"Thank you, Rin."
With Rin's patient guidance, Kiyohara, who had already been close to fully mastering the Detoxification Jutsu finally succeeded in learning the jutsu.
"I didn't expect you to be interested in this kind of techniques too, Kiyohara," Rin said with a trace of admiration.
Among the group, only Rin herself was proficient in medical ninjutsu. Kiyohara had only just begun training in it.
"By the way, Kiyohara, did you also apply to train as a medical ninja at Konoha Hospital?" Rin asked.
"No, not at all,"
Kiyohara shook his head. He explained that his medical techniques had come directly from Lady Tsunade.
"Lady Tsunade!"
Rin let out a small gasp.
No medical ninja would fail to recognize Tsunade's name.
Tsunade stood at the absolute apex of the medical field—she was also Rin's idol and the figure Rin admired the most.
Seeing Rin's sparkling, worshipful eyes, Kiyohara instantly understood that Rin was one of those who had no idea what Tsunade was really like.
He considered telling her the truth for a moment… then decided against it. No need to shatter her beautiful illusion of her idol.
"By the way, Rin, when you use the Detoxification Jutsu, which chakra points do you release chakra from?" Kiyohara asked.
…
Releasing chakra precisely from specific chakra points was not easy. Even a jōnin could only release chakra from limited areas—hands, feet, and some parts of the body.
This was why ninjutsu was usually released either from the mouth or from the hands.
It was extremely rare for someone to spit a fireball from their forehead or launch lightning bolts out of their knees…
The Uchiha clan's Sharingan could be considered an additional "jutsu activation outlet."
Only shinobi with the Byakugan could release chakra from every chakra point in the body.
Techniques like Eight Trigrams: Revolving Heaven, which released chakra from all points simultaneously to form an extremely strong defense, were almost impossible to perform without a Byakugan.
Thus, Gentle Fist became the Hyūga clan's exclusive style. Shinobi without Byakugan almost never used Gentle Fist—they simply stuck to Strong Fist.
"Hm… here, and here…"
Rin stretched out her hand and brought it close to Kiyohara, showing him exactly which chakra points she used.
Kiyohara listened carefully, but hearing alone made it hard to understand.
So, he reached out, gently took Rin's hand, and touched her palm with his fingers.
Rin froze for a second, a trace of panic in her eyes.
Kakashi is still right there!
But when she saw Kiyohara's completely serious expression, still fully engrossed in learning, she realized she was overthinking it.
To a doctor, patients were not divided by gender.
And when discussing medical ninjutsu, gender shouldn't play a role either.
Suppressing the strange feeling from Kiyohara's touch, Rin continued explaining.
…
"What are you two talking about?"
Obito finally couldn't take it anymore. Seeing Rin chatting with Kiyohara all this time, he ran over to interrupt.
"Just discussing academic matters. You wouldn't understand, Obito."
Rin shook her head lightly, implying that what she and Kiyohara were discussing was far beyond Obito's comprehension.
"I— I can understand perfectly well!"
Obito immediately became agitated.
What on earth could UchihaObito not understand that Kiyohara could? Was the difference between them really that big?
Once he awakened his Sharingan, wouldn't everything be easy for him?
"Hm?"
Only then did Obito notice something—Rin's back was facing him, and her hand…
…was being held by Kiyohara.
"Rin! Why— why is your hand in Kiyohara's hand!?"
Obito's eyes widened.
"Obito, don't misunderstand. Rin and I are just practicing medical ninjutsu."
Kiyohara clarified earnestly—he was simply "studying a foreign language," so Obito shouldn't overthink it.
Obito stared in disbelief.
No way. What kind of medical ninjutsu required holding hands!?
His theory knowledge might be weak, but he wasn't that ignorant!
"Idiot. Kiyohara is checking Rin's chakra points."
Kakashi shook his head.
…
Obito truly was foolish—how a clan as elite as the Uchiha produced someone like him was a mystery.
"Yes, Obito, what were you thinking?"
Kurenai asked innocently.
Kiyohara looked perfectly righteous—how could he possibly be doing anything improper to Rin?
He was clearly checking her chakra flow.
"Sensei, I…"
Obito looked anxiously at Minato for help.
"Obito, what they said is correct."
Minato nodded calmly.
Obito fell silent, starting to doubt himself.
Did I really misunderstand…?
he thought.
"All right, we need to get moving."
After their brief rest, Minato stood up. At this point, every minute counted.
"Yes!"
Everyone responded and began packing their gear.
Only Obito responded half-heartedly.
Rin's soft, fragrant hand—he hadn't even touched it himself…
Yet Kiyohara got to hold it first.
…
The more Obito thought about it, the more suffocated he felt.
The more Obito thought about it, the more frustrated he became. It felt like watching someone else ride the bicycle he couldn't bear to use.
"I'll accompany you a little further along the border," Minato said as they walked. "After that, I'll separate to head to the frontlines. Kiyohara and Kakashi, you will each lead a team. Kiyohara, your group will act as a distraction to attract Iwagakure's attention. Kakashi, you'll continue advancing."
It was a perfect assignment—Kiyohara's sensory abilities were superior to Kakashi's, making him more suited to detect enemies first and strike preemptively.
After disrupting the enemy, they would withdraw.
"Understood."
Kakashi replied.
They continued forward.
After about half an hour, Kakashi suddenly stopped and signaled for everyone behind him to halt.
Kiyohara recognized the moment instantly—a scene straight from the original timeline.
They had encountered Iwagakure's jōnin scout Mahiru, who was stationed here to monitor the area.
Mahiru specialized in sword techniques, possessed high speed, and was capable of using Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Kiyohara analyzed the intel carefully.
"Mahiru, huh…"
Missing-nin Kiyohara murmured, recalling something.
"What is it?"
Kiyohara looked at his future self.
"…I fought Mahiru before. In my timeline, he didn't die here. He escaped and survived—only to be killed by me later. Unfortunately, I never managed to extract his kenjutsu secrets."
the missing-nin explained.
"I see."
Kiyohara nodded.
Iwagakure swordsmanship, huh?
Right now, he wasn't particularly invested in training kenjutsu.
Even with missing-nin Kiyohara's guidance, it would be a long-term investment.
Compared to that, ninjutsu training and shuriken throwing had far better returns.
"Hm? They noticed me? Not bad."
Hidden behind the trees, Mahiru sensed two of the shinobi stabilizing their breathing.
That was the signal of shinobi preparing for battle.
He glanced back secretly.
One was a handsome black-haired youth.
The other was a white-haired boy carrying a short blade.
"That man… impossible…"
Mahiru suddenly stared at the leading jōnin.
A cold sweat rolled down his cheek.
(End of Chapter)