Sitting in the room I looked at Shizune as she unsealed a pile of books filled with information regarding the body and various herbs and medicines.
"Before you learn any jutsu, you first must have a proper understanding of the human body. If you don't then there's no point in learning anything."
I nodded with a wise expression, "Yes. What you say is true. If I do not have a proper foundation I will be unable to even see the base of Mount Tai."
Shizune looked puzzled at my reference but I ignored her and walked over to the table and picked up the first book. It was titled, 'How it works. Human Body Book 1, by Tsunade Senju.'
"Tsunade-sama wrote these books?" I asked with surprise.
"Of course, only she is even qualified to write such books. These books are precious. Not even top medical experts in Konoha have access to them! So I hope you treat them carefully." Shizune reminded.
I nodded gratefully and began reading the books provided.
I hadn't realised it but Shizune eventually left after a while as I leaned back into my chair to read more comfortably. The first book was rather simple, it contained basic knowledge about how the human body was composed of cells and how each one of them had different functions.
The best part was that the books weren't written like a textbook. No, they were written as if I were reading the journal of a researcher. New terms popped up all the time but I knew exactly what was going on in the person's mind naming them, making it a lot more easier to study.
Tsunade had also drawn several diagrams to accompany the text which made the experience easier.
Overall, the book felt like a light novel.
I ended up reading about the various components of the cell like the nucleus, the cell wall, its powerhouse the mitochondria, and several other things like cytoplasm, the Golgi apparatus and then cytoskeleton.
It took me a little over six hours to finish the book and that was when I heard a soft *knock* on my door.
"Come in.", I spoke quietly.
The door opened with a *swoosh* and Shizune stepped in.
"How're you doing?" Shizune asked seeing me closing a book.
I nodded, "It's nice to read these, there are a few things I didn't understand but I'm sure I'll get them later."
"I see. You can ask me those doubts if you need someone's help understanding them. Don't hesitate."
I nodded before asking her a question that bothered me a little, "After this book, which one should I read next?"
"Huh? You're already done with this book?" Shizune's eyebrows shot up in surprise.
"Yep, I'm done with this one. But I'm having trouble deciding which one to choose next."
"...you know it's not good to lie right?"
"I mean, you can ask me any question and I'll try my best to answer you?"
Shizune locked eyes with me for a few seconds before she nodded and picked up the book.
"What is the powerhouse of the cell?"
"Mitochondria."
"By what method do cells exchange nutrients and the waste gathered in them?"
"Diffusion and Osmosis."
"What information is present in the nucleus of the cell?"
"The DNA, a polymer that holds the map of the entire body, the RNA, which facilitates various functions regarding the DNA such as communication between it and the protein synthesis site in the nucleus etc."
Shizune appeared to be a little surprised by my answers as if she truly hadn't expected me to be so accurate. But she quickly corrected her expression and spoke calmly.
"Although your answers don't go into depth, they are sufficient enough after a single read. You may begin reading a second book, this one would be a good continuation." Shizune said picking up a new book and handing it to me.
The book was titled, 'What is blood? And what does it do? By Tsunade Senju.'
I looked at the book and then back at Shizune before nodding and telling her, "Alright. I'll read this book. But… could I have something to eat first? I haven't eaten at all since yesterday."
"Ah!" Shizune blushed but she immediately took out a scroll and handed it over to me. "Your food is in this, I hope you find it palatable to your taste."
As soon as I took the scroll with some confusion, Shizune left the room. Leaving me alone with the scroll that was supposed to contain my food.
'This is a storage scroll?'
'But how do I get my food out of this?'
'I don't know how to use chakra…'
Third Person POV
"Tsunade-sama! He's already finished a book and he did it perfectly!" Shizune explained to Tsunade who was drinking some sake from a cup.
Tsunade's brows furrowed as she asked a question in return, "Does he already know about Medical Ninjutsu?"
"I do not know that Tsunadae-sama. But he only told me exactly what was in the book. He didn't have in-depth knowledge about things. So I don't think he already knows Medical Ninjutsu."
Tsunade sipped her sake as she looked out the window with an uncertain expression until she slammed her cup on the table and looked at Shizune.
"Shizune! Return and observe how he studies!"
Shizune nodded and took the mission seriously and was about to step out of the room when she stopped in her tracks as she looked at Tsunade who was going to jump out the window.
"Tsunade-sama! Please don't gamble away our money again!!!"
But she was too late. Tsunade smiled at her and laughed softly before jumping out the window with a simple goodbye. "Take care of that boy for me Shizune! See if you can figure out if he's hiding something!"
Shizune collapsed on her knees as she almost cried thinking about how she'd have to work hard by treating people again to make up for the money Tsunade would be spending gambling.
That was when she remembered her 'disciple'.
'He was right!'
'As long as I teach him Medical ninjutsu he can work hard enough for the two of us!'
A fire sparked in Shizune's eyes as she vowed to train her disciple to the best of her ability.
Picking up Tonton who was lazing about after having eaten lunch, Shizune walked back to her 'disciple's' room to spy on him as Tsunade-sama had encouraged her to do.
'He's reading the book quite normally.'
'Wait a minute, why hasn't he eaten the food from the storage scroll I gave him yet?'
'He keeps gazing at it and his stomach keeps rumbling, so why not eat it?'
Shizune waited for a while trying to figure out why her disciple was fasting but that was when a strange thought struck her mind.
'No way! Does he not even know how to use chakra!?'