At the Training Ground.
At this moment, Sakura felt that her past self had been a bit too complacent. Or rather, a bit foolish.
Although Naruto and Sasuke had always been among the top students in their grade at the Academy, Sakura had always thought that she was only a short distance from Sasuke, and as long as she could get a little stronger, she would be able to stand by Sasuke's side.
Now, Sakura realized how naive her thoughts had been.
Just in these two days, the battles between Sasuke and Naruto, the terrifying Ninjutsu and Taijutsu they displayed, were enough to shock her for a long time.
And according to her companion Ino, neither of them had even used their full power.
Is this even human?
No, is this even the level Academy students should be at?
Even her companion Ino seemed a bit unfamiliar to Sakura. Her team training with Shikamaru and Choji was quite impressive.
Sakura looked at everyone in the training ground. She had been diligently studying Medical Ninjutsu for the past two days, but it felt like she hadn't made any progress. She might not have the talent for it.
Thinking of this, Sakura helplessly stopped her movements, a sudden wave of dejection washing over her.
"What's wrong?" Shinji, who had just finished his tasks and came over, asked with a hint of surprise when he saw Sakura's expression.
"Uh, Shinji-sensei." Sakura quickly stood up to greet him upon hearing his voice.
Sakura said, "I just feel like I don't have the talent for Medical Ninjutsu."
Sakura looked at the fish Ino had caught for her to practice on, which was no longer thrashing.
Shinji rubbed his chin, looking at Sakura in front of him. In the original story, Sakura had even better medical talent than Ino.
Yet, now even Ino could learn to heal a fish within five days.
Why couldn't Sakura?
While deep in thought, Shinji suddenly heard Naruto's boastful voice and turned his head.
He saw everyone on the training ground diligently training, while Sakura kept glancing at them from the corner of her eye.
Is that the reason?
Shinji slapped his forehead.
Being too busy really wasn't a good thing.
"Sakura, come with me." Shinji said, then walked towards the riverbank.
Sakura, hearing Shinji speak, looked up and saw Shinji already walking away.
She couldn't help but feel a little panicked, was he going to give up on her?
Arriving at the riverbank, Shinji turned to look at the anxious Sakura behind him, but said nothing more.
He squatted down, looked at the river surface, and the next moment, he raised his hand and poked the surface.
Splash—
A lively fish was firmly held in his hand.
"Sakura, which step are you having trouble with?" Shinji asked, looking at Sakura beside him.
Sakura thought for a moment, first nodding, then shaking her head.
"Sensei, I've almost memorized all the theory and operations, but I just can't seem to find that point."
With that, Sakura began to explain the problems she was encountering to Shinji.
As she spoke, Shinji nodded. It wasn't that Ino hadn't taught seriously.
On the contrary, Ino had told Sakura everything she knew, but there was just one step where she had gone wrong.
"Sakura, what you need to do isn't actually to heal it, but to use your Chakra to replace its rapidly failing life functions." Shinji said, raising the fish in his hand that was no longer struggling.
"But, it's almost—"
"Almost means there's still a tiny bit of time left. Your Chakra can be imagined as your second pair of hands. You need to use these hands to make its heart work."
Shinji waved his hand. Medical Ninjutsu is different from other Ninjutsu. It isn't for destruction but for weaving life.
Shinji said, "Regardless of the training, there will always be one requirement: calmness and focus."
He placed the fish on the ground and told Sakura, "Medical Ninjutsu requires this even more. Your spirit needs to be condensed to the extreme, forgetting everything around you."
"Imagine this fish as your patient, and your world contains only you and your patient. There can be no anxiety or hesitation. Otherwise, your Chakra will become a deadly blade."
Sakura blinked, and after listening to Shinji's explanation, she slowly took a deep breath and closed her eyes. When she opened her eyes again, all unnecessary emotions had receded from her gaze, which had become extremely focused.
Shinji nodded almost imperceptibly. Sakura still had some redeeming qualities.
"Very good. Second step, gather your Chakra in your palm."
"Don't release it like you would a Ninjutsu, but like your breath, gently and continuously. Imagine your Chakra as countless threads even finer than spider silk."
Sakura followed Shinji's guidance and began to slowly release her Chakra.
"Sense the other party's Chakra and synchronize with it."
Sakura nodded.
The Chakra glow in her hand was exceptionally clear. The fish on the ground suddenly twitched, and faint streaks of blood slowly seeped from beneath its scales.
Sakura, who had just made a move, was immediately startled and withdrew her hand, continuously saying, "Ah! I'm sorry!"
"Too forceful. The Chakra you just released would tear it apart from the inside."
Shinji pointed out the flaw in Sakura's recent Chakra release, then again pulled out a fish from the river behind him.
"It should be like caressing a butterfly. The force needs to be enough to feel it, but not enough to harm its wings."
"Find that balance point, continue."
Sakura quickly nodded and immediately began to try again.
As time slowly passed, ten dead fish with Byakugan-like white eyes were laid at Shinji's feet.
Sakura, meanwhile, was pale, her Chakra was almost depleted.
"Continue."
"Remember the feeling you just had. It's not that you are releasing Chakra, but that your consciousness itself flows through the Chakra, becoming a part of it, making its heart beat."
Shinji again threw a freshly caught fish to Sakura. He felt it should be soon.
Indeed.
After receiving and placing the fish, Sakura again placed her hand above it. Then she closed her eyes, her entire mind immersed in the connection with the fish.
In just a moment, the half-dead fish's tail suddenly gave an extremely faint twitch. Next, its gill covers slowly began to open and close again.
Shinji formed a few hand seals with one hand, drawing a stream of water from the river behind him towards the fish.
As soon as the water stream covered the fish, it immediately righted its body and began to slowly float in the water.
"Shinji-sensei! Look!" Sakura's face was filled with surprise.
Shinji looked at the fish in the water, which seemed to have been revived, and a gentle smile appeared on his face.
"Excellent work. You're much faster than I expected."
"I finally succeeded!" Sakura collapsed onto the ground, utterly exhausted, her face beaming with immense joy.
"Congratulations on passing." Shinji nodded, his tone gentle as he spoke.