After returning to the command headquarters camp, the four discovered that the place was merely somewhat noisy and did not look like it was under enemy attack.
No one came to tell them why they had been called back either, so everyone could only return to the room assigned to their squad to rest and recuperate.
When they reached the doorway, an unfamiliar young female ninja was waiting there. Upon seeing Makoto, she immediately stepped forward and asked, "Excuse me, may I ask if you are Higashino Makoto?"
"I am. And who might you be?"
"I'm Utatane Mai, a nurse from the camp's medical department. Director Mishima asked me to come and find you."
Kumomi nodded slightly. "You go on ahead first. If there's anything, I'll have the other two come look for you."
"Alright, I'll go take a look."
Medical ninja were already a scarce profession to begin with, and this was even more true on the eastern Kirigakure battlefield. Because the front had fallen into a stalemate and large-scale fighting was infrequent, quite a few medical ninja had gone north with Hyūga Hiashi's support forces, where the battles were intense and manpower was needed more urgently.
After arriving at the temporary medical department, Makoto discovered that the place had lost its usual quiet atmosphere and now had many more wounded.
Several medical ninja and nurses were treating those with more serious injuries; as for those who were only lightly wounded, they would have to wait for the time being.
Makoto's squad had been stationed to the north of the command headquarters all along—specifically at the Land of Waves defensive line. Recently, there had been no news of any large-scale battles breaking out there.
In other words, these wounded must have come from the southern Land of Whirlpools defensive line.
God knows what they had been through.
At that moment, Makoto saw a teenage ninja who looked somewhat familiar—about thirteen or fourteen years old, roughly the same age as Guy. This person was staying by the side of an injured teammate.
He walked up to get a better look and asked, "Are you Iwasashi?"
The sturdy teenage ninja with darker skin lifted his head in confusion. "Yes. Do you know me?"
"Five years ago, by a tributary of the Naka River. You tried to snatch my grilled fish, and then I beat you up."
Iwasashi looked carefully at Makoto, thought for a moment, and only then remembered. "Oh, it's you. Sorry—back then we were all too young and didn't really understand. We caused you trouble."
That's right—Iwasashi was the Konoha brat Makoto had run into a few years ago. But compared to his once arrogant manner, Iwasashi, after being battered by war, now looked much more well-behaved.
Naturally, Makoto could not possibly hold a grudge against a kid. He asked, "How come it's only you? Didn't the companions who were with you back then become ninja?"
Iwasashi's gaze dimmed. "Them? They're all dead!"
For a moment, Makoto didn't know how to respond. Back then, it had just been children fooling around—there was no real enmity. But in the blink of an eye, out of the group of four, only one was left.
Since coming to the ninja world, this was the first time Makoto had profoundly realized how worthless a ninja's life was—even when they were underage children.
He said nothing more. Instead, he walked over to Iwasashi's teammate, untied the bandages on the wound, and found that it had already been cleaned. He then directly performed the Mystical Palm Technique to treat the injury.
The nurse following beside him, Utatane Mai, did not stop him. She watched attentively and, to her surprise, discovered what set Makoto apart from other medical ninja: under his medical chakra, the patient's wound healed at a noticeably faster rate.
After the treatment was finished, Makoto patted Iwasashi on the shoulder. "Alright. Your teammate is fine now. Take him to rest."
Iwasashi bent at the waist in a bow. "Thank you—thank you very much!"
Watching him leave with his teammate, Makoto thought to himself: the children who once dreamed of becoming Hokage—how much longing for that position still remained in their hearts now?
Shaking off the distracting thoughts, Makoto split off several shadow clones and began devoting himself fully to treating the wounded here.
Mai looked left and right, unsure of whom to follow. In the end, she chose to stay behind the original body and assist.
This was the first time the nurse had seen that a medical ninja could be this overbearing. With such a large amount of chakra, could one really do whatever they wanted?
Makoto: Sorry—I have plenty of chakra, so yes, I really can do whatever I want.
After the treatment ended, the young nurse had become extremely respectful.
This little brother looked several years younger than her—who would have thought he was actually a big shot?
...
Outside a special treatment room, Hyūga Tokuma, Aburame Muta, and Inuzuka Meko were sitting on the chairs outside, while the husky Rocky lay sprawled on the floor.
Three people and one dog all wore the same dejected expression. Their bodies were covered in tears and grime, looking thoroughly bedraggled—so much so that even the husky's eyes no longer looked very bright.
When Makoto was brought over by Mai, the sharp-sensed husky lifted its head to glance at him, then lowered it again, like a dog being made to sit in punishment after tearing up the sofa.
"Hiyoma-sensei isn't inside, is he?" he asked.
Hyūga Tokuma replied, "He's being rescued!"
Makoto sucked in a cold breath. "Did the southern defensive line you were guarding run into a large-scale Kirigakure invasion? There are wounded everywhere outside—and even the jōnin leading your team is…"
This time, Tokuma only nodded without speaking.
At that moment, Mishima Toshio's voice came from inside the special treatment room: "Makoto, get in here—quick."
Makoto entered the treatment room and saw that a complex, symmetrical pattern had been inscribed with runes on the floor at the center of the room. Four medical ninja sat at the four directions, forming hand seals as they performed the technique.
This special treatment room was the casting chamber for the Healing Resuscitation Regeneration Technique
Hiyoma lay in the center with nothing left on but a pair of shorts. His body was covered in wounds, among which several massive, penetrating injuries in the abdominal area were the most fatal—holes that went straight through him, the kind where one could see from front to back.
Even after being injured to this extent, he was still clinging to a single breath—his vitality was truly tenacious.
But a fatal injury that could end his life at any moment could only be saved with the Healing Resuscitation Regeneration Technique.
Green chakra flowed from the four medical ninja presiding over the technique and, through the runes, enveloped Hiyoma, continuously using other parts of his body's tissues as a medium to repair the internal wounds.
The Healing Resuscitation Regeneration Technique not only demands extremely high precision from those performing it; its most troublesome aspect is its long duration. An ordinary ninja's chakra is simply not enough, so replacements are required.
However, among the four medical ninja present, only two had replacements standing behind them.
Medical ninja on the southeastern front were already in short supply, and those capable of presiding over the Healing Resuscitation Regeneration Technique were even fewer.
Makoto split off a shadow clone that evenly shared his chakra and took position behind Toshio and another person, ready to replace them at any time.
Toshio asked, "Will you be alright doing this?"
"It's fine, Mishima-san. My chakra is very plentiful."
"Good. Prepare to switch."
With a single order, the four people presiding over the ninjutsu—including Toshio himself—were replaced one by one.
Makoto alone occupied two positions. With his participation, the speed of the treatment increased somewhat, but at this moment everyone was either fully focused on performing the technique or using every spare moment to recover chakra. No one had the time to be surprised by this.
In fact, if it were not for maintaining synchronization with the others' casting rhythm, he alone with three shadow clones could have gone even faster.
But Makoto did not want to do that. Excessively dazzling brilliance would only overshadow the early efforts and contributions of others.
It was not until nightfall that Hiyoma's condition finally stabilized. All the wounds large and small on his body had completely healed, but his overall vitality had been depleted too greatly, and he would need a period of recuperation before he could recover.
Looking at Hiyoma, who had been transferred to an ordinary ward, Makoto let out a long breath. At last, his life had been saved. It had to be said that the medical techniques possessed by Konohagakure were something the other major ninja villages simply could not compare with.
At that moment, Mai handed him a lunch box. "Here, Doctor Higashino—you must be hungry. I brought you some food."
"Thank you, Mai-senpai."
Toshio and the other medical ninja protested, "We're hungry too!"
"Ah, hahaha—don't worry, everyone. I've already put your dinners on your desks."
"Huh? Ours too? Thanks!" After saying that, Toshio called out to his colleagues. "Come on, let's go eat too."
Makoto really was hungry. Several hours of uninterrupted ninjutsu had greatly depleted his chakra, and now he picked up the lunch box and dug in without hesitation.
Halfway through the meal, Yūgao also arrived carrying a packed dinner. She looked at the food in Makoto's hands, then at Mai standing nearby, and her gaze immediately became wary.
After being intimidated by Kumomi, she now felt that any suitable girl she saw was trying to steal her Makoto.
The young girl puffed out her cheeks. "Looks like I came at the wrong time."
"No—you came at just the right time. You know, my appetite is quite large."
"Hmph. Stuff yourself to death!"
"Don't worry—even if you add two more portions, I can still finish them! Why are you the only one here?"
"Hayate is training, and sensei went to the command room for a meeting and hasn't come back yet."
It seemed that, because of Kirigakure's sudden large-scale offensive, no matter what those madmen were really plotting, Konohagakure had no choice but to respond with its full strength.
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