Kushina headed out of the classroom on her own, looking hurried and clearly a little unhappy.
"Ow!"
"Ow!"
Suddenly, there was a sound of collision, and Kushina dropped straight to the floor, clutching her forehead. She had clearly bumped into something.
"Are you all right?"
A gentle female voice came from outside the door. Then another figure who had also fallen hurried over to Kushina, ignoring the pain in her own head to check on her.
"I'm fine, I'm fine. I wasn't being careful. I'm sorry."
Kushina waved her hands repeatedly. Araki's words kept echoing in her head: she needed to be kind to others in Konoha. Besides, this had happened because she had been walking too fast in a huff. She couldn't blame the girl she had bumped into.
If anyone was to blame, it was Araki!
But...
This girl is so gentle!
Even Kushina felt an urge to show her concern when she heard that soft, gentle voice. She looked up to study the girl she had bumped into.
The girl had long black hair, and her pretty, delicate face was full of gentleness. Her black eyes, in particular, radiated a tender vulnerability that made anyone want to cherish her.
What caught Kushina's attention most was the Konoha ninja forehead protector the girl wore on her forehead.
That meant this girl was already a genin.
"I wasn't watching where I was going. It wasn't your fault. I'm sorry." The girl smiled gently and apologized as well, making it hard to feel any displeasure toward her. Then she reached out to rub the spot on Kushina's forehead where they had collided, saying with concern, "Your forehead is all red. It must really hurt!"
"It's fine now." Kushina shook her head. She glanced at the other girl's ninja forehead protector again and understood why the collision had hurt so much.
"My name is Uchiha Mikoto," the girl introduced herself with a smile.
"My name is Kushina Uzumaki," Kushina hurriedly gave her own name.
"You haven't eaten yet, have you? How about I treat you? Let's eat together, and you can consider it my way of making it up to you." Uchiha Mikoto pushed herself up from the ground. Before even brushing off the dirt on her clothes, she reached out to help Kushina up.
"Hmm... all right."
Kushina hesitated briefly. Thinking of all the students in the classroom who wanted to eat with her, she realized Mikoto would make a good shield. Besides, she had a very good impression of this girl. She hadn't made any female friends since coming to Konoha, so she could try getting along with her.
Kushina promptly reached out, accepting Mikoto's invitation, and let Mikoto pull her to her feet.
After standing up, both of them straightened their disheveled hair at the same time, then brushed the dust off their clothes. Clearly, they both cared about their appearance.
"Hehehe..."
Seeing the way the two of them looked, Uchiha Mikoto couldn't help laughing. She naturally linked her arm through Kushina's, looking like a close friend who had known her for ages.
"I'll treat you to tricolor dango. I absolutely love the sweets at that shop. They taste amazing!"
Uchiha Mikoto pulled Kushina along with her, and the two disappeared from the classroom students' sight.
The boys in the classroom looked at one another, dumbfounded. They stood there in a daze, unable to say a word.
They had all been planning to invite Kushina to lunch.
A few had even secretly placed bets on who would successfully invite her.
The outcome was beyond anyone's expectations.
In the end, Kushina had actually gone to eat with another girl.
In a seat near the front of the classroom, a blond student was tidying his desk, seemingly paying no attention to any of this. Yet after Kushina and Mikoto left, the corners of his mouth rose slightly.
"Sure enough, none of those guys managed it."
After learning the outcome, Minato Namikaze no longer lingered in the classroom. But a wild thought also sprang into his mind.
If I were the one to ask her...
Would I succeed?
Or would it be the same as everyone else?
This new red-haired girl really is special!
I wonder what she likes?
These thoughts surfaced in Minato Namikaze's mind, but he kept them all to himself, showing none of them outwardly. Even as a student, he possessed a maturity far beyond his peers.
Chapter 4: Basic medical knowledge
Araki didn't go out to eat. Instead, he went straight to Tsunade's house. She had specifically told him the day before to come over for lunch.
Before long.
Following the route he remembered, Araki arrived at Tsunade's home.
No one paid him any attention along the way, and he made no deliberate attempt to conceal his movements. As far as he was concerned, people would find out about these things sooner or later. Simply not going out of his way to mention them was enough.
Knock, knock, knock...
Araki gently raised his hand and knocked on the door. In truth, he was still wondering exactly what training as a medical-nin would be like.
Based on his memories of watching Naruto, the Medical Ninjutsu that had left the deepest impression on him was the Mystical Palm Technique. It reminded him of healing injuries by channeling internal energy in martial arts novels.
Did this kind of Medical Ninjutsu require powerful chakra?
How should I strike the right balance?
He couldn't appear too strong, nor could he show too much. Just as he had with Might Duy, he needed to fully demonstrate his potential while also displaying a certain degree of ability.
This really was a difficult problem for him!
After all...
This was a small class.
If he were in the Medical Team, as he had been at the Ninja Academy, he could use the other students' results as a reference.
Now, as Tsunade's disciple receiving her personal instruction, his only point of reference was Nawaki. But Araki had serious doubts about Nawaki's enthusiasm for learning Medical Ninjutsu.
This was another thing Araki found difficult to gauge.
Creak...
Just then.
The door opened, and the person who opened it was none other than Tsunade.
"Come in."
Upon seeing Araki, Tsunade gave a natural nod.
"I didn't know what you liked to eat, so I just put together a couple of rice balls for you. Rest for a little while after you finish eating, and then we'll begin the lesson."
Tsunade pointed at the dining table and gave these casual instructions, then turned her back to Araki and headed toward the kitchen. The visible mess there made it clear that preparing these rice balls had cost her a great deal of time and effort.
"All right."
Araki nodded and sat down at the dining table. Staring at the two rice balls with their unknown fillings, he began to wonder.
These are edible, right?
Why does it look like Tsunade made them herself...?
Can anyone really eat Tsunade's cooking?
But...
After hesitating briefly, Araki immediately dug in, taking big bites.
There might be something wrong with the taste, but they definitely weren't poisonous and wouldn't harm his body. After all, Tsunade was a top-class medical-nin, not just in Konoha, but in the entire ninja world.
They couldn't possibly be poisonous!
Besides, even if eating them did cause a problem...
I could receive treatment right here.
"Lady Tsunade, where's Nawaki?"
Araki asked as he ate. The rice balls tasted bland, as though some ingredient were missing, but they were enough to fill his stomach.
"I sent Nawaki to take care of the paperwork for his transfer to the Medical Team," Tsunade's voice came from the kitchen. Then she added, "I also had him take care of yours while he was at it."
"I see..."
Araki took a deep breath and quickly began thinking. Although being alone with Tsunade as she was now was a dream many homebodies held in their hearts, he needed to focus more on Medical Ninjutsu. He had to make sure he passed the test.
What should I do next?
What level of ability should I show?
Should I hold back my results?
Araki's head was full of questions, and his thoughts were somewhat muddled. He didn't know a single medical-nin, much less understand his own talent for learning Medical Ninjutsu.
If his talent was poor enough that he might fail to learn even with his full effort, wouldn't trying to hold back be a joke?
Just like that...
Araki sank into thought, eating the rice balls mechanically without paying any attention to them.
"Does it taste good?"
Suddenly, a voice interrupted Araki's thoughts and pulled him back to reality.
It was Tsunade's voice.
At some point, Tsunade had sat down opposite Araki, as though adding something to the enjoyment of his lunch.
"Y-yes... it does..."
Araki couldn't help swallowing. Just moments earlier, he had thought the rice balls were a little dry. Now there was no problem at all.
"As long as you like it."
Tsunade nodded in satisfaction, then took away the plate Araki had emptied. When she returned, she carried a book, a notebook, and two pens.
"These are for you."
"Starting today, we'll study the basic theoretical knowledge of medicine."
"I'll spend about a year teaching you this part."