When Guy opened his eyes again, he was staring at the tent ceiling.
Gray canvas, a crossbeam in the middle, and an oil lamp hanging from it, its flame swaying back and forth.
He stared at the beam for a few seconds.
"Grrr~!"
His stomach growled.
Hungry.
"How many days was I unconscious?"
He pushed himself upright with his arms, and a dull pain throbbed through his right leg.
He looked down. His lower leg was wrapped in bandages.
They ran from his ankle to his knee, with two wooden splints on the outside, fastened tightly in place with strips of cloth.
He wiggled his toes.
It hurt, but he could still move them.
"A comminuted fracture, and I've already recovered this much?"
Guy was pleasantly surprised.
"Was it the recovery effect of Yijin Jing? Or did a medical ninja treat me?"
He rolled his shoulder, and his bones cracked twice.
His joints moved freely, with no lasting injury.
Just then, the tent flap lifted.
Ebisu walked in carrying a tray with three steaming bowls stacked on it.
Looking down at the tray, he muttered, "That idiot's been unconscious for so long. Who knows when he'll wake up..."
"Who are you calling an idiot?"
Ebisu stopped in his tracks.
He looked up and saw Guy sitting on the bed.
"You're awake!"
Ebisu rushed over and set the tray on the small table beside the bed.
"When did you wake up? How are you feeling? Does your leg still hurt?"
Guy didn't answer. He reached out and pulled the tray closer.
Three bowls.
One was piled high with rice.
One held miso soup.
The last contained stew: radish, potatoes, and a few pieces of meat.
He grabbed the rice bowl without hesitation and shoveled in a big mouthful.
"Now that's better~"
Guy looked thoroughly satisfied.
Ebisu sat on the camp bed beside him, watching him eat.
"How many days was I... mmph... unconscious?" Guy asked through a mouthful.
"Two days and two nights. Doctor Tanaka from the Medical Corps treated you. She said your right leg had a comminuted fracture and you'd need to stay in bed for at least half a month before you could get up."
Guy chewed his rice. "What about the captain?"
"The captain's fine."
Ebisu pursed his lips.
"After taking that pill you gave him, he was back to normal the very next day."
"Doctor Tanaka said she'd never seen anyone take two doses of Akimichi Secret Medicine and still be up and about."
Guy grinned and went back to shoveling in his rice.
"What about you?" Ebisu studied him. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine."
Guy set down the empty bowl, picked up the stew, and shoveled it straight into his mouth.
Watching him eat, Ebisu swallowed.
"You had a comminuted fracture in your right leg, and you're already sitting up? You're a monster!"
Guy finished the stew, picked up the miso soup, and downed it in one gulp.
He stacked the three bowls on the table and patted his stomach.
"Any more?"
Ebisu stood and picked up the bowls.
"Wait here. I'll get you some more."
He walked to the entrance, then glanced back.
"You're recovering at a freakish speed, you know that?"
Guy gave him a thumbs-up.
"The power of Youth."
Ebisu rolled his eyes and lifted the flap to leave.
Guy leaned back against the bed and looked down at his right leg.
A comminuted fracture, and he could sit up after only two days.
The medical ninja's treatment had helped.
But judging from what Ebisu had said, most of the credit went to Yijin Jing.
Its ability to heal damage to the body was stronger than he'd expected.
"At this rate, I'll be recovered in just a few days, right?"
Guy grinned.
"Good thing I didn't use a Lesser Restoration Pill on myself."
On the battlefield, a pill like the Lesser Restoration Pill.
One pill could mean one life saved.
It was incredibly precious.
He had a feeling he could recover on his own, so there was no need to waste one.
As it turned out, he was right.
Before long, Ebisu returned with a tray piled with four bowls.
"The guy in the kitchen heard you were awake, so he gave you an extra bowl."
Guy took it and started eating.
Ebisu sat beside him and watched.
He'd only just come in when footsteps sounded outside the tent.
The flap lifted, and Genma walked in with a toothpick in his mouth.
Seeing Guy sitting up in bed, he nodded.
"You're awake."
Choza ducked in behind him.
He was so big that he had to bow his head every time he entered.
"You're awake?" Choza came over.
Guy nodded.
"Captain."
Choza looked him over, his gaze pausing on the bandage around Guy's right leg.
"How are you feeling?"
"Hungry."
Choza chuckled and glanced back at Ebisu.
Ebisu's mouth twitched, but he immediately stood up.
"I'll go get more!"
Choza sat on the bed beside Guy. The camp bed creaked.
"Guy, while you were unconscious these past two days, I reported your team's results from that night."
Guy blinked.
"Nine Genin and three Chunin. The three of you killed them."
He paused.
"Though you did most of the work."
Choza continued, "Of course, there was also that last Jonin. You killed him, but I reported it as a group effort."
After finishing, Choza watched Guy closely.
Guy grinned. "Thanks, Captain."
Hearing that, Choza let out a sigh of relief.
When it came to Iwami Shigezo, you could say Guy had killed him.
But the truth was, their whole squad had taken him down together.
Still, a child who wasn't even nine killing an Iwagakure Jonin?
That wouldn't be good news to spread!
Especially during wartime.
If the news got out, Guy would become a prime assassination target for Iwagakure and even the other villages.
They absolutely couldn't let Guy grow stronger!
But if it was reported as a group effort, everyone would assume that Choza had been the main force and had given the kids some credit. No one would think much of it.
Choza's action might have looked like he was taking credit for himself.
But more than anything, he was protecting Might Guy.
Choza nodded. "Good. As long as you understand. Even so, this record is the best on the entire Kikyo Mountain front."
"When I submitted the report, the logistics staff read it three times and asked if I'd made a mistake."
Then he looked at Guy, his tone shifting.
"By the way, you'll be promoted to Chunin in a few days."
Guy stared at him. "Chunin?"
"That's right." Choza nodded. "You'll be the second person in Konoha's history to become a Chunin before turning nine, after Kakashi."
Ebisu came in carrying another tray, lifting the flap just as he heard that.
"What? Chunin?!"
Ebisu hurried over. "You're getting promoted to Chunin?!"
Guy took the tray from him.
He chewed and gave a muffled, "Mm."
Ebisu turned to Choza, who nodded.
"The report's already been submitted. We're waiting for the Third Hokage's approval."
Ebisu turned back to Guy. He opened his mouth, then shut it again.
"You're a freak."
Guy smiled. "All right, all right. I'm a freak."
Ebisu sat down, fuming, and watched Guy eat.
After a while, he couldn't help speaking up.
"Hmph. I'll be promoted to Chunin soon enough too."
Guy looked up and nodded.
"Yeah, you definitely will."
Ebisu froze for a moment, then looked away.
"Hmph. Of course I will."
Genma leaned against a tent pole with a toothpick in his mouth, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly.
Choza stood up.
"Enough. Get some rest. Don't move around for the next few days. We'll handle the missions. The Medical Corps said you'll need to keep that leg resting for at least twenty days."
Guy knew he wouldn't need nearly that long, but he nodded anyway.
"Got it."
Choza turned to leave. At the entrance, he looked back.
"Guy."
"Yeah?"
"Thanks for that night."
Before Guy could reply, Choza ducked out of the tent.
Ebisu and Genma exchanged a glance and stood up too.
"Get some rest."
Genma nodded and followed him out.
Guy was the only one left in the tent.
He leaned back against the bed, closed his eyes, and opened the system panel.
[Congratulations, Host. The intermediate-level technique Precept-Breaking Blade has reached perfection] [Obtained a random martial arts gift pack] [Open it?]
That was the system notification from that night.
Precept-Breaking Blade had reached perfection, but there was still a gift pack he hadn't opened.
"Open the martial arts gift pack."
A burst of golden light exploded.
A secret manual appeared in his mind.
Three characters were written on the cover in sharp, forceful strokes.
[Mercy Blade] [Intermediate-level technique] [One of the Shaolin Seventy-Two Arts. Named for mercy, this blade technique is not for taking lives, but for guiding others to salvation. Draw the blade, then sheathe it; to take a life is to save one.] [Method of cultivation: Meditate daily while holding a blade, and contemplate the meaning of "mercy." Each time you guide an evildoer to salvation, your proficiency will increase greatly.]
Guy read the description and fell silent for a few seconds.
"They gave me a Mercy Blade on the battlefield??"
He suddenly felt a little ache in his teeth.
But he also understood that Mercy Blade wasn't really about showing compassion to all.
To take a life was to save one.
The description made that perfectly clear.
Precept-Breaking Blade: breaking the precepts. Taking lives, drinking wine—breaking the commandments.
Mercy Blade: mercy. Guiding others to salvation, redeeming them—compassion.
One broke; the other showed mercy.
One was an offensive technique; the other, defensive.
They complemented each other rather well.
He closed the panel and opened his eyes.
The tent ceiling was still the same tent ceiling, and the oil lamp was still the same oil lamp.
But now that Precept-Breaking Blade had reached perfection, he no longer had a blade that suited him.
The cleaver had shattered into dozens of pieces of iron, scattered across the rainy night.
Now that Precept-Breaking Blade had reached perfection, the ultimate Precept-Breaking One Strike had become one of his trump cards.
He needed a blade.
And now that he had Mercy Blade, he needed one even more.
Guy looked down at his empty hands.
"I'll have to find myself a new blade."
But he wasn't worried.
On the battlefield,
there was never any shortage of ninja blades.