"You've been at the Front Line for so long, and this is how you live normally?" Haseo asked as he followed Jiraiya to the location where the three of them operated at the frontline. Upon seeing Tsunade and Orochimaru sunbathing at the Training Field, he voiced his question.
At first glance, Haseo instantly understood their eagerness to get onto the battlefield—it wasn't simply because they were young and enthusiastic, but largely due to how idle they had become… Just look at how bored these kids were; it was like watching slackers wasting time.
Bringing them to the Front Line yet not allowing them to participate in actual combat? That's practically bullying.
"Train, rest, rest, train. What else can we do? The Third is too busy—he doesn't have time to deal with us," Tsunade said, rolling her eyes slightly when she saw who had arrived. She remained seated atop a round wooden stump.
She could understand how busy The Third Hokage must be, but that didn't change the fact that things were incredibly boring.
Haseo glanced at Tsunade. He thought to himself, "How disrespectful of this kid—how can she call The Third a baldy? At most, he's just a monkey."
Though it was a bit impulsive and lacking in upbringing… her jab was spot-on.
Given the circumstances, Haseo could only silently give Tsunade a thumbs-up in his heart… If it weren't for The Third being a baldy, he wouldn't have needed to come here and hang out with these three troublesome teenagers either.
Orochimaru, as usual, sat quietly in a corner by himself reading a thick book whose contents nobody knew… Truthfully, even Haseo probably couldn't grasp what Orochimaru was reading. So to avoid embarrassment and maintain his own authority, Haseo decided not to interfere.
"Anyway, it's good that you returned alive from the battlefield. Otherwise, someone would have been really upset… You were completely silent for a whole month—I even thought you might really be dead." Tsunade continued.
As she spoke, she secretly stole a glance at Haseo. She thought to herself, "I haven't seen him in a while, but why does he seem about twenty percent more handsome now?"
If Haseo ever caught wind of her thinking that, he'd know exactly what caused the change in perception—he still had the same face with the same features. It was merely the overall aura and energy within him that had changed.
"Cough, thanks for your concern," Haseo replied.
Like all children, whether it was Tsunade or Jiraiya, they both liked playing grown-ups as much as they could. Because of this, sometimes they looked slightly ridiculous—but precisely because of that ridiculousness, there were moments when they appeared adorable.
Orochimaru was different—he truly acted like an adult. Considering his age though… thinking about it carefully was actually quite creepy. This guy just gave off an unsettling vibe.
"I heard you want to participate in combat missions?"
When Haseo asked this, even Orochimaru—who had been focused on reading—put down his book. Rarely did he lift his gaze toward Haseo like this.
"Of course. After all, we are ninjas too. Now the battle outside is so intense, yet the three of us have no choice but to stay cooped up in this Camp. Even worse, we're disciples of the Hokage… Doesn't that feel somewhat unacceptable?" Tsunade explained. From her words alone, you could actually tell she carried a sense of duty.
"You're just genin," Haseo emphasized.
"Aren't you also a genin?"
The speaker was Orochimaru.
"I..."
That's just how some people are—one sentence and the whole room goes dead.
"You need to understand that no matter what mission it is, any ninja on the battlefield faces life-or-death danger... People really do die. Have you thought this through?" Haseo nearly suffocated from holding his breath too long. He took a few deep breaths, then forced himself to speak calmly again.
The three exchanged glances, nodded at each other, and finally Jiraiya spoke up, "We understand all this already, and we've fully prepared ourselves mentally."
Seeing that they indeed had some resolve was a good thing—at least it proved their request to join the battle wasn't reckless or impulsive. Still, Haseo decided to lay everything out clearly:
"I need to make myself perfectly clear. If circumstances become truly desperate on the battlefield, I will definitely prioritize getting Tsunade to safety first. Otherwise, I won't be able to explain things to others afterward. As for you two... At most, I'll report to the Hokage afterward that you died bravely.
To be honest, if you two die, it's no big deal—there won't be any special consequences. Even if I die, it's the same. But Tsunade is different—you understand this, right?"
Tsunade wanted to argue, but Haseo stopped her with a hand gesture and a sharp glare. He wasn't joking—while these words described an extremely extreme scenario he might face, they were still the truth.
Whatever she had been about to say was silenced by Haseo's stern gaze. She froze for a moment, then felt annoyed at herself for being so weak-willed. Why should she fear this guy?
Yet by then, she had already missed her chance to speak.
"No objection to your judgment, Haseo," Orochimaru said.
"I think it's somewhat unfair, but I can accept it," Jiraiya added. Outwardly, those were his words, but Haseo clearly saw Jiraiya's mouth silently move a few times after speaking.
Although Haseo didn't know how to read lips, he immediately understood exactly what Jiraiya had mouthed—"Little-girl fetishist." Without a doubt, those three silent syllables expressed Jiraiya's true thoughts.
F*** you, what are you messing around for at a time like this? Haseo originally thought Jiraiya genuinely found his reasoning biased.
Haseo had already laid out the absolute worst-case scenarios.
The White Fang was often compared to the Sannin. In terms of overall achievements, each of the later Sannin would eventually surpass Sakumo Hatake. However, in terms of combat power at this particular point in time, Jiraiya and the others likely weren't yet as strong as Sakumo.
No doubt about it—they were students trained personally by the Third Hokage, so their talent and skill were undeniable. Still, until they proved themselves in battle, nobody could say for sure how strong they really were.
"One final question—are you officially authorized by the Third Hokage to do this?"
"You're our team leader. The Third said your decision is final. If you believe we're ready to head to the Front Line, then we can go," Tsunade replied.
The Third Hokage was slicker than oil on water. Yu Haseo silently cursed the old fox, then muttered "baldy" under his breath for good measure.
Actually, this was somewhat unfair to the Third Hokage. Even the Third Hokage himself couldn't fully manage these three kids... mainly because their request was quite reasonable—they had every right to participate in this battle.
"Then I have one last condition... you must follow my orders on the battlefield. You listen to me, or forget the whole thing."
Jiraiya and the others were different from Yu Haseo's original three squad members—they were special cases. It would be hard for Yu Haseo to trust that those punks would actually obey orders.
"Of course, ninjas must follow their leader's commands. Do you think we don't understand such basic rules?" Jiraiya replied rather indignantly. Did Haseo really think so little of them that they wouldn't follow orders?
Yu Haseo remained silent. Such reassurances weren't worth much—case in point being himself. Yu Haseo often ignored the plans and decisions he made before battles.
Wait, what am I thinking? That example doesn't count—I'm not like that... Yu quickly shook that thought from his mind.
What he meant was—being a glorified babysitter was no easy job.
Jiraiya and the others looked excited and energetic, while Haseo stared at the sky, silently cursing his luck:
"I've got it so rough..."
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