Doctor "Xiao Dong"

Meanwhile, Orochimaru, one of the Sannin, never deigned to "rest." He was always like a snake in the shadows, coiled up in some secret laboratory.

Uchiha Rei stood at the street corner, pondered for a moment, and suddenly had an idea.

"The hospital."

Yes, the hospital. He was a patient himself, but in order to find an antidote and uncover the truth of his poisoning, he had left his sickbed early, first going to the Hyuga Clan, then circling back to the Uchiha Clan.

As a result, neither the Hyuga nor the Uchiha welcomed him.

"Without the Phantom Seal, I can only rely on the medicine left by the Third Elder to hold on until Tsunade returns."

In the end, he was indeed a patient right now. Returning to the hospital to recover wasn't out of line.

Unlike some people in his past life who were perfectly healthy but went to the hospital to freeload air conditioning and oxygen while traveling, treating the hospital like a hotel and wasting medical resources.

The Konohagakure Hospital was located in the northwest corner of the village, adjacent to the Ninja Academy. It occupied a vast area, with its main building solemn and bright, like a tranquil fortress. It was not only staffed by Medical Ninjas but also by many ordinary doctors, serving as an important institution for treatment and the research of Ninjutsu.

Uchiha Rei soon arrived at the hospital. His patient record had not yet been removed. As a Jonin of Konohagakure, the doctors naturally dared not neglect him and immediately arranged for him to return to his original private room. They even thoughtfully assigned "the prettiest one" among the on-duty nurses to serve him.

"I don't need anyone to take care of me."

He calmly asked the young nurse to leave, closed the door, and lay alone on the hospital bed. The bed was soft, covered with a clean and tidy white sheet, like a rare trace of tenderness and peace in this chaotic world.

In Konohagakure, the hospital was sacred.

Neither the Hokage's high command nor the Root members dared to act rashly within the hospital.

It was not only a concentration of medical resources but also represented the order and bottom line of a ninja village. Any violation would be a huge political disaster.

Back in the private room, Uchiha Rei relaxed for the first time in a long while.

Rei took off his shirt, untied the forehead protector, and changed into a patient gown. Closing his eyes, his body finally truly fell asleep.

Rei dreamed.

The dream came with surprising realism.

Perhaps it was because of Obito.

He dreamed of Rin.

The young girl frozen in time, the peer who smiled at him in the rain and said, "It's okay."

She wore a white nurse's uniform and walked lightly into the room, gently sitting by the bed.

"Don't move, let me check your injuries."

She leaned closer, her fingertips gently gliding over his forehead, as if taking his temperature, or as if confirming his existence.

Uchiha Rei's heart couldn't help but race. He could even feel her warm breath brushing against his cheek.

She held the stethoscope to his chest. The cold metal instantly sobered him up, only to be easily dispelled by her smile.

"Your heart is beating a little fast, Rei."

She whispered in his ear, her voice seeming to melt him entirely.

He wanted to speak, but found his throat dry. He could only watch as she continued to lower her head, repeatedly checking his chest, shoulders, and wrists. Her fingertips were gentle. He even suspected she was deliberately prolonging each touch.

In his dream, Rin hadn't died. She was still alive. She had become a Medical Ninja, fulfilling her dream.

Rin pulled the blanket up for him and leaned her forehead against his.

"Rest well... I'm here."

In the dream, Rin took even more meticulous care of him.

Time passed quickly, and Uchiha Rei slept soundly.

He was soon awakened by a commotion. Uchiha Rei's eyes snapped open. He activated his Byakugan, searching for the source of the noise.

He discovered the commotion was caused by a pair of ordinary parents.

Not everyone in Konohagakure was a ninja; there were many ordinary people.

"Are you a doctor? Am I a doctor?" Tōdō Xiao Dong roared. He always lacked patience with ordinary people.

"Our child has been waiting for a long time. When will the surgery begin?!" the child's mother asked anxiously.

"I heard from the nurse... but we're still waiting now. What are we waiting for?" the mother added.

"If there's any further delay, my child's sensory system could be permanently damaged! He might have difficulty becoming a ninja in the future?! What do we do?" the mother cried.

"What to do? In Konohagakure, many people cannot become ninja," Doctor Xiao Dong interrupted coldly. "Perhaps this is his inescapable fate."

With that, Doctor Xiao Dong waved his hand and forcibly escorted the couple out. The door slammed shut with a "bang."

He had shut out the anxious parents.

But the next second, a nauseating scene quietly unfolded.

Doctor Xiao Dong turned back to the lounge, gently pushed open a hidden door behind a bookshelf, and a nurse in uniform walked out.

"You've kept me waiting too long!" the nurse frowned, wrapping her arms around the doctor's neck. "Don't bother with any more patients. I'm the most important 'surgery' for you today."

Doctor Xiao Dong laughed flirtatiously, wrapping his arm around her waist and kissing her wildly.

"The patient isn't even a ninja. How much is an ordinary person's life worth? My godfather just needs to say a word, and they'll be kneeling to beg me," Doctor Xiao Dong's words were chilling.

The nurse playfully slapped his butt, "Who doesn't know your real identity? You still dare to act like an expert in front of me?"

Before she finished speaking.

The two began to wrestle wildly in the lounge.

The lounge. Files on the table were swept to the floor.

The entire room was filled with their frantic struggle, a scene of passion, starkly contrasting with the sorrow outside the lounge.

Meanwhile, outside the lounge, the parents still stood in the corridor, their eyes red.

"Our child... he's only seven years old. His lifelong dream was to become a ninja," the mother whispered tremblingly. "Now he accidentally touched an explosive tag and was sent to the hospital. We've paid the medical fees, even borrowed money, but what can we do now?"

The father clenched his fists, veins bulging, "What did the doctor say? 'Perhaps it's his destiny that he can't become a ninja'? He just decided my son's fate like that?!"

The mother collapsed onto a chair, covering her face and weeping.

They didn't know that the so-called waiting, the so-called noble doctor, were all fake.

In Konohagakure, ninjas without Medical Ninjutsu could also become high-ranking Medical Ninjas.

Fortunately, the doctor named Xiao Dong hadn't started surgery. Otherwise, the operations under his hand might not only fail to save lives but also bury hope.

"...Konoha, when did it rot to this extent."

In the ward, Uchiha Rei's eyes turned cold.

He put on a patient's robe and quietly left the room, making almost no sound.

A young nurse was squatting by the operating table, diligently wiping sweat from a little boy, about seven or eight years old.

The boy had a bowl cut, his face pale, sweat pouring from his forehead like a spring, soaking the bed. He gritted his teeth, seemingly trying to suppress any groans, unaware that no one was willing to help him.

The nurse's hands trembled. She was just an ordinary person and couldn't perform surgery. She had already filed a report, but it was ruthlessly rejected.

"Doctor Xiao Dong... he's the Vice Director's godson. I heard he even 'returned after completing his studies' in the Land of Wind. Who dares to question him?"

She murmured in a low voice, almost crying.

"If something goes wrong, I'll be the first one to take the blame."

Just as she was about to despair, a figure silently entered the operating room.

At that moment, she froze.