Intern at the Animal Training and Rehabilitation Unit

Half a month flew by in the chakra that flowed between his fingertips. The talent Uchiha Kyohaku displayed in medical ninjutsu left Teacher Nohara's initial surprise gradually replaced by utter shock.

The principle of the Healing Technique was to precisely output Yang-nature chakra, stimulating cellular activity and accelerating the natural healing process. It placed extremely high demands on the precision, stability, and sensory ability of chakra control. These were precisely Kyohaku's greatest strengths.

He grasped the essentials at an astonishing pace. From initially being able to gather only a faint, warm green glow in his palm, to steadily maintaining chakra output, to precisely controlling the range and intensity of treatment, he took only a few short days.

To test his practical abilities, Teacher Nohara bought back several fish from the market that were barely clinging to life, nearly floating belly-up. Some had lost scales, while others had damaged fins, and all of them had only the faintest traces of vitality.

"Give it a try, Kyohaku. Just do your best. It's fine if you can't save them—this is practice in itself," Teacher Nohara reassured him. She did not believe a child who had only been studying for half a month could truly handle such terrible conditions.

Kyohaku said nothing. He merely extended his hands calmly, gentle green light covering his palms. Rather than hurriedly spreading his chakra over the fish's entire bodies, he first sensed out the most serious injuries on each fish with extreme care. Then, like the finest embroidery needle, he injected and guided healing chakra bit by bit.

His gaze was focused and calm, as though he were not saving lives but performing a precise surgical operation. Teacher Nohara watched with bated breath. Under that shimmering green light, the edges of the fishes' damaged scales seemed to slowly draw together at a visible rate. Their lifeless fins quivered gently, and their once-weak breathing gradually grew stronger!

In barely ten minutes, the several fish that had been on the verge of death miraculously regained their vitality. Though they still appeared weak, they were already out of danger and slowly swam through the shallow water.

"Th-This is incredible!" Teacher Nohara cried out involuntarily. She looked at Kyohaku as though he were a rare treasure. "Kyohaku, your chakra control and sensory ability are the finest I've ever seen among beginners! You were born to be a medical ninja!"

She paced excitedly around the infirmary. "No, we can't waste your talent! Treating scrapes in the school infirmary is far beneath you. How about this? I'll write a letter of recommendation and send you to intern at Konoha Hospital's Animal Training and Rehabilitation Unit!"

"The Animal Training and Rehabilitation Unit?" Kyohaku showed a suitably puzzled expression.

"Yes!" Teacher Nohara explained excitedly. "It's a department under the hospital, mainly responsible for treating injured ninja dogs, messenger hawks, and other animals that serve the village. Starting by building experience through treating small animals is ideal. They're small, their anatomy is relatively simple, yet they possess complete living systems. They're excellent practical subjects for training in medical ninjutsu! And while you're there, you can apply for access to the hospital's basic medical archives. There are many books on anatomy, physiology, common medicines, and fundamental medical theory. They'll be of great help to your studies!"

This was exactly what Kyohaku wanted. He immediately showed delight and gratitude. "Really? Thank you, Teacher Nohara! I'll study hard!"

Thus, another element was added to Uchiha Kyohaku's life. With Teacher Nohara's recommendation letter, he smoothly entered Konoha Hospital's Animal Training and Rehabilitation Unit as an unofficial "intern." Not many people there paid attention to an Uchiha child using crutches. Everyone's attention was focused on the injured or sick animals.

He began by cleaning and bandaging ninja dogs' external wounds and feeding medicine to messenger hawks. Before long, his precise Healing Technique came into use. For certain minor procedures that required delicate chakra manipulation, the senior veterinarians even began letting him assist at their sides. He was quiet, but he learned quickly and worked steadily, soon earning the goodwill of the unit's staff. More importantly, he gained permission to enter the basic medical archives. The vast collection of medical texts there became his new treasure trove. He hungrily absorbed every piece of knowledge, cross-referencing it with the anatomy and physiology knowledge from his previous life, and advancing by leaps and bounds each day.

However, the turmoil at school had not completely subsided. Although Kyohaku kept an extremely low profile, his frequent visits to the infirmary and hospital still drew some attention. Uchiha Steel Mountain and Daiyi seemed to have found new material for mockery.

"Look at that cripple. He can't be a proper ninja, so he went off to become a veterinarian!"

"What a disgrace to the Uchiha, hanging around beasts all day!"

"I think he's only fit to treat dogs!"

These words occasionally still reached Kyohaku's ears, but he continued to ignore them as though they were not talking about him.

Then, one evening half a month later, Kyohaku had just returned from the hospital to his small courtyard when someone knocked on the gate.

Standing outside were Uchiha Steel Mountain and Daiyi, their faces serious. Yet they no longer had their usual arrogance. They kept their heads lowered, their eyes darting about, with even a trace of reluctant fear on their faces. Behind them stood a tall, stern-faced middle-aged man dressed in a jonin vest. His brows bore some resemblance to Steel Mountain's, and his sharp eyes carried an imposing authority even without anger. Kyohaku recognized him: Uchiha Hengtai, a well-known jonin within the clan and Steel Mountain's father.

"Uchiha Kyohaku?" Uchiha Hengtai spoke, his voice low and powerful.

"Yes, Jonin Hengtai." Kyohaku gave a slight bow, his manners impeccable.

Uchiha Hengtai's sharp gaze swept over Kyohaku's crutches and his placid face. "I am Uchiha Hengtai, Steel Mountain's father. I've just returned from a long-term mission and heard about some of what happened at school." He turned his head and glared sternly at Steel Mountain and Daiyi. "I failed to discipline them properly, allowing these two brats to speak without restraint, repeatedly mock a fellow clansman, and disgrace the Uchiha name!"

Steel Mountain and Daiyi shuddered in fright and hurriedly bowed toward Kyohaku. In muffled, hurried voices, they said, "Sorry! Kyohaku! We were wrong! We won't dare do it again!"

Their tones were rushed and obviously lacked sincerity. It sounded more like a performance forced out of them by pressure.

Uchiha Hengtai had clearly heard it too, but what he wanted was an attitude and a result. He turned back to Kyohaku, his tone easing slightly. "Kyohaku, I've heard about your situation as well. Your parents passed away early, and you have physical difficulties, yet you still found another path and studied medical ninjutsu. Such determination deserves recognition. Clansmen should support one another rather than engage in internal strife. I brought them here to apologize today. If they dare bother you again, come tell me directly."

His words sounded fair and stern, preserving the appearance of clan unity and maintaining his dignity as both a jonin and a father. Yet Kyohaku could sense that this protection stemmed more from the Uchiha's collective sense of honor than any concern for him personally.

"Thank you, Jonin Hengtai, for upholding justice." Kyohaku bowed slightly again, his face betraying neither joy nor anger. "It was a minor matter. I've already forgotten it."

His reaction was so calm, even carrying a distant indifference, that Uchiha Hengtai paused slightly. He gave him a deep look before finally nodding. "Good. Then get some rest."

With that, he led away the two boys, who felt both pardoned and aggrieved.

The courtyard gate closed, shutting out the outside world. Kyohaku remained where he was, his face still expressionless.

An apology? He did not need one at all. This superficial apology, forced out by pressure, was meaningless. He could not even be bothered to analyze how much sincerity or falsehood it contained.

The only value of this incident was that it confirmed an unspoken rule within the Uchiha clan: internal oppression and disdain could exist, but outwardly, unity had to be maintained—especially so outsiders would not get a laugh at their expense. And a jonin stepping in meant that such public mockery would most likely not happen again.

That was good. It saved him quite a bit of trouble.

He turned and walked into the house, taking out the detailed diagram of the human body's chakra pathways he had borrowed from the hospital and spreading it across the table. Under the lamplight, his gaze quickly became focused and calm, as though the small disturbance just now had never happened.

His world existed only within those precise lines, complex symbols, and boundless knowledge. The pointless disturbances between children were nothing more than insignificant dust along the path toward his goal.