Medical Ninja? He Just Wanted to Lie Low

The wide-open clearing was where Sarutobi Hiruzen was training his three disciples.

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough."

Orochimaru clapped his hands together, and in an instant, fierce winds rose with a howling roar.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's face was full of undisguised admiration. To learn a C-rank ninjutsu after hearing it explained just once—his talent was obvious to the naked eye. More importantly, he had been born a commoner, which meant he belonged to no faction.

Among his three disciples, he was the one Sarutobi Hiruzen valued most.

Sarutobi Hiruzen's obvious favoritism displeased Jiraiya, who secretly swore that he would master the Summoning Jutsu and make everyone see him in a new light.

Just then, a woman walked toward them. When Jiraiya noticed her, he jabbed Sarutobi Hiruzen in the kidney with his elbow and said with a cheeky grin, "Teacher Yuan Fei, your girlfriend's here."

When Sarutobi Hiruzen saw that it was Biwako, his old face turned as red as a monkey's butt. "What nonsense are you talking about? What girlfriend? We're just colleagues."

Jiraiya grinned. "Just colleagues? Then why do you two go to couple's hotels at night? To play Ludo?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen blushed, thinking, Damn it, how does this little brat know everything?

He pretended to cough, composed himself, and said seriously, "Train by yourselves for a while. I have important matters to discuss with Jonin Biwako."

Everyone who understood, understood. Jiraiya stopped teasing his teacher and casually waved a hand. "A date, got it. Approved. I'm giving you the day off."

"You little brat."

Teacher Yuan Fei rewarded Jiraiya with a hard knock on the head, then happily walked toward Biwako.

Of his three disciples, Jiraiya was not the most talented, but he was undoubtedly the closest to him. They were less like teacher and student than a pair of troublesome friends.

There was no other reason for it. The two shared the same hobby, such as engaging in progressively deeper exchanges with women. The difference was that one put it into practice, while the other only talked about it on paper.

Tsunade clasped her hands behind her head and curled her lips. "Teacher Yuan Fei is seriously something else. The moment he gets a girlfriend, he forgets all about us. All he cares about is flirting with her."

Jiraiya chuckled. "What, jealous? Why don't you find a man to go on a date with too?"

"A date?"

"I may not be much, but what do you think of me?"

Jiraiya flashed a dazzling white grin and recommended himself.

Back when they were in school, he had never thought Tsunade was all that pretty. Yet lately, for some reason, the more he looked at her, the more pleasing she became. She was so fresh and lovely.

He had truly been blind before. But it should not be too late to make up for it now.

The one nearest the water got the moon first.

He decided to pursue Tsunade.

Although Tsunade had no interest in him and even disliked him a little.

Still, he believed that with his relentless tactics, he would succeed one day and win the beauty's heart.

Tsunade raised a brow and said disdainfully, "In your next life. I'd rather go on a date with that Aokiji guy than consider you. At least he can cook well. He's a qualified tool person."

Jiraiya rubbed his chin and chuckled. "I see. Want me to tell Aokiji exactly what you just said?"

Tsunade raised her fist. "You wouldn't dare!"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Boom!"

Tsunade's Peerless Super Strength shattered a rock with one punch, blasting it into countless pebbles. One of them happened to strike Jiraiya on the head, frightening him so badly that his snot nearly ran out.

He truly could not understand how Tsunade, who was the same age as him and had such thin arms and short legs, could possess so much strength.

"Um, I was joking. Don't take it seriously."

Jiraiya tried to smooth things over.

Tsunade gave a haughty snort.

Jiraiya nervously wiped away his cold sweat. If that punch had actually landed on him, at least several bones would have been broken.

"Orochimaru, what do you think of our teacher and his girlfriend?"

Bored out of his mind, Jiraiya asked Orochimaru this question.

Orochimaru could not be bothered with such a pointless question. "Boring."

With that, he continued practicing on his own.

In his view, instead of wasting time on romance, it would be far more interesting to find Aokiji and discuss philosophy.

To be honest, he somewhat missed his school days.

At least back then, he could find Aokiji anytime and anywhere. Unlike now, when they frequently had missions to carry out and often could not meet Aokiji at all.

He wondered what Aokiji was doing now. He was probably still pondering philosophy—something so meaningful.

In his eyes, Aokiji spent all day sleeping because he was thinking about philosophical questions and overworking his brain. Otherwise, how could one explain why he slept all day?

Sarutobi Hiruzen greeted Biwako, found a topic to begin with, and told her about how he had gone to the Ninja Academy to look for Medical Ninjas.

Biwako sighed. "The students do not seem very interested in Medical Ninjutsu."

Sarutobi Hiruzen comforted her. "Don't blame yourself. It isn't your fault."

Biwako shook her head and revealed a relieved smile. "But fortunately, there is still one student interested in Medical Ninjutsu, so it was not a total loss. He's even from the Uchiha Clan. His name is Uchiha Aokiji."

Sarutobi Hiruzen raised a brow. That name rang a bell. He seemed to be the one with talent that even Orochimaru had praised endlessly.

Seeing him lower his head in thought, Biwako could not help asking curiously, "Do you know this student?"

"He seems to be close with my three disciples. I met him once before. He fell asleep the moment he arrived—that left quite an impression," Sarutobi Hiruzen said as he gazed into the distance, recalling the memory.

Biwako agreed. "Yes. When he was at the academy, I always saw him looking listless. He was constantly sleeping with his head on the desk during class, and even the teachers could do nothing about him. Yet despite that, this child ranks among the best in actual combat."

As they spoke, Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly noticed a sneaky figure quietly approaching. With a grin, Jiraiya said, "Teacher Yuan Fei, what are you and your wife talking about so intensely?"

Having it exposed, Biwako blushed but did not deny it.

The things they should have done and should not have done were more or less already done. Before long, they would probably have to consider getting married properly. It would be troublesome if she got pregnant before then.

"You brat!" Sarutobi Hiruzen grabbed Jiraiya by the ear and twisted hard. Jiraiya cried out in pain and begged for mercy. "Teacher Yuan Fei, I won't dare do it again!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen scolded him with a smile. "Good. You should know pain. Let's see if you dare do it again."

After saying that, he released him. Yet before even two seconds had passed, Jiraiya immediately changed expressions like a Peking opera performer, made a face, and said cheekily, "Next time for sure."

Sarutobi Hiruzen was so angry he nearly exploded. Just as he was about to teach him a lesson, he reconsidered and suddenly had another idea, temporarily setting aside the matter of disciplining Jiraiya. "Jiraiya, I want to ask you something."

"What is it?" Jiraiya watched Sarutobi Hiruzen warily. Judging others by himself, he assumed his teacher was waiting for him to relax before launching a sneak attack.

Seemingly seeing through Jiraiya's thoughts, Teacher Yuan Fei said with amusement, "If I really wanted to hit you, do you think you could run?"

"Oh, that's true." Jiraiya put his hands on his hips and said grandly, "Go on, then. What do you need my help with?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen suppressed the urge to beat him. "You're very familiar with Aokiji, right?"

"Who? Aokiji? Uchiha Aokiji?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded.

"Yeah, we're pretty familiar. Why?"

"I'm just suddenly curious about how he became good friends with you, Orochimaru, and Tsunade."

Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru had vastly different personalities. Orochimaru in particular was cold and aloof. It was hard to imagine any peer catching his eye, let alone making him admit inferiority.

"That's easy." Jiraiya understood and waved Tsunade and Orochimaru over.

Before long, the two arrived. They glanced at Jiraiya with questioning looks. One woman in particular had murder in her eyes. If Jiraiya did not give a satisfactory explanation, she probably would not mind punching him.

Jiraiya swallowed. "Teacher Yuan Fei asked me something. How did you two get together with Aokiji?"

"What do you mean, 'get together'?" Tsunade said speechlessly. "Can't you use more accurate wording? Someone might think I'm having an affair with him."

Jiraiya did not care. "What does it matter? As long as people understand."

Too lazy to bother with him, Tsunade turned to Sarutobi Hiruzen and asked for the details.

Sarutobi Hiruzen explained Biwako's situation to his three disciples.

Tsunade opened her mouth in surprise. "That Aokiji guy actually listened to class seriously? That's rare. Could he be interested in Medical Ninjutsu? But no matter how I look at him, he doesn't seem like that type."

Sarutobi Hiruzen asked, "Has he always been like this?"

Tsunade fell silent for a moment. "By the time I met him, he already seemed to be like that. I asked friends who knew him earlier, and they said Aokiji used to be very diligent. But after his grandmother passed away, his personality changed completely. He became extremely lazy and had no interest whatsoever in becoming a ninja. He even seemed to disdain it."

After hearing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen understood. He sympathized with Aokiji's circumstances and asked the three of them what they thought of him.

Orochimaru: Lord Aokiji is the only man who can reach the depths of my soul.

Jiraiya: He shares the same hobbies as me.

Tsunade: This guy's cooking is pretty good. He's a decent tool person.

Sarutobi Hiruzen: ...

After hearing his disciples' evaluations, he understood Aokiji even less.

Returning to the original question, if that was the case, why had Aokiji shown such a strong interest in being a Medical Ninja, even changing his usual ways and listening attentively?

At that moment, Orochimaru, who understood Aokiji relatively well, offered his thoughts. "If I'm not mistaken, Lord Aokiji isn't actually interested in being a Medical Ninja. He's interested in 'lying low.'"