Five Second Man

"Yeah, war is terrifying."

Kosuke seemed to recall something and sighed.

"It's a good thing you're a Medical Ninja now. You won't have to worry about that anymore."

Generally, Medical Ninja chose to work at Konoha Hospital.

Even if war broke out again, Medical Ninja would be assigned to support the troops from the rear.

"Back then, on the battlefield, I watched my teacher and comrades die because they didn't receive treatment in time. That's why I wanted to become a Medical Ninja."

"Of course, it's also because I'm really not very talented at fighting."

Seeing Qingshui look so sorrowful and dejected, Kosuke felt all the more able to empathize with him.

Both of them had experienced the pain of losing comrades.

"Everyone has their own strengths. I'm sure your teacher and comrades, wherever they are now, would be proud of you today."

"I hope so. But I won't give up training, either. I'll work hard to get stronger, so that one day I can do a better job of protecting everyone in the village!"

Having grown up in Konoha, Qingshui naturally felt attached to the home he'd lived in for eighteen years.

But he wasn't so selfless that he wanted to protect everyone.

He wasn't Great Love Immortal Venerable, after all.

He was only saying this because it would make Kosuke think better of him, giving him an excuse to keep learning swordsmanship from Kosuke later.

Even with a system, he couldn't just stop training on his own.

Strength was the foundation for surviving in the Ninja World.

He'd had no choice before, but now he just wanted to develop in secret and grow stronger without drawing attention.

"Good lad. Once I'm discharged, you can keep training with me. That'll give me a chance to see whether your swordsmanship has gotten rusty."

Before Qingshui could bring it up, Kosuke suggested it himself.

Qingshui was delighted.

"Really?"

"Of course."

"Thank you, Uncle Kosuke. But for now, you should focus on getting plenty of rest."

Back in his office, Qingshui studied the Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet he'd just obtained.

It was a B-Rank Water Style Ninjutsu, and the technique that required the most Hand Seals in the Ninja World, with a total of forty-four.

Of course, there was also a simplified version.

The Second Hokage Senju Tobirama, who excelled at Sea Style, needed only three Hand Seals to use this technique.

Later, Senju Tobirama passed the technique on to Maruboshi Kosuke.

Kosuke couldn't match Senju Tobirama and couldn't get by with only three Hand Seals, but he still needed only six.

The Water Dragon Bullet Qingshui had obtained was the six-seal version.

"It seems the Jutsu the system rewards are all ones the person I treated knew."

This gave Qingshui a better understanding of how the system's rewards worked.

"And I got pretty lucky, too. The very first Ninjutsu I was rewarded was one that suited me."

Qingshui had once tested his Chakra nature. It was Water.

Under his instructor's guidance, he'd naturally trained in Water Release nature transformation.

But because he lacked talent, he'd never managed to complete the training, and as a result, he'd never learned a single Water Release Ninjutsu.

Still, Qingshui had never stopped training. Just recently, he'd finally mastered Water Release nature transformation.

The Water Dragon Bullet had come at just the right time.

Of course, even if the system had rewarded him with a Ninjutsu of another nature, Qingshui could still have used it.

That was because the Jutsu rewarded by the system were directly implanted into his mind.

It felt as if he himself had spent several years practicing them.

But since he hadn't actually mastered the corresponding nature transformation, his Ninjutsu would be less fluid than his Water Release techniques, making it easier for his opponent to spot an opening in battle.

And in a fight between Ninja, even a one-second opening could decide the outcome.

That was why Qingshui felt so fortunate.

After that, Qingshui treated five more patients, earning two White Orbs and three Blue Orbs in total.

The two White Orbs increased his Chakra by thirty points altogether.

The three Blue Orbs increased his Chakra by two hundred points altogether.

Including the ninety points he'd gained earlier, he'd increased his Chakra by 320 points today, bringing his total to 820.

He'd also obtained a Genjutsu and a Ninjutsu.

After work, Qingshui went to his usual training spot.

He swiftly formed six Hand Seals and then unleashed Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet.

He spat out a stream of water, which transformed into a huge Water Dragon. At Qingshui's command, it roared toward a tree and slammed into it.

Boom!

After the explosion, the tree—which would have taken two people holding hands to encircle—had snapped clean in half.

Qingshui was very pleased with such terrifying power.

At last, he had a deadly technique with enough power behind it.

The only problem was that he couldn't use Water Dragon Bullet openly just yet. It was a B-Rank Water Style Ninjutsu, after all.

Fortunately, that wouldn't be a problem for long. He could ask Kosuke for advice later.

It helped that he had a Water nature, so he had a perfectly good reason to learn it.

"But no wonder it's a B-Rank Ninjutsu. Just using it once almost drained all my Chakra."

"I really need to increase my Chakra reserves. Otherwise, I'll be a Five Second Man for real."

Since he didn't have a target to practice on, Qingshui decided not to test Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death.

He trained for a while longer before heading home.

An orphan, Qingshui had grown up in the Konoha Orphanage. He didn't become independent until he graduated and became a Ninja.

A few years later, the money he'd earned from missions had allowed him to buy a home on the outskirts of Konoha.

With the income of a Genin, there was no way he could afford a house in the Main City Area.

As for renting in the Main City Area, Qingshui didn't think it was necessary.

A Ninja could run across all of Konoha in no time, after all.

His daily commute would only take a few extra minutes.

The night passed without incident, and soon it was the next morning.

Qingshui arrived at Konoha Hospital full of enthusiasm, nothing like a typical wage earner.

"Lord Hirakawa, there's a patient who needs your treatment."

As Qingshui threw himself into work, Tsunade was still sleeping in the Senju Clan Compound when Kushina came to wake her.

"Lord Tsunade, don't forget you're supposed to go to Konoha Hospital today and guide Qingshui."

"It's only a little past nine."

Though she said that, Tsunade still got out of bed.

By the time she arrived at Konoha Hospital, it was already past ten.

As for Kushina, she had to study Sealing Technique with Mito, so she didn't come along.

"Lord Tsunade!"

Fukada Minako was surprised and thrilled to see Tsunade.

She hadn't seen Tsunade at Konoha Hospital for a year.

As a result, she'd had to take on the job of managing Konoha Hospital, despite being the Medical Department Deputy Head.

That should have been the responsibility of Tsunade, the Medical Department Head.

"Long time no see, Minako. Do you know Hirakawa Qingshui?"

Tsunade got straight to the point.