By now, Nawaki had already run a fair distance.
But Uzumaki Kushina was even faster. When Nawaki glanced back and saw her closing in, he screamed and sprinted even faster.
The two of them, one chasing and one fleeing, soon vanished from everyone's sight.
Tsunade, watching them disappear into the distance, calmly reached into her pocket and pulled out a dead frog and a small white mouse.
She then formed a chakra scalpel in her hand and began dissecting the mouse. At the same time, her other hand emitted a soft green glow as she attempted to revive the frog.
Lately, she has been researching medical ninjutsu. Frogs, mice, small creatures like these, she always carried with her for on-the-go experiments.
Seeing this, Yuki Seisui was completely dumbfounded.
Was she seriously conducting experiments in his Duel Arena? That was absolutely insane!
Minato, too, looked like he'd seen a ghost, staring at Tsunade in disbelief.
Noticing their reactions, Tsunade explained in a composed tone, "What's with those faces?"
"I'm just testing whether I can bring recently-dead creatures back to life in here."
While dissecting the mouse and treating the frog simultaneously, she went on, "If it works, your Duel Arena will have even more value."
"Plenty of experiments that are hard to conduct in the real world could be done inside this space."
She paused for a moment, then added thoughtfully, "Orochimaru would absolutely love this."
As someone who had grown up with Orochimaru and fought alongside him, she knew very well about his obsession with immortality.
Even if he never said it aloud, she could still see it.
She, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru understood each other better than anyone.
Even her grandmother, Uzumaki Mito, didn't know her as well as those two did.
Likewise, no one knew Orochimaru and Jiraiya better than she did.
"It would be such a waste if you didn't use this ability for medical research," Tsunade said with a sigh, continuing her dissection.
"If I had a power like this, I would've already broken through that wall."
Recently, she'd been trying to develop a method to automatically regenerate injuries during battle, but something still felt missing.
And her grandmother kept pushing her to study sealing techniques instead.
Yuki Seisui watched as Tsunade muttered to herself, "The texture, smell, internals… they're all exactly like in the real world."
He could only sweat nervously.
Of course they're the same.
Except for death, this space perfectly replicates everything from the outside world.
And once you activate Battle Mode, your entire physical body is pulled into the space.
The bandits they'd killed earlier? Their corpses were still rotting in that blood-red battlefield dimension, reduced to skeletal remains.
Yuki Seisui had long realized these duel-space dimensions were not all the same.
The Training Space housed the straw man, the Duel Space was for testing strength, and the one where they could actually kill, that was the Battle Space.
Three separate spaces, yet somehow intertwined.
Independent yet connected.
After a while, Tsunade dissipated her chakra scalpel and stood up, looking at Yuki Seisui. "If only you were my younger brother."
"That way, I could enter this place whenever I wanted, and my research would progress so much faster."
Hearing this, Yuki Seisui silently took a step back.
Being your little brother sounds life-threatening, no thanks.
Tsunade looked down at the frog with a bit of disappointment. "Shame, I couldn't save it."
"Looks like even your dueling space has its limitations."
Still, she praised, "But having this kind of power, you're definitely a genius."
Her compliment didn't bring Yuki Seisui any joy. He just wanted to get out of here.
But Nawaki and Kushina had run off who-knows-where.
There was no way to find them right now.
Just as Seisui was thinking this, Nawaki reappeared in his line of sight.
He, Minato, and Tsunade all turned to look, only to see Nawaki's face bruised purple and blue, swelling in places.
He was limping badly, suggesting Kushina hadn't spared his legs either.
As he hobbled closer, Tsunade shook her head.
"You can't even beat Kushina, and she's a few years younger than you."
"Don't tell anyone you know me."
"You're an embarrassment."
Nawaki's eyes widened in disbelief.
Wasn't she the one who told him to let Kushina beat him up to vent her anger? Told him to just run and not fight back?
Now she was saying he lost, and that he should be ashamed to know her?
Nawaki opened his mouth to argue, but then caught sight of Kushina emerging from behind him. He immediately shut up.
He simply cast a resentful glance at Tsunade, as if to say, Do you really have no heart at all?
Tsunade didn't even look at him. She just turned her head away coldly.
As Nawaki limped forward, Yuki Seisui suddenly shouted, "Stop! There's an explosive tag ahead!"
Before Nawaki could react, the tag behind him detonated, setting off the ones he had on him as well.
A small crater opened on the ground before slowly regenerating.
"You're just, " Minato looked at Yuki Seisui, unable to finish the word "dog".
"Nice work!" Tsunade clapped enthusiastically. "I want to try that next time."
Yuki Seisui gave Nawaki a moment of silence in his heart. Having Tsunade as your sister… what a blessing.
As Nawaki's body lay lifeless, the duel space began to dissipate. When they returned to the real world, Nawaki was sprawled on the ground, looking completely done with life.
"Nawaki, next time you better watch where you're going," Yuki Seisui squatted beside him. "That's the second time you've stepped on an explosive tag trap."
"You're not going for a third, are you?"
"Damn it!" Nawaki shouted. "Next time, I'll make others feel my pain!"
"Let the world… feel pain!"
Smack!
Tsunade slammed her palm onto the back of his head.
"Stop quoting Orochimaru and go study ninjutsu properly!"
"You still haven't mastered any of those snake techniques he taught you!"
Nawaki groaned pitifully.
"They're just so gross," he complained. "The snake slithers inside my stomach…"
Hearing this, Yuki Seisui shivered. Uncle Snake had his merits, but his jutsu were nightmare fuel.
I vomit snakes, snakes vomit swords.
Snakes vomit me, I vomit swords.
I vomit snakes that vomit me that vomit swords.
Who even thinks of this stuff?
"Enough!" Tsunade punched Nawaki on the head again, making him roll on the ground clutching it.
"Orochimaru's jutsu may be disgusting, but they're excellent for staying alive."
"I don't need you to become a powerhouse, but you must learn to protect yourself!"
"One day, Jiraiya and I might die, but Orochimaru? He won't."
Tsunade's thinking was simple: as long as Nawaki could keep himself alive, that was enough. Techniques like Orochimaru's snake substitution were exactly what he needed.
That was why she'd insisted he study under Orochimaru.
If she just wanted him trained, there were easier and better ways.
As Tsunade continued lecturing Nawaki, it was clear she might enjoy teasing him, but deep down, she truly cared.
Yuki Seisui glanced over at Kushina, whose mood had brightened, and shook his head. "Since everything's settled, I should get going."
He turned to leave.
Tsunade looked up at the sky and said, "Food's almost ready. Why not stay and eat with us?"
"I—" Yuki Seisui began to decline, but saw her staring at him. He changed tune instantly, "It's no trouble. Since you've invited me, Sister Tsunade, I'd be honored."
He even gave her a polite bow.
Maybe bowing to her in person will help me pull an S-rank Tsunade card next time, he thought.
A Hundred Healings Tsunade would be perfect.
They didn't eat with everyone else.
Uzumaki Mito and the elders were still discussing serious matters in the main hall, so Yuki Seisui and the others had a simple meal in a separate room.
As he left the Senju compound, Yuki Seisui still felt like he was in a dream.
He'd come here on a whim, and somehow ended up carrying the name of the Uzumaki clan and inheriting all their sealing techniques.
Life was unpredictable.
Though he'd spent the entire morning with the Senju, it wasn't late when he got home, just after noon.
As soon as he stepped through the door, he reverse-summoned himself to the land of the Panda Clan.
The moment he arrived, he saw the Panda Sage standing with its hands behind its back, looking deep and mysterious.
"You're late," it said solemnly.
A burst of wind swirled around it, creating the aura of a master.
Yuki Seisui looked at the dramatic display and sighed.
"Boss, can you please come up with a new line next time?"
Every single time, every single visit, the Panda Sage did this routine.
Back turned, dramatic wind, "You're late."
It was cool the first time. The second time, tolerable. But now? Enough was enough.
The Panda Sage grew indignant. "What did you just say?!"
He had worked hard to perfect this entrance!
And this brat dared to complain?!
"Do you know how to talk to your elders?"
"If not, keep your mouth shut!" it snapped.
Yuki Seisui immediately fell silent. The Sage did hit when provoked, last time he mocked its act as outdated, he got a solid beating.
"Hmph. I won't argue with you."
"Swine can't appreciate fine grain!"
With a snort, the Panda Sage turned and walked off, arms still behind its back.
Yuki Seisui muttered, "Can't even say anything these days…"
"Better keep quiet," said Panda Ming, appearing beside him. "If he hears you, you're getting thumped again."
Yuki Seisui shut his mouth instantly. Then turned to Panda Ming and asked, "Where's Brother Wu?"
Panda Ming lay down comfortably and pointed. "He's working on his fireworks."
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