"Teacher Mokgetsu." Shizune, upon seeing Mokgetsu, was a bit surprised, then greeted him.
She was also a graduate this year and had participated in Mokgetsu's special training, studying with him for a period. She had a good impression of Mokgetsu.
Mokgetsu nodded with a gentle smile.
"Hmm?" Upon hearing Shizune's voice, Tsunade looked at Mokgetsu in confusion. After a closer look, she realized that it wasn't Namikaze Minato, but someone she didn't recognize.
Because Namikaze Minato often followed Jiraiya, and Mokgetsu also had similar blonde hair and a gentle smile on his face, Tsunade didn't pay attention and assumed that the person behind Jiraiya was Namikaze Minato.
"Shizune, you know him?" Tsunade turned her head to Shizune and asked.
"Yes, he is Habu Mokgetsu. He taught me for a while and is a very capable teacher," Shizune answered softly.
"Isn't that a teacher from the Ninja Academy?" Tsunade thought for a moment and said.
Considering Shizune's instructor was her, Mokgetsu could only be a teacher at the Ninja Academy.
Shizune nodded.
"Don't underestimate Mokgetsu. Although he's a teacher at the Ninja Academy, his strength is not weak. Not only did he defeat Explosion Release Gari, but he also helped me fend off a Jinchuriki," Jiraiya listed Mokgetsu's most notable achievements openly.
"I never said Ninja Academy teachers were weak, so why are you here today?" Tsunade asked, patting her mouth with her hand as if she hadn't slept enough.
She couldn't even remember when she fell asleep yesterday, only that she kept drinking and eating.
"Mokgetsu is currently studying medical ninjutsu and is facing some difficulties with it, so we wanted to seek your guidance," Jiraiya explained their purpose.
Although Mokgetsu mentioned yesterday that he could handle the communication himself, Jiraiya thought it would be better for him to speak, given their long-standing friendship.
"Seek guidance on medical ninjutsu? You can leave now. I don't have the time or interest to teach others medical ninjutsu," Tsunade flatly refused.
If it were about healing, Tsunade might lend a hand, but teaching others was out of the question. Currently, aside from Shizune, she had no interest in teaching anyone else.
Jiraiya looked slightly embarrassed. Tsunade's refusal was anticipated, but he hadn't expected it to be so prompt and direct.
"Lady Tsunade, I won't waste much of your time, and I won't let you teach for free. I can offer compensation," Mokgetsu replied with a smile, his expression unchanged.
The mention of compensation piqued Tsunade's interest a little. After all, her carefree lifestyle was quite expensive, and sometimes she could lose millions of Ryo in a single night if her gambling went slightly south.
"How much could you give me? I'm one of the Sannin and the strongest medical ninja in the Ninja World," Tsunade emphasized her status.
It just so happened that she had nearly exhausted her funds recently, so she could replenish them a bit from Mokgetsu.
Seeing that talk of compensation had made Tsunade more agreeable, Jiraiya displayed a helpless smile.
"How about 100,000 Ryo per hour?" Mokgetsu proposed a very high price.
Normally, the process would involve Mokgetsu starting with a low price, followed by Tsunade bargaining up, and then Mokgetsu negotiating it down a bit. After all, at 100,000 Ryo an hour, Mokgetsu's small treasury wouldn't last an entire day.
But Mokgetsu had already thought of other ways. Ideally, only a little money would need to be spent initially.
"100,000 Ryo an hour, huh." Tsunade was a little tempted upon hearing that.
100,000 Ryo wasn't insignificant, as even the reward for an ordinary B-Class mission was around that amount, and you couldn't keep it all for yourself.
"In that case, I'll only need to flex my hours for a few hours a day, save up for a few days, and I'll be able to enjoy gambling again," Tsunade thought, deciding to take on the task.
"Seeing as Shizune says you're a capable teacher, I'll reluctantly agree," Tsunade finally responded.
"Thank you, Lady Tsunade," Mokgetsu expressed his gratitude with a gentle smile.
Everything is hard at the start. Once Tsunade was willing to teach initially, the rest would be much easier.
"Are you planning to start now? If so, I'll begin timing. And if we start, even if we don't hit a full hour, you'll still need to pay the 100,000 Ryo," Tsunade reminded.
Jiraiya interrupted Mokgetsu with a look, pulling him to one side.
"Haha, sorry for this, Mokgetsu. Tsunade isn't usually like this. She must have been losing a lot lately," Jiraiya explained, attempting to justify Tsunade's response.
Tsunade's temper was indeed not great, but situations like this were relatively rare.
"It's alright. After all, Lady Tsunade isn't my teacher, so paying her is quite reasonable," Mokgetsu said with a smile.
Then, Jiraiya rummaged through his clothing, pulling out 600,000 Ryo, and handed it to Mokgetsu, saying:
"I didn't bring much money. There's about 600,000 Ryo here. Take it for now."
Since he had brought Mokgetsu here, and things had turned out this way, he felt a bit guilty. Although the money was given to Mokgetsu, it was essentially for Tsunade.
If Tsunade had directly borrowed money from Jiraiya, even a few million, he wouldn't have batted an eye.
"Thank you for your goodwill, Lord Jiraiya, but this is my matter and shouldn't be your responsibility," Mokgetsu politely declined Jiraiya's kindness.
Seeing Mokgetsu's firm gaze, Jiraiya patted Mokgetsu's shoulder and said no more, walking back to Tsunade with him.
"Tsunade, it's been a long time since we've eaten together. Want to have a drink tonight? I'll invite Orochimaru too," Jiraiya suggested with a smile.
Since the Second Ninja War, the three of them had rarely gathered together. Jiraiya traveled the Ninja World, Tsunade left legendary losses, and Orochimaru buried himself in researching various ninjutsu and kinjutsu.
"Drinking? No problem," Tsunade agreed readily.
She had limited time for teaching others, but plenty for drinking.
Having invited Tsunade for drinks, Jiraiya left, needing to find Orochimaru, who was usually hard to track down, not likely at home.
"So, how many hours do you plan to learn today?" Tsunade looked at Mokgetsu with interest. By now, Mokgetsu in her eyes had transformed into a figurative source of money.
"Let's start with six hours," Mokgetsu thought for a while and responded.
It was 12:30 in the afternoon, and six hours later would be just in time for dinner.
After speaking, Mokgetsu retrieved his wallet and handed over 600,000 Ryo in bills to Tsunade.
Tsunade gave a cursory glance, felt satisfied with it, and nodded contentedly. An hourly rate of 100,000 Ryo was a very decent figure.
"You're quite good, I have faith in you. Ask any questions you might have," Tsunade instructed, tossing the money to Shizune for safekeeping and looking at Mokgetsu.
Without being asked to prepay, Mokgetsu voluntarily paid, earning Tsunade's approval a little more.