Aftermath (A Sequel to A Flash to the Future)

Chapter 53 - Godaime Hokage

Tsunade sighed as she down on the living room couch in boredom. She had just arrived to the village earlier this morning and was sent straight to the Hokage's Mansion along with Shizune. Naruto had gone home and Jiraiya ditched her not long after he accompanied to the mansion. She rolled her eyes at the thought. There were two places he could have possibly had to be: the Hokage or the hot springs. Of course, she thought the latter.

She moaned, feeling herself going through a minor withdrawal. Shizune had lectured her about being presentable to the public and political officials. As far as she knew, the elders would be calling her to meet soon and she "needed" to report to them sober. What a load of bullshit. There was a reason why her sensei nearly smoked himself to death.

Her brows furrowed as she lied on her back, staring at the ceiling. From what Jiraiya had told her, the Sandaime was in critical condition and has been for the past month. When he last saw him, he mentioned he was on life support. While she was pretty sure his condition was probably more stabilized now, she couldn't help but worry about him. Along with his sensei and friends, Naruto made sure to remind her that she needed to heal the old man - repeatedly.

A faint smile spread across her lips. There was still something off about the boy that she couldn't put her finger on. She wondered if Jiraiya realized it as well. From what she could tell, he seemed oblivious to it, but she could never be certain. He was considered a spymaster for a reason. Maybe she could talk to the old man about it. From what she heard, he and the young blond were close.

Tsunade signed again as she turned over on her side, facing the coffee table. Why did she even let that brat convince her to comeback and become this village's Hokage? She could have been somewhere near the Land of Iron right now, drinking gallons of sake and gambling loads of money. That is, if she knew who was mysteriously paying off her debts. While she wouldn't verbally admit it, the thought of someone doing that bothered her immensely. It made her wonder what sorts of other information they had on her.

The last Senju laid on the couch for the next few hours, allowing her mind to wander until there was a firm knock on the door. She heard foot-steps rushing down the stairs followed by the small clacks of hooves against the floor and knew that it was Shizune going to get the door. To be honest, she had almost forgotten that her former apprentice was up there. She needed some sake.

Shizune unlocked the door and opened it. "Good morning, Master Jiraiya." she greeted kindly.

"Good morning, Shizune." Jiraiya said as he entered into the house. "You're looking lovely as always."

"I appreciate the compliment, Jiraiya-sama." Shizune said, shutting the door.

"Finally done with your perverted schemes at the onsen?" Tsunade said as she sat up on the couch.

"I'm only a perv for you, Tsunade-hime." Jiraiya said cheekily. "And I'm a super pervert! Must I remind everyone of that?" he complained.

Tsunade frowned before she glared at him. "I'm surprised you haven't lost your manhood yet." she scowled. "Now what do you want."

"It's time to go to the tower." Jiraiya said with a serious expression. "The elders want to meet with you within the next two hours."

"Then why do I have to go now? I'm only 10 minutes away from the place."Tsunade frowned.

"It's not like you got anything else better to do." Jiraiya commented, earning a small glare from Tsunade. "Besides, you need to at least get out and familiarize yourself with the village a little. A lot has changed since you left."

Tsunade scoffed. "Yah. I can see that." she said sarcastically.

"Ne, come on, Lady Tsunade. Jiraiya-sama's right." Shizune said. "You should get out and see the village."