In truth, people who stayed at inns usually came with a relaxed mindset. There was absolutely no reason for them to wake up this early, so the corridor was completely deserted—only Shiki remained.
As for Ito Makoto, he had left long before sunrise to train with his sword. It wasn't that he didn't care about Shiki's injuries—it was simply because he knew there was nothing he could do to help.
Shiki waited silently for a while.
Yet not a single sound came from inside the room.
What the hell is going on?
A sudden sense of unease rose within Shiki. Immediately after, his right hand knocked harder on the wooden door.
The dull knocking echoed loudly in the silent morning air.
Yet still, there wasn't even the slightest noise from within the room.
No way…
Tsunade-sama has already left?
That shouldn't be…
Doubt filled Shiki's mind as his hope gradually began fading away. What hurts the most isn't getting crushed at the very beginning—
It's when you see a glimmer of hope… only for it to be snatched away.
"Looks like even Tsunade-sama can't do anything either."
Shiki muttered slightly mockingly, yet a flame rekindled in his eyes.
"Then…"
Without hesitation, he turned around. Even though he wanted assistance, relying entirely upon others was just not his style.
Receiving help was great, of course—but if none came, and one simply gave into despair, then one would not be Shiki Uzumaki.
Inside the room, Tsunade lazily lay on the bed, her clothes in disarray, surrounded by scattered empty bottles.
Shizune was in the same condition. In fact, she and Tsunade had booked two separate rooms. But last night, she had drunk too much with Tsunade and ended up passing out here.
"Who is it? Why are they knocking so early?" Shizune rolled over, frowning slightly as she mumbled sleepily.
The knocking annoyed her greatly, but Tsunade didn't react at all. She had consumed far too much alcohol last night.
Combined with the fact that the visitor carried no murderous intent to stimulate her senses, there was no way she was waking up.
Then came another round of even louder knocking—more irritating than ever—finally managing to pull her awake.
After slightly adjusting her clothes, Shizune shuffled toward the wooden door.
Creak—
The door slowly opened.
Before them stood the red-haired boy's back.
"You're up so early. What's the deal?" Shizune asked with a yawn, her voice still filled with fatigue.
"How early do you think I got up?"
Shiki stiffly turned his body around, looking at the confused Shizune. He stood there silently for what felt like an eternity.
"Do you think I'm here to clean up your empty wine bottles?"
The moment the door opened, Shiki had already smelled the strong stench of alcohol seeping from the room.
"You annoying little brat, aren't you being a bit too impatient?"
Tsunade snapped angrily. At this point, they were already inside Shizune's room.
Compared to Tsunade's room saturated with an overwhelming smell of alcohol, the air here felt much fresher.
Perhaps since Shizune hadn't returned to her own room last night, its window had been left open all along.
Shiki took a couple deep breaths and noticed there was no trace of a woman's presence anymore.
"Probably because Shizune had only been staying in this room for a short time."
At that moment, he accidentally noticed several pieces of underwear, which left Shizune flustered as she hurried to deal with them.
"Speaking of which, Lady Tsunade, your lifestyle is truly quite lazy," Shiki remarked. He realized his nerves had gotten used to being tense. It was hard to adjust to such a relaxed mindset.
Tsunade glared at Shiki, "You little brat, who gave you the right to lecture me? Don't you know waking someone up early in the morning is extremely rude?"
Shiki didn't argue back. "Then I apologize. To be honest, I'm just eager to use chakra freely again."
Seeing the calm expression on this child's face, Tsunade found herself at a loss for words.
She quickly moved on to the main topic.
"The upcoming medical process will be extremely painful. If you can't endure it, what awaits you is death. Are you absolutely sure you want to go through with it?"
Tsunade wasn't testing Shiki—this was genuinely her inner thought. If Shiki showed even the slightest hesitation, she would stop the operation immediately.
Because those who weren't determined enough definitely couldn't endure the pain of damaged Meridians reforming.
"Don't say another word. Let's begin."
Shiki's voice sounded cheerful, as if he'd waited many years simply for this moment.
Looking at this child's clean face filled with determination, Tsunade couldn't help sighing.
"No wonder you come from that bloodline."
Then she fixed her gaze on Shiki Uzumaki's eyes, revealing an eager expression in her own. "Then now, let's begin." [To Be Continued.]
Chapter 178: Shattering the Cage
Mornings usually bring laziness, but inside a quiet hotel on Tanzaku Street, all was tense.
Guided by Tsunade, Shiki lay flat on the bed, his eyes darting around restlessly.
He was still burning with curiosity about how Tsunade would go about healing his wounds.
"Listen carefully," she warned. "This will be extremely painful, but I cannot numb you. You must stay conscious. Otherwise, your brain won't feel the pain, and your body won't react properly to help itself recover. This is a very dangerous procedure, and there's even a possibility of death. That's why I must choose the most effective method possible."
"Possibility of death?" Shiki hesitated slightly. "But I can't die yet."
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