Yagyu Souma had no idea what kind of storm he'd stirred up at the Academy.
However—
A week later, when he returned to submit his study report, Tenten casually filled him in:
The Academy had held a special exam for both his year and the year below.
The Third Hokage had laid it out clearly:
Anyone who could score full marks on the written test and pass a second-round assessment like Souma's would be allowed to "graduate early" in the same way—
skip normal classes and pursue specialized training.
In the end, not a single person managed it.
Not even Neji.
And so, everything went quiet again.
Souma returned to the Medical Division.
"Sensei, I've finished Basic Pharmacology as well. I'd like to study something more advanced."
"Already?"
Kitayama Oki stared at him for a moment.
She looked him up and down, not quite convinced.
"You didn't just skim it, did you?"
"I remember everything."
"Big talk." She snorted. "Fine, let's see about that."
She took the pharmacology textbook from him, then smirked slightly and set it on the desk beside Medical Fundamentals.
Two books.
Oki flipped one open at random and began firing questions at him.
Souma thought for a second—
then recalled each point one after another.
Oki's eyes widened.
She shuffled between the two books, pulling questions from random pages in no particular order.
Souma still answered them all, calmly and precisely.
Half an hour later, she clicked her tongue in amazement, with a hint of regret.
If only he could use ninjutsu.
With this child's talent, he could've become a top-tier medical ninja.
That's what Oki was thinking.
Souma didn't mind at all.
The light orb had taken away his ability to learn ninjutsu…
but it had also given him something far greater.
And lately—he wasn't sure if it was his imagination—the orb felt slightly smaller.
"You're surprisingly optimistic," Oki said. "All right. I'll find something more suitable for you."
She turned around and pulled out a thick volume titled Anatomy.
After a moment of thought, she opened a drawer and took out a small box, retrieving a scroll from within.
"What's that?" Souma asked.
"The formula for our standard Soldier Pills. Starting next week, you'll study while attempting to make them yourself."
Oki smiled faintly.
Surprise and excitement flashed across Souma's face as he accepted the scroll and read through it carefully.
The formula wasn't complicated.
He memorized it quickly.
"Thank you, Sensei."
"Even though it's still anatomy, it's definitely different from the version I knew in my previous life…"
After finishing the book, Souma compared the three texts he'd gone through.
He now had a decent grasp of Konoha's medical system.
Although medicine and drugs were used as support, most battlefield treatment still depended on medical ninjutsu.
Surgical procedures were likewise integrated with chakra and specialized techniques, so the theories and workflows differed from his old world.
The one thing that truly caught his eye, though—
Was the Soldier Pills.
The current Soldier Pills are far too single-purpose, he thought.
Eating one filled your stomach and restored stamina at the same time.
Multifunctional, sure—
but easy to abuse and very expensive.
Sometimes a ninja didn't need a huge burst of recovery.
Other times, rapid recovery mattered far more than satiety.
They should be subdivided.
Souma shared his thoughts with Kitayama Oki.
She only gave him a small, noncommittal smile, but outwardly still encouraged him to be bold and experiment.
She also granted him permission to read any books in her office.
So for the next three days, he buried himself in texts about Soldier Pills and pharmacology.
On the fourth day, he entered the lab.
"Hyakusa."
"Yes, Kitayama-sama?"
"That boy is making Soldier Pills for the first time. Keep an eye on him. If he runs into any real difficulty, help him out."
"Understood."
Hyakusa glanced toward Souma.
He looked about twelve.
Very young.
In wartime, that hadn't been uncommon at all—
twelve-year-old chūnin were practically standard.
But in peacetime, it felt quite different.
So that's Yagyu Souma?
Curious, Hyakusa moved closer.
Then his eyes widened.
"Kitayama-sama…"
"What is it?"
Oki had been ready to go supervise the older students practicing medical ninjutsu, but Hyakusa stopped her. She thought something had gone wrong with Souma.
"No, his technique is perfect. But the ingredients he's chosen… don't match the standard formula."
Hyakusa was twenty-six, eight years older than Oki.
His medical ninjutsu wasn't quite at her level, but in the Medical Division he was still one of the standouts.
When it came to Soldier Pills, he could spot even the slightest deviation in ingredients.
Oki frowned.
"This kid's being reckless."
"His hands are very steady, though."
Hyakusa couldn't help praising him.
Every step Souma took was textbook-perfect.
His motions and timing were flawless.
The only issue was the herbs and materials—
they weren't exactly what the formula called for.
"Let's go."
Oki knit her brows and walked toward Souma.
By the time she reached him, Souma was already done.
He picked up the freshly made pill and lifted it toward his mouth.
"Wait!"
"Hmm?"
Souma turned and saw Kitayama Oki and Hyakusa.
He immediately understood why they were there.
"Sensei. Hyakusa-senpai."
"You altered the formula?" Oki asked.
"Yes. Since I'm still unfamiliar with the process, I wanted to start by reducing the rapid stamina recovery, and enhancing satiety and caloric value. Then I'll compare the effects and refine it step by step."
He calmly laid out his reasoning.
Oki frowned.
"You're being far too careless."
"They're all non-toxic ingredients," Souma replied. "So I figured I'd test it myself first."
Before she could say another word, he took a bite.
He chewed slowly, tasting carefully.
"…Not ideal," he murmured. "Let me think… Right. These two ingredients were too mild."
He began preparing another batch.
"You—!"
Oki was at a loss for words.
Hyakusa, on the other hand, picked up the half-eaten Soldier Pill, tore off a piece, and tried it.
His eyes lit up.
"Kitayama-sama, he's right. This version really does give a stronger sense of fullness, and it doesn't restore much stamina in the short term."
"Let me try."
Oki sampled a small piece as well, then stood there in thought.
He was right.
The satiety effect was clearly better.
"What's the cost?" she asked.
"I removed the two herbs responsible for rapid stamina recovery and substituted in chakra-compressed grain and dried meat," Souma replied smoothly.
"So the cost is less than half of the original. Still, no stamina recovery at all isn't ideal. I should add a small amount of—"
He continued to explain while his hands moved without pause.
Soon, another Soldier Pill was complete.
This time, he was confident.
"Please try this one, Sensei."
"Mm."
Oki grew serious, splitting the pill.
Then she split half of that.
She had to be cautious—the first half-pill had quite a strong satiety effect.
She tasted the new one, closed her eyes, and examined how her body reacted.
Her eyes opened, noticeably brighter.
This version—
The balance between hunger relief and stamina recovery was clearly better than the standard pill.
"And the cost?" she asked again.
"About fifty percent of the original," Souma replied. "We can then formulate a second type—high-speed stamina recovery with minimal satiety. That one can be sold at a higher price."
"That way, people spend less money overall."
Souma concluded simply.
Oki and Hyakusa exchanged a look—shock and mixed emotions in both their expressions.
None of this was particularly complicated.
If they'd truly focused on it, they probably could've come up with something similar.
But—
How long had this child been studying?
He'd been around Soldier Pills for three days.
In that time, he hadn't just mastered the standard method; he'd already thought of optimizing it, and from a thoroughly practical perspective.
Two variants, different roles, better cost performance.
Completely reasonable.
Simple… yet they had never bothered to do it.
After a long pause, Kitayama Oki said:
"Hyakusa, assist him in further research. Prioritize developing a variant that rapidly restores stamina with low satiety. Once it's done, Souma will draft the written report. You'll help him refine and correct it."
"Yes, ma'am!"
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