NABC Chapter 63 Account Opening
Chapter 63 Account Opening
In the quiet room, the atmosphere seemed to freeze for a moment.
However, it only took a moment before Minato frowned and asked, "He likes Kushina?"
"Hehehe... Minato-kun, there's no one else here. Given our relationship, there's no need to hide anything."
Orochimaru chuckled meaningfully in a low voice: "And you really don't have much talent for acting."
"..."
Minato's furrowed brows slowly relaxed, and his expression returned to calm: "So how did you find out, Senpai?"
"It's an attitude."
Orochimaru, a smile playing on his lips, casually leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms, and explained nonchalantly, "A person's attitude towards different people is different. The difference in attitude towards elders, towards friends, and towards juniors can be measured."
"For example, I have always treated Minato-kun as an equal because, in my eyes, Minato-kun is a confidant and a fellow traveler on the path of ideals. So even if Minato-kun is just a child, I will still regard you as an equal."
"But I'm not the only one with a similar attitude around Minato-kun; Tsunade is the same."
"So here's the question: no matter how strong Minato-kun is, in most people's eyes he's just a child who needs to be taken care of. I treat Minato-kun as a friend, which is why I treat him as an equal. So what's Tsunade's reason for doing so?"
"At first, I thought it was just Minato's precociousness that made Tsunade subconsciously regard you as her peer, but some things happened later that changed my mind."
"What is it?" Minato asked curiously.
"She quit gambling, which is incredible in itself."
Orochimaru chuckled and said, "Jiraiya also discovered this. We initially thought she was in love, so out of curiosity, I had my subordinates investigate Tsunade's social interactions during that period."
"Don't get me wrong, I didn't mean to pry into your privacy, it was just simple gossip."
Minato: "..."
"According to the investigation results, Tsunade does not have close relationships with any men, but I still discovered some interesting things."
Orochimaru recounted in great detail: "For example, outside of work hours, she spends the most time with you. Occasionally, she'll go out to buy clothes and cosmetics, and she'll even use her transformation technique to buy romance novels, especially those with younger men as the main characters."
"To be honest, I found it hard to believe at first that my teammate of many years was a pervert or something, but this subjective behavioral tendency made it impossible for me to even excuse her by saying that she couldn't recognize her own emotions."
"But this was just the teacher's behavior, not mine. Why do you say that Kato Dan is my rival in love?" Minato pressed.
"If you truly knew nothing about this, then you wouldn't deserve my special treatment. But since you did know, yet took no action, it means that this is exactly what you wanted."
Orochimaru said with a hint of amusement, "How greedy you are, Minato-kun."
A rare hint of embarrassment flashed across Minato's face: "Please keep this a secret."
"Of course, I'm just gossiping, not being a busybody."
Noticing Minato's reaction, Orochimaru found it quite amusing: "Let's talk about your rival, Dan Kato, 25 years old, a member of the Konoha Jonin team."
"His personality is a bit like Minato's; both of them like to use their looks to deceive others. However, his purpose is too strong, and his methods seem a bit clumsy, unlike the sophisticated feeling that Minato gives off."
"..."
Minato's lips twitched, unable to tell whether the other person was praising him or scolding him.
Orochimaru continued, "As for strength, Kato Dan is skilled in the Spirit Transformation Technique. He has excellent ninjutsu talent and a certain research ability. I dealt with him for a period of time when I was researching the Spirit Transformation Technique."
"This person's strengths are that he knows how to present himself and is good at cultivating interpersonal relationships; at least in my opinion, that's a strength."
"The downside is a lack of mental fortitude. He is too immersed in the pursuit of the opposite sex and the flattery of others, and is a bit arrogant. He only knows how to say nice things and is unwilling to put in the hard work to train. This also means that apart from ninjutsu, he is not very good at other aspects."
"Of course, this is in terms of his talent. In reality, Dan's strength is not bad among Jonin, but it's just not bad. The old man originally intended to cultivate him, but unfortunately he failed to seize the opportunity."
Orochimaru said this with a seemingly mocking smile.
Upon hearing this, Minato raised an eyebrow: "He just tried to approach me through the rope tree."
"I'm not surprised at all. When we were researching the Spirit Transformation Technique, he had intentionally or unintentionally praised me, taking the opportunity to express his appreciation for Tsunade, but I just ignored him."
Orochimaru chuckled softly, "As for his motives for approaching Tsunade, that's a matter of opinion. So, Minato-kun, do you want me to take care of him?"
"That's not necessary..."
Minato sighed helplessly, "But he really is a guy you can't like."
"After all, they're rivals in love." Orochimaru spread his hands, his tone teasing.
Minato ignored Orochimaru's teasing: "Could you help me find out how he became the Jonin leading Nawaki's team?"
"There's no need to check that; I was there during the Jonin meeting."
Orochimaru propped his chin up with one hand and crossed his legs: "Kato Dan has applied to become the Jonin leading Akimichi Choza, because he has a good relationship with that chubby kid and has even bought him snacks."
"However, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio has always been led by members of the Sarutobi family, so he had to settle for second best and apply to become Nawaki's teacher, using the same reason."
"Settling for second best?"
Minato's tone was cryptic: "Among the Konoha Jonin, he's probably the only one who doesn't know that the Sarutobi clan has led the Ino-Shika-Cho trio throughout history, right?"
"That's why I said his purpose was too obvious and his methods were too clumsy."
Orochimaru said playfully, "He's gotten so obsessed with women that he's made himself stupid, treating old men like his little fangirls. Minato-kun, you can't be like him~"
"..."
Minato sighed, "Thank you very much this time, senpai."
"Between you and me, saying thank you is too polite."
Orochimaru said calmly, "However, considering that Minato came to find me immediately, I'll leave that guy to me."
"Are we going to kill him?" Minato hesitated.
"How could that be?"
Orochimaru said meaningfully, "This kind of thing doesn't escalate to the point where people will die."
Minato seemed thoughtful, but didn't press the matter further.
He received a synchronized message from the wooden clone: Nawaki's test was over, and Kato Dan was treating them to dumplings.
After thanking Orochimaru, Minato left Root.
Watching Minato's departing figure, Orochimaru's eyes were unreadable. Then, he casually pulled out a notebook and wrote two lines:
1. Wood Release + Thousand Hands.
2. Wood Release + Whirlpool.
After thinking for a while, he remembered the relationship between the Senju and Uchiha clans and added another line:
3. Wood Release + Uchiha...