— — — — — —

"This's kind of a long story." Renzo gave a small smile.

"Then make it short," Tsunade and Kurenai said in unison, staring him down with deadpan expressions.

Renzo sighed, clearly at a loss, and finally said, "Well, it all started when I went to the moon…"

And so, he told the two women everything that had happened — leaving nothing out.

He especially highlighted the part about the Sage of Six Paths.

As for gaining control over the Pure Land?

He embellished a little, explaining that if no one took charge, the whole place would spiral out of control, and eventually, every soul would be forced into reincarnation whether they were ready or not.

"And besides," Renzo turned to Tsunade, "didn't you say you wanted to bring Nawaki back? If I hadn't taken control, it would've been impossible to resurrect him."

"Really?"

Tsunade's eyes widened in shock, quickly followed by deep emotion. "You've gone through so much… I misjudged you."

"So does that mean," Kurenai asked curiously, "you can really bring Nawaki back now?"

Tsunade leaned in, her eyes locked on Renzo.

"Yup. Though… the method I currently have needs the body to be mostly intact. Do you still have it?"

As he spoke, Renzo looked directly at her.

Tsunade's pupils shrank slightly — 'was he asking her to dig up Nawaki's grave?'

Still, she nodded. "Yes, but after all these years… the body might just be bones by now. And back when he died, his internal organs were badly damaged. Will that be a problem?"

"Nope. As long as the bones are still there, we're good."

Renzo shook his head with a smile.

Worst case? He could use Nawaki's DNA and grow him a cloned body. Just a bit more work.

"Then let's not waste time — let's go prepare now!"

Tsunade was so excited she immediately stood up, ready to head out.

"Wait!" Renzo stopped her quickly, exasperated. "You're not planning to announce to the whole village that you're digging up a grave and I'm resurrecting Nawaki, right?"

This kind of thing was better handled quietly.

Otherwise, people would be lining up outside his door asking for their loved ones back.

In the ninja world? Everyone has lost someone.

"Ah… good point," Tsunade blinked, realizing he was right. She didn't want to cause trouble for Renzo, after all. "Then I'll go quietly tonight."

"No need for all that — I'll just teleport it over."

Renzo shook his head, then stood up. "But first, let's head to the underground lab. Just in case something goes wrong with the direct resurrection, we might need the equipment there."

"Got it!"

Neither Tsunade nor Kurenai had any objections.

Renzo casually wrapped an arm around both women's waists, and with a flash, they vanished from the mansion — reappearing inside a massive underground facility outside the village.

Using a quick psychic scan, Renzo located Nawaki's grave and instantly warped the remains over.

It had been nearly twenty years since Nawaki died — all that remained was a weathered skeleton.

When Tsunade saw her brother's bones, her eyes immediately welled up. She covered her mouth, trembling, barely able to hold back her sobs.

Renzo didn't try to comfort her just yet. Instead, he gently laid the bones down on the open floor in front of him.

"Resurrection Magic."

He lightly tapped his foot on the ground, and instantly, a massive glowing magic circle spread out from under Nawaki's remains, surrounding the bones.

Tsunade and Kurenai could only watch in stunned silence as the skeleton began to change — as if time itself were being reversed.

Flesh started regenerating on the bones, layer by layer, rapidly rebuilding what once was.

Within moments, the skeleton was gone — replaced by a perfectly intact body.

Even the organs that had been destroyed when he died were fully restored.

Thump-thump. Thump-thump.

Tsunade and Kurenai could hear the heartbeat coming from the newly restored body.

"He's… he's already alive again?" Tsunade's voice trembled as she took a hesitant step forward.

Renzo shook his head. "Not yet. We still need the final step — soul recall. But for me, that's the easy part."

After all, he was now the Lord of the Pure Land — the Soul king of the underworld.

With a wave of his hand, Nawaki's soul, still lingering in the Pure Land, was summoned instantly.

Bathed in the light of resurrection, the residual death aura that had clung to his soul was immediately burned away.

The soul brightened, became clearer — and then flowed directly into the restored body, entering through the space between the brows.

Whoosh!

The next moment, Nawaki suddenly sat up, eyes wide with confusion, glancing around.

He was clearly dazed, not fully understanding what was happening.

Tsunade, meanwhile, had broken down completely — tears streaming down her face as she looked at her little brother, alive again.

It took Nawaki a while to fully come to his senses. He scratched the back of his head and muttered in confusion, "Uh… where am I? Didn't I… die?"

"Nawaki!"

Before he could process anything, Tsunade rushed forward and threw her arms around him in a tight embrace.

"Uh… Sis?" Nawaki blinked, stunned, as he looked down at her tear-streaked face.

"It's me! It's really me! I'm so sorry I didn't protect you... but it's okay now! Your brother-in-law brought you back! This time... I'm never letting you out of my sight again!" Tsunade choked out between sobs, her voice full of guilt and relief.

"...Wait—brother-in-law?"

That part totally threw Nawaki off. He froze for a second, looking around in confusion until his eyes landed on Renzo.

"No way. Is it this guy?" He stared at Renzo in shock. "Damn, this guy's insanely handsome... what the hell! That's so unfair!"

Then another thought hit him.

"…Whoa. Someone actually had the guts to marry my sister? What a mad lad," Nawaki mumbled under his breath, totally unaware of the incoming doom.

Tsunade: "…"

Kurenai: "…"

Renzo: "…"

"Uh-oh... murderous intent!"

Nawaki suddenly felt a chill down his spine as a wave of bloodlust washed over him.

He slowly tilted his head upward and saw Tsunade's face—no longer tearful, no longer emotional. It was now completely blank and radiating frost.

"…Crap."

A big, imaginary DANGER sign popped up in his mind.

"Heheh… Sis! It was a joke! Totally unintentional! You believe me, right?"

Tsunade gave him a bone-chilling smile. "What do you think? DIE!"

And with that, she punched Nawaki straight in the face, launching him like a cannonball.

Nawaki felt an explosion of pain before his body flew several meters through the air and slammed hard into a nearby wall—then bounced off it and hit the ground with a thud.

He groaned and immediately sprang to his feet, shouting angrily, "Come on, Sis! That's messed up! I just got resurrected! You trying to send me back already!?"

Some things never change.

Even after all these years, his sister's temper was still terrifying.

And now, those old, traumatic memories of getting beaten up by her all the time came rushing back.

"Heh."

Tsunade smirked coldly. "So what? If I kill you again, your brother-in-law can just revive you again."

Even she blushed a little at that.

She hadn't quite realized what she was saying earlier—but now that she did, she'd basically just acknowledged Renzo as her man in front of everyone.

The idea made her shy for a split second—not that anyone would dare to tease her about it.

Come to think of it, back when she dated Dan Kato, they'd barely even held hands a few times. They never even kissed, let alone… well, anything more than that.

Hearing this, Nawaki shivered and pressed his back to the wall like he was trying to become one with it. "Okay, now that's just cruel! What did I ever do to you!? I'm your little brother, remember!? You're being way too violent—and your husband's watching, by the way!"

Then Nawaki turned to Renzo and shouted, "Brother-in-law! Aren't you gonna say something!?"

"Control your wife, man!"

Renzo just smiled, looking relaxed. "Nah, it's fine. I'm used to it."

"Even if she kills you again, I'll just bring you back."

He waved it off like it was nothing as he and Kurenai casually continued watching the show.

Nawaki: "…"

Who could possibly understand the pain in his heart?

Looking at Tsunade now clenching her fists with a frightening smile, he finally gave up all hope and just flopped onto the ground with a dramatic sigh. "Fine! Go ahead! Just kill me again! But don't bother reviving me this time! I'm done!"

A pure image of tragic acceptance.

Tsunade's face twitched. She walked over and grabbed his ear, dragging him upright. "Cut the crap. Who said I was really gonna kill you? That punch was just a special greeting—my way of saying 'Welcome back' after all these years!"

"You're my little brother. Of course I'd never actually kill you!"

Nawaki gave her a side-eye. He didn't look convinced at all.

'You've almost beat me to death more times than I can count…'

At that point, Kurenai looked over and asked curiously, "Didn't you say before that your resurrection technique could only be used once per person?"

Renzo shrugged. "That was before I gained full control over the Pure Land. Things are different now."

At least here in the ninja world, he could now bring someone back as many times as needed.

.

.

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