### Chapter 6: Clearly, This Is a Panacea!
"You got the forbidden drug formula from Orochimaru?"
Kyouko asked.
If there were forbidden drugs, he could indeed quickly enhance his strength.
The Akimichi clan were experts in this field, though they didn't call them forbidden drugs, but legally produced secret pills.
For example, the Three Colored Pills: the Green Pill could increase a person's strength by one-third, and the Yellow Pill could completely release the user's potential.
The final Red Pill was claimed to be able to stimulate a hundred times one's potential.
Of course, Kyouko thought that was an exaggeration; if they were truly that powerful, the Akimichi clan would have long been the number one clan in the Ninja World.
However, earning such a title already showed that their clan's secret pills were extraordinary.
Kyouko was very curious about what effects the forbidden drugs known to the Missing-nin Kyouko would have.
"I got some."
The Missing-nin Kyouko said.
"But most of them are very harmful to the human body."
When the Missing-nin Kyouko said this, he sounded somewhat rueful.
Although they brought power far greater than an average Jonin, he had to take medication for life to mitigate the side effects. He stepped on the explosive tag because he had an attack of his illness at that moment.
"Then tell me about the ones without harm."
Kyouko said.
"Strictly speaking, all secret pills are harmful. The difference is whether it's permanent or temporary, and whether you can recover."
"Elaborate."
The Missing-nin Kyouko glanced at Kyouko. As expected of his past self, he had no qualms about such methods.
After all, orthodox ninja gained power through diligent training, following the so-called "Way of the Ninja."
But Kyouko had to leave for Kannabi Bridge in three days. Even last-minute cramming wouldn't yield much; sharpening his spear right before battle would at most grind off some rust.
If he wanted to take a shortcut, naturally he had to use unconventional methods.
"Go take out a loan right now."
The Missing-nin Kyouko said.
"Why take out a loan?"
Kyouko was surprised. Were these drugs very expensive?
"Whether you can survive is still unknown. What's the point of keeping these things? Better to convert them into things that increase your chances of survival."
The Missing-nin Kyouko shook his head, his tone sounding a bit frustrated with Kyouko's lack of ambition.
He had suffered this loss himself.
Damn it, his defection was too rushed, and Orochimaru gave him absolutely no time to run.
By the time he realized it, he had already fled Konoha, leaving all his possessions in the village, which were eventually legally confiscated!
"Ninja can't get much in loans, right?"
Kyouko had never tried to take out a loan.
For a high-risk profession like being a ninja where you could die at any moment, let alone loans, even insurance companies probably wouldn't dare to cover them.
Konoha, possessing various technological creations like refrigerators, TVs, and utility poles, actually had a high degree of modernization, it was just that people's thinking was still relatively traditional and conservative.
He had thought about borrowing money from all the Uchiha a few days before the Uchiha Clan Massacre. Once the Uchiha clan was "automatically deregistered," the debts wouldn't need to be repaid.
Kyouko believed in Itachi Uchiha's professional capability; he would inevitably leave only his brother Sasuke alive.
"Loan as much as you can."
The Missing-nin Kyouko said.
You're going to the battlefield, and you're not even going all out with six sets of gear?
"This is a sure-profit deal. If you die, the debt dies with you. If you live, just do a few more missions, and you'll earn the money back."
Kyouko thought about it, and damn, it actually made sense.
But this was equivalent to going "all-in."
Going all-in is a kind of wisdom, but not many people can choose the right moment.
After all, no one knows the difficulty of a mission; one can only judge based on the mission rank.
But a C-rank mission could suddenly turn into a B-rank mission, and an A-rank mission could become as easy as a C-rank mission due to the enemy's careless mistake.
Just like this Kannabi Bridge mission—everyone thought that with Minato Namikaze there, the mission would definitely be completed.
In fact, Minato Namikaze did complete the mission.
But who knows if they themselves are the price to be paid?
No matter how strong Minato Namikaze was, he couldn't look after everyone. Normal people wouldn't think they would be the ones to die, so very few ninja did things like taking out loans.
Only someone like Kyouko, who knew the plot in advance, could use this information asymmetry.
Kyouko pondered for a moment, then rummaged through his boxes and cabinets, taking out everything valuable in his house.
Using these as collateral, he managed to loan a total of 650,000 ryo.
No one was willing to lend Kyouko more than that; even unsecured loans weren't an option.
This was only possible because Kyouko's credit in the village was decent and he was lucky.
As a lowly Genin, in their view, his death rate was still quite high.
Adding his previous savings, he had a total of 700,000 ryo, which was already a considerable sum.
Immediately after, under the guidance of the Missing-nin Kyouko, Kyouko went to purchase some medicinal herbs and tools.
In Konoha, the Nara and Akimichi clans were deeply rooted in the medicinal herb industry; one could even say they monopolized many businesses.
The former, the Nara clan, owned a large area of woodland and raised spirited deer with intelligence, whose antlers were highly valuable medicinal ingredients.
The Akimichi clan excelled in various medicinal formulas. In the original story, even Tsunade had borrowed the Akimichi clan's prescriptions, which was enough to prove their value.
Plus, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio were allies with an extraordinary relationship, so the Nara and Akimichi clans were truly a powerful alliance.
"Hiss, these herbs are really expensive."
Kyouko had just gotten the loan money, and before it could even warm up in his pocket, more than half was gone.
"Expensive for a reason. These forbidden drugs can minimize side effects to the greatest extent. If you control the dosage well, at most you'll have occasional headaches for three months, and nothing else after that."
The Missing-nin Kyouko said.
These were the few good things Orochimaru threw out after he had followed him for a long time.
For Orochimaru, his eyes were only on Sasuke.
This was also good news for the Missing-nin Kyouko: he didn't have to worry about Orochimaru stabbing him in the back.
He would rather have a cold kunai enter his body than Orochimaru's soul.
"Three months? That's acceptable."
Kyouko was very satisfied with this effect.
How was this a forbidden drug? This was clearly a panacea!
"Hey kid, what are you buying so many herbs for?"
Hearing this, Kyouko turned around. Two dark clouds loomed over his face, revealing a full curvature.
He estimated visually; they were huge.
Combined with the purple rhombus mark on the woman's forehead and her long blonde hair, her identity was obvious.
Tsunade!
"Lady Tsunade."
Kyouko spoke respectfully.
Currently, Tsunade had also returned to Konoha.
With Konoha facing a life-or-death crisis, naturally, Tsunade couldn't just stand by and watch.
On the eve of the outbreak of the Third Great Ninja War, she had even treated Minato Namikaze who had collapsed in the Third Training Ground.
It wasn't that she stayed outside the village and never returned after Dan Kato died.
This matter was recorded in the official manga *Minato Gaiden*.
"I bought these to make my family's secret medicine."
Kyouko said.
He didn't say anything like a family member or friend was sick.
Those excuses wouldn't fool Tsunade; better to say something normal.
Ninja wouldn't probe too deeply into each other's information.
Sure enough, Tsunade didn't ask further.
She curiously asked about another matter, saying:
"Kid, I just saw you taking out a loan over there. How did you manage to get a loan?"
Tsunade's tone carried a hint of urgency.
She had lost some money again and urgently needed some capital to win it back.