Naruto: Wooing Tsunade from Day One!-Chapter 435: Trying to Take Advantage of Ōnoki

"Ten minutes?"

Kitsuchi repeated the words, falling into deep thought.

"If only you could maintain it indefinitely..."

Rōshi sighed, clearly disappointed.

After witnessing Nagato's strength firsthand, he no longer dared to make bold claims. The idea of defeating Nagato within ten minutes was nothing more than a dream now.

"If you activate your secret technique first, Rōshi and I can provide support from the sides. Holding Nagato back shouldn't be too difficult," Kitsuchi suggested.

"But that would mean we'd have to take the initiative and hit them with a blitz attack. Once time is up, we retreat and slow down the Akatsuki's advance."

At this point, he wasn't hoping to eliminate Akatsuki entirely—just delaying them would already be a significant victory.

"That's not a bad plan."

Minato wasn't particularly interested in strategizing. The outcome had already been decided, so what was there to think about?

As long as Sensei didn't give the order, Nagato wouldn't push too deep into the Land of Earth.

"Then it's settled. Once Rōshi and I recover, we'll move forward with it."

"It's a lot of trouble for you, though," Kitsuchi added politely, keeping his stance humble. After all, Minato was undeniably their strongest asset right now.

"Don't mention it. I'm just following orders."

Minato didn't act superior, keeping himself on equal footing with them.

"Let's hope we can hold out for a while longer."

Rōshi's frustration was evident—he wasn't convinced Kitsuchi's plan would work.

But at this point, there wasn't a better alternative.

"Don't be so pessimistic. We might get good news from Lord Ōnoki in the next few days," Minato offered as reassurance.

Even as he spoke, his mind drifted—he wondered how Nawaki was doing.

"Hopefully," Rōshi muttered, but Minato was already too lost in thought to respond.

The three men fell silent, with only the crackling of the torches filling the room.

...

"Lord Daisuke?"

"You've finally returned!"

An Iwa-nin, captured by Konoha forces, lit up with joy upon seeing Daisuke Nakano.

Bad luck had landed him in this situation—who would have thought taking a quick break would lead to getting caught?

"We're on the same side!"

"How is Lord Tsuchikage? I've brought reinforcements!"

Daisuke rushed forward, freeing the Iwa-nin and eagerly asking about Ōnoki's condition.

Nawaki stood silently to the side, watching the exchange with indifference.

"Lord Tsuchikage suffered minor injuries, but he's fine."

"Your return couldn't have been better timed."

The Iwa-nin glanced at the Konoha reinforcements and his smile widened.

"This is Lord Nawaki Senju of Konoha. Take us to the camp."

Daisuke introduced Nawaki briefly. freёwebnoѵel.com

"Understood! Lord Tsuchikage will be pleased!"

The Iwa-nin agreed without hesitation, believing that the arrival of Konoha's reinforcements would finally lift the gloom that had been weighing on them.

"Follow me."

After greeting Nawaki, the Iwa-nin led the way.

Ever since Han's death, Iwa had been at a disadvantage.

They hadn't been completely overwhelmed, but every battle brought heavy casualties.

Earlier that day, Ōnoki had fought the Third Raikage head-on, and both had sustained injuries.

The camp itself wasn't particularly well-hidden, but one look was enough to tell it was heavily fortified.

"We're almost there," the Iwa-nin said, quickening his pace as they neared the camp.

Nawaki could sense it without needing to be told—the number of hidden sentries had noticeably increased.

Under their guide's lead, no one attempted to block them, proving that the message of their arrival had already been relayed.

"Hm."

Nawaki responded flatly, then suddenly lifted off the ground, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.

"Wh-what...?"

The Iwa-nin looked up in shock, his mouth opening and closing as he hesitated to speak.

He knew his rank was too low to comment on something like this.

"Light-Weight Rock Technique?"

Daisuke murmured, slightly taken aback. It was his first time seeing Nawaki take flight.

Flying ninja weren't unheard of in the shinobi world, but he was far too familiar with this particular technique.

Ōnoki, that old man, hated walking and preferred to float everywhere—Daisuke had seen him use it countless times.

But Nawaki wasn't paying attention to any of this.

Flying higher allowed him to see further, and soon, he spotted the large earthen camp below, its perimeter dotted with scattered torches.

As he drew closer, he lowered his altitude, squinting as if searching for something.

A few moments later, he found it—the short figure of an old man standing in the central clearing of the camp.

"Greetings, Lord Tsuchikage."

"I am Nawaki Senju, Jōnin of Konoha."

Nawaki bypassed the approaching troops and landed directly in front of Ōnoki.

"What is your relation to Tsunade?"

Ōnoki's eyes narrowed.

This brat could use his Light-Weight Rock Technique?

It seemed Hatake Kawakaze hadn't been lying after all.

"She's my sister."

Nawaki remained polite, but internally, he was laughing.

This old man clearly didn't like him.

But he loved seeing that annoyed expression—especially when there was nothing Ōnoki could do about it.

"As expected of a Senju descendant."

"You use the Light-Weight Rock Technique quite well."

Ōnoki composed himself, forcing a smile to appear magnanimous.

"You flatter me."

"Thank you for sharing this secret technique. I hope to learn more from you during my time here."

Nawaki went straight for the kill, striking at Ōnoki's sore spot.

He knew the old man couldn't afford to turn him away right now.

With such a golden opportunity, how could he not shamelessly press for some guidance?

"We'll see, we'll see,"

Ōnoki nearly burst a blood vessel.

This kid had the thickest skin he had ever seen.

After a brief pause, he forced himself to give a vague, noncommittal response.

He had already made up his mind—he would not spend too much time with this brat.

If Nawaki thought he could just waltz in and steal his techniques, he was dreaming!

"You feel oddly familiar to me."

"I'll make sure to study hard."

Nawaki acted oblivious to Ōnoki's reluctance—he was determined to learn this skill.

"Ahem—"

"You must be tired after your journey. I'll have someone show you to your quarters."

"I'll make arrangements for the rest of your team as well."

"We can discuss everything else at tomorrow's meeting."

Ōnoki called for a subordinate to escort Nawaki away, while he went to formally welcome Konoha's reinforcements.

Even if he wasn't thrilled about it, he had to at least maintain appearances.

Nawaki didn't push further.

This mission wasn't going to last just a day or two—he had time.

Watching Ōnoki float off with far greater ease than himself, Nawaki's eyes gleamed with interest.

"Lord Nawaki, this way."

Snapping out of his thoughts at the Iwa-nin's call, Nawaki nodded.

"Alright. Thanks for your help."

After offering a polite remark, he followed the Iwa-nin to his assigned quarters.

As the leader of Konoha's reinforcements, his accommodations were fairly decent—far better than being crammed into a tent with others.

Since he was here, he might as well get comfortable.

After dismissing the Iwa-nin, he lay down on his bed.

The objective of this mission was clear—to keep Kumo forces tied down within the Land of Earth.

But without knowing their full strength yet, there was no point in overthinking.

Tomorrow, he would get the details.