Return to Konoha

Before the story, I need to complain: Sakura was swooning over Sasuke again in chapter 69. Enough already! For the moment when Sasuke killed Sakura, I thought we were finally free of her, but it turned out to be Genjutsu... What other manga has such an annoying heroine?! Sasuke is getting less likable too. I have no idea what he's thinking all day!

Here's what actually happened:

Sasuke: It's been years! I've waited year after year, and this is how you treat me?!

Kishimoto: What goes around comes around.

Sasuke: You authors are really something. When you can't keep a story going, you just turn a supporting character into the boss, no matter how brain-dead the plot twist is!

Kishimoto: It's fine. Bleach is still there to make us look better.

Sasuke: Give me a chance!

Kishimoto: What chance?

Sasuke: My whole family was killed before, and I had no choice. Now I want to be a good person.

Kishimoto: Fine. Ask the editor and see if he'll let you be a good person.

Sasuke: So you're telling me to die?

Kishimoto: Sorry, I'm a manga artist!

All right, the story starts now.

After Kazahana Dōtō was defeated, Kazahana Koyuki became the Land of Snow's new ruler with the support of Asama Sandayu and the others.

The geothermal generator continued to work normally, bringing hope of warmth to the cold country. It was easy to imagine that the Land of Snow would one day become a warm land full of life.

It seemed everything should have ended happily there.

However, a few loose ends still needed to be dealt with. For example-

The next morning, in the castle newly renamed Wind and Snow Castle.

"Mr. Asama, although you've signed the confirmation that the mission is complete, in principle, according to the mission assignment, we still have to protect Koyuki until filming is finished. Otherwise, our superiors might think we used Genjutsu to trick you into signing the confirmation," I said to Asama Sandayu, holding the mission confirmation.

"How could that be allowed?! Her Highness Kazahana Koyuki is now the ruler of the Land of Snow. How could she continue to be an actress?!" Asama Sandayu refused without hesitation.

"Director, if you need a leading lady, I can send people to find you a girl in the Land of Snow who's willing to act in your film. And as for you," Asama Sandayu said, turning to me, "I'll write a letter and seal it with the Land of Snow's seal, explaining everything to Konoha, including such trivial matters as raising the mission's rank!"

"Lord Asama, Princess Snow is the perfect lead for our film in temperament, looks, and acting. How could just any girl replace her? Please reconsider-" the director said anxiously.

"I'm sorry, but this is the one thing I cannot agree to-"

"-I agree!" Princess Snow suddenly walked over and joined our conversation. "Uncle Asama, I've decided to finish making this film!"

"Y-Your Highness! You're the sovereign of a nation. How can you act in a film?!" Asama Sandayu said in anguish. "Before, it was only a temporary measure, but now you represent the image of the entire Land of Snow! Your Highness, please think this over!"

"I've given it careful thought, Uncle Asama!" Princess Snow said firmly. "Sakura noticed something yesterday. I don't know if you've noticed it too, but since yesterday, the area the geothermal generator can turn green has gradually stopped expanding!"

"That's right," I continued after Princess Snow. "The geothermal generator's output is limited. Turning this much of the Land of Snow from ice and snow into green land is already its limit... I think that's why His Highness Sōsetsu didn't use it right away back then. The geothermal generator still needs further improvements!"

"Is that so...? But so far, the ice has melted on less than a quarter of the land!" Asama Sandayu said helplessly.

"So you either have to keep improving the geothermal generator and increase its output, or build three more generators. Only then can you melt all the ice in the country... But either choice will require a great deal of money! What the land you've thawed can produce is enough to make up for the Land of Snow's food shortage, but it still won't bring in enough money..."

"But... what does that have to do with the princess acting in a film?"

"Of course it has something to do with it! We can use the film to promote the Land of Snow's beautiful scenery and develop tourism!"

The idea had actually come to me on a whim. Yesterday afternoon, after I told Koyuki that the geothermal generator didn't have enough capacity, I'd also helped her analyze the Land of Snow's strengths and weaknesses. Of course, I didn't know the specifics of governing a country, but I'd come from Earth, after all. After seeing all sorts of things online, my horizons were a little broader, and I had a few more ideas.

The Land of Snow had a small population, backward agriculture, and few resources of its own. Even if it did have resources, they couldn't be surveyed or developed while they were covered in ice and snow all year round. It couldn't compare at all with the warm, fertile Land of Fire, and its primary and secondary industries would have a hard time growing. The Land of Snow's only distinctive features were its year-round icy climate and snowy scenery. Thus, developing tourist attractions and the tertiary sector became a solution when there was no better one.

I explained to Asama Sandayu what Koyuki and I had discussed.

"Tourism?" Asama Sandayu said in surprise. "The Land of Snow is covered in ice and snow all year round. What scenery is there worth seeing?"

"Mr. Asama, perhaps you've lived in the Land of Snow for so long and seen so much ice and snow that you don't think there's any scenery here," I explained with a smile. "But outsiders, especially people from the warm Land of Fire and Land of Wind, rarely get to see this much snow, much less such vast, beautiful snowy landscapes! As long as this film is shot in the Land of Snow, its unique scenery can be shown to people all over the world. It's sure to attract lots of visitors who've heard about it! That will bring the Land of Snow a lot of vitality and wealth!"

"Because this film is so important," Princess Snow added, "I have to take part myself! A real princess playing a princess in a film is sure to be a fantastic selling point! The more influential this film becomes, the better known our Land of Snow will be!"

"Besides, I plan to take this opportunity to visit every part of the Land of Snow myself and see how its people are living! That's something I must do to be a worthy ruler!"

After hearing Princess Snow's words, Asama Sandayu didn't object anymore. Instead, his eyes grew moist.

"P-Princess Snow, sob—you've grown up!"

Asama Sandayu took off his glasses and tried hard to wipe the tears from his face as he spoke through sobs.

"Your Highness Sōsetsu, do you see? Princess Snow has become a fine ruler!"

As Kazahana Dōtō's forces in the Land of Snow were further purged, Princess Snow's filming proceeded smoothly without interference from enemies. Although the script was revised again and again, the director's superb direction, Koyuki's excellent acting, and our Ninjutsu-mainly Naruto using Shadow Clones as extras-kept shortening the filming schedule.

I didn't know how long it took to make a film on Earth, but this final installment of Princess Gale's Great Adventure was completed in less than two weeks. To me, that was godlike speed.

Since there were no threatening enemies left, we didn't sit idle during those two weeks. We took advantage of the Land of Snow's unique climate to train too-mainly Haku and me, the two who could use Ice Release.

As I'd said before, I'd been practicing Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals, Haku's unique secret technique, since the Chunin Ninja Exams. But it wasn't until after the exams, when I became Tsunade's disciple and received some guidance from her, that I could barely use the Ninjutsu. Apart from Haku being self-taught and unable to teach, another important reason I'd struggled so much was that I had never fully mastered ice nature transformation.

Some time ago, after training wind nature transformation to a certain level, I'd solved the problem of producing ultrapure water and turned my attention to practicing Azure Water Release and stockpiling ultrapure water, setting aside the two nature transformations I'd just learned. I'd practiced Water Release shape and nature transformation every day since I was six, seven years by now, and could be said to have reached the pinnacle. As for wind nature transformation, I'd only practiced it for half a month and could barely be considered somewhat proficient; I'd only trained in Ice Release Ninjutsu during the Chunin Ninja Exams, and I'd never seriously trained ice nature transformation at all!

Haku was very displeased that I was neglecting Ice Release training.

"When you were training your unique Water Release before, it was your foundation and trump card, so I didn't say anything," Haku said to me with a stern face. "Now you've more or less perfected Azure Water Release and the Water Gun Technique. Isn't it time you learned Ice Release from me?"

There's no end to training Azure Water Release and the Water Gun Technique! I forcibly swallowed those words.

I knew perfectly well that Haku wasn't trying to interfere with my training. She was simply in an unfamiliar Konoha and wanted a close friend she knew to spend more time with her, while I just didn't have the time.

I could only smile apologetically. "All right, all right, Haku. Let's go train in Ice Release Ninjutsu together!"

"I already taught you some basic Ice Release during the Chunin Ninja Exams. You should have gotten some feel for it, so let's do some more advanced training next! The Land of Snow's unique environment should help you master ice nature transformation!"

Could an environment with lots of ice and snow really help with ice Chakra Nature Transformation? I had my doubts about Haku's theory. By that logic, wouldn't windy places be good for training wind nature transformation, and wouldn't soaking in water make water nature transformation training faster?

Sasuke also took the opportunity to spar with Haku a few times.

This was their first match as fellow Konoha Ninja since their bout in the Land of Waves. Both had changed a great deal, but Sasuke's improvement was more noticeable.

Not only had his Sharingan evolved to Futatsudomoe, but he'd also learned Chidori and used Lightning Release to activate his body, greatly increasing his speed and making his Taijutsu stronger. In short, apart from Genjutsu, he'd grown several times stronger in every respect.

Haku's progress mainly lay in the theoretical knowledge she'd gained, making up for her previous weakness in that area, and she'd also learned quite a few Wind Release Ninjutsu from me. I'd helped her practice Chakra control extensively as well, greatly increasing the speed of her Taijutsu and Ninjutsu.

During their fight in the Land of Waves, Sasuke had nearly been beaten to death by Haku, but now their fighting strength was evenly matched.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

On the field, Sasuke and Haku constantly darted past each other, the sound of Kunai clashing with Senbon ringing out without pause! Both were incredibly fast ninja. Sasuke had Lightning Release activating his body, while Haku's already impressive speed had risen another level after her Chakra control improved. Add the unpredictable movements of Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals and the Sharingan's exceptional ability to track motion, and their movements were fast to the extreme! They were truly evenly matched, and I watched from the sidelines in a daze!

Clang!

After another exchange, both leaped back at the same time! Haku was already breathing unevenly, while Sasuke still had strength to spare. It looked like Haku had lost!

"Huff, huff! I didn't expect you to be able to match or even surpass my speed after just over a month!" Haku said, panting heavily.

"Hmph..." Sasuke's lips curled up smugly. "You're just improving too slowly... Besides, I'm an Uchiha! I'm the fastest one on Team 7!"

After saying that, he even glanced at me, openly looking down on my speed!

"Tch! What's the use of just being fast?" I said with a pout. "You still can't do anything if you can't break through someone's defenses!"

"Then let's try it with Chidori!"

"Kakashi-sensei said we're not allowed to use Chidori against teammates!" I made a face at Sasuke. "Besides, I'm afraid you really might break your hand on impact!"

"All right, all right, both of you, enough," Haku said with a gentle smile. "Sasuke, let's continue!"

We trained while accompanying Princess Snow as she filmed. In the blink of an eye, two weeks passed, the film was finished, and our mission finally came to an end.

After saying goodbye to Princess Snow and Asama Sandayu, who were reluctant to see us go, we hurried back to Konoha without stopping.

"Sakura, Sakura!" We'd just returned to the mission desk to submit our report when I heard Shizune calling me.

I put away the mission payment and asked Shizune in confusion, "What's wrong, senior sister?"

"Huff, huff!" Shizune panted. "Master needs you urgently! I ran over as soon as I heard you were back in the village! Hurry and see her. She's at Konoha Hospital!"

"All right." I sighed inwardly that Tsunade really wouldn't give me a moment's free time. "Well then, Haku, Naruto, Sasuke, let's split up!"

Konoha Hospital, Lee's room.

"Master Tsunade, what did you need me for so urgently?" I asked Tsunade.

"Sakura... I need you to do me a favor!" Tsunade said, looking at me.

"Huh? What is it?"

"Lee's condition... requires surgery to remove bone fragments embedded deep in his nerves!" Tsunade said gravely. "So I need someone with extremely fine Chakra control as my assistant! Of everyone I can find in Konoha, you're the only one who's suitable!"

I'm going to operate on Lee? I froze!

"But, but I don't know Medical Ninjutsu yet!"

"You don't need very advanced Medical Ninjutsu! I'll teach you the basics, and during the operation, you just need to follow my instructions! Lee's injuries can't wait any longer, so the operation is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. Counting time for rest, we have one hour left. You must put everything into learning what I teach you, because Lee's life is in your hands!"

Tsunade put both hands on my shoulders and stared at me. "Remember, we can't make a mistake. Otherwise, Lee may never be able to get off the operating table!"

Tsunade, Lee, and Might Guy all stared at me! Now that things had come to this, how could I refuse?

"I understand. I'll do my best!" I took a deep breath!

Tsunade dragged me straight into an operating room. "For the time we have left, I'll teach you how to safely remove bone fragments from the nervous system! All you have to do is practice and practice until you don't make a single mistake! We don't have a second chance. The nervous system is fragile. If you make one mistake and sever a nerve, Lee may never be able to stand again!"

Tsunade took out a scroll, summoned an animal's spine, and placed it on the operating table.

"We'll use this for a demonstration first. I've already driven bone fragments into the nerves in the spine. Now watch how I remove them!"

Over the time that followed, I began my first real study of Medical Ninjutsu under Tsunade!

We started with tedious practice on animal bones, using Chakra to move the nerves aside, wrapping the fragments in ultrapure water to round them off and keep their sharp edges from cutting the nerves, then gently removing them. The process looked simple, but in practice, gently moving such fine nerves aside without damaging them was already extremely difficult, and removing the fragments was even trickier! The difficulty of the operation lay in the fact that the bone had splintered into many tiny pieces, potentially hundreds of them, and they all had to be removed in one operation!

At first, I couldn't remove even one fragment. Without enough knowledge or experience, I would often accidentally pull too hard on a nerve and sever it. Still, although such delicate work on nerves and bones was very difficult, my strong foundation in Chakra control allowed me to get the hang of it quickly. What followed was painful, repetitive practice. I had to overcome the fatigue of concentrating intensely for long periods and make sure I completed the task accurately every time! Finally, Tsunade brought out an actual human corpse to train our ability to work together. We took turns leading the procedure while the other corrected any mistakes, or one of us moved the nerves aside while the other removed the fragments!

For a full hour, I ate and drank in the operating room. After that grueling training and a few short breaks, my proficiency improved rapidly, and my ability to concentrate grew considerably too! At first, I made mistake after mistake after removing about ten fragments in a row. Later, I could remove dozens, take a short rest, and then continue working. It was hard to believe I'd managed to reach that point... After spending the entire night in the operating room, Tsunade finally announced at first light that the preparations were complete!

I collapsed onto the bed in the rest room and fell asleep the moment my head touched the pillow!

At five in the afternoon, I woke up on time.

"You're awake...?" Tsunade handed me a white coat, a mask, and a surgical cap. "Are you ready?"

I put on the mask and cap and glanced at the mirror in the operating room.

In the mirror, a long-haired girl's face was covered, leaving only a pair of beautiful, bright eyes visible!

"I'm ready..." I lowered my eyes and spoke slowly.

When I opened them again, the girl in the mirror had eyes full of confidence and pride!

"Let's begin, Lady Tsunade!"