While Natsuo was being received by the clan leader and high-level ninjas of the Uchiha clan, another meeting was taking place in the Hokage's office.
"...and in short, it's a job that even Tsunade would have difficulty doing better," Hiruzen said, finishing reading the medical report of the chunin that Natsuo operated on.
"I didn't expect the boy to be so talented," Hiruzen said with a sigh, handing the report to Koharu.
Recalling when he asked Tsunade to take the boy as a disciple, Hiruzen never thought the boy had so much talent.
Sure, the boy showed promise, but many others displayed the same ability, and almost no one could reach a high level in Medical Ninjutsu.
Hiruzen had Tsunade take the boy as a disciple just to get closer to the Uchiha clan and keep them docile for the time being.
After all, Tsunade was his disciple, and the Uchiha clan might believe that she trusts them because she allowed such training.
But Hiruzen never thought he had chosen a hidden gem.
After reading the report, Koharu handed it to Homura and there was silence in the office.
"What will you do with him?" Homura asked, breaking the silence.
Koharu also waited for Hiruzen, and the Third Hokage didn't think twice before answering.
"Uchiha Natsuo is a talent that will greatly benefit the village."
"With the war just beginning, someone like this boy is vital to saving as many of our ninjas' lives as possible."
"Tsunade is in the land of rivers and Kenko is in the land of rain"
"The only place without someone of his caliber is the Land of Grass, and we compensate for that with a greater number of medical ninjas," Hiruzen said, acting morally, as if he had nothing to hide with his words.
Homura and Koharu knew their friend and understood what he meant.
After all, they had already discussed the close relationship between the next Nine-Tails Jinchuriki and the Uchiha child, and they hadn't decided what to do.
They were previously in conflict over how to proceed to keep the next Nine-Tails Jinchuriki away from the Uchiha child.
Since the boy was always in the village, they couldn't attack him without causing major problems.
But with the excuse of needing more medical ninjas on the front lines, no one will be able to say that they specifically targeted the child.
"But the Uchiha clan will not allow the child to go to the front easily," Homura said, and the three agreed.
All the clans in the village had their own private forces, and normally the village would make an effort to get those ninja forces to participate in the war.
But the Uchiha clan was different, as Hiruzen and his friends did not want the Uchiha clan to participate in the war.
This was because they remembered the teachings of the Second Hokage and knew that the Uchiha clan grew stronger through battle. And if the Uchiha suffered losses in war, that would only awaken their Sharingan or further evolve the ones they already possessed.
None of them wanted the Uchiha clan to obtain the legendary Mangekyo Sharingan and they made sure that the Uchiha clan remained in the village under the control of the police.
Of course, the Uchiha clan was happy not to actively participate in the war and did not insist on the matter without knowing that this would harm their clan in the long run.
Not only will their ninjas be weakened by the lack of bloodshed, but the other ninjas in the village will resent them for not participating in the war.
Seeing their efforts and the losses they suffered in the war, and seeing the Uchiha clan enjoying peace in the village, will cause everyone to further isolate the Uchiha clan.
And since they all formed strong bonds fighting together in the war, that isolation will be difficult to overcome.
"I'll talk to Eiichiro," Hiruzen said.
"Besides needing a break and many having requested to return to the village, the front in the Land of Grass always needs more medical ninjas."
"I can use this excuse to request doctors from all clans, and I'll even offer them greater benefits the more doctors they send to war."
"That way it has nothing to do with us if the Uchiha clan sends the child."
Homura and Koharu nodded in agreement with their friend's words.
They all mentally thanked Danzo for not being in the village, otherwise his friend would have tried to kill the boy directly without going through so many plans.
If Natsuo were to show great battle power at the age of 11, Hiruzen might agree with Danzo.
Even if he was Tsunade's disciple, Hiruzen and the others didn't want another Madara to appear.
But since Natsuo was only good at Medical Ninjutsu, Hiruzen would oppose the idea because he was a valuable asset to his faction.
Of course, if he remained close to the next Jinchuriki after the war, or if he showed himself to be rebellious and leaned towards his clan in the future, he could let Danzo do the dirty work.
After all, that's what the creation of Root was for: to perform tasks unrelated to it.
Of course, Root also showed its importance in the war, and Hiruzen allowed Root to increase its numbers during the war, which is why Danzo hadn't returned to the village lately.
As leader of Root, Danzo was busy gathering intelligence and sabotaging enemy villages, drastically reducing the pressure on the Leaf Village.
Along with the ninjas still in the village, they still had the assurance of fighting against the Cloud and Mist Village if they suddenly joined the war.
With this issue resolved, the three of them began to discuss and review new information about the war.
.
.
.
"It's dangerous!"
"Natsuo, you shouldn't go to war!"
"Grandma Mito, tell the Third Hokage not to send Natsuo to war!" Kushina shouted in the middle of dinner.
Several days had passed since news of Natsuo's medical skills had spread and surprised the village.
Kushina was happy for Natsuo because now everyone in the village spoke very highly of him, and she felt proud every time someone praised him.
Of course, when she heard several girls talking amongst themselves about Natsuo, Kushina's mood plummeted and she was annoyed with Natsuo.
Not knowing the reason for Kushina's annoyance, Natsuo could only shrug his shoulders and wonder who understands women.
Natsuo didn't have time to think about what he had done wrong because at that moment he had learned that the village wanted him to go to the front lines of the war.
Sanjiro sought him out and the clan leader informed him about the Hokage's request, and then asked for his opinion.
Standing before the two men, Natsuo thought very seriously before giving his answer.
According to what the Uchiha clan leader explained, the lack of a high-level medical ninja in the Land of Grass was being addressed by increasing the number of medical ninja. As a result, they were all exhausted and would be replaced by doctors still in the village.
Eiichiro offered Natsuo several benefits to go to the front and act as a medical ninja.
From large amounts of money to several Ninjutsu scrolls.
Seeing the benefits Eiichiro was offering him, Natsuo wondered what benefits the Uchiha clan was receiving.
As a clan with various businesses and lands in the land of fire, the Uchiha clan was rich enough to give away money as if it were nothing, so it wasn't difficult to support Natsuo financially.
What about the Ninjutsu scrolls?
A great clan like the Uchiha clan had hundreds of years to gather a large number of Ninjutsu scrolls, either by copying them with their Sharingan or creating them themselves.
Given the benefits that Eichiro offered him, Natsuo thought about it for a long time before making his decision.
Money didn't interest him much because he already earned a certain amount of money at the hospital and would earn more now that he had demonstrated his ability.
He could even work privately for a ninja clan or a wealthy civilian merchant family in the nation's capital.
Even the Daimyo was willing to pay millions of Ryo to someone if they had the ability to save someone's life.
Of course, Natsuo lacked experience compared to other medical ninjas and in treating various illnesses, everyone knew that, but what they valued most during a war was his ability to heal various injured organs.
The missing experience could be obtained later.
That's why Natsuo wasn't so interested in money, and Eiichiro knew that, so he brought up the possibility of learning various Ninjutsu.