The name "Hand of Miraculous Life" spread rapidly from the frontline medical station as if it had grown wings. Duanmu Ci's standing within the medical station rose considerably without anyone saying a word. Although Tsunade still ordered him around and assigned him all sorts of tedious medical chores, the other medical ninja and wounded soldiers now looked at him with obvious respect, even a trace of admiration.
That day, an unusual commotion shattered the atmosphere in the medical station.
Several ninja dressed in plain white kimono, their cuffs embroidered with azure flame emblems—the mark of the Hyuga Branch Family—stormed in aggressively while surrounding a middle-aged man lying on a stretcher. At their head was a stern-faced middle-aged man with fine lines at the corners of his eyes. His chin was slightly raised, and his gaze carried the reserved bearing unique to great clans, along with... barely concealed arrogance.
"Move! Everyone, move!" A branch family ninja impatiently shoved aside a medical team genin blocking the way. "A member of the Hyuga Clan needs the best treatment! Call Lord Tsunade out immediately!"
The man on the stretcher was deathly pale and breathing rapidly. Most horrifying of all was his right arm—its entire length had turned an unnatural bluish-purple, swollen terribly, with twisted, bulging veins beneath the skin like a mass of crawling earthworms. He clenched his teeth tightly, clearly enduring immense pain.
"That's an elite of the Hyuga Branch Family, Lord Hizashi Hyuga!" someone recognized the wounded man and cried out in a low voice. Hizashi Hyuga was one of the Hyuga Clan branch family's foremost experts, powerful and highly respected.
"Lord Tsunade is handling a critical operation and cannot get away for the moment." A senior medical ninja from the medical station stepped forward to explain, neither servile nor overbearing.
"Cannot get away?" The leading branch family ninja, apparently Hizashi Hyuga's trusted subordinate, frowned deeply, his tone clearly displeased. "Lord Hizashi's injuries are critical! He was struck by a secret Lightning Style technique from the Cloud Village. Chakra has invaded his meridians, and ordinary Medical Ninjutsu is completely ineffective! If treatment is delayed, can you bear the consequences?!"
His voice was loud and accusatory, quieting the bustling medical station for a moment and making the atmosphere tense. The Hyuga Clan's reputation, coupled with the difficulty of treating the unique constitution created by their Gentle Fist, truly made ordinary medical ninja hesitate.
Just then, Tsunade's slightly weary yet still imposing voice came from the surgical tent. "What's all the noise? Shizune, what's going on outside?"
Shizune immediately stepped forward and reported the situation in a low voice. A moment later, Tsunade lifted the curtain and walked out, her hands still stained with fresh blood. She glanced at Hizashi Hyuga on the stretcher, her valiant brows knitting slightly. She had clearly seen how troublesome the injury was—meridian damage caused by Lightning Style was extremely subtle and highly destructive. For the Hyuga Clan, whose bodies depended on precise Chakra control, it was even worse.
She needed to return immediately to finish the life-or-death surgery in her hands and could not spare herself. Her gaze swept across the crowd before finally landing on Duanmu Ci behind them.
"Duanmu!" Tsunade called him out directly, her tone brooking no argument. "Handle Jonin Hizashi's injuries. Use your 'method' and make sure his meridian damage is stabilized!"
"Yes, Lord Tsunade." Duanmu Ci answered calmly and stepped out from the crowd.
"Him?!" The leading Hyuga ninja's expression changed. He looked Duanmu Ci up and down, his eyes full of suspicion and distrust. "Lord Tsunade! Lord Hizashi's injuries are no trivial matter! How can you leave them to some... some brat?" He had clearly heard of the "Hand of Miraculous Life," but his deeply ingrained hierarchy and instinctive contempt for a young face made it impossible for him to accept.
"Do you question my orders?" Tsunade shot the ninja a cold glance, and her overwhelming presence instantly crushed his doubts. "Duanmu is my disciple. If I say he can do it, then he can!" With that, she ignored him and turned back into the surgical tent.
The branch family ninja's face went from pale to green, but he did not dare argue with Tsunade again. He could only swallow his anger and stare fixedly at Duanmu Ci with a scrutinizing, critical gaze.
Duanmu Ci ignored that piercing stare and walked straight to the stretcher. He did not act immediately, instead carefully examining Hizashi Hyuga's right arm. Under the Rinnegan's passively activated microscopic vision, every detail of the injury became clear: violent lightning-nature Chakra rampaged through the intricate network of meridians like countless tiny electric snakes, scorching them and leaving many nodes charred, severed, even fused and blocked! Whenever Chakra flowed through those areas, it was like sinking into a swamp, causing intense pain and loss of control over the limb.
"The situation is bad," Duanmu Ci stated calmly. "The lightning-nature Chakra has penetrated deeply. Several key nodes are damaged and blocked. They need to be cleared immediately, or this arm will be useless."
"Hmph! You think we need you to tell us that?" the branch family ninja snorted.
Duanmu Ci said nothing more. He took a deep breath and slowly held both hands above Hizashi Hyuga's swollen right arm. He did not unleash a broad burst of green light as he had when saving Jonin Tokuma. Instead, he pushed his mental power and perception to their limits. The Rinnegan's insight became like the most powerful surgical microscope, precisely locking onto the most severely damaged and critically blocked meridian nodes.
He drew upon the pure Yang Style Chakra of his Sage Body, condensing it into "Needles of Life" finer than strands of hair. Guided by his extraordinary perception, those threads of pure, gentle Chakra, brimming with powerful life force, pierced precisely into those charred and clogged nodes like the most dexterous minimally invasive surgical tools!
"Ugh!" Hizashi Hyuga let out a muffled groan, his body suddenly trembling! Having trained in the Gentle Fist for years, he was extremely sensitive to his own Chakra and meridians. He could clearly feel a gentle yet incomparably resilient force, bursting with vigorous vitality, flowing into his burning, chaotic meridians like a clear spring! Wherever that force passed, the violent remnants of Lightning Style melted away like ice and snow. The charred, fused nodes were gently "washed" open, while the severed meridians were nourished by that vitality, faintly producing an itchy, numb sensation of healing!
Duanmu Ci's movements were slow and steady. Fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead, and his face grew slightly pale. This was far more delicate and difficult than infusing life force over a wide area, and it consumed an enormous amount of Chakra control and mental power. He had to remain completely focused. There could not be the slightest mistake.
Second by second, time passed. Under the tense and doubtful gazes of the Hyuga Clan members, a miracle quietly unfolded.
The terrifying bluish-purple color on Hizashi Hyuga's right arm began to fade at a visible rate! The swelling slowly subsided as well! The twisted, bulging veins beneath his skin became like ravines smoothed flat, gradually disappearing! More importantly, Hizashi Hyuga's tightly furrowed brows relaxed, and the pain on his face was replaced by shock and disbelief!
He cautiously tried to move the index finger of his right hand—ever so slightly—and succeeded! It was still weak, but the loss of control and piercing pain were gone!
"H-How is this possible?!" The leading Hyuga ninja's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as he cried out in disbelief. Even the Hyuga Clan's best medical ninja had been helpless before this injury, yet this young boy had actually done it?!
Duanmu Ci let out a long breath and withdrew his hands. His body swayed slightly, and Shizune beside him caught him. He looked at Hizashi Hyuga. "The most critical blocked points have been cleared, and most of the residual Lightning Style Chakra has been removed. You'll need rest afterward, along with gentle Mystical Palm Technique treatment to nourish the damaged meridians. Most of the arm's function can be restored."
Hizashi Hyuga struggled to sit up, his gaze at Duanmu Ci filled with complicated emotions. Shock, gratitude, and a trace of indescribable... reverence. As an elite of the branch family, he knew exactly how pure, how gentle yet powerful, the force that had been precisely injected into his body just now was! This was absolutely not something an ordinary medical ninja could accomplish!
"Duanmu... Duanmu-kun?" Hizashi Hyuga's voice was slightly hoarse. "Words cannot express this great kindness! The Hyuga Clan will remember it!"
At that moment, a small, timid figure peeked out from behind several tall Hyuga Clan members. It was a little girl around four or five years old, with a neat bob haircut and a clean little kimono patterned with blue flowers on white cloth. She had a pair of pure, flawless eyes as white as fresh snow—Hyuga Hinata.
She seemed frightened by the tense atmosphere from before, her small hand tightly clutching the hem of a female clan member's clothes. But now, her pure Byakugan stared without blinking at Duanmu Ci, who looked somewhat pale yet stood straight, her eyes filled with curiosity and a trace of admiration.
Just now, she had seen this young big brother use magical light—in her Byakugan vision, Duanmu Ci's Yang Style Chakra was like warm sunlight—to calm Uncle Hizashi's unbearable pain and restore peace to that terrifying arm filled with black mist, the remnants of Lightning Style.
Duanmu Ci noticed the timid little girl as well and gave her a gentle, weary smile.
Hinata's little face instantly turned red like a ripe apple. She abruptly pulled her head back and hid behind her clan member again. Yet those large, pure eyes deeply imprinted that gentle smile, along with the sight of him healing her clansman.
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