Tsunade didn't want to delve too much into her own past. Seeing that Ino already knew about Kato Dan, she brushed over his life story as if covering her ears to steal a bell.
She didn't even want to mention his name, simply referring to him as "he."
"He had a Secret Technique, which is now in my hands. Do you want to learn it?"
It must be the Spiritual Transformation Technique, right? Ino was very interested in this technique. The Spiritual Transformation Technique shared many similarities with the Mind Body Switch series of Secret Techniques. As the name suggested, it likely involved transforming oneself into a spiritual entity. Not only would it make it easier to cause trouble, but its lethality would also be formidable.
Kato Dan's death was probably due to attracting too much attention, with someone secretly plotting against him. If she was careful and didn't draw too much attention, this technique should be safe.
If given the chance, of course, she wanted to learn it.
"Yes, Teacher, I want to learn it."
Tsunade glanced at her subtly. Originally, she had planned to take this technique to her grave, but this disciple in front of her was too suited for the Spiritual Transformation Technique, whether in terms of talent for Ninja Techniques, Chakra, or Yin Release level.
Perhaps her late lover wouldn't want his technique to be lost to time? Tsunade sighed inwardly.
"You really want to learn it?"
"Yes, yes."
"Are you sure?"
Ino's expression turned strange. "Yes, I want to learn it."
Tsunade took a sip of wine casually. "Unfortunately, you can't learn it right now."
Ino nearly spat out blood. If I can't learn it, why did you even bring it up?!
Even though she had been drinking the whole time, Tsunade's mood became somber as she brought up this part of her past.
"After he passed away, I went through his belongings. The scroll containing this Secret Technique only had parts about Chakra flow and Hand Seals. The incantations and the Elixir components were lost with his death."
Ino nodded in understanding. Secret Techniques were like that. Back then, if it weren't for the promise to teach her the Vapor Explosion, the Second Mizukage wouldn't have explained the intricacies of the Water Transformation Secret Technique in full.
He had no choice but to explain; otherwise, Ino would never have been able to learn the Vapor Explosion. The two techniques were too closely related.
Now, with Kato Dan's death, much of the critical information about the Spiritual Transformation Technique had been lost.
Suddenly, Tsunade became bold. "Whether it's Ninja Techniques or Secret Techniques, they were all created by people in the beginning. If our predecessors could do it, so can we, their descendants. Little Ino, do you have the confidence?"
What confidence do I have?! Ino was utterly bewildered by Tsunade's question. She strongly suspected that her busty teacher was drunk.
Beside her, the pet pig Tonton nudged her twice and made a "puyo puyo" sound, as if urging her to respond quickly.
Ino's face darkened. As a transmigrator, do I really need a pig to tell me what to do?
She then imitated the passionate style of Might Guy and Rock Lee, shouting fervently, "I have the confidence!"
"Good! Then I'll—wait, actually, we can skip some steps. Here's what we'll do: use the Yamanaka Clan's Secret Technique on me—the Mind Body Switch Technique, right? Is that its name? Go ahead, use it on me once. Take over my body, and I'll take the opportunity to study whether we can improve the Spiritual Transformation Technique based on your foundation."
Shizune and Tonton, who had been playing nearby, suddenly quieted down. Both the human and the pig focused intently, watching how Ino would "confront" Tsunade head-on.
"Is it really appropriate to discuss such intense topics while soaking in the hot springs?" Ino hesitated, thinking it might be better for everyone to get dressed, find a quiet room, and then delve into the matter of the Spiritual Transformation Technique.
Tsunade, however, thought it was perfectly fine, and Ino had no choice but to go along with her.
"Alright, alright, I'm going in. Mind Body Switch Technique!" Ino formed hand seals and aimed them at Tsunade. In the next moment, her consciousness, wrapped in chakra, surged into Tsunade's mental world.
Tsunade didn't resist, stepping aside to let Ino's consciousness take over her body.
Ino took the lead, conversing with Tsunade within the mental world. While she couldn't discuss the training of the clan's secret techniques, she could talk about some of the external effects.
"What a peculiar technique. Does the Yamanaka Clan also...? Never mind, that's not important. The Yamanaka Clan's Secret Technique seems similar to the Spiritual Transformation Technique, but there's a fundamental difference. If my body gets injured, will yours also be harmed?"
Ino nodded. "Yes, because the secret technique connects the two. If your body gets injured now, my original body will also be injured. That's why the Yamanaka Clan has always been limited to intelligence-gathering tasks. In combat, we need the Ino-Shika-Cho Formation to support us."
Tsunade pondered this seriously for a moment. "Alright, you can leave now. I need to rethink the design of this ninja technique."
Her redesign took two days, leaving only five days until the Chunin Exams. Subtracting the day Ino needed to return, she had just four days left.
The trio and the pig had just left the Land of Tea when they were cornered by a group of debt collectors.
While they could fight back against ninjas, Tsunade adhered to the ancient rule of not using ninja techniques against ordinary people.
They had no choice but to run.
"Don't let them escape! The one with the biggest chest is Tsunade!"
Tsunade quickly wrapped her clothes around her chest twice.
"The one with the 'gambling' character on her clothes is Tsunade!"
Tsunade immediately draped her clothes over Shizune.
"Grab them! The one with the golden ponytail is Tsunade!"
Tsunade instantly transformed into a little girl, and the swarm of debt collectors went after Ino.
The trio and the pig scattered, eventually regrouping at the back of the mountain outside the town.
Tonton let out a series of exhausted "puyo puyo" sounds, and Ino sat on a large rock nearby, catching her breath. Wow, the thrill of running away from unpaid debts was exhilarating!
Tsunade had forbidden her from using ninja techniques or chakra, insisting that this was part of her body technique training. She could only rely on her physical strength to run, and now she was utterly exhausted.
Seeing that the debt collectors hadn't caught up, the trio and the pig collectively sighed in relief.
Drinking, gambling, being chased, and running away—discussing the Spiritual Transformation Technique in their spare time became their daily routine for the last four days.
Tsunade and Shizune were both too rigid; neither had Yin Release chakra. However, the Spiritual Transformation Technique required a high level of Yin Release chakra and Yin Release mastery. Over the past decade, they could only brainstorm wildly about the technique, unable to actually practice it. They couldn't even get past the first hurdle.
Ino's timely appearance filled the gap in their practical application.
In addition to her high level of Yin Release, Ino's impressive "Ninja Skill" stat of 10 grants her the insight necessary to contribute to the completion of this Secret Technique.
The Spiritual Transformation Technique is an S-rank soul Ninja technique that allows the soul to leave the body. However, the technique is currently missing several crucial components. The most critical issue is that once the user performs the spiritual transformation, there is a risk of becoming a pure soul. The connection between the soul and the body is severed instantly, turning the user into a wandering spirit. Within minutes or tens of minutes, the spiritual body dissipates, and the person dies!