With all three of the Sannin present, it was no longer convenient for Kizaru to continue training.
After exchanging a few words with Tsunade, he said his goodbyes and left the training ground.
Only after watching him disappear into the distance did Tsunade withdraw her gaze and walk toward where Jiraiya was lying.
When she reached him, she crouched down beside him, just as Orochimaru had before.
Thanks to Orochimaru's initial treatment, Jiraiya's injuries had eased a little, and his breathing had stabilized.
"You idiot..." Tsunade started to say, but when she saw how miserable he looked, the rest of the words died in her throat.
In the end, she said nothing and simply took over the treatment.
After stabilizing his condition further, Tsunade finally stopped and rose to her feet.
"That should do it. Take him to the hospital and let him rest for a few days," she said, then shot Orochimaru a glance, signaling him to help Jiraiya up.
Orochimaru understood immediately. He bent down and pulled Jiraiya up from the ground.
"Hyah—!" The sudden movement sent pain shooting through Jiraiya's body, and he sucked in a deep breath. "Hey, hey, hey! I'm injured here, you know. Go easy on me."
Orochimaru said nothing. He merely slowed his movements and supported Jiraiya more carefully across his shoulders.
"Shut up. You've got some nerve whining after getting beaten into this state by a six-year-old brat," Tsunade said with open disgust.
"I..." Jiraiya instinctively wanted to argue back, but the words caught in his throat. What she said was the truth, and there was no getting around it.
In the end, he could only hang his head and grumble under his breath, "What kind of six-year-old even looks like that...?"
Tsunade and Orochimaru both heard him.
They exchanged a glance, and before long, the corners of their mouths lifted. The more they looked at each other, the harder it became to hold back their laughter.
"You two are actually laughing? That's way too much!" Jiraiya shouted the moment he noticed.
"Enough. We're leaving," Tsunade snapped, cutting off his complaints.
With that, she stepped over to Jiraiya's other side. Together, she and Orochimaru supported him and headed for the hospital.
Jiraiya's injuries weren't critical, but they weren't light either. Neither Tsunade nor Orochimaru dared move too quickly while helping him along, so by the time they finally reached the hospital, nearly half an hour had passed.
Once inside, Tsunade quickly arranged a room for him and called over a doctor with practiced ease.
"Lie there and recover. We're going," Tsunade said, standing beside the bed with her hands on her hips.
"Yeah, yeah, I got it..." Jiraiya replied bitterly, his upper body wrapped in bandages as he lay flat on the hospital bed.
Orochimaru remained silent. He only gave Jiraiya a brief glance before turning and following Tsunade out of the room.
After leaving the ward and stepping out of the hospital, the two walked side by side in silence.
As she walked, Tsunade kept thinking about how she should bring it up—how to get Orochimaru to give up Kizaru and let her take him as her disciple instead.
But before she could speak, Orochimaru broke the silence first.
"At the training ground just now, I heard your conversation with Kizaru," he said calmly. "You want to take him as your student."
Tsunade halted and turned to look at him.
A trace of embarrassment flickered across her face, but with her bold and straightforward personality, she didn't bother hiding it.
"Yeah," she admitted openly. "I really like that brat. And with his physical talent, he's perfect for my style."
Orochimaru fell silent.
After watching the spar between Jiraiya and Kizaru from start to finish, he had come away deeply impressed by the boy.
Kizaru was a true genius.
That was Orochimaru's honest evaluation.
After seeing the strength and talent Kizaru had displayed at only six years old, Orochimaru had felt pressure—real pressure—but also a trace of excitement.
After all, who wouldn't want to teach a prodigy like that?
He was willing to do it.
More than that, he was looking forward to it.
But after overhearing the exchange between Tsunade and Kizaru at the training ground, he had hesitated.
On one side was a close friend he had known for years.
On the other was a student he greatly wanted for himself.
After wrestling with it for a while, Orochimaru finally made up his mind.
"I'll speak to Sarutobi-sensei," he said.
"Orochimaru, thanks!" Tsunade laughed and reached out to clap him on the shoulder. "Then I won't hold back. I'll go settle this with the old man right now."
A faint smile touched Orochimaru's lips.
"You really are impatient, Tsunade."
"When you run into a brat that outstanding, of course I'm not letting him go."
As she said that, Tsunade grabbed Orochimaru by the arm and started dragging him toward the Hokage Building.
Inside the Hokage Building, in the Hokage's office, Sarutobi Hiruzen had just finished dealing with the latest batch of paperwork.
Now, to relax his tired body and mind, he was admiring the village's "beautiful scenery" through his crystal ball.
Oh my... this bathhouse really does have excellent quality.
The view was captivating, and Hiruzen was studying it with great interest.
Bang!
Just as he was completely focused on the crystal ball, the office door was flung open with a violent shove.
Without even looking up, Hiruzen already knew who it was.
With the speed of long practice, he snatched up the documents on the desk and covered the crystal ball before finally raising his head toward the doorway.
As expected, it was Tsunade.
There was no one else in Konoha who would barge into the Hokage's office this rudely.
Dragging Orochimaru along with her, Tsunade strode into the room. Her eyes swept over the slightly messy pile of papers on the desk, and she could immediately guess what her teacher had been doing moments ago.
Normally, she would have called him out on the spot.
But today, she had come to ask for something.
So Tsunade ignored the suspicious mess, walked straight up to the desk with Orochimaru, pulled out a chair like she owned the place, and sat down.
"Orochimaru, Tsunade. What brings the two of you here?" Hiruzen asked with a gentle smile.
"Old man, I want Kizaru. From now on, he's my disciple," Tsunade declared, planting one hand on the desk and leaning forward as she stared directly at Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Hearing that, Hiruzen frowned in surprise. He turned to Orochimaru, clearly wanting an explanation.
"Orochimaru and I already talked it through," Tsunade added the moment she noticed his gaze. "He agreed to hand him over."
Hiruzen inhaled slowly, then leaned back in his chair. Lifting the teacup from his desk, he studied his two disciples in silence for a moment before his eyes settled on Tsunade.
"Don't rush me," he said with a smile. "At least tell me why."
"Jiraiya sparred with that brat and ended up in the hospital," Tsunade said bluntly. "That brat's strong. I like him."
"Ahem—!"
Hiruzen, who had just taken a sip of tea, nearly choked on the spot.
His usually steady hand jerked, and he broke into a coughing fit.
He quickly set the cup down and patted at the tea that had splashed onto his robes, then looked toward Orochimaru with disbelief written all over his face.
He knew Jiraiya better than anyone.
While Jiraiya might not have been the kind of once-in-a-generation genius Tsunade and Orochimaru were, he was still immensely gifted.
After years of training and abusing himself through battle, he had already begun to take the shape of a true powerhouse. By any reasonable standard, Jiraiya could already be counted among shinobi at the Kage level—or at the very least, not far below it.
And yet that same Jiraiya had been beaten by a six-year-old child and even sent to the hospital?
No matter how Hiruzen looked at it, it was difficult for him to believe such a fairy tail.
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