More than just a medic [Tutor]

[Moyamaru]

It had been a few hours since the two would have left the village gates, Hotoke a med-nin sent out due to request and a young boy recently assigned under him. The pair would not have had the time to get to know one another as the time spent moving through the countryside was spent in silence. Without a doubt he was certain the boy would harbor some feelings about how his tutelage was starting off, but those feelings were something not on his concern radar. As they walk Hotoke was busy reading from a file, taking time to analyze every word, sentence, paragraph and page. Occasionally he would glance over his shoulder to ensure the boy was still alive and well, or at least not slacking in being able to keep up the pace. Being young and inexperienced he was certain the boy wasn't aware of the length of time it would take to reach their destination far away from the hidden village. With their requested appearance not being life threatening there was no point in exhausting themselves running through the tree canopy or the forest itself. As more time passed and the sun rested high in the sky, he would stop and turn to the boy..

"We'll take a break here. A night shaded spot to gather ourselves before heading out once more.."

After assembling seating on two stones, Hotoke rationed out proportionate food for the both of them. While they may have been on a more humanitarian assignment, they were still shinobi of the leaf and as such carried several soldier pills, food pills, water and varied snacks to keep stamina up in the field. Having naturally put up the file in order to eat, he would bite into a food pill crunching it in it's entirety. "Why are you here, boy?" His first real conversation with his pupil and it was a basic but cryptic question obviously designed to probe the questioned person's motives. While it may have been a typical question it was one that he had found was easiest to break the ice.

Besides,, this boy just may be worth something......

354 / 1500 WC

 

[Hitsugaya Ryoku]

How long had they been walking? The boredom was leaving Ryoku’s mind numb. It felt impossible to keep coming up with thoughts to occupy his head. His imagination was running dry and his mind had fallen blank. He became painfully aware of the tick of every second that had passed, the crunch of every step they had taken, and the tweet of every bird in the forest. It was probably necessary that a shinobi remain this aware of their surroundings at all times, but it was just so boring to. Ryoku longed for the time on the battlefield. The worst part was that he had no clue how much longer they had left. Luckily, his instructor had decided to take a break where they were. Or maybe not so lucky. If they were taking a break, that must have meant that there was much more travelling left to be done.

No matter.

Ryoku sat down on the stone opposite his teacher and took a swig of water before responding to the question asked of him. Why was he here?

“Hmm.. Well,” he said, pausing for a second to consider the answer to the question. He held his water with one hand, rubbed his chin with the other, and looked upwards while he pondered. “If you mean out here in the middle of the woods with you, Asuka-sama told me I had to learn more about the Medical side of Ninjutsu before I would be allowed to take my Chuunin exam.” It was true. He had taken one class on Medical Ninjutsu in the academy, but he might as well have been asleep because he didn’t remember anything from it. That class was... uninspiring.

“If you mean why am I here in general, as a shinobi, the answer to that isn’t any more complex. I just want to be strong and fight strong ninja,” he said, shifting his gaze slightly downward towards the ground. “Once I pass my Chuunin Exams, I will be able to take on harder missions and get stronger as a result. Plus it will be fun,” he said with a slightly goofy chuckle. Ryoku wasn’t embarrassed or ashamed of his lack of righteous reason for becoming a shinobi. Nor was he sorry. He was just honest. He was doing this for fun.

WC: 385/385

 

[Moyamaru]

He listened, between gulps of water from the canteen like container which he chose to carry with him. The kid had made this time a lot easier though through his communication in that he wasn't explicitly interested in becoming a medical shinobi. This meant he could skip the more hard lined conversation that would of been in store and instead supplement that conversation with typical shinobi banter. Rubbing his sleeve against his lips, flicking away any more moisture from the water an exhausted exhale would flow from his mouth. Still, it was his job to guide this kid towards his goal or dream, however one best saw fit to describe their drive. Crunching up another pill between his teeth and chewing, Hotoke ended up crossing both arms over his chest as if pondering the kid's words.

"There is nothing I can teach you about medical ninjutsu outside of a rather basic and mundane jutsu which is only good for minor scrapes and injuries. Had you of been a candidate for medic in training there would have been a more straightforward conversation but...."

Another pill would be popped between his lips followed promptly with a swig of water. His gaze resting back on the boy as he said, "Since you are focused more on main branch chuunin-hood then I suppose even knowing that much would be helpful. Youth make a lot of mistakes in the field, some learn from them and others never get the chance to, many perils are on your horizon." Standing off his stone perch, he'd look around the rock before finding what he sought; a simple stick. Crack! Just like that he had two portions of the same stick and walked before the kid with both halves. Squatting, he'd hold the half's upside down so that the end's where they were separated from one another was sticking up.

"We medical shinobi are trained to mold our chakra with the utmost of control. Our jutsu are not designed normally to harm but to maintain life including being able to handle all types of wounds. A deep gash in the field can be deadly in the long run but being able to mend the wound cell by cell, is the difference between bleeding out or losing an arm to dying." Hotoke had spoke while demonstrating how the stick could be put back together again just as new, as long as the portions where it was split in two matched up without fault. It was one of the truths of being a medic, that they could not afford mistakes or wayward mental lapses to distract them. He then sat there wondering just how much this child knew in general, pursuing jutsu knowledge was not a bad thing by far but to not be instructed to seek the principles? That was just a tragedy in of it's own right.

So what else did Lady Asuka tell you? Did she inform you on what you should be specifically targeting, or is a general philosophical course worth it more?</B><i></i>

<B>857 / 1500

 

[Hitsugaya Ryoku]

As his instructor responded to the answer given to him, Ryoku pulled out one of the food pills that was provided to him. He looked at it curiously. His teacher seemed to have no problem using these as sustenance, but Ryoku had never tried one. It was definitely an interesting concept. A small pill containing enough of the nutritional value of a meal to allow a shinobi to continue his or her mission. Ryoku placed the pill in his mouth, still listening to every word his instructor said to him, and he bit down on it, crushing the pill between his teeth. He wasn’t fond of the taste and the unfulfilling nature of it, but being a ninja wasn’t all Feasts of Kings and Last Suppers. Sometimes it was just efficiency and survival.

As Ryoku watched the stick be broken and mended, he had to admit to himself that he was impressed. Maybe this was what the first lesson was missing. Application. That first teacher probably just rambled about the human body and its healing process or something. It was hard to remember truthfully. What he did know was that this Medic in front of him was very precise. The steady hand, the chakra control, and the flawless matching of the broken sides. All while he was explaining the intricacies of medical ninjutsu.

“Nice..” he said softly before refocusing his attention to answer the question asked of him. “Umm.. The importance of the field medic and medical ninjutsu in general, as well as some basic application, I think. You know, stuff I’m supposed to know from the academy,” he said with a sigh, a sign of the frustration caused by the fact that he was suffering now from his inability to pay attention so long ago. “But I’m no academy student! I’m sure we can make this more interesting!”

WC: 309/694

 

[Moyamaru]

"More interesting huh...", was the words lightly spoken from between his lips as his eyes tracked the skyline through the forest canopy. He was focused on the very small areas between the leaves where light managed to penetrate, casting a spectrum of light onto the ground floor. There was some understanding of what the boy could have meant, after all the Academy was mostly instruction and practice of the core basics for all their skills. Very few students would of been exposed to more advanced methodology unless they were either exceptionally gifted or from a shinobi family. Though it was just not application he was seeking but understanding as well, understanding that he could easily give just a question of how. "Make no mistake, I do not wish to give you the impression that what the medical branch does is exciting or fun, majority of your time spent as a medical shinobi is filled with exhausting tasks. We are not flashy and our job is not filled with adrenaline rushed engagements, we heal and mend the foundation of the village. Even those of us who are considered combat response or combat medics as you put it, have a sole role to not only respond to assistance requests but to do so in a capacity where you must not become a liability."

He would begin to unfasten the typical medical coat worn by medical branch shinobi, the man's chest being covered extensively in a patchwork of scar tissue. Just like his face had been, it was impressionable that his body was simply like a rag doll but exactly why it was like that would be something left unanswered for now. Whether due to inexperience in general or youth, the young boy would not be able to perceive the next movement Hotoke made as a sudden incision was made across his chest. What the boy did see was the almost shoulder to shoulder line become red for a second before blood ran down Hotoke's chest. In his palm, a medical kunai with a blade just as sharp and precise as a surgical scalpel that had a blade coated in crimson. Whether the boy was attentive at this point in what just happened to his teacher or in shock, Hotoke's demeanor simply wouldn't match the type of wound he had inflicted upon himself. There was no hint of pain from him neither a change in his facial expression as he strangely continued talking as if nothing had happened...

"You're out in the field as a member of a typical four man cell and as part of the mission your group pairs off. Unfortunately for your pairing you become targets in which your team member suffers a deep laceration across his or her chest. Lucky enough you manage to get both yourself and the injured person away from the combat zone to a place of relative safety but now you have a problem. Not only is there an unconfirmed amount of hostiles in the area, but you are alone with a severely injured comrade. Your job as a medic is that your comrade's life and health is in your hands. The situation is deadly and there are a lot of unknown variables swirling around such as if your location is actually safe, how many enemies may be out there, your own life may be at stake....your comrade is now a liability."

His gaze set on the boy with an intense glare about his pupils as it was evident what he was speaking was something of a reality for them as shinobi. "Decisions, Decisions, Decisions...you're a medical shinobi in a hostile environment with a comrade who's health is fading by the second and your own life may be equally as in danger. Yet, your own life interestingly doesn't matter to you because there is a such thing as responsibility and duty..." He spoke as the wound inflicted upon himself would suddenly start emitting something akin to steam while the skin began to pull back together slowly.

"Field medics, we're trained to value others lives more than our own while at the same time being capable of keeping ourselves from being a liability to our teams. Self-sustaining medical jutsu can be used on yourself well in advance of entering a dangerous area...so that should it be required, we can ignore our personal health and focus solely on our job."

From his wound, not only had steam risen as the skin superficially healed itself as markings extended out from his chest just like a seal. "A medical sealing jutsu but chakra is not the answer. Everything I know was not gained through jutsu or chakra learning as there are some things that require actual study to understand. Medical ninjutsu is just a temporary fix in many cases so a lot of our training is spent doing the very thing you find uninteresting. Studying, learning in a classroom setting...reading medical texts....not everything is interesting about our job.</B><i></i>, Hotoke spoke as his wound healed over....

"I'll teach you a basic medical ninjutsu but it is not something that can be learned quickly, you'd actually have to put some work into it....understand?"<i></i>

<B>1714 / 1500

 

[Hitsugaya Ryoku]

This lesson definitely did become more interesting as requested when the tutor removed his shirt, revealing that the multitude of scars that were on visible parts of his body stretched even further than Ryoku imagined, and began oozing blood. A large cut had appeared on his chest, but what caused it. It didn’t seem like they were under attack, since his teacher didn’t even react to the injury.

It was then that Ryoku noticed the blade that his teacher was holding in his hand. Had he really moved quickly enough for Ryoku to not have immediately known that he injured himself? Ryoku had never imagined that the Medical Branch would have such skilled shinobi. And that level of skill in someone who spends a majority of their time in either in a hospital or the back lines of combat. But it would make sense for a combat medic to become skilled enough to be able to keep up with Journeyman ninja during high ranking missions. In fact, it was probably nothing more than a stereotype that Medics were relatively useless in combat outside of support. There were probably silly stereotypes about the Main Branch too, but Ryoku didn’t care to bother himself with that. This guy’s gash was sealing itself for Pete’s sake. That has to be extremely useful in combat.

Besides that, it actually seemed more stressful than Ryoku thought to be a medic. As it was, he only had to worry about the mission and the enemy in front of him, but the medics have a lot more to worry about. Not only did they have to be skilled at medical ninjutsu, they also had to stay educated on relevant topics pertaining to medicine. They had to read, learn, and research all the time. On top of that, they needed enough combat skill to remain healthy enough in battle to keep their squad mates healthy. How do they manage their time? Ryoku thought he was busy with training and missions, but just imagining a day as a medic was exhausting.

And boring.

It may be tough, but Hotoke admit it himself. It isn’t fun or exciting. The rush of combat also seemed like it would be less rewarding from the back lines. Though, it would be beneficial to know a healing jutsu to help keep the stress off of the medic.

“We’ll see about that!” Ryoku said, springing to his feet and placing his provisions on the ground and looking around the area. “I have excellent chakra control!” He found another stick, similar in size and shape to the one his instructor had found. He walked back over to his rock and took a seat on it. For several seconds he examined the stick, attempting to take in every detail of it. Then he snapped it in half.

This is where it was to get tricky. He examined the break pattern on both ends of the stick and slowly tried to connect the two sides as precisely as possible. Attempting to mimic his teacher as closely as possible, he channeled his chakra into it. Unsurprisingly nothing was happening. This was the first time he had ever even attempted to cast a medical jutsu. “Umm.. mayday mayday. Stick still broken.”

WC: 541/1235