To Repay Debts, Become Hokage!

Tsunade agreed, "Indeed, there are very few. Konoha Hospital serves the entire village as well as the surrounding countryside, so we truly cannot spare much more manpower. These medical ninja are the absolute limit of what I could secure."

Tsunade pursed her lips, "I even pulled in some medical ninja from the Anbu."

"Teacher, have you ever considered expanding the number of medical ninja?"

Uchiha Chonhua took the opportunity to suggest, "Injuries on the battlefield are inevitable. We can manage for now, but what if one day there are too many wounded comrades and not enough medical ninja to go around? Wouldn't that mean watching our comrades die miserable deaths?"

"I do not wish to see such a tragedy, Teacher. I hope we can have more medical ninja to safeguard the lives of our comrades."

Tsunade fell into deep thought upon hearing this.

Chonhua's words had struck a chord with her; increasing investment in the training of medical ninja and strengthening their ranks had always been something she wanted to do.

It was just that the old Hokage had always been hesitant and had yet to give his consent.

After years of peace, the flames of war were now rising, and the number of injured ninja was increasing. Trying to stretch every medical ninja to do the work of two was becoming a struggle.

Add to that the burden of the Konoha Hospital serving the villagers and the surrounding populace...

It was not enough—it was nowhere near enough!

"The objective facts are right here. The old man can no longer hesitate; expanding the number of medical ninja is a matter of urgency!"

Tsunade left with the sample of the Salamander's poison, intending to persuade Sarutobi Hiruzen to invest resources into training more medical ninja as soon as this war concluded.

Uchiha Chonhua did not need to go on patrol for the time being, so he stayed to help treat the wounded.

His medical proficiency earned the recognition and admiration of the medical ninja present.

Namikaze Minato scratched his head. He wanted to stay and help, but his level of medical ninjutsu was not high; it was enough to treat himself, but to treat others...

Namikaze Minato backed down. For the sake of the patients' lives, he decided not to interfere.

"I'll help out by running errands."

Namikaze Minato moved between the various hospital beds, acting as an orderly.

"Thank you, it doesn't hurt anymore. Wait? Are you from the Uchiha clan?"

A wounded man expressed his gratitude to Uchiha Chonhua, only to freeze when he saw the Uchiha clan crest on his clothing.

It was already rare for an Uchiha ninja to possess medical ninjutsu, but it was even more bizarre that one had appeared here to heal him and alleviate his suffering.

These were the Uchiha, after all—always seen in the village with icy faces, looking like they were difficult to deal with.

When they performed their duties, they were rough, heavy-handed, and cold-spoken...

He never imagined that one day, someone from the Uchiha clan would be the one to treat him.

"It's fine now. Be more careful next time."

Uchiha Chonhua smiled at him gently, his expression soft.

"...Oh, ah, yes, I'll be careful next time."

The wounded man stared at Uchiha Chonhua with great curiosity.

Are you sure you're an Uchiha?

Chapter 57: Saving Lives and Winning Hearts

"Thank you, Chonhua. I have fully recovered."

"To have such strong medical ninjutsu at such a young age, it really makes me, your uncle, feel ashamed."

"Heh, it's not just you who feels ashamed; we medical ninja feel ashamed too."

"As expected of Lady Tsunade's disciple—like teacher, like student!"

"..."

Hearing the praise around him, Uchiha Chonhua healed another Konoha ninja without changing his expression.

He straightened up, let out a breath, and smiled warmly, "That's it. Your arm is fine now."

The Konoha ninja flexed his arm upon hearing this, then exclaimed in surprise, "It's healed! I'm healed!"

He had accidentally been pierced through the arm by a kunai during a battle with Amegakure ninja, but now, after Uchiha Chonhua's treatment, it was completely intact and restored to its original state.

"Thank you, thank you!" The Konoha ninja grabbed Uchiha Chonhua's hand tightly and bowed repeatedly in gratitude.

"Don't mention it. With great power comes great responsibility." Uchiha Chonhua wore a smile that, in the eyes of the Konoha ninja, seemed to shine with a radiant light.

Uchiha Chonhua said slowly, "I do not wish to see my comrades suffer. Since I have the ability to heal everyone, I am duty-bound to do so!"

With great power comes great responsibility.

The Konoha ninja murmured to himself, What a wonderful thing to say! A warm current surged in his heart, and the way he looked at Uchiha Chonhua became filled with respect.

He sighed inwardly, This child of the Uchiha clan is a good person.

Swish!

The curtain was pulled aside.

"Help! Someone help! It's an emergency, hurry and save him!"

Uchiha Chonhua heard this and quickly offered an apologetic smile to the Konoha ninja before stepping forward: "Come, bring him to this empty spot; I will treat him!"

"You..." The burly man hesitated as he looked at the child before him, but his expression cleared upon seeing the iconic Uchiha clan crest.

"So you are the child of the Uchiha clan with the superb medical skills."

Uchiha Chonhua belonged to the combat unit, and his daily tasks, aside from routine patrols, involved intercepting and killing Amegakure ninjas or seizing their poison gas bombs.

However, Amegakure ninjas were not always present, so his daily work consisted mostly of patrolling and standing guard.

The combat unit operated on a shift system; after all, the number of Amegakure ninjas did not rival that of Konoha, so it was not worth committing a massive amount of manpower.

Every day, after handing over his duties to the next shift, Uchiha Chonhua would come to the makeshift hospital to save lives and treat the Konoha ninjas who had been wounded or poisoned.

As time passed, everyone in the ninja force knew that a child from the Uchiha clan with exceptional medical skills—a disciple of Tsunade—had arrived at the makeshift hospital.

His healing abilities were outstanding; under his hands, even the most severe injuries could be turned from critical to stable.

The burly man clearly recognized the child's identity and promptly entrusted his injured friend to Uchiha Chonhua with peace of mind.

After a round of treatment, the burly man watched with joy as his friend's face turned peaceful, his breathing smoothed out, and the look of agony vanished.

"Thank you for healing my friend!"

The burly man was so moved that he wanted to bow to Uchiha Chonhua in gratitude.

Uchiha Chonhua quickly pulled him up, modestly saying that no thanks were needed, as it was merely the duty of a Konoha ninja and only right to save a comrade from the same village.

After some back-and-forth, Uchiha Chonhua accepted the man's bow of gratitude with a look of feigned helplessness.

"You should just accept it, little Chonhua!"

A middle-aged man laughed heartily, and a patient nearby chimed in: "That's right! Our lives were all saved by you; thanks are definitely in order!"

"Just saying thanks isn't enough! After this war is over, you come to my family's eatery and eat for free!"

"..."

Yakushi Nonō looked at Uchiha Chonhua with a hint of envy.

"It's really nice, Chonhua; everyone loves and respects you so much."

Uchiha Chonhua scratched his head in embarrassment, looking a bit shy: "I only did what I was supposed to do; I really don't deserve everyone's high regard."

"Hehe." Yakushi Nonō curled her lips into a smile: "Being overly modest isn't good, you know. Everyone is genuinely trying to thank you."

"Nonō is right." Tsunade walked in at that moment and gave Uchiha Chonhua a heavy pat on the back, causing him to stumble forward a few steps.

"Just accept everyone's gratitude with a clear conscience!"

Tsunade laughed heartily, picked up the sealing scroll containing the Salamander's poison, and left.

She came in a rush and left in a rush.

Uchiha Chonhua hissed through his teeth; that slap had actually hurt a bit.

Looking up at the reverence and affection the crowd held for him, Uchiha Chonhua responded with a gentle smile.

It seems the effect is quite good.

Uchiha Chonhua thought to himself that since the effect was good, he should keep up the good work!

His desire to save others stirred, and his enthusiasm soared!

Bang!

Jiraiya slammed his palm onto the table, creating a thunderous sound.

He stared at the intelligence department's report with a look of shock.

"How could Sunagakure dare to make a move!? Do they not know that this act is equivalent to declaring war on the Land of Fire!?"

After two months of stalemate and tug-of-war with Salamander Hanzo, Sunagakure ninjas had struck from the southwest like a sharp blade, driving directly into the heart of the Land of Fire, burning, killing, and looting without restraint!

As the news arrived, the intelligence department immediately reported it to the command center.

Jiraiya could not fathom the reason; he looked at Orochimaru with a bewildered gaze and muttered: "This is going to ignite a war between two great nations!"

Orochimaru sneered: "Jiraiya, there is no need to be so surprised. Sunagakure declaring war on the Land of Fire is not unexpected."

"Hm? Orochimaru, do you know something?"

Orochimaru tapped the table, looking at Jiraiya with the gaze one might reserve for a fool, making Jiraiya feel quite uncomfortable.

"Looking at me like that makes me quite angry."

Orochimaru chuckled: "Jiraiya, spend less time at brothels and pay more attention to the news of the ninja world."

Ignoring Jiraiya's protests of "What brothels? Slander, pure slander! That was for research!", Orochimaru continued on his own: "Sunagakure was not involved in the First Shinobi World War, allowing them to develop in peace. By now, their growth has reached a bottleneck."

The territory of the Land of Wind is mostly desert with only a few oases; it is a land severely lacking in resources.

Furthermore, the Daimyo of the Land of Wind is notoriously stingy.

Under long-term peaceful development, Sunagakure had hit a bottleneck. To break through it, when the country could not provide more resources and the Daimyo of the Land of Wind was a notorious miser—making it harder to get money out of him than to ascend to heaven, and lucky if he didn't pull the rug out from under them—Sunagakure had no choice if they wanted to continue developing...

Hatake Sakumo hammered the final decision home: "We have no choice but to expand outward! They have chosen the Land of Fire."

Rich in resources and blessed with excellent terrain, the Land of Fire had always been coveted by other nations. It was the choicest piece of meat in the ninja world; who wouldn't want a bite?

Sunagakure wanted a bite, and they had taken action, invading the Land of Fire with a military force pushed to its absolute limit.

"Orochimaru, close-quarters combat units are of little use on this battlefield. Lead them south to halt the pace of Sunagakure's aggression; we cannot allow the populace to suffer any longer!"

"Understood, Captain-General!"

Orochimaru turned and exited to assemble his troops in preparation for the southern march.

Hatake Sakumo deliberated for a moment before saying to Jiraiya, "Jiraiya, notify Tsunade. Tell her to slow down the research on the Salamander's toxin and prioritize formulating antidotes to counter Sunagakure."

Sunagakure, after all, were also masters of poison.

Chapter 58: Chakra-ton, Kid!

Orochimaru led the close-quarters combat units south, quickly arriving at the region being ravaged by the Sunagakure ninja forces.

Hiss, hiss—

Orochimaru crouched down, learning the situation of the Sunagakure ninja forces from the mouth of a snake.

He furrowed his brows, his golden, serpentine pupils radiating a chilling coldness.

"Uchiha Zongxing, Hyuga Quande, interweave your teams and lead your clansmen to annihilate all Sunagakure ninja squads. Leave no survivors."

Uchiha Zongxing and Hyuga Quande exchanged a glance and nodded in agreement.

Soon, the Uchiha clan and the Hyuga clan completed their formation.

Uchiha Chonhua and Hizashi Hyuga were assigned to the same team, and the two nodded in acknowledgment.

Immediately after, Uchiha Chonhua looked toward Nawaki, who was standing beside Orochimaru. He walked over and cautioned him, "Nawaki, stay close to Senior Orochimaru, follow his orders well, and do not act on your own again."

During the battles against Amegakure, Nawaki had often let his hot blood go to his head; eager to achieve merit, he had frequently acted on his own initiative.