Orochimaru quietly watched as Tōshirō fiddled around.
Soon, the first result came in—Tōshirō failed.
Orochimaru chuckled, looking a little embarrassed. "Looks like I was just daydreaming…"
Tōshirō shook his head, stopping him from jumping to conclusions. "I think it's possible."
Orochimaru was taken aback.
"Turning theory into practice isn't that easy. That was only the first attempt—let me try a few more times."
Tōshirō wasn't just saying this to comfort Orochimaru. After going through the process himself, he genuinely felt that this approach had potential. There were just a few mishandled details that led to the failure.
"Hold on, I'll do it again."
Tōshirō repeated the process, but he failed once more.
Orochimaru, believing the hypothesis was flawed, tried to dissuade him. "Tōshirō-kun, just let it go. Your technique is already well-developed. There's no need to waste time on a casual idea I threw out."
"It's fine. I feel like I made progress this time," Tōshirō stubbornly continued.
Just as Orochimaru was about to say something else, a voice rang out nearby.
"What's he doing?"
The voice was clear and melodious, like the chime of a silver bell. Orochimaru turned his head to see a beautiful girl with golden ponytails standing behind him.
With her arrival, it was as if the air had become thinner.
"Tsunade," Orochimaru called her name. "What are you doing here?"
"I haven't been here in a while. I thought I'd come by for some nostalgia and get some training in. I recently picked up a new jutsu from a certain idiot, so I wanted to practice it."
The Third Training Ground was where Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya had once trained under Hiruzen Sarutobi and fought over the bell test.
Orochimaru nodded in acknowledgment.
Noticing that Tōshirō was busy with something, Tsunade didn't want to disturb him. Instead, she turned to Orochimaru. "What's going on?"
In response, Orochimaru explained how Tōshirō, as a way of repaying a favor, had decided to teach him a ninjutsu technique.
"He's teaching you a jutsu?"
"Yes, a technique called the Rasengan. It's truly an incredible jutsu."
Tsunade thought for a moment and realized she had heard of this technique before. Wasn't it that kid Naruto's jutsu?
Did Tōshirō trick that brat into giving it to him?
Somehow, he had managed to get his hands on the technique.
Orochimaru gazed at Tōshirō with admiration. "To be able to develop a technique of this caliber… Tōshirō is truly remarkable."
Develop the Rasengan?
Tsunade froze. Him?
Seeing the strange expression on Tsunade's face, Orochimaru grew curious. "What's wrong? Did I say something inaccurate?"
Tsunade gently shook her head.
She and Tōshirō knew each other too well.
So the moment she heard Orochimaru say that Tōshirō had developed the Rasengan, she immediately understood what was going on.
This was just him shamelessly taking credit for something that wasn't his. In the past, Tsunade would have scoffed at such behavior and taken the opportunity to roast him mercilessly.
But now, since she was this idiot's girlfriend, she decided to let it slide.
"It's nothing." Tsunade spared him some dignity with a vague response.
Perhaps because they were both training new jutsu, Orochimaru was reminded of something. "Earlier, you mentioned learning a technique from someone. You weren't referring to Tōshirō, were you?"
A playful smile appeared on Tsunade's lips. "Who knows…"
The deep affection in her gaze said it all.
Orochimaru, the "big lightbulb" in the room, couldn't help but sigh. "Even now, I still find it hard to believe that you two actually got together. It feels like a dream—no, even in a dream, this would be too far-fetched."
At that moment, the chakra sphere in Tōshirō's hands suddenly lost control and exploded.
Caught in the vortex of energy, Tōshirō took the brunt of the impact.
Seeing this, Orochimaru was about to step forward to check on him.
But before he could move, a figure rushed past him and reached Tōshirō first, catching him before he could fall.
"Tōshirō, are you okay?"
Tōshirō was so focused on his training that he didn't notice Tsunade's arrival. So when he finally saw her, he was first surprised, then a little happy. "What are you doing here?"
Tsunade didn't answer the question. Her moist eyes were filled with worry. "Does it hurt? Are you okay?"
"I'm fine…"
Tsunade's tone grew sharper. "Fine? Did you not see how big that explosion was just now? Are you an idiot? This jutsu is already complete—why are you messing around with it for no reason?"
Tōshirō reassured her, "You're overreacting. This is just a necessary part of training."
"I don't care! I won't allow you to do something this dangerous again." Tsunade's voice was both stern and affectionate as she reached out and twisted his ear. "Let's see if this helps you remember!"
Though her words were fierce, her touch was gentle—she was afraid of actually hurting him.
Tōshirō smiled helplessly, thinking to himself, Nothing is harder to endure than the kindness of a beautiful woman.
At that moment, Orochimaru approached, intending to speak up in Tōshirō's defense. But before he could, Tsunade's face tensed up, her brows furrowing as she went into full protective mode. "And you! Orochimaru, why did you even bring up this stuff to Tōshirō? Now his hand is injured because of you!"
Orochimaru was taken aback, looking a little aggrieved. I didn't mean for this to happen either…
"This isn't Orochimaru's fault."
Tōshirō waved his hand dismissively, then looked into Tsunade's deep, watery eyes, his expression serious. "This was my own decision."
"Why?" Tsunade didn't understand. Is he just asking for trouble?
"Because I'm not strong enough yet."
"But you're already so strong! Among people our age, you're the strongest I've ever seen."
"You said it yourself—among people our age. That's not enough. I don't want to see you getting hurt because I wasn't strong enough to protect you. That's why I have to take every opportunity to get stronger."
Damn it… this feeling…
Tsunade felt her heart skip a beat, her cheeks heating up with a slight itch. "Even so, you don't have to push yourself this hard. I may not be as strong as you, but I'm not some weak woman who hides behind a man."
Tōshirō nodded firmly. "I know you're not."
"Then why—"
"Because I'm being careful."
"…I see."
Tsunade lowered her gaze, her eyelashes fluttering slightly. A soft, childlike smile spread across her face. "You really are a strange guy… But that's exactly what I love about you."
With that, she gently took his hand. "Since you're so determined, I won't stop you. But before you try again, let me heal you first. Otherwise, you might end up with lasting damage."
She clasped her hands together, activating the Mystical Palm Technique. A soft green light glowed, illuminating both Tōshirō's hand and his heart.
"Thank you. You're always looking out for me."
Tōshirō couldn't help but sigh—having a girlfriend was truly great.
These days, someone who helps you up once is a friend. Someone who helps you up all the time? That's a girlfriend.
Tsunade shook her head slightly. "That's something I should be saying to you."
Tōshirō chuckled. "We're getting bolder, aren't we? We're starting to act like we don't care about where we are. If this keeps up, it's going to be a problem if someone finds out."
"Don't worry. There's no one else around. No one will interrupt us."
Orochimaru: ???
Excuse me, but am I not a person?
Do these two even realize there's a living, breathing human standing right next to them?!
(End of Chapter)
────────────────────────────────────
"If you're interested, please support me in my other novel [One Piece: General Blue]."
"If you're interested, please support me in my other novel [Battle Through the Heavens: Heavenly comprehension]."
"If you're interested, please support me in my other novel [Soul Land 2: Golden Dragon King]."
"If you want an early access join my patreon:- patreon.com/BaDwYGaMeR"