Land of Fire.
On the streets of a bustling town.
A grand chase was taking place.
“Stand still! Don’t run!”
“You woman in green, stop right there!”
“If you don’t pay up today, I’ll sell you to a brothel!”
“Chase her! Even if we turn the Land of Fire upside down, get that money back!”
Roars echoed above the streets.
A dozen gleaming machetes dazzled in the sunlight.
Tsunade took the lead at the very front.
Her long golden hair fluttered in the wind, and the wooden geta on her feet clicked rapidly.
Shizune followed closely behind.
She held the pink pig, Tonton, tightly in her arms, running completely out of breath.
“Tsunade-sama!”
“Why are we running!” Shizune was on the verge of tears.
“Nonsense!”
“If we don’t have money, of course we run!”
“Do you expect us to stay and wash dishes for them?”
Tsunade yelled back righteously without turning her head.
And behind the two of them.
Chiba was sprinting frantically across rooftops.
His face was covered in dark lines, veins bulging on his forehead.
What kind of nonsense was this?
He!
Senju Chiba!
A cheater who had awakened Primary Sage Body and Mokuton.
A man destined to alter the pattern of the Shinobi World.
Yet right now, he was actually being hunted by a gang of casino thugs?
This was too damn embarrassing!
If he didn’t want to cause too much of a stir, Chiba really wanted to turn around, weave hand seals, and wipe out these bastards with Wild Water Wave.
Most importantly, this was already the third time this month!
Ever since that day in Tanzaku Street.
Tsunade had brought him and Shizune into an aimless wandering lifestyle.
Casinos.
Taverns.
Hot springs.
Wherever there was fun, they plunged right in.
Chiba’s ten million ryo only lasted five days before Tsunade gambled it down to the last cent.
For the remaining half month, they were stuck in a crazy endless loop of borrowing money, gambling, losing everything, and fleeing.
Wind howled past his ears.
Chiba glanced at Tsunade running ahead.
What on earth was this woman thinking?
Didn’t we agree that I’m the last hope of the Senju clan?
Is this your way of cultivating hope?
Are you trying to turn me into a seasoned professional deadbeat?
After running for two whole streets, the cursing behind them finally faded.
Ordinary thugs could never catch up to the speed of ninjas.
“Phew…”
In a secluded dead-end alley, Tsunade stopped and leaned against the wall to catch her breath.
Shizune collapsed straight onto the ground.
Tonton wriggled out of her arms, emitting two grunts of dissatisfaction.
“Tsunade-sama, what are we…”
Chiba leaped down from the top of the wall and landed steadily.
He stared at Tsunade, his mind full of doubts.
Before he could finish his sentence, Tsunade turned her head sharply.
Her light brown eyes shot out an extraordinarily oppressive, cold glare—the terrifying aura forged in mountains of corpses by a Kage-level powerhouse.
This pressure hit Chiba’s chest like a physical impact.
Chiba swallowed the rest of his sentence whole.
Tsunade stared at him coldly.
Then, she shot an almost imperceptible glance at the rooftop outside the alley.
It was only for a split second, but Chiba caught it.
He was a smart person.
He understood immediately that someone was secretly monitoring them!
Chiba instantly shut his mouth.
He put on an exasperated front and complained loudly:
“Tsunade-sama!”
“All my money was lost by you!”
“This is unlivable!”
“We don’t even have money left for a bowl of ramen!”
Tsunade withdrew her gaze, putting on a shameless deadbeat face.
“What are you shouting for!”
“Isn’t it just a few million ryo?”
“Once my luck turns tomorrow, I’ll win it all back with interest!”
She roughly ruffled Chiba’s hair.
“Let’s go!”
“To the countryside outside the town to catch wild rabbits!”
Two hundred meters away from the dead-end alley.
On the roof of a fabric shop.
Two figures that seemed to blend completely into the shadows were crouched silently.
They wore plain white animal masks and gray form-fitting outfits with no markings.
They were the Root ninjas ordered to monitor them.
Code Name Kinoe.
Code Name Kinoto.
“What is the target’s situation?”
Kinoe’s voice was kept extremely low through a specialized communication ninja tool.
“Still complaining about losing money.”
Kinoto held a pair of binoculars, reporting his observation.
“This guy named Chiba has extremely stable chakra fluctuations.”
“High physical exertion, disorganized breathing.”
“Completely fits the standard of a mediocre Chunin.”
Kinoe sneered.
“Danzo is far too paranoid.”
“He’s just a lucky cannon fodder who survived the battlefield.”
“Tsunade is useless now too. A grand Sannin, reduced to being chased through the streets by loan sharks.”
Kinoto put down the binoculars.
“Record it.”
“Konoha Year 52, August 7th.”
“Target lost all funds, fleeing debt.”
“No abnormal teaching behavior observed. Over.”
In the next moment, their figures vanished from the roof like ghosts.
Night fell.
On a patch of wilderness outside the town.
A campfire burned brightly.
Shizune was roasting two skinny wild rabbits.
Oil dripped onto the glowing coals, making sizzling sounds.
Tsunade sat casually on a rock, holding a tree branch and idly poking at the fire.
“Hey, kid.”
Tsunade suddenly spoke.
Chiba slowly raised his head.
“Since we don’t have money for casinos anymore…”
“I’ll teach you something to pass the time.”
Tsunade’s tone was casual, as if mentioning a trivial matter.
Chiba instantly perked up.
After acting like a deadbeat for a month, they were finally getting to the main point!
“Come here.”
Tsunade waved her hand.
Chiba walked quickly to her.
“The foundation of Medical Ninjutsu is extreme chakra control.”
Tsunade extended a finger.
A faint yet extremely pure green glow lit up at her fingertip.
“Like this.”
“Gather chakra at a single point.”
“Not too much, not too little.”
“Try to slice this leaf, but don’t crush it.”
She casually picked up a fallen leaf from the ground and tossed it to Chiba.
Chiba caught the leaf.
He closed his eyes, and the chakra inside his body surged.
God-Level Comprehension triggered!
In his mind, countless pathways regarding chakra flow instantly became crystal clear.
How to guide.
How to compress.
How to maintain stability.
Just like instinct, it was deeply engraved into Chiba’s muscle memory.
In just three seconds.
A faint green light glowed on Chiba’s fingers as well.
Although not as pure as Tsunade’s, it had already taken shape.
He pressed two fingers together and gently sliced across the leaf.
Slice.
The leaf was perfectly divided in two, the cut smooth as a mirror.
Seeing this, Tsunade’s pupils contracted violently as she sat by the fire.
How was this possible?
First try!
Without any theoretical groundwork!
With just a single glance, he had mastered the prototype of the Chakra Scalpel?
This level of micro-control over chakra was practically monster-level!
Tsunade’s heart skipped a beat.
However, there was no emotional fluctuation on her face.
In fact…
She suddenly stood up and slapped Chiba on the head.
PAK!
“Idiot!”
Tsunade cursed loudly.
“I told you to slice it! Why did you output so much chakra?”
“Wasteful!”
“Don’t you know that for a medical ninja on the battlefield, a single drop of chakra is a human life?”
“Do it again!”
Chiba stumbled from the hit.
He covered his head, full of grievance.
I cut it perfectly, okay!
Even a cheater needs face!
However, he caught a flash of warning in Tsunade’s eyes.
Chiba understood in an instant.
“Yes, Tsunade-sama.”
For the next two hours, Chiba continuously sliced leaves.
Tsunade continuously nitpicked, yelled, and even smacked him.
The entire camp was filled with Tsunade’s roars.
On a large tree far from the camp.
Kinoe and Kinoto watched all of this coldly.
“This kid is pathetically stupid.”
“He can’t even master basic chakra control properly.”
“Tsunade is clearly furious.”
Kinoto recorded quickly on the scroll:
Target attempting to learn Medical Ninjutsu.
Dull talent.
Evaluation: No threat whatsoever.