Encounter

Based on the intelligence gathered so far, they could have wrapped up this mission halfheartedly, but Orochimaru felt that as a test for the Hokage's disciples, that would clearly be a failing grade.

But as he had said before, mutual probing was ultimately something done beneath the surface. They could not enter the Land of Lightning or take more extreme actions based on this alone. Senior Akimichi would not agree, nor would their teacher.

It was not that they could not do it, but that it was not worth it—at least, not yet.

The Red Eye family and the family suspected of possessing Steel Release had likely already entered Kumogakure. Pursuing them into the Land of Lightning would be meaningless and could easily provoke conflict.

So Orochimaru believed they should wait. Since Kumogakure was broadly gathering Kekkei Genkai Families and had deliberately arranged for them to pass through the Land of Soup, there would always be a next time, another group. Perhaps another migrating family would arrive in the Land of Soup next month. As the most prosperous city on the road to the Land of Lightning, Kumogakure would presumably prefer to pass through the Land of Soup.

"We'll stay in the Land of Soup. Senior Torifu Akimichi hasn't set a time limit for the mission. Another group may pass through later."

Lying low without exposing themselves and waiting for an opportunity was the most reasonable choice. In any case, Senior Torifu Akimichi did not seem to be in a hurry.

No, or rather, Torifu Akimichi would probably be delighted to stay here for half a year...

But Tsunade and Jiraiya were both far too restless. He needed to find something for them to do.

"By the way, Tsunade, we still have plenty of time. I heard that a highly skilled physician has recently arrived in the Land of Soup, possibly a Medical Ninja. Want to take a look? We might gain something from it."

Sure enough, Tsunade looked interested. She hesitated before saying, "A Medical Ninja unaffiliated with a shinobi village? Interesting..."

Jiraiya anxiously said, "Orochimaru, don't tell me you're trying to create an opportunity to be alone with Tsunade."

Orochimaru looked at Jiraiya as though he were an idiot. This fool could not even figure out who his rival was. No wonder he would never win Tsunade. He had not cared at all when Orochimaru went to Kabukicho, yet now he was getting worked up over this...

"Someone has to remain in the capital of the Land of Soup. The three of us all have Summoned Beasts, so we can support one another with Reverse Summoning if anything happens. Keep an eye out for groups entering or leaving with elderly people and children, men and women, the kind traveling with their whole families."

This arrangement should be fine, right?

Orochimaru thought.

"But, Tsunade..."

"??" Tsunade looked at Orochimaru.

"The timing of your appearance just now was really convenient..."

Early the next morning, the Kumogakure group began preparing breakfast. To help Old Man Jishi work faster and focus solely on examining and treating patients, they did everything they could think of.

Someone even suggested adding some Soldier Pills to breakfast so Old Man Jishi could replenish his Chakra and speed up treatment. But considering his age, they feared "Soldier Pill" might become "ice-cold funeral" and send the old man off for good, so they had to abandon the idea.

Old Man Jishi himself was quite enthusiastic. Whenever he saw someone working, he wanted to lend a hand. But naturally, no one would let him actually do anything. That would be more agonizing than doing it themselves. In the end, Jishi and Dada could only sit in the courtyard and chat.

"Grandpa Jishi, what was the name of that ninjutsu you used yesterday?" Dada put on his "elderly-person slayer" expression and asked with a grin.

The Yotsuki Clan elders had all been won over by that face.

"That technique? Let me think. It's called the Art of Life Peering."

"What an amazing ninjutsu. Can it directly see inside the human body?"

"Not just human bodies. It works on most things. For example, like this..." Jishi formed a hand seal with one hand, then picked up a dead branch from the ground with a faintly glowing finger. The branch became semi-transparent, its patterns and fibers clearly visible.

"But seeing inside rocks or other things is not very useful. This old man generally uses it to treat patients, so I named it the Art of Life Peering..."

That was awesome plus! It could even see through other things!

He then looked toward Anzai Mamoru, the half-Medical Ninja beside him, who wore an equally shocked expression.

"So what are we doing today?" Dada asked curiously.

"For today... hmm, let's try this."

Dada watched Jishi slowly form three hand seals. Then, the dead branch in his hand visibly became plump and moist, before tiny new shoots sprouted from it.

"This... is called the Art of Life Restoration. It transforms Chakra into life force and injects it into another body. Of course, it does not have to be a human, but one must understand the corresponding structure..."

This seemed very similar to the Mystical Palm Technique? No, not quite. The Mystical Palm Technique seemed to stimulate the patient's own healing ability. If this technique truly injected life force as Old Man Jishi claimed, then the principle seemed different.

"Could this be Yang-nature Chakra?" Dada asked.

"No. The Art of Life Restoration must use Neutral Chakra..." Old Man Jishi inserted the branch with its green shoots into a nearby potted plant and slowly said, "Your body has likely accumulated some injuries from prolonged 'hunger.' Aside from refining more Chakra, you also need treatment. It is like how simply eating is not enough after starving for too long—you also need to recuperate."

Dada breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well! But I'm old, and I don't have much Chakra left. Demonstrating it for you just now used up all my Chakra. Let's eat first and talk tonight..." Jishi shakily rose and walked toward the dining table, where the attendants had already prepared a lavish breakfast.

Dada nearly fell flat on his face. That was it? His Chakra was already gone?

You were already out of juice right after waking up, and he had to wait until tonight!? Why not demonstrate it directly on him...

Yet Old Man Jishi looked like he could be invited to a funeral feast at any moment. Everyone was anxious, but no one dared rush him.

They definitely had to find a way to bring someone like this back to the village...

And if they truly could not bring him back, they at least had to preserve these two techniques and his Medical Ninjutsu experience. Dada suspected that, in the original timeline, the Art of Life Peering and the Art of Life Restoration had been lost precisely because Old Man Jishi had died obscurely in a small village in the Land of Soup.

Thinking about it, it was not only the Art of Life Peering and the Art of Life Restoration that had faded into obscurity or been lost. The Shinobi World was constantly wracked by turmoil, yet geniuses emerged in abundance. Who knew how many extraordinary masters had seen their unique arts vanish into the river of history?

Old Man Jishi must have been an incredibly remarkable genius in his youth.

Yet in his final years, such a genius had chosen to live in seclusion in a small village within a minor country, treating patients whose backgrounds he did not know without holding anything back. Who knew whether he had become detached from worldly matters or had some other reason?

Old Man Jishi did not concern himself with any of that. He slowly patted his backside and headed for the table laden with breakfast. Seeing porridge among the dishes, he smiled happily and called to everyone, "Come, come! You've all worked hard. Sit down and eat together..."

The group of attendants led by Meizi said that would not be necessary. Having been trained by the Yotsuki Clan since childhood, they felt it would be disrespectful. Only after Dada spoke as well and insisted that everyone eat together without distinctions of rank did they agree to sit down for breakfast.

Sister Meizi secretly gave Dada a thumbs-up, and Dada smiled back.

Just as everyone was happily eating breakfast, a young man and woman arrived outside Old Man Jishi's courtyard.

"Um, excuse me, is there a doctor here? My wife is ill..."

The scene suddenly fell silent, save for the sound of Old Man Jishi slurping porridge.

Dada, who had been eating, blankly raised his head and looked at the pair. The shinobi beside him rose directly to their feet. The two visitors seemed frightened by the united display before them and stopped speaking halfway through.

Several people from Kumogakure had already placed their hands on their Ninja Tool Bags.

Dada hurriedly reached out to stop them. "No need, no need. Let's not be so overbearing. We can't stop others from seeing a doctor just because we're here... Let them come over..."

Yotsuki Ki waved a hand to cut Dada off and said, "They're shinobi. Their appearances are disguised with Transformation Jutsu."