"Sensei."
Tsunade knocked before entering the Hokage Office.
"You came at just the right time."
Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up a scroll and said, "These are the details for setting up the Medical Ninja Training Class. Take a look and see if there are any problems."
Tsunade nodded, walked over, and took the scroll from him.
She unrolled it and began to read.
"Your arrangements are very thorough, Sensei. I have nothing to add."
Tsunade said after reading it.
"Since you agree, the Medical Ninja Training Class will begin next month."
Hiruzen Sarutobi tapped his pipe and said, "The new term at the Ninja Academy starts next month, too."
"Sounds good."
Tsunade paused, then added, "Natsuki asked for the Sword of the Thunder God. He has a real talent for swordsmanship, so I gave it to him."
"That's a pleasant surprise."
Hiruzen Sarutobi blinked, then smiled.
He knew Tsunade's judgment well.
If she said Natsuki had talent for swordsmanship, then he was exceptionally gifted.
In other words, Konoha would have another genius.
"Once he graduates, I'll find him a team leader who specializes in swordsmanship."
Hiruzen Sarutobi said thoughtfully.
At that, Tsunade thought of Nawaki.
He still had three years before graduation, but it was already time to start thinking about who would lead his team.
She was leaning toward her two teammates, Orochimaru and Jiraiya.
"Tsunade, there's one more thing."
Hiruzen Sarutobi continued, "The Uzumaki Clan has agreed to send a candidate Jinchūriki after the New Year. You'll go and meet her when she arrives."
The Uzumaki Clan was an ally of Konoha, though, more accurately, they were allies of the Senju Clan.
Among the Senju Clan, Tsunade was now the most famous ninja.
And since she was also the granddaughter of Senju Hashirama and Uzumaki Mito, she was the most suitable person to meet the girl.
"Does Grandma Mito know?"
Tsunade nodded and asked.
"I just received the news. She doesn't know yet, so please let her know."
Hiruzen Sarutobi replied.
Meanwhile, at the training ground near the Konoha Orphanage,
Natsuki faced a wooden post, his body slightly bent as his right hand gripped the Sword of the Thunder God before him.
One Sword Style: Iai: Lion Song!
In an instant, Natsuki felt all his Chakra surge into the Sword of the Thunder God.
With a hum, the blade appeared in the air.
The next moment, Natsuki vanished from where he stood.
He and the Sword of the Thunder God became a streak of lightning, flashing past the wooden post.
Natsuki reappeared three meters beyond it.
He looked back. The post had been cut in two.
The cut was perfectly smooth, and faint traces of lightning shimmered across it.
Natsuki nodded in satisfaction, but fatigue soon followed.
At his current strength, he could barely manage One Sword Style: Iai: Lion Song. He could use it at most once in a short period.
Still, Natsuki was satisfied.
Judging by the speed and power of One Sword Style: Iai: Lion Song, most Genin and Chunin would struggle to react in time.
After resting for a while, Natsuki began practicing Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu.
Before long, September arrived.
The first day of school came right on schedule.
"Everyone, look this way. I have an announcement."
Before classes had even started, Ishida Yu hurried into the classroom of First Grade Class A.
At his words, the students fell silent and looked at him curiously.
"The Medical Ninja Training Class has officially been established in Konoha. Any students who want to become medical ninja can apply to me."
Ishida Yu went straight to the point.
"Medical ninja?"
"Are you going to become one?"
"Who'd want to be a medical ninja? Hmph! I'm going to be a combat ninja, dominate the Ninja World, and become the strongest Hokage!"
After Ishida Yu finished speaking, many of the students began talking.
"Nonō, you should apply."
Natsuki said after thinking it over.
He wanted Yakushi Nonō to keep a low profile, so Shimura Danzō wouldn't notice her right away.
If people found out she had already been approved by Tsunade to join the Medical Ninja Training Class, her reputation would spread quickly.
Following the normal procedure would help keep it quiet and buy them some time.
Yakushi Nonō didn't quite understand, but she obediently nodded.
She hesitated, then looked at Natsuki and asked hopefully, "Are you going to apply?"
Natsuki shook his head. "I don't have your talent, so there's no point wasting time in the Medical Ninja Training Class."
Yakushi Nonō looked a little disappointed.
"You'd better study hard. If I get hurt someday, I'll be counting on you."
Natsuki reached out and patted her head.
"Mm!"
Yakushi Nonō immediately replied, "I definitely won't let you get hurt!"
Her spirits lifted again. She stood, walked over to Ishida Yu, and picked up an application form.
When she returned, Natsuki glanced at it.
The application form was divided into two sections.
The top section was for applicants to fill in their personal information.
The bottom section explained the Medical Ninja Training Class in detail.
First, students still had to take the Ninja Academy's standard theory classes, such as Will of Fire.
Second, Konoha would cover all the resources needed for studying in the Medical Ninja Training Class.
Third, graduates would receive priority placement in powerful ninja teams.
Natsuki wasn't surprised.
After all, there were simply too few medical ninja.
The idea he—or, rather, Tsunade—had proposed, of assigning a medical ninja to every team, wasn't practical.
Not now, and not even thirty years later, when Uzumaki Naruto and the others graduated.
Natsuki looked away from the form and toward Ishida Yu.
Besides Yakushi Nonō, seven other students had applied.
Namikaze Minato and Onodera weren't among them.
Medical ninja were important, but children preferred fighting over serving as support.
And applying didn't guarantee admission to the Medical Ninja Training Class. Students also needed a talent for the Yang Attribute.
Just as Natsuki had predicted, by the next day, First Grade Class A had only three fewer students. The rest of the applicants had been rejected for lacking the required talent.
Winter turned to spring, and time slipped by.
At the end of February, First Grade Class A took its final exam, which was also the year-end exam.
The exam had changed considerably. The physical fitness test, Ninja Tool Throwing, and Substitution Technique had been removed, replaced by actual combat.
The reason was simple: real combat tested physical fitness, Ninja Tool Throwing, and Substitution Technique all at once. It was a comprehensive assessment.
[Congratulations, Host. You have unlocked Zoro Template Ability Three: One Sword Style: Horse Demon.]
Natsuki let out a long breath of relief.
After more than half a year of effort, he had finally learned the D-Rank Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu.
"Talent really is the problem."
Natsuki shook his head and sighed.
If Hatake Kakashi had been learning a D-Rank Earth Release technique, he would probably have mastered it in less than three days.
Good thing he had a cheat. Learning ninjutsu wasn't his goal.
Before you continue