He sliced open the wound, removed the Kunai fragments left inside, then pressed his hands together and activated the Healing Technique. Green light flickered, and the wound—which had been as big as a palm—vanished!
The boy wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at the patient he had just healed. A surge of excitement welled up inside him.
"I did it! I finally did it! After all that effort, all that sweat, I finally got the chance to treat a patient on my own..."
Outside, five Medical Ninjas watched the boy's treatment with their clipboards in hand, showering him with praise.
"This kid is really impressive. He's only been at it for six months, and he's already reached the level of a Lower-rank Medical Ninja!"
"Yeah, and he's so young, too. He just turned eight this year, right?"
"At this age, and learning this quickly—he's already set two records at our hospital!"
Inside, the boy treated the patient. Outside, the examiners praised him. It was an entirely wholesome scene—until what happened next...
Looking at the patient, who was still unconscious, the boy took out a vial and poured its contents into the patient's mouth. Unable to contain his excitement, he exclaimed:
"Damn it, there's finally nobody around! I can finally carry out my experiment! Moshang Shizhen, is it? Remember this day. You're about to become a miracle of Konoha!"
"Where are Jiraiya? Orochimaru? The Third Hokage? Where the hell are you all? Come out and fight me! I can feel unprecedented power surging through me! How am I still just a genin? What a joke! I could take on ten jōnin at once! So what if you're all well-connected? Bring them out! I'll beat the crap out of them!"
On the rooftop of Konoha Hospital, a ninja in a hospital gown roared like a madman. Through the open gown, one could make out the pale pink marks left on his chest by a wound that had only just healed. But the battle-crazed ninja didn't care one bit about his freshly recovered body. He swept a contemptuous gaze over the Medical Ninjas gathering around him, then charged forward in a burst of speed. Faint shouts of "I'll punch that snake-faced Orochimaru!" and "I'll kick that bitter old Third Hokage!" drifted through the air!
"Bam!"
The sound of a palm slamming onto the wooden desk rang out. Hiruzen Sarutobi, in the prime of his life, had veins bulging on his forehead as he roared at the boy in front of him:
"Hatake Shudan, what the hell are you doing?"
"Huh?"
The boy called Shudan looked blankly at the Hokage before him, then asked in surprise:
"Did I do something?"
"Heh. Keep pretending. Go on, keep pretending!"
The Third Hokage shot Shudan a cold look, then picked up a file from his desk, looking thoroughly exasperated.
"Moshang Shizhen, member of Asuka Squad, genin. Took eleven genin missions in total, completed ten, failed one. During that mission, an enemy stabbed him in the chest with a Kunai. He managed to block it in time, but fragments of the Kunai still pierced deep into his chest. Although his injuries looked frightening, they weren't serious, so we made his treatment the Lower-rank Medical Ninja exam for you, Hatake Shudan. To prevent you from becoming dependent on others during the procedure, we let you handle the case alone, with no one else in the room. And it was precisely because no one else was in there..."
The Third Hokage glared at Shudan through gritted teeth.
"I don't know what you fed that idiot, but he ran all over the village, challenging every powerful ninja he could name. If his combat strength had suddenly increased, that would be one thing. But Danzo only tested him with a D-rank ninjutsu, and he ended up with eighty percent of his bones broken. He's in intensive care now, barely clinging to life. The guy hasn't gotten any stronger at all. Don't you have anything to say about that?"
"Huh? Is that what happened?"
Shudan opened his eyes wide, looking innocent.
"I really didn't do anything! You know there wasn't a single person in the operating room. Who saw me? I must be getting framed!"
"Do you think I'm senile?"
The Third Hokage slammed his hand down on the desk.
"There was no one in the operating room, but there were five examiners watching you from outside. Are you saying they'd stoop so low as to pin the blame on a child?"
Shudan scratched his head, then suddenly clapped his hands together and gave the Third Hokage a thumbs-up.
"As expected of the Hokage—your insight is incredible! You immediately saw that those five were trying to frame me!"
"Frame you, my ass!"
Even someone as composed as the Third Hokage couldn't help swearing. He yanked open a desk drawer, pulled out a notebook, and read from it in exasperation.
"Three days ago, Hatake Shudan was found pouring a vial of unknown red liquid into the mouth of a kitten from a mission request. Its agility increased, but so did its hunger and digestive ability. As a result, a thick layer of droppings covered the area beneath the nose of the Second Hokage carved into Kage Rock. The cleaning crew worked overtime for two whole days before they managed to clean it all up!
"Ten days ago, Hatake Shudan was found pouring a vial of unknown blue liquid into the mouth of Inuzuka Mei's Ninja Dog. The dog proceeded to urinate on the face of the First Hokage carved into Kage Rock for half an hour straight. It didn't stop even while dodging the ninjas trying to catch it. The dog suffered from severe dehydration afterward and only fully recovered two days ago!
"One month ago, Hatake Shudan was found pouring a vial of unknown yellow liquid into the mouth of a male patient who had just undergone surgery. The liquid took effect too quickly for the other Medical Ninjas to stop him. According to Hatake Shudan, it was merely a potion that increased the body's vitality. But after waking up, the patient showed an intense interest in other men. Before he was knocked unconscious, he had already pulled down the pants of three medical staff members. Even worse, he took one of them hostage on Kage Rock and had already stripped off his underwear. If the Anbu hadn't knocked him out in time, the first case of men having sex in broad daylight in Konoha's history would have taken place on Kage Rock!"
The Third Hokage, driven to distraction, threw the unfinished file at Shudan's feet. His eyes blazed as he shouted:
"I just don't understand! Why do all the people you mess with have to cause trouble on Kage Rock? Destroying Kage Rock is something the other ninja villages have dreamed of doing for generations, and you've managed to make it happen over and over! Are you messing with them, or are you ruining Konoha? I don't care how young you are—do you believe I'll throw you in Konoha Prison?"
When the Third Hokage finished yelling, silence fell over the room. Shudan stared blankly at the Hokage, cowed by his presence. After standing motionless for two seconds...
"Waaah..."
A piercing wail rang through the entire Hokage Building!
"..."
The Hokage's face immediately looked as though he'd swallowed a fly. Then he heard a voice from outside the door: "Lord Hokage, Shudan's guardian, Hatake Sakumo, has arrived." The corners of the Third Hokage's mouth twitched even harder.
In the end, the Hokage looked at Hatake Sakumo, who had just entered the room and was staring around in confusion, and Shudan, who was rolling around and groping blindly as snot and tears streamed down his face. With a headache, he sent them both away!
Before you continue