Talent Reborn
Episode 7: The Internship Begins
A New Battlefield
The hospital halls stretched endlessly before Haruto as he walked toward the surgery department. Today marked the start of his official internship—a step closer to his dream of becoming a doctor.
"I have to prove I belong here."
But he wasn't the only one with something to prove.
Renji Kujo was watching.
Ever since the roadside emergency and the ER diagnosis, Renji had been keeping a close eye on him. Studying him. Testing him.
And Haruto knew—if he made one mistake, Renji would see through him.
As he reached the department, a voice called out.
"You're late, Aizawa."
Haruto turned to see Dr. Kuroda, one of the hospital's most respected—and strictest—surgeons.
Kuroda's sharp gaze flicked over him. "Since you're here, you're assisting in surgery today."
Haruto stiffened. Surgery? On the first day?
A nurse approached with a surgical gown. "Get changed and scrub in. You're assisting Dr. Kuroda himself."
The other interns gasped.
"Surgery on day one?"
"Kuroda never lets interns assist!"
"Why him?"
Haruto swallowed.
"This is my chance."
But as he glanced to the side, he saw Renji smirking.
"Or maybe… it's another test."
Inside the Operating Room
Haruto stepped into the blindingly white operating room. The smell of antiseptic filled his nose. Machines beeped rhythmically. A team of nurses and doctors stood around the operating table.
A middle-aged man lay unconscious on the table—his chest marked for an open-heart surgery.
Dr. Kuroda stood at the head of the table, already preparing his tools. His voice was cold and precise.
"This is a coronary artery bypass graft. The patient has multiple artery blockages. If we don't succeed, he won't survive."
Haruto's hands instinctively clenched.
He had seen this surgery before. Copied it. But this was the real thing.
"You will assist with the sutures," Kuroda said. "Mess up, and I'll have you thrown out."
Haruto took a deep breath and nodded.
"No mistakes."
The surgery began.
Kuroda's hands moved with practiced ease. His scalpel made the first incision, cutting through skin and muscle. The assistants suctioned away blood, exposing the heart.
Haruto watched every movement. Memorizing. Copying.
Then—his turn came.
"Intern," Kuroda barked. "Suturing."
Haruto's fingers tightened around the needle driver.
The sutures needed to be perfect. Precise. A single mistake, and the artery could rupture.
He swallowed.
"I've done this before. I've seen it hundreds of times."
His hands moved—steady, sure. The needle pierced the tissue smoothly, weaving through in perfect rhythm.
The nurses exchanged glances.
The anesthesiologist whispered, "That's... an intern?"
Even Kuroda paused for half a second.
Haruto finished the sutures flawlessly.
But before he could relax, an alarm blared.
The heart monitor spiked.
"BP dropping!" a nurse shouted.
The patient's body shook.
The entire OR froze.
"Ventricular fibrillation!" Kuroda snapped. "He's going into cardiac arrest!"
Haruto's breath caught.
"He's dying!"
Life or Death
Everything happened at once.
Kuroda grabbed the defibrillator paddles. "Clear!"
A jolt of electricity shot through the patient's body.
The monitor beeped erratically.
"Still fibrillating!" a nurse cried.
Renji's voice echoed in Haruto's head.
"No medical student should be able to do what you do."
But right now, it didn't matter.
Only the patient mattered.
Haruto's eyes darted over the surgical field—then he saw it.
A small tear in the artery suture. Blood was leaking.
His chest tightened.
"That's what's causing the heart to fail!"
But no one else had noticed yet.
Kuroda was readying another shock. "Charging again!"
Haruto's voice cut through the chaos.
"Stop! The suture is torn!"
Everyone stared.
"What?"
"Impossible, the sutures were—"
Kuroda's gaze snapped to the artery.
Then—his eyes widened.
The tear was small but deadly.
If they had shocked the patient again, it could have ruptured completely.
Kuroda gritted his teeth. "Suction. Clamp. Now!"
The team rushed to work.
Haruto's hands moved instinctively—assisting, adjusting, fixing.
Seconds passed like eternity.
Then—
The heart monitor stabilized.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
The tension broke.
The room exhaled.
Kuroda finally stepped back, breathing hard. He turned to Haruto, his gaze unreadable.
"You saw the mistake before I did," he muttered.
Haruto wiped his brow. "I just... got lucky."
Kuroda stared at him.
Then—he smirked.
"Luck has nothing to do with it."
After the Surgery
Haruto changed out of his surgical gown, exhaustion weighing on him.
He had saved a life. Again.
But outside the OR, another challenge awaited him.
Renji was waiting by the lockers.
"Not bad," he said, arms crossed. "But I have to ask..."
Haruto tensed.
Renji stepped closer, his golden eyes piercing into him.
"How did you see the tear before Kuroda did?"
Silence.
Haruto's throat felt dry.
This was dangerous.
If he answered wrong, Renji would know.
Haruto forced a shrug. "I just paid attention."
Renji's gaze didn't waver.
Then—he smirked.
"Liar."
Haruto's stomach twisted.
Renji walked past him, voice low.
"I'll figure out your secret, Haruto. It's only a matter of time."
As he disappeared down the hall, Haruto clenched his fists.
This wasn't just about proving himself anymore.
It was about survival.
Because Renji Kujo wasn't just suspicious.
He was hunting the truth.
And if Haruto wasn't careful…
He would find it.
End of Episode 7.