A month passed in the blink of an eye.
By now, Island Turtle had reached the South Sea, which was south of the Land of Fire.
In this month, Gekko Chizan and Yugito had basically turned into two mud dolls.
It wasn't that they were filthy—more that they were living like wild people.
Although Island Turtle had different types of ecosystems, it was still too limited for the two of them.
The variety of food was minimal too—aside from roasted meat, grilled fish, and fruit, there was nothing else. Even though Gekko Chizan wanted to cook, there's only so much one can do without proper ingredients.
"I can't take this anymore. If I stay here any longer, I'll go crazy. Yugito, do you want to go out and walk around town with me?"
"Yes! I don't want to train anymore! It's too hard! Too exhausting!"
After a month of this lifestyle, Yugito had completely given up on waiting for Kumogakure's rescue. After all, it had been a full month—if Kumogakure really intended to rescue her, they would've done it by now.
No one had come. That proved Kumogakure didn't know Gekko Chizan's location. They might not even know he was the one who took her.
However, she still hadn't acknowledged Gekko Chizan as her teacher. After all, he had tricked her onto Island Turtle, and this month had been pure hell for her.
Every morning started with training—physical training in the morning, then getting tormented under the waterfall in the afternoon. It was too much!
"Hahahahaha! You little brat, finally caved, huh?"
"So? Want to become my student now?"
Yugito glared at him first, then asked a question:
"Tell me first, which village are you from?"
"Does it matter? If you become my student, it's not like I'm taking you back to my village."
"It does matter. I want to know which village could raise someone like you—so I can stay as far away from it as possible in the future."
Gekko Chizan was speechless. At this point, Yugito had labeled him with all kinds of tags.
Things like: Demon Instructor, Perverted Old Man, and so on.
"Alright, alright. I'm a Jonin from Konoha."
"Hmph! I knew it! Of course you're from Konoha! Only Konoha could raise such a freak!"
As soon as she heard 'Konoha,' Yugito jumped up. If she could've reached his head, she would've punched it long ago.
This sudden reaction left Gekko Chizan totally confused.
How were Konoha ninja freaks?
Seeing his bewildered expression, Yugito explained:
"Hmph! You really think I'm that dumb?"
"I'll have you know, I've done some thinking of my own."
"Iwagakure people are all brawn and no brains!"
"Sunagakure folks are dirt poor and all dusty!"
"Kirigakure people are mysterious all the time—I thought maybe you were from there, but you didn't quite fit."
"Konoha people, hmph, they're all arrogant. Just because they had the First Hokage, they act all high and mighty!"
"That's why I always suspected you were from Konoha!"
Now Gekko Chizan was a bit surprised. He didn't expect this little brat to be so sharp.
"Hahaha, I answered all your questions. Isn't it time you became my student?"
"Let me tell you, people usually beg me to take them as disciples. You're the first I've ever chased down like this."
Actually, he didn't need to make Yugito his disciple so badly.
It was mainly Chōmei's fault. That guy kept nagging Gekko Chizan to train Yugito properly.
In Chōmei's own words:
"Chizan, that little brat is Matatabi's jinchūriki. For Matatabi's sake, you've gotta train her well."
"Let me tell you! You better treat her jinchūriki with respect!"
"I don't trust that Kumogakure place. You're the only one I trust! It's all up to you!"
That's why Gekko Chizan kept chasing Yugito to make her his disciple.
"But I have another question. If I don't join Konoha, then where do I go?"
"I can't just wander around forever, right?"
That question made Gekko Chizan fall into thought. True, if she didn't join Konoha, where would Yugito go?
But then he realized she was overthinking.
The world of the shinobi was huge. If she couldn't go to the Five Great Nations, she could always go to a smaller village.
"Don't worry. I'll find a suitable village for you."
"So hurry up and become my disciple!"
Yugito rolled her eyes but still walked up to Gekko Chizan. She gave a formal bow and, with great reluctance, said:
"Sensei..."
That made Gekko Chizan overjoyed. He immediately burst out laughing.
"Good! From now on, you—Yugito—are my student!"
"I'll give you your disciple gift once I make a trip back to the village."
Disciple gift? That caught Yugito by surprise. She didn't expect there to be a bonus just for becoming a student.
"As for now, let's go. Island Turtle can only take us this far—we'll need some outside help to get the rest of the way."
Before Yugito could even react, she saw Gekko Chizan bite his finger.
"Summoning Technique!"
A massive cloud of white smoke exploded across Island Turtle.
Then, a large bluish figure appeared before Yugito.
"Hiss... Chizan, brat, where the heck did you summon me to?"
"Huh!? The ocean?"
Kurohebi's lazy voice rang out, followed by a surprised cry. The enormous snake leapt straight into the sea.
With water splashing everywhere, Kurohebi was already soaking in the ocean.
"Kurohebi, mind taking us to the mainland?"
Gekko Chizan wasn't about to fly there himself—especially since he had to bring someone else along. Too much effort.
That's exactly what summoning beasts are for, right?
"Tch! I knew you didn't summon me for anything good."
"Get on. It's not every day I get to see the ocean. I'll give you a ride—just this once, for the sea's sake."
Gekko Chizan chuckled, grabbed Yugito, and jumped onto Kurohebi's head.
The next second, the massive serpent was gliding through the sea.
"Is this a summoning beast?"
"What a huge snake...Chi—Sensei... Can I learn this jutsu?"
Yugito was still a child, curious about anything new. Especially powerful summoning beasts like snakes—they were something to be admired.
"Tsk tsk, I just realized—Chizan, where'd you find this little brat?"
"Oh, I remember now—Tagitsuhime mentioned something a few days ago."
"Kid, you've got a good eye. I'm super strong, you know!"
Gekko Chizan smiled slightly. Teaching summoning techniques to Yugito wasn't out of the question—but definitely not now. She was still in the foundational stage.
"Once you're a bit older. Right now, the most important thing is training your physique. As for ninjutsu, don't worry about that yet."
"But if you meet my expectations, I'll teach you."
Yugito's eyes immediately lit up at those words. She was clearly very excited.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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