Yuuhi Shinku's squad traveled in a very different style than most ninja.
To highlight ninja traits, Kishimoto designed the distinctive "ninja run." It is instantly recognizable. Strike that pose at a convention and everyone knows you are copying Naruto's ninja run.
But is that running posture actually scientific?
It definitely clashes with human biomechanics and aerodynamics. Whether it fits the shinobi world's science, Ren could not say.
He did know one thing. It is not stylish.
So Ren never uses the ninja run. He uses lightfoot. Always.
To build a lightfoot set that was both stylish and practical, Ren poured in time and craft. Drawing mainly from loadouts he named Moonstep Grace, Twin-Feather Wings, Golden Wild Goose, Cloud Ladder Ascent, and the shinobi world's Body Flicker, and referencing dozens more, he tailored a lightfoot method to himself.
Golden Wild Goose and Cloud Ladder Ascent handle height, letting Ren leap skyward by a hundred meters in an easy bound. Body Flicker handles speed. For short-range burst, Body Flicker crushes traditional lightfoot.
Twin-Feather Wings handles maneuvering while airborne, letting Ren change direction fluidly up to thirteen times even in midair.
Moonstep Grace handles aura, concealment, and style. The gentleman-thief's lightfoot is all about presence.
Ren kept the name Moonstep Grace. It is currently at version 6.3.
Once Ren drafted the first version, some ninja friends realized even their usual travel posture had room to improve.
No surprise, many friends came to learn from Ren's experience. He also taught lightfoot pieces suited to each friend for reference. Those "friends" included his teammate and teacher, Yuuhi Shinku.
Kurenai's set was the most special. Ren taught her his Moonstep Grace. Pure chakra drive means it might not outrun a normal travel posture by much, but it floats high and low, light as a fairy.
Most important, girls want to be the special one in your heart. Ren made Kurenai that special one.
At dusk, the four-person team reached Tanzaku Quarters.
Tanzaku is a large town. The busy streets go beyond one. Gambling houses, food stalls, hot spring inns, and a full-on entertainment district are everywhere.
Even at sunset, even in the lingering chill before spring, even with the shinobi world roiling, the streets teemed with tourists and pretty women in tiny outfits calling customers in.
"Come play, handsome… hehe…"
"Sir, spend above a certain amount at our shop and you get a mystery gift…"
The riot of color dazed the eye. Hot-blooded Asuma got dazed right away, cheeks flaming.
The Leaf is already lavish. Tanzaku may not beat it in wealth, but it wins in looseness. The air carries a cocktail of blush, perfume, and booze.
That smell is pure excess.
"Focus."
Shinku patted Asuma and warned seriously. "Lust is a young man's first trial. Fail this, and no talent can help you."
"I am not looking at them."
Flustered, Asuma stammered, "I was thinking, the old man only said Lady Tsunade is in Tanzaku. With this many people and shops, how long will it take to find her?"
Sigh.
Ren slipped Asuma a small card.
Asuma's eyes went wide.
It was a VIP card for a local adult shop, printed with a barely dressed beauty, its address, and tempting items like bubble baths and outcall sessions.
This…?
Ren sighed lightly. "I have a friend."
When most people say that, they are inventing a friend. Ren truly had one who ran an adult shop in Tanzaku.
That friend once asked Ren to invite the famous "talent scout" Jiraiya to do short-term coaching for the shop's girls.
For playing middleman once, Ren got two unbreakable friendships and a handful of thirty percent-off VIP cards.
"Your connections are unreal."
Asuma tucked the card away, grinning. He now suspected Ren could fall into a volcano and still bump into a friend.
"What friend?" Kurenai asked, not noticing the two men's small exchange.
"A normal friend."
"Friends are friends. How is a friend normal?" The girl pushed for details.
"If there are special friends, there are normal ones."
"Who is your special friend?"
"You."
Kurenai went pink and turned away, happy and KO'd.
Shinku glanced at his instantly-smitten daughter, shook his head, then steered back to the point. "Can your friend help us find Lady Tsunade?"
"Anyone in Tanzaku can."
Ren waved down a passing woman. "Do you know where the big cash cow is right now?"
The woman gave Ren a once-over, lit up, and laughed. "Big cash cow? She is at the end of the second street in that gambling house. But you picked a bad time.
That big milk cow has been losing for days. No juice left. I hear she owes the inn a lot, cannot pay her room, cannot afford food, hair a mess. She will probably slink out of Tanzaku tomorrow with a mountain of debt."
Women talking about another woman, especially a pretty one's flaws and rock-bottom state, always find extra energy.
She rattled on, cursing Tsunade and painting her misery in the worst terms.
Ren listened patiently, then politely declined the woman's "let's have a round" invite.
Asuma and Kurenai stared, stunned.
"No way."
"Lady Tsunade is like that?"
"Isn't she the greatest medical ninja in the shinobi world? How could she be this wreck?"
In the Leaf's internal messaging, Tsunade is always dashing, compassionate, and strong. She built the medical-ninja system. Alongside Jiraiya and Orochimaru, she fought the demi-god to a draw.
One of the most beautiful and powerful kunoichi in the shinobi world. Nothing but merits. Kurenai and Asuma grew up on Tsunade stories.
To them, Tsunade is a hero out of legend.
But in this woman's telling? A red-eyed gambling addict.
Like a long-time fan finding their idol suddenly ditching tradition and shilling e-cigarettes.
The two young ones felt the same break - the idol falling from the pedestal.
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