Chapter 264 : Someone Steals The Corpse

Therefore, Tsunade and Sunagakure were on friendly terms. The goal was simply to foster good relations between the two villages, not to escalate into a potential shinobi war.

Tsunade gazed out the window at the village for a while before suddenly smiling.

"If we had a child... do you think they'd inherit our strengths? Would you prefer a boy or a girl?"

Riku was momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected her to bring up something like that.

Under Riku's steady gaze, Tsunade looked a little embarrassed.

"I don't know if it's just because I'm getting older... but I've started to want a child."

Riku thought for a moment.

"Let's wait a few more years—until things settle down."

Tsunade chuckled.

"Thanks to the medicine you gave me, my body feels like it's in its twenties again. But maybe I really am getting old... I can't seem to keep up with your thinking anymore."

Riku could sense that she was worried.

Her body may have been rejuvenated, but her mind remained that of someone in her fifties. It reminded him of when he first transmigrated into this world—his body was that of a child, but his mind was not.

So, while Tsunade physically looked young, her thoughts and feelings were still shaped by her age. And that couldn't be changed.

It was normal for someone her age to want a child.

In the past, it hadn't mattered—she hadn't met anyone she truly cared for. But now, she was Riku's de facto wife.

She wasn't the type to act recklessly anymore, not when there were consequences that involved someone she loved.

For the first time in the Hokage's office, Riku wrapped his arms around Tsunade's slender waist and said with a gentle smile,

"When things settle down, we'll have one—whether it's a boy or a girl. Hopefully the boy will be as handsome and strong as me, and the girl as beautiful as you... but with a personality—hmm, actually, maybe it'd be better if she were a bit gentler."

Originally, Riku had intended to say, "With a personality like yours." But then he thought about Tsunade's fiery temper. If he had a daughter, maybe it would be better if she had a softer nature.

In truth, Riku hoped for one of each—a boy and a girl. The boy would inherit his strength and looks, the girl would have Tsunade's beauty and his own strength.

But Tsunade raised an eyebrow at Riku's hesitation.

"You're saying I have a bad personality?"

Riku laughed.

"Not at all. I just want her to be gentler... but with the same cheerful spirit you have."

Tsunade was actually quite gentle when it came to Riku.

So after giving him a brief glare, she let out a sigh.

"I hope our children can live in a peaceful world."

Hearing that, Riku confirmed it—Tsunade's mindset hadn't changed. That was the wish of an older generation for the next.

But Riku himself wasn't exactly young. He had lived over twenty years in his previous life, and sixteen in this one. Close to thirty altogether.

In truth, his total age wasn't that much younger than Tsunade's.

Riku smiled.

"There's still time. But if we do have children, I promise—I'll protect them with everything I have."

Tsunade offered a soft smile, resting her arms on the windowsill as she looked out at the blazing afternoon sun.

The next day, Riku drafted a training plan for Naruto and sent him to one of Konoha's large training grounds to practice.

Konoha had many such grounds—some vast, like the Forest of Death, which had a radius of nearly ten kilometers. Even the more commonly used fields stretched several kilometers wide.

These areas were all located on the outskirts of the residential zone, but still under Konoha jurisdiction.

In the central residential district, most of the inhabitants belonged to shinobi clans.

Naruto was currently training at one of the larger practice grounds.

Yamato stood nearby to supervise. Even though Naruto had reached an agreement with Kurama, they couldn't take risks. Someone had to watch him.

Over the past month, Riku had not taken on any missions from Tsunade. Not because he wasn't willing, but simply because there hadn't been any that required his level of ability.

So, Riku either spent his days in the Hokage's office reading, or secluded himself in the secret archive of the Senju clan.

Wherever he was, most of his time was devoted to studying.

In that time, Naruto had made remarkable progress. He could now safely use part of Kurama's chakra.

Though he couldn't yet access its full power, he could maintain mental clarity up to the Seven-Tails level.

That alone was already incredibly powerful.

Now that he could enter Tailed Beast Mode, Naruto had reached the level of a Kage.

At this point, Sasuke likely wouldn't be able to match him.

Tsunade was pleased. She didn't need Naruto to be too powerful—just strong enough to avoid being captured by Akatsuki.

And Naruto had reached that point. As long as he didn't face someone like Uchiha Itachi or Nagato directly, he could hold his own.

When Naruto finally mastered the Seven-Tails level, Tsunade received troubling intel from the Fire Temple.

Inside the Hokage's office, Tsunade frowned as she looked at Yamato, Naruto, Sakura, and Sai standing before her.

"This mission is to investigate the disappearance of corpses from the Fire Temple. The shinobi buried near the temple were all members of the Twelve Guardian Ninja."

Naruto blinked in confusion.

"The Twelve Guardian Ninja?"

Tsunade thought for a moment before explaining.

"They were Elite Jōnin from across the Land of Fire—twelve in total. Someone stole their bodies, likely for a very dangerous purpose."

Naruto was shocked.

"Twelve Elite Jōnin? Our country has that many?"

Elite Jōnin were rare. Even Jōnin were only a few dozen in number within Konoha.

Elite Jōnin were even scarcer. Maybe five or six in the ANBU, three or four in Root, and then clan leaders like Shikaku Nara or Hiashi Hyuga. Add in Kakashi, Asuma... and there still weren't many.

Konoha had tens of thousands of shinobi, but only a handful of Elite Jōnin.

Even during the Fourth Great Ninja War, the 20,000 shinobi fielded under Konoha's banner were a mix of true Konoha ninjas and allied forces from the Land of Fire.

Konoha alone didn't have 20,000 ninjas.

Even if Konoha had 10,000 active-duty shinobi, only a small fraction were Jōnin. And even fewer were Elite Jōnin.

So twelve of them, from across the country—that was a serious force.

If someone had stolen their corpses... the implications were terrifying.

If they were resurrected using Impure World Reincarnation... it would be even worse.

That technique had become more and more refined in recent years.

Riku had also mastered Impure World Reincarnation, and had developed it to an extremely advanced level.

But with his strength, the only reason he'd use it would be to combine it with Tandem Paper Bombs.

As for summoning the dead to fight alongside him? Riku didn't need that.

As Naruto stared in shock, Riku spoke calmly.

"The Land of Fire is bigger than you think. Konoha isn't the only shinobi village. There are many powerful individuals out there. But that doesn't matter right now. Your mission is to find out who took those bodies."

"And why."

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