章節 79: Fractured Soul

The damage Mikoto endured was much more severe than I initially estimated. I even had to cultivate a giant left lung gigai from her cells to operate on her and restore her to normalcy.

And when she regained consciousness months later… her mind wasn't right.

She became something akin to those hospital patients who sit on the garden bench, calmly gazing at the flowers with an absent look.

No aggressive reactions or hysterical shouts, just an unsettling lack of response to the world and people, except for eating or using the bathroom with some assistance.

Although her children survived, one had to undergo a great trauma at a young age, and the other was the traitor who murdered the entire clan, not sparing even the newborns. Not to mention the fact that her husband wanted her to die with him despite her not having that intention.

What was even more concerning was that Nemu brought bad news, discovering that the damage from the entire event had hit Mikoto all at once with such force that her soul was wounded.

A small fracture of the soul, of all things she could endure.

With all the knowledge I gained, I know how serious this kind of damage is. I even looked back and wondered if it wouldn't have been better to let her stay dead.

People usually have a thought process to digest facts, even the most unpleasant and horrible ones. But whether it was the understanding of her son decisively acting to exterminate all her relatives, including "killing" her with his own hands, or her husband betraying her trust by controlling her, she had to comprehend everything at once in that short instant between the illusion breaking and dying.

To call that blow emotionally devastating would be an understatement.

That she didn't go insane or become a drooling vegetable was already an extremely surprising and positive outcome.

If I hadn't told her that Sasuke was alive and well, she might not even have tried to eat. Right now, she doesn't even have her own thoughts; it's more her motherly instincts fighting to recover and return to the son who desperately needs her.

She's hanging by an incredibly thin thread that could break at any moment.

When Ameyuri and the others learned about the Uchiha clan massacre, along with the information implicating the higher-ups and how everything had been planned to reach this alley for years, their reactions were one of disbelief.

The Third Hokage and his allies basically crippled the strength of their village for selfish reasons, justifying the extermination of a founding clan with a simple coup attempt. Even the Second Hokage, who had a great grudge against the Uchiha clan, only made sure to restrain them and use them for the village's greater benefit.

Tsunade couldn't even stand and had to be held by Shizune when she realized how low and corrupt Sarutobi had become to go to such extremes, collaborating with Danzo in the darkness, and no one dared to protest.

Did he still dare to proclaim about his grandfather's Will of Fire?

Senju and Uchiha, the two clans that founded the village of Konoha, were exterminated during the long reign of the Third Hokage!

If there was even a hint of lingering feelings in his heart toward Konoha and its people, I can say that I saw them die through Tsunade's eyes.

Fortunately, it's in moments like this that children like Fu, Haku, or Karin prove to be a great emotional support with their cheerful and innocent attitudes.

Mikoto had a small smile on her face every time I, Fu, and Haku spent time with her, despite still having a vacant gaze and a lack of reaction.

As for Tsunade, she had to spend a few days drinking my special cider and dragged almost all the adults to join her in her frenzy to vent. She didn't use her chakra to resist the effects of alcohol and revealed an extremely vulnerable side of herself that seemed to have been repressed since she left her home in Konoha.

Fortunately for her and her pride, only Ameyuri and I resisted the drink enough to be conscious when she reached that breaking point. Ameyuri didn't even give her a dirty look when Tsunade leaned her head against my abdomen and started crying her eyes out for minutes before calming down and falling asleep in the same position.

We made everyone comfortable and covered, after which I went to change my pants since they were completely ruined and uncomfortable, but Ameyuri had a different idea, and in the end, I didn't even need those spare pants until the next morning.

...Three more years passed...

Haku, Kimimaro, Karin, Maki, and Anko have made great progress in their ninja skills under everyone's guidance, while Fu also practiced very hard not to fall behind. Under my advice and explanations, she befriended Chomei and is on her way to becoming a perfect jinchuriki, but she still needs more practice.

I completed the development of the Devil Fruits with great pride and handed several of them for them to eat, giving them time to practice and familiarize themselves with the fruits before the Chunin exams.

Yes, I intend to send a team to participate and see how they manage to develop.

I already had a face-to-face meeting with Sarutobi as the village's Kage and agreed to my participation, which posed no problem since I would only send one team, and I imagine they wouldn't be much in his grand scheme.

Specifically, it will be formed by Haku, Kimimaro, and Karin.

I could send another team with Anko, Maki, and Nemu, but I'm quite sure Konoha would do some dishonest things or manipulations, so even if they don't participate in the exam, we will all go as spectators without hiding anyone's identity. Even Mikoto and Fu will join the fun; I'm sure a change of scenery will do them good.

And if Sarutobi has something to say... he can tell me to my face after the Chunin exams.

Oh, he can't? What a pity...

The written part won't be a problem thanks to the combined teachings of Mariko, Shizune, and Pakura; they have a fairly solid knowledge, especially considering that I also added modern knowledge to their training.

As for the will and combat part... they've been training with Tsunade and frequently going "hunting" with Ameyuri; I'm sure I don't need to say more.

Their strength and ability are undoubtedly more than genin, and they still have additional time to grow. After the exams, everyone will recognize our village.

I still haven't achieved anything really significant with the chakra metal symbiotes, so I'm considering changing the focus and making living weapons like Samehada or something similar to Zanpakuto.

I also had a serious talk with Tsunade about her dream of having the Wood Element.

It could be said that after these years, she is completely happy, and the trust between us is beyond doubt due to treating her like family, so I gave her two options. One would be to study her lineage to see if there is a solution, and the other would be to eat a Devil Fruit.

To my surprise, she was more inclined towards the option of the Devil Fruit since, according to her, she had already studied her blood for a long time without results, and by now, she was convinced that she couldn't use her grandfather's ability.

I offered her the equivalent of the Mosa Mosa fruit, which would allow her to accelerate the growth of plants and control them. On the other hand, if she gives me more time, I could try to turn it into a Mori Mori fruit, which is more powerful but much more complex to achieve, and I don't have absolute confidence in it.

Tsunade considered it for several days before deciding to take the current Mosa Mosa fruit. She believed that when she familiarized herself with it, she could probably use some ideas to alter her abilities and make them more similar to her grandfather's.

Perhaps it wasn't the Wood Release of the Senju clan, but she was happy enough to achieve something similar.

She also reluctantly admitted that she preferred not to bet on a remote possibility this time, leaving Shizune, who was beside her, completely astonished.

And so, a few more years passed until the start of the canon...

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Damn, it took me forever to get to this point. Initially I only wanted to do a dozen chapters before getting here, but the ideas came and... anyway, I'll speed up a little.

And yes, I could use Hashirama's cells to awaken Tsunade's bloodline, but EVERYONE would do exactly that. So different method, similar results.