By this time, Tsunade had clearly finished handling her immediate administrative duties at the outpost.
With the stress of work temporarily lifted, her crippling gambling addiction surged uncontrollably.
She rubbed her thumb and index finger together, feeling an unbearable, physiological itch to place a bet or throw some dice. But when she checked her frog wallet, it was already so flat and empty it would starve a mouse.
While she was pacing the perimeter feeling irritable, a glimpse from the corner of her eye caught Kiyohara crouching in the shadows behind the barracks, counting a massive stack of Ryo like a little hamster.
Seeing that bulging money bag, Tsunade's brown eyes lit up instantly. She adjusted her posture, squared her shoulders, and walked straight over.
"Ahem," Tsunade cleared her throat loudly. "Kid, are you counting your mission reward?"
Kiyohara stood up, brushing the dust off his knees. He answered truthfully, "Lady Tsunade. No, this is the payout for some high-density iron sand I collected using my Magnet Release and sold to a local merchant."
"Magnet Release?"
Tsunade raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow. The greedy light in her eyes intensified.
'That's right. Magnet Release can effortlessly extract iron sand from the earth.' This meant that the kid was essentially a high-yield, mobile iron mine. In the long run, wouldn't that make him an infinitely stable source of funds?
She coughed forcefully twice more, trying to make herself appear authoritative and credible. She leaned forward slightly, resting her hands on her hips, which naturally emphasized her deep, abyss-like cleavage.
Tsunade leaned close to Kiyohara, lowering her voice to a conspiratorial whisper that suggested he was getting a great deal.
"Um... look. I am a bit tight on cash lately, and I need some liquid funds to tide me over for a classified... logistics project. How about you lend me some of that? Don't worry, I will definitely pay you back with interest!"
Kiyohara looked at Tsunade's face. While undeniably beautiful, her expression screamed of a desperate gambling addict trying to score her next fix. Considering her notoriously disastrous luck and horrific credit score, the corner of Kiyohara's mouth twitched beneath his mask.
"Lady Tsunade, it's not that I don't trust you," Kiyohara said politely. "It's just that I'm afraid handing this money to you would be like throwing a meat bun at a stray dog... gone forever."
"Huh?!"
A throbbing vein instantly popped up on Tsunade's forehead. She was clearly angered by being compared to a stray dog chasing a meat bun.
She extended her slender finger and flicked Kiyohara squarely on the forehead without hesitation.
Thwack!
Although she didn't use her Monster Strength, Kiyohara still felt a sharp twinge of pain and stumbled back half a step.
"So this is the legendary Sannin, Tsunade," the spirit form of the Iwa ninja drifted out of the Urn, observing the scene.
He had never interacted closely with the Sannin during his life. "I remember the first time I saw Tsunade on the battlefield, I was almost killed by her punch. Steel Release doesn't protect against the internal hydrostatic shockwaves generated by her strength," the Iwa Spirit shuddered.
'That's perfectly normal,' Kiyohara replied in his mind, rubbing his forehead. 'She would punch a hole through a mountain if she was drunk enough.'
"Am I the kind of person who borrows money and doesn't pay it back?!" Tsunade demanded indignantly, completely oblivious to her own reputation.
She crossed her arms. "How about this: if you lend me the money, I won't take it for free. I will make time to personally instruct you for an entire day."
"During this day, you can ask me any questions you have about your training, chakra control, or medical theory. How about it? This is an opportunity elite Jonin would beg on their knees for."
Kiyohara's heart stirred.
This condition was undeniably, overwhelmingly tempting. Tsunade's attainments in precise chakra control, Taijutsu, and Medical Ninjutsu were at the absolute pinnacle of the ninja world. Receiving even a single day of dedicated, undivided tutelage from her would be immensely beneficial.
Although lending money to her carried a 100% risk of default, this "tuition fee" might actually be worth paying.
Kiyohara pretended to ponder for a moment. Under Tsunade's expectant, desperate gaze, he finally spoke.
"Training with you and asking for advice... this condition is incredibly tempting, Lady Tsunade. But..."
He shook the money bag in his hand, tying the knot tightly.
"Next time for sure. I need to keep this portion of the cash for an emergency armor upgrade. If Lady Tsunade needs money urgently, I can absolutely lend you a portion next time, after I collect and sell a larger batch of iron sand."
Kiyohara's plan was pragmatic: he wanted to keep Tsunade on the hook and maintain this "advice channel" without going broke today. He needed to buy better armor to survive the upcoming missions. Once he had disposable income, he would happily buy her time.
Upon hearing this, Tsunade was visibly disappointed not to get her gambling money immediately. However, the phrase "next time for sure" was music to an addict's ears. It meant her next loan was guaranteed.
She looked at Kiyohara's determined eyes and knew the kid was shrewd; he wasn't going to budge today.
"Fine, fine. It's a deal," Tsunade waved her hand. "Next time you sell your stuff, remember to lend me some! That's an order."
Her mood instantly turned from cloudy to sunny. Humming an upbeat tune, she turned and walked away quickly, already planning which casino she would hit when the kid paid up.
Kiyohara watched her retreating back, shook his head helplessly, and secured his money bag.
Because the frontline command needed time to evaluate intelligence from the Suna border, Tsunade's escort squad was ordered to remain at the outpost for a week.
During their stay, the squad was not idle. They were assigned daily patrols and reconnaissance missions in the surrounding sectors to ensure the outpost's safety and map potential enemy infiltration routes.
Kiyohara planned to take on as many of these minor missions as possible. The accumulated military merit from this week would be exactly enough to exchange for a B-Rank Lightning Release jutsu at the quartermaster, allowing him to fulfill the Iwa Spirit's dying wish and inherit the Steel Release.
'Steel Release is an incredible defensive ability,' Kiyohara thought. 'Most ninja are glass cannons. If I can negate physical damage entirely, my survivability skyrockets.'
On the third day, a specific reconnaissance mission was handed down.
"Mission objective: Recon the northern mountain range, ten kilometers outside the outpost perimeter. Confirm if there are any signs of Iwagakure infiltration squads," Kakashi read the mission scroll aloud.
After understanding the parameters, Kakashi, Rin, and Kiyohara exited the outpost gates and disappeared into the dense, northern forests of the Land of Fire.
The initial journey was relatively smooth. They didn't encounter any wild Summoned Beasts, wandering mercenaries, or Rogue Ninja looking to ambush travelers for profit.
"Kiyohara, how is the taming of your Invisible Chameleon going?" Rin asked curiously as they hiked up a steep incline.
"In a few more days, I should be able to completely break its wild nature," Kiyohara replied calmly.
His process was akin to breaking a wild hawk. He would summon the Chameleon, beat it into absolute submission, feed it some raw meat, and dismiss it. Over time, this planted the inescapable impression in the beast's primitive mind that Kiyohara was the absolute apex predator and could not be defied.
"Taming a wild beast is difficult work," Kakashi spoke up from the vanguard. He noted that his Eight Ninken were obtained directly from an Inuzuka clan breeding program. Because he had raised them from pups, he didn't have to violently establish dominance.
Kiyohara shook his head silently. 'Were the highly-trained hounds of the Inuzuka Clan really that easy to obtain for an outsider? Kakashi had a father whose political reputation surpassed the Sannin. I do not.'
Meanwhile, deep in the northern canopy, an enemy ninja opened his eyes.
If one looked closely, they would find he had six arms, dark, chitinous skin, and a biological structure strongly resembling a spider. It was a genetic mutation inherent to his specific clan.
Dozens of small, fist-sized spiders crawled rapidly up his arms, whispering chemical and vibrational intelligence into his ear.
"A Konoha patrol squad, huh? I wonder how much they would sell for on the black market if captured alive," the spider-ninja, Hibiki Kido, grinned sinisterly.
Live ninja, especially those with Kekkei Genkai or valuable clan secrets, were incredibly valuable to enemy interrogators.
Listening to the vibrational intelligence conveyed by his spiders, he assessed the targets: One Jonin (Kakashi) and two Chunin (Rin and Kiyohara).
Hibiki was much stronger than the average Jonin. He was a master of ambushes. To date, two elite Jonin had already died to his venom—one from Iwa, and one from Konoha.
In the forest below.
Kiyohara noticed that several large trees were draped with thick, unusual webs. The number of small spiders scattering underfoot seemed to be increasing unnaturally.
But Kakashi's Ninken, deployed ahead of them, had not barked any warnings.
The Iwa Spirit floated out of the Urn, standing quietly behind Kiyohara. He did not need to possess Kiyohara's body to act. He simply stood in the mental space, expanding his perception.
"Two kilometers to the left. Above us in the canopy. An enemy ninja is approaching rapidly," the Iwa Spirit warned.
Hearing this, Kiyohara's gaze narrowed behind his mask.
'Approaching rapidly, and the hounds didn't detect any scent or movement?'
"Your sensory ninjutsu is this good?" Kiyohara asked the Spirit.
Not all ninja possessed sensory abilities. Generally, they were divided into visual, tactile, auditory, and chakra-sensing types.
"According to the foundational texts, ninja capable of active, wide-range chakra sensing generally possess a strong affinity for Yang Release," the Iwa Spirit explained clinically. "Tobirama Senju, Minato Namikaze, Ino Yamanaka... they all possess dominant Yang Release. It influences the biological sensitivity of the nervous system."
"My Steel Release is a direct genetic fusion of Earth and Yang Release," the Iwa Spirit stated proudly. "The Yang component alters the cellular structure, allowing the body to harden tougher than steel while simultaneously turning the entire epidermis into a massive, highly sensitive chakra receptor."
"No wonder," Kiyohara finally understood the mechanics of Steel Release.
At the same time, a surge of anticipation rushed through him.
If he completed the first dying wish and inherited the bloodline, he would inevitably inherit the Spirit's Earth and Yang talents as well. His own sensory abilities would be massively enhanced! He would no longer need to rely purely on his physical eyesight and the high-speed Body Flicker to gather intelligence. He would become a true Sensor Ninja!
"He's here," the Iwa Spirit warned sharply.
Kiyohara immediately formed a rapid sequence of hand seals.
"Lightning Release: Ground Flash!"
Crackle!
High-voltage electric arcs sped aggressively across the forest floor in all directions. The lightning suddenly emitted a series of sharp clicking sounds, violently scorching a massive wave of tiny, hidden spiders to ash.
Kiyohara's sudden offensive action caused Kakashi and Rin to snap from confusion to absolute vigilance. An enemy was attacking!
Sure enough, the illusion of an empty forest shattered. Countless small spiders poured out from the bushes, tree trunks, and the canopy above.
Among them, dropping silently from the high branches, stood a ninja with six arms. He landed gracefully on the back of a massive, horse-sized spider, looking down at the Konoha squad.
"What... is that?" Rin's beautiful face turned slightly pale.
Kakashi's expression didn't change. The Chidori bloomed in his hand with a deafening screech of a thousand birds. He dashed forward instantly, wiping out a massive swarm of spiders in a single, devastating sweep to clear their perimeter.
Watching from the back, Kiyohara shook his head.
'Why do I feel like ever since Kakashi perfected the Chidori, his tactical flexibility has vanished?'
Ambushed? Chidori. Fighting head-on? Chidori. He had completely become the shape of his own signature jutsu.
Hiss!
Hibiki Kido's cheeks puffed out. He violently spat a thick glob of white spider silk into his six hands.
Like a spider weaving a web, his six arms danced with blinding speed, stretching the highly tensile silk into a massive net, which he hurled directly at the squad.
Rin couldn't dodge in time. The edge of the sticky web caught her arm, violently pinning her to the trunk of a nearby tree!
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