Konoha: Gu master

At Konoha Hospital:
"Shinho, congratulations on starting school," said Miyata Rika, handing a small ninja tool pouch to Shinho Aburame. "This is a gift for you."

"Thank you, Sensei," Shinho replied as he opened the pouch and glanced at the various medical tools inside, all neatly arranged.

"Make sure to focus on your studies now that school has started," Rika advised. "If things get too busy, you don't have to come in every day."

"I understand," Shinho said calmly, raising his hand. "By the way, I’ve learned how to perform the Chakra Scalpel."

"What?"

Miyata Rika's smile froze, disbelief evident in her voice.
It wasn’t that she didn’t believe Shinho, but mastering the Chakra Scalpel in just half a month was unheard of, even for a prodigy.

Shinho didn’t reply, instead forming a few hand seals.
A moment later, pale green chakra began to condense around his hand, forming the shape of a scalpel, its sharpness apparent.

"It’s real!" Rika gasped, her eyes wide with astonishment.
Though Shinho’s Chakra Scalpel wavered in intensity, it was undeniable—he had learned the technique.

"Your talent might even surpass Lady Tsunade’s," Rika said with a mix of awe and admiration.
For a medical ninja, that was the highest praise possible.
After all, Tsunade was regarded as the Hua Tuo of the ninja world.
[Tl/n: Hua Tuo (c. 140–208), courtesy name Yuanhua, was a Chinese physician who lived during the late Eastern Han dynasty. Historical texts, such as Records of the Three Kingdoms and Book of the Later Han record Hua Tuo as having been the first person in China to use anaesthesia during surgery.]

"I’ll go see the Hokage immediately," Rika beamed, her excitement overflowing. "If you really become Tsunade’s apprentice, I’ll be basking in the glory too!"

"Thank you, Sensei."

"Go home and wait for good news."
With that, Rika hurried off to the Hokage’s office.

In the Hokage's office:
A knock sounded on the door.

Hiruzen Sarutobi quickly covered his Crystal Ball, his face flushing slightly.
Through that ball, he could—no, he was surveying the village of Konoha.

"Come in," he said, putting on a more serious expression.

"Lord Hokage," Rika said as she entered with a respectful bow.

"Rika, what brings you here?" Hiruzen smiled.

"It’s about Shinho. He’s learned the Chakra Scalpel."

Hiruzen froze, surprise flickering in his eyes.
Is his talent for medical ninjutsu truly that exceptional?
Terrifying! This boy is destined for greatness!

"Let’s keep this to ourselves for now," Hiruzen advised.
He was concerned that his old comrade, Danzo Shimura, would hear of it.
Knowing Danzo, he’d demand to take Shinho under his wing, likely repeating his infamous line, 'You’ll regret this, Hiruzen.'

Meanwhile, Shinho was walking through a small forest, deep in thought.
Would Hinata manage to break through her barriers?
His recent behaviour had been a deliberate attempt to put pressure on her.
This would either cause her to crumble or push her to surpass her limits.

"Stop right there!"
An arrogant voice rang out from ahead.

Shinho looked up to see a familiar group of boys—the same ones who had bullied Hinata before.
Their faces had healed since the last incident, something common in a world with medical ninjas.
They’re back? Really?

It didn’t take long for Shinho to realize why.
Behind the three boys stood an older boy, clearly bigger and more intimidating.

Shinho glanced at him. He was carrying a school bag but didn’t have a ninja forehead protector, suggesting he was an upperclassman.
Beating the small fry only to have a bigger one show up? Classic storyline.

"That’s him, Boss!" one of the boys said nervously, recalling the terrifying moonlight from their last encounter.
In this world of ninjas, they had assumed Shinho’s moonlight attack was some sort of advanced jutsu, so they had enlisted the help of a sixth-year student.

"Will we win?" one boy asked, his voice laced with fear.

"Of course. Trust in the boss!" the other replied confidently.

"Kneel and apologize," the older boy said with disdain.
When the younger boys had told him about the previous encounter, they had exaggerated to the point where they made Shinho seem like a god descending from the heavens.
But now that he saw Shinho in person—a small, slender boy—he couldn’t believe the stories.
Three-on-one and they still lost? Ridiculous.
He suspected they had only exaggerated to coax him into helping.

Shinho smirked slightly.
Why does this guy have the confidence of a battle hawk? Well, that works for me.

Was he about to endure this? He had just gotten a new Gu.

"Hey! Didn’t you hear what I said?" the older boy shouted, growing irritated at being ignored.

He formed a hand sign.
With a poof, an identical copy of him appeared.
It was the basic Clone Jutsu, not to be confused with the more advanced Shadow Clone Jutsu. This one was purely for misdirection.

Both versions of the boy rushed at Shinho, zig-zagging to confuse his line of sight.

"Got you now!" the two boys grinned, confident in their strategy.
Using the Clone Jutsu against inexperienced underclassmen was almost foolproof.

As they reached Shinho, both figures threw a punch at him.

But in the next second, the clone vanished.
The real boy yelped in pain, clutching his hand as he recoiled.
It felt like he had punched solid bronze, and his knuckles were now swollen.

"That’s flashy but pointless," Shinho said calmly.
He had activated the Bronze Skin Gu, which fortified his body, allowing him to shrug off the blow.
The results were outstanding.

Now it was time to test out the Moonlight Gu and Little Light Gu.

Shinho extended his hand, channeling primeval essence into both Gu.
A blue crescent-shaped blade of energy—the Moon Blade—shot out from his palm.

Shinho’s method of attack was different from what was seen in the original story.
Perhaps it was due to some adjustments made by the system.
Originally, the Moon Blade was about the size of his hand, but with the enhancement from the Little Light Gu, it had doubled in size and power.

"Ah! My kidney!" the older boy cried out, clutching his bleeding side as the confidence drained from him. He stumbled backward in terror.
Looking back, he saw that his three younger companions had already fled.

"A week from now, the four of you will meet me here," Shinho said as he calmly approached.
He had spared the boy because he had thought of a way to make use of them.
They could serve as sparring partners for Hinata, helping her confront her fears.
At least this way, their remaining value wouldn’t go to waste.

Shinho was quite satisfied with his new Gu.

By Konoha standards, being able to use the Three Basic Jutsu would qualify one as a Genin.
Even though the older boy hadn’t graduated yet, his skill with clone and taijutsu was decent.
But against Shinho, he stood no chance.

Returning to his small cabin, Shinho placed the food he had bought into the refrigerator.
This was for Hinata, who would be visiting the next day.

After a short break, Shinho went out to tend his garden.
Since planting the Moon Orchids had triggered an achievement, he had decided to expand his garden with more plants.

He now had chili peppers, tomatoes, cabbages, and onions growing there.
In addition, he had planted orange and peach trees behind the cabin.

In his previous life, Shinho had been something of a farmer. His grandparents had loved growing things.

After tending to the plants, he began his cultivation.
His mind descended into his aperture, confirming that the Parasitic Destruction Insects were fine. Then, he resumed refining the walls of his aperture with his primeval essence.