"I also greatly admire Orochimaru-sama, but I haven't found the opportunity to visit. Sensei Jiraiya is often away from Konoha..."
Everyone appreciates compliments, and Seiryū was very polite.
He knew how to speak respectfully.
Although he was Jiraiya's disciple, he wasn't close to Orochimaru.
Why would he seek him out for no reason?
There was neither reason nor opportunity.
"Hehehe..."
Orochimaru chuckled faintly, but his curiosity remained. Why was Seiryū at Tsunade's house?
What did Tsunade mean by what she said earlier?
What exactly had Seiryū done?
The boy looked very weak at the moment.
So Orochimaru asked, "Your relationship with Tsunade seems quite good. Are you not only Jiraiya's disciple, but also Tsunade's?"
Even if Seiryū was Jiraiya's disciple, that alone shouldn't warrant this kind of attention from Tsunade.
Had she also taken him as a disciple?
He hadn't heard any such news.
Besides, from Tsunade's tone, there was real concern. And this boy was wearing Tsunade's clothes.
That wasn't normal.
But what was strange was that their exchange didn't resemble a Sensei-disciple relationship. It felt more like that of friends, or even equals—
That was what puzzled Orochimaru.
He knew Tsunade's personality very well. If she didn't acknowledge someone, she wouldn't treat them this kindly.
Seiryū said, "I'm hungry," and Tsunade got up to cook.
Even he and Jiraiya wouldn't necessarily receive such treatment from Tsunade.
"..."
Faced with this question, Seiryū carefully chose his words before answering, "I'm not Tsunade-sama's disciple. At most, I'm her student, perhaps? My Medical Ninjutsu was taught by Tsunade-sama."
As for his relationship with Tsunade.
Hmm, how should he describe it?
There was a bit of teacher-student, a bit of friendship, also creditor-debtor, and doctor-patient.
In short, it was complicated.
"Student?"
Orochimaru nodded slightly.
But he still didn't fully believe it.
Could a simple student make Tsunade care this much?
With a smile, Orochimaru continued, "Did you come today to visit Tsunade? That's very thoughtful."
He had come to Tsunade's house because they hadn't seen each other in a while.
Today was New Year's Day.
After all, they had once faced life and death together, so they would occasionally meet.
He just hadn't expected to find Jiraiya's disciple here and to discover something even more interesting.
Even men had their gossiping side.
At the moment, Orochimaru was determined to uncover the story between them.
"No." Seiryū shook his head and spoke honestly, "I came to collect a debt. She owes me money, and the New Year is the best time to collect."
Thinking of this, Seiryū got angry again, gritting his teeth slightly. "But she tried to default again, and even tried to scam me instead. It's truly outrageous! She really is a bad woman!"
Orochimaru paused. "Collecting a debt...?"
His expression became strange.
He felt this kid was a bit unusual, but couldn't put his finger on what it was.
Something was off. He wasn't like a normal person.
It was hard to keep up with his pace.
Just then, Tsunade walked over carrying a bowl of noodles. Hearing Seiryū's words, her expression darkened, and she snorted coldly, clearly annoyed. "When you did that, did you think about the consequences? If I had—"
"In short, I saved your life, so now you owe me five million Ryo!"
She was determined to settle the score and let Seiryū understand how reckless he had been. His actions were far too extreme!
"Impossible!"
Seiryū refused flatly, even more angry than Tsunade. He hated being scammed for money. "If it weren't for me, how could your Hemophobia possibly have been cured?"
"Not only do you refuse to pay a consultation fee, you're trying to extort money from me instead?"
This bad woman had no gratitude at all. He'd risked his life to help cure her Hemophobia, and now she wanted to scam him?
Totally unreasonable!
"Cured her Hemophobia?"
Orochimaru's pupils contracted slightly at Seiryū's words. He glanced at Tsunade from the corner of his eye.
Her Hemophobia had emerged during the Second Great Ninja War, caused by the deaths of those people.
And now it was actually cured?
This conversation revealed some pretty big information.
"Is that how you treat a disease? Did you not read the Medical Handbook I gave you? Which of the Three Great Rules of Medical Ninja did you follow?"
Tsunade clenched her fist, really wanting to knock Seiryū on the head.
But considering his current condition, she held back.
Staring at Seiryū, Tsunade's expression turned serious, and her tone was stern. "A Medical Ninja must prioritize their own life. You used your life as a gamble, betting on whether I could overcome my Hemophobia."
"What if I couldn't?"
"You would have died!!"
"As a Medical Ninja, your life is the most important thing. What you did was far too reckless. You need to value your own life more!"
As a Medical Ninja, valuing one's life was a basic principle. But what did Seiryū do?
It was excessive, beyond reason.
It meant he didn't value his own life at all.
...Upon hearing this, Orochimaru's eyes flickered again. The information became clearer.
Seiryū had used his life as a bet to make Tsunade overcome her Hemophobia?
Combining that with Tsunade's earlier words about "self-harm," Orochimaru could piece together a general idea of what had happened.
This surprised him greatly. His gaze toward Seiryū became even more interested.
This boy had done something shocking—or rather, insane!
If he remembered correctly...
The kid was only eight or nine years old?
To have that kind of courage?
For some reason, he started to take a real interest in Seiryū.
"There is no 'what if'! You overcame your Hemophobia and saved me. That proves my method was correct!!"
Seiryū grinned, a smile very similar to the one he had worn that morning. "I believe in you. You're the Princess of Konoha, Tsunade-hime, the strongest Medical Ninja in the entire shinobi world. How could you fail at something so small?"
Although Seiryū had made sure he wouldn't actually die, he genuinely believed that Tsunade could overcome her Hemophobia.
After all—well—she did overcome it in the original story.
That meant it was curable!
"..."
Tsunade stared blankly at Seiryū.
How much trust did he place in her to go through with something so crazy?
To be honest, she had already given up on overcoming her Hemophobia.
She didn't believe she could overcome it, much less treat it.
Yet Seiryū trusted her so much that he used his life as a wager. For a moment, emotion stirred in her heart.
But then Seiryū's next words shattered that emotional moment.
He said, "More importantly, if you didn't overcome your Hemophobia, you couldn't be my Jōnin Instructor! Don't forget, you still owe me money. If you don't have cash, use something else to pay off the debt! Don't think you can just default!"
Tsunade: "..."
Give me back my emotional moment!
Tsunade glared at Seiryū, gritting her teeth. "Shut up! Sit down! Eat your food!!"
(To be continued.)