A small lack of patience can ruin a great plan. Ling can endure. No matter how excessive White Zetsu acts later, she must hold back and not eliminate White Zetsu again.
Since this Ninjutsu cannot be perfected, it is still necessary to pretend to continue practicing; no flaws can be left.
Early the next morning, Ling specifically let the Shadow Clones rest for a day. Today, they would simply do a thorough house cleaning, and she believed they would be very happy.
Although Ling was oppressing her Shadow Clones, she was actually oppressing herself. Fortunately, with the Escaping Rabbit's ability to isolate fatigue and mental impact, otherwise Ling would have already become an idiot.
Although they were going to a barbecue restaurant for a gathering, Ling still prepared many fruit platters and barley tea, because the guests would not arrive at the same time, so they couldn't just sit there idly.
In fact, Ling had another little trick: if they ate more fruit and tea here, after they were full, there would be fewer people to compete with her for barbecue.
The cunning Ling felt she was incredibly smart, although for Tsunade and Kushina, two big eaters, this might just be a piece of cake.
But letting them have a little something would also give her an advantage. Before Ling could continue daydreaming, a puff of smoke appeared, and a black cat emerged.
"Meow, happy birthday, Ling! Cat Granny asked me to bring you a gift, and there's my gift and Pouf's gift too! See if you like them."
Yunyan took out three gift boxes from her satchel. Needless to say, the one covered in cat patterns was Cat Granny's, the black one was from Yunyan, and the white one was from Pouf.
"Hurry and open them to see if you like them! I picked these out very carefully."
Yunyan stood on her hind legs, paws crossed over her chest, and said proudly with narrowed eyes.
"Thank you, Yunyan-chan. Please thank Cat Granny and Pouf for me." Ling opened the black box under Yunyan's expectant gaze.
When she saw what was inside, Ling felt her blood pressure rise, her veins bulge, and she wanted to punch Yunyan to death.
Inside Yunyan's box was a bra, or rather, a sports bra, printed with black cat patterns, and it was the kind most suitable for Ling's flat figure.
"How is it? Do you like it? The fabric has excellent elasticity and breathability, enough for you to use for ten years."
Yunyan had no idea she was dancing all over Ling's sensitive nerves, completely oblivious that Ling was already preparing to punch her.
"Bang~!" Ling finally couldn't hold back and punched Yunyan directly on the head, sending her straight back to the summoning world.
Just as Ling's face was flushed and she didn't know what to do, the doorbell rang. So Ling immediately put the sports bra back in the box and closed it, then rushed to open the door in a flurry.
"Ling Miss, happy birthday! This is my gift."
Standing at the door was Gennō. He had previously returned to Yanyang Village to collect the remains of his wife and son, because Ling had told him that the Ninjutsu required the remains of deceased persons.
"Mr. Gennō, please come in. Thank you for your gift, and thank you for remembering my birthday and making the special trip back."
Ling noticed that Gennō seemed much more open-minded, without the previous silent and gloomy feeling. It seemed he had come to terms with a lot.
"Haha, I won't go in. I'm from another village. I now live in the Fire Country Capital and have opened a furniture store. If you have everything ready or have any missions, please find me at this address."
Gennō handed Ling a light yellow box tied with a bow and a letter, then turned and left.
Ling looked at Gennō's retreating back, a little hesitant to speak. She also didn't know when she would be able to obtain Edo Tensei.
Back inside, Ling began to open the envelope Gennō had given her. Inside was a specific address. After memorizing it, Ling burned it.
Opening the gift box from Gennō, inside was a scroll recording the technology for making fully automatic mechanical puppets and Gennō's insights.
It seemed this was something Gennō had researched over the years, his last remaining asset. Ling felt it was quite ungracious to gain something for nothing.
So Ling decided to acquire Edo Tensei as soon as possible. Orochimaru must have it. If he has another transaction next time, she would ask for Edo Tensei.
Cat Granny's gift was a dark red kimono embroidered with flower and cloud patterns, which looked quite nice. (Refer to book cover)
Pouf's gift was a dark red anklet with golden butterflies and cherry blossoms. It looked very pretty, but why did wearing it feel a bit embarrassing?
A red anklet tied around a slender ankle, as fair as congealed fat, made the skin appear even whiter and flawless.
A knock sounded. Ling didn't have time to untie the anklet and directly opened the door. Outside were the Sannin, Shizune, Kushina-jie jie, and Minato-nii.
"Hey, happy birthday, Ling! Can you fill me up for lunch today?" This was Tsunade, still recovering from a hangover.
"Sorry, Tsunade-jie hasn't fully woken up yet. Ling, happy birthday." This was Shizune, hastily apologizing.
"Happy birthday, Ling. You've grown stronger." Orochimaru.
"Happy birthday, big-eating, super-strong brat." Jiraiya.
"Ling, here's your birthday present! Happy birthday!" The smiling Kushina looked at Ling with doting affection.
"Haha, I almost missed Ling's birthday. Here's a gift. Happy birthday." This was Minato, who had rushed back last night after completing his mission in the Land of Rain.
"Orochimaru, Jiraiya, Tsunade-jie, Shizune-jie, Kushina-jie jie, and Minato-nii, welcome! Thank you for your gifts, I love them very much."
Ling held the six gifts, which stacked up even taller than her. But this didn't faze Ling.
She welcomed the six into the living room, and they naturally sat on the spacious sofa, feeling completely at home.
Tsunade immediately started catching up on sleep as soon as she sat on the sofa. She had been drinking and gambling last night, busy until past midnight, and only came home after losing all her money.
"Minato-nii, how is the situation in the Land of Rain?" Ling set out the fruit platters and then poured them barley tea.
"Haha, it's not bad. Currently, as expected, the three parties are cooperating while also keeping each other in check."
Minato Namikaze had completed his mission, delaying the outbreak of war, and was relieved. He slowly ate from the fruit platter with a toothpick.
"Are Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan doing well? I wonder if they've become great Ninja, and if their wish for peace is still being pursued?"
Although Jiraiya knew that his former disciples had become part of the plan, he wasn't angry, because this way they could survive better. He knew that as the Akatsuki Organization grew stronger, Hanzo would definitely not tolerate them.
"Jiraiya-sensei, they are doing very well. They have all become capable Ninja and are still advocating for peaceful coexistence among nations."
Minato had helped Yahiko and the others solve some problems, so he naturally understood their current living situation. Although he was curious about Nagato's eyes, which seemed to be the Rinnegan recorded by the Uzumaki clan, he only mentioned it to the Third Hokage.
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