"Hahaha, Raj, want some grilled meat? I remember how much you love it!" Jiraiya roared back to life after the bill was settled.
"Meow!"
"Too bad, I was going to treat you all."
Orochimaru chuckled, wiping his hands with a cloth from the table.
He then casually picked up a jar of sake - not for himself, of course.
He and Jiraiya were merely carrying it for Tsunade; all three jars were actually hers.
Raj didn't believe a word Orochimaru said.
'Treat us? What a load of bull!'
'When this cat got up to pay, where were you to offer your money?'
'Gambling, drugs, and alcohol - none of them are any good.'
Raj thought darkly.
"Is there anything else? You seem awfully free, running errands for such trivial matters yourself," Tsunade grumbled, her words slurred with sake as they left the tavern.
Orochimaru's lips curled into a faint smile, but his voice remained icy.
"Thanks to Raj-kun, Sunagakure's elite forces suffered significant losses. I haven't had the energy for any schemes lately. But that old hag Chiyo won't give up easily. In the end, we'll have to fight."
"Huh?"
Tsunade glanced at Raj in surprise.
'This kid has that kind of ability? I never would have guessed!'
"Heh, you think he became a Special Jonin for nothing?" Jiraiya chuckled.
This cat probably
He has more money in his pouch than I do, so I don't feel bad about draining him dry.
In fact, it's quite satisfying.
Too bad the war is so intense right now; otherwise, I'd drink myself into a stupor.
Among the three of them, Tsunade drank the most.
The other two barely touched their sake, which was fortunate for Raj's wallet.
But the sake wasn't wasted.
Jiraiya's anger toward Raj had cooled considerably.
He no longer spent every moment plotting ways to mess with the cat.
As for Orochimaru, his lack of reaction spoke volumes.
If that man actually gave me something, that's when I'd really need to worry.
Just look at Sasuke - he received plenty of gifts, and nearly had his body stolen as a result.
"I'm leaving now," Orochimaru said, setting down the sake jar.
He offered a faint smile before departing.
He hadn't seen Tsunade in years and had come to check on her after hearing she'd returned.
Now that they'd caught up, it was time for him to go.
Firstly, the camp wasn't truly as idle as it seemed.
Secondly, Nawaki remained a knot in Tsunade's heart, one she clearly hadn't untied.
And he himself... hadn't untied it either.
The once-glorious Senju Clan had now reached the point where even their techniques were being passed down to cats.
As Orochimaru departed, that familiar pang of melancholy resurfaced.
Even titans like Hashirama Senju and Tobirama Senju had met their end, a stark reminder of life's fragility.
Jiraiya watched Orochimaru's retreating figure, sighing softly.
"Foolish Jiraiya," Tsunade remarked pointedly, lifting a jar of sake and placing another in front of Raj.
The implication was clear: 'Help me store this.'
Raj felt aggrieved.
It had to pay for the sake and now had to act as storage, too.
No choice.
They had witnessed Raj's storage ability multiple times before, so Tsunade and Jiraiya weren't particularly surprised.
Having mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, it was evident Raj possessed spatial aptitude; mere storage posed little challenge.
After hearing this, Jiraiya had nothing to say.
He had witnessed Orochimaru's transformation over the years, and as Tsunade said, many things were simply beyond prevention.
He then shifted his attention to Raj.
After leaving the tavern with a sake jar, he leaned close to Tsunade and whispered, "Has Raj truly mastered it?"
"Are you questioning my teaching ability and judgment?" Tsunade shot him a sidelong glance, then let out a cold laugh, as if Raj's rapid progress were entirely her doing.
Raj beside her dared not utter a word; whatever she said, went.
"Impressive indeed," Jiraiya muttered, a hint of envy in his voice.
Back in his day, learning a single Ninjutsu had taken him ages, while Raj seemed to master the Flying Thunder God Technique and Superhuman Strength in mere moments.
Damn geniuses!
He should have insisted on dunking Raj in the river that day.
Only then would his resentment have been eased.
Meanwhile, Raj was pondering whether he could extract the secrets of Sage Mode from Jiraiya and Tsunade.
Following the pattern of Superhuman Strength, obtaining the secret should lower the price.
"Oh, right, there's another matter this time." Jiraiya lifted Raj onto his shoulder.
"Meow?" Raj tilted its head, puzzled.
'Why is he lifting me up like this? Is something happening again?'
Tsunade glanced sideways at him, her eyes fixed on Jiraiya.
"Ahem, don't look at me like that! These are the old man's orders, not mine," Jiraiya protested.
Tsunade raised her sake jug, signaling him to continue.
"After careful consideration, the Third Hokage believes the Northern Front is relatively secure right now, while the Eastern Front is under severe strain and desperately needs reinforcements. He wants you to provide support there," Jiraiya explained.
"Meow?"
"And me? Has the old man lost his mind?" Tsunade's eyebrow twitched, nearly dropping her sake jug.
'I just came back to help out a bit, and now he's assigning me to a mission?!'
"Just show your face and make an appearance," Jiraiya said.
"Not even that. This is non-negotiable," Tsunade declared firmly.
Jiraiya chuckled wryly.
"The village is being a bit... unreasonable. How about this: you take charge of the Northern Front, and Raj and I will head east to deal with Kirigakure."
"Has Kirigakure gone mad?" Raj asked, utterly perplexed.
The Third Hokage was certainly aware of her hemophobia.
Sending Tsunade into such a situation proved the Eastern Front desperately needed reinforcements.
"Kirigakure has lost one and a half Ninja Swords and is practically driven mad. If you don't go to Kirigakure, you'll have no target to pursue. This is a perfect opportunity to fish them out... Of course, this is just my speculation," Jiraiya added hastily with a cold smile.
"It seems the Council of Elders and that bastard are behind this again," Tsunade sneered, taking another swig of sake.
"Hmph, a bunch of trash using even children as pawns. Even the Teacher has become corrupted."
She cursed the two elders and Danzo under her breath.
This scheme bore their unmistakable fingerprints, especially the strategy of using Kakashi and the others as bait to lure out Kirigakure.
The worst part was that the Third Hokage had actually agreed to it.
After all, it wasn't Danzo or the elders who would be dying...
"There's no choice. Kumogakure has been making threatening moves lately, and Konoha is in grave danger. Tsunade, the village has no other options. Even though I..." Jiraiya was practically on his knees, begging.
Torn between his village and teacher on one side, and Tsunade and his disciples on the other, he found himself in an impossible position.
But if the situation dragged on, Konoha risked being overwhelmed and destroyed.