On his way to the Medical Unit, Uchiha Iori's gaze swept over the Konoha Ninja lying on the temporary beds.
Their faces were etched with pain and exhaustion. Under the intense fighting, the Medical Unit simply couldn't treat the wounded as quickly as new casualties arrived.
[Tsunade had been away from the village for so many years, yet when she returned, she became the Fifth Hokage and was widely welcomed.]
[Besides her bloodline, her teachers, her classmates... Wait, the more I think about this, the more it doesn't add up.]
Iori scratched his head and dragged his thoughts back on track.
[Anyway, her reputation as Konoha's medical saint was also a key factor. She saved countless Ninja on the battlefield and in the hospital.]
[Even if she never saved you personally, there was a good chance she saved your family or friends.]
[If she wanted to become Hokage, even if you didn't support her, you'd feel awkward opposing her too strongly.]
[But from now on, Tsunade can just take a back seat. The next medical saint is yours truly.]
The corners of Iori's mouth lifted slightly. He was ready to experience what it felt like to be a savior.
As a member of the Uchiha Clan, he was used to people keeping their distance and treating him coldly.
Back then, Iori had been focused on growing stronger, so he hadn't cared. But now that he was preparing to make his debut as Konoha's savior...
A cool-guy persona wasn't great for winning people over. Even if it was an act, he'd have to seem approachable.
Entering the medical tent, Iori approached the woman currently in charge, a kunoichi with yellow hair and round, black-rimmed glasses.
She was finishing up an operation, her expression focused as sweat trickled down her temple.
Iori stood quietly to one side. Only after she finished the operation did he greet her.
"Hello, I'm the Jonin who's here to help. Uchiha Iori."
Yakushi Nonō looked up. "Hello, I'm Yakushi Nonō, a Jonin in the Medical Unit. What can I help you with?"
As she spoke, she washed the blood from her hands and prepared for the next operation.
"My ninjutsu can quickly treat a group of wounded. Please gather the most seriously injured for me."
Iori took out his staff and spoke to Yakushi Nonō.
"What kind of Medical Ninjutsu is it? Does it treat external or internal injuries, and how effective is it?"
Yakushi Nonō asked one question after another. As the head of the Medical Unit, she was responsible for her patients. She couldn't simply hand them over to someone based on his word.
"It's an offshoot of my secret technique. It can treat most injuries." Iori concealed the fact that his Noble Phantasm could even heal the soul, mentioning only its most obvious effects.
Yakushi Nonō hesitated for a moment, then spoke to the two medical ninja beside her.
"Rumiko, Mare, bring over the patients in the most serious condition first. You'll wait here with me and check on them."
She turned to Iori and bowed slightly, her tone apologetic.
"I'm truly sorry. It's not that I don't believe you, but I didn't know the Uchiha Clan had anyone skilled in Medical Ninjutsu, so I can't hand the patients over to you without checking first."
"I'll observe the patients' vital signs. If anything goes wrong, I'll stop you. If everything goes well, I'll apologize."
Yakushi Nonō bowed to Uchiha Iori. His claim was too incredible to take at face value, and out of a doctor's compassion, she had decided to err on the side of caution.
"It's fine. Go ahead and watch." Iori shrugged, smiling as if it didn't bother him.
Yakushi Nonō would become an important figure in the future. There was nothing to lose and everything to gain by building a good relationship with her.
Iori remembered that Yakushi Nonō had apparently found Kabuto Yakushi near the Land of Wind around this time. He wondered if it had happened during the Battle of Kikyo Pass.
Two Chunin brought over several injured Ninja and laid them on beds near Iori.
Iori raised his staff. "PainBreaker!"
He guided the glowing motes down, mending the wounds.
Yakushi Nonō watched in astonishment as the patients' wounds healed under the Noble Phantasm's power. As she examined them, she could see their injuries rapidly recovering.
Unlike Medical Ninjutsu, this didn't heal wounds by stimulating cell division. Instead, it worked more like turning back time.
"What kind of ninjutsu is this? It's completely different from the entire system of Medical Ninjutsu we have now." Yakushi Nonō stared at the staff in Iori's hand, her eyes shining with intense curiosity.
"It's a power that comes with the spirit weapon. I can't really explain the specifics." Iori shook his head. He truly didn't understand how it worked.
For Uchiha Iori, projecting a Noble Phantasm was like following a blueprint, putting the parts together, and pulling the trigger.
He didn't need to understand the precise principles. He just needed to believe it would work.
Yakushi Nonō looked disappointed at his answer. As Konoha's foremost medical scholar after Tsunade, she had just witnessed an entirely new medical system, yet couldn't investigate its principles. It was a great disappointment.
As Iori watched the wounded gradually recover, he said to Yakushi Nonō, "Go check on them, then bring over the next group. I can keep treating them."
Yakushi Nonō nodded, went over to perform a quick examination, then said, "Rumiko, Mare, bring over the next patients, starting with the most seriously injured."
"I'm truly sorry. I shouldn't have doubted you." Yakushi Nonō bowed deeply to Iori.
"It's fine. You were just looking out for your comrades. That's only natural." Iori waved his hand magnanimously. This had been one of his goals, after all.
Having top medical ninja spread the word about his healing technique would be far more effective than bragging about it himself.
Iori continued treating patients for nearly an hour. Only after he had healed all the severely injured and most of the lightly injured in Konoha's camp did he take his leave.
"Wait, Lord Uchiha Iori. Could I ask you to come with me to Lady Tsunade and treat her as well?"
Yakushi Nonō hurried out of the tent after him, hope in her eyes.
"Of course. Where is she now?" Iori kept his expression steady, while inwardly congratulating himself on a plan well executed.
Putting aside Tsunade's personal charm, gaining her support was part of Iori's plan to secure a strong claim to power, given her position alone.
Sooner or later, this world would be his Garden of Nurgle. He'd have to prune a few branches that had grown crooked, such as Danzo and the others, but if he pruned too many, Iori would have a headache on his hands.
If humanity's strength was weakened too much, the birth of Alaya would become difficult. Unless absolutely necessary, he didn't plan to unite the Ninja World through sheer force—not yet, at least.
"Lady Tsunade is in a cave over there, near the edge of the camp. One of the patients was badly injured earlier, and Lady Tsunade accidentally saw blood while treating him. She's still feeling weak."
Yakushi Nonō pointed toward the cave on the outskirts. "I'll take you there."
"Okay. Please show me the way." Iori followed her toward the cave.