novelhk Chapter 198 The Orphanage's Plight, the Children's Adoration
Chapter 198 The Orphanage's Plight, the Children's Adoration
Chapter 198 The Orphanage's Plight, the Children's Adoration (3k)
"My appearance may change, but I will always be your disciple."
Kiyoshi smiled slightly.
This is what they call "bonds".
Kiyoshi glanced at Yakushi Nono a few times.
Her figure was still as curvaceous as when she was in Konoha, but her face looked a bit more haggard.
You don't know the cost of firewood, rice, oil, and salt until you're in charge of the household.
Pharmacist Nono, who never used to worry about money, is now starting to worry about this thing.
Every additional mouth to feed in the orphanage means more expenses.
There were seventy or eighty children gathered in this room alone.
"Nonou, it's been a long time."
Tsunade, who was standing next to Kiyoshi, took the initiative to greet Yakushi Nonou.
The two had both worked together at Konoha Hospital and were acquainted, having had some academic exchanges.
"Tsunade."
Yakushi Nonou then shifted her gaze from Kiyoshi to Tsunade, who had a diamond pattern on her forehead and looked dashing.
However, upon seeing Tsunade, Yakushi Nonou did not show any joy.
On the contrary, her heart gradually sank to the bottom.
As the former top female spy of Root, Yakushi Nonou is intelligent and shrewd.
Kiyoshi and Tsunade were both fully armed, with fresh mud stains on their shoes and trousers, indicating that they were on a mission.
It was a very urgent task.
The difficulty of a mission that requires the accompaniment of Tsunade, one of the Legendary Sannin, is self-evident.
The safety of the Qing Dynasty...
"Dean, who is this older brother?"
A group of children huddled behind Yakushi Nonou, looking timidly at Kiyoshi.
Their identity as ninjas instilled fear in them, yet naturally aroused their curiosity and admiration.
They knew that there was only one ninja organization in the Land of Fire, and that was Konoha.
The ninjas of Konoha were constantly fighting off the invaders, and from their perspective, they were heroes.
Kiyoshi noticed the children's gaze and took the initiative to reach out and greet them.
Seeing that Kiyoshi wasn't the aloof ninja master he seemed, the children immediately felt much less restrained.
Some even dared to ask Seiji how to become a ninja.
"Being a ninja requires talent."
Kiyoshi patted the little girl's head.
"I'm sure I have that talent too!"
"Come on, it's me who has the talent to become a ninja."
The children played and frolicked, their eyes filled with anticipation for the future.
Seeing this, Qing Si said nothing.
To outsiders, being a ninja may seem glamorous, but it is actually one of the darkest professions.
Today, they are heroes who resisted foreign invaders.
However, even Konoha has made moves to steer the battlefield towards other smaller countries.
This is no different from being an aggressor.
The chaotic and disorderly situation in the Land of Rain, with its complex web of various factions, is the best illustration of this.
In the cruel world of ninjas, people are killed by other ninjas every day.
They were all just mercenaries who lived on the edge of death. Ninjas had immunity from killing, but if they were killed by enemy ninjas, it was simply the natural order of things.
The village will only provide a lump sum of compensation, and will only intervene if there is infighting within the country or among compatriots.
"Nonou-sensei, could we stay and rest for the night?"
Kiyoshi glanced back at the sky outside the door.
The atmosphere had already darkened as they talked.
If they can't spend the night here, he and Tsunade will have to camp out in the wild.
"Of course, no problem, there are still beds available."
Yakushi Nonou naturally wouldn't refuse Kiyoshi's small request.
She also invited Kiyoshi and Tsunade to have dinner together there.
The plump nun and an old caregiver were the only staff members at this orphanage.
The two of them went into the kitchen, leaving the dean to talk with the two new ninjas.
"Looks like he was the dean's former apprentice."
"The fat nun muttered to herself."
"Let's not talk about the past. You know the dean doesn't want others to know about his past."
The old caregiver glanced at the talkative, plump nun.
Both of them had received kindness from the pharmacist Nono in the past, so they volunteered to stay at the orphanage where the wages were low to help out.
Before long, the plump nun and the old caregiver returned carrying a cart filled with several buckets.
The plump nun served all the rice and soup to the children, and Yakushi Nonou also asked for a portion.
She clearly eats the same food as the children.
The items were very simple, and Qing Si took some as he went, following local customs.
He's not picky about food; he enjoys good food when he can, and it doesn't matter if he can't.
Tsunade, who was standing to the side, didn't seem to mind at all, and soon there were several empty plates in front of her.
This caused Yakushi Nonou's eyes to twitch slightly.
Tsunade's appetite remains as large as ever.
Kiyoshi remained calm.
Tsunade is indeed a hidden glutton. When Tsunade woke up after the battle with Pain, her amazing appetite shocked Shizune, who almost thought she wanted to eat Tonton as well.
Because chakra is essentially a mixture of physical energy and spiritual energy, and physical energy cannot be separated from food.
But a hint of sorrow flashed in Nono's eyes.
Kiyoshi grasped this point very well.
He continued eating as if nothing had happened.
In a corner, Kabuto secretly observed Kiyoshi.
He instinctively pieced together some information: Kiyoshi and the Dean had once been master and apprentice.
Unfortunately, before the pharmacist could spend more time tidying up, the plump nun and the old caregiver took the children to bed to rest.
The orphanage's rule is that lights out is at 9 p.m. sharp, and the children need to finish washing up several tens of minutes beforehand and then go to bed.
Kiyoshi and Tsunade arranged for a room on the second floor.
It can be seen that it was originally used to store miscellaneous items, but now that people have come, they have temporarily cleaned it up and made it available.
There were two clean and tidy rooms, the only drawback being that they were a bit small.
"Nonou-sensei, this is the cost of my and Tsunade-sama's lodging and dinner tonight."
The Qing official took out one thousand taels of silver.
Yakushi Nonou gently shook her head in refusal:
"It's alright, you can take the money back."
This amount of money isn't much; even an ordinary person could earn it back in a few days.
After realizing the importance of money, Yakushi Nonou learned that Kiyoshi was also short of money.
After all, Kiyoshi was just an ordinary member of the Uchiha clan, and she had relied on Root at the time, so she naturally didn't know how much the expenses of being a ninja would be.
"Dean!"
When the plump nun saw that the pharmacist, Nonou, refused, she couldn't help but shout, "We can no longer survive on the subsidies from the government and the village alone!"
"In the past, we were already grateful if the country and the village could provide any subsidies. This war, which seems to have no end, is burning the blood and sweat of the people every minute and every second."
The old caregiver then spoke up.
The two men looked worried, clearly showing they were genuinely concerned about the orphanage.
"Nonou-sensei, are you short of money right now?"
Kiyoshi asked, feigning confusion.
"Seiji..."
Yakushi Nonou wanted to speak.
The outspoken, plump nun interrupted Yakushi Nono, saying:
"The orphanage is already struggling to operate, especially today the director took in another child, which makes things even worse."
"I guess we'll have to go and discuss it with the government and the village again."
The old caregiver sighed.
He knew that the Land of Fire was not easy.
But these orphans have it tough too.
Or rather, the existence of war created such a large number of orphans.
Without the existence of orphanages, these orphans would have no choice but to steal or rob to survive, or they would die silently in a forgotten corner.
It's hard to imagine that such a cruel scene still exists within the Land of Fire, which prides itself on being one of the Five Great Nations.
These people at the bottom of society are the true face of the Land of Fire.
"I'll find a way to solve these problems."
Yakushi Nonou opened her mouth gently.
She seemed unwilling to show her embarrassed side in front of Kiyoshi.
Tsunade listened silently from behind, her mind a jumble of emotions.
"In that case, I'll give you all my money, Ms. Nonou."
Kiyoshi took out a sealed scroll.
That's the money that Tsunade and I split equally.
Yakushi Nono naturally declined.
She wasn't the kind of woman who liked to take money from others for no reason, especially since Qing Si was her former disciple.
What disciple ever gives money to their master?
She should be the one giving Kiyoshi money; this is a principle that Yakushi Nonou learned from a book.
People at the root have been trained to suppress their emotions, so the emotions they develop later are purer than those of ordinary people.
The fact that she could abandon all her status as a ninja and come to this place thousands of miles away to be an unknown orphanage director for the sake of her own idea shows just how remarkable she is.
"Nonou-sensei has given me so much, what are these compared to that?"
Kiyoshi placed the sealing scroll into Yakushi Nonou's palm.
"Dean."
The plump nun whispered a reminder.
As she tried to refuse again, Pharmacist Nono thought of the innocent children in the orphanage.
She just said she would find a way to get the money.
In reality, he was going to find Shimura Danzo and offer to become a spy again in exchange for money.
Once you step back into the ninja profession, it's not something you can just quit whenever you want.
Being able to withdraw even once is already a lucky outcome for her.
In a war where manpower is increasingly scarce, anyone could be conscripted, let alone an excellent ninja like her.
"Thank you, Kiyoshi."
Yakushi Nonou carefully accepted the scroll.
Tsunade, who was standing nearby, also took out her sealing scroll and handed it to Kiyoshi.
Yakushi Nonou looked up in surprise.
Tsunade said:
"This money was won by this kid anyway, so you can keep it."
After saying that, Tsunade went into her room alone.
Qing Si did not linger.
Yakushi Nonou sighed deeply.
Is this what is known as the "Will of Fire"?
Unconsciously, Yakushi Nonou has come to regard Seiji as a hardworking, earnest, and kind-hearted child.
No wonder Princess Tsunade of the Senju clan is with Kiyoshi.
It's worth noting that after developing hemophobia, this person rarely performed missions.
"Dean, quickly check how many there are!"
The plump nun spoke.
It's not that she's opportunistic.
Instead, the dean was responsible for providing funds, and she personally handled the bargaining and negotiations for things like purchasing food.
Therefore, they value every penny, because every extra penny means one more bite of food for each child.
"Six...six hundred thousand taels!"
After taking it out, the fat nun stared blankly at the money that poured out from the two sealed scrolls.
For every 10,000 sheets, a white ribbon is used to tie them together; there are a total of 60 bundles.
Yakushi Nonou stared in astonishment at the money on the ground.
The total reward for a single A-level mission is between 150,000 and 1 million taels of silver.
(End of this chapter)