Chapter 48: Little Wallet

Chapter 48: Little Wallet

"Is that your chakra control? And you still call yourself a ninja?!"

Shortly after, a loud shout echoed from Tsunade's courtyard. The target of her outburst was none other than Toneri, who wore a helpless expression.

Tsunade wanted to test Toneri's talent, so she taught him a simple trick for testing and training chakra control. If he could grasp it quickly, it would indicate some aptitude for chakra control.

For medical ninjas, what mattered most wasn't a large chakra reserve or immense strength, but exceptional chakra control.

In medical treatment or surgery, precise chakra control is essential for performing delicate procedures.

In other words, a medic lacking chakra control isn't a proper healer.

Medical ninjas must have high chakra control as a basic entry requirement.

For a regular ninja like Toneri, his ability to walk up trees and run on water might be adequate, but it fell short of the precision needed by a medical ninja.

Toneri's chakra control wasn't terrible, but Tsunade was a strict teacher, which led to the scene just now.

"Tsunade-nee, I'm not actually a ninja yet—I haven't graduated…" Toneri scratched his head sheepishly.

Looking at the fist-shaped dents and craters around him, he got a firsthand impression of Tsunade's monstrous strength.

Tsunade glared at him, and her right hand flashed out so fast he barely registered it. By the time he realized it, her finger was already aimed at his forehead, ready to flick.

A mere finger was all it took…

Bang!

Toneri was sent flying from his seat in the courtyard, slamming into the wall and becoming a "painting" on it.

His expression was still dazed, utterly bewildered at how he ended up like this.

Slowly, he slid down from the wall...

Tsunade looked at him with a mix of disappointment and frustration.

What she had taught him wasn't only for learning medical ninjutsu; it was a highly effective exercise for honing chakra control on its own.

She had assumed Toneri might be an exceptional talent and set her expectations high, only to be disappointed.

In truth, Toneri's chakra control wasn't bad—considering he was still an academy student, it wasn't bad at all. He also had a lot of chakra and hadn't been practicing control for very long.

"How long do you plan to lie there? Get up already!" Tsunade noticed he was still lying on the ground and yelled at him.

She hadn't realized just how much force she'd used.

Though he'd been sent flying, he wasn't actually hurt. He was just pretending.

Hearing her call, Toneri jumped up immediately, running over to Tsunade with a grin.

"Tsunade-nee… take it easy…"

He decided to play up his age advantage, pulling out his ultimate move: pleading and acting cute.

As for pride—what was that? Could you eat it?

Rolling her eyes, Tsunade began explaining some of the basics of medical ninjutsu, entirely forgetting her earlier statement to Orochimaru—that she wouldn't teach him even as a favor if he lacked talent...

Once again, the "Sweetness Principle" came into play.

While Toneri's chakra control wasn't great, he had an excellent grasp of concepts.

His creative thinking and ability to adapt ideas finally earned Tsunade's acknowledgment.

She was also surprised that when discussing emergency treatments for battle injuries, Toneri seemed to transform. He spoke of theories she'd never even heard of.

Even more impressive was that, after analyzing his ideas, Tsunade realized they could actually work!

Her opinion of Toneri did a complete 180.

Medical ninjutsu indeed required high chakra control, blocking most ninjas from this path. But there was another critical quality: imagination.

Yes, in this field, imagination was crucial!

Of course, imagination needed to be grounded in a solid understanding of medical ninjutsu.

At this point, medical ninjutsu in the shinobi world was still in its infancy.

Thanks to Tsunade's efforts, Konoha had started to value medical ninjas.

In the Second Shinobi War, Konoha's victory was partly due to every squad having a medical ninja.

Konoha had the highest number of medical ninjas in the entire shinobi world.

But elite medical ninjas were rare!

Apart from Tsunade, there was only one other skilled medical ninja in the Root division, and the number of top-level medics was too few.

In their recent battles with the Sand Village, the Suna ninjas excelled in puppet techniques and poison. The most formidable of them was Elder Chiyo, whose poisons became nightmares for many Konoha ninjas. Without Tsunade's quick thinking and experience, Konoha might still be fighting the war.

Tsunade relied not only on her experience but also on her creative imagination.

She recognized this same quality in Toneri.

She also realized Toneri had unique approaches to treating severe injuries. Though she wasn't sure where he learned them, his methods gave her new insights.

Gradually…

Tsunade began to understand what had caught Orochimaru's interest.

Toneri's ideas were as if he were from another world, with an understanding of medical concepts far beyond his era.

"Alright, I take back what I said earlier. I can't say whether you'll be a great ninja, but if you're willing, I can help you become a top-notch medical ninja!" Tsunade looked at Toneri, curiosity sparkling in her eyes.

What kind of environment could produce… someone like this?

The medical techniques and insights he shared seemed a bit fantastical, yet revolutionary for this time.

Tsunade felt a hint of regret—she should've given him a chance from the start instead of dismissing him so quickly.

This boy, though a jinchuriki, didn't have the usual dark energy. Instead, he had an easy-going, cheerful disposition that reminded her of her late brother, Nawaki.

Thinking of Nawaki, Tsunade felt a tinge of sadness.

Bang!

Annoyed, she kicked Toneri, who had been diligently studying, sending him flying into the wall again.

This time, Toneri was genuinely confused.

What just happened?

Seeing his bewildered face, Tsunade's tears suddenly dried up, replaced by laughter. "Alright, you can go now. Come back when you've mastered this technique and can use it smoothly!"

With that, she turned and headed back inside. Having drunk quite a bit, she was feeling sleepy.

In that last moment, Toneri seemed to understand her intent. Lying on the ground, he grinned and shouted, "Tsunade-nee, if you ever need someone to pour your drinks, I'd be happy to help!"

As the saying goes, a good little brother knows how to pour drinks—and makes a perfect little wallet!

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