Aokiji vs. Tsunade

"So after going in such a huge circle, you just wanted me to teach you shuriken?"

Aokiji let out a breath and looked speechlessly at Jiraiya before him.

Jiraiya pressed his palms together, his expression utterly sincere. "Please. I want to be popular with girls too."

Aokiji hesitated. "If it's shuriken you want, Orochimaru is pretty good with them too, isn't he?"

Jiraiya curled his lip. "Compared to that smug bastard, I'd rather find someone like-minded."

Aokiji explained, "I told you, I haven't read any dirty magazines."

Jiraiya slung an arm around his shoulders and grinned wickedly. "Maids, white stockings?"

Aokiji was rendered speechless.

He really had no idea how to explain that. Considering Jiraiya might endlessly pester him in the future, and since he had intended to get acquainted with this promising prospect anyway, he finally compromised. "Fine, I'll agree."

Seeing him agree, Jiraiya danced about with delight.

Aokiji thought that even if Jiraiya became incredibly skilled with shuriken, he probably still would not become as popular as Orochimaru.

After all, the decisive difference between them was their looks.

After agreeing to teach Jiraiya, Aokiji found an open space with him and began instructing him. He also used it as an excuse to train himself. Staying cooped up at home to train all day was not good either.

Training time flew by. Before they knew it, the sky had taken on the pale color of a fish belly, and evening was approaching.

Aokiji wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at Jiraiya, who was still training. He was secretly surprised.

After all, he had awakened both Ice Release and the Sharingan, and his physical abilities were absurdly strong. Children their age simply could not keep up with him, yet Jiraiya actually could.

Chakra consisted of Yang and Yin. Yang represented physical energy, while Yin represented spiritual energy.

Could it be that because Jiraiya was so lecherous, he produced more male hormones, giving him more Yang energy and enormous Chakra—perhaps even the rare level of ten Spirit?

To become an outstanding ninja, one had to consider many aspects: a flexible mind, excellent judgment, skill with shuriken, and so on...

But if one ability stood head and shoulders above the rest, all of that could be ignored. With enough Chakra, everything else could be disregarded. As long as one had ample Chakra, they could freely spam ninjutsu. Who needed tactics? Just steamroll everything.

That was also why Jiraiya, despite his poor performance at the academy, was qualified to apprentice under the Third Hokage alongside Orochimaru and Tsunade.

When ninja graduates were assigned to teams, they claimed to balance the teams according to their strengths. That might fool only those who had not seen much of the world.

In the original story, the six students led by the Third Hokage's son and daughter-in-law were supposedly grouped together for teamwork, but at a deeper level, it was all about the clan powers behind those six.

Hyuga Clan, Inuzuka Clan, Aburame Clan, Akimichi Clan, Nara Clan, Yamanaka Clan...

The direct heirs of Konoha's six great clans, without a doubt.

Geniuses with geniuses.

Nobles with Nobles.

Commoners with commoners.

Look at Neji, Tenten, and Rock Lee. Those were the standard commoners.

Though Neji had been born into a powerful family, with that Caged Bird Seal on his forehead, he was worse off than a commoner.

That was the main criterion the higher-ups considered when making assignments.

To thank him for teaching him shuriken techniques, Jiraiya even treated him to ramen.

When he got home, feeling somewhat tired, he did not immediately begin training Ice Release. Instead, he lay on his bed for a while, spacing out with his eyes closed. Then, by sheer coincidence, he spotted the "study materials" Jiraiya had forcibly stuffed into his hands.

Aokiji shook his head with a bitter smile. Jiraiya was afraid he was not miserable enough, so he had actually tried to bribe him with dirty magazines.

Seriously, was he that kind of person? Perhaps out of habit, he casually flipped through them.

Huh? Maids, white stockings... Heh, Jiraiya really knew how to cater to his tastes.

After flipping through a few pages, Aokiji suddenly came to his senses.

How muddleheaded! I condemn this so fiercely with my mouth, but my body hasn't stopped at all.

I'll go train after a few more minutes...

Ten more minutes...

One more hour...

I train through the night every evening. I work so hard—what's wrong with taking a little time to relax? The next day, staring at his haggard reflection in the mirror, Aokiji was filled with remorse.

Yesterday, I had been harmed by beauty and become so haggard.

It was all Jiraiya's fault for giving me this stuff for no reason!

Damn it, starting today, I'm swearing off women.

Aokiji angrily smashed his toothbrush cup.

The next day, on the way to school, Aokiji happened to run into Jiraiya. After spending yesterday together and discovering a few shared interests, they could now be considered official friends. When Jiraiya saw Aokiji, he familiarly slung an arm around his shoulders. "Looks like you had a wonderful night yesterday."

"Get lost..."

Aokiji shoved away Jiraiya's filthy hand, his face full of disgust.

"Hey, aren't you being too distant? I gave you my treasure. When are you going to let me take a look at yours?"

Aokiji said righteously, "I told you, I haven't read any dirt—uh..."

"Talking about such things so early in the morning. You boys really are disgusting."

A third voice came from behind them, tinged with disdain.

Aokiji and Jiraiya turned around to see a girl their age standing behind them.

Jiraiya lowered his eyelids and gave Tsunade a thorough once-over.

Tsunade frowned. "What are you looking at?"

"Washboard."

Though Tsunade did not understand what he meant, she could tell it was insulting. She immediately responded with a Hadouken.

Jiraiya had not expected Tsunade to be so violent. She knocked him flat with one move.

Aokiji: ...

"What are you looking at? Keep staring and I'll beat you too." Tsunade glared fiercely at him. In her eyes, Aokiji and Jiraiya were the same kind of people.

"Good hit. I've disliked this guy for a long time."

To show that he had nothing to do with someone like Jiraiya, Aokiji gave him another kick. "I cannot coexist under the same sky as a lecher like him."

Tsunade: ...

"I'll defeat you in Combat Class."

With that, Tsunade snorted, tossed her head, and walked away without waiting for Aokiji to ask anything.

"What's Combat Class?"

Aokiji was completely baffled.

Jiraiya climbed up from the ground and angrily condemned his treacherous behavior. "Damn it, you actually kicked me while I was down!"

Aokiji acted as though it had nothing to do with him. "Enough already. It was just one kick. You're so petty. Do you know what Combat Class is specifically about?"

Jiraiya's eyes widened. "You don't even know about Combat Class?"

"What is it?" Aokiji pressed.

"Figure it out yourself. Who told you to sleep all day?"

Jiraiya was certainly not going to admit that he did not know either. He and Aokiji were birds of a feather, both the sort who loved sleeping in class whenever they had the chance.

"Forget it. I'll find out when the time comes."

Aokiji yawned, intending to catch up on sleep at school first. He had worked far too hard studying those materials last night, so he had to recover with some sleep during the day.

Several months later, Combat Class finally arrived. By then, Aokiji had long since forgotten everything Tsunade had said that day.

"Uchiha Aokiji. Senju Tsunade."

The two whose names had been called immediately stepped forward.

They stood opposite each other and formed the Confrontation Seal.

Tsunade spoke first, eager to fight. "I'll defeat you, just like my grandfather defeated your ancestor."

Aokiji: ...

Starting off with such harsh words—who exactly was the Uchiha here, her or him?

The atmosphere had been set. It was time to fight.

The homeroom teacher shouted, "Begin!"

Before his voice faded, Tsunade launched the first attack, intending to seize the initiative.

Facing her fierce assault, Aokiji cast aside his usual laziness and took her seriously. He twisted sideways, barely evading her strike. The wind from her fist brushed past his ear, revealing just how powerful that punch was.

Was she trying to blow my head apart...?

Aokiji assumed the worst.

Her first punch missed, but the second wave of attacks immediately followed. Aokiji did not dare face her head-on and could only dodge in embarrassment.

Only dodging without attacking made his disadvantage increasingly obvious. Tsunade noticed the opening and stepped in with a side kick, striking Aokiji squarely in the chest and sending him flying.

At that point, Aokiji stopped insisting on continuing. He lay on the ground and raised a hand in surrender.

"Tsunade, you're really terrifying. I lost..."

Aokiji climbed to his feet as though he had exhausted every ounce of strength, clutching his chest with a pained expression.

The match was over, but according to procedure, they still had to go through another ritual. Aokiji and Tsunade were no exception. Standing together, they each extended two fingers, overlapping and interlocking them to form the Reconciliation Seal. Corresponding to the Confrontation Seal, it symbolized how even the deepest rift between ninja could be reconciled.

Aokiji felt the softness of her fingers, their warmth, and the force of her grip...

"You're hurting me."

Tsunade gave a soft huff and released his fingers.

After Aokiji and Tsunade's group finished, the teacher immediately called up another pair. "Jiraiya. Orochimaru."

The days spent sleeping at school passed quickly, and before he knew it, the weekend had arrived again.

The sun was bright, and the breeze was gentle.

It was a perfect day for fishing.

Aokiji came to a lakeside on the back mountain. Under the sunlight, the water glittered with rippling waves. He took out his fishing rod, casually cast the line into the lake, closed his eyes, and waited for willing fish to take the bait.

Whether he caught fish was not that important to Aokiji. What mattered was cultivating his temperament.

The foremost requirement for training Sage Art was a calm mind. Although he had no way of learning Sage Art yet, that did not stop him from getting used to it in advance and finding the right feeling.

When he closed his eyes and focused, his ears often became extremely sharp. Even the slightest movement would be immediately detected.

"Come out."

Aokiji called out. His voice echoed through the quiet surroundings, followed by the rustling sound of someone stepping through grass. A girl emerged from behind a tree.

Seeing her, Aokiji paused, then smiled. "I never thought Tsunade would have a habit of spying on people."

Tsunade's face darkened as she got straight to the point. "Did you hold back last time?"