Tsunade: I Choose You!

Soseki didn't "know" the inside story of hemophobia, but he still tried to persuade her with passionate words, "You are Tsunade-sama, one of the Sannin, and Konoha's greatest Medical Ninja. You can definitely overcome that damned hemophobia!"

Tsunade still looked dejected, "What's the use of having excellent medical skills? I can't even save this desperate world, let alone the people I cherish."

Soseki was silent for a moment, his tone becoming heavy, "I don't know what kind of setbacks you've experienced, nor do I have the right to tell you to forget your pain. But from the perspective of a Medical Ninja, we must be strong! If even we give up, then there will be no light left in this world!"

"Everyone in this world lives a difficult life; no one has it easier than others. Many of our classmates lost their families in the war, but these are not reasons for us to give up hope. Or rather, precisely because of their sacrifice, we should cherish the present even more."

Seeing Tsunade remain silent, Soseki struck while the iron was hot and pointed outside the door, "Mizuki has already lost his family, his friends, and now... is he going to lose the only dream he has left?"

A flicker of struggle appeared in Tsunade's eyes, but she ultimately shook her head, "I'm sorry."

"I was wrong. You might be Konoha's most skilled Medical Ninja, but you're not the greatest Medical Ninja at all!" Soseki looked crestfallen, as if his idol had been shattered, "Such a cowardly Tsunade-sama is truly disappointing!"

"Don't talk about Tsunade-sama like that!" Shizune ran in angrily, protecting Tsunade behind her like a mother hen, and glared at Soseki, "Tsunade-sama must have her reasons for doing this!"

Tsunade placed her right hand on Shizune's head, sighed with a bitter smile, "He's right, I am indeed a coward."

Shizune turned back in disbelief, "Tsunade-sama, you..."

Tsunade shook her head slightly, exhaled, and then looked sharply at Soseki, "I am cowardly, but... do you really have the courage to bear everything?"

"I don't know," Soseki pursed his lips, then looked up at Tsunade with unwavering determination in his eyes, "But I have the conviction to protect everyone!"

"Alright then, I will guide your training, and then, you will perform the surgery on him yourself!"

"I... perform the surgery?"

"You need to think carefully, the consequences of surgical error are fatal!" Tsunade looked at Soseki calmly, "Besides me, the success rate for anyone else in Konoha performing this surgery is no more than thirty percent, and for you, my requirement is a success rate of no less than fifty percent."

Soseki fell silent again. Just then, Mizuki also walked in, his voice filled with excitement, "Class Leader, please accept, only with you, I won't have any doubts!"

Tsunade subconsciously recalled what Shizune had mentioned yesterday and thought to herself, As expected, such enviable trust!

Soseki nodded heavily, then looked at Tsunade, "Tsunade-sama, I'll be counting on you from now on!"

The next day, early in the morning.

Soseki lay on the narrow wooden bed, sighing to himself, It's really not easy for someone as calm and collected as me to get angry. Fortunately, nothing went wrong yesterday.

Although he still couldn't help Tsunade overcome her hemophobia, Soseki wasn't surprised.

After all, in the original story, Tsunade had to undergo a barrage of trials, including the temptation of Bettenkuchi and Impure World Reincarnation, before she finally made her decision and overcame her fear of blood.

Soseki felt that his two attempts yesterday weren't enough to achieve the same effect as Bettenkuchi, so he settled for the next best thing: as long as Tsunade could help him complete the surgery.

"As for Mizuki's change, it's an unexpected bonus. People like him, once they change their minds, become even more reliable than others."

"Only those filled with darkness will cherish the sliver of light they possess even more!"

"...That's all for today's lecture on 'The Extension and Expansion of the Will of Fire.' Remember to review thoroughly when you get back, as this is a key topic that the Hokage himself has specified for the graduation exams. Alright, class dismissed."

"Ah! We have to memorize all of this!"

"When I become Hokage, the first thing I'll do is abolish all exams."

"We should also catch these authors and spank them!"

"Uh... the author of this book is the Third Hokage!"

"Oh, never mind then."

Amidst the rising tide of complaints, Asuma appeared quite embarrassed.

After all, this book was his father's proud work, and he even enjoyed rereading it by himself at home in his spare time.

To divert attention, Asuma deliberately shouted, "Soseki, how is Mizuki doing now?"

Yes, I need to let the classmates know about their contributions.

Hearing him call out like that, the others suddenly remembered that their class was missing a seemingly invisible person.

"That's right, Mizuki still hasn't come to school today!"

"I know! He's definitely slacking off. I got spanked by my parents yesterday, but I still came to school today."

Asuma said sternly, "Don't spread rumors. Mizuki is seriously injured. The hospital even said he might not be able to become a ninja anymore."

"What? How did it get this bad?"

"Even though Mizuki isn't exactly likable, but..."

Asuma waved his hand again, "But don't worry, Soseki already took him to see Tsunade-sama yesterday. By now, the surgery might have even been completed. Right, Soseki?"

Seeing everyone looking at him, Soseki shook his head with a solemn expression, "For some special reasons, Tsunade-sama cannot perform the surgery on Mizuki."

Hearing this, Asuma also became anxious, "Then what should we do? How about I go find the old man? He's the Hokage, he'll definitely have a solution!"

"Calm down first," Soseki soothed him, "Although Tsunade-sama can't perform the surgery on Mizuki, there's still me."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Tsunade-sama will guide my training, and then, I will perform the surgery on Mizuki."

Hearing Soseki say this, the rest of the class breathed a sigh of relief.

In their eyes, the Class Leader was far more reliable than someone like Tsunade.

"Phew, that's such a relief. With the Class Leader here, Mizuki will definitely be able to come back."

"That almost scared me to death. I'm so unhappy, I really want to go beat up those third-year students again."

"Exactly, Mizuki almost couldn't become a ninja. Let's find some time to beat up those jerks again!"

"Asuma Sarutobi, Shimizu Soseki..."

Just as everyone was heatedly discussing the feasibility of another fight, a few shouts intruded at an inopportune moment.

Then, various fierce and violent gazes were cast towards the outside of the classroom.

As their eyes met, Xiu Nian, who had just appeared at the doorway, couldn't help but sweat a few drops from his forehead. Had he misheard? These first-year students actually wanted to beat them up again!

Also, what was with these ferocious looks? Were these first-year students all devils?