"Does anyone else present have any objections or suggestions? If not, then this eting can be concluded."
After giving his final summary, the Third Hokage posed this question to the room.
Hoshiyomi could clearly sense Tsunade stiffen slightly beside him. A look of hesitation flickered across her face. Noticing her expression, Hoshiyomi gently took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.
Tsunade turned and looked at him with mild confusion. Hoshiyomi gave her a small smile, then stood up while still holding her hand.
"Lord Third, we have sothing we'd like to say."
Hiruzen Sarutobi let out a small sigh when he saw the fire in Tsunade's eyes—he already had a feeling this would be a headache—but still gestured for them to go ahead. Tsunade gave Hoshiyomi a grateful look, took a deep breath, and spoke loudly and clearly:
"As the head of the battlefield dical corps during the last war, I witnessed with my own eyes how many comrades who could have been saved died needlessly—so due to excessive blood loss, others simply because we didn't have enough dical personnel on hand.
If every standard four-man squad deployed to the frontlines were equipped with a trained dical-nin, our survival rate and mission success rate on the battlefield would dramatically improve.
That's why I believe it's imperative that we imdiately begin developing an institution capable of mass-training dical-nin for combat situations."
The Third Hokage rubbed his temples wearily.
"What you say makes perfect sense. But the problem right now is that our village has a very low general proficiency in dical ninjutsu. Expanding it across the board will take considerable ti and effort.
Speeding up that process would require a large amount of funding. And in our current situation—mired deep in war—Konoha simply doesn't have the resources to spare for sothing on that scale.
What do the rest of you think?"
The gathered shinobi glanced at one another, exchanging silent looks. They all understood how crucial dical-nin could be in key monts—but the funding issue was a real one. It wasn't sothing that could be glossed over.
If too much budget were diverted to the dical division, leaving the rest of the war effort underfunded, the consequences could be disastrous. No one present wanted to be responsible for that kind of failure.
Seeing both the Hokage and the elite jōnin lapse into silence, Tsunade began to grit her teeth. Her frustration was written all over her face—she was just short of losing her temper.
Hoshiyomi gently patted her hand again, signaling her to stay calm. Then he stepped forward and spoke:
"Lord Hokage, we're not suggesting that a fully developed dical system be built imdiately, especially not under warti conditions.
Sothing that elaborate can't be built overnight. But we can take small, actionable steps starting now.
I propose that, starting this year, we begin testing the dical-nin potential of children in the fourth year and above at the Ninja Academy. Identify those with talent early on.
Those who show promise can be transferred directly to Konoha Hospital and enrolled in a special dical training course. Our goal would be to produce a usable group of dical-nin within two years.
Additionally, we can test genin currently stationed on the frontlines. Their effectiveness in combat is already limited, so it would be worthwhile to assess whether any of them have the potential to beco dical-nin.
If any do, we can assign them to Tsunade for accelerated training. Even if they only learn basic healing techniques, they could handle superficial injuries and alleviate the load on the main dical corps. What does everyone think?"
At these words, the eyes of those present lit up. Of course—while high-level dical-nin were difficult to train, teaching basic dical ninjutsu to genin wasn't nearly as demanding. It was effective, affordable, and practical.
The results might not be perfect, but sotis just knowing how to clean a wound and stop bleeding could an the difference between life and death.
This ti, voices of support began to rise. Dan was the first to speak up, followed by Orochimaru and Shinku, who stood by Tsunade. More and more jōnin voiced their agreent, as long as the funding was used wisely.
The Third Hokage finally nodded, signaling his approval. He agreed to request additional funds from the Fire Daimyō specifically for training entry-level dical-nin. As for a full-fledged dical system, that would have to wait for a more suitable ti.
With that proposal accepted, the eting officially ca to a close. Everyone returned to their own assignnts—those staying behind prepared for upcoming missions, and those heading to the front packed their bags and took the next two days to rest before the large-scale deploynt.
Tsunade was in high spirits as they left the conference hall. In truth, she had never expected to get approval for a full dical corps all at once. Hoshiyomi's tily intervention had brought the proposal down to a realistic, achievable level that perfectly aligned with her goals. Naturally, she was thrilled.
As the four of them stepped outside, Tsunade, still riding her high, looked around, saw that no one was nearby, and boldly stood on tiptoe to kiss Hoshiyomi on the cheek.
Behind them, Orochimaru and Shinku both averted their eyes, silently declaring: We're not watching this lovey-dovey nonsense.
Dan, who had followed a short distance behind, felt a brief pang in his heart at the sight—but his feelings toward Tsunade had never gone beyond superficial admiration. After learning of her relationship with Hoshiyomi, he had long since let go of any lingering thoughts.
After a brief mont to collect himself, he strode up to greet the couple.
"I fully support your proposal," he said warmly. "If it helps raise survival rates on the battlefield, then I'm sincerely glad for it."
Tsunade was still clinging to Hoshiyomi. Hearing what Dan said, she politely returned the complint:
"Thank you. Honestly, it's thanks to everyone's support that the plan got approved at all."
Dan hesitated slightly before saying:
"To tell you the truth... my younger sister died a year ago during an enemy village's surprise attack. She couldn't receive dical treatnt in ti. She had just given birth when it happened..."
Tsunade's expression softened with sympathy. She looked at Dan with gentle sorrow.
"I'm very sorry to hear that..."
Hoshiyomi, however, was intrigued by the story. Without thinking, he asked:
"Then what happened to your niece?"
Dan's tone remained steady, showing no sign of being overwheld by emotion. He even smiled—a calm, gentle expression reminiscent of Minato's.
"She's had a hard life. Lost both her parents early on. I've been raising her myself. I nad her Shizune. Actually, if possible, I'd love to bring her to Tsunade-senpai soday, to see if she has any aptitude for dical ninjutsu."
Tsunade could sense that Dan truly supported the plan she and Hoshiyomi had proposed, and she responded with excitent:
"Absolutely. If she has talent, I'd be more than happy to take her on as a student. Hoshiyomi already has three disciples—it's starting to make a little jealous."
Dan laughed lightly at her words. Glancing at the sky, he politely excused himself:
"That would be wonderful. It's getting late—I should get back to take care of her. You two take care. And... you really do make a perfect couple."
Tsunade bead even more brightly at that. On the way back, she said to Hoshiyomi:
"That Dan guy is actually kind of nice. What do you say, maybe take him in as a subordinate soday?"
Hoshiyomi gave her a strange little smile and leaned down to kiss her.
"I think it's worth considering."
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