"Tsunade..."

Hearing her voice, Jiraiya immediately stopped forming hand seals. Kagami turned and saw Tsunade leaning against the wall, her expression a mixture of exhaustion and anxiety.

"Tsunade... are you okay?" Jiraiya asked, his voice cautious, his eyes filled with a nervous concern.

"I'm fine," she replied, shaking her head slightly before turning to Kagami with a look of gratitude. She knew he had held back, that he had refrained from attacking Jiraiya because of his promise to her. If he had gotten serious, Jiraiya wouldn't have even had a chance to react. The realization that he had taken his promise to her so seriously washed away the last of her resentment. She had already submitted herself to kagami.

But Jiraiya was one of her few remaining friends. She couldn't let him die at Kagami's hands. She had to stop him. Though Kagami wasn't attacking now, if Jiraiya pushed him too far, she couldn't guarantee he would continue to show restraint. Besides, she couldn't just stand by and watch Jiraiya attack her... her man.

After a moment of silence, Tsunade looked at Jiraiya, her eyes filled with a complex sadness. "Jiraiya, go away" she said, her voice firm. "Leave Konoha and don't come back."

She had always known how he felt about her, but she had only ever seen him as a friend. And now, she belonged to Kagami. All she could do was ask him to spare Jiraiya's life.

Hearing her words, Jiraiya looked at her with disbelief. "Tsunade, what are you talking about? Did he threaten you? Don't worry, I'll defeat him and take you away from here!" He was convinced she had been genjuts'd by kagami's sharinganHe would use his sage arts, teach this Uchiha a lesson, and rescue her.

Seeing his determination, a flash of murderous intent appeared in Kagami's eyes. Though he had promised to let Jiraiya go, if the man insisted on seeking his own death, he would not show mercy.

Tsunade seemed to sense Kagami's shift in mood and immediately shouted, "Jiraiya, stop messing around!" She took a deep breath, then stared directly into his eyes, her voice unwavering. "I have become Kagami's woman. No one forced me. I did this voluntarily."

"Tsunade, how can you do that. He killed our teacher " Jiraiya looked at her, his lips trembling, desperately searching her face for any sign that she is being controlled. But her calm, determined gaze told him that she was determined. He knew how stubborn tsunade is. Afterwards tsunade also gave him permission to use genjutsu release on her if he was still not convinced about her decision. But even after that tsunades decision didn't change.

His face went slack, his features crumbling into an expression of utter devastation. He hadn't just failed to rescue her; he had delivered her into another man's arms. He had always loved her, but for one reason or another, she never reciprocated his feelings because she always saw him as a brother. Now, it was too late. His face turned ashen, and he was enveloped in the aura of a total loser.

"Jiraiya, you have to be strong," Fukasaku and Shima said from his shoulders, their voices filled with concern. But they knew there was nothing they could do.

Jiraiya forced a smile. "I'm fine. Sorry to have bothered you," he said, then dismissed the summoning. He looked at Tsunade one last time, a bitter smile on his face. "Tsunade, I wish you happiness." If she had been forced, he would have risked his life to save her. But she had chosen this path. He had no reason to fight. And he didn't want to make her sad.

Without another word, he turned and left, the very picture of a defeated man.

Tsunade watched him go, a wave of relief washing over her. She was now Kagami's woman. If he had killed Jiraiya, she wouldn't have known how to face him. Thankfully, things had not developed in the worst possible way.

Kagami, for his part, didn't care about Jiraiya's departure. The man was no threat. He could have turned him to ash with a single thought. Letting him go had won him Tsunade's favor, ensuring her complete devotion. From a purely tactical standpoint, it was the logical choice.

"Thank you for not attacking Jiraiya," Tsunade said, her voice filled with a genuine gratitude that touched him.

"Now that you have become my woman," Kagami replied with a smile, "I will not go back on my word."

Tsunade smiled back, the last of her resistance melting away. He was strong, gentle, handsome, and good to her. She was glad to be his woman. The other women came over then, and the four of them began to chat animatedly.

Kagami did not disturb them. He went to the training ground to check on his clone's progress with their bloodline limit research. Having just witnessed the power of Jiraiya's Sage Mode, he had become extremely interested in the art of senjutsu. He had previously dismissed it, as he had no way of learning it. But now, with Tsunade as his woman, he had a direct line to the Slug Sage of Shikkotsu Forest. If he could learn to sense natural energy, then with his talent and Sukuna's profound understanding, he was certain he could master senjutsu in a short period of time.

He knew that ninjutsu was ineffective against those who possessed the Rinnegan. To deal with them, he needed either taijutsu or senjutsu. And while he had his own powerful slashing techniques, it was always better to have more options. Besides, mastering senjutsu would greatly enhance the power of his own ninjutsu, bringing him one step closer to his goal.

He decided then and there to have his clones halt their research into bloodline limits and focus entirely on learning senjutsu. The improvement it would bring was far greater than any single Kekkei Genkai. After he had mastered Sage Mode, there would be plenty of time to study new bloodline limits.

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