"What should I do?"
After making the decision to save, Tsunade held onto the last hope and looked at Tatsuma. Tatsuma squatted down and checked Dan Kato's pulse and pupils, saying, "Senpai has lost vital signs already, sensei, there's no need for further treatment."
"Aren't you supposed to save him?!"
Tsunade anxiously questioned. Tatsuma nodded and said, "Well, not in your way, sensei. Your Medical Jutsu is too traditional and is about to be useless."
Kunugi Mokume and Kemuri couldn't help but curl their lips at Tatsuma's words. Nowadays, there wasn't a single medical ninja in the village who dared to claim their Medical Jutsu was stronger than Tsunade's. For Tatsuma, Tsunade's disciple, to dare say such a thing.
"What method do you plan to use then?"
Tsunade didn't want to argue with her own disciple, but instead asked again. Tatsuma shook the scroll in his hand again and said, "Spirit Sealing Jutsu."
"The Second Elder's forbidden technique? But that technique isn't Medical Ninjutsu!"
"Yeah, it's not indeed, but it can imprison Senpai's soul within, buying time for the next treatment."
Tatsuma nodded, spreading out the scroll in his hand. The ink on the scroll was special, unaffected by rain. Tsunade asked in confusion,
"But Second grandpa's technique has a solution. Even if the soul is imprisoned, can't we just release it later? Also, when did you learn this technique?"
"Hokage-sama didn't provide me with a solution, so I can't release the imprisonment. As for when I learned it, I haven't learned it yet. I just acquired this technique a few days ago and haven't had time to study it. But it doesn't seem difficult."
Listening to Tatsuma's words, Tsunade was so furious that her veins almost exploded, but she couldn't spare the time to discipline her disciple. Perhaps there was still hope that her disciple wasn't just talking big.
Kunugi Mokume and Kemuri, who had instinctively looked away when they heard Tatsuma had a forbidden technique scroll, couldn't help but glance back when Tatsuma mentioned the technique wasn't difficult.
But when they saw the densely packed Sealing Jutsu patterns and Cursed Seal formulas on the scroll, their brains nearly short-circuited. This was supposed to be not difficult?! Could the disparity in the world really be this great?
For Tatsuma, who had mastered a large amount of sealing and Cursed Seal theoretical knowledge and had been tormented by the Flying Thunder God technique for several years, the technique of Spirit Binding Jutsu was indeed not difficult—a kind that he could understand at a glance.
Tatsuma didn't rush to master it because he was also racing against time. He couldn't sneak along with a group to execute missions and could only hope to grasp Flying Thunder God sooner.
These days, Tatsuma could be said to have worked tirelessly, overcoming the final difficulties of Flying Thunder God. However, tragedy struck before he could master Flying Thunder God and arrive here from Konoha.
Internal organ loss was an injury that couldn't be healed, at least not with traditional medicine and Medical Ninjutsu. However, Tatsuma already had a treatment plan in mind, based on his research with Orochimaru over the past two years.
In his mind, it seemed divided into dozens of regions, each independently processing and learning a different technique. After just a minute, Tatsuma nodded and said,
"I've learned it, sensei. Please stop; your chakra will interfere with my technique."
Upon hearing that Tatsuma had learned it, Kunugi Mokume and Kemuri were almost speechless with shock. Despite the open forbidden scroll lying on the ground, in their nervousness, they looked at Tatsuma with a hint of expectation.
Tsunade stared at her disciple for several seconds, ultimately choosing to trust him. She withdrew her chakra, and almost simultaneously, Tatsuma formed seals and then placed his right hand on Dan Kato's forehead.
In an instant, intricate Sealing Jutsu patterns unfolded from the convergence point, complex and densely layered, swiftly engulfing Dan Kato's head as if capturing prey in a pitcher plant.
Soon, these seals penetrated directly into Dan Kato's brain, locking layer upon layer, and even after death, his soul, which should have dispersed, was also imprisoned within.
"I'll take Senpai back to the village for treatment. I'll be leaving now," Tatsuma said, putting away the forbidden scroll on the ground and retrieving a sealing scroll to seal Dan Kato's body directly.
"I'll come back with you," Tsunade quickly added. Tatsuma looked at the still dumbfounded pair and asked, "Are you not continuing the mission?"
"The mission has ended. Tsunade has no other tasks," Kunugi Mokume snapped out of it, not summarizing this mission as a success or failure, but as concluded. Tatsuma pursed his lips, puzzled since earlier by the chaotic chakra here he concluded there were only a few survivors.
"I understand. In that case, I'll go back with sensei first. Sorry, I'm not skilled enough to take more than one person," Tatsuma said without further inquiry, gripping Tsunade's blood-stained hand. In the next moment, only a streak of light remained in their place.
Kunugi Mokume and Kemuri exchanged glances. Kunugi Mokume swallowed and said, "That's..."
"Second Hokage-sama's Flying Thunder God?" Kemuri completed the sentence, and then both fell into a long silence. What's wrong with this world? Even learning an A-rank Ninjutsu requires a considerable amount of time, research, and trial.
Tatsuma is only a few years old? Not only did he instantly learn a forbidden technique on the spot, but he also learned a forbidden technique that many thought impossible.
Tsunade felt dizzy, as if her brain had shut down, unable to process the sudden change of scene before her. But Tatsuma showed no discomfort at all. He turned to Minato, who had just trained with him in the Senju Clan's territory, and said,
"Minato, please go find Orochimaru-sama and have him come to the base."
Just minutes ago, Minato had been celebrating Tatsuma's successful mastery of the Flying Thunder God technique. Now, seeing Tatsuma's sudden serious expression, Minato was deeply puzzled. But when he noticed Tatsuma's grave expression and Tsunade covered in blood, he suppressed his doubts and nodded,
"Alright, I'll go immediately."
With that, Minato swiftly used the Body Flicker Jutsu and headed towards Orochimaru's residence. Tatsuma, meanwhile, took Tsunade, who had just come to her senses, and headed towards the back mountain of Konoha's Hokage Rock.
Indoors, after initially wondering how Tatsuma disappeared and returned with Tsunade, Mito seemed to have guessed something. Her hands involuntarily clenched, then relaxed again.
Looking at the female ninja who had been taking care of her recently, she said, "Tell Hiruzen to cooperate fully."
The female ninja hesitated briefly, then quickly bowed and replied, "Yes, Mito-sama."
In the back mountain of Konoha, through a stretch of forest, a door inexplicably appeared before them. Tatsuma hurried forward and placed his hand on a device beside the door frame.
"Beep~~"
Unlike the usual brief beep, this time the sound was long and piercing. The panel on the device didn't display the usual green but instead showed red.
Tatsuma's heart sank. He tried again, but the panel remained red.
"What's going on?!" Tsunade asked nervously, realizing this could affect Dan Kato's life. Tatsuma pursed his lips and replied, "It seems like my access privileges have been revoked."
"I'll give it a try."
Behind them, Orochimaru's voice sounded as he appeared, carrying a gasping Minato. He gently set Minato down and walked to the device, placing his hand on it.
"Beep~~"
Seeing the panel still red, Orochimaru's face briefly showed surprise. He hadn't expected Hiruzen to revoke his access as well.
But Orochimaru quickly composed himself and said, "I left a hidden entrance when constructing the base. Let's go."
"Bang!"
Before Orochimaru finished speaking, an anxious Tsunade slammed her fist into the door. The sturdy door immediately had a hole punched through it. Tsunade reached into the hole with both hands, her Enhanced Strength bursting forth as she pulled the door apart.
"Squeak~~"
Instantly, sharp metal friction echoed out. The thicker-than-normal household wall metal door was forcefully pushed open by Tsunade. She calmly said, "Go in. I'll take responsibility if anything happens."
Orochimaru and Tatsuma exchanged a glance, then nodded and slipped into the base. Tsunade turned her head slightly towards Minato Namikaze, who had hesitated about entering, and he quickly followed.
"You two, Orochimaru? Tatsuma? You're not..."
Upon entering the base, they quickly encountered researchers working there. Before they could speak, Tsunade, covered in blood and rainwater, stepped forward to the front of the group.
"Get out of the way!"
The researchers who had intended to say something shrunk back at Tsunade's commanding tone, clearing a path. Tsunade strode forward a few steps and stopped at a fork in the path.
She had been in such a rush that she forgot she didn't know the way at all. Tsunade turned back to Orochimaru and Tatsuma. Tatsuma pointed in a direction, and Tsunade continued to lead the way.
Finally, Orochimaru had a chance to ask, "What's going on?"
"Senpai was attacked. His kidneys are almost completely destroyed. I used the Spirit Binding Jutsu to imprison his soul inside and brought him here for treatment," Tsunade explained.
Tatsuma quickly responded. Orochimaru didn't ask where Tatsuma learned the Spirit Binding Jutsu from. He nodded and said, "It's clearly too late to cultivate kidneys through the normal process. Should we activate them using Hashirama Cells?"
This was a step their project hadn't reached yet. Tatsuma clenched his fist to ease his tension and replied, "Let's check the situation first. I suggest removing the damaged kidney, suturing the surrounding wounds, and using Regenerative Healing Jutsu. Let Senpai stabilize his vital signs first, buy more time to cultivate a complete kidney, and then schedule another surgery."
Walking at the front, Tsunade listened to the conversation behind her. Initially puzzled, then shocked, she wondered what these two were talking about. Cultivating kidneys? Was this something Medical Jutsu could achieve?
But she dared not ask, only hoping that her teammates and her disciple were not deceiving her.
Passing through two doors and cleaning themselves in a room, they finally arrived at a special operating room. It was special because the "operating bed" inside was only the size of a tray. Orochimaru pushed open the bed and pulled a nearby worktable over.
Tatsuma also took out the sealing scroll and retrieved Dan's body. Orochimaru closed the door and pressed a button beside it. Instantly, sterilizing mist sprayed into the operating room.
Then Orochimaru brought in two machines, saying, "The power pump and oxygenator have only been tested on piglets. We're not sure if they can replace an adult's heartbeat and breathing."
"We can only try," Tatsuma replied swiftly, connecting the devices to Dan Kato. He prepared to draw his own blood and asked Tsunade, "What blood type is Senpai?"
"Type A," Tsunade answered without hesitation. Tatsuma's face turned grave. "I'm type O. I can give Senpai a small amount of whole blood. Minato, could you make another trip?"
Minato was about to nod when footsteps and the rolling of a cart echoed down the corridor. A gentle voice followed, "No need, Doctor Sakamoto. I've brought everything we need."
Through a small window in the door, Tatsuma saw the newcomer clearly. A smile spread across his face. "Director."
Biwako nodded through the window of the operating room. Orochimaru sterilized the room once more using the facilities. He then allowed Biwako, along with Nono and Taji who were pushing numerous blood bags and surgical equipment, to enter.
With the assistance of Nono and Taji, Tatsuma changed into surgical attire and gloves. Biwako took over the still somewhat shaken Tsunade's duties as Tatsuma's assistant.
Tatsuma produced a chakra scalpel in his hand and looked at Orochimaru, who nodded and activated the equipment. The previously stopped bleeding wound of Dan Kato suddenly began to bleed again. Tatsuma nodded firmly and said, "Let's begin."
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