This Ninja Is Obviously Not Strong but Really Hard to Kill

Chapter 494: Tsunade

Some bad news—Aoba searched the entire ruins of the Whirlpool Country but couldn't find the Death God mask.

He began to frown and carefully recalled that in the original story, Orochimaru and Sasuke, Suigetsu, and Juugo quickly found the Death God mask in a dilapidated house marked with the Uzumaki clan symbol.

They then made a detour to the Naka Shrine of the Uchiha clan, where they released the souls taken by the Death God.

It was strange. Why did they specifically make a trip there?

Wait!

Considering the situation's urgency, where the Death God mask was found was very close to Konoha!

And it was directly connected to Konoha...

Finally, Aoba's frown relaxed. After thinking it through, it made sense—the ruins of the Whirlpool Country had been in decay for many years. Anything of value, even a seemingly 'useless' mask, would have indeed been taken by now.

It wouldn't make sense for it to remain untouched.

Furthermore, even though the Death God mask might not be frequently valuable, it's still the only means to perform the Reaper Death Seal; it would not be ignored and left in such a distant place.

Thus, Aoba boldly speculated that the location of the Death God mask might be near Konoha.

This made him hesitate...

After all, he was very 'weak' at the moment.

But it wouldn't be his nature to make the trip for nothing.

After considering the risks of the journey, Aoba felt he shouldn't be so unlucky.

He wasn't sneaking back into Konoha; he was merely searching for traces of the Uzumaki clan near Konoha. If he was careful, he should remain undetected.

Even if he were discovered, he would be a 'suspicious individual' at worst, and he could always run away.

It's not likely that Jiraiya would predict that he was looking for the Death God mask and set a trap for him there.

As long as he didn't encounter any shinobi of Kage level, relying solely on the "Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist" should be enough to protect himself without revealing his identity.

With this thought, he put on his hood and headed from the ruins of the Whirlpool Country towards Konoha.

Luckily, the two locations are adjacent, and he could reach quickly with his speed.

Meanwhile, two unexpected people approached Konoha from another direction.

...

"Tsunade-sama, Tsunade-sama... please wake up."

As the inebriated Tsunade, leaning against a tree, sleepily opened her eyes, her first sight was her beloved student, Shizune.

Then, perhaps still drunk, Tsunade revealed a silly smile, stretched out an arm, and pulled a visibly anxious Shizune into a suffocating embrace, giving her an experience akin to being trapped between mountains.

If a man had witnessed this scene, nine out of ten would look envious.

As for the remaining one, they'd have already moved on.

The Sage is always so detached from desires...

After pushing away the two 'mountains' and extracting her head, Shizune took several deep breaths of fresh air, then blushed and spoke in the fiercest tone she could muster, which came out rather meek.

"Tsunade-sama! Please stop messing around. We are near Konoha now, and if the people in the village see you like this, they'll be very disappointed!"

"Oink oink! (Yes, exactly!)" 

Tonton nodded at her feet, joining in the reprimand with her owner.

Tsunade yawned with a face that clearly showed her hangover, stretched lazily, and nonchalantly rubbed her left side as she said, "It's fine, it's fine, we haven't reached Konoha yet, have we? And look at our little Shizune, all grown up and worrying about appearances now. Back then, she followed me around like a little shadow..."

"Tsunade-sama! Please don't bring up the past anymore!"

Shizune's face puffed up like a dumpling as she quickly interrupted Tsunade's 'trip down memory lane'.

After all, who hasn't done a few foolish things as a child? Only when you grow up and reflect do you realise how silly you were back then.

Seeing Shizune's nostrils begin to flare frequently, Tsunade knew she couldn't tease her naive and adorable apprentice anymore. Otherwise, who would take care of her? Who would cook for her? Who would carry her when they needed to move fast?

Indeed, Tsunade had been so drunk previously that Shizune had had to carry her here.

Only when Shizune was too tired to continue did she gently lay Tsunade under a tree to rest.

But realising that they needed to make haste before dark to reach Konoha, Shizune had reluctantly woken Tsunade.

As for why they were returning, that was another story altogether.

In any case, Tsunade had returned without Jiraiya needing to come and fetch her.

However, perhaps feeling nervous as they approached her hometown, Tsunade's drinking for courage turned into drunken antics, stalling and refusing to move forward without Shizune carrying her.

And Shizune, helpless against Tsunade's whimsical behaviour, had no choice but to play the role of a pack mule once again, carrying a reeking Tsunade on her back to continue their journey.

As they walked, Tsunade, whose head rested on Shizune's shoulder, fell silent, seemingly reminiscing as she viewed the familiar surroundings.

It wasn't until Shizune suddenly uttered a soft exclamation that Tsunade's thoughts were interrupted.

"When did this building appear here? It looks like it has the Uzumaki clan symbol?" Shizune said, surprised, looking at a somewhat dilapidated house not far ahead.

"Let me see..."

Tsunade suddenly perked up, jumped off Shizune's back, and walked closer, unsurely saying, "This seems to be... the Uzumaki clan's Mask Temple?"

As a princess of Konoha, there was little Tsunade didn't know about, and it depended on whether she remembered.

Clearly, she remembered this place.

Images of a young Orochimaru and Jiraiya flashed through her mind; she recalled.

In the past, she, along with Orochimaru and Jiraiya, had accidentally stumbled upon this place with Jiraiya, the fool, thinking there was a secret to uncover here.

However, once inside, aside from the walls hung with odd masks, there was nothing else.

The tunnels and secret chambers Jiraiya had hoped for were completely absent, even after he had frustratedly touched everything in sight, unable to find any so-called 'mechanism'.

Later, out of curiosity, Tsunade asked their teacher Sarutobi about it, only then learning that this was the Mask Temple the Uzumaki clan had left here to symbolise their enduring friendship with Konoha.

However, as the Whirlpool Country was destroyed, the Uzumaki clan members either died or fled, and the place was no longer maintained.

Over time, it had become a place forgotten by everyone.

Awoken from her memories and seeing the place even more worn, Tsunade couldn't help but sigh.

Although the Whirlpool Country had become a part of history, these remnants should still be adequately preserved.