"How is he?" Izuna asked, his eyes glued to his subordinate.
Shū ignored him completely and turned to Kakashi-sama instead. "Kakashi-sensei, this guy's injury is way beyond any medical skills I have."
Kakashi winced behind her mask as she watched Izuna's shoulders drop in defeat.
"If I pull out the kunai, Shigure is going to bleed to death…" Izuna muttered, defeated.
Kakashi closed her eyes for a moment, rubbing at her neck awkwardly before sighing and crouching beside him to take a closer look at the wound.
The kunai was buried deep in his side, just below the ribs. Blood had soaked through his clothes, and from the way he was breathing, he had already lost a lot of blood.
"Maa…" Kakashi started slowly. "I know a technique I can use to close the wound and stop the bleeding a little, but…"
Izuna turned to her with wide eyes. "You know medical ninjutsu?"
Yes.
Kakashi had been assigned to two different teams with outstanding medical kunoichis. Rin, in particular, had once tried to teach Kakashi to quickly mend his own wounds so he wouldn't be helpless without her.
It had only been after her death that Kakashi had given up on the idea.
"I'm not a medical ninja." Kakashi drew a line before Izuna could get his hopes up. "I understand the theory of medical ninjutsu, so I can try to heal him, but…"
"I can't promise that it would work. I can only try."
Try to spare this young man the pain of losing any more of his people.
"Please! I beg you!" Izuna bowed his head to her. "Trying and failing is better than just letting him die!"
Kakashi softened at seeing how he was willing to bow his head to a stranger just to give his comrade a chance.
She knew shinobi who wouldn't have even bothered.
With a huff, Kakashi reached out and ruffled Izuna's hair. "No need to bow, little Uchiha-kun. If you wanted my help, you can just ask normally."
Izuna blinked at her, clearly caught off guard by the kind gesture. It had been such a long time since anyone had patted his head like this. Not since he was a child. And it had only ever been Madara who did it. New chapters come out on novelping(.)com first.
Looking at her smiling face, Izuna couldn't help but feel like he was being treated like a younger brother.
Kakashi turned her attention back to Shigure with a frown. "Shū-kun."
Shū, who had been busying himself by looking at the moon this entire time so he wouldn't have to be part of this awkward conversation, jumped at being called. "Yes, sensei?"
"Get me a clean cloth, and boil some water."
"How am I supposed to make a fire?" They didn't have any flint. It hadn't crossed Shū's mind because he had assumed they would be spending the night at the village today.
Desperate to make himself useful, Izuna spoke up. "I will help with that."
Shū nodded, and the two of them immediately got to work.
"Hold him still," Kakashi ordered.
Izuna instantly moved beside Shigure and did as asked. Soon enough, they pulled out the weapon and cleaned the wound.
Carefully, chakra began gathering at Kakashi's fingertips. It was a smooth, practiced flow, the work of someone who had spent years perfecting their chakra control.
Kakashi had seen Rin, Sakura, and even Tsunade-sama use this technique enough times to know exactly how to use it.
But there was one problem with the mystical palm.
She must be careful to use only as much chakra as the wound requires. If too much chakra is sent into the body, it can disrupt the body's circulation, and the outcome will not be fun for anyone.
Her chakra spread gradually through the damaged tissue.
Medical ninjutsu wasn't something she could afford to be reckless with, especially since she wasn't a medical ninja herself.
Rin had always warned her that healing wasn't simply pouring chakra into an injury.
It required precision.
Izuna's eyes widened. He had never seen medical ninjutsu before. Unlike the Senju, the Uchiha clan had never been proficient at training healers. So getting the chance to see something like this up close was amazing.
Kakashi let out a deep sigh as she pulled her hand away to admire the work. The wound wasn't fully closed, but the bleeding had stopped, and the man was no longer in critical condition.
"Maa. That should keep him alive for now." Kakashi turned to Shū, about to speak, but paused when she saw him staring with such open interest.
"What kind of technique was that?"
"I'm just accelerating the body's natural healing process, but I have to admit that my work is pretty rough."
"Can you teach it to me?" He asked hesitantly.
Ah.
We might have a little healer in the making.
"We will have to talk about it later. For now, can you bandage him up, Shū-kun?"
Izuna's shoulders sagged in relief, and for several seconds he said nothing as the two of them talked. He was going to live…
Shigure was going to live!
Then he suddenly grabbed Kakashi's hand with both of his. "Thank you!" Izuna lowered his head. "Thank you, Kakashi-san!"
Kakashi stared at the top of his head and wondered how such a polite young man could possibly be related to Sasuke?
Unable to resist, Kakashi gave his head another pat. "Maa, I told you already. You don't need to bow every time I help you."
Izuna flushed as he lifted his head to see Kakashi looking fondly at him. "I was expressing my gratitude."
No wonder the other Hatake called Kakashi sensei. Kakashi seemed like a kind mentor. He could only think Kakashi would also make a great older sister.
"We should leave this place properly, just in case more people are pursuing you." Kakashi stood up. "You can ride with us for a while if you want."
"Oh, thank you for the kind offer, but I actually shouldn't leave this area," Izuna said apologetically.
Kakashi tilted her head in confusion. "Why is that?"
Izuna smiled up at Kakashi. "My older brother should be arriving any moment now."
"Eh?!"