After a long while, Nonō finally stopped crying. She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes and awkwardly pulled away from Minato's embrace, unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes between her fingers.
"Sorry... I lost control of myself."
Nonō's face flushed with embarrassment, and her voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
"Um... about what we just discussed, maybe we should forget it? As long as the village keeps funding the orphanage, I'll be satisfied. There's no need to burden Lady Tsunade with this. I was being selfish."
Minato smiled. "Don't worry. I wasn't planning on bothering my teacher anyway, and she wouldn't be much help with something like this. She's actually quite poor."
Recently, Tsunade seemed to have been paying more attention to her image. The most obvious sign was that she hadn't set foot in a casino for quite some time.
When she occasionally felt like gambling, she would just drag them into a game of cards. But with her luck, even a brief game was enough to leave her completely broke.
Fortunately, most of that money ended up in Minato's pockets, becoming the family's food, utility, and daily expenses.
Without even realizing it, Minato had become the one managing the household finances...
So he hadn't been lying to Nonō. Tsunade really was broke. She was the poorest one in the household.
"Don't worry. Leave it to me."
Minato spoke gently. "After school, take me to have a look."
"Then... sorry for the trouble."
Nonō nodded without asking any further questions.
She was a clever girl. She knew that if Minato had agreed, he must have had a plan. Even if it was only an idea, it would still be a help to the orphanage in its current state.
Pressing him for details would