"It's quite surprising that you know Medical Ninjutsu, Yuta-kun," Orochimaru remarked, a keen interest gleaming in his serpentine eyes.
His comment drew the attention of everyone in the room. While Yuta was already acknowledged as a super-genius among them, his proficiency in the rare art of Medical Ninjutsu was still a shock.
In the current shinobi world, no village truly recognized the strategic value of a medical-nin, and consequently, none invested seriously in training them. Even within the advanced ranks of Konoha, skilled medical-nin were exceedingly rare.
"Medical Ninjutsu requires precise chakra control," Yuta explained, finally releasing a long, weary breath as he finished healing the last of the wounded Uzumaki. "As you've all seen, that isn't particularly difficult for me. It only took a few attempts to grasp the basics."
"Hearing you say that is somehow both impressive and deeply discouraging," Orochimaru said with a wry shake of his head, withdrawing his intense gaze.
He had once vowed to learn every jutsu in the world, but maturity had taught him the painful lesson of limited time and energy. Choices had to be made, and Medical Ninjutsu was one branch he had consciously decided to forgo.
Beside him, Tsunade's expression was a complex mix of interest and self-reproach.
As a descendant of the Senju and the granddaughter of Uzumaki Mito, her connection to the Uzumaki clan was deeply personal; she considered them half her own kin. Tonight, she had watched helplessly as many of them fell to the Mist's blades.
'If... if I could use Medical Ninjutsu like Yuta,' she thought, the image of a mortally wounded Uzumaki child gasping for help flashing behind her eyes, 'could I have changed the outcome of the battle? If I were a medical-nin, those people wouldn't have had to die. I could save so many more on the battlefield!'
A new resolve hardened within her.
Comparing Yuta's abilities to the other Konoha medics she'd seen, it was clear his techniques were far more advanced. She had never witnessed that vibrant emerald glow or seen wounds knit themselves shut in mere minutes.
To learn this, she would need his guidance... which, a small, unacknowledged part of her whispered, would mean spending more time with him.
Her gaze flickered unconsciously toward Meyuri, who frowned in response, a strange, prickling feeling stirring in her chest.
"I've decided," Tsunade announced, her voice firm as she locked her burning eyes on Yuta. "I want to become a medical-nin. To provide timely treatment for my teammates, to ensure our combat strength endures, to play a crucial role on the battlefield—that will be my purpose as a shinobi—my ninja way. Yuta, please, teach me Medical Ninjutsu."
Orochimaru offered no verbal comment on Tsunade's declaration, but the subtle shift in his demeanor conveyed his quiet approval. Jiraiya, meanwhile, stood slack-jawed for a moment before bursting into action.
"I believe it, Tsunade!" he boomed, giving her an enthusiastic thumbs-up. "You'll definitely become an amazing medical-nin, just like how I'm an amazing ninja!"
"Idiot," Tsunade shot back, but a wave of quiet relief washed over her.
Orochimaru and Jiraiya were her teammates; if they had disapproved, she might have truly wavered in her decision, after all her becoming a medical-nin would affect their team. With their support confirmed, her focus returned entirely to Yuta.
Yuta wasn't surprised by Tsunade's decision itself. History would record her as the greatest medical-nin of her era. What did surprise him was the possibility that he was the catalyst.
'Was this the butterfly effect of my arrival here?' he wondered. 'Probably not... right?'
"Of course," he agreed readily. "I'll teach you everything I know."
The irony wasn't lost on him. In his life's simulations, he had mastered nearly all of her future techniques, save for the pinnacle secrets of the Yin Seal and Creation Rebirth.
Now, he would complete the circle by teaching them back to her. It was a perfectly closed loop.
Watching the genuine, grateful smile that spread across Tsunade's face, Meyuri finally identified the strange feeling in her heart. It was the unsettling sensation of her "home" being stolen right from under her nose.
It wasn't truly her "home" yet, of course.
'No,' she resolved silently, 'I absolutely cannot let Tsunade get ahead of me in this.'
"Yuta."
The voice of Uzumaki Ashina cut through the room, solemn and heavy.
The aged clan leader, who had been silent for so long, finally spoke again. "If the events of tonight had not transpired... I would never have agreed to Danzo's request. It is... an excessive demand. As a clan leader, I could not possibly consent to such a thing."
He paused, the weight of his next words seeming to bow his shoulders further. "But now... it seems I have no justification, nor the face, to refuse."
A single, massive question mark materialized in Yuta's mind.
'Old man! I mean, Elder! If you want to refuse, then refuse! What do you mean you 'have no face' to refuse?!'
'Besides, it was me who saved your clan, not Danzo! If you want to repay someone, repay me! Why are you thanking him ? Is it just because I'm his student, so you think granting his wish counts as repaying my debt?'
Yuta's mouth twitched. Looking at Ashina's utterly serious and guilt-ridden expression, he realized the elder was probably thinking exactly that.
'Fine... fine then,' Yuta conceded internally. 'If he agrees to whatever Danzo asked for in that letter and the old warhawk gets what he wants, it's still better than him being rejected, flying into a rage, and deploying his 'world-shattering wisdom' to concoct some truly catastrophic scheme.'
'Tch. Looking at it that way, my expectations for Danzo are pathetically low. I'm just asking him not to secretly use his brilliant, world-shattering mind to pull off a world-shattering disaster.'
If at all possible, Yuta had no desire to be pushed into the position of having to purge his own teacher.
What could he do? He was just that good of a student—one who respected his teacher and honored the Way.
"On the day you leave," Ashina continued, his voice a sigh of deep resignation, "I will have Uzumaki Hidehito and Uzumaki Ninren accompany you back to Konoha."
Though these two shinobi were not the clan's most outstanding, they were proficient in the Sealing Techniques Danzo so coveted.
Ashina knew the Shadow of the Leaf well enough to understand that the man would drain them of every secret they possessed. This had always been Danzo's goal. The true pity was that Ashina now felt he had no right to stand in his way.
Looking at it that way, he truly was a failure of a clan leader.
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