Chương 60: The Bloodline Project and Might Guy

By the time Zhen returned with his captive in tow, the cacophony of battle had faded into a heavy silence. The artificial lake had receded, leaving behind a churned, muddy morass. While most Water Style masters lacked the raw chakra to conjure such volumes from thin air, they excelled at manipulating local sources. This battlefield was no exception—a testament to resourcefulness over brute force. The Konoha shinobi had moved to a drier patch of earth, catchings their breath while a pile of five corpses lay nearby.

In the cold calculus of the Great War, mercy was a rare currency. Large-scale surrenders occurred when hundreds were backed into a corner, but in small skirmishes like this, ninjas seldom left survivors. Death was the standard; "wounded in action" was often an unattainable luxury. Yunmi Gekko looked up as Zhen tossed his prisoner onto the mud.

"Another live one, Zhen?"

"Barely. He's a member of the Yuki clan—a confirmed Ice Release user. I figured he's worth more to Intel than he is to the crows." Curiosity piqued, the others cast wary glances at the beautiful prisoner. A Kekkei Genkai user, especially one of the Ice Release variety, was a rare find on this front. They looked for a moment, then quickly averted their eyes, as if staring too long might somehow compromise their devotion to the Will of Fire. Uzuki Yugao leaned in, a mischievous glint in her eye.

"You're cold-blooded, Zhen. She's so pretty—don't you have a shred of gallantry for such a delicate flower?" Zhen gave her a look of pure, deadpan judgment.

"That's a man."

"Eh?" Yugao froze, her spirit effectively crushed. She retreated to a corner of the clearing to poke the mud with a kunai, muttering about the unfairness of a world where men possessed more refined beauty than she did. After that, no one dared to look at the prisoner again.

"Aha, well!" Yunmi broke the awkward silence, pointing to one of the corpses.

"We actually found another potential bloodline here. If I'm not mistaken, his attire marks him as a member of the Kaguya clan. Unfortunately, he never manifested the Shikotsumyaku during the fight. Just a mundane warrior from a prestigious house." Zhen hummed in acknowledgment. The man did indeed resemble Kimimaro in dress, but without the Macabre Bone Pulse, he was just another body. To Zhen, bloodlines were categorized into two types: biological anomalies like the Sharingan or Byakugan, and elemental fusions.

He had no desire to pluck eyes or graft cells—that was Orochimaru's brand of madness. But elemental fusions? That was a puzzle he was uniquely equipped to solve. With his natural affinities for Wind, Water, and Earth, he had already begun to reverse-engineer the frequency of Ice Release during his fight with the Yuki "trap." Wood Release would be next on the list. He wasn't aiming to become a human artillery battery; he sought the fundamental truth behind the fusion of nature's laws.

And perhaps, a bit of convenience—Ice Release was the ultimate summer luxury, after all. This novel's true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. Zhen pushed his theoretical research to the back of his mind and opened his medical kit. He began treating the wounded, focusing primarily on Might Guy and his team. The fact that they had wiped out a Mist squad without fatalities was due partly to their numbers and partly to the declining quality of the Mist's ranks.

The Land of Water was bleeding out, suffering from internal purges and constant battering by the Leaf. Their top-tier specialists were elsewhere, leaving the border harassment to the expendable. Genma and Ebisu had escaped with minor scrapes, but Guy was a patchwork of lacerations. As a pure Taijutsu specialist, he had been forced to trade blood for every inch of ground against a Kaguya swordsman. Zhen began the rhythmic flow of the Palm Sage Jutsu, the emerald glow of chakra sealing the deep cuts.

"Guy-senpai, fighting barehanded against blades is a fool's errand. You're at a massive disadvantage." Guy flashed a blindingly white grin, his teeth practically glinting in the forest light.

"This is how I burn with youth! Every drop of blood is a testament to my effort!"

"Perhaps," Zhen countered, his voice professional.

"But a weapon would let you burn longer. You don't want to overdraw your life's account through excessive scarring and permanent tissue damage. Think of the future."

"You have a point," Guy said, actually pausing to reflect. He thought of the nunchaku he used for reaction training at home.

"I know just the thing. Thank you for the reminder, Zhen! I shall protect my body so I may sweat for youth even longer!"

"As a medic, I'd also suggest you focus on your nutrition and medicinal tonics. Without proper maintenance, you'll never surpass Dai-senpai." Guy's expression shifted, becoming uncharacteristically solemn.

"You knew my father?"

"I saw him in the village occasionally, but I really knew him from the hospital. My mother was quite close with him."

"Your mother is...?"

"Higashino Hui. My name is Higashino Zhen." Guy sat in silence for a long moment, scouring his memory until a spark of recognition took hold.

"Ah! Nurse Hui! My father spoke of her often. He said that without the kindness of the hospital staff who looked after his old injuries, his body would have broken years ago. So, you are her son... no wonder your medical ninjutsu is so remarkable." Guy tried to stand to offer a formal bow, but Zhen pressed him back down.

"We are comrades of the Leaf; it's only right. I examined your father's charts back then; compared to him, your body is in excellent shape. You're young, and you don't have the years of accumulated trauma he endured. Keep it that way, especially once you hit your prime."

"Zhen, I hear you loud and clear!" Guy beamed again, his signature "Nice Guy" pose returning in full force. Might Dai had been a pariah, an "Eternal Genin" with no resources, forced to sacrifice his health for his son's future. But Guy was a rising star, a Chunin with a steady income. With the right maintenance, he could mitigate the toll of the first seven gates. As for the Eighth Gate—the Gate of Death—no amount of nutrition could cheat that final price. That was a flame that consumed the wick entirely.