Idol Falls

The way Kurenai Yuhi's squad traveled looked completely different from other ninjas.

To highlight the characteristics of ninjas, Kishimoto designed a very unique "ninja run" that was distinctive and recognizable—once you struck that pose at a convention, everyone knew you were imitating a ninja running from Naruto. But was this running posture actually scientific? It was undoubtedly inconsistent with Earth's biomechanics and aerodynamics. As for whether it fit the science of the Ninja World, Jiang Feng wasn't sure. All he knew was that this posture wasn't cool enough.

So Jiang Feng never used the "ninja run" posture to travel; instead, he used lightness skills, as he always had. To develop a set of lightness skills that were both cool and practical, Jiang Feng had put in a great deal of effort. Using Chu Liuxiang's template [Moon-Treading Fragrance], Lu Xiaofeng's [Twin Flying Colorful Wings], Quanzhen's [Golden Goose Skill], Wudang's [Ladder Cloud Leap], and the Naruto World's [Body Flicker Technique] as the foundation, he referenced dozens of templates for lightness skills and tailored a set for himself.

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Golden Goose Skill and Ladder Cloud Leap handled height, letting Jiang Feng leap a hundred meters into the air with a single bound. Body Flicker Technique handled speed—when it came to short-distance burst velocity, it had an overwhelming advantage over various lightness skills. [Twin Flying Colorful Wings] handled mid-air maneuverability, allowing Jiang Feng to move as if on solid ground even while airborne, flexibly changing direction up to thirteen times in a row. Chu Liuxiang's original [Moon-Treading Fragrance] handled stealth, elegance, and style—the lightness skill of the Thief of Fragrance, Chu Liuxiang, was truly something special.

This lightness skill was still named [Moon-Treading Fragrance] by Jiang Feng, and it had currently been developed to version 6.3. After Jiang Feng first drafted this lightness skill, some of his ninja friends realized that even the common running posture could be improved. Needless to say, many friends came to Jiang Feng seeking advice and insights on improving their running posture. Jiang Feng also taught some lightness skills he thought suited them, letting them use them for reference. These "friends" naturally included his teammates, his teacher Kurenai Yuhi, and others.

The most special one he taught was to the girl Kurenai Yuhi—Jiang Feng's version of [Moon-Treading Fragrance]. Kurenai Yuhi's skill wasn't refined; driven purely by chakra, it might not be much faster than a normal run, but it excelled at soaring high and descending gracefully, like a celestial being. Most importantly, a girl always hoped she was special in your heart, so Jiang Feng made Kurenai Yuhi the special one.

At dusk, the four-person squad arrived at Tanzaku Town. Tanzaku Town was a large settlement, with more than one bustling street, filled everywhere with gambling dens, food stalls, hot spring hotels, and entertainment districts... Even though the sun had set, even though it was the season of lingering cold and early warmth, even though the Ninja World was fraught with turmoil, the streets were still packed with tourists coming and going, and beautiful women in scant clothing beckoning customers.

"Handsome, come play with us, hehehehe..."

"Sir, spend a certain amount at our shop, and you'll get a mysterious gift~"

A riot of colors dazzled the eyes, and the greenhorn Asuma was immediately captivated by the "riot of colors" on the street, his face flushing red. Konoha was already prosperous enough, and Tanzaku Town wasn't much more prosperous than Konoha, but it excelled in "licentiousness"—the very air here was thick with a mix of rouge, perfume, alcohol, and other scents. That kind of smell was called decadence.

"Focus your mind!" Kurenai Yuhi patted Asuma and warned sternly, "Lust is the first hurdle for a young man. If you can't pass this hurdle, no matter your talent or learning, it's all useless..."

"I wasn't looking at them!" Asuma, red-faced, stammered an explanation: "I was just thinking, the old man only said Lady Tsunade was in Tanzaku Town. With so many people and so many shops here, how long will it take to find her?"

Sigh. Jiang Feng subtly slipped Asuma a small card. Asuma's eyes widened instantly! It was a VIP card for a pleasure house in Tanzaku Town, printed with a scantily clad beauty and a specific address, along with enticing service names like bubble baths and dispatch services. This was!? Jiang Feng sighed softly: "I have a friend."

When others said that, it was probably making up a friend out of thin air. But Jiang Feng really did have a friend who ran a pleasure house in Tanzaku Town. This friend had once asked Jiang Feng to invite the Ninja World's famous playboy Jiraiya over for short-term training guidance for the girls at the shop. Jiang Feng had merely acted as an intermediary and gained two unbreakable friendships, plus over a dozen VIP cards with a 30% discount.

"Your connections are really wide!" Asuma happily pocketed the VIP card. Now he suspected that even if Jiang Feng fell into a volcano, he'd run into a friend there.

"What friend?" Kurenai Yuhi, who hadn't noticed the two men's little exchange, asked curiously.

"Just an ordinary friend."

"A friend is a friend; how can a friend be ordinary?" the girl pressed.

"There are special friends, and there are ordinary friends."

"Who's your special friend?"

"You are."

The girl Kurenai Yuhi was KO'd, her delicate cheeks faintly blushing as she happily turned around, no longer pressing the matter. Captain Kurenai Yuhi glanced at his daughter, who had instantly surrendered, shook his head, and steered the conversation back to the main topic: "Can this friend of yours help us find Lady Tsunade?"

"Anyone in Tanzaku Town can help us find Tsunade." Jiang Feng casually grabbed a female passerby and asked, "Do you know where the Big Fat Sheep is now?"

The passerby woman glanced at Jiang Feng, then broke into a beaming, swaying laugh: "The Big Fat Sheep? She's at the gambling den at the end of the second street. But you've come at a bad time, handsome."

That big milk cow has been losing for days on end, with nothing left to squeeze out. I heard she owes the inn a ton of money, can't even pay her lodging fees, can't afford a meal, and looks a complete mess. She'll probably have to slink out of Tanzaku Town tomorrow with a mountain of debt..."

When women talk about another woman—especially a pretty one's flaws and down-and-out situation—they always have extra drive.

The female passerby rattled on endlessly, indignantly trashing Tsunade as worthless, painting her current plight as utterly miserable.

Uchiha Jiang Feng listened patiently, then politely declined the woman's invitation to "hang out."

Asuma and Kurenai Yuhi stood there, young and wide-eyed.

"No way?"

"Lady Tsunade is like that?"

"Isn't Lady Tsunade the greatest medical ninja in the Ninja World? How could she end up so pathetic!?"

In Konoha's internal propaganda, Tsunade's image had always been heroic and spirited, a healer with a kind heart, immense strength, the founder of the medical ninja system, and alongside Jiraiya and Orochimaru, she fought the demigod of the Ninja World to a standstill...

She was one of the most beautiful and powerful female ninjas in the Ninja World—praised for everything, basically. Kurenai Yuhi and Asuma grew up hearing Tsunade's stories.

To them, Tsunade was a legendary hero.

But the Tsunade in that passerby's mouth? A dead ringer for a female gambling addict who'd lost her mind.

It was like fans who'd adored Furong Wangyuan for years suddenly learning one day that their idol had betrayed the traditional school and embraced technology by switching to e-cigarettes.

The two youngsters felt a similar kind of shattered disillusionment, like their idol had just fallen from grace.