"Tsunaade, Tatsuma, are you two coming over as well?"
Outside the cave, Jiraiya, with a serious expression, greeted Tsunade and Tatsuma, who had heavy dark circles under their eyes, as they walked out. Without hesitation, Tsunade went up to Jiraiya and asked, "How's the situation over here?"
"We have a group of two hundred, led by a Jonin named Zaren. There are only five Jonin and just over twenty Chunin," replied Jiraiya.
Upon hearing Jiraiya's words, Tsunade's face darkened. It seemed that the Land of Rain was convinced that Konoha wouldn't dare to make a big move against them, as they had only been engaging in small-scale harassment so far.
Tsunade couldn't help but recall Danzo's ideology from before, which was to focus all their efforts on attacking the Sand Ninja, freeing up a large number of troops to directly encircle and crush the Land of Rain's ninja organization.
Being constantly harassed by the Rain Ninja without fear, Tsunade was truly feeling angry and was itching to go on a killing spree. However, hunting down Rain Ninja squads on the outskirts was acceptable, as the Land of Rain couldn't find concrete evidence, and with their small numbers, the impact was minimal.
But if a group of more than two hundred people is killed in one go, while this might not be considered a large number in Konoha, it would be a significant force in the Land of Rain. If Konoha truly dared to do so, then restarting negotiations would be impossible.
However, this is the village's order. We must hold out until negotiations with the Land of Rain resume, even if during this period, Konoha suffers some losses.
From the village's perspective, this is naturally a good thing for the ninja world situation. But for frontline ninjas, it is undeniably extremely cruel, especially since the Rain Ninja, although few in number, do not hold back at all.
Faced with the unrestrained Rain Ninja, how could the restrained Konoha ninjas possibly have a good outcome?
At this moment, Tatsuma used a cloth soaked in alcohol to wipe the corners and areas around his eyes, preventing the accumulation of dirt from these past few days from irritating his eyes. While waiting for the alcohol to dry, he asked, "Does the village only forbid us from killing Rain Ninja in large numbers or permanently weakening them?"
"Are you talking about poison?"
Jiraiya seemed to have already known what Tatsuma wanted to say. He shook his head and looked at Tsunade. Although he didn't say anything further, everything was understood without words. It was obvious that it wasn't that he didn't want to use it, but rather Tsunade didn't want to.
Tsunade didn't explain, but the dissatisfaction on her face already indicated her attitude. However, Tatsuma, with his eyes closed, didn't see it. His thoughts shifted, and he continued, "Is it because of reputation?"
Although very dissatisfied, Tsunade still truthfully answered, "That's right. But it's not about my reputation; I don't care. It's just that there are too many obstacles for me to use these methods on the battlefield where I am."
Tatsuma didn't quite understand Tsunade's thoughts and didn't want to delve into it. He opened his eyes and asked, "But what if it's not Konoha ninjas using poison? After all, it's not just us from Konoha fighting against the Rain Ninja.
We don't use poison, but it doesn't mean that Sand Ninja don't use poison, right?"
Jiraiya frowned and asked, "Are you suggesting impersonating Sand Ninja to further escalate the conflict between Rain Ninja and Sand Ninja?"
Tatsuma nodded and said with a smile, "Moreover, we don't need to use other poisons. We just need to use the poisons of the Sand Ninja. Although it may imply some deliberate framing, the truth on the battlefield is not important. What matters are the reasons and the benefits."
Upon hearing this, Jiraiya looked at Tsunade and asked, "Can you replicate the poisons from the Hidden Sand Village?"
"It's not difficult. I've already deciphered all of Chiyo's poisons," Tsunade replied.
Tsunade also felt a bit intrigued. Medicine and poison are inseparable, and she knew what kind of poisons Chiyo used. With her medical expertise, replicating them wouldn't be difficult.
The difficulty lies in the fact that the costs cannot be as low as those of the Sand Ninja. After all, Konoha does not have specialized research and production departments like the Hidden Sand Village. If they want to invest heavily in war, they would need a large amount of upfront capital.
However, if the enemy is not an opponent like the Five Great Nations and doesn't require a full-scale war, but only needs localized outbreaks, such as poisoning a hundred or two hundred people, then there is no need for production facilities. With Tatsuma's help, she could easily set up a small workshop.
However, in that case, there would be no one to support the medical work within the camp. Originally, there were only two medical ninjas, and it was already extremely difficult for them to support the entire camp. Ultimately, it was because there were too few medical ninjas.
At the thought of this, another idea popped into Tsunade's mind. In the past, most medical ninjas were either ninja academy students who became interested after becoming genin and sought guidance from their team leader, or they were discovered by their team leader to have talent for medical ninjutsu and were taught accordingly.
The remaining small portion consisted of those who, after becoming ninjas, were not assigned to regular ninja teams but were instead requisitioned to study at the Konoha hospital. Aside from these, there were very few who had the opportunity to learn medical ninjutsu through family tradition.
However, regardless of the method used, the medical ninjas trained had many shortcomings, such as their small numbers, varying skill levels, and the need for a significant amount of familiarization with each other's working methods when cooperating.
Medical ninjas should be uniformly trained! A proper system should be established, with standardized assessment and learning criteria from novices to proficient levels. Whether working alone or in coordination with others, there should be unified standards for assessment and learning.
If Konoha were to train medical ninjas in this manner, then in the event of conflicts like the present, the casualty rate could be controlled lower than that of other villages, preserving more combat-ready personnel.
Even in times of peace, if every ninja team were equipped with a medical ninja, the survival rate of teams and the success rate of missions would significantly increase.
So many ninjas have lost battles or entire teams due to minor injuries or illnesses, rendering missions impossible to complete.
The more Tsunade thought about it, the brighter her eyes became. However, standing beside her, Jiraiya began to feel uncomfortable. They had just been discussing using poison to sow discord between the Sand Ninja and the Rain Ninja, and now Tsunade was becoming increasingly excited?
Could it be that Tsunade harbored a dirty heart, similar to Orochimaru's, which enjoyed manipulating enemies? The thought made Jiraiya shudder, and he cleared his throat before saying, "Tsunade, if Tatsuma's suggestion is feasible, could you go through the trouble of replicating some poisons from the Hidden Sand Village?"
Tsunade snapped back to attention, nodding first, then recalling something and saying, "Alright, but this time you're in charge of the camp. Any credit for my actions will ultimately be attributed to you, so... you have to promise me something."
"What is it?"
Hearing Tsunade's agreement, Jiraiya first felt a sense of joy, but then curiosity arose about what condition Tsunade had in mind.
Tsunade realized that changing the current ninja training system would face significant resistance. Even if Sarutobi Hiruzen, out of their master-disciple relationship, pushed her proposal forward, it would still need to pass through a vote in the Jonin Council.
In this situation, every vote became crucial. She didn't mind giving Jiraiya some credit, but she had her eye on his vote.
"I can't explain it to you clearly right now, but when I need you, you must support me once."
"When you need me? Is it...?"
Jiraiya murmured with a strange expression. Unconsciously, he became animated, indicating that he had also considered some inappropriate thoughts.
Seeing Jiraiya's expression, which she found all too familiar, Tsunade rolled her eyes and said, "Are you going to agree or not?"
Jiraiya rubbed the stubble that had grown out due to not shaving for a long time. He knew that even if he disagreed, Tsunade would still go ahead with making the poison. Besides, Jiraiya couldn't think of any instance where Tsunade would actually need him.
Moreover, over the years, it had always been Tsunade tricking him. Suddenly, Jiraiya felt like playing a little trick, but at this moment, Tatsuma had a serious expression on his face, and he had already guessed something.
He just didn't expect that Nawaki hadn't been involved, yet Tsunade's idea still surfaced. Indeed, many times, what seems like a reason might just be the spark that ignites the fuse. Even without the "reason," internal thoughts or emotions can still be triggered.
Tatsuma could ignore it, as he knew that the thing Tsunade longed for was impossible to achieve, at least not at the moment. But...
"Jiraiya-sensei, I advise you to agree. After all, there aren't many things that my sensei schemes against you for."
Initially intending to tease Tsunade, Jiraiya's train of thought was interrupted by Tatsuma. Looking at Tatsuma's serious and contemplative expression, Jiraiya instinctively felt that this matter was serious. After all, that kind of demeanor wasn't typical even when discussing wars between nations.
Of course, Tatsuma himself didn't know what was happening either. Ever since he gained the additional amplification of "Divine Mind," even if he just pondered slightly, he appeared as though he was contemplating matters of great importance to the nation.
Perhaps it was akin to a certain actor from a past life whose gaze was always profound, rumored to even look deeply into a toilet bowl with the same intensity.
"Could it be that there's something truly important that requires my assistance? Or is it that there aren't many things I could be schemed against for? My strength? No, Tsunade is not weak. Could it be my wealth?"
Jiraiya continued to ponder, but when he considered money, a reasonable explanation for someone else, he immediately dismissed it. After all, if Tsunade only needed money, she wouldn't resort to such methods; she could simply ask for a loan directly.
"Could it really be about me? Hehe~"
Jiraiya suddenly wiped the corner of his mouth, his rough face blushing slightly. He looked at Tsunade with a smile and patted his chest, saying, "Tsunade, what's our relationship?! Even if it's just a small act of support, I'll support you with everything I've got!"
Tsunade suddenly felt a bit regretful. She and Jiraiya were too familiar with each other. Seeing Jiraiya like this, she could guess exactly what he misunderstood. However, she still needed Jiraiya's vote. She nodded and said, "Jiraiya, remember what you said."
Then, Tsunade couldn't be bothered to look at Jiraiya for another second. Instead, she turned to Tatsuma and said, "Last time, the venom you extracted using the Delicate Illness Extraction Jutsu was sealed by me. We need to replicate the original venom. However, before that, I need two days to set up a workshop that meets the standards. You follow the team for now; I'll leave the healing work to you."
"Understood, sensei."
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