"I'll be straight with you. You've been looking after Tatsuma and Minato for a while now, so you get first pick."
A few days later, Jiraiya returned from his mission and was immediately called out by Tsunade. Hearing her question, Jiraiya fell into a deep silence. After a long pause, he finally spoke.
"I'll take Tatsuma. Minato is lower maintenance; he's probably a better fit for you. How does that sound?"
"I don't need your charity," Tsunade replied, her voice dripping with dissatisfaction as she noted the forced hesitation on his face. Jiraiya's "sacrifice" made it sound like he was certain she would be a terrible teacher.
Jiraiya looked at her skeptically, wondering if she was baiting him into a trap. But seeing the genuine seriousness in her eyes, he let himself truly weigh the options. Tatsuma and Minato were both brilliant; they learned everything at a frightening pace.
But if he had to choose who truly belonged as his disciple... the answer wasn't Tatsuma, despite their "shared interests." It was Minato.
He believed that the relationship between a master and a disciple should be one of mutual completion. Tatsuma was too much like him. If Jiraiya trained Tatsuma, the boy would simply become another Jiraiya. Given Tatsuma's talent and temperament, he would likely become a powerhouse regardless of who taught him.
But if Tsunade trained Tatsuma, she might be able to polish away the "thorns" he shared with Jiraiya. Under her tutelage, Tatsuma might lose some of his rougher edges, but he would gain the refinement necessary to surpass Jiraiya entirely.
Minato was the opposite. His personality was too soft. If he stayed with Tsunade, he would never gain the necessary "edge" a shinobi required. Minato was like a smooth river stone; Jiraiya needed to grind him back into a jagged, lethal blade. The risk, of course, was that either boy might break during the reforging process.
But, Jiraiya thought, if a teacher doesn't aim to make their student surpass them, what's the point of taking a disciple at all?
Having found his answer, Jiraiya looked back at Tsunade. "Minato. I'll take him. Sakamoto Tatsuma is yours, Tsunade... just make sure you don't waste his talent."
Seeing that he had finally stopped playing games, Tsunade nodded. "Fine. Go tell the kids. Consider it settled. Orochimaru already filled me in on the situation outside the village. There's no point in dragging this out."
Jiraiya nodded. "I just came from the Old Man's office. It's confirmed. Senior Sakumo's mission is moving forward—likely right after the New Year."
"Understood. I'm ready to move whenever."
Tsunade stood up, gave a dismissive wave, and left. Jiraiya remained behind, finishing the sake she had just paid for.
The next day, Tatsuma and Minato crossed paths on the road to the Senju Estate. Tatsuma noted the hesitant, slightly melancholic expression on the blonde's face.
"Jiraiya-sensei talked to you too, huh?"
Minato nodded. "Yeah. I just didn't expect our team to disband after less than a year."
Hearing the melancholy in his voice, Tatsuma laughed and patted his shoulder. "We'll always be comrades, Minato. We're just not in the same squad anymore. Unless... now that you've hitched a ride on a Sannin's wagon, you're planning on ditching your old teammate?"
"I would never!" Minato protested, then broke into a smile. "You're right. As long as we have time, we'll still train together. And hopefully, we'll get to run missions together again soon."
"That's the spirit. You aren't built for that 'brooding thinker' look."
Their steps lightened. Minato added, "By the way, Sensei mentioned he's holding a small apprenticeship ceremony before the New Year. He's inviting quite a few friends. You should check with Tsunade-sensei; if you're having a ceremony too, we should make sure the dates don't clash."
"Got it. I'll let you know once it's set."
A month passed, and the New Year loomed. Many ninjas had returned to the Leaf for the holidays. Tatsuma received a formal invitation from Minato to attend his apprenticeship ceremony.
For the past few days, Minato had been training exclusively with Jiraiya. Tatsuma, meanwhile, remained at the Senju Estate, enduring Tsunade's grueling curriculum.
After another day of training, Tatsuma—his body aching in places he didn't know existed—sat down to play cards with Tsunade. After winning two rounds and harvesting a few attribute points, he noticed the familiar dark cloud beginning to gather on Tsunade's face.
To distract his teacher before she reached the "table-smashing" stage of tilting, Tatsuma proactively took over the shuffling duties and changed the subject.
"By the way, Sensei, are you planning on holding an apprenticeship ceremony? I heard Jiraiya-sensei invited a ton of Jonin. He's probably going to rake in a mountain of gifts. Once those Jonin head back out for missions after the holidays, you won't get another chance like this for a long time. You're just as famous as he is; you can't exactly let your first disciple's debut be a quiet affair, right? Oh, look at that—Blackjack. I win again."
Tsunade had looked disinterested at the mention of a "ceremony," but the word "gifts" made her eyes snap open. She hadn't taken a mission in a year, and her wallet was currently gasping for air. If she weren't so broke, she'd be at the gambling halls right now instead of playing for push-ups with an eight-year-old.
She reached for the cards, not even looking at them before Tatsuma flipped his hand.
[Ding! STR +3, ENG +2. Would you like to pick up?]
[Pickup.]
Tatsuma began shuffling again. "When is Jiraiya's official ceremony?" Tsunade asked.
"Tomorrow. I heard he booked the entire afternoon at Yakiniku Q."
Tsunade gritted her teeth, muttering to herself, "Must be nice being that rich."
Tatsuma flipped his cards again. He didn't get a system reward this time since he hadn't complimented her, but he didn't care. "I've already prepared a new set of ninja tools as a gift for Minato. I'm planning on skipping dinner tonight so I can really get my money's worth at the buffet tomorrow."
"What are you preparing a gift for?" Tsunade asked.
Tatsuma blinked. "Uh... for the ceremony? It's for Minato."
"Return it. You don't need to give a gift tomorrow."
A rare smile—one that wasn't born of rage—spread across Tsunade's face. Tatsuma was baffled. "Sensei, we're friends. It would be weird if I didn't bring something for his big day."
"Just return it. You'll understand why tomorrow."
Tsunade waved him off, suddenly in a much better mood despite her losing streak. She sat up straight and rubbed her hands together. "I can feel it. My luck is turning. Stop talking and deal!"
"As expected of you, Sensei. To be able to sense something as ethereal as 'luck'... but, uh, Blackjack."
"DING!"
"ARE YOU CHEATING?!"
The next day, Tatsuma arrived at Yakiniku Q and finally understood why he didn't need to bring a gift.
He stood in front of the restaurant, mouth agape. A massive banner hung over the entrance. Originally, it had read: "Jiraiya's Apprenticeship Ceremony."
But someone had taken a brush and added a few very aggressive, very bold characters to the front. The banner now read:
"TSUNADE & JIRAIYA'S APPRENTICESHIP CEREMONY"
Tatsuma stared at the ink, which was still slightly damp.
"...As expected of you, Sensei... truly... efficient."