With the speed of a jonin and skilled cooking techniques,
Kei prepared a lavish dinner in less than an hour. This was even after Kushina came in halfway, requesting an additional pot of rice enough for ten people, and extra dishes were made in surplus.
Otherwise, with his speed, half an hour would have been more than enough.
The food was served.
Tsunade, who was already starving, barely uttered a quick "Itadakimasu" before she started devouring her meal like a storm.
The rice in the pot disappeared as if it was playing at double speed. The generously portioned stir-fried dishes were also vanishing at a visible rate.
Did she just have a fight with Pain or what?
Seeing Tsunade's aggressive eating posture, Kei paused mid-air with his chopsticks. If Kushina hadn't told him that Tsunade had been waiting for him for days, he would have suspected she had just finished an intense real-life PK battle.
"Tsunade-nee is developing a new jutsu lately, which takes up a lot of energy,"
Kushina explained, her face carrying an unmistakable hint of envy as she noticed her boyfriend's shocked expression. She didn't care about the jutsu development—what she envied was that Tsunade could enjoy all kinds of delicious food without any restraint.
High-level medical ninjutsu required the use of Yang Release chakra transformation.
Just like the Akimichi clan's secret techniques, which allowed them to quickly store fat from food and convert it into chakra,
Tsunade's mastery of medical ninjutsu meant that no matter how much she ate, she would only gain weight in the right places while keeping the rest of her body slim, without any concern about ruining her figure.
In fact, eating more could even help replenish the chakra in her Yin Seal.
She was so envious she could cry.
"???"
The first thing that came to Kei's mind was the auxiliary seal that assisted the Yin Seal's operation, specifically designed to counteract genjutsu.
But thinking about it again, that didn't seem necessary—after all, Tsunade was the one who developed the Yin Seal with its cheat-like effect that could reattach severed body parts.
A small, technically simple seal wouldn't take her more than a few hours to figure out. That really wouldn't be a big deal.
So was it a new jutsu?
Wait a minute...
"Tsunade-nee, with your current level of medical ninjutsu, is it possible to create a Reincarnation Ninjutsu like ?"
Kei seized the moment when Tsunade paused to chew and quickly asked. Her hand, which was about to scoop more rice, froze for a brief second. Her sharp eyes lifted from her rice bowl as she subconsciously thought of a certain white snake.
"Reincarnation Ninjutsu? Heh—do you know medical ninjutsu?"
"Uh... I know a few medical Water Release techniques."
Kei put down his chopsticks, feeling slightly embarrassed about this topic. Back when he was in the Analysis Team, he had gone through the memories of several medical-nin and even trained in medical ninjutsu for a while.
Unfortunately, he was born without Yang Release chakra affinity, and whenever he used medical ninjutsu, his chakra naturally mixed in some Yin Release properties.
Not only was it difficult to master, but the effects were highly unstable.
A half-dead fish, after treatment, would either do a dramatic spin with a double backflip before dropping dead, or go completely stiff as if it had been knocked unconscious, dying on the spot.
If he hadn't gotten [Water Release Mastery] from the system, which allowed him to instantly comprehend a few medical Water Release techniques, his medical ninjutsu... Hmm... Its greatest function would have been adding more grilled fish to the Analysis Team's menu.
"Medical Water Release, huh... That's a very gentle technique."
Tsunade's sharp gaze softened considerably upon hearing Kei's answer.
Unlike the Mystical Palm Technique or Creation Rebirth, which rely on Yang Release chakra to forcibly activate cell activity and induce rapid cell division for healing,
Medical Water Release instead provides the body with nutrients and energy using water chakra, allowing cells to naturally enter a stable regeneration state.
In terms of healing efficiency, conventional medical ninjutsu outperforms medical Water Release by several leagues. However, excessive forced cell regeneration inevitably consumes the patient's life energy and shortens their lifespan.
This is also why many severely injured ninjas remain weak for a period even after they have fully recovered.
Although medical Water Release has a much slower recovery speed, it is undoubtedly more friendly to the patient and causes far less damage to the body than conventional medical ninjutsu.
It is also a better treatment option for those with severely deteriorated bodily functions.
In any case, someone who willingly chooses to learn medical Water Release—a technique more beneficial to the patient—rather than the more potent instant-healing conventional medical ninjutsu, can't be that bad of a person, right?
Tsunade resumed eating quickly, finishing another bowl in no time. As she scooped more rice, she finally spoke again, "Why are you asking about life transfer? What do you want to do?"
"… I've heard of a technique called Dragon Life Reincarnation. It uses Yang Release chakra transformation to transfer the user's life energy to another person, healing them no matter how severe their injuries are."
"Mm, I've heard of it. But once it's cast, the user dies. Are you willing to accept that cost?"
"There are people… and things… more precious than life itself. And… sometimes, regret is scarier than death."
The moment Kei finished speaking, the dinner table fell into silence.
Tsunade, holding a freshly filled bowl of rice, stared blankly at the grains as she absentmindedly poked them with her chopsticks. Kushina, deeply moved, was about to wipe away her tears when she noticed Kei subtly making a Mind Body Switch Technique hand sign under the table at her.
Emmm... You bastard! Give me my emotions back!
She puffed up her cheeks, afraid that Tsunade would notice her reaction. She quickly lowered her head and started poking at her rice with her chopsticks too.
Rice: I'd rather have stayed in the pot…
"… Do you have any leads on such a technique?"
Tsunade snapped out of her memories. She had to admit, even though she considered herself someone with nothing left to lose, the idea of such a jutsu still ignited a deep longing within her.
If that technique had existed back then… could things have been different?
"I recently acquired a secret technique from the Hōzuki clan called Hydration Healing Jutsu. It allows the user to turn into water and wrap around a target's wounds to rapidly heal them. It involves a form of life transfer."
"But this type of life transfer is purely passive—it doesn't touch the core essence of it. I've also heard that Taki's secret kinjutsu, Earth Grudge Fear, can completely transfer life energy into special black tendrils…"
"Then there's the underground bounty stations in the Land of Fire—some ruthless individuals there use a technique that transfers life energy through blood and binds it to hair strands…"
"There is also a one-time-use-only jutsu which uses life energy to achieve a complete transformation, shedding injuries and emerging reborn…"
"Oh, and that rogue medical ninja Shinnō—he's been to Konoha a few times. It's said that he has extensive research on body activation and possesses a forbidden jutsu for physical regeneration…"
"I think… if I can master these various life-transfer methods, refine them slightly, and combine them with either the Fuma clan's Metamorphosis technique or Shinnō's physical regeneration jutsu, I might be able to create a technique similar to Dragon Life Reincarnation."
Kei casually laid out his initial plan.
Tsunade's gaze, which had softened earlier, now turned sharp, filled with suspicion and caution.
Does this kid even understand what he's saying?
It was one thing if he was just talking about a jutsu from Kusa. But now he was bringing in Kiri, Taki, the underground bounty stations, and even that mysterious missing-nin Shinnō…
You're not trying to create a jutsu—you're trying to start a war!