This was a small medical tent. Uchiha Kin wore a white medical protective suit, medical gloves on his hands, a mask over his mouth, and goggles over his eyes, completely isolating himself from the surroundings.
On the operating table lay a Jonin, completely unconscious, covered with a white sheet. The chest area was cut open, the clothing carefully sliced away.
A nurse pressed both hands onto the Jonin's body. Pale green light from a medical ninjutsu spread over the patient, making him seem to glow faintly.
Another nurse approached a bound prisoner. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath."I'm sorry... For the sake of my comrades, I have to borrow your heart."She knew this was unethical, against her conscience.
But how could she watch her comrades die? Trading one life for another — wasn't that the right choice?
Her gaze involuntarily shifted to Uchiha Kin.
This cold, ruthless man was the leader of their medical squad. He wielded a unique medical ninjutsu technique, especially skilled at limb and organ transplantation, earning him the nickname "The Man Who Steals Souls from Death."
Although he was only thirteen years old and an Uchiha, he was not well regarded within his clan.
He had earned fame on the battlefield with his medical skills — but not for his Sharingan.
For the Uchiha clan, this was no honor. It felt more like a disgrace.
The nurse turned back, sliced open the prisoner's chest cavity, carefully removed the heart, and handed it to their squad leader.
"Good. You and Molly, keep his vitality stable. The rest is on me." Uchiha Kin instructed, then took the heart roughly and shoved it into the Jonin's chest cavity.
Inside the abdomen, yellowed nerves extended from Uchiha Kin's palm like the roots of a plant, growing wildly and connecting to the heart's nerves. A sudden spasm squeezed the blood from the heart.
Then these nerves connected with the Jonin's heart nerves, bridging them perfectly.
"Knife!" Kin said briefly. An assistant handed him a scalpel. With a gentle cut, Kin removed the old heart.
Blood suddenly flooded into the new heart, which began to beat strongly. The pale green light from the medical ninjutsu continued to work, accelerating the healing between heart and body.
No rejection — a miracle of the medical ninjutsu Kin had developed.
"He's stable, Captain," Molly said, ceasing her hand-sealing technique. Maintaining the ninjutsu was draining.
Uchiha Kin glanced around the tent."Notify his team. Tell them to take him away. Also, deal with the prisoner's body. Clean up the tent — we need to rest."
"I'll handle it." Another teammate lifted the tent flap and told the Jonin's comrades waiting outside, "Your teammate is stable now. You can take him. Also, dispose of the prisoner's body and clean up for hygiene."
"Great!""Thank you, Doctor.""Thank you, Captain Kin."
After their thanks, they entered the tent.
Kin and his two teammates left the surgical area, casually walking to an open space nearby.
Thanks to Kin's medical skills, his squad didn't participate in regular medical care, preserving their energy for critical tasks.
That's why they had this free time.
"Captain, your technique is improving. This surgery took less time than the last!" Molly said excitedly.
Kin replied, "Last time was harder. The toxins had spread through three organs, all needing replacement. Different organs, different nerve locations — connecting them perfectly wasn't easy."
"That's why you're amazing, Captain! When toxins infiltrate the entire body like that, even Lady Tsunade can't handle it. Only you came up with removing and replacing the organs to flush out the poison."
"Who else but our captain has such skills?" Kin's teammates agreed.
Kin simply hummed in acknowledgment and looked up at the sky. The Land of Grass's sky was clear blue; a warm breeze brushed over him.
He opened his palm, holding it up to his eyes.
The white-gloved hand seemed ordinary.
He smiled faintly."Yeah, who else but me? As an Uchiha, how else could I escape the fate of death?"
Since birth, knowing he was an Uchiha, the shadow of clan extermination weighed heavily on his heart.
He had to struggle desperately to survive... Yet he was a very calm, emotionally detached person.
Unable to rely on the Sharingan, he researched secret techniques to control nerves — to secure his future.
"Land of Grass... Kamikuzu Bridge... It's time for me to reap my harvest."
Ten years of sharpening one art, his edge still hidden.
Today is the day to show his true strength and break free from the cage.
A blue bird flew across the sky, spreading its wings and crying out.
Its clear call pierced the sky like a sharp sword.
Kin's eyes followed the bird's shadow before turning back to the endless blue.
"Yo, old teammate, long time no see."
A young man in a white robe, with a white cloth tied around his head and forehead protector wrapped on his left fist, approached from a distance."Your life's been good. Not like mine."
He was Uchiha Kin's old teammate, Hyuga Sen, from the branch family of the Hyuga clan, the same age, equally precocious. He was rumored to be a transmigrator like Kin.
Sen was one of the few Hyuga who cared little for the clan's "Hyuga" name and looked down on the Gentle Fist style, believing it ineffective and incompatible with the Byakugan. His weapon of choice was a pair of short blades.
After all, compared to pressure points, stabbing with blades was more efficient and direct.
Kin gave a noncommittal reply."What do you want?"
"Of course, I'm here to ask for your help!" Sen smiled.
Kin asked, "Help with what?"But in his heart, as clear as a mirror, he thought: Looks like they're ready.
Molly and Jingju, sensing the need for privacy, exchanged a glance, said a few words to Kin, and walked away, giving them space.
Sen said, "If you're going to talk like that, it's no fun. Come on, we don't have much time!"
"Alright, I'll go change."