Pills

Konoha and the Cloud Village had finally achieved the peace they had agreed upon. Although, given the current state of the Shinobi World, a complete end to the war was still a distant prospect, peace with the Cloud Village was undoubtedly excellent news for Konoha. Thanks to it, the morale of Konoha's front-line shinobi may not have soared, but at least the decline that had set in after the Second Hokage's sacrifice had been reversed.

With its concerns about the Cloud Village resolved, Konoha began shifting its strategic focus toward the Sand Village.

On the domestic front, the success of the alliance mission had also further strengthened Acting Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen's authority. He had now completed Konoha's initial consolidation, and the village's leadership had taken shape: Acting Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen oversaw the whole picture, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu handled logistics, Shimura Danzō led internal affairs and intelligence, and Kagami Uchiha and Akimichi Tori supervised the war effort.

With the Senju Clan unwilling to step into the limelight, preparing to withdraw, and offering its full support, the Second Hokage's political legacy had been completely inherited by his students.

Of course, all these changes at the top, power struggles, and strategic decisions had absolutely nothing to do with Hanyu now that he had returned to Konoha. The most worthwhile thing for him personally to come out of the mission was that he had made a connection with Hatake Sakumo. If they got the chance, they could practice Taijutsu together, exchange ideas, and improve together... In a sense, Hatake's abilities were the sort that any shinobi would envy most.

As for everything else, Hanyu absolutely didn't want to stick his neck out again or offer any ideas for the time being. His trip to the Cloud Village had taught him what happened when he spoke too freely... Although his suggestions had helped Konoha reap a rich harvest from the alliance mission, he himself had paid a heavy price.

Being noted by another shinobi village was really not a good thing.

Thinking it over, Hanyu had only been in Konoha for a few days, yet he seemed to have taken part in every major event concerning the village's domestic and foreign affairs during that time. For an outsider who had just joined Konoha and had little strength, that much "presence" was a bit too much.

Hanyu decided to keep his head down. Wouldn't it be better to diligently learn from Teacher Sanshao? And so he began his "quiet life" at the Konoha Nursing Home.

But Konoha had just undergone a huge upheaval, and there were surely all kinds of urgent matters to resolve and decisions to plan. It wasn't until three days later that Hanyu saw his teacher again.

In Sanshao's office, she gave him another account of her situation. "I've been busy with clan matters, so I haven't had time to attend to you. But those matters have been taken care of now..."

As she spoke, her gaze turned toward the window. "You may have already noticed that I'm the kind of shinobi who can't fight... More precisely, I have no way to fight. My mind holds knowledge about shinobi and ninjutsu beyond what most people could imagine, but the irony is that my body can't turn that hidden knowledge into direct combat strength. I've been frail since birth—so frail that I can't even wield ninjutsu."

"Some congenital deficiencies can't be made up for by any means acquired later in life. I tried, but in the end, all I could conclude was that Medical Ninjutsu isn't万能... Of course, I'm not someone who can't accept reality."

Sanshao spoke calmly, but what she was describing was a rather sad situation... If Sanshao was an important member of the Senju Clan, she should have been born with better conditions than other shinobi. With the Senju's full support, she ought to have become an excellent shinobi, perhaps even a pillar of Konoha.

But because of her frail body, all these things that "should have been" existed only as illusions.

So, did she want to find a student who could bring out the power hidden in all that knowledge and act on her behalf on the battlefield?

Sanshao read the thought on Hanyu's face and shook her head. "You don't need to overthink it. I'll teach you what I know, but I won't attach any conditions. What you do with your strength once you have it, or what kind of shinobi you want to become—that's for you alone to decide."

Sanshao was certain that Hanyu was a very strong-willed person, so she didn't intend to force anything.

But her explanation only left Hanyu more confused. Just as he hadn't understood why the Second Hokage had trusted a stranger like him that day, he couldn't understand why Sanshao was giving him so much freedom now... What if Hanyu learned a lot of ninjutsu and then harmed Konoha in the future? It wasn't impossible.

"All right, let's leave this topic here." Sanshao's explanation of her circumstances ended while Hanyu still wanted to hear more. She then returned to his education. "In short, by our standards, you became a shinobi rather late. As your instructor, I hope I can make up for the time you've lost."

"Make up for it?" Hanyu understood what Sanshao meant by "late." Normally, shinobi began their training before the age of six. But this body was already over thirteen, an age by which he should have graduated from the Ninja Academy. Hanyu had perfectly missed the ideal time to build a shinobi's foundations... But what did Sanshao mean by making up for it? Could lost time really be made up?

As Hanyu looked on in confusion, Sanshao pointed to a huge glass jar beside her desk. Through its transparent sides, he could see that it was filled with black pills the size of dragon's eyes. Hanyu understood at once. Oh, so the pills in the title really were actual pills. After all, titles about certain kinds of people were usually completely unrelated to the actual content and mostly just clickbait.

"The Senju Clan's secret medicine... Do you know about secret medicines? Shinobi need them as they grow. Whether it's physical strength, chakra growth, or other kinds of development, they all require them. And among the secret medicines made by the various ninja clans, the Senju Clan's is the most precious and effective. The Forest Senju have stood firm and reigned supreme in the Shinobi World for so long, and this medicine has played its part." When she mentioned the Senju, Sanshao deliberately lowered her head to hide her expression.

"What I'm giving you now is an enhanced, extra-strength version of the Senju Secret Medicine. So even though you got a late start, it'll definitely help you catch up... What you see here is a week's supply."

"Teacher Sanshao, are you sure this is only a week's supply?" Hanyu stared at the rather enormous glass jar and asked in disbelief. There wasn't too little in there, but too much. If he rationed it, there was enough to eat for a week.

No matter how good the Senju Secret Medicine was, Hanyu couldn't help thinking it might have side effects. Take too many pills and you might really end up in a bad way.

"Of course. But if you think they taste good, you can finish them early," Sanshao said with a smile.

At her words, Hanyu figured, What if they actually taste good? and popped a pill into his mouth. The moment it touched his tongue, a strange, indescribable flavor shot up into his nose, throat, and forehead.

Amazing. No wonder it was the Senju Secret Medicine. The moment it touched his lips, it numbed his entire mouth. Even so, he had no choice but to give it a thumbs-up:

"No wonder it's Senju—the flavor sounds so fancy, and it tastes even better... Mm, what a little pill! Masterfully made!"