"Medical Ninjutsu?" Miyoshi froze for a moment, then smiled and refused. "It's still too early for you."
Yumiko laughed from the side. "How rare. Even Soseki, who's always as steady as a little adult, can get impatient. Miyoshi-senpai isn't teaching you Ninjutsu for your own good. Only by building a solid foundation can you go further down the path of a ninja."
Misa nodded as well. "What's most important for you right now is to learn how to refine Chakra as quickly as possible. Then, before graduation, strive to improve your Chakra control to the point where you can learn Medical Ninjutsu."
"Improve Chakra control?" Soseki held out his right hand. Fine threads danced from his fingertips, weaving the pattern of a Leaf Headband before the four women's eyes. Then, with a "grave" expression carrying a trace of "expectation," he asked, "Is this enough?"
The four women across from him looked as if they had seen a ghost. Yumiko muttered blankly, "I must not be awake yet. That has to be it!"
Kotoko wore an utterly broken expression as she tilted her head. "Hehe, I still can't control it to that extent."
Miyoshi was initially stunned, but then suddenly turned and asked, "Were you the ones who taught little Soseki how to refine Chakra?"
Her voice was extremely stern. She was clearly angry at the three of them for acting recklessly.
They were merely from the lower and middle ranks of the Shinobi World and had no clear understanding of when one could begin refining Chakra. They also feared that careless guidance might harm Soseki, so they had chosen to trust the authorities and let the Ninja Academy teach him systematically.
Soseki hurriedly said, "Aunt Miyoshi, the Ninja Academy teacher taught me how to refine Chakra yesterday."
Miyoshi listened, then asked in disbelief, "So you learned how to refine Chakra in only two days?"
"Actually... it was one day."
"I think it took me until the sixteenth day to refine Chakra." Misa recalled, tapping her delicate chin with a fingertip. Then she could not help looking to the side and asking, "Kotoko, how many days did you take?"
"Seventeen days, I think. Yumiko probably had the best talent among us. She only took fourteen days," Kotoko said.
"Little Soseki is incredible! Maybe you'll become an extraordinary figure someday!" Yumiko said excitedly after coming back to her senses.
At that moment, Soseki offered an explanation at just the right time. "Actually, I'm not that amazing. Asuma deserves more of the credit."
"Asuma?"
"Mm. He's the Third Hokage's son, Asuma Sarutobi."
"So he's the Third Hokage's son. No wonder!"
"Soseki really made an excellent friend!"
Once they heard that he was the Third Hokage's son, all their doubts instantly vanished.
After the Second Hokage died in battle, the Third Hokage had taken over in a time of crisis. He led Leaf Village to victory in the war and created Leaf Village's golden age. He himself was also said to have mastered Ninjutsu of all seven Chakra natures, earning him the title of Professor of Ninjutsu.
As a result, the Third Hokage's prestige among Leaf Village's lower and middle ranks was at its height. In Miyoshi and the others' hearts, he was practically like one of the deities.
Even if he was only the Third Hokage's son, they found it perfectly natural for him to accomplish something like this.
Soseki struck while the iron was hot. "Asuma suggested it too. He's already learned more than one Ninjutsu, and he thinks people like us would only be wasting our talents if we followed the rules completely."
Miyoshi nodded repeatedly. The Third Hokage's son had surely been taught personally by the Third Hokage! In other words, this was an assessment made by the Third Hokage himself!
"Mm-hm, geniuses are meant to break conventions!"
"Our little Soseki is a true genius!"
"Oh dear, then we need to teach little Soseki Ninjutsu quickly! Otherwise, little Soseki will fall far too far behind everyone else!"
This was also why Soseki had built himself a genius persona. In the world of ninjas, people were always more tolerant of geniuses.
If Soseki had appeared ordinary, then no matter how much he begged, Miyoshi would not have taught him Ninjutsu. After all, proceeding step by step was actually the best protection for beginners.
But if he was a genius, then anything he did could be understood. They did not understand the world of geniuses, so they would regard it all as natural—especially when Soseki's talent exceeded the limits of their understanding.
Instead, they were now beginning to worry that they knew too few Ninjutsu and might hold back Soseki's talent.
"Let's list all the C-rank and lower Medical Ninjutsu and see which ones you know that I haven't mastered yet," Miyoshi said with a serious expression.
"I'll go first. Besides the most basic Healing Technique, I also know Hemostasis Technique, Blood Creation Technique, Silence Technique, and Linked Healing." Misa counted on her fingers.
"I'm about the same as you, except I also know Purification Technique."
"I also know Tranquility Technique. It can calm people who have suffered a Genjutsu attack."
In Leaf Village, apart from Ninjutsu developed by the caster themselves and secret clan techniques, only Ninjutsu below B-rank could be taught privately.
B-rank Ninjutsu might have seemed insignificant later on, but in truth, B-rank Ninjutsu were already the trump cards of ordinary Chunin. Even for some Special Jonin, B-rank Ninjutsu remained their primary means of combat.
In a sense, B-rank and above Ninjutsu were already strategic resources for a ninja village. Once leaked, they could weaken one's own military strength while strengthening an enemy ninja village.
Therefore, when Miyoshi and the others learned this kind of "advanced" Ninjutsu, seals were placed on them as well, ensuring that the village's techniques would not spread outside.
After taking stock, Kotoko said with a troubled expression, "Huh? None of us knows any offensive Medical Ninjutsu?"
Yumiko looked anxious. "Medical Ninjas have never been good at fighting, but little Soseki is the Class Leader. He'll definitely be challenged by others in the future."
Seeing their furrowed brows, Soseki hurriedly said, "Aunt Miyoshi, it's fine as long as you teach me the most basic Healing Technique."
"The Healing Technique?" Miyoshi frowned. "It's only a D-rank Ninjutsu. Choosing that would be too much of a waste of your talent."
"This isn't a technique chosen as a graduation gift at graduation, so there's no need to be so nervous." Soseki was somewhat helpless. He seemed to have underestimated the impact this news would have on Aunt Miyoshi and the others.
Miyoshi was stunned at first, then shook her head with a sigh. "I was just saying you weren't steady enough, but now it seems I'm the most impatient one. The moment you mentioned it, I immediately thought of Graduation Gifts."
Soseki smiled. "Concern leads to confusion. Doesn't that just show that Aunt Miyoshi values my affairs even more than her own?"
"You..." Miyoshi smiled, half gentle and half helpless. "Sometimes, you're so mature that it hurts my heart."
Soseki smiled but said nothing.
Miyoshi shook her head and walked toward the infirmary. "Come on. I'll demonstrate it for you now."
PS: Graduation Gifts are a bit of supplementary setting I came up with. I'll mention them here first, and there will be a detailed explanation later. It is mainly meant to explain why those great clans allow their members to attend the Ninja Academy, as well as why the Second Hokage developed so many Ninjutsu and Forbidden Jutsu.
Before you continue