"Medical ninjutsu?" Morikawa was startled for a moment, then smiled and gently refused, saying, "It's too early for you."
Yumiko, standing beside her, chuckled, "How rare! Our usually calm little Shimizu is actually impatient for once. But Senior Morikawa is right not to teach you medical ninjutsu yet—it's for your own good. You need a strong foundation first."
Himari nodded in agreement. "Right now, your priority should be refining chakra and improving your control. If you can master that before graduation, then you can start learning medical ninjutsu."
"Increase chakra control?" Shimizu extended his right hand, and with his fingertip, he traced intricate patterns in the air. Before the four women's eyes, a flawless Konoha emblem appeared. Then, with an expression of pure innocence, he asked, "Like this?"
The four of them were stunned.
Yumiko muttered to herself, "I must be dreaming... definitely dreaming."
Emi had an overwhelmed expression, tilting her head in disbelief. "Hehe, even I can't control chakra that well."
Morikawa's eyes narrowed. Suddenly, she asked sternly, "Who taught Shimizu how to refine chakra?"
Her tone was sharp, as if she suspected someone had secretly instructed him.
Noticing this, Shimizu quickly clarified, "Aunt Morikawa, it was my teacher at the Academy who taught me the method yesterday."
Morikawa was taken aback. "You mean... you learned to refine chakra in just two days?"
Shimizu hesitated. "Actually... it only took one day."
himari touched her chin thoughtfully. "I think I was around sixteen when I first refined chakra…" She turned to emi. "What about you?"
"I took seventeen days," emi admitted. "Among us, Yumiko had the best talent—she only needed fourteen."
Yumiko was still in shock. "Shimizu, you're incredible! You might really become someone amazing in the future!"
At this moment, Shimizu said, "Actually, I'm not that great. Most of the credit goes to my classmate, Asuma."
"Asuma?"
"Yes, he's the son of the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Asuma."
"Oh, the son of the Third Hokage! No wonder."
"You've made a really great friend, Shimizu!"
Hearing that the other party was the Third Hokage's son, their worries instantly disappeared.
The Second Hokage had perished in battle, and in the face of war, the Third Hokage had taken over and led Konoha to prosperity. He was renowned for mastering all five chakra natures and was revered as the "Professor of Ninjutsu."
Among Konoha's lower-ranking shinobi, the Third Hokage was almost like a god.
Even his grandson would be highly regarded.
Shimizu seized the moment to continue persuading them. "It was actually Asuma's suggestion. He believes that people like us—if we just follow the rules blindly—we'd be wasting our talents."
Morikawa nodded immediately. The son of the Third Hokage must have been personally taught by his grandfather. Which meant... this was the Hokage's own judgment!
"Yes, talent is meant to be used!"
"Our little Shimizu is a true genius!"
"Oh no, we need to hurry and teach him! Otherwise, he might be held back because of us!"
Just like that, Shimizu successfully framed himself as a prodigy. In the ninja world, people were always more tolerant of geniuses.
If he had shown only average talent, no matter how much he begged, Morikawa would never have agreed to teach him. She would have insisted on a step-by-step approach to protect him.
But a genius? Geniuses were expected to break the rules.
And since Morikawa's talent surpassed their expectations, they now worried that their limited skills might hold him back instead.
"Let's go over all the medical ninjutsu we know at the C-rank and below," Morikawa said seriously. "Let's see if there's anything you need to learn that I don't know yet."
"I'll start," himari said, counting on her fingers. "Besides the basic Healing Jutsu, I also know Hemostasis, Blood Regeneration, Silent Walking, and Joint Treatment."
"I know about the same as himari," emi added. "I also have a Purification Jutsu."
"I can use the Tranquilizing Jutsu to help with genjutsu-related trauma."
In Konoha, jutsu ranked B and above were considered strategic village assets, restricted from being freely taught. Even though higher-rank jutsu seemed commonplace later in history, B-rank techniques were actually trump cards for ordinary shinobi.
This was why Konoha strictly controlled their dissemination.
After listing their techniques, emi frowned. "Wait… none of us know any offensive medical ninjutsu?"
Yumiko looked tense. "Medical ninja aren't known for their combat ability, but Shimizu is a class leader—he'll have to face challenges from others."
Morikawa also frowned. "My Chakra Scalpel can be used in combat, but only in close quarters."
Seeing their worried expressions, Shimizu reassured them, "Aunt Morikawa, I'd be happy just learning the most basic Healing Jutsu."
"The Healing Jutsu?" Morikawa hesitated. "That's only a D-rank jutsu. Wouldn't that be wasting your talent?"
"You can worry about your graduation jutsu later. There's no rush."
Shimizu sighed—he had underestimated how seriously they would take this.
Morikawa blinked in surprise, then chuckled. "A moment ago, you were the impatient one, but now it looks like I'm the one overreacting. Listening to you, I even started thinking about your graduation jutsu already."
Shimizu smiled. "It just shows that you care about me, Aunt Morikawa."
"You…" Morikawa half-laughed, half-sighed. "Sometimes, you're so mature it's heartbreaking."
Shimizu said nothing, just smiled.
Morikawa shook her head, then turned toward the medical wing. "Come on, I'll demonstrate it for you now."
Author's Note:
The idea of a "graduation jutsu" is something I made up. I'll expand on it later. It mainly explains why noble clans allow their children to study at the Academy and why Tobirama had to develop so many forbidden techniques.