Thinking about all this, the Third didn't force Shiraishi Gisei to join Anbu. Instead, he pulled out a scroll from his robes and handed it over.
"These are the medical ninjutsu developed by Anbu. Since you refuse to join, just stay in the hospital. These jutsu can still do some good in your hands."
Gisei was a bit surprised, his expression finally softening. He took the scroll and stuffed it in his robe without a glance.
"Thank you, Lord Hokage. If that's all, I'll be leaving."
"Hang on. Since you've taken those, you better take this too."
The Third pulled out a ninja forehead protector from under the desk, plus a file, and passed them over.
Gisei knew exactly what the Third wanted. He hesitated for a second, but in the end took it.
Having the status of ninja meant taking on the responsibility. Gisei didn't really want it, but he understood that living in Konoha, sooner or later he'd have to face that life. Plus, being a ninja meant better pay and benefits. If nothing else, there wasn't much money left at home!
After tucking away the protector, Gisei turned and left.
Only after his office door closed did the Third reach for his pipe, smoking silently.
Danzo glanced at him, frowning. "Hiruzen, is it really okay to just give him those jutsu? And your soft attitude—always the same, too naive!"
"Danzo, he's still just a kid. Why can't you just trust him?"
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura quickly jumped in, worried the two would start another fight. They tried to play peacemakers.
"The basic chakra control needed for medical jutsu—surely you know the butterfly clan's secret technique. He'll show scary talent in medical ninjutsu soon enough."
Danzo snapped, "You let him stay in the hospital, do you know how much he'll gain from that? Those people are already getting restless. You're just adding fuel to the fire."
The Third slammed his pipe on the table. "What do you want me to do, force him into Anbu and make things even worse?"
"Danzo, violence solves nothing. It only brings endless pain to the village."
"Even during the training ground incident, he held back against the Aburame kid. I believe he won't disappoint me."
Neither man could move the other, so Danzo just left with a cold snort.
When he was gone, the Third closed his eyes and said quietly, "Danzo's turning more radical. If this keeps up…"
Utatane Koharu said, "He's always been that way because of what he's done for the village. He means well."
Mitokado Homura nodded, "If not for Danzo, we wouldn't have this kind of peace. Hiruzen, you should try to understand him."
The Third kept his thoughts to himself, puffing on his pipe by the window.
Koharu and Homura exchanged a glance, coughing a bit.
"About Shiraishi Gisei—we agree with your decision, but he's always surrounded by ninja clans. I just hope he won't be too influenced by them…"
Koharu hesitated. "Maybe we should send a few medical-nin to join the hospital. He can't be the only power there, or things might get out of control."
The Third sighed. "Alright. Pick from Anbu."
—
Since Gisei started using medical jutsu in the hospital, he'd gotten his own office.
Sitting there, he took out the scroll the Third gave him, glanced at it once, and tossed it on the desk.
Hemostasis Technique. Healing Jutsu. Mystical Palm Technique. That was all that was recorded.
To him, honestly, these were kind of basic stuff. But he knew, for most medical-nin, these three jutsu were basically the limit.
As for his own medical ninjutsu, ever since he sped up maturing the butterfly seed, Gisei had this weird feeling—almost like he could do anything. He didn't even know where his limits were.
Thinking about it, he lit a cigarette. After finishing, he muttered, "Smoked all week. Time to clean my lungs."
He focused his chakra, turned it to water style, and placed a hand on his chest. Faint fluorescent light glowed from his palm.
A water bubble filled with impurities got sucked right out of him. He tossed it in the trash.
"It stings a bit, but chakra use is pretty low. Probably should clean them out about once a month."
After that, he spaced out, staring out the window.
Ever since Eisawa died, Gisei felt lost. He had no goal. Now he had to figure out what to do.
First thing—solve the problem of chakra.
He was ten, already had a chunin's chakra. Among his classmates, he was a total prodigy, not much worse than Orochimaru. Give him four or five years, he'd hit jonin chakra levels.
If he could live peacefully in Konoha, maybe that would satisfy him. But he knew how much he resented this village. It always felt unreal—a dream, a soap bubble ready to pop any moment.
The Will of Fire was like the sun overhead, shining down on everyone in Konoha. He didn't want to be assimilated by that dream.
That's why he wore such weird clothes, to remind himself: he wasn't like them. Either be lonely, or be vulgar. He considered himself vulgar—but now he was also alone.
He wanted to leave Konoha. But first, he needed to suck every nutrient out of this great tree so he could survive away from it.
Thinking carefully, he realized there were three ways to solve his chakra problem.
First: bloodlines—like the Sharingan, Hashirama's cells, Uzumaki Sage Body. The Hyuga Byakugan could work too, but was impossible to get.
The Sharingan was easiest. With his medical jutsu, he'd have no trouble implanting it. But a non-Uchiha would have rejection problems, and that's not something medical jutsu can fix. Unless he turned into Orochimaru and just possessed an Uchiha body. He didn't want to get that creepy.
Hashirama's cells—only way was working with Danzo, but that was impossible. Danzo would never trust him.
Uzumaki Sage Body? Just as hopeless.
Second idea: sealing jutsu—like Tsunade's Yin Seal. Probably taught to her by Mito Uzumaki. He doubted he could get it, and for now it was basically impossible.
Third: tailed beasts. Becoming a jinchuriki would give him access to massive chakra. But tailed beasts were top secret, and anyone who got one would be hunted to death. Plus, sealing a tailed beast needed sealing jutsu.
Recently, he'd skimmed clan texts on seals. Mostly basic stuff. The only one worth a damn was Five Elements Seal. But even that was tough.
The basics of sealing jutsu were hard to understand. Just flipping through had made Gisei dizzy. If he wanted to research seals on his own, it'd take ages. Still, it was the best option he had right now.
"No other way—I'll have to learn sealing jutsu first."
Gisei sighed and used Reverse Summoning to go to Butterfly Habitat Valley.
Mei was asleep like usual.
Gisei stared for a while, then started looking for books about seals. After grabbing a few, he returned to his office to study.
Meanwhile, in Butterfly Habitat Valley, Mei suddenly opened her eyes.
After a yawn, she said thoughtfully, "Learning sealing jutsu first, not a bad choice."
She got up, went outside for a moment, then returned to the hall. She carried a scroll, paused, then casually tossed it onto the shelf.
"Is this being too obvious?"
To herself, Mei said, "None of those guys before would ever cooperate with me. Even if this boy is special, it won't be easy."
"No choice." She took the scroll back.
"I'll test him next time he comes."
Mei flopped down on the bed in the main hall and went back to sleep.