Tsunade leaned against a large rock about eight or nine meters away from the fire. Her clothes were stained with dried blood, her hair was a tangled mess, and her face was pale and bloodless. Her breathing was unsteady—she was clearly injured!
"You slept for an entire day and night... Cough, cough, cough..." Tsunade replied to Haruto Saito before erupting into a violent coughing fit.
Haruto immediately jumped to his feet and rushed to Tsunade's side. "You're hurt? Is it serious?" His question was pointless—if even a top-tier medical ninja like Tsunade couldn't quickly heal herself, then it had to be severe.
"My meridians... Three of them are severed... Cough, cough, cough..." Tsunade's face twisted in pain as she spoke, her body wracked with another fit of coughing.
Haruto's eyes widened in shock.
When it came to injuries, excluding poison and sealing-related damage, the most difficult ones to treat were fractures and meridian damage. If a bone was broken, it could only heal with time—there was no quick fix. As for meridians, while they could technically be healed, it was incredibly difficult.
At this point, Tsunade had already healed her external wounds, making her injuries invisible to the naked eye. The real problem lay within—severed meridians. Such injuries were not only hard to treat but also extremely rare. What kind of attack could cause a ninja's meridians to rupture?
"I slept for an entire day and night? What happened during that time? How did you end up like this? Where is Lord Jiraiya? Could it be that he's already..." Haruto fired off questions in rapid succession.
"Don't jinx it! Jiraiya just went out to find food. He's fine, not injured," Tsunade replied. "While you were unconscious, we encountered a powerful samurai group. Their leader, Miyamoto Ikaruga, is known as the number one samurai of the Land of Rain..."
"The number one?"
"Yes, the strongest! His abilities surpass both Jiraiya's and mine. However, if Jiraiya and I teamed up, we wouldn't lose to him. But he wasn't alone—he had over a hundred samurai fighting alongside him. At first, we didn't recognize him. It wasn't until he used his signature technique, 'Meridian-Shattering Void Slash,' that we confirmed his identity. That's the attack that injured me."
Haruto was stunned. How was it that nothing happened while he was awake, but the moment he was knocked out, everything went to hell?
Was this really just a coincidence?
Not exactly. If Haruto had been conscious, he could have used his sensory abilities to assess the situation ahead of time. He might have detected Miyamoto Ikaruga's group in advance and avoided them altogether.
"If you were injured, does that mean we won?" Haruto asked.
"No, we didn't win," Tsunade shook her head. "It was a mutual defeat. Jiraiya and I managed to kill over forty of their men. After I was injured, Jiraiya severely wounded Miyamoto Ikaruga—his injuries were even worse than mine. He and his men retreated, and we escaped as well. However..."
"However, what?"
"Rain Hawks appeared. News of our presence in this region is likely to spread."
The situation was dire. Haruto was still processing everything—he had just woken up, and suddenly everything was in chaos.
"What about your injuries... Can't you heal yourself?" Haruto hesitantly asked.
"Not right now." Tsunade shook her head. "I know medical ninjutsu that can heal meridian damage, but in order to use the technique, my chakra needs to flow normally through my meridians. The problem is, the technique requires one of the meridians that's currently severed. I need to repair that meridian using other methods first."
"Other methods?"
"Yes. By using medical chakra, I can allow my body to repair itself naturally. It will take three days for that meridian to heal. Once that's done, I'll be able to fully heal myself quickly."
At this point, Tsunade was only twenty-two years old and had not yet developed the S-rank medical forbidden techniques—Creation Rebirth and Strength of a Hundred Seal—that she would use later in life. If she had already mastered those techniques, she would have healed herself instantly.
"I'm back!" A voice echoed from the far side of the large cave. Jiraiya emerged from a dark tunnel, stepping into the cavern's light.
Jiraiya was soaked from the rain, carrying a bulging bundle in his hands. It looked like he had found plenty of food. A faint scent of blood lingered around him.
"Where... is this place?" Haruto glanced around and asked.
"An abandoned mine. We're inside the mountain," Tsunade replied.
The reason they dared to light a fire here was because it wouldn't be visible from the outside. Additionally, the mine's network of tunnels allowed the smoke to dissipate naturally as it traveled through the passages.
Jiraiya carried the bundle over to the fire, glanced at the now-awake Haruto, and let out a cold "Hmph!" His expression showed clear disdain.
"Hey, Lord Jiraiya, what's wrong?"
"Hmph!"
"Did I offend you somehow?"
"Hmph!"
"Lady Tsunade, did I do something to offend Lord Jiraiya?"
Tsunade shook her head, leaving Haruto even more confused. What was Jiraiya's problem?
Jiraiya sat down by the fire, pulling out wild fruits, mushrooms, and a freshly killed fat rabbit from the bundle. He started preparing the food for roasting, but suddenly spoke up: "Hmph! If we didn't have to protect you, Tsunade wouldn't have gotten so badly injured."
"Huh?" Haruto blinked in surprise, looking between Jiraiya and Tsunade. He didn't doubt Jiraiya's words.
He didn't need to ask for details—he already knew that they had protected him while he was unconscious.
"No need to thank me," Tsunade said with a smirk, as if it were no big deal. "It's not like we could just leave you behind."
Haruto felt genuinely touched. Tsunade was truly...
"Of course, if you insist on thanking me, I won't refuse. Once we return to the village, just hand over a few tens of millions of ryo and give up your right to make demands." Tsunade's tone was casual.
Damn! So much for high morals! Was she seriously extorting him for gratitude? And with such an outrageous price?
"I'm so moved! Come here, let me give you a hug!" Haruto declared, leaning in to embrace Tsunade.
Jiraiya glanced over but quickly lost interest. Haruto was only a little older than Tsunade's younger brother. Despite being a capable ninja, he was still just a kid.
"You little brat, have you hugged enough? Get off me!" Tsunade's voice carried a dangerous edge.
Haruto quickly let go.
"Here!" Tsunade raised her hand slightly. "Help me up."
"Yes, my lady!" Haruto obediently complied, helping Tsunade to her feet.
Although she was injured, she could still move and even fight to some extent—just not as effectively as before. Once she was up, she waved Haruto off and walked toward the fire.
"Lady Tsunade!" Haruto suddenly had an idea. "That medical ninjutsu of yours—the one that heals meridians—what rank is it?"
"Deep Healing Technique. B-rank. Why?" Tsunade asked as she sat down by the fire.
"Teach me! If I learn it in a day, I can heal you myself!" Haruto said eagerly.
Tsunade abruptly turned to look at him.