Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Once the four arrived at a small town, Jiraiya said his goodbyes to lady Tsunade and Shizune. Kaen kept quiet. After the speech he gave the other day, he felt awkward around them. He wasn't very sentimental, but it annoyed Kaen that someone as capable and strong as lady Tsunade had given up on the path of shinobi.

„We will rest for a few days in the town and then return to the village," Jiraiya informed me.

„Why say goodbye to lady Tsunade if you were going to stay in the same town?" Kaen asked.

„Because I will not bother her anymore, and I don't want you to bother her either."

„Hmph," Kaen turned away from Jiraiya. „I will train, so don't bother me either."

Kaen had much work to do. He knew very well that if Orochimaru weren't been testing him and wanted him dead, he would have died. Still, Kaen thought only of what he had learned in the fight. His lack of chakra was the most determent factor in why he was losing. Yet aside from getting better chakra control, he couldn't increase his chakra reserves. So, he needed to think of another way to get stronger.

Seals were his only answer. It was time to invest more time in creating a new type of seal to help him fight monsters like Orochimaru. He had to make something that could change the terrain in his favor. Defensive and offensive seals weren't enough anymore. It was time he delved into the depths of fuinjutsu.

Once Jiraiya found an inn to stay in, Kaen went to his room and started pouring into all the books he had about fuinjutsu. He read all of them, from the most basic techniques to the best that Jiraiya had. He researched it day and night without sleeping and using three shadow clones, yet he didn't achieve much. If he wanted to make something so powerful, he would still need to use all his chakra to activate the seals. It was useless to him.

„Wake up, Kaen. We are leaving," Jiraiya's voice was heard outside his room.

Kaen dispelled his clones, packed his books and other stuff, and walked out of the room. Seeing Kaen's hazardous appearance, Jiraiya sighed and offered to buy lunch. Kaen didn't complain and went to a nearby restaurant. He barely ate in these couple of days and by now was starving. Jiraiya soon learned how much of a mistake he made in offering to buy him lunch when he ordered the whole menu.

As Kaen devoured his food and Jiraiya drank as he waited for him, they were interrupted by lady Tsunade who sat next to them. With a full mouth of food, Kaen only nodded to her while Jiraiya poured liqueur for her. It seems that they met regularly with each other, even though they had already said their goodbyes. Just as Kaen was about to make fun of them, he noticed the seal on lady Tsunade's forehead.

„That's it," Kaen slammed his hand on the table and exclaimed.

„What's wrong with you now?" Jiraiya asked, but Kaen went close to lady Tsunade and stared at her seal instead of answering. He was so close that he could feel lady Tsunade's breath on his neck. „Are you picking a fight again?"

„We are not leaving, Jiraiya," Kaen said.

„What are you talking about now?"

„Lady Tsunade, accept me as your disciple," Kaen left his seat and slammed his head to Tsunade feet. Everyone fell into silence in the restaurant, with shocked faces looking at Kaen and the rest of them.

„What's wrong with your disciple, Jiraiya?" Tsunade ignored Kaen and turned to her old teammate.

„Too many things to count," Jiraiya sighed and drank some more liquor.

„Listen, brat. I don't know what you are thinking, but there is no way I will accept someone like you as my disciple. Even if you had not insulted me before, I am already retired."

"How cold. At least you could take some responsibility. After all, your former teammate is hunting me down."

"Are you trying to make me feel guilty?"

"Yes, I am."

"You damn, shameless brat, I have to teach you some manners."

"Oh, so you will teach me. Thank you, master."

"Enough, Kaen. We don't have time for your little pranks. We are returning to Konoha," Jiraiya interrupted Tsunade as she was about to destroy the restaurant to get to Kaen. "As you said, Orochimaru is hunting you. We can't waste any more time."

"No, I am not leaving," Kaen replied.

"What? Do you even know what you are saying?"

"Yes, I do," Kaen replied. "It is you who doesn't understand the situation, Jiraiya. I am being hunted."

"That's why we are leaving for Konoha, to keep you safe."

"How? When the one partially responsible for it is one of the higher-ups of the village? I am safer here than I would be in the village. Danzo only needed to create a scenario for me to leave the village, and Orochimaru would be waiting for me. Here I can stay under your orders. Neither Danzo nor anyone else could intervene, at least for some time."

"That's all and good, but don't get me involved, crazy brat," Tsunade turned away and prepared to walk off.

"What if I said that Danzo and Orochimaru are experimenting with your grandfather's corpse," Kaen suddenly said.

"What did you say?" Both Tsunade and Jiraiya turned to look at Kaen.

"Tenzo or it is Yamato now? Do these names bring any memories?"

"Tenzo was a test subject to Orochimaru just before Hiruzen-sensei caught him," Jiraiya sighed. "He was injected with DNA of the First Hokage."

"Tried to catch," Kaen added. "But now we know that Danzo is working with Orochimaru."

"That's only a hypothesis. You have no evidence," Jiraiya said.

"You trying to manipulate me?" Tsunade asked.

"Yes, I am," Kaen replied. "But does it matter, knowing that one of the Higher-ups of the village your grandfather built is using him as a test subject, disrespecting him so much, even after his death? Does it not anger you?"

"Of course, it does," Tsunade's punch to the wall made it clear. "But there is nothing I can do. I am retired."

"But I can," Kaen said. "A student of the master of the Fourth Hokage and student of a granddaughter of the First Hokage, I think nobody would mind if I took the hat as the Fifth Hokage."

…

He was a crazy brat, indeed. Tsunade had not met anyone similar to this brat. He was a brazen and insolent kid that didn't know what he was talking about. But hearing what he said made Tsunade reevaluate the situation she was in. She couldn't deny that it angered her what was happening behind the closed doors of the village her grandfather fought and died for.

"I don't like it," Jiraiya complained. "He is using us. I had a bad feeling about him from the start."

"He isn't wrong," Tsunade replied.

"But it doesn't make it right," Jiraiya was agitated.

"Sarutobi is too old," Tsunade said. "He can't even control his subordinates. A change is needed for the village."

"Would Dan have agreed to this?"

"Don't say his name," Tsunade destroyed the table they were sitting at.

"What about Nawaki?" Jiraiya pushed. "They wanted to protect the village. That brat is deprecating their wills."

"Danzo is doing it," Tsunade said. "You heard the brat, he put a target on one of the village's shinobi, and he is one of the leaders. He is working with Orochimaru. Sarutobi is too blinded to see it. Even a boy saw through it."

"Hiruzen-sensei is doing his best."

"But it isn't enough. I will take the brat as my apprentice."

"It is a mistake," Jiraiya yelled.

"What are you afraid of?"

"I am afraid that the boy is too power-hungry. I saw what it does to people."

Tsunade could agree. She did feel partially responsible for what Orochimaru had done. Maybe she could have stopped him if she had not left after the second Shinobi war. But she had seen too much blood. She still couldn't sleep without nightmares plaguing her. She couldn't handle the life of a shinobi anymore. She lost too many.

"Orochimaru won't stop," Tsunade said. "We both know that you won't be able to stop him, and Sarutobi has let him go. Now the brat is paying for our mistakes."

"Don't tell me the brat got to you," Jiraiya sighed. "Fine, I still believe he is a good kid, and I don't think you will lead him the wrong way."

"How good is he?" Tsunade changed the topic seeing as Jiraiya finally let it go.

"He is a genius. You could compare him to Minato in some ways. No, they are very similar."

"You still have not gotten over what happened to Minato and Kushina?"

"You are one to speak," Jiraiya replied. "Sorry, even when we achieved peace, it feels like we still lose people we care about far too often. It feels like we are still at war."

"Because we are," Kaen appeared from nowhere, shocking both of them. "It seems my sneaking abilities are still pretty good."

"Brat, I said leave us alone," Tsunade snapped at Kaen.

"I never agreed to it," Kaen replied.

"Shut it brat," Jiraiya hit Kaen's head. "Tsunade agreed to train you, but you still are working under me. I will give you a year. Then you are coming back to the village with me."

"That's fine with me."

"A year?" Tsunade asked. "What can he learn in a year?"

"Chakra control, your secret seal, and all your knowledge about medical ninjutsu," Kaen replied. "Maybe a bit more, if I feel like it."

"Don't take it so lightly. It will take at least three years to learn the basics," Tsunade didn't believe Kaen's words.

"That's up to you and Kaen," Jiraiya said. "I can't let him do as he wishes for three years. He is still shinobi of Konoha. One year is the most I can do."

"It will be enough," Kaen said confidently.

"No, it is not," Tsunade argued. "If you are going to train under me, you will not do so halfheartedly."

"How about a bet?" Kaen asked. "If I can learn everything you can offer in a year, you will have to return to the village."

"And if you can't?" Tsunade didn't believe Kaen could learn that fast, so she readily agreed.

"Ten million ryo, it is all my savings, but it should be enough for you do not worry about money for a long time."

"Agreed," If you looked at Tsunade's eyes, you could see money in them.

After agreeing to Kaen's demands, he left Tsunade and Jiraiya alone. Tsunade was quite furious about how lightly she was taken. Still, ten million ryo was enough motivation for her. Jiraiya left soon, too. He had still not given up on capturing Orochimaru, now knowing he was in the Land of the Rice. He couldn't let such an opportunity go. Shizune was happy to hear that she would get a fellow student.

…

The next day, Tsunade taught Kaen her chakra control exercises and left him alone, thinking it would take at least a month to learn them, no matter how genius he was. She took immense pride in the skills that she had worked on her whole life. Like hell, some brat would be able to get close to her skill in a year's time.

Her pride hurt when he returned after a week of mastering the chakra control exercise, in which she had put so much effort into creating. But she still didn't let go of her pride and gave him task after task. He couldn't learn everything so fast, and even if he was a true genius, she thought there would be a limit to him somewhere.