Shizune Kato Appreciater

us talking about shizune and tsunade.... your tags are literally SO RIGHT!1!!! Shizune *is* correct when she acts on Tsunade's behalf and Tsunade literally ISN'T even that mad about it!!!! they are so crazyyyyyyy....

I think what really captivates me is this is the part of the dynamic that makes them seem so much like peers even though they have that age and power gap between them. Delicious!

Like when we consider the age that Shizune probably was when Tsunade took her on as an apprentice, and their (almost) familial relationship through Dan, it is so clear that Tsunade is the caretaker. Added to the fact that Shizune follows her around assisting her, and never surpassed or equaled Tsunade in strength like Sakura did and it really cements her in this subservient position. BUT! When we look underneath that. Shizune is the one doing all the emotional work of keeping this woman going, and she will step in to make choices for her when they need to be made.

That willingness to step up and be in charge, to manage everything and go behind her back to fix her errors, is So Fascinating. To Me. Like in many ways that willingness to be in control does seem to come from a place of subservience? Similar to how Shizune takes over Tsunade's surgeries when her fear of blood is too debilitating. Like in a "Tsunade isn't capable of doing this right now and the best way I can serve her needs is to do it for her." The way that Shizune appeals to Tsunade's previous dreams and standards and goals when trying to persuade her not to sacrifice Jiraya and Naruto, like she has to help Tsunade to stick to her own morals when she falters, not for the sake of doing the right thing but because its what Tsunade herself would actually want if she were in a frame of mind to want it.

OUOUUUGGHHGHHGOUOUAAAUGH, you know?

YES

We don't get to see much of Shizune's internal thoughts since she's a minor character and when they do they're usually about Tsunade. But i think it's worth nothing that we never see her worried about what Tsunade might think of her? Like she's never concerned that what's she's doing might make Tsunade unhappy with her or angry at her. Those things don't weigh in Shizune's decision making (that we see). Even things she knows will make Tsunade upset, like Orochimaru's deal, Shizune just isn't afraid?

What she SAYS implies she'd be willing to engage in a physical fight but she still seemed unprepared and surprised that Tsunade decided to make it physical in that moment. And Shizune doesn't seem to actually worry that Tsunade might kill her? They both know she could. Just my interpretation that in that exact moment Shizune didn't think Tsuande was going to actually hit her. Which considering how physical we know Tsunade can be, on how rough (throwing Naruto around), is also interesting.

I agree that Shizune's opposition to Orochimaru's deal isn't necessarily "do what's right" so much as "what's best for Tsunade even if Tsunade herself can't see it". Shizune keeping hold of Tsunade's morals even when she herself can't in that moment. And if I'm right about the timeline of how old Shizune was when Dan died then logically it would have been Tsunade who told Shizune about her dreams? Shizune literally says something like "your dream..." when talking to Tsunade in that arc. Maybe it was just bitter reminiscing but at some point in Shizune's memory she learned about that. Shizune would have been too young to ever see Tsunade at her best, the Tsunade that everyone else knew, but she believed in her anyways. Also despite presumably being raised by Tsunade and having spent so much time around her she's not an especially cynical or bitter character, despite anything else Tsunade seemingly didn't or couldn't impress that onto her.

Anyways. So the timeline of Naruto is notoriously fuck-y but I think Shizune was ages 3-5 when Dan died. ASSUMING Dan was Shizune's caretaker then that would be around the time Tsunade met her. ( i could go on a whole rant about Dan never mentioning Shizune but that's another thing) If that's true then Tsunade and Shizune met in very different circumstances than any other teacher-student pair we see in the series. Also assuming that Tsunade claimed guardianship after Dan's death, and how young Shizune would've been, means they did not start out with the teacher-student dynamic at all. Which adds to the dynamic we do see.

And then even when Tsunade did become Shizune's teacher Tsunade was presumably not active-duty kuniochi with her blood phobia. Almost the entire time Shizune would be able to remember and has known Tsunade until she becomes hokage would have been with Tsunade having that huge weakness, when she's at her worst. How effective of a teacher could Tsunade even be without being in the field and without being able to stand the sight of blood without breaking down shaking? A lot of it is probably just natural talent and being more a main character, but Shizune vs Sakura's strength is interesting to compare there. Shizune is a full fledged jounin and noted to be one of the greatest healers in the great nations, just like Tsunade, but she definitely doesn't have the raw combat power that Sakura and Tsunade have. Shizune's databook says she connects to life through healing which is just an interesting characterization note but also that she would have learned that through Tsunade is also touching. Maybe if Shizune wasn't spending so much time and energy taking care of Tsunade (and with another teacher) she could have been a stronger fighter, but that would have required time away from Tsunade and Tsunade needed her. No one else would take care of Tsunade the way Shizune was. And Shizune is never shown as being resentful about any of this. She's not grudgingly resigned either. She's defensive of Tsunade and admires her, she loves her!

Anyways Shizune was probably a kid when she first started having to take charge when it came to her and Tsunade's lives, because Tsunade wasn't always capable of it. Especially when dealing with people outside of their little duo.

Look at how Orochimaru and Jiraiya behave when they come back into their lives. They must've been menaces when they were all back in the village and Tsunade was freshly grieving Dan and coming to terms with her new phobia. Orochimaru would have been weird about it. Jiraiya would have been very weird about it. Look me in the eye and tell me that man would have been normal about the love of Tsunade's life dying and then she takes over raising said lover's niece. Hiruzen was probably weird about it too lbr

Not to mention how everyone else would have been acting, look at how the village treated Sakumo or Naruto. Tsunade is a princess and that probably afforded her some leeway but how much more? Or was it a different flavor of horrible because they expect so much more from Tsunade, granddaughter of The God of Shinobi.

Almost Shizune's entire life with Tsunade has been when Tsunade was at her lowest, when she was wounded and couldn't heal or fight properly, couldn't do what she was known for. Orochimaru and Jiraiya, the village, everyone comes to Tsunade needing and expecting her strengths but it was Shizune who looked after her and was with her through her weakness. Makes sense she's so defensive over her.

I do think it's a bit crazy that Tsunade never worries about Shizune's loyalty at all even in her own head. I mean she's RIGHT but just outside looking in Shizune has all the building-blocks of one of those "student betrays their master" arcs.

But Tsunade knows Shizune is loyal and loves her and is never proven wrong.

There's a lot of back and forth with Tsunade and Shizune, which makes their dynamic very peer-like despite all the other balance stuff going on. Which I think is an important aspect of their relationship at least by the time we see them in canon. If I've got my timeline right then there's a point in their relationship where Tsunade would have been helping Shizune learn to read, or at least around during that time. And going from that starting point to all the other stuff going on there is fascinating.

I think they started out as guardian-ward, and then there was student-teacher, and then the superior-subordinate, which all accumulates and gets folded into their deeper dynamics as friends and not not family weirdly but very strongly. There's the difference of positions there that they're both seemingly comfortable in. Shizune attends Tsunade, she serves her, in her own words.

They're just great friends on top of that. Like they hang out and enjoy each other's company.

thinking about the original scene that inspired this convo, I feel Kabuto does actually have more in common with Shizune than I originally thought. He hasn't been with Orochimaru quite as long, but still since childhood, and he's definintely seen Orochimaru at their worst and made decisions for them (controlled their entire diet/medication regimen while sick, chose to force them into taking another body because Sasuke was taking too long). And Kabuto never tried to surpass Orochimaru until after they died, and was happy being a student/subordinate/friend who steps in and takes control when his master was incapacitated....

There's a lot of differences too which makes the mirroring more interesting. They're both healers, for one. Kabuto was taught by Nonou and not Orochimaru though (but still an adopted parent, which sorta? fits with Tsunade). Both were taken from the village by their sannin too. While Tsunade and Shizune aren't explicitly rogue-nin they aren't serving the village either, and to me that they aren't considered criminals for basically deserting is probably due to Tsunade's social standing as ninja royalty. Tsunade didn't commit any crimes like Orochimaru did, but then you remember Orochimaru's crimes were also Danzo's crimes and he got away with it because Hiruzen let him.

Shizune is never seen as being as snarky(? don't know how to describe it) with Tsunade as we see Kabuto being. Partly just their personalities but it's definitely a different dynamic, especially with what we learn later about Kabuto's back story and how he came to be Orochimaru's subordinate. For Kabuto Orochimaru is a way to get away from Danzo and Root, a form of protection against Konoha. Also a way to anchor his sense of self and identity, which we know he struggles with. We don't ever see or know of Tsunade having saved or protected Shizune from anything, though it can be inferred that without Tsunade Shizune would have gotten the Konoha Orphan Treatment (tm), and who knows may have ended up in Root herself. Or died during the Third War.

As for if Tsunade had succumbed to her coma...That is an interesting question. To keep with the theme of "the sannin die by their student's hand" I would think it would be fitting if it was a situation where Tsunade wouldn't be waking up, forcing Shizune to make the decision to cease life support.

Because she's a woman and it's Naruto the story would probably have Shizune be noble and dignified in her mourning and deciding to support the future of Konoha by uplifting Naruto and quietly shuffling off screen to have a kid. But! I think it would be funner if she did not do that.

She could decide to cling onto a new person, likely Sakura or Naruto or even Tenzo, because of their connection to Tsunade. Or she could take a page out of Tsunade's book and leave Konoha, becoming a depressed wandering healer that at some point picks up a kid/student, starting the cycle over. Or she could go apeshit and have a training arc, become a sage or awaken Spirit Transformation and decide to burn the remaining Akatsuki to the ground. If Tsunade had died during the Pein Invasion Arc then that would also set her up to be revived as an Edo-Tensei, very angsty possibility of Shizune having to fight Tsunade and Dan in that scenario.

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[ Cuddle ]

Req 1/?

Im not sure what the anbu instincts are but this is so cute🥹 they'd like to interlock(?) with each other while sleeping, he knows Shizune love to feel warm after all the busy work days she went through