Intern

"Yan, when you go back, could you ask Second Grandfather to help me find an empty house in the village? Somewhere secluded would be best."

"Renting one would be fine too. The main thing is that it's secluded."

Early that morning, Yayoi got up and washed. Just as he was about to head out, he saw Yan ambling over.

Yayoi happily went to meet her, and the two of them walked to school side by side.

People heading out that morning passed by them. No one thought it strange to see Yayoi and Yan together.

Even if they'd been surprised at first, after two years, they'd gotten used to seeing them together.

They couldn't help but marvel at the beauty of youth. When they'd been that young, they'd still been playing in the dirt.

"Sure. I'll ask Second Grandfather when I get home. Are you going to do experiments, Yayoi?"

"Yeah. I was thinking about the First recently. I heard he became so powerful after learning Senjutsu."

"Senjutsu?"

Yan looked puzzled.

"You don't know much about it?"

Yayoi was a little surprised that Yan knew so little about Senjutsu.

"I've heard of it, but never paid much attention. No one in the Uchiha Clan can master Senjutsu."

Yan seemed interested in it, too. When she heard Yayoi was going to study Senjutsu, she asked curiously, "What happens when you learn it?"

"Your physical abilities improve dramatically, the chakra in your body becomes stronger, and your ninjutsu gets much more powerful."

Yayoi thought back to what he knew about Senjutsu.

"Maybe it even helps you live a little longer."

"That's amazing!"

Yan's eyes widened, and her small mouth fell open.

She'd never heard of anything so incredible. Senjutsu really was amazing.

"Did you read all that in the books at your house, Yayoi-kun?"

"Uh, yeah, I guess."

Yayoi scratched his head.

It didn't really matter what he said. Yan would believe him anyway.

"Mm."

Sure enough, Yan nodded and didn't ask any more questions.

"By the way, Yan, could you buy some things for me? I need them for something."

"Do you need to borrow money, Yayoi?"

Yan, who had somehow walked ahead of him, looked up. Yayoi could see a sly glint in her eyes, as if his question had amused her.

"Just a little, for now."

Yayoi felt awkward and rubbed his nose to cover it up.

"Of course."

Yan smiled warmly and nodded.

"Oh, and remember to use a Ninja Cat to buy them for me. The things I need might attract some attention."

"Mm. I'll do as you say, Yayoi-kun."

"You're here?"

"Mm."

Rin, as always, had arrived early. She sat by the window, gazing out at the playground in the morning light. When she saw Yayoi, she turned and spoke.

"What's wrong, frail and sickly Yayoi? Don't you need to stay home and rest for a few more days?"

Seeing how rosy Yayoi's complexion was and that he didn't look sick at all, she couldn't help teasing him.

"No need. Besides, I might be the first person to make our resident beauty smile."

At Yayoi's words, Rin froze.

"Yayoi-kun, are you teasing Rin-chan?"

Yan's gentle voice came from beside them. She'd clearly noticed Rin's dazed expression.

"Rin-chan is still so cute, especially when she looks all dazed like this."

"I..."

Rin came back to herself and instinctively put on a stern face.

But when she saw Yayoi looking at her with a smile, she just couldn't get angry.

If anything, she even felt a little happy.

No. That had to be her imagination.

She and Uesugi Yayoi were just business partners. Apart from that, they were nothing more than classmates and friends.

That afternoon, the sun sank slowly beneath the dusk, like life fading away.

Lives were lost one after another in the war.

The fighting had flared up again lately, and more and more wounded were coming in from the front lines.

With the hospital short on staff, Yayoi had no choice but to get back to work.

He was a special trainee, and Tsunade had personally approved it.

That meant Yayoi could work at the hospital as an intern.

Green light enveloped the mangled thigh. He ignored the patient's muffled groans as he gritted his teeth.

Beside him, an incision was being made to remove a hard foreign object.

"You were probably caught in an explosion on the battlefield. A kunai fragment got stuck in the flesh. Be more careful next time you go out."

"My leg..."

"We got to it in time. We saved it."

Wearing a mask, Yayoi worked with practiced ease, even finding time to chat with the patient.

The patient was already nervous, and the conversation nearly sent him over the edge. But as the treatment continued, relief washed over him.

"Thank you, doctor."

He knew a little about medicine and could tell his injury had been treated well. He'd likely be able to return to normal missions after six months of rest.

"Don't mention it. You can walk out on your own. Next."

Yayoi merely nodded and told the nurse to bring in the next patient.

The nurse immediately understood and called over the others.

She usually assisted Doctor Lingdu, but he'd been delayed by something today, and the wounded couldn't wait too long.

She hadn't expected this young intern to be capable of performing surgery of this level so skillfully.

He was incredible.

The patient seemed to realize he wasn't the only one waiting for treatment. He quickly moved aside, then looked at Yayoi with respect.

"May I ask your name?"

"Just call me Uesugi Yayoi. Avoid alcohol for a while, and stay away from spicy food."

"Thank you!"

"Whew."

Yayoi wiped his sweat. The last patient had left, and he was finally done for the day.

There were too many wounded. He'd been forced to use a knife to treat injuries he could otherwise have handled with chakra.

That saved chakra, which meant he could save one more person.

These poor people had been sent to the battlefield at such a young age. Without timely treatment, they'd be disabled for life.

Yayoi couldn't bear to see that, so he'd submitted a request to use surgery instead of chakra whenever possible.

It had worked. He'd saved quite a few lives, and he'd kept his most valuable tool intact.

He'd also collected some blood samples to compare in his experiments.

"How bad is it at the front, anyway?"

Yayoi sighed. Even his "lightly wounded" patients had numbered in the dozens today.

There were probably plenty of "severely wounded" patients, too. Many of them must have been sent straight from intensive care.

War was truly cruel.

"As expected, strength is everything. I need to speed up my experiments with Senjutsu and Dragon Script."

"The eastern edge of the Uchiha Clan Territory. Nobody lives nearby. Second Grandfather has a house there. It's not big, so you can do whatever you want with it."

When Yayoi got home after a busy day, Yan was already there with good news.

He hurriedly took off his bloodstained clothes and tried a bite of the food Yan had made.

The table in the living room was loaded with hearty dishes.

Yan knew how to cook. Apparently, she'd learned from her Second Grandfather.

The old-timers from the Warring States period were skilled in both the arts and combat. They say he could not only cook, but was also an expert at makeup, disguises, and dancing.

Yayoi couldn't help thinking that life in the Warring States period must have been rough.

"Why did you suddenly come over today?"

Yayoi ate as he watched Yan untie her apron.

"Teacher said you'd become an intern, so I thought I'd come home and make you a celebratory meal."

Yan had tied her hair into a high ponytail again. Her practical purple hair made her look spirited and confident.

"After all, you're a great hero."

"Whose great hero?"

Yayoi couldn't help teasing her.

"My great hero, and everyone else's, too."

"Cough. Anyway, I might not be going to school much from now on."

Yayoi's face reddened, so he quickly changed the subject.

"The fighting is getting worse, and too many wounded are coming from the front. I need to research Senjutsu as quickly as I can. You should work on getting stronger, too."

"Ask your Second Grandfather to teach you more."

Yayoi took a bite of meat. It was tender and juicy, with just the right balance of fat and lean.

"Mm."

Yan nodded, looking a little down. Maybe she was sad that Yayoi wouldn't be able to walk to school with her anymore.

"But you can come find me at that house. If nothing unexpected happens, I'll probably be moving there."

This time, Yan looked up, her eyes shining with the purest joy of a young girl.