With the Daibutsu Fruit integrated into his arsenal, Ragnar felt a new, profound solidity within himself. His strength had taken another qualitative leap.
He still had a substantial pool of EXP. He could upgrade his Hakis, particularly Conqueror's, or the Navy Six techniques. But wisdom cautioned him. The Daibutsu Fruit's power was fresh, its passive enhancents still settling into the marrow of his being. He needed ti to temper this new strength, to fuse it seamlessly with his existing abilities. True power wasn't just about accumulation; it was about perfect, instinctive control.
With a final, centering breath, he left the secluded training ground and made his way back to the hidden cave.
In the cave, Tsunade and Uchiha Mikoto were both fully restored, their chakra reserves brimming. Tsunade, in particular, moved with a new, lethal fluidity after integrating the principles of 'Strange Power: Shave' into her movent.
"Where did you run off to?" Tsunade asked as he entered. Mikoto stood nearby. Over the past days, the two won had ford a fast bond. Mikoto, thirsty for knowledge, had asked Tsunade countless questions about advanced ninjutsu and chakra theory, and Tsunade, perhaps seeing a reflection of her younger, studious self, had answered with uncharacteristic patience. Their connection was rooted in shared lineage—both were, in a way, academic descendants of the Second Hokage's students.
"Training," Ragnar replied simply. There was no need for deception.
"You train too hard, little Ragnar," Tsunade chided, though her tone was fond. "At your age, you should be making friends. Chasing girls! You have your big sister to protect you now. Who would dare bully you? Don't push yourself into an early grave."
"If I don't train, I feel wrong. Restless," Ragnar stated, his voice flat.
Tsunade nearly choked. Listen to him! Is that even human? She could almost hear the lant of every other so-called 'genius' in Konoha.
"Hehe." Uchiha Mikoto couldn't suppress a soft laugh. The more ti she spent around him, the more she realized Ragnar wasn't just cold; there was a dry, almost absurd humor to his bluntness.
Tsunade took a mont to compose herself, then reached into her robe. She pulled out a small, plain white bottle, uncorked it, and shook out two nondescript pills. "Here. While we were recovering, I wasn't completely idle. Scoured the area for herbs. Made an antidote for the Sanshouuo poison. Take them. Just in case."
"An antidote to Hanzo's poison? Lady Tsunade, you're amazing!" Mikoto breathed, genuinely impressed.
"The Sanshouuo's venom is supposed to be incurable," Ragnar remarked, examining the pills. "You just 'found so herbs'?"
Tsunade's face lit up with pride. "Who do you think I am? The granddaughter of the God of Shinobi! The Senju Princess! The grandniece of the Second! The student of the Third! A re—"
"Get to the point," Ragnar interrupted, deadpan.
"Rude!" Tsunade huffed, but continued. "There's no such thing as an incurable poison. Everything in nature has a counter. The five elents cycle, overcoming each other. Poison is no different. Think about it. Whose summon is the Sanshouuo? Hanzo's. The Land of Rain is dark, damp—perfect for the salamander. So, what grows in the places most suited to the Sanshouuo? The things that counteract its venom."
She produced a sprig of a plant. It had three delicate, jade-green leaves on a slender, sapphire-blue stem. "I don't know its na. Let's call it… Blue Silver Grass. Pharmacological tests show its properties are diatrically opposed to the Sanshouuo's toxin. Like water and fire. Understand now?" She finished with a triumphant flourish.
"Sharp," Ragnar conceded, a note of genuine respect in his voice. The woman destined to be Hokage wasn't just a brute. Her intellect was formidable. Though 'Blue Silver Grass' is a ridiculously theatrical na.
Tsunade pouted at his one-word praise. "Is that all you've got? 'Sharp'?"
Uchiha Mikoto, however, gazed at Tsunade with unabashed hero-worship.
"Now that we're recovered," Ragnar said, steering the conversation back to practicality, "we should make for the Konoha camp."
"Right! Oh no—Jiraiya!" Tsunade's eyes went wide with sudden horror. "He was poisoned! I completely forgot about him with all this! I hope the idiot's still holding on…" She facepald.
Ragnar offered a mont of silent sympathy for the future super-pervert. Don't die yet, Jiraiya. The world needs your… literature.
The trio set out imdiately, moving with purpose through the war-torn landscape. The Second Shinobi World War was escalating, skirmishes becoming more frequent and ferocious.
Even trying to avoid conflict, they encountered scattered patrols of Suna and Iwa ninja. They showed no rcy. Tsunade, empowered by her new shunshin variant, was a blur of devastating force. Ragnar was a one-man annihilation event. Enemy squads that crossed their path were erased with brutal efficiency.
They were about two-thirds of the way to the estimated Konoha forward position when they ran into sothing more substantial.
An elite Sunagakure force, moving with clear intent. Over twenty strong, chakra signatures sharp and disciplined. Two jonin, and the leader… her presence was dense, experienced, and cold.
"More than twenty. Two jonin. The leader is… stronger," Tsunade assessed, her voice low.
Ragnar had already sensed them. The older woman at the front, in her white robes and black hood, was familiar from intelligence briefings.
"Should we evade, Lady Tsunade?" Mikoto asked, her Tengu mask now firmly in place. Ragnar's Rakshasa mask was already on.
"Too late. They've made us," Tsunade said grimly. "It's Chiyo. Suna's master puppeteer and poison mistress. A veteran. Don't underestimate her."
The Sand-nin formation closed the distance deliberately. From the front, Chiyo's voice, dry and laced with malice, cut through the damp air.
"Well, well. If it isn't Princess Tsunade, the Hokage's prized student. We heard you might have t your end at Iwa's hands. How… disappointing."
(End of Chapter)
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