"Tsk tsk, Ren, you're really amazing…"
Several days later.
At noon, under the blazing sun.
After finishing their hospital rounds for the day,
Tsunade—who was in an excellent mood thanks to Ren's outstanding performance—specifically brought Ren and Shizune to the Akimichi family's barbecue restaurant.
"As expected of the 'little medical prodigy' everyone's been praising…"
Shizune looked at her junior brother with a smile.
"In just a few days, it feels like you're already about to surpass me!"
In only a short few days,
Akira Ren's reputation as a genius had spread once again.
He had even gained a nickname—
"Little Medical Prodigy."
At first, some of the medical staff at Konoha Hospital had quietly felt dissatisfied.
After all, Tsunade had allowed her eight-year-old disciple to practice on actual patients and wounded ninjas.
To many of them, that seemed reckless.
But over the past few days,
they had all been completely convinced by Ren's monster-like talent.
He had brought great honor to Tsunade and to Shizune, his senior apprentice.
Under Shizune's guidance,
Ren—who had already mastered various medical ninjutsu—kept performing real clinical treatments.
Many of the wounded ninjas brought back from missions had injuries such as severed limbs, severe blood loss, even intestines spilling out before being stuffed back in.
Some had suffered extreme burns.
All kinds of injuries.
Ren had tried treating them one by one.
His improvement was astonishingly fast.
"Senior Sister taught me well. I still have a long way to go."
Ren remained humble.
Only after truly practicing in the hospital with Tsunade did he realize how limited his previous understanding had been.
After all,
a truly excellent medical ninja wasn't someone who simply treated superficial injuries.
Complex cases such as congenital diseases or bacterial infections required deep knowledge and experience.
During the past few days, following Shizune while treating patients with rare illnesses had benefited Ren greatly.
Whenever they encountered difficult cases beyond Shizune's ability,
they could directly consult Tsunade.
Under such a master's guidance,
Ren's medical skill improved at an astonishing pace every single day.
His horizons also broadened tremendously.
He gained an entirely new understanding of medical ninjutsu.
He personally witnessed several patients—
who had been declared hopeless by the hospital—
fully recover under Tsunade's miraculous treatment.
It was truly like turning decay into magic.
There were even critically injured patients whose internal organs had been severely damaged.
Some had only half their life left.
Even Ren had thought they were beyond saving.
Yet under Tsunade's guidance,
with Shizune performing the surgery while Ren and other medical ninjas assisted—
they dragged those patients back from the gates of death.
It left him deeply amazed.
It was also worth mentioning that—
even the Third Hokage, who had been paying attention to Tsunade's newly accepted disciple,
had personally visited the hospital yesterday despite his busy schedule.
He had praised Ren.
However—
before he could even bring out his famous "Will of Fire" speech,
Tsunade had angrily driven him away without giving her teacher any face.
Hiruzen Sarutobi could only maintain his Hokage dignity and leave awkwardly with his guards.
Ren had nearly burst out laughing.
"Hehe… The Akimichi family's barbecue really is the best…"
Ren happily ate a piece of grilled meat.
"No wonder Uncle Choza's family has so many members with such huge appetites and still hasn't gone bankrupt."
In the past, Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, and Akimichi Choza had occasionally brought Ren together with Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji to eat here.
After that,
Ren had completely fallen in love with it.
The taste really was excellent.
With financial support from Akira Nao,
he came here once or twice every month.
As for Ichiraku Ramen—
it wasn't bad,
but it simply didn't match Ren's personal taste.
Shizune fed a piece of barbecue to the drooling Tonton beside her.
She nodded in agreement.
"The Akimichi family's barbecue really is a specialty of Konoha."
"If you like it, eat more and replenish your energy."
Tsunade placed several pieces of meat onto Ren's plate.
Looking at his handsome young face, she patted his head affectionately.
"There are several major surgeries this afternoon."
Over the past few days,
she had carefully observed Ren's performance.
He was calm and steady.
Despite gaining fame so young, he showed no arrogance.
That pleased her greatly.
Honestly,
if Tsunade herself had possessed such ability at his age,
she felt her ego would have already soared into the sky.
"Thanks, Sister Tsunade."
Ren grinned and accepted without hesitation.
Although he technically didn't need to eat normal food,
he still enjoyed good meals.
"But the Akimichi family doesn't just run a barbecue business…"
While eating, Tsunade added with a smile,
"Their Soldier Pills are extremely famous throughout the ninja world. They're very popular supplies among shinobi."
"That's where the real profit comes from."
"I see."
Ren suddenly understood.
At first he thought the Akimichi clan only had secret medicines like the Three Colored Pills.
Turns out they also produced Soldier Pills.
Looking at Tsunade's beautiful youthful face, he asked curiously,
"Doesn't anyone try to analyze the ingredients and copy them?"
Ren was already familiar with Soldier Pills.
They could rapidly restore chakra.
Essentially compressed food rations—
though eating too many could cause indigestion.
But their effect was incredible.
During combat, when chakra ran low, they could be lifesaving.
Because of this, Soldier Pills had been widely used in many wars and had become standard military supplies.
Some special versions could even temporarily increase a ninja's chakra significantly.
"They're not exclusive to the Akimichi clan."
Tsunade explained.
"Clans like the Uchiha, Hyuga, Inuzuka, and Aburame also produce their own Soldier Pills."
"The formula for ordinary Soldier Pills isn't really a big secret in the ninja world. Their ingredients are relatively easy to analyze."
"However, the Akimichi clan's version tends to be more effective, which is why they're more popular."
"Of course, the Akimichi clan also has their secret medicine—the Three Colored Pills."
"They can instantly increase chakra and have astonishing effects."
"But they're not for sale."
"They're only used by members of the Akimichi clan."
"And they come with significant side effects."
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