Chapter 209 — Response, Tsunade
At the Land of Rivers front, inside Konoha's camp—
After finishing treatment for all five of them, Taichi finally dropped onto the edge of a bed.
Physically, he was fine. Thanks to the Strength of a Hundred Seal, his chakra reserves had been fully replenished.
But mentally—
He was exhausted.
The antidote research had already drained him, and then came a full-scale battle against the Kazekage…
Even for him, that was pushing it.
Still—
As he replayed the fight with Rasa in his mind, his understanding of his own strength became much clearer.
This time—
There had been no ambush.
No tricks.
A pure, head-on confrontation.
And the result?
More than acceptable.
Even without revealing all his trump cards, he had already fought the Kazekage to a standstill.
If it were truly a one-on-one encounter in the wild—
There was even a chance he could kill him.
Of course—
Taichi wasn't naïve.
He had held back.
So had Rasa.
But regardless—
At his current level, surviving in the shinobi world was no longer a concern.
After sitting quietly for a while to steady his mind, Taichi stood and stepped out of the tent.
Night had fallen.
The moon hung high, clear and bright, while stars scattered across the sky.
Within the camp, fires burned everywhere, and patrol squads moved constantly between the rows of tents.
Taichi walked slowly.
Everywhere he went—
Shinobi stopped.
"Taichi-sama…"
"Taichi-sama…"
Voices greeted him one after another.
Only then did he fully realize—
His reputation here had already reached the level of veteran jōnin.
Maybe even higher.
And it made sense.
Just on this short walk alone—
He recognized at least seven people he had personally treated.
Two more had fought alongside him.
No wonder Tsunade, even after leaving the village for years, could still return and be welcomed as Hokage.
A skilled medical ninja—
Was someone who constantly earned goodwill.
Add strength on top of that—
And respect came naturally.
Soon, Taichi arrived at the central command tent.
It was still brightly lit.
From inside came the sounds of heated discussion.
Even at this hour—
The command staff hadn't rested.
Taichi had the guard announce him and waited outside.
Yōhei and the others' situation had to be reported.
Being hunted by elite Sand forces—
Encountering the Kazekage—
That was no small matter.
And since those five were all dead tired—
This cleanup fell to him.
"Taichi-sama, Lord Jiraiya requests your presence."
Taichi nodded and stepped inside.
The moment he entered—
He spotted someone unexpected.
Minato Namikaze.
It had been a while.
Since arriving at the southern front, Taichi hadn't seen him once—he'd been busy operating deep behind Sand lines.
Minato caught his eye—
And gave a subtle wink.
Taichi returned it.
"Taichi," Jiraiya said, getting straight to the point, "you said you had something to report. Did you make progress on the poison?"
Taichi shook his head slightly.
"The antidote situation is still the same. But I've already sent a letter asking Teacher Tsunade for help. We should hear back soon."
That—
Made Jiraiya visibly brighten.
Tsunade had been gone too long.
The village had only fragments of outdated information about her.
He had considered bringing her back before—
But knowing her personality…
He had never acted.
So hearing Taichi had reached out—
Genuinely pleased him.
Still, Jiraiya frowned slightly.
"If it's not about the antidote… then what?"
Then it hit him.
His eyes widened.
"You weren't in camp this afternoon?"
Taichi nodded.
"No."
Then he continued calmly—
"While resting, I received a distress signal from Yōhei…"
As Taichi finished explaining—
Everyone in the room was stunned.
Good lord… how long has it even been?
He'd already fought Rasa again?!
At this point, it almost felt personal.
Everyone present—except Jiraiya—had yet to even encounter the Kazekage once since the war began.
And yet Taichi?
Two fights.
Zero losses.
Jiraiya didn't dwell on that at all. His focus snapped immediately to the real issue.
"Shikaku—what mission was Yōhei's team assigned?"
Shikaku Nara answered instantly.
"Behind-enemy-lines reconnaissance."
As expected of Konoha's sharpest mind—no hesitation.
Jiraiya's expression hardened.
"In the past two days, how many teams on the same mission have returned? What were their reports?"
Shikaku thought briefly, then replied,
"One returned yesterday. One today. No unusual reports."
Then he added, without waiting:
"All ten teams were deployed on the same day. So far, only three have returned."
That—
Changed the atmosphere instantly.
Everyone caught the implication.
Based on standard supply duration—
Those teams should've started returning by now.
Yet only three had made it back.
And one of those—
Had barely survived pursuit.
Which meant…
The remaining seven teams had likely all been intercepted.
Best-case scenario?
They were still alive—but in extreme danger.
Worst case—
They were already gone.
"Lord Jiraiya, we need to send reinforcements," one of the advisors said urgently. "Seven elite squads—this isn't something we can afford to lose."
Seven squads meant at least seven jōnin.
That kind of loss would hurt Konoha badly.
But the situation wasn't simple.
Sand Village still had to maintain pressure on the main front—
Which meant their manpower for rear-area interception was limited.
So those teams probably weren't wiped out yet.
But—
Rescue?
That was the real problem.
There was no direct communication.
No confirmed positions.
No targets.
Even if they wanted to help—
They didn't know where to go.
Shikaku spoke again, offering a solution that was… less than ideal.
"Then we force them."
Everyone turned to him.
"We launch a large-scale offensive," he continued calmly. "Increase pressure on the main battlefield. If Sand is forced to reinforce the front, they'll have to reduce the forces hunting our teams."
A pause.
Then—
Nods.
It wasn't perfect.
But it was workable.
And conveniently—
It aligned with their earlier discussion about when to launch the next attack.
Jiraiya scanned the room.
No objections.
"Good," he said decisively. "At dawn tomorrow—double manpower. Strike Sand's patrol units and outposts."
Then he turned slightly.
"Minato—you head behind their lines tomorrow. See if you can locate any of our teams."
Minato Namikaze nodded.
"Yes!"
Everyone straightened.
Orders accepted.
Just when it seemed the meeting was over—
Jiraiya spoke again.
"One more thing."
The room quieted.
"Tell everyone participating tomorrow—be careful."
His tone turned serious.
"Sand already knows their interception force was exposed. They may have strengthened their defenses in response."
A collective realization.
That was an easy oversight.
If they misjudged enemy strength—
Tomorrow's operation could turn into a disaster.
Jiraiya might act carefree most of the time—
But when it mattered, he was a commander people could trust.
Then his gaze shifted to Taichi.
"And you—focus on the antidotes. Tomorrow's battle scale will increase. So will poison casualties. Without proper antidotes, medical ninjutsu alone won't be enough."
Taichi nodded firmly.
"Yes. I'll do everything I can."
That—
Was exactly what he planned to do next.
After leaving the command tent, Taichi headed straight for the medical camp.
Tomorrow would be a large-scale battle.
Every additional antidote prepared—
Meant fewer deaths.
Rest could wait.
Inside the laboratory, he immediately resumed work.
Test tubes.
Instruments.
Reactions.
Refinement.
Everything operated with precision under his control.
This was his battlefield.
…
And at that very moment—
Far away, in the neutral land of Land of Iron…
Inside a small inn—
Tsunade lounged lazily on her bed, wrapped in a bathrobe.
One leg rested on the edge of the bed.
The other swayed idly in the air.
Her red-painted toes traced slow arcs—
A scene straight out of a painting.
No one would guess—
This woman, who looked barely in her twenties—
Was actually nearing forty.
In one hand, she held Taichi's letter.
In the other—
A sake bottle.
Occasionally taking a sip.
Relaxed.
Carefree.
As she read, her expression shifted subtly.
Taichi's experiences—
Even she found them impressive.
If his descriptions weren't exaggerated—
Then even she might not defeat him easily now.
That realization surprised her.
And—
Impressed her.
Talent alone wasn't enough to reach that level at his age.
It required relentless effort.
Day after day.
The next part of the letter—
Was full of concern.
And shameless flattery.
The kind that would make anyone cringe.
Yet—
Tsunade found herself oddly pleased.
Her leg even started swinging a little faster.
Then—
The real purpose of the letter appeared.
Chiyo's poison.
Taichi had meticulously documented everything—
Composition analysis.
Symptoms.
Treatment attempts.
Every detail that might help.
At the end—
He described the dire situation in camp.
Poisoned patients everywhere.
Two days without sleep.
Urgently requesting her help.
At first—
Tsunade hesitated.
From the data alone, she could tell—
Chiyo had improved significantly.
Her poisons were more advanced than before.
But then—
She reread the tone of the letter.
And snorted.
"Heh."
She waved the letter lazily.
"You think you can trick me with this?"
She knew Taichi well enough.
If the situation were truly that desperate—
The letter wouldn't sound like this.
No nostalgia.
No flattery.
Just urgency.
So clearly—
He was exaggerating.
"Kid… you'll need another hundred years to fool me."
Just then—
The door opened.
Shizune walked in.
"Lady Tsunade, what's so funny? I could hear you laughing from outside."
Her eyes immediately landed on the letter.
No need to check.
It had to be Taichi.
After all—
Since leaving Konoha—
He was the only one who still wrote to them.
At first, Shizune had felt hurt.
Even unfairness.
But over time—
She'd come to accept it.
At least—
Someone still remembered them.
"That letter's from Taichi, isn't it?" she said casually. "No wonder you're smiling. By the way… you lost another million ryo today. We don't even have dinner money now."
Tsunade's face darkened instantly.
Right on cue.
Always hitting where it hurts.
Without another word, she stood and walked into the adjacent room.
"I'm going to deal with that brat's problem," she muttered, slamming the door shut. "Not eating tonight."
Honestly—
It wasn't just irritation.
She simply didn't want another lecture.
Still—
She couldn't deny it.
Only when gambling—
Could she forget everything weighing on her heart.