Chapter 17: The Golden Goose's Generous Gift!
"Deputy Chief Inuzuka, you've heard of me?"
Hearing the undisguised friendliness in Inuzuka Tsume's voice, Nara Keisuke felt a little puzzled. He considered his memory to be quite good. Today should have been his first time meeting Inuzuka Tsume.
Never mind the妖精-like cat-girl from before; her good attitude could at least be categorized as part of "soliciting customers." But this Inuzuka clan veterinarian, this senior, this female deputy chief...
Inuzuka Tsume gathered the remaining white sheet from the hospital bed, frowning with a hint of discomfort before tossing it directly into a nearby trash can. Perhaps the lingering "cat smell" on the sheet had irritated her, a fiercely loyal dog person.
"Don't forget where you are, little Nara. This is the Beast Taming and Medical Treatment class." Inuzuka Tsume clapped her hands and gave Nara Keisuke a warm smile, revealing a pair of rather sharp canine teeth. "Senior Keiko took very good care of me before she retired."
"Speaking of which, if she hadn't retired, this deputy chief position wouldn't have been mine!"
So the connection is through Keiko-san...
Nara Keisuke understood.
"Oh, right, little Nara, make sure to keep that incense stick you have," Inuzuka Tsume said, walking over to a desk in the corner of the room without pausing her words.
"Although Nekomura comes from a family of black-market merchants, I have to admit the quality of her goods is very reliable, leagues better than Manten-dō."
"Especially the ninja tools she sells. Even the Uchiha clan places special orders with her."
Ninja tools?
Nara Keisuke looked down at the incense stick in his hand.
Although the sharpness of the [Shadow Sewing Technique] was no less than that of a standard kunai, as a B-rank ninjutsu, casting it consumed a lot of Yin Release chakra. Therefore, supplementing his skills with some proficiency in weaponry had long been part of Nara Keisuke's development plan.
Not to mention he had also developed the C-rank technique [Invisible Air] based on [Camouflage Concealment].
But could that big cat-girl from earlier really provide a ninja tool that met his requirements?
With the thought that "it might be useful someday," Nara Keisuke carefully stored the incense stick away.
Right, it's definitely not because he wanted to see that foxy, golden-silk cat-girl again...
"Thank you for the advice, Deputy Chief Inuzuka."
"You're being way too polite, kid!"
Although her words weren't exactly courteous, judging by the brilliant smile on Inuzuka Tsume's face, she clearly enjoyed the sentiment.
"Actually, our families could have been even closer. When Hana-chan was born last year, I wanted to arrange a marriage with Keiko-san's family, but she refused." (Hana-chan is Inuzuka Hana).
Nara Keisuke lowered his head, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.
Despite Inuzuka Tsume's wild, spiky hedgehog hairstyle, she was not yet twenty years old. Not yet twenty, and already a mother... Nara Keisuke could only marvel at the precociousness of ninja.
At the same time, he was also marveling at Inuzuka Tsume's directness.
It wasn't that a childhood engagement was out of the question. One of the First Hokage's goals in establishing Konoha was the hope that the village could break down the rigid boundaries between ninja clans. Besides, neither the Nara nor the Inuzuka clan were "bloodline limit families." As clans of secret techniques, their bloodlines weren't valued as highly as those of the Uchiha or Hyuga.
But when all was said and done, who ever heard of a "childhood engagement" with a ten-year age gap?
Inuzuka Tsume, sitting behind the desk, continued the previous topic, a nostalgic look on her face. "Keiko-san said you matured early for your age and didn't really like undeveloped little girls. That you prefer older sisters, especially—"
"Slander! That is absolute slander!"
Nara Keisuke's eyes went wide as he cut her off.
Before Inuzuka Tsume could finish, his face had already turned bright red, veins popping on his forehead as he argued, "I don't like little girls... or older sisters! ...Can adults even understand a kid's preferences?"
"Well, whatever. I admit I don't really understand kids. Even Hana-chan is mostly cared for by my ninken, Kuromaru." Inuzuka Tsume shrugged and skipped over the topic.
"Now, where were we? Manten-dō? Right, Manten-dō's Military Ration Pills! Isn't your family in the pharmacy business, little Nara? Why would you think to buy ration pills from Manten-dō?"
Nara Keisuke had a hard time keeping up with Inuzuka Tsume's leaps in logic. Before he had a chance to explain, she continued, "Besides being very filling, the quality and effects of Manten-dō's pills are far inferior to others, and they digest too quickly."
Previously, Nara Keisuke's chakra reserves had been pitifully low, so his knowledge of military ration pills was indeed lacking. After a moment of silence, he took the initiative to ask, "Are there different kinds of military ration pills?"
"Of course there are!" Inuzuka Tsume pulled a dark, round pill from her ninja tool pouch. "For example, my family's pills have some special dog food added—hm, let's ignore that example! Anyway, among all the ration pills produced by the various clans, if you're only considering the effect, the Akimichi clan's are definitely the strongest!"
The Akimichi clan's ration pills?
Nara Keisuke thought for a moment. Is she talking about the "Three-Colored Pills"?
His knowledge of the Akimichi clan, their partners in the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, was far greater than his knowledge of the Inuzuka clan. He knew the Akimichi possessed a special family secret medicine—the Three-Colored Pills.
The green spinach pill, the yellow curry pill, and the red chili pill.
Each pill was more effective than the last, but the side effects were also progressively worse. The final red chili pill, in particular, could have severe negative consequences that were life-threatening.
"If you think Manten-dō's pills aren't very effective," Inuzuka Tsume said, enthusiastically extending her palm toward Nara Keisuke. "We can trade medicine. Besides the ninken food, my ration pills also contain other stimulants that can more effectively exhaust your cells to extract more chakra."
"No, thank you for your kindness." Nara Keisuke shook his head, declining Tsume's enthusiastic offer.
On the one hand, he didn't like the idea of eating dog food.
On the other hand, although Tsume was dissatisfied with Manten-dō's pills, based on her description—no stimulants, extremely filling, and didn't harm the body's cells... they might be more suitable for him!
Inuzuka Tsume regretfully withdrew her "special ration pill" laced with dog food. "Actually, a change of pace is nice once in a while."
After the pleasant chat, the relationship between Nara Keisuke and Inuzuka Tsume became much more familiar, and he finally got to the point. "Deputy Chief Inuzuka, this is my first day reporting to the Beast Taming and Medical Treatment class..."
"Right! Speaking of which, why are you even here?"
Nara Keisuke was completely baffled by Tsume's interruption. He slowly let out a single sound: "Hmm?"
Could it be because I stepped in with my right foot first when I entered, so now I'm getting fired on my first day?
"It's like this. Lady Tsunade came to the class this morning and used her authority as department head to transfer your ninja file," Inuzuka Tsume said with a shrug. "So, strictly speaking, you're no longer a member of the Beast Taming and Medical Treatment class."
So I was overthinking things.
Nara Keisuke adjusted his sunglasses.
He had been fired before he even started.
Standing outside the main gate of the Medical Department, Nara Keisuke looked up at the sky. The warm sunlight made him feel a bit dazed.
Should I go find the golden goose now?
According to Inuzuka Tsume, he was now considered Tsunade's direct subordinate. On a normal day, Nara Keisuke could act like a "freelance ninja," forming his own teams to take missions and train. But Tsunade held direct authority over him. If Tsunade ever ran into a mission, she could summon him, her tool man, at any time to help carry the load.
In other words, in his profession as a "ninja," Nara Keisuke was already more than halfway tied to Tsunade.
To say he wasn't bewildered by the golden goose's actions would be a lie. Especially since the golden goose hadn't mentioned a single word about it beforehand!
But looking at it from another angle, Tsunade's move had also liberated Nara Keisuke from the laborious life of a conventional "ninja tool."
Between "working at the Beast Taming and Medical Treatment class" and "doing missions with Tsunade," Nara Keisuke would definitely choose the latter.
So, is this a shock? Or a surprise?
Nara Keisuke gazed toward the Hokage's Office in the distance. The golden goose was probably still in there discussing important matters with the higher-ups.
He thought for a moment and chose to go straight home. To the top-floor apartment near the Academy that, for the time being, still belonged to him.
The Konoha Medical Department and the Ninja Academy weren't far from each other. In less than ten minutes, Nara Keisuke was home.
The first thing he did upon returning was not to rest, but to take out the black scroll Tsunade had previously given him.
Entering his quiet study, Nara Keisuke unrolled the scroll and carefully read its contents. The elegant handwriting was imprinted on the white paper of the scroll, and the densely packed content showed the effort and passion the writer had invested.
I feel like I've seen this handwriting somewhere before...
Nara Keisuke finished a rough reading of the scroll, a question in his mind. And isn't the [Super Beast Scroll] a secret technique that belongs to Root? Where did Tsunade get this scroll?
His confusion only lasted for a moment before a message popped up on the panel, interrupting his train of thought.
[B-rank Secret Technique Detected: [Super Beast Scroll]. Learn?]
It seems that even with a conventional scroll, the "Lazy System" has a one-click learn function!
Nara Keisuke didn't hesitate and chose to learn it immediately.
[B-rank Secret Technique: Super Beast Scroll]
[Technique Description: Accept the will infused within, and even false life will become a dancing beast.]
[Technique Effect: By using ink infused with Yang Release chakra to draw various animals on paper, they are given active "life." The animals created depend entirely on the will of the user.]
[Technique Evaluation: You should try drawing something that doesn't exist in reality!]
(Author's Note:)
A huge thanks to all the readers for reading this fanfiction!!
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Regarding the [Super Beast Scroll], let's have a discussion here.
The [Super Beast Scroll] is a special ninjutsu mastered by Sai, a new member of Team Kakashi (Team 7) and a member of Root in the Shippuden arc.
The "Sha no Sho" (Book of Characters) databook describes it as a B-rank ninjutsu, with its effect being the creation of animate beasts using a brush and ink.
The issue I want to discuss is whether the [Super Beast Scroll] belongs to Yin Release or Yang Release.
Yin Release is creating form from nothingness.
Yang Release is breathing life into form.
From the performance of the ninjutsu, [Super Beast Scroll] undoubtedly seems to fall into the category of Yin Release, using ink as a framework to create a myriad of changing beasts.
However, according to the "Jin no Sho" (Book of Formations) databook, Sai has no affinity for Yin Release... His chakra natures are "Water, Fire, Earth, and Yang." So, the [Super Beast Scroll] seems to be a Yang Release ninjutsu.
The original manga doesn't mention the attribute of the [Super Beast Scroll], and the two conclusions summarized above are contradictory, so I had to make my own decision.
Please note, this is a personal setting.
You could also call it fanon (a secondary setting).
In this story, [Super Beast Scroll] is Yang Release.
(End of Chapter)