A few days later.
Tsunade and Jiraiya returned to Otogakure. Orochimaru was very cold towards the arrival of his two old comrades, because he knew the reason for their visit.
Their purpose was not pure, so Orochimaru did not plan to give them a friendly reception.
The moment he heard Jiraiya wanted to stay at his Sound Shadow's residence for a few days, Orochimaru refused without even thinking.
He not only refused Jiraiya's request, but also stated that the two of them, as outsiders, must accept surveillance by Otogakure if they wanted to stay in the village. Otherwise, he might have to expel them.
Hearing this, the two cursed Orochimaru for being cold and heartless. But Orochimaru was not swayed by this, his attitude remaining cold and firm.
Tsunade, angered, left the Shadow building directly. Afterward, she decisively headed to the Shadow's residence.
She originally wanted her dear younger brother to judge what was fair, but shortly after arriving at the entrance to the Shadow's residence, she was stopped by an Otogakure ninja.
"Do not ring the bell. The Shadow is not home. Who are you two?"
The speaker was a Chunin from the Otogakure Anbu. When Ryun was not home, they were responsible for guarding the residence.
"Isn't he cultivating at home? How could he not be here?" Tsunade said with a dissatisfied expression.
Ryun was currently inside the Kamui dimension. He did not want anyone to disturb him anymore.
"The Shadow informed the Sound Shadow days ago that he would be going out to cultivate. We received the mission to guard the Shadow's residence and periodically have people come to clean."
The Anbu Chunin spoke quite politely. He knew that anyone daring to ring the doorbell here must be acquainted with the Shadow, which is why he explained so much.
"Haha, according to the rules we set earlier, if you cannot move into the Shadow's residence today, no matter the reason, you lose. Tsunade, you cannot welch, you know. I have nearly ten million in savings." Jiraiya reminded with a smug laugh.
His "Icha Icha Paradise" was a bestseller, and he had earned a lot from the royalties.
Hearing this, Tsunade's face instantly turned red. However, she ignored Jiraiya for the moment and instead turned her gaze to the Anbu Chunin.
"Um, I am Ryun's sister. I came specifically to visit him today. So I want to go inside and wait for him to return."
The Anbu Chunin visibly stiffened upon hearing this.
"I am just a Chunin. I do not have the authority to decide. You two can stay at a nearby inn for now. If that really will not do, you can also go to the Sound Shadow. Only with the Sound Shadow's authorization can you enter the Shadow's residence."
"Orochimaru has already agreed to let me stay." Tsunade said, trying to push the door open.
"I have not received any orders. Do you have a letter of proof? If not, you are not permitted to enter the Shadow's residence." The Anbu Chunin's attitude suddenly became serious and resolute.
"Bastard, I am Ryun's own sister. Do you have a death wish? Daring to block me outside the door?" Tsunade grabbed the man by the collar and threatened him fiercely.
"Please let go. Otherwise, you will bear the consequences." The Anbu Chunin warned coldly.
"Huh? You..."
Before Tsunade could finish, several Anbu members with drawn swords immediately emerged from around the Shadow's residence.
"Who dares to cause trouble at the Shadow's residence?" A female Jonin holding a long needle shouted coldly.
"I recognize you. You are one of the Sword Bearers. I stayed at the Shadow's residence before. We met once, do you remember?" Tsunade suddenly became excited because she saw a familiar face.
The one who often guarded the Shadow's residence was the wielder of the Long Sword: Nuibari, a female Jonin who left a deep impression on Tsunade.
"So it is you. You are here to see the Shadow, right? He is not home." The female Jonin said, somewhat politely.
"Not home is fine. I will go in and wait. I stayed at the Shadow's residence for so many days. You should trust me, right?" Tsunade said with a smile.
She felt this round was secured.
But the next moment, the female Jonin's words made her smile instantly freeze.
"I trust you. Please present the order or permit from either of the two Shadows."
"I do not have a permit. Why would I need a permit to enter my brother's house? Ryun has already agreed to let me stay at the Shadow's residence again." Tsunade lied blatantly.
"My apologies. I can take you to the nearest inn." The female Jonin's meaning was clear enough.
Last time Tsunade came, she had the Sound Shadow's permission. Back then, she could stay as long as she wanted.
But this time, the Sound Shadow had not given the word, and Tsunade could not produce an order or proof. The female Jonin would absolutely not let her enter.
The Shadow's residence was an important place in Otogakure. Local villagers were not even allowed to linger for long in front of the door or behind the walls, let alone allow outsiders to enter.
"You. I already said Ryun agreed. Do not be unreasonable, you guys. Otherwise, I will have my brother deal with you." Seeing that soft tactics did not work, Tsunade could only brace herself and try hard tactics.
She had no money to pay the gambling debt. She neither wanted to pawn the emerald necklace to repay the debt, nor hand it over to Jiraiya.
"Please restrain yourself. Otherwise, you will bear the consequences." The female Jonin directly placed the long sword in front of Tsunade, her eyes and attitude extremely cold.
"Hey, I do not believe this today."
Tsunade rolled up her sleeves, ready to fight. But the next moment, Shizune quickly reached out and held her back.
"Lady Tsunade, do not do this. They are just following orders. Fighting them will alarm the entire Otogakure."
The mission this time was to gather intelligence. Causing a major disturbance here would be very detrimental to the subsequent mission. They might really get expelled.
"Bastards, just you wait. I will go get the order from Orochimaru right now." Tsunade spat out these words fiercely and left.
"Hey, hey, that does not comply with the bet. I will not acknowledge it if Orochimaru agrees." Jiraiya hurriedly said.
"Huh? You dare not acknowledge it? I will break your bones. We only said move in today. When did we say it required Ryun's agreement?" Tsunade was already full of anger, and now she vented it on Jiraiya.
"Do you even hear what you are saying? Entering someone's house to stay does not require the owner's permission? To win, you are throwing away all shame, right?" Jiraiya argued based on reason.
"I do not care. Being able to stay inside means winning. If you do not cancel the debt, see how I deal with you." Tsunade felt secretly pleased.
Unfortunately, when she saw Orochimaru again, she could not feel pleased anymore. Because Orochimaru clearly refused her request and warned them not to make unreasonable demands.
Tsunade, having hit walls repeatedly, was completely frustrated. She began causing a loud commotion inside the Shadow building. If Jiraiya, fearing the situation would escalate, had not proactively canceled the gambling debt to calm her down, Orochimaru might have truly expelled them from Otogakure.
"Hmph, I advise you to behave. Do not enter the Shadow's residence, and do not go near the Divine Tree. If you lose your lives, do not blame me for not warning you."
All five great nations wanted to gather intelligence on the Divine Tree. Ryun had been ordered by the Akatsuki organization to guard the Divine Tree. Anyone approaching without permission would be killed on sight. Those madmen from the Akatsuki would not be as polite as the Otogakure Anbu. If the two were caught disobeying the warning, it could truly cost them their lives.
The Akatsuki organization only obeyed Ryun's commands. Orochimaru simply could not control them.
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