True Hearts Are Hard to Keep, Only Tricks Win People's Hearts

By the time Bai Lin strolled leisurely into Training Ground 7, he found the area in complete disarray.

The ground was riddled with craters of varying depths, and Tsunade stood in the center with her arms crossed, her expression dark enough to drip ink.

Jiraiya looked as though he had lost all meaning in life; his clothes were tattered, his cheeks were swollen beyond recognition, and he was muttering grievances to himself.

Kushina and the Black-haired Girl were engaged in a serious sparring match, though Kushina kept sneaking glances at the shifting expression on Tsunade's face.

Minato Namikaze was doing push-ups on the ground with a massive boulder strapped to his back.

"Brother Lin!"

Kushina spotted Bai Lin walking over and her eyes lit up instantly.

She couldn't even be bothered to continue the fight and started to run toward him.

"Hmm?" Tsunade let out a strange sound.

Kushina's steps faltered, and she returned to her original spot to resume the spar with the Black-haired Girl.

Bai Lin walked up to the group, glanced at the mess in the field, then looked at Jiraiya's pathetic state, and raised an eyebrow. "It seems things were quite lively here before I arrived?"

"What happened? Was there an enemy invasion?"

"It's all your fault!" Jiraiya immediately scrambled to his feet, pointing at Bai Lin to complain to Tsunade. "If you hadn't been late, Tsunade wouldn't have taken her anger out on me!"

"You still have the nerve to show up!" Tsunade's rage, redirected at Bai Lin, ignited instantly. She turned and charged toward him. "You're an hour late and you still have the gall to make sarcastic remarks? Today, I'm beating you along with him!"

Bai Lin's eyes narrowed; he flashed, and his figure appeared over ten meters away.

"I know you're in a hurry, but don't be in such a rush!"

"Tsunade, before you make a move, why not listen to my sophistry—er, my explanation?"

"Explain my foot! Explaining is your business, listening is mine. Go explain yourself to King Yama in hell!" Tsunade, appearing completely unwilling to hear a word, continued to attack Bai Lin relentlessly.

"Tsunade, if you don't stop now, the gift I prepared for you will be gone."

Bai Lin flashed again, narrowly avoiding Tsunade's fist.

"What gift?" Tsunade stopped in her tracks; she was, after all, curious to hear how he would try to talk his way out of this.

"Rest assured, it's a gift that will definitely make you happy," Bai Lin said confidently.

He led Tsunade to a small clearing not far from the training ground, shielded by trees that hid the area from view.

Kushina and the Black-haired Girl also stopped their training and followed along.

In the center of the clearing sat a table with several items placed upon it.

"Tsunade, I know you were forced to take me as a disciple and feel quite helpless about it, but there is no need to treat me like a student. Let's just be friends."

"My path as a ninja doesn't require guidance from others; I already have my own plan, so don't feel burdened by what you can or cannot teach me."

"We share a connection, and the items on this table are a gift prepared specifically for you. I hope you can be the bigger person."

Bai Lin pointed to the stack of small rectangular blocks on the table. "I specifically inquired about what you like, and since I heard you enjoy gambling, I spent the night crafting these little trinkets. Consider them an apology for being late today and for angering you yesterday."

"What is this?" Tsunade said, expressionless. "Also, I do not like gambling."

Where did that rumor even come from? She always used a Transformation Jutsu whenever she went to a casino, for heaven's sake.

"This is Mahjong. Come, let me teach you how to play."

As he spoke, Bai Lin picked up one of the rectangular blocks and pointed to the carvings and numbers on its face to explain.

It was crudely made, fashioned entirely out of wood.

Bai Lin had barely finished explaining the basic rules before he saw that Tsunade's attention had been completely captured.

"It sounds a bit more interesting than rolling dice," Tsunade said, crossing her arms and feigning indifference. "So, tell me, how exactly do you play?"

Though she refused to admit she liked gambling, deep down she loved games involving strategy and chance. As she watched Bai Lin demonstrate, her fingers couldn't help but twitch, and the frost on her face had long since melted away without a trace.

"Going to a casino to gamble money isn't a good thing, but you can play this with a few friends. It relies purely on luck and skill, and the winning or losing is just for fun—it's perfect for passing the time."

"If you're ever bored, Tsunade, you can find me to play a few rounds of Mahjong to relax."

"Since you're so sincere, I'll forgive you for today and yesterday!" Tsunade pouted, though her eyes betrayed her impatience to start playing.

"Don't be in such a hurry; there is a second gift," Bai Lin said, picking up a few pages of paper from the table.

"And what is this?" Tsunade asked again, though her tone was much softer now.

"Tsunade, even though in the eyes of others I am your disciple, I hope our relationship can be that of friends. You don't have to treat me like a child."

"Fine, I don't have much to teach you anyway. Do as you please," Tsunade said lightly.

Hearing this, the smile in Bai Lin's eyes deepened.

"The First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, was your grandfather, and Konoha is essentially your home. I know you care more about the stability of this place than anyone, and you treat all the villagers like your own family."

"So, combining my own ideas with my understanding of you, I stayed up all night writing this optimization plan for the Konoha Medical System."

"It's just a concept, and given my understanding of Konoha, it likely won't pass, but there is still room for further optimization."

Bai Lin said in a gentle tone.

Neither the Mahjong nor the optimization plan for the Konoha Medical System had actually taken much of his time.

Mahjong was something he had specially crafted back when he was bored, thinking that once he grew up, he could open a casino where Mahjong would surely attract many people and earn a great deal of money.

As for the optimization plan for the Konoha Medical System, did that even require any thought?

It was so simple to just take the plan Tsunade would propose in the future and make it his own; Bai Lin hadn't even spent half an hour writing it out.

That plan originated from the experience of her brother Nawaki dying in battle; she believed that the lack of medical support on the front lines was the key reason many ninjas sacrificed their lives in vain.

The plan limited the scenario to deep-cover missions behind enemy lines, expanding the squad size to four members including one medical ninja, thereby ensuring timely treatment for the wounded, reducing casualties, and guaranteeing mission progress.

However, because the threshold for training medical ninjas was high and the costs were great at the time, Hiruzen Sarutobi did not implement it immediately, although Konoha later established a medical corps and gradually assigned medical ninjas to some squads, indirectly putting the plan into effect.

But Tsunade's boyfriend had also died before this, leading to her disappointment in Konoha—or rather, in her teacher, Hiruzen Sarutobi—which, coupled with her hemophobia, made her want to leave the village.

Since ancient times, sincerity has never been enough; only schemes win hearts.

He had started planning how to close the distance with Tsunade since yesterday.

After all, he was still young, and only by shifting her mindset so she wouldn't see him as a child could the two of them interact as friends.

First the brother, then the sister, and in the end, you become my little darling.

That was why he had deliberately cultivated an annoying image for Tsunade yesterday; it was all for the sake of this moment's reversal.

Why do most women like scumbags? It's because those men know how to create surprises.

Mahjong: catering to her interests.

Medical plan: a meeting of minds.

These two things would make Tsunade believe that Bai Lin must have invested a great deal of effort and done all of this specifically for her.