Chapter 28

At the mention of money, her eyes visibly lit up. "Xuan's probably about to strike it rich. That means I'll have one more place to borrow money from in the future, hehe."

The Third Hokage: "..."

What the hell was this?

Was this really the disciple he had taught?

At that moment, he truly felt like expelling this disciple from his tutelage.

"You really didn't teach him these formulas? They aren't old recipes passed down by your Senju Clan either?"

The Third Hokage suppressed his anger, his tone carrying a hint of disappointment.

"Oh?"

Tsunade raised a brow and looked at the Third Hokage with a teasing gleam in her eyes. "No wonder you came looking for me today."

"So you've got your eye on Xuan's formulas? You want to get them from him?"

The veins on the Third Hokage's forehead were about to burst. Before he could say anything, Tsunade spread her hands and smiled. "Unfortunately, I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you. I didn't teach him these, and they aren't from the Senju Clan either."

"If I really had formulas like these, I'd have opened a shop and made money from them long ago. I wouldn't be this broke."

Her tone clearly carried delight for Xuan.

The kid really had not disappointed her.

"Is that so?"

The Third Hokage responded with a trace of disappointment. Then his tone changed as he sternly scolded, "What kind of person do you take your teacher for? Do you think I'm the sort to harbor crooked intentions?"

"Even if these things were yours, at most I'd pay you for them."

"Tch."

Tsunade waved a hand. "You think I'd believe that?"

"Alright, if there's nothing else, you can leave. I still have work to do."

Tsunade rudely grabbed the wine bottle, poured herself a full cup, and tipped it back in one gulp.

The old Third Hokage's eyelids twitched as he watched, cursing inwardly: She's beyond saving. This disciple is completely hopeless.

"I never expected Xuan to be so capable at making medicine. He's already reached this level!"

The Third Hokage sighed. Unable to bear watching Tsunade's behavior any longer, he put away the secret medicine on the table, waved a hand, and turned to leave.

"Fine, I'm just getting in the way here."

With that, he quickly slipped away.

Tsunade's voice came from behind him. "I told you long ago, Xuan's a monster. Otherwise, why would I make an exception and take him as my disciple?"

"Old man, don't cause him trouble, or I'll turn against you!"

The Third Hokage shook his head as he walked, muttering inwardly, I'm not stupid. Now that I know he has this kind of talent, I should be currying favor with him before it's too late!

At the same time, he was making plans to further intensify his efforts to win over and buy off Uchiha Yan. He had to make sure the boy followed him with complete loyalty.

Since Xuan had developed so many good medicines in such a short time, he would surely come up with even more powerful things in the future.

This kid was a treasure!

He was especially glad now that Tsunade had taken Xuan as her disciple. It gave him an opportunity to get close to Xuan and win him over.

Over on Tsunade's side,

Once the Third Hokage had gone far enough, she sprang to her feet, preparing to find Uchiha Yan.

She muttered, "That brat hasn't seen me in what, no time at all, and he's already come up with something this good?"

"No, I need to go take a look. I might as well get some Body-Tempering Pills while I'm at it."

More than half her strength relied on her physical attributes and taijutsu.

If she could easily improve her taijutsu level and physical attributes, wouldn't that be wonderful?

Buying them was out of the question. She was so broke she could barely afford wine anymore.

Knock, knock, knock!

Before she could leave, a knock sounded from outside.

Tsunade sensed slightly and immediately detected Uchiha Yan's familiar chakra presence behind the door. Her brow rose at once. "Oh? What a coincidence?"

More importantly, Uchiha Yan had not run into the Third Hokage, who had only just left.

That was worth thinking about.

She sat back down, folded her arms, and called out, "Why are you still standing there? Get in!"

Creak!

The door opened, and Uchiha Yan entered with a smile. Looking at Tsunade, he said, "Teacher, I came to visit you!"

"I even brought you some good stuff!"

As he spoke, he raised the four bottles of wine in his right hand and the large porcelain jar in his left.

Sniff, sniff!

Tsunade's nose twitched. The next second, she flashed directly in front of Xuan and snatched the wine from his hand.

Then, with another whoosh, she was back at her desk.

A tiny chakra blade formed at her fingertips, slicing through the hemp rope binding the bottles. She casually grabbed one and pulled out the cork.

The aroma of wine instantly exploded through the room, rich enough to sting the nose.

"Whoa—this smell is incredible!"

Before she had even finished speaking, she had already tilted back the bottle and taken several huge gulps.

"Ha—!" She lowered the bottle and vigorously fanned her mouth with one hand, a faint blush spreading across her cheeks. "This wine has some kick! What's it called? Where did you get it?"

Uchiha Yan shrugged. "I brewed it myself. I'm already planning to partner with the clan to open a distillery and produce it in bulk for sale."

"I figured you'd definitely like it, so I brought a few samples over. Since you like it, I'll take care of your wine from now on. Whenever you want a drink, just come to my house and get some."

He was sincerely grateful to this teacher.

Tsunade taught him medical ninjutsu without holding anything back.

She had even passed on her signature Monster Strength Technique to him, and she was fiercely protective of him in everyday life. What did these little things count for as repayment?

"Oh? You said it now! No backing out!" Tsunade's eyes lit up, and she hurriedly pinned him down on it, as if afraid he would regret it the next second.

"I won't back out." Uchiha Yan shook his head with a smile.

He stepped forward and placed the large porcelain jar from his other hand in front of Tsunade. "Oh, and this. These are Body-Tempering Pills I formulated. They're highly effective for strengthening the body and training taijutsu. They're for you."

After saying that, he leaned in slightly and lowered his voice. "This is a special version. Its medicinal strength is several times greater than the ones I'll be selling later. Keep it safe, and don't give it to anyone, or I'll be in trouble."

"Oh?"

Upon hearing that, Tsunade immediately put down the wine bottle, picked up the porcelain jar, twisted off the lid, and brought it to her nose for a sniff. Then she nodded in understanding. "Sure enough, it's completely different from what the old man brought over. You brat... you're something else."

She gave Uchiha Yan a thumbs-up and grinned. "Well done."

"I knew you weren't stupid enough to just throw something this good onto the market. Seeing how sharp you are, I can finally relax."

She had originally planned to give him a few pointers. Now, it seemed this kid was far more shrewd than she had imagined.

"Don't worry. I won't give them to anyone, and I definitely won't let it slip. You need to be careful too."

Tsunade poured out a pill and swallowed it. She sealed the rest in a sealing scroll, and as she felt the medicine dissolve, she added solemnly.

"I know what I'm doing." Uchiha Yan smiled and nodded.

Tsunade tasted the difference, and her eyes lit up as she stared at Uchiha Yan meaningfully. "Impressive! Compared to the ones sold outside, its effects are a full four times stronger."

"And this medicine is especially potent at strengthening the body! The side effects are practically nonexistent. Just my kind of thing. Be more filial to your teacher and give me more of it in the future."

"Also, absolutely, absolutely do not let outsiders get their hands on these original Body-Tempering Pills."

She had noticed that this thing could even increase vitality.

Taking enough of it would make the difference far from insignificant.

Vitality was directly tied to one's lifespan.

Sometimes, something too heaven-defying only brought trouble.

Because you might not be able to keep it.

"Mm."

Hearing Tsunade solemnly warn him again, Uchiha Yan understood that she had truly seen through the core secret of the Body-Tempering Pills. He nodded seriously as well.

Only then did Tsunade relax. As she happily continued drinking, she asked, "Go on, then. What did you come to see your teacher about today? Did you get stuck while training the Monster Strength Technique?"

That shouldn't have been the case.

With Xuan's aptitude and chakra control, she felt the Monster Strength Technique should not be difficult for him at all.

"No."

Sure enough, Uchiha Yan shook his head and made his request. "I want to learn some basic sealing techniques from you, Teacher."

"I've recently been working on a kind of Medical Talisman, but without basic sealing technique knowledge, my line of thought has hit a wall."

"The Uchiha Clan's secret archives have too little information on sealing techniques, so I can only trouble you, Teacher."