"Caw — —!"
High above the Land of Hot Springs, a giant bird was flying at high speed.
"Who told you to come here to find Tsunade?" Jiraiya looked curiously at the little girl huddled beside Aoki Yoru.
"Brother Yoru told me." Nao raised her head and recounted everything that had happened without holding anything back.
"Summoning himself? Chakra with independent consciousness?" Jiraiya looked at the unconscious Aoki Yoru in surprise and couldn't help but exclaim: "This guy is a genius, through and through. It reminds me of my former teammate, equally gifted and capable of creating all sorts of Ninjutsu."
Then, looking at the pitch-black night sky, he said, "Tsunade was indeed in the Land of Hot Springs a few days ago, but I heard she offended the local gangs and left after making a big score."
"Given her personality, once she has money, she'll run off to gamble. She's likely gone to Tanzaku Town or the capital of the Land of Fire. Let's check those two places first."
He then directed Yatagarasu to fly towards the nearest location, Tanzaku Town. Upon receiving the command, Yatagarasu's wings sliced through the air, creating a sharp whistling sound. Its figure flickered in and out of the clouds, moving so fast that it left only a blur, impossible for the eye to track.
Before long, they arrived above Tanzaku Town. Although it was nearly midnight, Tanzaku Town was still brightly lit, and crowds of people surged through the streets.
Jiraiya looked at the scene below and frowned. "It looks like we'll have to search slowly. I hope Tsunade is still at the casino; otherwise, she'll be hard to find."
"Um, Lord Jiraiya, is Lady Tsunade's Chakra as vast as yours and Brother Yoru's? If so, then she isn't in Tanzaku Town. The person with the most Chakra here is far inferior compared to you."
Jiraiya looked at Nao in surprise. "The Kagura Shingan of the Uzumaki Clan!"
He had already suspected as much when he saw that red hair earlier, and with this sensory ability, there was no doubt she was from the Uzumaki Clan.
Although his disciple's wife, Uzumaki Kushina, didn't have Kagura Shingan, Uzumaki Mito did. He had heard Lady Mito talk about the abilities of the Uzumaki Clan in the past.
However, it truly surprised him that she could cover the entire Tanzaku Town; this child was still so young.
"Good, Nao, well done. This way, we won't have to waste time."
Yatagarasu then rushed toward the capital of the Land of Fire. Its extreme speed even caused roaring sonic booms, the air trembling under its wings and exploding into layers of white waves. Yatagarasu shot toward the capital of the Land of Fire like a streak of light.
Even so, the journey was long, and they didn't arrive at the capital of the Land of Fire until the second half of the night.
Jiraiya turned to look at Nao. Nao nodded and closed her eyes to sense.
After a while, she opened her eyes. "There are many people here with Chakra, but only one is close to your level. There is another person next to her, whose Chakra is only one-tenth of yours."
"That must be them." Jiraiya knew that Shizune was with Tsunade.
He immediately signaled for Yatagarasu to land in the countryside. Then, he carried Aoki Yoru on his back, grabbed Nao with one hand, and, under Nao's guidance, dashed toward Tsunade's location.
Zuiyun Inn
Tsunade was leaning against a table, one hand propping up her chin, the other swirling a glass filled with amber sake. Her long golden hair fell over her shoulders, her collar was slightly open, and her eyes carried a hint of drunkenness and languor.
"Lady Tsunade, you can't drink anymore. We don't have enough money." Shizune was sweating profusely, trying to persuade her.
They had originally made a profit from a "zero-dollar purchase" in the Town of Hot Water, but Lady Tsunade had insisted on trying to win big. They couldn't go to Tanzaku Town because creditors were still looking for them, so they had come to the capital of the Land of Fire.
As soon as they arrived, Tsunade dove headfirst into the casino and lost everything in the blink of an eye. If she hadn't secretly hidden some money, the two of them would be sleeping on the streets tonight.
"Stop nagging. I'm just having bad luck today. Once I go back to the casino and dominate, I'll win back enough money for you to spend for a lifetime."
Hearing this, Shizune despaired; her secret stash was about to be exposed.
"Bang — —!" The bar entrance was kicked open violently. The two of them turned to look.
They saw Jiraiya rushing into the bar, carrying someone on his back and holding a little girl in his right hand, panting as he looked around.
"Jiraiya, why are you here?" Seeing a familiar friend, Tsunade stood up immediately.
Jiraiya, who was looking around, saw Tsunade and wore an expression of relief as he ran quickly toward her.
He swept the wine glasses and tableware off the table onto the floor, not caring if the surface was dirty, and placed Aoki Yoru directly on it.
"Quick, Tsunade, the kid Yoru is dying. You need to give him emergency treatment!"
When Tsunade first saw Jiraiya's behavior, she thought he had gone crazy and was about to scold him, but she stopped herself abruptly and looked at Aoki Yoru on the table with a serious expression.
With her strength, she saw at a glance that Aoki Yoru's life was at its final moment, and she immediately stepped forward to check.
Fortunately, he had no external injuries. Jiraiya had cleaned the blood off his body before coming; otherwise, if Tsunade's hemophobia flared up, not even gods or ghosts could save him.
"This is no place for emergency treatment. Bring him and follow me." Saying this, she walked toward the adjacent hotel.
Jiraiya dared not delay. He put Aoki Yoru back on his back, and with Nao following behind, the group hurried through the noisy crowd in the tavern and burst open the wooden door of a hotel room.
As soon as they laid Aoki Yoru flat on the bed, Tsunade concentrated Chakra at her fingertips and pressed them onto his forehead.
"There is an energy inside him eroding him. How did he become like this?"
Jiraiya immediately recounted everything he knew. Finally, he looked at Tsunade and said seriously: "Chakra doesn't have much effect on it. I had to use Sage Mode to perform three Sealing Techniques to suppress it. As you can see, the seal has already cracked, and the energy is slowly leaking out. He won't last much longer."
Seeing Aoki Yoru's breathing becoming increasingly weak, Tsunade did not hesitate any longer. She jabbed her fingertips hard into the diamond-shaped seal on her forehead: "Yin Seal: Release!"
The next second, a dazzling golden light exploded from her forehead. A massive amount of life Chakra surged out, spreading throughout her limbs and bones; the vitality that was usually sealed away was now completely released.
"This kid's life energy has been almost drained, and his soul is tightly entangled by evil power. I must first restore his physical foundation, otherwise, he won't even have the strength to withstand the treatment."
As she channeled the vast Chakra into Aoki Yoru's body, his withered body gradually began to glow with a warm golden light. The sunken eye sockets slowly smoothed out, his deathly gray face regained a faint flush of blood, and even his breathing became steady and strong.
Nao, who had been worried, showed joy upon seeing this, but fearing to interrupt the treatment, she covered her mouth to keep from making a sound.
Seeing that Aoki Yoru's breathing had finally stabilized, Tsunade's eyes suddenly sharpened: "What comes next is the real hard battle."
She formed hand seals with her fingertips, and the Chakra condensed into countless fine blades, following Aoki Yoru's meridians straight to the depths of his soul, precisely stabbing at the pitch-black evil power entwined around it.
"Ugh — —!" Aoki Yoru convulsed violently, veins bulging all over his body. The cold, evil power lashed back frantically, but he was held down tightly by Jiraiya and Shizune.