Konoha's Number One Free-Loader King

The first phase of training had come to an end, and Ye Ning finally had some time to rest.

Reflecting on the past month, his life could only be described as pitch-black.

Every day was packed with a variety of courses, leaving not a single moment of free time, let alone the luxury of lying comfortably in the courtyard to soak up the sun like he was doing today.

However, the gains from such hellish special training were remarkably significant.

Whether it was genjutsu, taijutsu, or the development of his Kekkei Genkai, he had made clear and obvious progress.

"Hey, tell me, are you entering your golden years early?"

Tsunade walked over and sat down beside Ye Ning, rubbing her messy, unkempt hair as she had just woken up, her demeanor lazy.

"It's rare to have a break, why not go out and stroll around?"

"Waiting for you."

"Waiting for me? What for?"

Tsunade let out a lazy yawn, completely disregarding her image. "I haven't had a drink in a month; today I absolutely must have a good, long drink."

Ye Ning covered his face.

He was wrong.

He shouldn't have believed that Tsunade had turned over a new leaf.

During the month he spent in devilish training, Tsunade hadn't touched a drop of alcohol, playing the role of a dutiful teacher perfectly, and he had actually thought she had changed her nature.

Yet, on the very first day of the break, this person was about to break her vow!

As expected, he shouldn't have held any illusions about her.

This person would likely never be able to part with alcohol for the rest of her life.

Ye Ning rolled his eyes and said irritably, "Accompany me to Hatake Sakumo's place."

"Hatake Sakumo? Why go to his house? What, is learning taijutsu and genjutsu not enough, and now you want to learn kenjutsu?"

Ye Ning had actually considered that idea.

Imagine it: holding a chakra short blade, combined with the explosive speed of Swift Release, passing by an enemy and letting the blade fall, ruthlessly reaping lives—how cool would that be!

But reality crushed him.

Just the development of genjutsu and the training of taijutsu were nearly killing him; where would he find the extra time to learn kenjutsu?

If he had that time, he would rather find Orochimaru to research the development of his Kekkei Genkai.

After interacting with Orochimaru, Ye Ning truly realized that Orochimaru was not as cold-blooded and heartless as he had imagined.

At the very least, the Orochimaru of this time still had warmth in his heart.

Although he always looked at him with a strange and longing gaze, overall, Orochimaru was very good to him.

His suggestions regarding ninjutsu development were extremely practical and completely aligned with his expectations for ninjutsu.

Moreover, he always felt that Orochimaru's feelings toward him were somewhat peculiar.

Ye Ning shook his head and said impatiently:

"Clean yourself up properly and accompany me for a visit. I need to ask for advice on the development of Lightning Release ninjutsu."

"Not going."

"Are you going or not!"

"Not going!"

Tsunade stubbornly turned her head away, her face full of resistance. "I want to drink!"

No, don't you think the way we're interacting right now is strange?

How did it end up like I'm much older than you?

Shouldn't it be me acting spoiled toward you under normal circumstances?

Though he complained incessantly in his heart, Ye Ning could only helplessly coax her: "Isn't it boring to drink all by yourself? If we go to Hatake Sakumo's place, you can drink with him. If that's not enough, you can call Orochimaru over too, and have two people drink with you. That should work, right?"

Tsunade's eyes lit up instantly.

Good idea!

Drinking alone is nowhere near as fun as drinking with a group!

And so—

A group of people gathered at Hatake Sakumo's home, staring at each other in silence.

Hatake Sakumo rubbed his slightly aching temples and sorted out the situation:

"You mean to say that today is just a gathering, and we're all here to have a drink?"

"That's right! Of course, the main purpose is for Ye Ning to ask for your advice on the development of Lightning Release."

Hatake Sakumo nodded, indicating he understood, then scanned the room, looking at the faces of Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Kurama Dequn, and said word by word:

"So, none of you bought any alcohol?"

Kurama Dequn rubbed his head in embarrassment, guiltily averting his gaze. Orochimaru spread his hands, sincerely stating he had forgotten to buy them, while Tsunade looked completely righteous:

"Drinking at your place—shouldn't these things be prepared by you?"

Leaning against the doorway, Ye Ning chuckled to himself.

Here it comes, she's at it again!

Over this past month, he had finally come to understand exactly what kind of scumbag woman Tsunade was.

As far as she was concerned, if something could be gotten for free, she would absolutely never pay for it herself.

Ye Ning was willing to crown her the number one freeloader of Konoha!

Scrounging a free meal and drinks was a trivial matter to Tsunade; she wouldn't even blush while doing it.

Hatake Sakumo, not wearing his ninja vest, possessed a rare and commendable good temper. Even in this situation, he didn't get angry, merely saying helplessly:

"Then sit for a moment, I'll go prepare it."

Hatake Sakumo did not keep them waiting long, soon bringing the food and wine before them.

During the preparation, Ye Ning had briefly discussed his concepts regarding Lightning Release ninjutsu with Sakumo.

Sakumo was truly worthy of being a powerful ninja who had made a name for himself in the Shinobi World by combining Lightning Release with swordsmanship in the form of Nintaijutsu.

With just a few words, he dispelled all the doubts in Ye Ning's mind, offering highly pertinent and practical advice.

"Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing coming to the table?"

Faced with Tsunade's questioning, Ye Ning was dumbfounded.

Wait, was he not even worthy of sitting at the table now?

What for?

"Why can't I sit at the table?"

"You don't drink, so why are you coming up here?"

"Just because I don't drink doesn't mean I can't sit at the table! Can't I just eat? Don't let me eat, and I'll report you for child abuse!"

"Go ahead and report it, see who cares."

Regarding the two's bickering, aside from Sakumo, who wasn't as close to them and appeared somewhat surprised, Orochimaru and Kurama Dequn were already unfazed.

Such arguments occurred every few days.

It was hard to tell if these two were just fated to clash, but they could start a fight over anything.

They would argue while eating, argue during training, and argue during the idle chatter after training.

It seemed there was nothing they couldn't turn into an argument.

Yet, no matter how much they fought, neither was ever truly angry, nor did it affect their relationship; on the contrary, they seemed to enjoy it.

Perhaps, between people, there are simply all sorts of ways to get along?

Orochimaru and Kurama Dequn didn't even lift their eyelids, not taking the argument seriously at all, and continued to eat their food.

After arguing for a while and noticing that Orochimaru and Kurama Dequn were wolfing down the food, Ye Ning and Tsunade finally realized what was happening. They exchanged a glance, stopped in perfect sync, and joined the battle for the meal.