While Natsuo was lost in his thoughts and ideas about how to awaken his Sharingan, the class ended.
Natsuo gathered his things and prepared to leave the classroom.
As she finished tidying up her things, she could see out of the corner of her eye Minato, who was sitting next to her, being approached by a girl who invited him on a date.
Looking at Minato's uncomfortable face, Natsuo chuckled and sighed at the children of this world.
Having chakra in their bodies, the bodies of children training to be ninjas grow at a faster rate and appear older than they actually are.
For example, in this class, the children appear to be 10 years old when they are actually only 7 years old.
And when you think that many much younger children were already killing people almost daily, it wasn't very strange that they would look for a partner at a young age.
While Minato tried and failed to find words to reject the girl, Natsuo paid no further attention to the matter and withdrew, abandoning his friend.
Looking back and seeing Minato's face, with his eyes pleading for help, Natsuo smiled at him and gave him a thumbs-up.
'Good luck,' Natsuo muttered through gritted teeth, retreating and leaving Minato's face betrayed.
Natsuo left the classroom and headed towards the academy's exit.
As he left the academy, Natsuo sighed when he could no longer see Tsunade.
The blonde beauty hadn't appeared at the academy since her younger brother had graduated, and Natsuo could no longer feast his eyes on her beauty.
Didn't I mention it?
Almost halfway through the year, Nawaki had graduated early.
Even now, Nawaki's name was still heard at the academy, and the children were jealous because Orochimaru, the Third Hokage's disciple, had taken him as a disciple.
Since then, the boy had become the talk of the village, surprising everyone, and many in the village were already saying that he would follow in his grandfather's footsteps.
Natsuo didn't know if they meant becoming a powerful ninja or dying in mysterious circumstances.
Without giving the matter any more thought, Natsuo left the academy and headed towards the orphanage.
He had to go to the Uchiha clan hospital in the afternoon and needed to drop off his things before then.
.
.
.
Time passed quickly and the second year at the academy came to an end.
While the children jumped for joy because they were on vacation, Natsuo was happy because he had finished his experiments on the muscles and tendons of mice.
Until now, he had been able to safely increase a mouse's physical capabilities by 60% and 70% with minimal consequences. A week of rest was enough for the mice to recover.
Beyond 70%, there would be lasting effects on the mice's bodies, and Natsuo decided to study another topic because he didn't see that he could make further progress in a short period of time.
What is your next research topic?
The bones.
Natsuo didn't believe he could manipulate bones like the Kaguya clan members in a short period of time, but what he was looking for now was to strengthen the bones.
One of the reasons he could not advance further in his experiments on muscles and tendons was because the bones of the mice could not withstand the increase in muscle mass for very long.
At the Uchiha clan hospital, Natsuo and his companions began receiving instruction on muscles, tendons, and bones, with muscles being the first thing they started learning about.
Since he was already ahead of his colleagues at the hospital, it was no problem for Natsuo to start his experiments with bones on the bodies of mice on his own.
So, excited about his next project, Natsuo headed to the orphanage. Since he didn't have to go to the hospital for the next few days, Natsuo would spend his time on his experiments.
Unfortunately, Natsuo had to postpone his experiments when he found Sanjiro waiting for him at the orphanage.
The man came with great news for Natsuo and told him with a big smile.
The matron beside him also had a smile and looked at Natsuo with a proud smile.
"...and with the clan leader's approval, you can now become Princess Tsunade's disciple."
Hearing Sanjiro's words, Natsuo could only smile.
While the other children at the orphanage congratulated him and showed envy, Natsuo was crying inside because he could already see that he would be in trouble in the future.
As Tsunade's disciple, it was very possible that he would be sent to war as a medical ninja.
.
.
.
With a sigh, Natsuo entered the village hospital and looked for a receptionist.
"...and after turning to the right, you'll find Miss Tsunade's office," said the receptionist after Natsuo asked her for help finding his new teacher.
The hospital was overflowing and busy with patients. Whether civilians or ninjas, they all needed the hospital's services.
Natsuo had to dodge many people on his way to the fifth floor and reach Tsunade's office.
Toc Toc
"Enter"
After knocking on the door, Natsuo heard Tsunade's voice giving him permission to enter the room.
After opening the door, Natsuo could see Tsunade directly… eating?
Wanting to see who was looking for her, Tsunade looked up from her breakfast and found a child.
Tsunade's eyes showed doubt for a moment before opening wider as she remembered her master's request.
A few weeks ago his teacher had asked him to take on a disciple, and a few days ago he reminded him of it.
Since Tsunade had been busy these last few days, she told her master to send the boy to fetch her from the hospital.
Looking at the calendar on her office wall, Tsunade remembered that today was the day she was supposed to meet with her disciple. But because she was so busy, she had forgotten about it.
"Sit down," Tsunade said as she increased her speed to finish her breakfast.
She had spent the previous night in various operations, so she had taken advantage of this moment to eat before going to sleep.
But upon seeing the child, Tsunade knew she would have to stay awake for a few more hours before going to sleep.
"I'm sorry for not looking for you in person, but the hospital has been very busy for the past few months," Tsunade said.
As a teacher, Tsunade should have sought out her disciple at their first meeting, but she has been so busy that she hasn't even had time for herself.
"Alright Tsunade-sama, I've heard there have been several clashes on the borders," Natsuo said as he sat down.
"I'm glad you understand," Tsunade said and began to introduce herself.
"I am Tsunade Senju, I like medical Ninjutsu..."
Tsunade began to list her likes and dislikes, just as Kakashi did with Team 7.
Natsuo noticed that Tsunade didn't mention liking to gamble or drink alcohol, and wondered if it was because it was their first meeting or if she hadn't yet fallen into those vices much.
When Tsunade finished her presentation, Natsuo responded in kind.
"I'm Natsuo Uchiha, I like medical ninjutsu, I don't have anything I specifically dislike, and my dream for the future would be to be the best medical ninja in the world."
Upon hearing her disciple, Tsunade smiled and compared Natsuo to her teammate, as both had suffered the loss of both parents and dedicated themselves to training.
While Orochimaru focused on Ninjutsu, Natsuo focused on Iryojutsu.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Natsuo. From now on, I will be your teacher."
"Please take care of me, Master Tsunade," Natsuo said as he bowed slightly.
"Alright, first I want to test your knowledge," Tsunade said, and Natsuo nodded, ready to answer.
During the next 30 minutes, Tsunade asked various questions, and Natsuo answered them after thinking about it for a while.
Satisfied that Natsuo had the basic knowledge for his future learning, Tsunade stopped asking questions.
A short time later, Tsunade and Natsuo left the room and headed to another room where Tsunade would test Natsuo's practical skills.
In a small laboratory, the door opened and Tsunade and Natsuo entered behind it.
Natsuo scanned the laboratory and, in addition to some medical equipment, he also found several cages with mice living in them.
"This laboratory is used to train medical ninjas in training, so it's sufficient to test your current skills," Tsunade said after waiting for Natsuo to check the room.
Natsuo nodded and followed Tsunade to the table in the center of the room after she took a mouse from the cages.
As Natsuo stood to one side of the table, he watched Tsunade knock the mouse unconscious before creating a chakra scalpel on a finger and opening several wounds on the mouse's body.
With the injured mouse's body in front of him, Natsuo began to heal it.