Chapter Twelve: Shennong
Several more days passed in the blink of an eye. Every day, Ryuya devoted all his time to the routine practice and training of the clan's secret techniques.
He was constantly operating at a high-intensity pace, almost without rest.
Even back when he was preparing for the college entrance exams, Ryuya had never pushed himself this hard.
If it weren't for the fact that, in the dangerous ninja world, a lack of strength could mean losing one's life at any moment, Ryuya would have already thought about switching careers and doing something else.
With knowledge and insight far beyond ordinary people, wouldn't it be far better to develop some business in the ninja world and become a wealthy tycoon living in comfort?
On this day, after a full night's rest and feeling refreshed once more, Ryuya arrived at the usual gathering spot for Team Thirty-One.
At the meeting point, their squad leader, Ichikawa Shin, and Sagawa were already waiting.
This time, however, there was an unfamiliar person standing beside Ichikawa Shin.
"Ichikawa-sensei."
Walking up, Ryuya respectfully bowed, while his gaze naturally shifted to the person next to Ichikawa Shin.
This was a burly middle-aged man, around forty years old, with long brown hair and a full beard.
Meeting Ryuya's gaze, the man smiled warmly and nodded in greeting, looking very amiable.
"Where did Ichikawa-sensei find another guy with a fake smile plastered all over his face?"
Ryuya couldn't help muttering to himself as he looked at the man.
Smiling on the outside, cursing on the inside!
Ryuya disliked dealing with people like this the most—always wearing a fake smile, who knew what kind of crooked schemes they were plotting inside?
Their squad leader Ichikawa Shin was already one such person. Having another one was honestly more than Ryuya could stand.
"This gentleman is today's client. Once Teru arrives, I'll take you all to carry out a C-rank mission."
Noticing Ryuya's gaze, Ichikawa Shin smiled and gave a brief explanation.
Hearing this, Ryuya understood—and when he realized that today's mission was a C-rank one, his brows immediately furrowed.
This would be the first C-rank mission of his ninja career.
Previously, the D-rank missions Team Thirty-One had taken were mostly trivial, everyday tasks that rarely involved any danger to life.
C-rank missions and above were different. Combat could break out at any moment during such missions, and casualties were common.
At the thought that fighting might occur, Ryuya instinctively felt a desire to retreat.
He wasn't a native who had grown up in this world. Although the body's original owner had already been to the battlefield during the Third Great Ninja War, Ryuya himself—having transmigrated into this world—still couldn't, in such a short time, treat going to war and killing as something natural.
Beside him, however, Sagawa was visibly excited.
To Sagawa, higher-level missions meant greater rewards and more merit—honor deeply ingrained in the hearts of ninjas in this world.
Before long, Yūhi Teru also arrived. After briefly explaining the mission details, Ichikawa Shin led them out of the village.
During the Third Great Ninja War, both Sunagakure and Iwagakure had invaded the Land of Fire at different times, causing tremendous damage.
Now that the war had only recently ended, many villages within the Land of Fire had yet to recover from its wounds.
According to Ichikawa Shin, the middle-aged man was a highly skilled physician from the village. This time, he had been commissioned to head to Kikyo Mountain City to carry out medical relief.
Team Thirty-One's mission was to escort and protect him along the way.
As for the man's specific background, Ichikawa Shin didn't elaborate, and Ryuya and the others didn't ask further.
After all, he was just an ordinary physician—not worth special attention.
After leaving the village, Team Thirty-One hurried along the road, covering half the journey in four days.
Night had fallen, and they prepared to rest near a nearby village road.
Along the way, Team Thirty-One maintained constant vigilance.
Ichikawa Shin guided the three green rookies while personally scouting ahead at all times.
The Land of Fire, having just emerged from war, was far from peaceful. Attacks from remnants of enemy ninjas or wandering rogues could happen at any time.
Throughout the journey, Ryuya kept his mind highly focused, constantly verifying the knowledge he had learned against reality and rapidly familiarizing himself with various outdoor survival skills for ninjas.
After a simple dinner around the campfire, Ichikawa Shin directed Yūhi Teru and Sagawa to set traps in the surrounding area, while Ryuya stayed behind with the middle-aged physician.
"Uncle, you're really diligent. Even while traveling every day, you don't forget to read. What kind of book are you holding?"
Ryuya couldn't help asking as he looked at the man studying a book intently.
Over the past two days of travel, whenever there was a moment to rest, the man would take out a book and read seriously.
This aroused Ryuya's curiosity.
"Hehe, it's a medical text."
The middle-aged man lifted the book slightly toward Ryuya, smiling gently as he said,
"Medicine is a very profound discipline. Even if one devotes their entire life to it, they can only grasp a small part of it. I want to seize every moment to learn more, so I can help more people.
Of course, that's also thanks to your careful protection—only then can I study with peace of mind."
"Then you really are a role model worth learning from for us juniors!"
Ryuya said with an expression of admiration, though inwardly he didn't believe a single word.
When dealing with people like this, you absolutely couldn't take what they said at face value.
After several days of interaction, Ryuya felt deep wariness toward the middle-aged man.
For some reason, although the man always behaved kindly toward them, whenever he smiled at Ryuya, Ryuya felt uncomfortable.
This vague, indescribable feeling became even stronger when the two of them were alone.
Hearing Ryuya's flattery, the man merely smiled and said nothing, lowering his head to continue reading.
"By the way, we've been traveling together for two days, and I still don't know your name, Uncle. You must be a physician highly respected by the villagers, right?"
The admiration on Ryuya's face deepened as he asked curiously.
"This is Physician Shennong. He's a highly skilled medical expert."
Ichikawa Shin's voice sounded from behind—they had returned with Yūhi Teru and Sagawa.
Shennong!
Hearing this name, Ryuya was greatly shaken.
No wonder he had sensed a faint hostility and danger from this man.
So he was Shennong—the remnant of the Sky Ninja Village who disguised himself as a traveling physician.
The Sky Ninja Village had been defeated by Konoha during the Second Great Ninja War.
Naturally, Shennong harbored deep hatred toward Konoha and its ninjas. Although he concealed it well, it was still detected by Ryuya's exceptionally keen perception.
Ryuya vaguely remembered that later on, this man would create the "Zero-Tails" and pilot an aerial fortress to attack Konoha.
Shocked by this realization, the change in Ryuya's expression naturally showed on his face, prompting Shennong—who had been reading—to glance over at him calmly.
"Ryuya, what's wrong? Do you know Physician Shennong?"
Ichikawa Shin asked in confusion.
"Huh? So you're Physician Shennong, Uncle?
I've heard of you back in the village—you're my idol! I want to study medicine under you!"
Ryuya's mind raced. Reacting instantly, he dashed to Shennong's side, grabbed his right hand, and looked at him with eyes full of admiration.
Shennong hesitated slightly as his hand was seized, his expression stiffening as he looked at Ryuya.
Inside, Shennong was cursing furiously.
If you want to learn medicine, do you really have to be this excited?!
Just a moment ago, when Ryuya rushed toward him, Shennong had thought he'd been exposed and nearly struck first.
With his current strength, Shennong wasn't confident he could wipe out Team Thirty-One completely.
Once he acted, it would likely expose his identity—something he absolutely didn't want.
"You want to study medicine?"
Sagawa stared at Ryuya in disbelief.
"Weren't you always determined to become a powerful ninja?"
"Tch! What do you know? Uncle Shennong isn't an ordinary physician—his medical skills are incredible. If I learn advanced medical techniques from him, I won't have to worry about getting injured on the battlefield! Only by surviving better can I someday become a truly powerful ninja!"
Ryuya scoffed, still clinging tightly to Shennong's arm, his face full of fanatic enthusiasm.
At that moment, he perfectly embodied the essence of a crazed fan meeting their idol.
This sudden burst of top-tier acting completely fooled everyone—Shennong included.
"Hehe, Ryuya-kun, medicine isn't so easy to learn,"
Shennong said with a chuckle, finally regaining his composure as he patted Ryuya's hands.
He applied a bit of force with his right arm, but couldn't break free.
"Uncle Shennong, please teach me! I'm really smart!"
Ryuya said eagerly, gripping Shennong's arm even tighter, his eyes shining.
This man might harbor ill intentions toward Konoha, but the Body Activation Forbidden Technique and the Body Regeneration Forbidden Technique in his possession were priceless treasures.
Whether Shennong had already developed these techniques or not, Ryuya had already made up his mind—he would find a way to obtain their secrets.
Watching this scene, the team's chūnin leader Ichikawa Shin was covered in black lines. Ryuya's shamelessness was truly hard to watch.
Meanwhile, Yūhi Teru silently mourned for Shennong.
Seeing Ryuya's behavior, Teru instantly understood—this guy was definitely plotting something again.
And so, for the rest of the journey, Ryuya perfectly demonstrated what it meant to have the persistence of chewing gum, repeatedly testing the limits of self-destruction.
"Wow, Uncle Shennong, is this a medical book about human meridians? What are these diagrams of the human body?"
"Uncle Shennong, the human meridian system is actually this complicated? Please explain it to me!"
…
Without the slightest restraint, Ryuya pulled a book from Shennong's side and loudly flipped through it, making a scene as he went.
Shennong's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot, and he could no longer maintain that gentle smile.
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