Naruto: Starting with Tsunade-san

Realizing this, Tsunade nodded firmly, giving herself a bit of encouragement. Like a ballerina, she spun gracefully and came to stand before the mirror.

In the reflection, a girl of about twelve or thirteen appeared. Her golden hair was shiny and beautiful, her face round like an egg, skin as fair as snow, with large, sparkling eyes and soft pink lips, slightly upturned at the corners in a lovely, blossoming smile.

Admiring her reflection, Tsunade nodded with a satisfied, cat-like grin. She was confident in her looks.

The face was fine. Now, onto the other parts, she thought, nodding slightly.

Looking down, she could see her toes—and her flat chest.

(´Д`)

"Big has its troubles, small has its perks..."

The double-A-rated girl sighed deeply, rubbing the uncooperative area in frustration.

Looking as though she had swallowed two pounds of poison, Tsunade was so downcast that when her parents called her for dinner, she didn't even feel like eating.

Dragging her arms, she left the house, wandering the streets like a lost soul.

"Tsunade...!"

A familiar, somewhat irritating voice called out from afar. Tsunade didn't need to turn around to know who it was.

At that moment, feeling down about her double-A status, she had no interest in talking. Ignoring him, she continued walking, as if he were just background noise.

But the persistent voice's owner moved in front of her, flashing a bright, toothy smile. "Fancy meeting you here, Tsunade."

She gave him an exasperated look. "What do you want, Jiraiya?"

Instead of answering, Jiraiya noticed her troubled expression. "Tsunade, you look a bit different today."

"Huh… Do I look that strange?"

Tsunade thought it was probably because of her "panel problem" and that her face must be showing it.

"Yeah, kind of cute, actually."

Jiraiya grinned mischievously.

Tsunade rolled her eyes, pressing a hand to her forehead with an exaggerated sigh. "If you have nothing to say, I'm leaving."

Jiraiya quickly replied, "Wait, I do, I do!"

Tsunade dropped her gloomy expression, returning to her usual serious look. "If this is the 54th confession, I'm not interested."

"Tsunade, you really aren't the expressive type, are you?"

With skin thick as armor, Jiraiya was as indestructible as a fortress.

Tsunade huffed, uninterested in hearing him babble, and started to walk off.

"Wait, don't go! I have a question for you."

"What question?" She paused, tolerating two sentences of his nonsense.

"What's your zodiac sign?"

Hearing this random question, Tsunade was momentarily taken aback but replied, "I was born on August 2nd, so I should be a Leo. Why, what does it matter?"

Jiraiya grinned. "Well, do you know what my sign is?"

"Toad sign?"

"There's no such zodiac sign!" Jiraiya looked exasperated. "Why don't you guess again?"

"Pervert sign?"

Jiraiya shook his head. "Nope, not that either. Let me tell you, I'm made for you."

Tsunade: …

If she could, she'd love to take a scalpel to Jiraiya's face to figure out what exactly it was made of.

"So, what do you think of my confession?"

Tsunade was too tired to even call him an idiot and just walked off.

Jiraiya followed behind her, still as persistent as ever. "Tsunade, I've been trying so hard—just give me a chance."

Tsunade ignored him, ready to speed up, but something seemed to come to mind, and she stopped.

Seeing this, Jiraiya brightened up, mistaking her intentions. "Haha, Tsunade, have you finally come around to go on a date with me?"

Tsunade scoffed, "A toad dreaming of eating swan meat—keep dreaming."

Jiraiya pouted, "That's harsh, comparing me to a toad."

"Enough, stop babbling. It's not the first time someone's called you that. I have a question."

"Huh? What is it?"

Tsunade asking him for advice? Jiraiya was surprised.

With her eyes shifting, Tsunade hesitated briefly before biting the bullet. "What type of girls do guys generally like?"

Jiraiya looked stunned. "Why do you want to know?"

"I have… a friend who's not good with expressing her feelings and asked me to ask for her."

"A friend? Who?"

"None of your business." After a pause, Tsunade added, "I'm obligated to protect my friend's privacy."

"That friend wouldn't happen to be you, would it?"

Jiraiya became cautious, half-jokingly testing the waters.

Many truths are revealed in half-jokes; this approach left him with some room to maneuver. Though often oblivious, Jiraiya was surprisingly perceptive in this area due to his extensive "theoretical" experience.

"Hmph, boring."

Tsunade then asked, "Have you seen Tōshirō back in the village?"

"Nope. He's probably still on that pet-retrieving mission. Why?"

"I'll just wait for him to return and ask him myself."

"Wait, no, I can help with this kind of thing! I'm an expert." Jiraiya rubbed his hands together eagerly. "According to the 'Hypotenuse Theory,' most guys like girls with a big butt and big—"

"What's this 'Hypotenuse Theory'?"

It sounded like some kind of academic study to Tsunade.

Jiraiya laughed, explaining it in detail. When he was done, Tsunade frowned deeply and snapped, "You're disgusting."

As much as she hated to admit it, Jiraiya did have a point. After all, certain people were often vocal about such things.

After he elaborated on his "Hypotenuse Theory," Jiraiya rambled on about clothing and styling tips.

When he finally looked at her, he saw Tsunade lost in thought, her eyes downcast.

Noticing his gaze, she glared at him fiercely. "What are you staring at?"

Jiraiya quickly waved his hands, denying everything.

Tsunade shot him a look of contempt. "You guys are all so disgusting."

With that, she turned, striding away.

This time, Jiraiya didn't follow, simply watching her leave with tears in his eyes. Heartbroken, he had officially been rejected.

A few days later, in the summer heat, Tōshirō returned to the village after his mission. Thirsty, he was ready to find a spot to sit down and enjoy some tea to refresh himself.

On the way, he ran into Jiraiya, who looked gloomy, like he'd been through a heartbreak.

When Jiraiya spotted Aokiji, he seemed to find a kindred spirit, as if a ray of light had broken through the clouds. "Finally, you're back!"

"Did something happen?"

"Uh…"

"Wait, I'm parched. Let me get some tea first, and then you can tell me everything."

Jiraiya: …

At a Dessert Shop

Across a square table with plates of dango and cups of tea, Tōshirō and Jiraiya sat face-to-face. Tōshirō held his tea, blowing on it gently. "Alright, what happened?"

Jiraiya, looking disheartened and with no appetite, replied, "I've been rejected…"

"You've never even dated; how could you get rejected?"

Tōshirō took a sip of tea, unfazed. It tasted good, and he quickly downed the rest.

Jiraiya growled in frustration, "It's Tsunade. She likes someone else."

"Ah!"

Tōshirō's eyes bulged, nearly choking on his tea.

"What's going on?"

With a heavy sigh, Jiraiya looked sorrowful as he recounted his recent interactions with Tsunade.

"You're saying…!"

Tōshirō's face changed drastically. He slammed his hands on the table, standing up suddenly.

Jiraiya gave him a puzzled look. "Why are you so upset? It's not like you were the one rejected."

Like I could stay calm!

So, the thing he worried about most had finally happened.

(End of Chapter)

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