Chapter 27 - 27: Past Glory

The poster was huge. She spread it out all over the tabletop.

It was a gigantic thousand hands of the wooden statue, covering almost all the poster portion. It looks even more terrifying against the mountains. Underneath the statue stands the God of Shinobi proudly.​​

Hashirama Senju.

The title: Sage Art, Wood Release: True Thousand Hands.

"I heard that the First Hokage had this jutsu as his distinctive features, so according to my research, I drew this. I hope you like it."

Akabane certainly was a fan of Hashirama Senju. It showed how he delicately drew the poster.

Tsunade retracted her poster with excitement.

"Akaba-kun, thank you, this means a lot to me."

"It's just your lucky day today. This is your comic book."

Akabane gave her the comic.

Tsunade took it but remains speechless.

The poster was made only for her, so the lottery was just Akabane's idea to hide his purpose. After all, Tsunade was his first fan and was the one who accompanied him from time to time. Thus it just felt right to give her something like gratitude.

She held the poster and remained silent long enough for Akabane to feel a bit awkward.

Since childhood, Hashirama Senju has been her favorite ninja and a beloved grandfather. Tsunade thought that her grandpa would always stand tall on the Ninja World.

However, one day, the hero she admired fell in a battle…

"Since I was a child, I haven't seen my grandpa on the battlefield, so I don't know if his ninjutsu would look like this, but I'll ask grandma Mito."

With such a gift from her friend, Tsunade will be forever grateful for his kindness.

"Well, bring another copy for Grandma Mito."

Akabane handed over another copy, "Take it as my thanks to her."

"Heh, you sure are a grateful person.."

After being moved for a while, Tsunade returned to her original nature, loaded the comic, and the posters then left happily.

"Kasumi, the lottery is over, so I just need to collect the money…Well, if some children come to want to buy the comic but don't have the money, just give them some copy for free. It's just 100 Ryō, I've sold enough for today."

Akabane stood up and explained, ready to get back some sleep, it has been a long day for him.

"Yes, Akabane-sama."

Kasumi Kurama nodded and knew how to serve customers.

Moreover, as Akabane said, even if they're giving some comics for free, it's only just 100 Ryō.

In the past few days, Akabane was indeed tired.

These are the few days he has worked hardest in Naruto's World, comparable to the previous exam period. He would pass out anytime soon.

…

At Senju's courtyard.

"This day should be the opening day for his comic store. Why hasn't he sent me his comic? Did he forget something?"

Uzumaki Mito reclined her chair as she waited for Akabane to send her his comic.

Even though she was patiently waiting, she had already finished reading the first three chapters within three days.

"Grandma, look what I brought you!"

Hearing her granddaughter's voice from outside, before Tsunade entered the door, Mito got up and snatched everything on Tsunade's hands with her ninjutsu, and sat back again in a blink of an eye.

"Grandma, that's mine! How are you stealing from your granddaughter!"

Tsunade got anxious and rushed in to take back her belongings.

They both shamelessly fight for the comic and poster.

"Tsunadeee! Grandma just wants to take a peek.."

"woo woo woo woo..."

Tsunade wanted to talk, but she was hit by Mito's sealing Jutsu, and she couldn't talk properly or use her chakra.

Uzumaki Mito ignored her granddaughter, wailing, and continued to read the comic pages by pages. Then she carefully opened the poster tube.

A roll of posters came from the tube.

"Oh… there is a poster inside this. I'll gladly accept the gift." 

Uzumaki Mito deliberately teases Tsunade.

Tsunade was still struggling to open her mouth, but the seal was too strong even for her.

Without Tsunade noticing, the sealing jutsu has been lifted.

But when she witnesses her grandma looking at the poster with appreciation, she no longer wants to vent her anger.

"He used this jutsu in the Valley of the End, exactly like this."

Her voice was slightly sad.

Now that Hashirama Senju has gone, leaving only a lingering memory of his glory days. No one on Konoha understood about him more than her, his beloved wife, Mito Uzumaki.

And she knew that his Jutsu, the wood release Jutsu was only possessed by him and no one else.

"At that time, grandpa was at his peak of handsomeness.."

Tsunade said it as she wants to lighten the mood.

And Mito couldn't help but giggle. After a moment, she rolled it up and stuffed it back to the tube, then handed it to Tsunade.

"Please take it. I'm afraid I can't keep it myself."

Tsunade took the poster happily.

Uzumaki Mito picked up the comic and read it all over again from the beginning. Reading is just a regular thing in her daily life, but for Akabane's comic, she felt something special about the book.

It's different for Tsunade.

This is Akabane's gift!

"Grab the bell… Tsk, it's an old trick, but Akabane knew this trick."

"By the way, who is Kakashi Hatake?"

When Uzumaki Mito reached the fourth chapter, she suddenly asked.

"He is the son of Sakumo Hatake."

"Sakumo? Isn't that the boy from your class?"

Mito laughed. As expected, he used the character's appearance based on his classmates.

For her, this comic is just to kill boredom, this kind of fun she rarely experienced after the death of her husband.

"By the way, I heard that you put a classmate into the hospital today?"

When Mito saw Naruto being beaten, she suddenly thought of the news just now.

"Yep, just an idiot friend of mine, who went to the woman's bathroom just to do something perverted, so I couldn't help but knock some sense into him."

Tsunade clenched her teeth when she started talking about Jiraiya.

Of course, she admires how mentally retarded Jiraiya was, but his ninjutsu can't be underestimated. On the earth release jutsu, he has well mastered.

"Tsunade, when Hiruzen Sarutobi was a kid…well, this guy knows how to use his telescope jutsu… Forget it. I don't want to badmouth him since he is now the Hokage."

Uzumaki Mito stopped midway.

"What do you mean?"

Tsunade couldn't understand at all.

It is a pity that Uzumaki Mito has no interest in continuing to explain and concentrates on her comic.

The Third Hokage… Telescope Jutsu?

Tsunade didn't quite understand and didn't want to think about it anymore. She packed her things and wanted to read the comic in her room.

She carefully took the comic and especially the poster.

After all, this was the first gift she received from Akabane.