Chapter 328: Questioning and Obedience
Inside the exclusive practice field of the Medical Corps.
A figure shuttled between mobile wooden stakes, undergoing arduous and dull taijutsu combat training.
These specially made wooden stakes have movable bases at the bottom, telescopic mechanisms in the upper part, and launch tubes that can fire kunai; competing against them, one might be hit and injured if even slightly careless.
However, no matter how these wooden stakes attacked, that figure shuttling within could precisely dodge them, although the dodging was somewhat wretched.
After a while, Shizune came to the practice field and turned off the wooden stakes.
She then brought a towel and a drink to the field: "Yakumo, your combat practice for today is enough, take a break first!"
Undoubtedly.
The one practicing taijutsu in the practice field was no one else but Yakumo.
After taking Yakumo as a disciple, in Tsunade's initial arrangement, she was prepared to first teach Yakumo the basic knowledge of medical ninjutsu.
However, Yakumo's several encounters with others exposed her shortcoming in taijutsu.
Adding to that, Orochimaru and the Akatsuki organization's coveting of Yakumo caused Tsunade's vigilance, so Tsunade decisively gave up the decision to prioritize teaching Yakumo medical ninjutsu and instead arranged taijutsu-related training for Yakumo to enhance her actual combat capability.
After wiping her sweat, Yakumo asked Shizune: "Shizune-senpai, where did you just go?"
"Guess!"
Shizune playfully raised her eyebrows.
Yakumo shook her head and said: "I can't guess."
Shizune smiled and said: "I went to gather intelligence for you! You should have heard of it too, this time to deal with you, those geniuses in the shinobi academy have already joined forces!"
"It doesn't matter!"
Yakumo deliberately put on an indifferent look, but that wandering gaze instantly betrayed her true thoughts.
Clearly, she still cared a lot about this matter.
Defeating all the geniuses of the same period and making a name for herself in the shinobi academy was her long-cherished wish; she failed at the final step last time, and she would not miss the opportunity this time.
"True, with your current strength, their joining forces should not have much effect." After a pause, Shizune said again: "But then again, those few children are not simple! It's just you; if it were any other child, facing the three of them joining forces at once, they probably wouldn't have a single chance."
Yakumo opened her mouth, but in the end, she chose silence.
She originally wanted to ask Shizune what kind of tactics Shinji and the other three had arranged, but on second thought, if she asked, wouldn't it be a sign of a guilty conscience.
"I will defeat them fairly and squarely this time!"
Yakumo returned the towel and drink in her hand to Shizune, preparing to practice for a while longer.
Looking at Yakumo's diligent appearance, Shizune secretly nodded: "To have such stunning talent and still be able to work so hard, Lady Tsunade really didn't misjudge her!"
Long after, Yakumo, who finished her day's training, returned to the Kurama clan's compound under the secret protection of a team of Anbu.
After washing up, just as she lay on the bed, Shinji's voice sounded in her ear.
She immediately got up and respectfully said: "Leader!"
After simply inquiring about the training tasks Tsunade had assigned to Yakumo, Shinji turned the topic to Naruto: "Regarding Jiraiya's hope that you can assist him and help with Naruto's training together, I want you to find a suitable opportunity to agree."
Yakumo was slightly startled, her face somewhat hesitant.
Seeing that Yakumo did not immediately respond, Shinji asked: "What, do you have any questions?"
...
Yakumo timidly asked: "L-Leader, you aren't going to take action against Naruto, are you?"
After becoming Tsunade's disciple, Yakumo had heard some information that only the upper levels of the village knew, such as the fact that the Akatsuki organization's goal was the Tailed Beasts of each village; she heard this from Tsunade.
Therefore, she was somewhat worried about Naruto.
Shinji said in a deep voice: "What if I am? Are you going to refuse my order?"
Yakumo's heart immediately hung in suspense, and her whole being fell into tension and fear.
Shinji did not make a sound but waited quietly for Yakumo's answer.
His Rinnegan project had officially begun. At this critical juncture, he needed all the forces under his command to cooperate fully, rather than needing the patience to explain anything after he issued an order.
About a minute later, Yakumo answered with a trembling voice: "I will execute your order!"
"Very good."
Shinji's tone was indifferent.
Yakumo breathed a sigh of relief, her whole body felt as if she had collapsed, as if a whole day of training could not compare to the tension of that one minute just now.
What Shinji needed was Yakumo's attitude of obedience, so after Yakumo guaranteed to execute the order, he did not continue to test anything and simply said: "Just this once, I don't want to see you questioning my orders again. Besides, Naruto is not my target."
"Yes!"
Yakumo quickly answered.
"Be prepared and wait for my next notification!"
After Shinji finished speaking, he cut off the Jikibi link.
Then he glanced at the night scene outside the window. Seeing that the night was late, he went to the bathroom. While showering, he went through the plan in his mind.
The pair of fully damaged Mangekyo Sharingan in Karin's eye sockets, according to the current estimate, might only take one to two weeks at the fastest to completely recover.
So within these two weeks, Karin must finish acting out that play with Haku.
Because he had to guard against Jiraiya or others visiting Karin to avoid bumping into her secret fusion of the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.
Only by finishing the play ahead of time and receiving potential visitors in advance could he ensure that the subsequent fusion could proceed smoothly and safely.
"It's best to have Karin and Haku act out the play within this week. As for the Hidden Leaf Hospital's side, I can help Karin provide cover..."
In the Hidden Leaf Hospital, although there were top-tier medical shinobi like Tsunade.
But Shinji had already paid attention and confirmed that the ordinary injured in the village did not need shinobi of Tsunade's level to take action. Additionally, Tsunade had been busy with Yakumo's matters recently and had not directly faced injured patients for a while.
So as long as Karin and Haku acted the play well, there should be no problem with the hospital side.
As for Jiraiya.
Although he was strong, he did not have dojutsu after all. In a non-Sage Mode state, he also did not possess extraordinary sensory abilities. So even if he went to visit Karin, he probably wouldn't be able to discover that pair of fully damaged Mangekyo Sharingan in Karin's eye sockets that were in a closed state.
"After Jiraiya finishes his visit, I'll have Yakumo agree to assist him. By then, his energy will be entirely on Naruto, and he probably won't be able to spare energy to focus on Karin..."
Then, Shinji thought of the Grass shinobi.
But he quickly skipped over it because, due to the village's previous investigation, the intelligence system planted by the Grass shinobi in the village had suffered severe damage. They had not contacted Karin for at least two months, so there was no need to worry about them jumping out to disrupt the situation for the time being.