Naruto: The Hidden Shadow Style

"Your mind seems pretty clear. That means the universal antidote must've done its job." As he spoke, Kōga injected a well-prepared dose of powerful antidote into Haseo's body. Soon after, his ashen face quickly regained color.

Don't think medical ninja always work this fast—normally, when a ninja is poisoned, there are only two possible outcomes… Either they recover immediately, or they never do.

"Now then…"

"I know," Haseo interrupted, regaining bodily sensation and immediately guessing the upcoming medical advice. "I'll need to drink plenty of hot water."

Kōga smiled. "Exactly, that's the basic idea. Eating and drinking more will speed up your metabolism, helping you recover faster."

Of course, it wasn't that simple. While Haseo was no longer in immediate danger, to fully eliminate the remaining toxins in his body, pharmacological treatment had to be combined with dietary therapy.

"Overall, you were lucky. The one you faced was only Menzuomen. He's Sunagakure's most traditional puppet master, but not necessarily their strongest. The poison from the latter would've been far harder to neutralize."

Haseo hesitated for a moment before realizing who Kōga was referring to—the ultimate puppet master in history, Chiyo. Although during the Second and Third Great Ninja Wars Chiyo had been thoroughly countered by Konoha's Princess Katsuyu, making them seem like contemporaries, factually speaking, Chiyo actually belonged to the same generation as the Third Hokage.

Even by the standards of her own time, Chiyo was the ultimate puppet master. Her toxin techniques might not yet have reached peak perfection as they would later, but were already nearly impossible for present-day Konoha to counteract—at this battlefield, she represented Sunagakure's deadliest weapon.

"No matter who I faced, at my current level it wouldn't have made much difference—it'd still be life hanging in the balance," said Haseo. Dying from poison was probably one of the most degrading ways a ninja could go. A single ploy from the enemy could end someone's life in silence. Compared to that, Haseo actually thought it better to fight with everything he had and be shredded by puppets. At least dying in battle felt more honorable.

"Anyway, stay here for a few days. No need to blame yourself. It's common for ninja to end up hospitalized after their first combat mission—some never even making it back from the battlefield alive." Whether these words from Kōga were meant as comfort or merely stating facts remained unclear.

But Haseo hadn't been blaming himself anyway. After all, facing a ninja like Menzuomen, what else could he have done? It wasn't until reminded by Kōga that he recalled the sequence: arriving at the front lines this morning, heading into battle at noon, and being hospitalized by nightfall—it was all way too 'efficient,' and fast.

After detoxification, Haseo was transferred to an ordinary ward. On the front lines, there was no comparison to the comforts of Konoha Hospital back home. This so-called ward was just a crowded tent filled with cots.

It was something Haseo hadn't anticipated—running into a familiar face here.

"Sakumo, why are you here? Were you injured too?" The "fellow patient" lying on the adjacent hospital bed was none other than Sakumo Hatake, someone Haseo hadn't seen in a while.

"Haseo? You've been transferred to the Front Line as well?"

"I'm fine. Just… mild malnutrition," replied Sakumo Hatake. At the sound of his name, he forced himself to lift his head slightly, surprise flickering across his face when he saw Haseo.

Sakumo Hatake was receiving intravenous fluids at the moment. His figure was unusually gaunt, and his voice sounded extremely weak.

"Malnutrition?" Haseo felt puzzled. Why would a ninja on the Front Line suffer from such an unusual condition? It should be rarer than being poisoned. Looking at Sakumo's appearance, he seemed less like someone suffering from malnutrition and more like someone starved almost beyond recognition.

"Mm," Sakumo nodded, then briefly explained his current situation.

Apparently, about a month ago, he had participated in an offensive operation against Sunagakure. However, amid the chaos of battle, he lost contact with Konoha's main forces. After the fighting ended, he missed the chance to retreat with the main unit, meaning he'd been stranded deep in enemy territory controlled by Sunagakure.

With enemy shinobi all around, he could only choose to hide and seek opportunities to find a path back to Konoha territory. Unfortunately, Sunagakure's defenses were too tight. That's how he ended up hiding for an entire month—until his supplies were eventually exhausted.

Plus, in hostile territory, he couldn't make any noise or cause disturbances trying to secure provisions. Hence, he fell into this state of "malnutrition." But one month later, he finally found an opportunity to return to Konoha, whereupon he reenacted a truly moving and comical version of a long-lost warrior returning home.

Honestly speaking, Sakumo Hatake's experience had been incredibly miserable. Hunger was among humanity's most torturous experiences. Anyone enduring such hardship deserved admiration for their willpower, sympathy for their plight, and respect for their endurance. And yet…

Haseo let out a snort of laughter that soon grew louder and louder.

Sorry, he just couldn't help it.

Once imagining how the mighty, serious, unsmiling, and eventually legendary "Legend of the White Fang of Konoha"—renowned throughout the Ninjutsu World—had nearly starved to death, and seeing him lying in bed now wearing such an innocent, pitiful look, the ridiculous and surreal nature of war became all too clear.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to laugh at you. I… I'm not really happy. My laughter is just a defense mechanism."

No matter how much Haseo denied it, secretly, after witnessing someone stronger than himself endure worse misfortune, his mood inexplicably improved.

This laughter annoyed Sakumo slightly but didn't anger him. Obviously, Haseo wasn't mocking him—it was more teasing than anything else. During wartime, making jokes amidst hardships served well as stress relief. Lightening a friend's burden with humor wasn't bad either… especially since Sakumo currently lacked the strength to do anything about it physically.

"What happened to you, Haseo?"

When Haseo finally stopped laughing, Hatake asked him, "And you? What happened to you?"

"Me? I'd just arrived at the Front Line today when I was poisoned—almost immediately. I almost ended up with a morning on the battlefield and a night in the crematorium." As he spoke, Haseo slightly raised his injured arm to show it off.

After that sentence, a long silence fell between them. Their experiences were merely tiny, insignificant fragments of the war.

Haseo had never really liked war—but now he realized he might not actually hate it either. It was such an odd feeling. Even though he nearly died on the battlefield, his final judgment was "not dislike." Only when seated at a gambling table could a gambler truly understand another gambler's mindset.

Deep inside himself, Haseo harbored a certain indifference toward life.

Soon afterward, Chichio, Nara Nagisa, and Renjiro arrived at Haseo's hospital ward after retreating from battle.

"Hey, Haseo, are you okay?" Nara asked.

"Mm, the poison's already been removed," Haseo assured them first, then turned to Chichio. "Thank you, Chichio. For both the earlier warning and getting me back in time."

In some ways, Chichio had played a crucial role during their brief skirmish. Upon hearing Haseo's gratitude, she simply gave a slight nod without saying much.

"My body's fine—I just need to stay here for a few more days. In a way, it's good news—for everyone. At least you all can get a little break." Haseo remarked, although once again making an ill-timed joke.

Without him around, naturally, their squad couldn't keep running—unless HQ was ready to officially call it quits on the team.

"Oh, right—how's the battle going? Has Menzuomen been eliminated yet?" Haseo continued asking.

"We hadn't received any news by the time we withdrew," Nara replied.

"...I see."

Truthfully, everyone understood what those words really meant—the lack of information probably meant Menzuomen had successfully escaped, meaning the Jonin team's mission had failed.

P.S.

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A noble writer indeed!

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