"What's wrong, Ino? What are you plotting in your head?" No one knows a daughter better than her father; one look at Ino's expression and Inoichi Yamanaka knew she was scheming. Akimichi Choza and Nara Shikaku also found it amusing and looked at Ino together.
Ino said, "She's Princess Tsunade, one of the Sannin! The world's number one Medical Ninja—who wouldn't be envious?"
But in her mind, she was thinking of extremely violent things like 'Heavenly Foot of Pain', 'Strength of a Hundred Seal', 'Yin Seal', and 'Monstrous Strength'. Just thinking about them felt awesome.
The large-scale destruction of the surroundings with every punch and kick was simply wonderful.
She appreciated this kind of violent aesthetic... Nara Shikaku said, "Oh, so Ino wants to be a Medical Ninja?"
"Of course not!" Ino signaled that the lazy uncle had guessed wrong. Then, she lifted her chin and loudly proclaimed her "future." "Medical Ninjas have to deal with so many patients every day; it's so tiring. I'll just take over my dad's job in the future... a nine-to-five every day, how pleasant. I'm just purely interested in medical skills themselves..."
Interested in "medical skills"... that was the truth. She wasn't just interested in "medical skills"; she was also interested in things like Sealing Techniques.
Medical skills and Sealing Techniques were among the few things besides Chakra that she could put her mind to researching and required a significant amount of energy to learn.
"Ha..."
Nara Shikaku chuckled, muttering to himself, "This girl looks so unmotivated; why does she seem like she's from our Nara Clan..."
"Then you might as well take over for Uncle Akimichi. Uncle Akimichi manages the Ninja Corps, and there's basically nothing to do. If you take over for your dad, you'll have to sit in an office every day, but not here with me..."
Akimichi Choza was seriously "scouting" her, which momentarily gave Ino a sense of déjà vu, as if she were at a "The Voice" audition—
Teacher Liu Huan with his arms spread wide, speaking with cadence: Quick, come join my team. Once you're here, you can completely slack off.
o(╯□╰)o
Ino asked, "Managing the Ninja Corps?"
"Yeah... managing the Ninja Corps. All Konoha graduates and dropouts who attended the Ninja Academy are members of the Ninja Corps, meaning we organize regular training. In a unit like your father's, civilian staff will get rusty if they don't train for a long time. I usually organize sessions once every half-month... things like survival expeditions or simulated battles..."
"Oh—"
"Shoo, shoo! You fat guy, stop eyeing my daughter. Ino will definitely succeed me in the future. If she runs off with you, who will I find to take over?"
Nara Shikaku also chimed in, saying, "Well, with Ino's talent, she would do very well if she joined the Strategy Department..."
...Talking and laughing, the night deepened amidst their banter. Seeing that it was getting late and they had work the next day, the three adults and one child each returned to their tents—Shikamaru and Choji had already been asleep for a while by then.
The night in the forest was as tranquil as water, with occasional soft sounds standing out clearly. The wind blew through the branches with a rustling sound.
When the crimson sun rose, the forest reached its peak humidity. The three families in the tents all began to wake up.
The ground was a bit damp, and it had become somewhat cold sleeping in the tent.
Ino stretched her limbs inside the tent, got dressed, and then stepped out. The early morning air was cold and damp, making Ino wrinkle her nose. She turned back into the tent to put on her sunscreen mask and gloves before stepping out again, finally feeling comfortable. Thanks to this sunscreen gear—it protected against the sun when it was harsh and provided some warmth now.
After waking up, they each packed away their tents and sundries. Inoichi Yamanaka hoisted a large packed bundle onto his back. Akimichi Choza also carried a tent.
Only Shikamaru was a bit miserable—Nara Yoshino forced him to carry a smallish bundle, but it looked to weigh over twenty catties.
"So pitiful... he won't grow tall!" Ino sympathized with Shikamaru for a second before it turned into schadenfreude... after all, she wasn't the one carrying the weight.
They each returned home. Mrs. Yamanaka made breakfast, and after the family of three ate, Inoichi Yamanaka went to work. Once Nana and Kana arrived, Ino went back to her stall.
"The Chunin Exams are approaching, so be careful... there are many Ninjas from other villages..." Even though she knew her daughter's strength was already among the top few in Konoha—one blast of Azure Flame and Chunin or Genin wouldn't stand a chance—Mrs. Yamanaka was still worried. After all, it was her daughter, and no matter how powerful, she was only five years old.
Well... Kakashi graduated at five; his only purpose in joining the Ninja Academy was to take the graduation exam, and then he became a Genin... But then again... Kakashi is a boy, how can he compare to her Princess Ino? They're different genders; girls should receive more preferential treatment.
So, after finishing the housework, Mrs. Yamanaka went out to accompany her daughter at the stall.
That day, they saw many outsiders. The few sunscreen masks at the stall were even spotted by some noble ladies and sold for a high price.
"Ino, raising the price so high seems a bit inappropriate, doesn't it?" After selling out the sunscreen masks, Mrs. Yamanaka found an opportunity to speak with Ino privately.
"Mom, you don't understand—only this price is worthy of a noble lady's status. If it were cheap, the noble ladies wouldn't even want it." Ino clenched her fist. "You have to know, the slogan of the nobility is 'only the most expensive, not necessarily the best.' Only by spending more money can they match their status—if they were like commoners, would they still be nobles?"
"..."
For the next few days, leading up to the Chunin Exams, Ino's business was booming every day. In just a few days, she managed to rake in over thirteen million Ryo.
After depositing all the money into the bank, Ino kissed her eight-figure balance, filled with joy... She was truly financially free—even her dad and mom combined weren't as rich as she was.
"Mom, do you think if I'm on a mission in the future, I could post another mission to have other Ninja teams do it for me, then..."
Mrs. Yamanaka was speechless and gave Ino a thumbs-up: At nesting dolls, you're the professional; neither your father nor I can compare.
Then, Ino naturally thought of Princess Tsunade... Forget it, she wasn't close to Princess Tsunade. That "maternal cousin aunt" relative nonsense was purely non-existent and fabricated, just Comrade Inoichi Yamanaka trying to latch onto the only remaining bloodline of the Senju Clan—yeah, exactly! From now on, if anyone tells her Tsunade is her maternal cousin aunt, she'll get angry with them!
Right—she must learn to cry poverty in the future! I, Princess Ino, currently owe the clan a massive debt of ten million Ryo and have to work to pay it back!
Yeah.
Exactly, that's it!
...
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