Lady Tsunade cut off Hagoromo's forced attempt at popular science without the slightest courtesy.
She had no interest in being subjected to conceptual brainwashing of that sort. By instinct alone, she felt that what Hagoromo was saying was probably correct—but that didn't make it meaningful to her.
In short, she now understood one thing clearly:
Hagoromo absolutely did not possess Magnet Release.
Hagoromo shut his mouth, somewhat dejected.
Everyone had a little urge to educate buried in their soul. Having his interrupted so mercilessly was, frankly, a bit hurtful.
Well… he was injured, after all.
Tsunade then continued, "In any case, your performance on the battlefield that night was excellent. From a tactical standpoint, you were a tremendous help to me, and strategically, you helped stabilize several of Konoha's key positions. What you did went far beyond the duties of a genin."
"As the commander of this battlefield," she said flatly, "I owe you a favor."
…Owing a favor was a rather vague statement.
Could it be something more tangible?
Hagoromo couldn't help thinking that, though he had enough sense not to voice it out loud.
Unexpectedly, Tsunade didn't deal in empty words.
"I heard from Kushina that you enjoy studying advanced ninjutsu," she continued. "Is there anything you'd like to learn? If it's something I know, I can teach you. If it's something I don't, as long as it's a jutsu belonging to Konoha—even a high-level forbidden jutsu—I can arrange for you to access it. Consider it repayment."
"..."
Hagoromo froze.
There was actually such a benefit?
Learning a high-level jutsu was no small thing. But if he were to learn something from Tsunade, what should it be?
"Let me make this clear first," Tsunade added. "You only get one chance."
Hagoromo nodded.
He understood—despite her words, pushing his luck would be unwise. Besides, he'd already borrowed—ahem—acquired quite a few advanced jutsus on his own.
With Tsunade right in front of him, it made far more sense to learn one of her specialties.
So what was Tsunade best at?
Medical ninjutsu.
Hagoromo was genuinely interested.
Not for altruistic reasons—being able to save himself in critical situations was reason enough. Just imagine this time around: if he had Tsunade's level of regenerative ability, he wouldn't have been unconscious for three days straight.
However, Tsunade immediately saw through him.
"You don't need to agonize over it," she said bluntly. "You're not suited to learning medical ninjutsu."
"Even though your learning ability is excellent, some things depend on natural aptitude. You're simply not born with the right compatibility."
"It's not that you can't learn it," she continued. "With your talent, learning the basics wouldn't be difficult. But you wouldn't be able to master it. A jutsu that should have A-rank healing effectiveness would drop to maybe D-rank in your hands."
"So if you really want to study medical ninjutsu, there's no need to come to me. Just grab a textbook and teach yourself."
Hagoromo was confused.
He didn't think Tsunade was brushing him off—but how could she know he wasn't suited for medical ninjutsu when he hadn't even started learning it yet?
Tsunade quickly provided her explanation.
"Generally speaking, shinobi with the greatest aptitude for medical ninjutsu are those born with Water Release. Next come Earth, then Wind, then Fire… and Lightning is the worst."
"Does that make sense now?"
Lightning Release chakra was highly stimulative and invasive—it naturally conflicted with the delicate control required for medical ninjutsu. And the more proficient one was with Lightning Release, the worse the compatibility became.
Hagoromo's Lightning Release…
Was exceptionally refined.
He understood instantly.
By Tsunade's logic, since he specialized so heavily in Lightning Release, mastering medical ninjutsu to a high level was practically impossible. For a student destined to remain mediocre, she saw no reason to invest her time—hence telling him to go read a book instead.
Since a true professional had already said so, Hagoromo could only give up, despite his reluctance.
It seemed that saving lives wasn't in his future.
But eliminating one option made the decision easier.
There was still one jutsu he wanted to learn from Tsunade.
Monstrous Strength?
Of course not.
Tsunade's chakra-enhanced punches were terrifying, but they weren't compatible with Hagoromo's fighting style. He relied on Lightning Release to pierce and kill—he didn't need overwhelming physical force.
What he wanted was—
"Summoning jutsu."
More precisely, not the jutsu itself…
But Lady Katsuyu, Tsunade's summoning beast.
Yes. Hagoromo had his eye on Tsunade's summon.
For Tsunade, this request clearly came out of nowhere.
"You're sure?" she asked, surprised. "It's not that I can't teach you. But Kushina mentioned that you captured several powerful summoning beasts recently. Didn't you end up in this condition because of that?"
Precisely because he'd captured those powerful summons, Hagoromo wanted to learn summoning even more.
He didn't bother explaining in detail, only answering firmly, "I'm sure."
If Tsunade was truly willing to teach him, Hagoromo felt like he was getting an incredible deal. A summon on Katsuyu's level wasn't something one could find without a rare opportunity.
Seeing his resolve, Tsunade didn't hesitate.
If he wanted to learn, then so be it.
She immediately called Shizune over and asked her to bring out the summoning contract scroll.
At present, Tsunade's important personal belongings—sealed scrolls, forbidden jutsus, and secret arts—were all managed by Kato Shizune.
Before long, Shizune returned carrying a massive scroll.
Hagoromo took it into his hands.
It was heavy—far heavier than he'd expected.
Unrolling the scroll himself, Hagoromo knew exactly what to do, but he didn't rush to sign. Instead, he carefully examined the names already written on it.
The first name he saw was Tsunade's.
There weren't many names above hers. Hagoromo specifically searched for one in particular—
The First Hokage.
He didn't find it.
Once he confirmed that, Hagoromo decisively bit his finger, signed his name in blood, and pressed all five fingers onto the scroll.
That concluded the contract.
He didn't rush to attempt a summoning right away.
Afterward, Tsunade promptly chased him out, as if he'd truly begun interfering with her work.
Later
Hagoromo's primary reason for learning the Summoning jutsu wasn't Katsuyu herself.
It was something else entirely.
When people obtain something rare and precious, their first instinct is often fear—fear that someone else will steal it. So they hide it away carefully.
Hagoromo was exactly that kind of person.
Three days earlier, the four summoning beasts he'd contracted had been left in the Land of Rain. But that place was enemy territory, and no matter how powerful Uzumaki-style sealing jutsu were, who could guarantee there wasn't an even stronger method of controlling summons?
He was afraid his puppies would be stolen.
So naturally, he wanted to hide them somewhere safe.
And with Tsunade right here…
Wasn't this basically a ready-made Shikkotsu Forest?
So Hagoromo planned to stash his little dogs and other precious summons there.
After all, Shikkotsu Forest had only one Katsuyu. Compared to Manda and Gamabunta, Katsuyu was famously easy to talk to.
Borrowing a small corner of Shikkotsu Forest to build a "doghouse" shouldn't be a problem… right?
Yes.
This was definitely negotiable.
As for whether his little dogs would suffer from environmental incompatibility?
That… he hadn't really thought about.
In any case—
Safety came first.
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