"Everyone, gather up!"
Kitayama Xu's voice rang through the Medical Corps office.
Instantly, every medic-nin froze mid-task…
Then, reluctantly and with visible dread, they shuffled toward her.
But halfway through the walk, something inside them seemed to snap.
Stretching your neck out gets you chopped. Keeping it tucked in also gets you chopped.
If fate was coming, then why struggle?
Besides—
The Aburame might be a little unsettling, but they were polite, serious, and easy to work with.
So by the time they actually formed a line, everyone had already convinced themselves to accept destiny.
Kitayama cleared her throat.
"There's an important experiment we need volunteers for. I expect everyone to treat this seriously. Baicao—"
"Yes! I will fully cooperate with the Aburame clan!"
Baicao shot his hand up and answered loudly.
Kitayama blinked.
Then her expression turned… peculiar.
Two seconds later, she clapped enthusiastically.
"As expected of a senior. Such noble resolve!"
"???"
Baicao stood there in utter confusion.
"Since you've volunteered," Kitayama continued brightly,
"Your squad will assist with the Aburame research."
"Wait! Captain Kitayama—you mean this isn't what you were about to assign me!?"
Baicao's face finally caught up with the situation.
Kitayama nodded serenely.
"Our previous technique—the pathogen-location method—is already in use. But Souma developed another approach, so I was looking for anyone free to assist me.
Now…"
She smiled.
"I've decided to lead that research personally. Who wants to join me?"
Hands shot into the air.
"Me!"
"I'll do it!"
"I volunteer!"
Everyone radiated shining righteousness.
Except for four people.
Four poor souls standing stiffly to the side—
Baicao's team.
Yagyu Souma honestly didn't know how to react.
Poor Baicao…
He had simply overthought, over-performed, and over-declared his enthusiasm.
If he'd stayed quiet two minutes longer, he would've been assigned the easier, safer project.
"Souma! You have to help me!"
"Baicao-senpai, it's not that serious."
The Aburame weren't plague demons.
Sure, kikaichū were creepy, but the Aburame's personalities were actually quite decent. They were good coworkers once you got used to them.
Baicao grabbed his sleeve.
"I've never collaborated with Aburame before! I don't even know how their insects are supposed to coordinate with us!"
"Relax. The kikaichū evolve on their own," Souma explained.
"The key is teaching them to absorb medical chakra without digesting it, and release it when instructed."
"That's not… our job, right?"
"No. That part is for the Aburame.
You only need to provide medical chakra and tell them where it should be released."
"Oh… that sounds easy."
Baicao finally exhaled.
Souma opened his mouth—
but decided not to explain how kikaichū absorb chakra.
"…How about this," Souma said kindly, "I'll join your team today."
"For real?!"
Baicao's eyes lit up.
He seized Souma's hand with the passion of a drowning man finding a floating log.
"Only for the first day," Souma clarified.
"I've been really busy."
He sighed silently.
His schedule was already insane.
Now he had taken on more work just because Baicao looked too pitiful.
"Thank you! Souma, you're a good person! I'll treat you to dinner!"
"I appreciate it, but I really am busy."
Not a lie.
The Third Hokage's Telescope Technique still had untapped potential.
The pathogen-location method alone wasn't enough to reach the sophistication Souma envisioned—
the kind of technique where anyone could use it, not just elite medics.
As for whether Hiruzen cared about his reputation?
Not Souma's problem.
And more importantly—
Once a jutsu spreads through future generations, even if its creator dies, he continues to live on in the world.
Like the Sage of Six Paths.
Souma mulled this over as he headed into Kitayama's office to write down his ideas.
Baicao, meanwhile, was still celebrating his "victory."
Fengxiang sighed, patting him on the shoulder.
"Baicao."
"Hm?"
"…Wasn't this entire collaboration project created because of Souma?"
"…Right."
"Whew, finished!"
"Finished what?" Kitayama asked, stepping back into the room.
She glanced at his notebook.
Her brow twitched.
"…A reconnaissance technique for clones?"
"A scouting method for Earth clones," Souma explained.
"Shadow clones can scout too, but they drain too much chakra."
"True. So you're pairing it with the Telescope Technique?"
"It'd be weird to carry a crystal ball everywhere," Souma said.
"And inconvenient.
So I thought—why not integrate it with eyeglasses? And if I embed barrier techniques inside, we could monitor things in real time."
Kitayama listened…
And understood almost nothing.
She had been out of front-line combat too long.
Her tactical instincts had rusted.
Still, Souma continued patiently:
"Konoha's protective barrier is huge and excellent for scanning intruders. Smaller barriers exist too, but most aren't useful.
If we combine symbols, lenses, the Telescope Technique, and clone-linking, we can drastically shorten setup time."
Kitayama nodded as if she understood.
She did not.
"Right, by the way," she said suddenly, "the Aburame representative arrived.
A kid. He said Shibi-senpai sent him to assist."
"A kid?"
Souma blinked.
Then I immediately understood.
Shino.
Smart, quiet, hardworking, and adaptable.
A perfect assistant—
and letting a student help wouldn't interfere with ninja deployment.
"Also… Baicao is waiting for you anxiously," Kitayama added.
"Right, I'll head over now."
"Are you sure you're fine leaving this work? Your notes aren't complete."
"No problem.
The technique is ready—I just need to write the report."
Souma closed his notebook and slipped it into his pocket.
Kitayama froze.
He said it so casually.
She inhaled deeply several times.
Then muttered to herself:
"Routine operation. Don't compare yourself to a monster."
"Teacher, if the improved pathogen-location method works, could you help write the report?
I'm honestly too busy."
"…Yes."
She agreed instantly.
Then realized—
Oh no. He probably heard my muttering.
"Also, Teacher, you've been improving really fast lately!"
"…Why do you sound like you're the teacher here?"
"Hehehe. I'm off."
Souma waved and closed the door.
Kitayama exhaled.
He definitely heard.
But… this wasn't the first time.
She recovered quickly.
And then another thought popped into her mind—
Thanks to Souma, everyone in the Medical Corps has grown so much.
If Tsunade-sama ever returned…
She would definitely be shocked speechless.
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