I rubbed my wrists a little. They'd tied me way too tight. Still, in the end, Tsunade trusted that I wasn't some spy from another village or working for Orochimaru. On the other hand… I still hadn't told them where the Sanbi was.
"Hey, were you thinking I was a spy working for another village?"
Tsunade smirked. "Not really. I just found it irritating that you're hiding your strength."
Hmm… woman.
"Ken, are you still considering that plan?"
"Yeah. Why? Are you questioning my will of fire?"
Tsunade rolled her eyes and let out a long sigh before reaching into her desk drawer. "Take this." She tossed something blue at me. I caught it midair and raised a brow.
"From now on, you're a Konoha genin."
I let out a short chuckle. "Isn't this a little too late?"
"Not really. Right now, you've got the chakra of an Elite Jounin you've been hiding, but your fighting style screams excited brat who just learned his first jutsu. For someone who helped Konoha during the Orochimaru crisis and helped settle peace between Konoha and Suna… that's a little bit embarrassing."
The corner of her lips lifted into a slight, teasing smirk. Seeing the shift in my face, Tsunade smirked even more.
"But that's not necessarily a bad thing. You've got potential. That's why I'm going to teach you myself."
"…Huh?"
She narrowed her eyes. "Huh, you say? Weren't you the one who wanted to become the Sanbi's Jinchūriki? Of course I'm going to keep a close eye on you. I need to see if you're actually capable."
I smacked my palm lightly against my forehead. "Got it. So, what are you going to teach me?"
"Medical ninjutsu. You need finer chakra control, and this'll help train that. Plus, it's useful if you end up being talented at it."
So that's what she meant. Makes sense. I nodded slowly, already agreeing in my head—I really did need to work on my chakra control.
Tsunade leaned back in her chair, arms folding. "Meanwhile, I've got to prepare the sealing jutsu. We don't have anyone in the village who can perform it right now, but I'm trying to call Jiraiya back. Hopefully, he returns soon. Until then, you'll be learning medical jutsu from me."
"For real?! Oh, that's awesome! That makes me the Hokage's student, right?"
"You could say that." She squinted at me. "But don't think that means you get special treatment—ah-ha! I saw that! You clicked your tongue just now. You little! You were definitely about to ask for something, weren't you?!"
Tsunade was already rolling up her sleeve, looking like she'd leap over the desk and smash my skull in.
"Well, actually, yeah. Do you mind if I study sealing jutsu scrolls too?"
"Oh... that's it?" She slowly lowered her arm, clearing her throat. "Kuhum! That can be arranged. Go to the Konoha Library and ask the librarian for the basics on sealing techniques. Wait here—I'll give you a letter. Normally, you'd need to be at least a Chuunin."
So much for no special privileges, huh? If I pointed that out, she might punch me through a wall, so… better not.
After that, I made a shadow clone to study at the library while I headed back to Ichiraku.
---
It's been almost three months since then.
Ayame's already gone to the Land of Lightning to study, so now I'm on my own. I made three shadow clones to prep the ramen shop. One of them transformed into Ayame to keep up appearances.
Meanwhile, the original me has been working out at dawn. After circling the village, I head to the Third Training Ground.
I've been training medical ninjutsu under Tsunade. Over the past three months, I had 100 clones working on medical ninjutsu, 60 on Rasengan variations, and the last 40 learning sealing jutsu from scratch. The result? My chakra control has now reached Jounin level.
During that time, the ANBU haven't been watching me so closely anymore. Instead, they just guard me from a distance—more like bodyguards now. That means Tsunade still doesn't know I've already mastered the Rasengan.
Learning sealing jutsu also helped me refine my chakra control even more. On top of that, I've started wearing weights on my wrists and ankles to improve my taijutsu and physical strength.
[Status]
Name: Ichiraku Ken
Age: 18
Race: Human
Chakra Level: 130 (Elite Jounin)
Chakra Control: 116 (Jounin)
Affinity: [Fire], [Wind]
Bloodline Limit: [30% Uzumaki], [10% Inuzuka], [10% Hoshigaki]
Talent:
[Master Cooking], [Restaurant Management], [Advanced Business], [Flirting], [Master Butcher Skill],[Durability], [Intermediate Taijutsu], [Advanced Japanese Calligraphy], [Intermediate Medical Skill]
Jutsu:
[Rasengan], [Giant Rasengan], [Compressed Rasengan], [Multi Shadow Clone], [Fire Style: Fireball],[Beginner Uchiha Style Shurikenjutsu], [Advanced Sealing Art], [Mystical Palm], [Chakra Enhanced Strength]
Achievement Points: 167,120
I think Uzumaki bloodline helped me learn sealing techniques faster. Makes me wonder why Naruto didn't tap into that potential. Still, even with this edge is nowhere near the level of pureblood Uzumaki.
Anyway, I've been farming Achievement Points.
It's really hard to get a special guest like Kakashi, dude trusts his own cooking more than anyone else's. As for Hinata, Sakura, and Ino, they've been in Sunagakure for the Chuunin Exams for the past two months. Shizune still stops by twice a week to pick up lunch for Tsunade, but most of my customers are D-rank and C-rank. I occasionally get a B-rank when Chouji shows up.
"I knew it…" I smirked as I scrolled through the Shop.
Yup. I found a loophole in the system's Shop pricing!
When I did a Special Order, I got Master Cooking at half price because I already had Advanced Cooking. The same thing happened when I had Advanced Sealing Technique! That's why I asked Tsunade if I could read up on the Eight Trigrams Sealing beforehand, and yup—the price dropped.
Even the scroll about the Flying Thunder God helped me understand sealing on a deeper level. I realized I needed to seal small amounts of chakra into formulas first, which also brought the price down as my understanding improved.
[Item]
Name: Flying Thunder God
Rank: SS
Space-time ninjutsu that allows the user to teleport to marked locations.
Price: 150,000 AP
[Item]
Name: Eight Trigrams Sealing
Rank: S
An advanced version of the Four Symbols Seal created by the Uzumaki Clan. Designed to merge a Tailed Beast with its host and allow mastery over its chakra.
Price: 70,000 AP
[Achievement Points:157,120]
Damn it! Which one should I get first?!
If only I had twice the points I do now... On the other hand, since I already have 30% Uzumaki bloodline, the cost to become half-Uzumaki is cheaper too. But that doesn't include their sealing techniques.
Alright, think rationally. My goal is the Sanbi's chakra, so becoming half-Uzumaki isn't the priority... yet. Second, I can always get the Flying Thunder God later, and the price will drop further if I master sealing techniques. Plus, I'm not even a sensory-type yet, so the Eight Trigrams Sealing is a must.
Ding!
Eight Trigrams Sealing has been added to the Status.
Ding!
Advanced Sealing Art has evolved into Master Sealing Art.
Now it shows up under my status as a sealing technique, and Advanced has upgraded to Master Sealing Technique.
I think I'm finally ready to become a perfect Jinchūriki.
"Right… a hundred clones should be enough for today."
After performing the hand sign, a wave of smoke filled the area as clones appeared all around me. They knew exactly what to do. Each grabbed a leaf and started training wind chakra nature.
Leaving the clones to their work, I headed back to Ichiraku.
---
"Wait, we're canceling the plan?"
I looked at Tsunade, who had her hands clasped together, dead serious. It was already evening. I was just about to close the shop—everything on the menu was sold out. And then she showed up at Ichiraku. With nothing left to serve, I at least whipped up some fried rice and brought out a bottle of premium sake for her.
"I'm afraid so," she said, taking a shot of the sake. "Jiraiya refused to cooperate. That means we can't proceed. No one else in the village can perform the sealing jutsu except him."
"I see…"
Tsunade's eyes flicked back at me. "That's it? I expected more of a reaction. You're just accepting it?"
I chuckled. "What, you expecting me to throw a tantrum like a kid who didn't get the toy he wanted?"
"The toy, huh…" Tsunade laughed, "So now we're comparing a Tailed Beast to a toy."
She poured another drink. "But... I agree. We really don't need another Jinchūriki. I can't risk losing you if Akatsuki comes after you. And we don't even know if you could tame the beast."
"Oh? Sounds like you're getting a little fond of me."
She raised a brow, then gave me a slow nod. "Yeah. I am. I wouldn't agree to turning you into a human sacrifice—not in a million years. Let Naruto be the last."
"And a talented student?"
"That too." She leaned back, already a little tipsy. "Didn't expect you to learn both medical ninjutsu and sealing arts this fast. Maybe I'm getting rusty. I've got a feeling I'm gonna lose our bet again."
I chuckled. "If you win, that usually means something bad happens."
"Oh, shut up, kid. Just master that jutsu already so you can take this crappy Hokage job off my hands."
"Hell no. I'm dumping that on Kakashi."
Tsunade stood up, swaying a bit. "That was delicious, Ken." She turned to leave—and as if she suddenly remembered something, she raised a hand. "Oh, and uh… put it on my tab."
The audacity. She walked out of my ramen shop with the sake bottle in hand like she owned the place.
Ding!
(SS) Senju Tsunade is satisfied with the service.
You received 5,000 AP and a Random Gift.
I immediately tapped on the random gift notification.
Ding!
You have received Mind's Eye of Kagura.
Ding!
The Mind's Eye of Kagura has been added to your Status.
Holy shit. I was expecting to get milk again—but finally, something good!
With this, I can not only sense chakra, but practically render my entire surroundings in my mind. If I focus on a specific target, I can perceive its chakra in crazy detail—location, movement, even unique characteristics. I could also sense chakra fluctuations when someone's molding it, when they're lying, or if anyone—including myself—is caught in genjutsu.
This… is too good.
---
I tucked the map into the inventory—the one marking the lake where Isobu now resides. I'd already prepared everything I needed, including the sealing jutsu. What was left… was just courage.
Tsunade might have canceled our plan, but that didn't mean I was backing down.
After making a shadow clone, I left him behind to go about my usual day. As for the ANBU… they've shifted focus to guarding my family now, instead of trailing me everywhere.
Wearing a black robe, I quietly slipped out of Konoha then heading for the Land of Waves.