New Captain Might Guy

Xing Ran held back the urge to mock Guy's tears and looked curiously at an acquaintance from this life.

Her high black ponytail looked more like a broom, making her broad, high forehead even more dazzling—just as impossible to look at directly as Guy's White Fang. Combined with her gray jacket and perpetually tense cheeks, it made her seem even more stern and rigid.

She was Nara Izumi, a fellow member of the Nara Clan from his class. If she did not always keep such a straight face, she would count as an above-average beauty. Since she was part of the Ino-Shika-Cho clans, Xing Ran was fairly familiar with her.

"Izumi, what's going on? Did your team lose someone?" Xing Ran knew that although Guy was carefree and sloppy, he was still a qualified ninja. Since he had said welcome aboard, Xing Ran would most likely be assigned to Guy's squad.

But Guy's squad had previously been a full three-man ninja team. If Xing Ran was joining, that meant someone had left, and a departure often meant death.

"That guy became a Chunin and went to teach at the Ninja Academy. Lord Hokage arranged for us to rotate out for duty and said he'd found us a good teammate, hehe." Nara Izumi had clearly guessed what Xing Ran had misunderstood and hurried to explain. However, explaining others' questions was simply part of her serious personality. By the end, though, her "hehe" when calling Xing Ran the "good teammate" Lord Hokage had found was dripping with sarcasm.

Xing Ran and Izumi had rarely interacted after graduating from the Ninja Academy, but the Ino-Shika-Cho connection was there. Much of everyone's situation was hardly a secret.

So, in Izumi's mind, Xing Ran was still that dead-last student. Compared to someone like her, who had been elite from the Ninja Academy all the way to the front lines, a teammate like him was purely a test of her ability to carry others. She hated people who just coasted to victory.

"All right, Izumi. In the ninja world, you can't always judge people with old assumptions. Xing Ran has mastered the Mystical Palm Technique, a very complex and powerful ninjutsu. With him around, Guy's combat ability can increase by at least thirty percent. If you still think he isn't suitable, I'll switch him with someone else." At that moment, the Third Hokage spoke up at just the right time, the teasing expression on his face completely undisguised. He had read Konoha Hospital's treatment report on Junpei. Before Junpei had been admitted, someone had given him emergency treatment with the Mystical Palm Technique. Though it had not been used particularly well, it was indeed the Mystical Palm Technique.

For a squad stationed at the border, they had to be ready to fight at every moment. Having a Medical Ninja in the team was a guarantee of survival, something everyone wanted. Any team that rejected a Medical Ninja either had water in their brain or was simply so strong that they considered a Medical Ninja dead weight.

Although Nara Izumi did not think her team was strong enough to ignore the addition of a Medical Ninja, she had still believed Xing Ran would hold them back. That was why she had given that sarcastic "hehe" earlier.

But that had been based on Xing Ran only being at the level of an emergency medic. Now that she heard he had actually mastered the Mystical Palm Technique, a battlefield miracle, her eyes widened instantly.

"Hehe, not bad. I didn't expect myself to be so suited to becoming a Medical Ninja either. Otherwise, I wouldn't have stayed at the bottom of the Ninja Academy rankings all this time." Xing Ran put on a standard sunny smile. It was not really for Nara Izumi, but for the Hokage.

That old man was sly. The more Xing Ran looked at that teasing smile, the stranger it seemed. It looked like he was joking with Nara Izumi, but why did the back of Xing Ran's neck keep feeling chilly?

Xing Ran quickly explained why he was so impressive. It was not because he had messed around at school and become dead last, nor because he had suddenly awakened Superman-like powers. That kind of story sounded far too fake.

"No need to switch him! Youth has no regrets! Since Yamanaka Xingran was assigned to our team by Lord Hokage, it must be fate! Ah, what beautiful youth! This new companion has already made my blood boil—" Upon hearing the Hokage's words, Guy realized Xing Ran could better support him. There was no reason to send him back. He immediately launched into a string of incomprehensible passionate declarations and settled the matter.

"As long as you have no objections. Xing Ran, you were called here this time because of a mission arranged by the village. Our comrades on the front lines have been fighting continuously for a long time. This period happens to be relatively safe, so the village has decided to conduct a border rotation. This will ensure border security while allowing our comrades, who have worked hard for so long, to return home and rest for a while." Xing Ran's personal opinion was ignored by everyone. Once Guy had settled his status, the Third Hokage immediately began assigning the mission.

In truth, Xing Ran refused to go out on missions. Learning more knowledge, preparing for future dealings with Orochimaru, and researching forbidden soul techniques were what truly mattered. If he had already emptied Grandma Qiu's storehouse of knowledge, he might have felt like going out for a change of pace. But he had only just entered the clinical learning stage and still had much to learn.

However, Xing Ran had no standing to object. He could choose not to take on missions himself, since that was his right. But the Third Hokage had said this mission was the village's decision. That put it within the duties and responsibilities of a Konoha Ninja, making it impossible to refuse. Otherwise, the consequences would be severe, and he might even be treated as a deserter.

Ninja, in this world where ninja villages handled national defense, were soldiers at heart. It was only when national security was not under major threat that they enjoyed greater freedom, more like mercenaries who could decide whether to accept missions and what kind of missions to take based on their preferences and financial circumstances.

But once a mission was decided by the village committee—in other words, the village leadership of this world—it became a conscription order. Leave was canceled, and they had to join the team immediately, or be treated as deserters.

Xing Ran could only grit his teeth and accept the Third Hokage's arrangements. There was not much time, either. They would be leaving today.

With a bellyful of complaints, Xing Ran returned home and packed his luggage, his gloom impossible to hide.

But after Xing Ran went to Grandma Qiu's shop to say goodbye, his mood immediately improved.

Grandma Qiu told him that after learning theory for so long, this was a good chance to get hands-on experience. There would be plenty of wounded soldiers on the front lines. It was a rare opportunity to balance work and rest; after reading ten thousand books, one also needed to travel ten thousand miles.

Before he left, Grandma Qiu gave Xing Ran two Ninjutsu Scrolls. One contained the Hemostasis Technique, used for post-operative healing and battlefield emergencies. It took little time to perform and was only an emergency measure. The other contained the Delicate Illness Extraction Technique, a form of Medical Ninjutsu that demanded exceptional skill and could extract or transplant poisons and organs. The Uchiha Clan's eye-swapping practices bore traces of this technique.

Both techniques were Medical Ninjutsu highly suited for the battlefield. Although Grandma Qiu had never said she would take Xing Ran as her disciple, the benefits of apprenticeship had truly fallen into his hands. The Hemostasis Technique was one thing, since it was a basic ninjutsu, but the Delicate Illness Extraction Technique was an extremely valuable technique and very difficult to learn.