37 Chapter 36

Chapter 36

Cold sweat covered Utakata as he woke from another nightmare. Like always, he would forget what he dreamed about, but the feeling of dread never disappeared. Knowing that he wouldn't be able to fall asleep again, he silently left his room. The inn they stayed in was empty at this time of day, so nobody noticed as Utakata left.

The cool air of the morning calmed him down a bit. As he walked around aimlessly, he used his sensing ability to ensure no shinobi were in the town. Utakata's sensing abilities grew stronger over time as his senses could now easily cover the whole town and even outside the town. Hiding from people and running away made his survival skills better.

He didn't wish to fight anyone, so he would always check if someone was after him, and if there was someone, he would run away. But since he was now traveling with Tsunade Senju, he would have to leave the town before anyone could discover who he was. The Land of Fire was a massive country with many towns and cities. There was never a shortage of places to go to.

Studying healing jutsu gave Utakata a new purpose. Ever since he escaped the Land of the Water, he had found himself lost. He couldn't think straight or do anything, as he had no purpose. What was the point in doing anything if he would only fail? But now, he was given another chance, and this time, he vowed to himself that he wouldn't waste it.

As he finished his morning walk, he found a bakery that was opened this early morning, and bought some bagels for Tsunade and Shizune. It was the least he could do. Most inns didn't have a great food selection, and Tsunade was picky with her meals. The only thing she would always like in the morning was a fresh bagel. By giving her that, she would always be in a better mood throughout the day.

"Stop right here!" Utakata looked down at a kid, no older than ten years old, holding a knife before him. "Give all your money!"

Maybe because Utakata was as thin as a stick, he didn't look like someone who could defend against anyone. However, the kid looked barely better than Utakata did, and he was short. Even if he tried, he would barely reach Utakata's chest and definitely couldn't reach his neck, two places the kid would have to stab him into to be able to kill him. And then it depended on how deep the wound would be.

"I don't have any money left, just spare change," Utakata calmly said, raising his free hand while extending a paper bag full of bread. "Take this. I am sure it would last a few days if you ate sparingly."

"Don't screw with me!" The kid probably didn't know what to do in this situation. His hands were shaking badly. He had probably never done something like this before, and since Utakata looked like an easy target for him, he tried his luck. Utakata was a target the boy couldn't let go of.

"I would advise you to look for food in dumpsters; you will be surprised how much people throw away, especially behind the stores and restaurants. With your stature, you will sooner get beaten up than be able to rob anyone else."

Utakata dropped his bag on the ground and slowly backed away. There was no need to involve himself with the kid; it was only a bad with bread. Once Utakata had distanced himself from the kid, he picked up the bag and ran away into the dark alleyway. There were plenty of street urchins in bigger towns, and Utakata was bound to meet one at some point.

Walking back to the inn, Utakata was a bit down. The kid reminded him of when he was living on the streets looking for food. Hopefully, the kid's future won't be as fucked up as his. Tsunade and Shizune were waiting for him as Utakata entered the inn. They looked at Utakata expectedly, but seeing his empty hands, they narrowed their eyes.

"Sorry, I couldn't find any bakery open this early in the morning," Utakata said with a smile as he sat down with them.

"That's weird," the innkeeper said as he served tea for them. "There is a fine bakery just a few streets away. Our customers seem to like it very much."

"Oh, that must be my bad luck; I probably walked in a different direction or missed it," Utakata said, not disturbed by the innkeeper's words. "Oh well, can you prepare scrambled eggs for me?"

"Of course," The innkeeper said jovially. "And what would ladies like?"

"Sa…" Before Tsunade could finish her words, Shizune interrupted.

"We will have miso soup, thank you very much."

Utakata could already tell that Tsunade wouldn't be in a good mood for the rest of the day. And he thought that he could ask her to advance his training, but he would have to ask Shizune. As much as Shizune was talented in healing ninjutsu, she was too kind to be strict and would overexplain everything. She wouldn't stop until Utakata understood and memorized everything she had to say.

Well, since Tsunade will blow her steam in gambling dens sooner or later, Utakata should train in the art of bubble ninjutsu while waiting for the opportunity to ask her. He called it art because he didn't train it to be deadly but rather a supportive ninjutsu that could help him and others. He wanted to reach the lever of being able to support his weight with his bubbles so he could sit on a bubble while it floated or capture others in bubbles so he could escape or he could protect them within the bubble.

Since meeting Tsunade, he has progressed significantly, and his body has improved, too. As much as that woman didn't like him, Tsunade would ensure he got all the necessary nourishment and vitamins. Utakata learned early just to let her do her thing. Otherwise, she would force it through his throat anyway.

…

On the roof of the three-story inn, Utakata enjoyed the sun while blowing bubbles out of the pipe. He might call it training, but he was just playing around. He liked how the soap bubbles would reflect the light, and he could see what was happening in the streets below him. Tsunade was on her gambling streak, while Shizune tried to control the damage Tsunade was doing by getting angry at losing all her money once again.

At this point, it wouldn't surprise Utakata if Tsunade was lifting the Land of the Fire economy of how much she was giving her money away. Maybe because of her, many towns were created in the Land of the Fire. With how much she supports the local economy, it wouldn't be too far-fetched to think that way.

Utakata wondered what he would have done if he hadn't met with Tsunade. Now, he feels a bit embarrassed about how depressed he was. Utakata still regretted not believing in Harusame. He was his master, and he taught many things to Utakata and always took care of him. But Utakata still didn't trust him to the very end.

If only he was willing to work with Harusame and trusted him to ask him for help. Would he have any reason to leave the village? He could have worked together with Harusame and lifted the genjutsu on Yagura. If only he had told Harusame of his sensing abilities and explained everything. But it was too late; he made his choice even if it was wrong, and now he has to live with it.

"What is this, you brat?!" Utakata narrowed his eyes as he heard a loud voice from a nearby alleyway. "Do you want to be beaten down?"

"No, I will do better next; please stop," Utakata recognized the voice of the kid who had robbed him in the morning.

Taking a look, Utakata found a bold, ugly man towering over the kid. The kid was on the ground clutching his stomach, probably because the bastard hit him. Three other grown men were around the kid, and one little girl, maybe eight years old. The girl was silently crying as one of the men gripped her shoulder.

"I really shouldn't get involved in this," Utakata said as he landed in the middle of the scene. "But no matter how I look at it, this is wrong."

"Who are you, bastard?" the big, bald guy asked. He turned towards Utakata, but Utakata was more interested in the bag of bread he gave the kid lying on the ground; the bagels were stepped on and ruined. "Where did you come from, anyway? If you don't want to die, I suggest you leave."

"If he doesn't want to leave, he doesn't have to," another tall and lean man with a creepy smirk said as he looked at Utakata. "He is quite pretty, with his long brown hair covering half his face. I sure he would sell for quite good money."

"Well, just like that bitch Tsunade Senju, it is his fault coming into my territory," The big guy said, making Utakata only sigh even more.

"Don't worry, I won't kill you," Utakata replied with a defeated sight, and before they even realized what he did, every single one of them dropped to the ground. "I swear, you are bound to meet idiots, but this is just another level of stupidity. How could you not have seen me jump from a three-story high building and still not entertain the idea that I was a trained shinobi."

And then the big guy had to mention Tsunade's name. At least he will live since he met Utakata first and before he did anything stupid, even if he won't be able to move his limbs for a few weeks. The kid and the girl looked at Utakata horrified, and not wanting to remember anything unpleasant, Utakata quickly left them be.

…

Considering the time of the day, it shouldn't surprise Utakata that he had to carry Tsunade back to the inn as she was too drunk to walk on her own. Usually, Shizune would do that, but Utakata used any opportunity to repay them for helping him. But the problem was that Tsunade was too clingy when she was drunk, and she didn't know how to control her strength.

"I'm sorry you have to do it," Shizune looked apologetic at Utakata as Tsunade rubbed her face into Utakata's while at the same time strangling him with her arms wrapped around his neck. "We were supposed to repay the loan Tsunade took out from some thugs, but they never showed up, so she drank a bit more than usual while waiting for them."

"It's fine," Utakata replied as they returned to the inn.

From there on, Shizune took over and took Tsunade back to her room. At the same time, Utakata returned to his room. Since he was awake from early morning, he was getting tired but didn't want to sleep. The smell of sake reminded him of the only friends he had abandoned when he left the village. Hopefully, those idiots were fine and didn't suffer because of him.

"You should rest for the night," Shizune liked to check on Utakata and see how he was doing occasionally.

"You are still a worrywart," Utakata smiled, amused by Shizune's kindness. "Once I finish reviewing my notes, I will go to sleep. I promise."

Utakata didn't like to make Shizune worried, so he lied. He couldn't sleep tonight, but Shizune didn't need to know. After meeting the kid in the streets and remembering those two brothers, Utakata reminisced about the past. And, like always, he would start regretting his actions and feeling sorry for himself. He didn't like how pathetic he had become. But there was no stopping it.

…

Somehow, when Tsunade is hungover, she seems even more keen on teaching than usual. Utakata couldn't understand her most of the time. She started with some basics, like mixing coffee with milk and separating them with chakra. Then, using chakra, Utakata had to warm or cool the coffee. It was the basics that he has done dozens of times now. But he didn't complain and patiently waited for the next instructions.

"Maybe it is time to move to live practice," Tsunade said as she drank the coffee.

Well, she said that, but there was no way she would leave the inn now. Ultimately, it took until noon before Tsunade wished to go anywhere. There was a pond near the town where they stayed, where they caught fish, and using chakra, Tsunade instructed Utakata to help the fish breathe above the water. Even though it was a basic technique, too, it was considerably harder than anything he had done before.

The rest of the day continued similarly. Because Tsunade had no money she could gamble off, she didn't have much to do but teach Utakata, from the theory of medicine to practical medical ninjutsu and even chakra control. Tsunade demanded a lot of Utakata, and he did his best to deliver it. It wasn't any stricter training than he had done on his own while he lived in the Mist. And most importantly, he had fun learning from Tsunade.

A.N. As always, If you want more, up to seven advanced chapters, you can support me on pa treon. com \ ironwolf852. And if you have any requests for stories, I will only take them on my pa treon.