From Student to Apprentice

The next day, the sun rose as usual.

Asuka was, as always, awakened by the overly fat body of the orange cat.

Noticing that breathing was a bit difficult, he opened his eyes, moved the cat from his chest to the other side of the pillow, and then yawned before getting out of bed.

"Gurgle, gurgle, gurgle~"

Asuka brushed his teeth while studying a book in his hand titled Dr. Stylish: Extreme Body Limits for Beautiful Women.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

Just as he finished brushing his teeth and was about to take a nap, someone knocked on the room's door.

Before he could respond, the door creaked open.

A small purple-haired head peeked through the crack in the door.

It seemed Uzuki Yugao didn't expect that Asuka's door would be unlocked.

She was first a bit surprised, then curiously glanced inside and saw Asuka standing in the middle of the living room, holding a toothbrush cup in one hand and a magazine with a cover that clearly wasn't for children in the other.

Seeing the other person's eight-pack abs and strong thighs, Uzuki Yugao blinked, and her face instantly turned red.

"Sorry to interrupt!"

Bang!

The girl slammed the door shut and leaned against it, breathing heavily.

On a cold Konoha morning in February, there was still a bit of chill in the air, but she didn't feel the cold at all. She only felt her forehead sweating profusely.

Did she really see that first thing in the morning?

But then Yugao suddenly realized, wasn't it embarrassing for him to be caught looking at an inappropriate magazine?

Why was she the one trying to hide?

It was just too cowardly.

Thinking this, Yugao mustered her courage and opened the door again.

However, at this point, Asuka was already dressed, and the magazine had been tossed aside.

Even the toad Sage could get rich by collecting materials from the bathhouse; there was no reason he couldn't get rich from collecting materials from books.

If it weren't for the fact that the sales of his romantic series in the ninja world were so good, making Asuka somewhat envious, he actually wanted to write some serious books.

Seeing Yugao's complex expression, Asuka said with irritation.

"Hey, what's with that expression? Didn't get enough?"

As he spoke, he opened the refrigerator, took out a carton of cold milk and a cup of tonkotsu-flavored instant noodles, and continued.

"Do you know the phrase 'at night, doors are not closed'?

The Uchiha Clan Compound has very good customs. I leave my door and windows open at night. Next time, remember to knock first."

"Got it!"

Yugao slightly lowered her head, sweat dripping down her face.

"Sensei?"

Seeing Asuka preparing instant noodles with hot water, Yugao pointed to the cold milk beside him and asked hesitantly, "Are you going to eat them together, hot and cold?"

"Yeah, this is a way to train willpower."

"That…"

Yugao poked her fingers, her cheeks flushing red again, feeling somewhat guilty. "Actually, I can cook."

"You??"

After sizing her up, Asuka raised an eyebrow, puzzled. "Do you need something from me?"

"Nothing, I just saw you eating like this in the morning and was worried you might upset your stomach."

Hearing her somewhat unconvincing explanation, Asuka tested the water temperature with his hand and said, "Just tell me, what do you actually want?"

"That…"

After hesitating for a moment, Uzuki Yugao bit her lip and said, "I'll just make breakfast first."

Speaking, she jogged to the kitchen, grabbed Asuka's solid arm, and dragged him to the living room, pressing him down on the sofa. She then tied on an apron and began to busy herself in the kitchen.

Half an hour later.

Asuka looked at the neatly arranged slices of eggs, the oil-fried bread, and slices of ham on the plate, and his look towards Yugao changed.

To be honest, just half an hour ago, he thought he would be having a delicious meal.

But this was it.

"Not bad!"

After taking a bite of the ham and finding it to be the usual taste, Asuka gave a thumbs-up and praised her.

"Very well done, there's not even a hint of burnt flavor. Your future boyfriend will be lucky."

"Hehheh"

After a silly laugh, Uzuki Yugao remembered the real purpose of her visit. She looked at Asuka eating the fried eggs and asked with some anticipation.

"Sensei, I heard that you studied Kenjutsu in the past?"

"I've studied it, but after a while, I realized it wasn't quite what I expected, so I gave up."

He had indeed studied Kenjutsu for a period, originally thinking he could perform slashes from a distance like in the pirate world, but later discovered it was just about swinging a katana. It was far less explosive than Ninjutsu.

Later, after using Sharingan to copy some Kenjutsu techniques, he moved on to learn other things.

"Sensei, I have a request to ask of you."

"Go ahead, Sensei is very easy to talk to."

Hearing this, Uzuki Yugao took a deep breath, then bent down and performed a full bow, closing her eyes and shouting.

"Sensei, please accept me as your apprentice!"

Huh??

Asuka blinked, and suddenly the eggs in his mouth didn't taste as good. He put down his chopsticks and turned to her.

"You mean, as an apprentice??"

"Yes!"

Hearing her determined voice, Asuka felt like his temples were being pressed by a machine, pounding rapidly.

What triggered this girl to suddenly want to become my apprentice?

Uzuki Yugao closed her legs, her tone firm.

"You are the best Medical Ninja among Kenjutsu Ninjas, and also the best Kenjutsu Ninja among Medical Ninjas. Grandpa Kosuke himself admitted that your mastery of Kenjutsu is no less than his.

Tsunade-sama once mentioned that having a Medical Ninja in each team improves the survival rate of team members. I want to learn Medical Ninjutsu, but I don't want to give up Kenjutsu, and Yugao can't have two masters."

Kosuke??

Isn't he the old guy who takes the blame, the perennial Genin known alongside Might Duy?

Recalling who Kosuke was, Asuka's mouth twitched, and his expression immediately fell. He had copied quite a bit of Kenjutsu from him back then; it seemed it was time to return it.

After a moment of silence, he turned to Yugao and said slowly.

"What happened that suddenly made you want to learn medicine?"

Yugao clicked her tongue, showing a pure and innocent expression, her big, innocent eyes gazing up at the ceiling without speaking.

Yesterday, during a clan competition, she accidentally injured her opponent, and then her mother punished her by beating her that night.

Lying in bed last night, she realized why her sensei had wanted to learn Medical Ninjutsu in the first place.

From what she had learned about her sensei recently, it seemed that when he first studied Medical Ninjutsu, he might have had the idea of injuring opponents while simultaneously healing them himself.

Moreover, she had heard that Sensei's Medical Ninjutsu, aside from Tsunade-sama, was superior to anyone in Konoha.

With her left hand using Kenjutsu to strike enemies and her right hand using Medical Ninjutsu to heal herself, it was like having a perpetual motion machine that would never be injured.

Understanding the importance of Medical Ninjutsu, Yugao wanted to get out of bed last night and seek out a master, but unfortunately, her mother restricted her.

Thinking of this, Uzuki Yugao could hardly contain her excitement. She took a couple of steps forward, her big eyes blinking a few times, and all the words she wanted to say got stuck in her throat, unable to come out.

"Alright, alright, I understand."

Asuka looked at Yugao's hopeful eyes, then glanced at the half-slice of egg remaining in the bowl, and said seriously.

"Medical Ninjas and combat Ninjas are two different paths. Since you've made up your mind, you need to be prepared for hardship."

"Yes!"

"Come over tomorrow at five o'clock to make breakfast. I don't want any more egg slices."

"Yes!"

"Then let go of my arm and stop shaking it."

"Yes!"

Seeing her agree so promptly, Asuka scratched his nose and looked up at the ceiling.

Did he wake up too abruptly today, or was he still dreaming?

In less than an hour, he actually accepted an apprentice.