“We’ll continue studying today.” Mito sat on a cushion nearby with an ancient sealing diagram in her hands.
“Mirai, you said yesterday that you’ve already mastered the Four Symbols Seal.
Show me.”
She drew a simple formula array on the floor and had Mirai demonstrate the sealing process on the spot.
Mirai immediately formed the hand seals, guided his chakra, and completed the seal in one smooth sequence without a wasted movement.
In canon, Danzo Shimura had used the Reverse Four Symbols Sealing Technique at the cost of his life, and the resulting seal had swallowed an entire stone bridge.
That was a frightening amount of power.
Mirai, of course, was only using a miniature version right now.
With his absurd chakra control, there was no need to sacrifice his life over something so small.
It only cost him a bit of chakra.
Mito nodded in satisfaction.
“Good.
You can begin studying the Five Elements Seal.”
She took out a new scroll and handed it to him.
“The Five Elements Seal involves balancing all five chakra natures.
It’s much more complicated than the Four Symbols Seal.
Read through it yourself first.
Ask me if there’s anything you don’t understand.”
Mirai accepted the scroll and immediately buried himself in it.
Then Mito turned to Kushina.
“Kushina, can you recite the core mnemonic for the Four Symbols Seal yet?”
Kushina: “…”
Mito sighed.
“I knew you hadn’t memorized it.
Here.
Copy the second section fifty times, then recite it to me.”
Kushina took the paper and brush with a pout and sprawled over the table.
She had barely written a few characters before her eyes drifted toward Mirai again.
He sat cross-legged beside her with a scroll across his knees.
One hand turned the pages while the other traced the direction of the formulas in the air.
His brow was slightly furrowed as he quietly murmured to himself.
The chamber light fell across his red hair, wrapping it in a warm glow.
Kushina stared so long that the tip of her brush stopped moving.
A drop of ink spread across the paper without her noticing.
Mito saw everything.
She lifted her tea, took a sip, and sighed inwardly.
That girl’s feelings were becoming impossible to hide.
Still, Mito said nothing.
Sometimes young feelings were better left unspoken.
As long as it didn’t interfere with anything important, she would let nature take its course.
An hour later, Mito rose.
“I’m going to prepare dinner.
Keep practicing while I’m gone.
No slacking off.”
The moment Mito was far enough away, Kushina tossed down her brush, crawled over to Mirai, and dropped beside him with her chin resting on the edge of the table.
“Mirai, how’s it going?”
“Pretty well.” Mirai didn’t look up.
“The Five Elements Seal’s theoretical structure is more complicated, but the central logic connects to what I already learned.”
“I understood none of that.”
“…Then learn the Four Symbols Seal first.”
“No.
I just want to watch you study.”
Mirai finally raised his head and gave her a helpless look.
“Did you finish copying?”
“No.”
“Then go copy it!
If Grandma Mito comes back and catches you slacking off, she’s going to flick your forehead again.”
Kushina pouted but didn’t move away.
She buried her face in her arms, leaving only her eyes visible.
“Let me rest for a little while…
Nobody’s rushing me.”
“…How exactly are you planning to become the woman of the Hokage like this?”
“When will you become Hokage?”
“Uh…
probably not for at least another ten years or more.”
“Then there’s no hurry.
I can start working hard ten years from now.”
Mirai didn’t know whether to laugh or cry at that logic.
He gave up on arguing and lowered his head back to the scroll.
Kushina simply lay beside him and watched in silence.
The dim sealing chamber was filled only by the rustling of scroll pages and their quiet breathing.
For some reason, Kushina thought it would be nice if things could stay like this forever.
Naori Uchiha, Mikoto Uchiha – none of them mattered.
After school, the person sitting beside Mirai was still her, Kushina Uzumaki.
Though it would be even better if Grandma Mito didn’t insist that she learn sealing techniques too.
That evening, after training ended, the two returned to the main house and happened to meet Tsunade coming home.
She was clearly in a terrible mood.
Her blond hair was messy over her shoulders, her beautiful face was pulled tight, and even the force with which she kicked off her shoes seemed stronger than usual.
“Big Sis Tsunade, what’s wrong?” Kushina asked with concern.
“I’m annoyed.
Leave me alone.”
Tsunade collapsed onto the sofa as though every bone had been pulled from her body.
Mirai’s eyes turned thoughtfully.
“Big Sis Tsunade, want me to give you a massage?
You’ve spent a month massaging me.
I should return the favor.”
Tsunade glanced at him, hesitated, then lazily rolled over onto her stomach.
“Fine.
I’m going to take a bath first.
Put some strength into it later.
My shoulders are killing me.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
After her bath, Tsunade came out wrapped in a bath towel, still carrying the heat of the water with her.
Mirai swallowed, rubbed his hands together, and sat behind her.
He placed both palms on her shoulders and began kneading the tense muscles.
Tsunade let out a satisfied hum and gradually relaxed.
She didn’t think much of Mirai’s presence at all.
In her eyes, he was still just a seven-year-old brat.
During the massage, Mirai’s attention wandered for a moment too long.
Tsunade opened one eye and gave him a sideways look.
“Brat.
What are you staring at?”
“The scenery,” Mirai replied without changing expression.
“Very nice scenery.”
Whack!
A knuckle landed on his head.
“Scenery, my ass.
Focus on the massage!”
Mirai grimaced and rubbed his head before obediently returning to work.
He made a mental note that Tsunade would owe him for that one eventually.
After a while, his hands slowed and his tone became casual.
“Big Sis Tsunade, are you in a bad mood because you lost at gambling?
How much did you lose?”
“What do you mean, ‘how much did I lose’?!”
Tsunade abruptly rolled over, nearly losing her towel before grabbing it in time, and glared at him.
“Do I look like someone whose only problem is losing money at the gambling table?”
Mirai stared at her in silence for two seconds.
Tsunade looked away guiltily.
“…Fine.
I did lose a little today.
But that’s not the point!”
“Then what is?”
Tsunade sighed and lay down again, her voice muffled against the sofa cushion.
“There was a jonin meeting today.
I proposed assigning medical support to shinobi teams – at least one medical ninja capable of treating injuries in the field.
If someone gets hurt on a mission, they could be treated immediately.
It would save a lot of lives.”
Her irritation returned as she continued.
“The logistics people rejected it immediately.
Not enough budget, not enough manpower, training takes too long.
Then the other jonin started saying it was unnecessary.
‘Ninja should know how to treat their own wounds.’ ‘There’s no time for dedicated treatment on the battlefield.’ A bunch of stubborn old fossils.”
She paused.
“Only one person supported me.”
Mirai’s hands stopped for a fraction of a second.
“Who?”
“Dan Kato.” There was a note of surprise and gratitude in Tsunade’s voice.
“He said, ‘Every shinobi on the battlefield is a valuable resource.
One more medical ninja means one more life that can be saved.'”
“Unfortunately, he doesn’t have much influence either.
The proposal still failed.”
Mirai’s expression immediately turned more serious when he heard the name.
Dan Kato.
Tsunade’s boyfriend in canon.
He would later die during the Shinobi World War.
His death, along with Nawaki’s, left scars Tsunade carried for the rest of her life and eventually caused her fear of blood.
So this was where it had started.
Everyone else opposed her.
Dan alone stood beside her.
Of course Tsunade would remember him.
“What about Jiraiya-senpai and Orochimaru-senpai?” Mirai asked.
“They’re both out on missions.
They weren’t at the meeting.
If they had been there, Orochimaru at least would probably have backed me up…”
Tsunade’s voice grew quieter, her disappointment obvious.
Mirai was silent for a moment.
Then he said, “Big Sis Tsunade, I think your proposal is good.”
Tsunade turned her head enough to look at him with one eye.
“What would a little brat like you know?”
“I understand plenty.” Mirai continued massaging her shoulders, but his voice was serious.
“Think about it.
If someone on a shinobi team is badly injured during a mission, doesn’t the entire team usually have to retreat?
But if they have a medical ninja with them, that injury can be treated immediately and the mission might continue.”
“A medical ninja can also judge the condition of their teammates in advance and prevent non-combat losses from exhaustion or untreated injuries.”
Tsunade froze.
“And if every squad eventually has a medical ninja, those medics will gain battlefield experience instead of spending their entire careers inside a hospital.
A medical ninja who grows through real combat will become far more capable than someone who only treats minor illnesses in a clinic.”
The room went quiet.
Tsunade suddenly sat up, eyes wide.
“You…
where did you learn to think about things like that?”
“A sealing scroll,” Mirai lied without hesitation.
“Grandma Mito has one that talks about the history of battlefield medicine.”
Tsunade stared at him for several seconds, then suddenly pulled him into a tight hug.
“You little brat…
seriously…” Her voice was slightly muffled.
“You understand this better than those old fossils do.”
Mirai’s brain briefly stopped functioning.
Tsunade released him soon enough.
In her eyes, he was just a child, and the embrace meant nothing more than affection.
She lay down again, her gloomy expression already lighter.
“Still, what good does it do if you’re the only one who agrees with me?
The jonin meeting rejected it.
Nothing I say changes that.”
Mirai rubbed his nose and looked at her dejected profile.
His eyes slowly turned thoughtful.
Tsunade was his.
He had no intention of handing her over to Dan Kato.
Which meant the best solution was obvious.
He would help Tsunade get the proposal approved himself.
That would both prevent Dan from using this issue to earn more goodwill and make Tsunade look at Mirai in a new light.
A slow smile appeared on his face.
“Big Sis Tsunade…
want me to give you an idea?”
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