Orochimaru

Little Tsunade did not understand the future.

The current Little Tsunade only felt very happy.

Because she truly liked medicine.

There really were things in this world worth loving just as much as gambling.

Although Shirou Emiya's appearance had reduced the time she spent gambling with Grandpa, his appearance had also made her childhood much happier.

After Shirou Emiya returned to Konoha, he came every day to check on Hashirama Senju's condition. Little Tsunade saw Shirou Emiya every day. She liked trailing behind him to Konoha Hospital, then wandering Konoha's streets with him to buy Chestnut Juice.

And besides...

Shirou Emiya was just like the protagonist of a story!

He was even more captivating than the protagonists in the stories Grandpa told!

After all, compared to Hashirama Senju, who was always terribly unreliable in front of his little granddaughter, Shirou Emiya's image was simply far more likable to a child!

Shirou Emiya was extremely serious when treating illnesses and saving lives. He did not seem particularly approachable, yet every word he said was always considerate of his patients.

Whenever a patient could not understand what he was saying, Shirou Emiya would do his best to explain their condition in a way they could understand.

Even though Shirou Emiya was very cold toward ninjas and seemed to dislike this era, he would inadvertently reveal his warm heart. In particular, he possessed a gentleness toward children that ordinary people could scarcely imagine.

On the way to Konoha Hospital.

Little Tsunade moved her short little legs to keep up with Shirou Emiya's deliberately slowed pace, grumbling about the stretch of road between home and Konoha Hospital, which was far too long for a child.

"Today feels so far away..."

"..."

Shirou Emiya lowered his eyes and glanced at her.

"I'm not tired. I can still walk..."

Little Tsunade felt that Shirou Emiya's expression was a little cold. Afraid that this Medical Ninja she admired would think her will was not strong enough and dislike her, she hurriedly tried to wave her little hands, signaling that she could keep going.

"..."

Shirou Emiya silently reached out and lifted the little girl up. Under Little Tsunade's astonished gaze, he placed her on his shoulders.

"Huh?"

Little Tsunade delightedly discovered that she could see much farther from Shirou Emiya's shoulders. "Lord Shirou, it's so high up here... Is this where the slug in the story sat?"

"Yes."

Shirou Emiya was never one for smiles. He merely nodded calmly. "When the slug can't keep up, it sits on my shoulders too."

"..."

Little Tsunade touched her slightly chubby cheeks and could not help imagining the future. "I want to raise a slug someday too..."

"Mm."

Shirou Emiya merely gave a quiet acknowledgment.

Little Tsunade curiously noticed that Shirou Emiya had begun walking faster. The gentle breeze made her blink involuntarily.

"Will I get to learn lots of things today too?"

"Mm."

"Then can I drink sweet Grape Juice today?"

"No."

"That's for patients."

Shirou Emiya rejected the little girl's suggestion, but offered another one. "After studying today, you can drink a little Chestnut Juice."

"Mm..."

Little Tsunade puffed out her cheeks.

By the time Shirou Emiya brought Little Tsunade to Konoha Hospital, the patients were no longer curious about them. The Medical Ninjas and patients all assumed that Shirou Emiya was teaching a student.

They looked too much alike.

Too much like a teacher and student.

Little Tsunade, only five years old, had already mastered a little Medical Ninjutsu and could occasionally help treat simple scrapes and bruises.

Of course.

There was still much more Little Tsunade truly needed to learn.

The little girl always stayed by Shirou Emiya's side, watching him speak eloquently to patients and explain troublesome ailments in terms everyone could understand.

"Your own resistance is more useful than any medicine."

"This illness will cause your body to produce the corresponding antibodies. In the future, you will no longer suffer from this illness."

"Some illnesses that appear in the human body are like an emergency fire breaking out at home. To put out that fire, we try to use water."

"From then on, to prevent future fires, we keep a water vat at home. Antibodies are like a vat filled with water prepared for firefighting. After that, you will no longer need to worry about being troubled by this illness."

"So cool..."

Little Tsunade's eyes sparkled with stars.

Although she still did not quite understand what antibodies and illnesses were, she could already understand that they were opposites, like water and fire.

Only after the sun had set and Little Tsunade's stomach began to grow hungry did she tug on Shirou Emiya's sleeve. "Lord Shirou, when can we go eat? I want to drink thick, sweet Chestnut Juice!"

"..."

Shirou Emiya reached out and rubbed her head.

The man seemed rather taciturn in his spare time, but he always kept his word. He had never broken a promise he made to Little Tsunade.

However...

There was a small incident when they left the hospital.

A handsome little boy with long hair and delicate features was rushed into the hospital for emergency treatment. The cause was food poisoning, and his condition seemed somewhat critical.

Still...

This was only a minor issue for Konoha Hospital.

After all, if they could not even solve such a small problem, Konoha Hospital might as well shut down.

One of Konoha Hospital's Medical Ninjas quickly induced vomiting in the little boy, pulling him back from the brink of suffering.

Shirou Emiya calmly led Tsunade past a pair of anxious parents when he heard the long-haired boy's voice.

"Just ordinary String Beans and Green Peppers..."

"Can they really make the body this weak?"

"Honestly..."

The little boy's mother seemed quite helpless with her child. "Orochimaru, you can't always sneak into the kitchen and conduct these strange experiments..."

"All right."

The little boy's father was also somewhat helpless. He did not scold his child, merely offering a suggestion. "Let's add another poisonous recipe to the kitchen. String beans and green peppers can't be mixed together..."

"..."

Shirou Emiya stopped walking, crouched down, and said a few words to Little Tsunade.

Just as the Medical Ninjas involved in the emergency treatment were recording that mixing string beans and green peppers was poisonous, Little Tsunade suddenly toddled into the room.

"It's not because the string beans and green peppers were mixed together."

"It must be because the string beans weren't fully cooked. If bean vegetables aren't properly cooked, strange things build up in them and cause food poisoning."

"Huh?"

Everyone stared in surprise at the chubby little girl.

Especially the weak little boy lying in a chair. As he watched the chubby little girl run away, a flicker of surprise passed through his narrow eyes.

Someone actually knew more than he did...

And she was even about the same age as him.

As a child who had been extremely curious about unknown things since he was young, Orochimaru had once ended up in the hospital with his family after being poisoned by one of his mother's disastrous dishes.

From that day onward, he discovered that something existed in this world that could make both him and adults taller and stronger than him equally weak. The little boy's curiosity had been ignited.

This thing was too fascinating!

It could actually let a child defeat an adult!

Orochimaru was very curious about how many things existed in the world that could make a five-year-old child like him and a group of adults equally weak.

Children came into contact with very few things. Moreover, since his first food poisoning had come from a disastrous dish made in the kitchen, the vegetables in the kitchen naturally became his first batch of experimental materials. Thus, Orochimaru began trying to cook for himself.

If the experiment failed, it proved the food was harmless, and Orochimaru could serve it to his parents in exchange for their praise.

If the experiment succeeded...

Orochimaru would have no choice but to go to the hospital.

Yet today, Orochimaru had discovered another possibility in Little Tsunade. The results of experiments to make poisonous food might not be entirely accurate. There was another kind of knowledge in this world that could more quickly and directly determine what was poisonous.

Unfortunately...

The little boy did not have time to say a single word.

The little boy watched helplessly as the chubby blond girl walked out of the crowd, took a young man's hand, and left the hospital.

"Little Tsunade can even remember this kind of knowledge..."

A Medical Ninja hurriedly revised the medical record scroll in his hand, praising Little Tsunade's intelligence. "As expected of a child personally taught by Lord Shirou!"

"Little Tsunade? Lord Shirou?"

Orochimaru's eyes lifted slightly.

These two unfamiliar names appeared in his world for the first time. His gaze followed the backs of Little Tsunade and the young man as they departed.

That young man...

Under the setting sun, his silhouette was cast in darkness...

And he left the first stroke of dense black ink upon the little boy's heart.