Human Nature × Past Events

"Old man, have you gone senile?"

"In my condition, I can't even function in the medical corps."

"And you want me on the front lines?"

"Are you that afraid of us winning the war?"

Third didn't get angry at these words, merely continuing in a calm tone, "I am well aware of your illness."

"I will arrange for Nara Dan to serve as the deputy commander."

"You can leave all the responsibilities to him."

"You won't need to step onto the front lines directly."

"Bam!"

Tsunade slammed her sake flask onto the desk.

"So that's why you were beating around the bush."

"You were planning to use me to keep someone else in check."

Tsunade let out a cold, mocking laugh, expressing her disdain for Third's political maneuvering.

Although Tsunade couldn't fight on the front lines, her prestige as a medical ninja was unrivaled.

Even if she only handled medical and logistical duties, once the war was won, a little political maneuvering would easily grant her the title of lead commander.

Transferring the credit that belonged to Nara Dan over to Tsunade wouldn't be a problem at all.

However, Tsunade's Hemophobia was a fatal flaw that prevented her from truly touching Third's political interests.

And if the war were lost, Nara Dan would undoubtedly be the one to take the fall.

In short, Third's move was a win-win for him, calculated to perfection.

But Tsunade didn't have the best temper.

"Forget it!"

"I won't participate in such dirty business."

"Let me tell you something, old man."

"It hasn't been long since the incident with White Fang!"

Third didn't get annoyed at this either, simply smiling to soothe her, "I am merely consulting your opinion."

"As your elder, I would certainly never force you to do anything."

Tsunade gave a cold smile and said nothing more, knowing this old man hadn't shown his full hand.

Her drinking didn't mean she was drunk; as the strongest medical ninja in the Ninja World, controlling her own sobriety was second nature to her.

"Since you are unwilling to take charge as commander,"

"We still need you for logistics and medical support."

"Only you can neutralize the poisons used by Chiyo of the Sand."

"If you take charge, you could significantly reduce the casualties of our ninjas."

"Besides, if Nara Dan serves as commander, it will be his first time on a large-scale battlefield."

"Only someone with your experience can guide him."

At this point, Third finally revealed his true intentions.

His goal was to have Tsunade oversee logistics for the Land of Wind front, while simultaneously helping Nara Dan, who lacked experience in major battles.

If he had stated his request directly, Tsunade, already shrouded in the shadows of war, might have rejected him outright without room for negotiation.

But human nature tends to lower its bottom line.

When you propose an impossible request and get rejected, then follow up with a feasible one, The chances of the other party agreeing increase significantly.

Tsunade was smart enough to understand this logic; in fact, exhausted and weary from the war, she didn't even want to handle logistics.

But in the end, her feelings for Konoha outweighed her inner turmoil.

Because no matter what, the common people and low-ranking ninjas of Konoha were innocent.

After a moment of silence, Tsunade waved her hand wearily, "Fine, I'll take care of the logistics."

"Just don't bother me until then."

But Third clearly didn't want to let her off that easily, asking once more, "Speaking of Nara Dan,"

"Tsunade, your achievements in Taijutsu are greater than mine."

"Do you know exactly what level he has reached now?"

"Are you clear on that?"

Upon hearing the name Nara Dan, Tsunade's expression became complex, and not just because he shared the name of her deceased boyfriend.

It was because she and Nara Dan had a history together.

The situation was roughly that back then, Nara Dan had ignored the opposition of others and devoted himself wholeheartedly to the path of Taijutsu.

Tsunade, having heard of this through some unknown channel, had paid unusual attention to Nara Dan due to the coincidence of their names.

Later, she discovered that Nara Dan truly had something special; his talent for Taijutsu was astonishing.

Therefore, out of a desire to cherish talent and harboring complex feelings for her lost love, Tsunade had even contacted the Nara Clan, intending to take him on as her disciple.

She had even wanted to pass on the Strength of a Hundred to him.

Because in the eyes of Tsunade, a medical ninja, the human body had its limits, and Taijutsu had no way of reaching a higher realm.

The high-intensity training Nara Dan was undergoing was merely squeezing out the decent potential already present in his body.

His strength would increase rapidly in the short term, but he would definitely suffer from frequent sequelae in the later stages.

This was the reason why Tsunade, despite possessing the physique of the Senju, still needed to use medical ninjutsu and the Yin Seal to assist herself.

But what Tsunade did not expect was that Nara Dan had refused the Sannin's invitation to be her student without a moment's hesitation.

He didn't even give a specific reason, simply leaving behind one sentence:

"Lady Tsunade's path is not suitable for me."

This naturally left Tsunade furious, as he had slighted her.

However, Tsunade couldn't bring herself to target a child, so she could only fire back with a harsh warning.

She said that if Nara Dan continued with this method of cultivation, he would exhaust his potential and develop all sorts of ailments in two or three years, or four or five at most, and that he shouldn't come looking for her for treatment when that happened.

But she never expected that over these years, not only had Nara Dan shown no signs of exhausting his potential, but he had also advanced by leaps and bounds, carving out a fearsome reputation as the Black Demon.

His achievements were already no less than her own.

Originally, for the past half year, Nara Dan had indeed been stuck in a bottleneck, and Tsunade had assumed he had reached his limit and would even start to decline.

But in the last few days, Nara had made another breakthrough, and even she, an expert in both Taijutsu and medical ninjutsu, could no longer fathom his progress.

Tsunade shook her head.

"I am not clear on his level either."

"I crossed paths with him while drinking at a tavern a few days ago, and I caught a glimpse of him from afar."

"He no longer has that feeling of overflowing vitality and burning potential."

"Instead, his energy is restrained, and his life force has regained a new vitality."

"Even his exaggerated physique has been reined in."

Tsunade recalled in detail the feeling she had when she saw Nara Dan from a distance.

He was as vast as the sky, as deep as the sea, and his life force was blooming like the rising sun.

His entire aura was completely contained; the fierce, aggressive presence he used to display was nowhere to be seen.

Replacing it was a feeling as refreshing as a spring breeze, one that naturally made people feel well-disposed toward him.

The Third heard this and was secretly shocked; he hadn't expected the intelligence reports to be true.

It was truly possible for someone to undergo a heaven-turning, earth-shattering change in temperament and physique overnight.

One had to understand that these things were deeply rooted in one's power system.

For example, the darkness of Orochimaru, the ruggedness of the Third Raikage, or the ferocity of a Jinchuriki.

It wasn't something you could just disguise if you wanted to; you could fool ordinary people with a Transformation Jutsu, but for experts like them, the perception of energy and aura was superior to everything else.

"On the path of Taijutsu,"

"he has completely forged his own way."

"I am truly inferior to him."