"Among all A-rank medical ninjutsu, the Mystical Palm Technique really is the most difficult."
Qingshui let out a long breath as he closed the scroll in his hands.
"It actually took me this long."
It had already been three full days since he obtained the Shadow Clone Jutsu.
During these three days, he had been using Shadow Clones every night after work to assist his training in the Mystical Palm Technique.
Only after work.
Never during working hours.
The reason was simple: if a Shadow Clone suddenly dispersed while his main body was in the middle of treating a patient, the backlash of fatigue and memory influx could cause a fatal mistake.
With his current chakra reserves, the Shadow Clones he created could not be maintained for long durations.
And more importantly—
Qingshui had already begun practicing the Mystical Palm Technique before he obtained the Shadow Clone Jutsu.
If he counted from the moment Tsunade handed him the scroll, a total of four days had passed.
Compared to that, the Chakra Scalpel, which was also A-rank, had only taken him two days to master.
This alone showed how difficult the Mystical Palm Technique truly was.
"All right," Qingshui murmured to himself,
"starting tomorrow, I can focus entirely on training Konoha Ryū Yanagi."
"That's an S-rank technique… I really wonder how long it'll take."
The reason he could master A-rank medical ninjutsu so quickly was because the system had boosted his medical ninjutsu talent to its absolute peak.
But Konoha Ryū Yanagi was different.
It was a fusion of kenjutsu and genjutsu.
And his talent in those areas?
At best, average.
---
Morning arrived.
After completing his daily physical training, Qingshui headed toward Konoha Hospital, arriving on time as usual.
Just as he stepped inside, a clear, cheerful voice rang out.
"Big Brother!"
Qingshui turned his head and saw a small figure waving enthusiastically.
It was Kurenai Yūhi.
She immediately let go of her father's hand and jogged toward him.
Seeing her run so eagerly, Qingshui instinctively squatted down and caught her in his arms, afraid she might trip.
"You're not supposed to be in class right now," he said with mock seriousness.
"Did you skip school?"
"No way!"
Kurenai puffed out her cheeks and shook her head vigorously.
"Today's the weekend! There's no school!"
"Besides," she added proudly,
"Dad's being discharged today, so I came to take him home."
Her expression clearly screamed praise me.
Qingshui naturally indulged her.
"You're very responsible."
At that moment, Shinku Yūhi also walked over.
"I'm sorry, Hirakawa-kun," Shinku said apologetically.
"Kurenai must have bothered you."
"Not at all," Qingshui replied with a smile.
"Kurenai is very cute—and very sensible."
The moment she heard that, Kurenai's face lit up like a flower in bloom.
"Oh! Right!"
She suddenly realized something important.
"Big Brother, my name is Kurenai Yūhi. I still don't know your name."
"Hirakawa Qingshui."
"Brother Qingshui!"
The name came out smoothly, without hesitation.
Qingshui chuckled.
"Alright, Kurenai, we should go now."
Shinku gently reminded her.
"Brother Qingshui still has work to do."
Kurenai nodded obediently, climbed out of Qingshui's arms, and took her father's hand again.
"Goodbye, Brother Qingshui!"
Qingshui waved back and then threw himself into his work.
---
It wasn't until after eleven that Tsunade finally arrived at the hospital—once again at a completely irregular time.
"Lady Tsunade," Qingshui said seriously,
"thank you for your guidance over the past few days."
"I've already mastered the Mystical Palm Technique."
For Tsunade, this was genuinely good news.
Her promise to teach Qingshui meant she had to come to Konoha Hospital every single day.
And Tsunade was not someone who broke her word.
Starting today, she was finally free again.
"I've troubled you quite a bit these past few days," Qingshui continued.
"I don't know how to properly thank you."
Tsunade had only agreed to guide him because of Kushina.
Qingshui knew very well that he and Tsunade had no personal relationship.
He couldn't simply accept such a huge favor without expressing gratitude.
The ninja world wasn't just about fighting and killing.
It was also about relationships, favors, and balance.
However, Tsunade lacked nothing.
Even though she was deep in gambling debt, money itself was never truly a problem for her.
With her skills, earning money was effortless.
That was why Qingshui was genuinely stumped.
"If you want to thank me," Tsunade said casually,
"just treat me to a meal."
With that, she turned and walked out of the hospital—heading straight toward the casino.
…That's exactly like you.
Qingshui sighed internally.
This perfectly matched every stereotype he had about Tsunade.
Shaking his head, he returned to work.
---
After his shift ended, Qingshui went to find Tsunade.
What he saw left him speechless.
She was still gambling.
Judging by the situation, she had been gambling all day long.
"I bet big!"
"Small! Small! Small!"
"Hurry, bet on small! Put everything on small!"
The moment Tsunade placed her bet on big, the surrounding gamblers immediately slammed all their money on small.
After a year of development, Tsunade's nickname—
"The Great Sucker"—
had already spread throughout every casino in Konoha.
The result was completely unsurprising.
Tsunade lost.
Again.
By the end of the day, every last bit of money on her was gone.
Qingshui rubbed his temples.
This was truly destructive behavior.
Who could possibly afford to support her?
"Lend me another 100,000 ryō!"
Tsunade slammed the table.
"I can turn this around!"
Seeing that she was completely hooked, Qingshui finally intervened.
He grabbed her arm and forcibly pulled her out of the casino.
Tsunade was just about to explode in anger—
But when she saw it was Qingshui, she pouted and swallowed her frustration.
"Oh… it's already this late?"
She blinked sluggishly.
"I'm hungry anyway."
"Let's stop gambling."
The two soon arrived at Yakiniku Q, a famous and extremely popular barbecue restaurant in Konoha.
It was rumored to be run by the Akimichi Clan, though Qingshui wasn't entirely sure if that was true.
"I want alcohol!"
The moment they entered the private room and sat down, Tsunade slammed her hand on the table and shouted.
If her admirers saw this scene, they would be completely shattered.
Qingshui, however, was not surprised in the slightest.
Among the Three Shinobi Prohibitions, gambling and drinking were both forbidden.
Even adult shinobi were expected to drink sparingly.
After all, being a shinobi was not a profession meant for indulgence.
But the current Tsunade was clearly in a period of self-destruction.
Slacking off feels good for a moment.
Slacking off forever feels even better.
Sighing, Qingshui still complied.
After all—
size equals justice.
"You should drink with me too."
When the alcohol arrived, Tsunade made yet another unreasonable request.
Qingshui immediately refused.
"Lady Tsunade, I still have to work tomorrow."
Tsunade pouted, clearly dissatisfied, but didn't force the issue.
Even drinking alone, she got drunk astonishingly fast.
Soon, she started dragging Qingshui into conversation, asking him random questions.
"You're such a genius…"
She leaned closer, squinting.
"Do you want to become Hokage?"
Qingshui was stunned.
How did the conversation suddenly jump to this topic?
"Answer me!"
"Do you want to be Hokage or not?"
The helpless Qingshui replied cautiously.
"Becoming Hokage is the dream of every Konoha shinobi."
Tsunade slammed the table.
"I hate that answer!"
"What's so great about being Hokage?"
"Only an idiot would want to be Hokage!"
Qingshui immediately shut up.
He wasn't Tsunade.
If he dared to speak ill of the Hokage, he might be dragged away by ANBU the very next day for having an insufficiently firm Will of Fire.
Even worse—
He might be sent to Root.
Brutally indoctrinated.
Turned into Danzō's disposable tool.
And then die on some nameless mission at some unknown time.
That would truly be the most despairing way to die.
Qingshui silently poured Tsunade some water.
And decided—
Next time, he was absolutely not letting her drink this much again.