzo's private toy, it was still a branch of the Anbu.
The Anbu had Root members, and Root had Anbu members.
Recalling Saiki to join the Anbu meant Danzo would have countless opportunities to "handle" him.