Taking a Master

The atmosphere was completely different from the last time Tianyi entered the command center tent.

The tent was brightly lit, filled with a relaxed yet invigorated air.

Several people sat around the long table in the center. Besides Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru,

there were also several main squad captains from this battle, as well as Nara Shikaku.

Most of them wore smiles as they chatted quietly.

Clearly, the victory on the Land of Rain front had allowed everyone to breathe a sigh of relief.

When Tianyi and Nawaki lifted the tent flap and entered, the conversations inside paused slightly.

Then all kinds of gazes turned toward them—friendly, grateful, and even faintly curious.

"Yo! Our great contributor is here!" a hearty voice rang out first.

Jiraiya rose straight from his seat and strode over.

Without ceremony, he threw an arm around Tianyi's shoulders and gave him a hard pat.

"Kid, you did great! Never thought you had this kind of skill, hahaha... I knew I hadn't misjudged you!"

He laughed without restraint, his booming voice making Tianyi's ears ring.

Just then—

"Bang!"

At the familiar dull thud, Jiraiya reflexively hunched his neck with practiced ease.

Tsunade withdrew her fist and shot the grinning Jiraiya a fierce glare.

"Jiraiya! Watch the occasion! He hasn't fully recovered from his injuries yet!"

Jiraiya sheepishly released Tianyi, rubbed his nose, and muttered, "I was just happy..."

A few suppressed chuckles sounded through the tent. Clearly, everyone was already used to the way the old partners got along.

Only then did Tsunade turn her gaze to Tianyi.

"Hyuga Tianyi, you performed exceptionally well in this battle.

Not only did you ruin Hanzo's backup poison mist tactic, but through your own efforts alone,

you bought the front line crucial rescue time and saved the lives of nearly a hundred Leaf Village comrades."

As she spoke, her gaze swept over the squad captains present. "You lot

had better thank him properly. If he hadn't dealt with that poison-spewing beast,

the casualty lists under your command would have been much longer."

The captains who had been addressed all nodded, their gazes toward Tianyi growing even more fervent.

A burly captain with a scar across his face stood up directly and said in a rough voice,

"That's right! Hyuga kid, several of my brothers were saved by you!

I, Yamashiro Ao, will remember this favor! If you ever need anything, just say the word!"

The other captains also chimed in, their words filled with sincere gratitude.

Faced with such straightforward praise, Tianyi was somewhat unaccustomed to it. He could only give a slight bow.

"You're overpraising me, captains. I only did what I should have done."

At that moment, Nawaki, who had followed Tianyi in, could not help jumping out.

His face carried a trace of smugness, along with a hint of spoiled pleading.

"Big Sis! Moonlight Kaede and I were there too!

We risked our lives rescuing people in the poison mist the whole time! We saved lots of people too!"

Tsunade looked at her younger brother, and the stern expression on her face instantly melted away.

She revealed an indulgent smile and reached out to ruffle Nawaki's hair.

"Yes, yes, my Nawaki has grown up too. You were very brave this time.

You can stand on your own now. Maple Leaf worked hard too."

After receiving his sister's praise, Nawaki immediately beamed, scratching his head in embarrassment.

He gave a foolish little laugh, and the mood in the tent became even more relaxed because of the brief interruption.

At this point, Orochimaru slowly spoke.

"Indeed... an outstanding performance."

Everyone looked toward the source of the voice and saw that Orochimaru had somehow already left his seat.

He had silently walked closer. His golden vertical pupils studied Tianyi with great interest.

"Especially..." Orochimaru's tongue lightly swept over the corner of his mouth.

"Those serums you used to counter Hanzo's deadly poison.

As far as I know, Ibuse's poison is a mixture of complex neurotoxins and cell-corroding toxins.

It is extremely complicated and lethal. Even specialized antidotes require a long period of targeted development.

Yet you... seemed to have prepared a considerable number of anti-poison agents shortly after the previous encounter?"

The mood in the tent became subtly delicate because of his question.

The captains also showed curious expressions. This had indeed been one of the most astonishing parts of the battle report.

Everyone's eyes focused on Tianyi once more.

Tianyi's heart tightened. He knew he could not avoid this question, but he had already prepared an explanation.

An explanation that fit the logic of the Naruto World while also accounting for his actions.

He raised his head to meet Orochimaru's probing gaze, and a fervent expression appeared on his face.

"Lord Orochimaru is right. Ibuse's poison is indeed complex.

After I narrowly escaped from the poison mist during the first encounter, I realized it would become a huge threat in future battles."

He explained steadily, "So I asked Senior Aoi from the Medical Corps

to help collect poison mist samples left behind on the battlefield.

After returning to camp, I immediately diluted the samples to a high degree, then..."

He paused, as though organizing his thoughts.

"I injected them into several wild rabbits and field mice near the camp in batches, using different concentrations."

The tent fell silent. Even Tsunade wore a serious expression as she listened.

"Most of the test animals died quickly," Tianyi said with a researcher's calm.

"But two or three rabbits, after being injected with the lowest concentration of diluted solution,

struggled for a long time... and survived."

"Oh?" Orochimaru's eyes visibly lit up, and he leaned forward slightly.

"I believed they might have produced some substance in their bodies capable of counteracting the poison."

Tianyi continued.

"So, with Senior Aoi's permission and the assistance of the Medical Corps,

I attempted to isolate and extract any possible anti-poison factors from the blood of those surviving rabbits.

After repeated attempts and purification, I eventually obtained something... which I will call 'anti-poison stock solution' for now.

Before this battle, I further purified and stabilized the solution, turning it into those ten injections."

He added at last, "The method was crude, and the results might have been unstable, but the situation was urgent.

I could only take the risk and try. Fortunately, it seemed to have worked."

After speaking, he quietly waited for a response. This explanation was half true and half false; he really had asked Aoi to collect samples.

He had also truly conducted experiments on animals, but the real backbone of the anti-poison serum's development

had been a whole laboratory of experts from the real world.

Still, to the medical ninja of the Naruto World, this explanation

was bold in its approach, but not entirely impossible.

Especially when combined with the unique medical ideas he had demonstrated before.

The silence lasted for several seconds.

"A genius concept..." Orochimaru slowly said.

His voice carried undisguised admiration and a trace of... regret?

Excited light flickered in his golden pupils.

"Skipping the cumbersome full analysis of the toxin's components

and directly seeking an antidote in the organism's own immune response...

The method is radical, but the reasoning is extremely ingenious and efficient.

Your understanding of the interaction between living organisms and toxins is indeed uniquely insightful."

He shook his head slightly, looked at Tsunade, then back at Tianyi. A rare note of regret entered his voice.

"What a pity... I have already taken a disciple.

Otherwise, I truly would have liked to discuss these... interesting ideas with you.

Hehehe..."