As a disciple of the Third Hokage, it wasn't strange for Orochimaru to be recognized by the villagers, but what was strange was that this sense of familiarity made Orochimaru feel a connection.
Moreover, there was a very repulsive aura within the young man in front of him, and combined with the young man's familiar feeling towards him, Orochimaru decided to stay.
“I was planning to go gamble a few rounds after seeing Grandma, but this fish is grilled pretty well, kid.”
Seeing her two teammates sit down, Tsunade followed suit, took a bite of the grilled fish in her hand, and her eyes immediately lit up.
“As long as Lady Tsunade likes it.”
Bei Xuan poked the bonfire with a stick, making the flames burn brighter.
Subsequently, the five fell into silence; Minato Namikaze dared not speak and buried his head in eating fish, Jiraiya and Tsunade gnawed on their fish, Orochimaru stared at Bei Xuan, and Bei Xuan played with the bonfire.
“Ah, that's good. After eating military rations all the way, it's great to have such delicious grilled fish as soon as we return to the Village.”
The awkward atmosphere was broken when Jiraiya finished his grilled fish, though only Minato Namikaze felt this awkwardness.
“Are you returning to the Village from a mission, Lady Tsunade?”
Minato Namikaze, who was nearby, immediately asked when he heard someone speak.
“Hahahaha, of course! This great me is the beloved, flower-attracting, wise and mighty, handsome Jiraiya! Hahahaha!”
Upon hearing Minato Namikaze's question, Jiraiya immediately stood up and performed an exaggerated set of movements, finally putting his hands on his hips and looking at Minato Namikaze.
However, he soon saw three pairs of eyes looking at him as if he were an idiot; only Minato Namikaze's face showed surprise.
“Are you the disciple of Lord Third Hokage? So amazing.”
Minato Namikaze had naturally heard of Jiraiya's reputation. Jiraiya and Orochimaru were widely known among commoners, and many looked up to them as role models.
Minato Namikaze was naturally no exception.
“Hey, hey, hey, kid, I'm Jiraiya-sama! What kind of look is that?!”
Seeing Bei Xuan's idiotic gaze, Jiraiya immediately ignored his teammates and pointed at Bei Xuan, shouting.
“I know. I recognized you as soon as you arrived. I saw you peeking at someone bathing from afar before.”
Ignoring Jiraiya's shouting, Bei Xuan uttered this sentence expressionlessly.
As soon as Bei Xuan spoke, the atmosphere on the scene immediately changed. Minato Namikaze's surprised expression froze, and Tsunade clenched her fists.
As for Orochimaru, his face showed contemplation.
As for the person involved, seeing Tsunade clench her fist, he felt terrible and immediately waved his hands, shouting.
“Kid, you must have seen wrong! Tsunade, no, no, no! How can you believe this kid?!”
The scene that followed can be imagined.
Jiraiya's face was bruised as he sat by the bonfire, also playing with fire with a stick. Every time Bei Xuan went to poke the fire, Jiraiya would use his stick to block him.
“So you recognized us from the start?”
Orochimaru spoke his second sentence so far; cursing Jiraiya didn't count, that was his habit.
“Yes, Orochimaru-sama and Lady Tsunade.”
Bei Xuan nodded.
Minato Namikaze, who was nearby, immediately exclaimed in surprise upon hearing this.
“You are Orochimaru-sama and Lady Tsunade? Bei Xuan, don't you want to become an excellent Medical Ninja? You can ask Lady Tsunade; Lady Tsunade is the most amazing Medical Ninja!”
Bei Xuan glanced at Minato Namikaze, surprised that he remembered what he said at the start of school. However, Minato Namikaze's poor acting was quite amusing.
From the moment Jiraiya introduced himself, Minato Namikaze must have known who the others were. Saying this was just for Bei Xuan to talk to Tsunade. He truly was a Little Sun.
“Oh? The kid wants to become a Medical Ninja? Don't all you boys want to become cool Ninja? Your dreams are all about being Hokage or something.”
Tsunade was a bit surprised, not expecting this good-looking kid to want to become a Medical Ninja.
Nowadays, all these kids want to be Hokage, including her own foolish younger brother.
“Yes, compared to other things, I want to become a Medical Ninja more.”
“Why? It can't be just a casual remark, can it?”
“I want to become a very powerful Medical Ninja and then bring about changes to the current Medical Ninja system.”
Bei Xuan's words immediately caught the attention of several people.
“Tell me, what kind of changes?”
Tsunade became interested, putting away her smile and speaking very seriously. She, too, had a similar idea, but it was still in the planning stage.
“Ninja currently operate in squad mode. If a Medical Ninja were interspersed in each squad, would it not greatly reduce unnecessary casualties for many squads, for example...”
As he spoke, Bei Xuan's gaze fell on Tsunade and her two teammates.
“It's not realistic. Medical Ninja are generally not very strong, and every Medical Ninja is a treasure of the Village. This policy is very idealistic; not everyone is Tsunade.”
Before Tsunade could speak, Orochimaru spoke first.
“Medical Ninja are also Ninja, aren't they?”
Bei Xuan looked at Tsunade, wanting to know if Tsunade, who had not yet experienced the deaths of her brother and lover, would agree with this policy that she would propose in the future.
“Not bad, Medical Ninja are also Ninja. Kid, are you interested in learning from me?”
Tsunade did not directly agree with Bei Xuan's words but instead said.
“Eh? Tsunade is going to take this kid as a student? What strength could this kid, who only boasts, possibly have? He must be a weakling. You agree, right, Blondie?”
Jiraiya put his arm around Minato's back and said.
“No, Bei Xuan is very strong. At least, I haven't seen his true strength yet.”
In Minato Namikaze's opinion, becoming Tsunade's disciple would be a great opportunity for Bei Xuan. Minato Namikaze naturally couldn't let Jiraiya talk nonsense and negatively affect Bei Xuan.
“I didn't say I'd take him as a disciple; I just said I'd let him learn from me.”
Tsunade said at this point. Taking a disciple in the Ninja World was a big deal, equivalent to acknowledging a junior to whom one would pass on their legacy.
Bei Xuan also breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, as the teacher-student relationship in the Ninja World was truly difficult to evaluate.
“Thank you, Lady Tsunade, I accept.”
“Tch, Blondie, are you interested in learning from me? But unlike her, here it's direct apprenticeship.”
Jiraiya looked at Minato Namikaze and said very seriously. The moment he saw Minato Namikaze, Jiraiya was attracted by the young man's smile. Could this young man be the savior the Great Toad Sage spoke of?
Minato Namikaze looked at Bei Xuan, somewhat at a loss. In the past, he would have agreed excitedly, but after getting to know Bei Xuan, he greatly approved of many of Bei Xuan's views, such as respecting women.
Moreover, Bei Xuan had just said that Jiraiya peeked at people bathing, which shattered Jiraiya's image in Minato Namikaze's mind.
“Agree, Minato. He is a very excellent Ninja, just don't learn his other habits.”
Seeing Minato look at him, he understood Minato's concerns and thus spoke to persuade him. Although Jiraiya's personality wasn't great, he was indeed very good at teaching students.