Idiot Jiraiya

Hearing the thunderous crash, Hyuga Matsuba stopped as well. Looking at the earth split apart before him, the jagged fragments of ground, large and small, made for a striking sight. When he looked down, the abyss was so deep he could not see the bottom.

"Now that's talking with fists! If I'd taken one of his punches just now, I'd probably be on my way to the afterlife already." Hyuga Matsuba swallowed.

Even with the system he had been born with and a year of training, his age remained too great a limitation. An attack of that magnitude was something he simply could not achieve yet.

And Tsunade had still held back. She had not shown her full strength at all. He wondered just how formidable teenage Tsunade truly was.

Sneaking a glance at the troublemaking Jiraiya, Hyuga Matsuba decided that discretion was the better part of valor. This was a place of trouble, and he could not linger. It was not like he had caused the mess anyway. Better to leave quickly.

"Tsunade, aren't you missing the point? That brat was looking down on you."

Jiraiya had also been frightened by the spectacle, so he began trying to shift the blame onto Hyuga Matsuba. What a shameless move—using a child as a shield!

Cold sweat streamed down Hyuga Matsuba's body. He swore that once he grew up and reached the level of the Milk Cow Chariot, the first thing he would do was beat Jiraiya to a pulp.

"Sir, you should at least have some evidence when you talk. Which eye saw me mocking such a beautiful young lady? I was only surprised that such a beautiful young lady would be walking with an old, ugly-to-the-core man like you, okay?"

Since Jiraiya had left him no way out, Hyuga Matsuba had no reason to hold back. Besides, he had known all about Jiraiya before crossing over. Jiraiya had always been ridiculously good-tempered; even this would not make him angry.

Hearing Hyuga Matsuba's words, Jiraiya was practically furious to death. Who would have thought this little brat would dare say such things about someone as handsome and dashing as him?

"Haha." Tsunade, who had been angry just moments ago, burst into laughter.

Tsunade slowly approached the little brat, Hyuga Matsuba, finding him strangely adorable. "Little handsome, where did you come from? Did you eat candy? Why is your mouth so sweet?"

Tsunade did not know her own strength, and although his cheeks hurt from being pinched, Hyuga Matsuba remained outwardly composed. "I'm only telling the truth. Kids don't lie!"

Hyuga Matsuba really had not lied. Although Tsunade was still young and showed no trace yet of the Milk Cow Chariot title, her chest was indeed pitifully small. You could barely notice it without looking closely—flat as an airfield. But if one looked at her face, she was truly breathtakingly beautiful.

"I knew it! You really are such an adorable child." The corners of Tsunade's mouth kept lifting.

From childhood until now, this was the first time Tsunade had received such praise. Though she acted like a boy and often did things recklessly without thinking, she still deeply wanted to be praised as a girl.

"Heh, heh." Hyuga Matsuba felt that Tsunade was starting to float on air. Women really were terrifying.

Jiraiya was no longer afraid and said disdainfully, "Tsunade, you're too easy to fool. Look at this brat. He's obviously a liar. Talking about telling the truth? He's full of nonsense!"

Jiraiya still had not calmed down. He was trying to think of a way to teach Hyuga Matsuba a lesson and show him what was what. Besides, he was still in the prime of his youth—who was this old man supposed to be?

Though Hyuga Matsuba was only a little brat still wet behind the ears, his words were far too infuriating. Jiraiya had not wanted to argue with a child, but he had gone too far.

"What? Then, old sir, you say I'm lying, but I just praised Sister Tsunade for being beautiful. Does that mean you think Sister Tsunade is ugly?"

At those words, Tsunade's face, which had just been full of delight, darkened again. She stared icily at Jiraiya.

Jiraiya's scalp prickled beneath that cold gaze. The little brat even pulled a face at him now. He was suffering in silence, unable to voice his grievances.

Jiraiya never imagined that he would actually lose to a little brat today. Had water gotten into his brain?

The atmosphere became awkward, and no one dared speak. Seeing this, Orochimaru coolly remarked, "They're all idiots."

"Idiots" was truly the perfect description for the situation. Even after being insulted, Jiraiya did not retort and instead chose to keep quiet.

He was questioning his life now. After living all these years and eating so many meals, he had actually lost to a little brat today? Had all those years been wasted?

"Don't play dumb with me! Come on, explain yourself. What exactly did you mean?" Tsunade's anger rose higher when she saw Jiraiya still remaining silent.

Jiraiya also realized the danger of his current situation and worried that things would suddenly spiral out of control. He hurriedly forced an awkward smile onto his face.

"Tomorrow. I still have a mission to complete tomorrow. Sis, could you go a little easier on me?" Jiraiya knew he could not escape this disaster. All he could ask for now was to be left with an intact corpse.

"Jiraiya, I'm telling you, your end is here!" Tsunade said viciously.

"Miss, please show mercy. Look at this old man—he didn't even react when someone called him an idiot. His brain must be broken beyond repair. Just let him off this once!" Hyuga Matsuba decided to save Jiraiya for once.

"Pfft."

Hyuga Matsuba had once again made Tsunade laugh. This little rascal really knew how to talk. Tsunade reached out and rubbed his head.

"You little guy, you're just too adorable. How can I like you this much?" Tsunade could not help praising Hyuga Matsuba again.

Hyuga Matsuba felt extremely uncomfortable. He had just used his age advantage to win Tsunade's favor, but as an adult, being touched all over by a young girl gave him an indescribably stifled feeling.

"Hmph, how interesting." Orochimaru gave Hyuga Matsuba a faint glance.

Tsunade had truly been angry just now. Even elite genin would have found that scene frightening, yet this little brat had not shown the slightest fear. The observant Orochimaru had taken note of it all.

Hyuga Matsuba had not expected that such a minor detail alone would draw Orochimaru's attention.

Even if Hyuga Matsuba had known, he probably would not have cared, because the current Orochimaru could not be compared with the Orochimaru of the future.

The current Orochimaru was neither cheerful and lively nor particularly quiet. Moreover, he had no interest at all in research at this time; his heart was set solely on his village.

Even if Orochimaru took issue with Hyuga Matsuba and intended to make a move, he might not necessarily be Hyuga Matsuba's match. Their strengths were evenly matched.

Jiraiya had escaped disaster, his heart nearly leaping out of his throat. He hurriedly slipped away. Being defeated by a child like this was far too humiliating.

"You weren't much to look at to begin with, and now you're too ashamed to show your face, huh?" Hyuga Matsuba watched Jiraiya run away, his face full of disdain.

"What did you say, brat? Believe it or not, I'll beat you to death?" Jiraiya finally could not endure it any longer and sprang to his feet.

"Hmph." Hyuga Matsuba did not take Jiraiya seriously at all. He did not even want to speak to him, merely letting out a cold snort through his nose.

Tsunade and Orochimaru were both worried about Jiraiya's intelligence now. How had he suddenly become an idiot when he had been perfectly fine?

"What do you mean by that?" Jiraiya was clearly still out of the loop.

"Idiot!"

"You're already this old, and you're still picking a fight with a child in diapers. You really are promising!" Tsunade rolled her eyes at Jiraiya.

Only then did Jiraiya realize that Hyuga Matsuba was merely a child. If they fought, winning would bring him no glory; if he lost, he would be worse than a child.

At that point, his reputation would be tossed straight into the garbage dump. How could he ever face anyone again?

His own embarrassment was not even the main issue. More importantly, his teacher, Hiruzen Sarutobi, would lose face along with him.