The night is like a thin layer of gray gauze, covering the Inn-Clinic at the end of Tanzaku Town.
The flame of the oil lamp was stretched diagonally by the draft, casting a shaky shadow on the mottled wooden wall.
When Sasuke sat up from Operating Table, his face was pale, and his black hair was stuck to his forehead with cold sweat. However, he didn't even moan. He just silently pulled up his clothes, jumped off the table, opened the door and walked into the night without looking back.
The soft sound of the door panel closing still trembled in the air, and the blonde beauty had already sat down opposite Jiraiya.
Tsunade rolled up his sweat-stained sleeves, exposing half of his snow-white forearms, and tapped his fingertips on the table.
Jiraiya's eyes wandered around her face, and he took out a kraft paper envelope that had been wrapped in advance. The seal was neatly sealed with wax, and he pushed it on the table.
"Here, here's the drink money and the medical fee."
Tsunade raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise flashed in his green eyes.
She knew Jiraiya very well. How often did this old guy not smile playfully and then be punched to the floor by her before he would pay honestly?
Being so straightforward today made her prepared fists useless.
"Are you really going to give me money?"
Tsunade took the envelope in his hand and weighed it. It was thick and heavy.
"One code equals one code."
Jiraiya folded his arms, rarely serious.
If it was him or Naruto who needed treatment, he would of course come up to her in a glib way, first praising Tsunade for her amazing medical skills and unparalleled beauty, and then pretending to bargain for the price, making her annoyed and embarrassed, and finally enjoying getting punched.
But Sasuke and Naruto are different.
Sasuke is someone else's child and is not suitable.
Tsunade weighed it and returned the envelope to Jiraiya.
Under Jiraiya's doubtful eyes, she took out another envelope from her arms. The kraft paper had been softened by body temperature, and the edges were a little rough. There was no signature on it.
"The money is free."
Tsunade pushed the envelope in front of Jiraiya, and tapped the paint seal with his fingertips.
"I have a difficult commission here. As you know, I have accepted two disciples.
They are all very capable and work hard, but I don't want to show off with two beauties, that would be very troublesome."
Jiraiya's eyes stopped on her face for a moment, and the corners of his mouth curved. "It is true that a big beauty taking two little beauties out together will definitely attract a lot of attention."
Tsunade A thin layer of red appeared on her cheeks.
This guy still likes to joke as always.
She didn't punch it as usual, she just glared at him and pushed the envelope forward. "You'll know after you take a look."
Jiraiya then put away the envelope containing the money on the table and reached out to take the mission letter.
As soon as he received the envelope, he smelled a very faint aroma, which was Tsunade's body odor mixed with herbs and sake. It was warm, like a blanket that had been dried by the fireplace in winter. He couldn't help but put the envelope to the tip of his nose and sniffed it again.
"Are you looking for death?"
Tsunade's voice was squeezed out from between his teeth.
Jiraiya's face did not change, as if nothing happened, he slowly peeled off the paint.
The moment he took out the letter, the smile on his face faded by three points; by the time he read on line by line, his whole face had become as dark as the sky before a storm.
"Why did you accept this commission?"
The summary of the contents of the letter is: Land of Hot Water, Cult, Greater Demon Red Swallow.
Jiraiya's knuckles are slightly white.
There are many Greater Demon in this world. Thousands of years ago, they ravaged the earth. Countless people with lofty ideals went to Three Great Sage Lands to practice Senjutsu, and then they could barely compete with them.
Since the birth of Sage of Six Paths, those Greater Demon have been dead and hidden, and to this day only some little monsters are left to occasionally show up.
Red Swallow is a blood-colored monster that looks like a tiger, Wings, with three scorpion tails, one rhinoceros horn and two ox horns, and snake-like eyes.
It can use Natural Energy, and has the talent to turn part of the ability of the thing it swallows into its own.
Legend has it that it once swallowed the egg of Phoenix, thus acquiring immortality and making it extremely difficult to kill.
Later, it was sealed in Slug Sage's body and corroded by Sage Art and acid day and night. It actually devoured Slug Sage's flesh and blood, gained powerful self-healing ability, broke out of the body, and was finally sealed by Sage of Six Paths, who was walking around the world.
The cult of Land of Hot Water heard the story of Red Swallow, worshiped him as a god, and prepared to unblock him.
"No way."
Tsunade scratched his face, the blush spread from his cheeks to his ears, "I owed money for gambling before, and they said I don't have to pay it back after completing this commission."
Jiraiya is speechless.
He suddenly felt that Tsunade was also a bit unreliable.
Well, to say that I think Tsunade is unreliable, it would be better to say that only Jiraiya has truly experienced the unreliability of Tsunade.
Shizune, who had been in the kitchen during the day and never came out, must have become accustomed to this master's gambling addiction and debts.
He sighed and folded the letter.
Before getting up and going back to the room, he put the piece of letter paper to the tip of his nose and sniffed it in front of Tsunade, causing Tsunade to stand up with a "swish" and clenched his fists.
Jiraiya took two steps back with a playful smile and slipped into the room assigned to him by Tsunade. The moment the door closed, the smile on his face disappeared.
There were no lights in the room, and the moonlight filtered in through the window paper and spread bluish white on the ground.
Jiraiya leaned against the door panel, unfolded the letter paper again, and read it again in the dim light, frowning more and more.
"It's really troublesome. Our opponent is Millennium Greater Demon..."
The nine Strongests and Greater Demons recognized by the world today are Nine Tailed Beastss, but even they have not been recorded as long as Red Swallows.
How can a few cultists easily undo what Sage of Six Paths sealed with his own hands?
But if they really succeed, not to mention Land of Hot Water, the entire Shinobi World will suffer.
He walked to the window and opened it a crack.
The lights of Tanzaku Town are sparse in the distance, like broken stars scattered on the ground.
He touched Summoning Scroll in his arms and thought about it in his mind.
Maybe I need to go to Mount Myōboku and ask Great Toad Sage for advice.
Under the moonlight, all the usual frivolity on Jiraiya's profile faded away, leaving only a heavy, sophisticated sharpness.
He closed the window and put the letter away close to his body. In the darkness, he could only hear him muttering very softly, "That guy Tsunade... has gotten into a lot of trouble again."
But there was still a hint of joy in that tone that even he himself refused to admit.
Jiraiya With the decision in his heart, he no longer hesitated.
He Hand Seals bit his fingertips with both hands, wiped the blood on his palms, and slammed them to the ground.
As a burst of white smoke rose, a Old Toads with a dark green body and a small cape appeared in front of him.
"Sage Fukasaku, long time no see."
Jiraiya put away his usual playful expression, and his tone became rarely solemn.
"I have something to ask you, and please send a message to Great Toad on your behalf."
Sage Fukasaku shook off the smoke dust on his body, held up the small bamboo hat on his head, and squinted his eyes to look at Jiraiya.
It knows this little brother too well, and it is unusual for him to show such an expression despite his usual carelessness.
"What happened, little Jiraiya?"
Jiraiya took a deep breath and told the whole story.
Sage Fukasaku just frowned slightly at first, but when he heard the name "Red Swallow", Toad suddenly stiffened, and even his beard trembled.
It opened its mouth, but made no sound for a long time, and finally took a breath. "What did you say? Red Swallow? That... that legendary Greater Demon Red Swallow?"
"You know that too?"
Jiraiya asked.
"I know, why don't I know."
Sage Fukasaku took two steps back and forth, his flippers tapping on the stone floor.
"Although I have never seen the legendary Greater Demon, I have seen Toad Great Toad.
That happened a long, long time ago. Great Toad rarely mentions it, but every time it is mentioned, the tone is different.
That kind of existence... is no joke."
It stopped and stared up at Jiraiya, its eyes full of worry. "Little Jiraiya, you shouldn't take on this kind of mission."
But Jiraiya grinned, gave a thumbs up, and showed his iconic hearty smile, "Don't worry, Sage Fukasaku. Tsunade will definitely go with me."
The descendants of Mount Myōboku and the descendants of Shikkotsu Forest will join forces and there will definitely be a way to solve this matter."
He patted his chest and said with a bit of pride in his tone, "There are not many people in Shinobi World who can be at the same level of strength as me.
If I don't go, am I going to watch all the people hang upside down and sink into fire and water?"