"Father... is that you? I—I—wasn't I in the genjutsu game? What is... Father, what am I supposed to do?"
Tsunade trembled as confusion and fear clouded her mind. Her pupils shook violently, and under the weight of extreme fear, her thoughts buzzed uncontrollably—she could no longer distinguish reality from illusion.
In a daze, she thought she saw her father's figure appear nearby, gazing at her with eyes full of disappointment.
Then that voice echoed again: "Shut up! Tsunade! This is no time for cowardice and self-pity! I told you—look ahead! Nawaki is right there! He's waiting for the sister who once failed to save him... to save him now in this world!"
That voice—her father's call—was enough to get Tsunade moving. At the very least, she lifted her head.
And there, in front of her, appeared a ghostly blue translucent figure—looking exactly like Nawaki.
The boy opened his mouth and reached out, seemingly wanting to call "Nee-chan." But just then, an evil spirit's hand reached out from behind and snatched him away, dragging him into endless darkness.
Seeing this, Tsunade's pupils dilated in horror, and she let out a hysterical scream: "NAWAKI!!"
At that moment, her hemophobia was shattered—not cured, but smashed through by the sheer force of her determination to protect and save her brother. Tsunade charged forward without hesitation.
But evil spirits and bloody monstrosities kept emerging, blocking her path. No matter how much she hated it, Tsunade had to fight.
This wasn't the weakness of a female character—it was the raw, true power of one of the Legendary Sannin, Tsunade.
Yet the sheer number and strength of the enemies far surpassed that of the original version of the game, slowing her progress drastically.
In gaming terms, Tsunade was under the effects of confusion and instability debuffs. She could no longer tell what was real and what wasn't. Her mind was consumed by a single thought:
Save Nawaki!
Just as her "father" had said—she failed once, but here in the realm of the soul, she could not afford to fail again.
This time, she would save him.
Advance—advance, and never stop!
Anyone who stood in her way—must die!
At that moment, Tsunade resembled a war goddess. Unaware, she had completely forgotten this was a genjutsu world. Her will had already transformed it into a battle against death itself.
Of course, this wasn't normal. For a ninja of Tsunade's caliber, losing awareness like this wasn't possible—unless it was something like Infinite Tsukuyomi.
The reason? Uchiha Kei.
He had used the dual powers of the spiritual network and Sharingan to subtly implant mental suggestions from the moment Tsunade entered the illusion, gradually eroding her sense of what was real.
Of course, direct suggestion would've failed—but Tsunade's hemophobia and unstable mental state made her particularly vulnerable.
Had it been someone with firmer resolve, Kei's little trick would've done nothing. But against Tsunade, it worked.
Right now, Tsunade truly believed her father was urging her to save Nawaki, and that Nawaki's soul was being dragged into darkness by evil spirits.
She never questioned how or why such things existed—her mind glossed over it.
This intense and unstable state of mind could only exist within the illusion. Once the genjutsu ended, she'd return to normal.
Which meant—this was the only shot at curing her hemophobia!
Evil spirit?
Smash it!
Blood monster?
Smash it!
Obstacle?
Smash it!
Corpse?
Smash it!
Everything that dared block her path was crushed beneath her iron fists. And before she knew it, Tsunade's avatar reverted to her original self—her true form.
One of the Legendary Sannin, Tsunade-hime of the Hidden Leaf, shone brightly in this custom-made game.
And she didn't let Uchiha Kei's efforts go to waste—her performance triggered another drop of golden spirit energy for him.
A proper reward.
Beside Kei, Nawaki watched his sister's unstoppable rampage, torn between awe and terror. Sweat poured down his face as he swallowed hard.
"U-uh... Kei-nii, w-what if sis finds out the truth later? That we tricked her... won't she get mad?"
Uchiha Kei responded instantly, "What are you talking about? Did we force her? No! We were helping her! So what if she gets mad—what's that got to do with us?"
"She wanted to cure her hemophobia. She chose to take on this game. It's all on her—her problem."
Nawaki blinked in confusion. Kei's words felt like twisted logic... but they kind of made sense.
Kei patted him on the shoulder. "Let me tell you—mental illness is no joke. They haunt people their whole lives."
"Your sister's hemophobia is the same. If untreated, it will always control her. During an episode, she can't move, can't speak. So don't feel guilty—you're not hurting her."
"Really, it's her fault. If she didn't have hemophobia, would we even be doing this? No—we wouldn't."
Nawaki was even more confused now. He scratched his head, gave up thinking, and nodded. "I get it. Basically, Kei-nii, no matter what we do to sis right now, it's fine—it's all for her own good, right?"
Uchiha Kei smiled. "Exactly. So no guilt. And even if she does get mad in the end, she won't take it out on the guy who healed her."
Nawaki nodded, then realized something. "Wait... Kei-nii, why wouldn't she take it out on *you*? What about *me*?"
Kei smiled meaningfully. "Don't worry. Believe me—women who can't open a soy sauce cap in front of men are fully capable of twisting their little brother's skull right off when angry."
He patted Nawaki's shoulder again. Nonsense or wisdom—it was hard to tell.
And when Nawaki finally processed what he meant, his face turned pale. "So all that talk... you're just throwing me under the bus?! That's so underhanded, Kei-nii!!"
Kei chuckled silently. It was all in good fun.
After all, it wasn't like Tsunade would really hurt her brother—especially after ten long years of guilt and longing.
Meanwhile, in the illusion game, Tsunade continued her berserk charge. She had just passed the three-choice zone and reached the starting point of the game *Return Home*.
And right then, Kei gave a friendly slap to the trembling Nawaki and sent him into the game.
He appeared in the starting area—trapped in a terrifying skeletal prison.
Floating nearby was the game's most iconic female evil spirit, waiting for Tsunade's arrival.
Tsunade spotted them from afar. Her gaze instantly locked onto Nawaki—shivering and locked in that cage.
Her heart clenched.
Then rage ignited.
Her face twisted with fury—the righteous wrath of a sister seeing her brother abused and imprisoned.
That expression terrified Nawaki. Already scared of being beaten, he began trembling and stammered, "S-sis..."
Please don't hit me.
That's what he wanted to say, but the words wouldn't come out. He was too afraid.
He had just watched his sister demolish monsters with brutal, unrelenting force. They died horribly.
To a twelve-year-old like Nawaki, the trauma was immense. For the first time, he truly understood the phrase "the beauty of violence."
Watching her beat up others was awe-inspiring. Imagining himself getting hit? Pure fear.
So his reaction was 100% genuine emotion—zero acting.
Tsunade, unaware of the truth, believed her brother was scared and calling out to his useless, unworthy sister to come save him. Her heart shattered from guilt.
She didn't hesitate.
She charged forward with all her strength, unleashing her Byakugō Seal in full.
Tsunade entered her strongest state. Her beautiful, furious face radiated killing intent—a resolve to annihilate every evil spirit that dared harm her brother.
Right here, right now—none shall stand. None shall remain!
Anything or anyone that blocked her path would be obliterated!
BOOM!
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!!
The entire opening area of *Return Home* crumbled as Tsunade tore through it.
Nawaki watched in horror as the evil spirit charged at Tsunade, only to be torn apart by her with reckless abandon, even at the cost of her own injuries.
This was no exaggeration—it was raw fact. And it shook Nawaki's fragile little soul to its core.
Finally, with a blood-soaked, expressionless face, Tsunade shattered the giant cage and stepped inside.
Nawaki instinctively wanted to scream, "Don't come near me!"
But to his terror, he couldn't speak or move. Uchiha Kei had used admin privileges to freeze him.
He couldn't be forced to do anything, but he could be forced to do *nothing*.
So he stood there, frozen, as Tsunade approached and reached out her hand.
He couldn't escape. He couldn't talk. He could only close his eyes and brace himself.
But instead of a punch, he found himself pulled into a warm, soft embrace.
It was a hug he knew well—it was Tsunade's hug.
Warmth and moisture spread across his face and shoulder. He opened his eyes.
Tsunade was kneeling in front of him, holding him tightly. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
It was a hug and a cry over a decade in the making—the sorrow of a sister who had lost her brother, now pouring out in this long-awaited salvation.
"I'm so glad... really, I'm so glad... Nawaki..."
"This time... I finally saved you..."
Her tearful voice choked with emotion, leaving Nawaki speechless.
At last, he returned the hug, whispering words he'd long wanted to say.
"Yeah... Thank you, Nee-chan."
"I'm really glad... to be your little brother."