Konoha's Mission Master

"This is my sister's boyfriend, so I can't accept your advances."

"Nonsense! Nonsense! When did I ever pursue you?"

Yakumo immediately and loudly denied it, saying that one shouldn't make things up, or it would be disastrous if one couldn't explain it clearly.

"Hahaha, just kidding, Minato, look how cute he is when he's serious." Kushina Uzumaki laughed without any regard for her image.

"Alright, Kushina, stop teasing him," Minato Namikaze said, stepping forward a few paces.

"Since you are Lady Tsunade's disciple, just call me Minato. Calling me Lady Minato is too formal."

"Let's go, let's go, let's go inside and eat." Jiraiya seemed impatient. Although Kushina Uzumaki had a bad temper, her cooking was impeccable...

"I really don't understand why that old pervert always arrives right on time every time I finish cooking..." Kushina Uzumaki complained.

Upon hearing this, Minato Namikaze smiled but remained silent.

Jiraiya pretended not to hear...

Yakumo seemed to be deep in thought, recalling Jiraiya's clearly purposeful frantic running on the road, and Minato Namikaze's guilty-looking smile.

There must be a mole inside...?

At the dinner table, Jiraiya devoured the delicious food without any regard for his image, while Kushina Uzumaki quickly served food to Minato Namikaze, creating a subtle sense of evenly matched competition between the two.

"By the way, what ninjutsu is Yakumo learning from his teacher? Is there anything I can do to help?" Minato Namikaze put down his chopsticks and asked with some concern.

"Ninja Art: Earthly Needle," Jiraiya mumbled in response, while continuing to eat.

"Yakumo, blink if you're being forced into this," Kushina Uzumaki said with a light laugh.

"What's wrong with the Earthly Needle? It has both offense and defense, and can be used for both close combat and retreat. It's practically perfect!" Jiraiya put down his chopsticks and muttered somewhat dissatisfiedly.

“Perfect…hhhh…that’s hilarious.” Kushina Uzumaki pretended to burst into laughter.

"Yakumo... that Jizo Needle... is a huge trap. After we finish eating, I'll have Minato teach you some useful ninjutsu."

"I think... Jiraiya-sama is right. Jizo Needles are both offensive and defensive, and can be used to advance or retreat. They are simply perfect."

"Although I really want to learn ninjutsu from Minato-nii, I have to go to Konoha Hospital to learn medical ninjutsu later... It seems like I might not have enough time."

Yakumo wiped the grease from the corner of his mouth and said in an extremely serious tone.

He enjoyed the meal; Kushina Uzumaki's cooking skills were just as perfect as Jiraiya had described.

"Yakumo, you are a true warrior."

Minato Namikaze spoke with utmost admiration.

"Haha, it's nothing really. It's just that my ninjutsu talent is poor. I'm already incredibly happy that Jiraiya-sama didn't look down on my clumsiness when I was learning."

"As long as you work hard... you will definitely succeed." Minato Namikaze smiled brightly and offered Yakumo a large bowl of freshly made chicken soup.

"Whether I succeed or not is not important. I only hope to use all the knowledge I have gained in my life to help every patient get rid of the torment of injury and illness." Yakumo's voice was calm, but the meaning he conveyed moved everyone present.

This is the mindset of a true healer: not seeking fame or fortune, but simply embarking on this arduous path to help others.

"Yakumo, well done!" Kushina Uzumaki exclaimed.

"It's what I should do..." Yakumo appeared extremely humble, but his gaze was so firm.

"Let's go, I'll teach you for another half hour at the training grounds, and then we'll go to Konoha Hospital. Don't let what they say fool you... the defensive power after mastering the Jizo Needle technique... is really strong!"

The backyard of Minato Namikaze's house is a very clean training ground. The round targets on the wall are covered with marks, which shows that Minato Namikaze's strength today is the result of countless days and nights of hard work.

"In addition to the various elemental chakras that are outwardly manifested, every ninja also possesses Yang Release chakra, which represents life force, and Yin Release chakra, which represents spirit. However, these two types of chakra are hidden extremely deeply. The Ninja Art: Jizo Needle is actually a ninjutsu generated by the nature transformation of Yang Release chakra. The first step in learning this technique is to sense the Yang Release chakra within the body..."

During that half hour, Jiraiya spoke more earnestly, even revealing a lot of knowledge about chakra nature transformations that only Jonin could master, so that Yakumo wouldn't be so confused about his future path.

Chapter 30 Wound Suturing

Konoha Hospital has four floors.

The first layer is responsible for headaches, fevers, or simple colds. However, since ordinary people in the ninja world also have chakra, they can recover from a cold within a few days without taking medicine, which means that the first layer is basically idle.

During wartime, the first floor would be converted into wards to house the wounded, while the second and third floors would house various operating rooms and observation rooms. The fourth floor would serve as the offices and consultation rooms for the hospital director and vice-directors.

When medical ninjutsu reaches a certain level, the assistance of medical instruments becomes less important in simple surgeries. Healing Palm Technique can treat all external injuries, and the Fine Blood Extraction Technique can be used to remove poisonous blood or bone fragments. Chakra Scalpel is also used when surgery is required.

While medical ninjutsu offers many conveniences, two things remain constant: understanding of the human body and medical knowledge. Only by combining these three can one be considered a medical ninja.

At 1 p.m., Yakumo stood in front of Reiko Aoyama's office door, took a deep breath, and knocked on the door.

"Dong dong dong."

"Come in…"

Click...

Yakumo was slightly taken aback.

Reiko Aoyama was wearing a white coat, and in front of her lay a shirtless middle-aged ninja. The scene... seemed a bit strange... like an operating room.

"Perfect timing... Yakumo, come quick... practical teaching."

Yakumo smelled the blood in the air and took two steps forward. He saw a knife wound about fifteen centimeters long on the middle-aged ninja's back. Fortunately, someone had already used the Palm Healing Technique to treat it, and now the wound was only bleeding slightly. Aoyama Reiko was stitching it up.

Does this...need to be disinfected?

Yakumo took two steps forward. The middle-aged ninja was simply lying there without any anesthesia. Aoyama Reiko manipulated the suture needles, which were quickly inserted under the skin, while her shadow clone was using the Palm Healing Technique to stabilize the situation.

Under the influence of the Palm Healing Technique, the cells in the newly sutured area are rapidly dividing and healing. In the ninja world, there are only two types of medical ninjas: those who have mastered the Palm Healing Technique and those who have not.

"This suturing technique is called the Noor suture method. Its characteristic is that it leaves very few scars and is very beneficial for the natural healing of the wound..."

"Here we need to insert the needle back... adjusting it along the lines of the skin and muscles. In cases where the wound is relatively wide, double needles are required..."

Reiko Aoyama, wearing a mask, looked serious, but kept instructing Yakumo on her stitching techniques, while the injured middle-aged ninja's expression worsened...

"Have you learned it?" Aoyama Reiko suddenly asked after completing four-fifths of it.

"More or less," Yakumo replied.

“Go over there and disinfect your hands. You can try the remaining one-fifth…” Aoyama Reiko suddenly said.

"This isn't a good idea, Aoyama-neechan," Yakumo said hesitantly.

At this moment, the middle-aged ninja lying on the operating table looked even uglier. He could tolerate being used as a teaching material, but to actually use him as practice material... he couldn't stand that.

"Dean Aoyama, isn't this a bit inappropriate? He looks like a novice; isn't it a bit inappropriate to test his skills on patients directly?" the middle-aged ninja asked politely, though his tone carried a hint of dissatisfaction.

"There will be a next time... I'll waive your surgery fees." Aoyama Reiko spoke calmly and coldly.

"Brother, come on, my greatest strength is that I'm not afraid of pain." The middle-aged man's expression immediately changed.

"This..." That's a really fast change of expression.

"I'll give it a try." Yakumo went to the disinfection room next door and began to clean his hands very carefully.

Personal Skills

Passive: Norman's Stitch 0/50 'Acceleration'

Without hesitation, Yakumo spent 500 gold coins to max out his skills. When he looked up again, his eyes were no longer hesitant but instead calm and composed.

Sometimes that's how geniuses are born...

After the Noh-style suturing technique was upgraded to perfection, it did not provide any attribute bonuses. However, Yakumo felt that his hands seemed to have become more dexterous, allowing him to perform many delicate operations that he could not do before.

Yakumo pushed open the door and returned to the operating table.

“I’m about to begin…” Yakumo said.

Aoyama Reiko, who was using the Palm Healing Technique, looked at Yakumo, who was in a meditative state, and a hint of doubt flashed in her eyes.

She sensed that the young man in front of her had undergone some inexplicable change. His composure and calmness were not at all like those of a novice. Instead, he appeared calm and collected, like an invincible war god returning to the battlefield. His nonchalance did not seem like a pretense.

"Go ahead and practice, he won't die as long as I'm here."

As Yakumo grasped the slender suture needle, a sense of proficiency immediately welled up within him. It was as if his muscles had undergone countless trials and tribulations, and the perfect suture path and the final stitch naturally appeared before his eyes the moment he held the needle.

Upon closer inspection, Yakumo discovered that the middle-aged ninja in front of him had many scars of varying sizes, some of which were even fatal. These were marks left from past missions... This was the norm for ninjas.

Yakumo withdrew his gaze, his eyes focusing.

The first injection was inserted smoothly.

Before the middle-aged ninja could even feel any pain, Yakumo had already completed three stitches. His suturing speed was much faster than Aoyama Reiko's. He didn't need to think about each stitch... he didn't hesitate at all when he stitched each one, yet the resulting suture path had a strange beauty.

Reiko Aoyama's eyes widened in shock. She realized that her suturing skills were far inferior to those of the child in front of her. Her eight years of hard work had been utterly crushed in this moment. She even turned around to compare her newly sutured wound with the child's, and the difference in skill was immediately apparent.

“How is this possible…” Aoyama Reiko lost her composure.

Ten minutes later, Yakumo stopped.

His complexion remained calm, not even to the point of sweating. His physical strength allowed the medical ninjutsu of the ninja world to perform even more intensive medical work.

The wounds on the middle-aged ninja's back had all been stitched up, and Reiko Aoyama was using Healing Palm Technique to finish the job. Under the nourishment of the green light, most of the wounds had healed, and he only needed to rest for a few more days to be completely cured.

Yakumo took off his gloves, intending to reach out and help the middle-aged ninja, but to his surprise, the ninja had already sprung up in an instant. Despite his reckless act, the wound on his back did not reopen.

This was undoubtedly a reminder to Yakumo... that this was no longer the world he knew...

The middle-aged ninja calmly put on his clothes and left the operating room without even wrapping them with bandages. Under the guidance of Aoyama Reiko, Yakumo washed his hands.

The two went to the office next door. As for the operating room, there would be nursing staff to clean and disinfect it. Medical ninjas of Aoyama Reiko's caliber would be honored guests no matter which ninja village they went to.

"Is this your first time experiencing the Norman suture technique?" Reiko Aoyama gripped her pen tightly, her slightly white knuckles a testament to her inner turmoil.

"Indeed... it doesn't seem difficult to learn. Perhaps while I lost my ninjutsu talent, I gained other special skills... such as easily mastering the Noh-style stitching technique."

Chapter 31 The Art of Extracting Subtle Ailments

Inside the office.

Aoyama Reiko's emotions became very strange. She was clearly very excited, but she clenched her fists and tried to control her emotions. After Yakumo finished speaking, he waited quietly to the side.

After a long time, Aoyama Reiko regained her composure; at least in Yakumo's eyes, she had returned to her usual cold and rational Dean Aoyama.

"Before that surgery, I had thought of training you as my successor and passing on all that I had learned in my life... but now I'm starting to doubt whether my meager achievements are enough to qualify me as your teacher."

“Sister Aoyama, I am still just an ordinary person with only basic skills on the path of medical ninja. Of course you are qualified to be my teacher, and I also hope to guide my training.”

An ordinary person… Reiko Aoyama was stunned…