Chapter 142 - Kensei's Friends

"I agree that the price is above normal but these are some of the finest sweets you could find anywhere in the capital. Please try it."

Daichi tasted the sweets handed by the vendor one by one and he had to agree with the man. 'These are indeed delicious. I haven't tasted candies like these since I came to this world. No wonder it costs so much.'

"Since we've only opened a few weeks ago I'll sell them to you at a nice discount young man."

"Thank you. I'll take it." Daichi smiled and bought enough sweets for all the kids at Aiko's orphanage. It was Reo's birthday next week and he wanted to buy some gifts for her. But he didn't want to make things too obvious to anyone keeping an eye on him so he bought treats for everyone.

Handing the money over, Daichi headed back home with the sweets and gifts. With his grandfather's help he was able to send the gifts and treats to Aiko with no problems.

Since he had nothing much to do, Daichi helped out at the Fire capital hospital from time to time. Tsunade and Shizune also decided to stay in the capital till Daichi's departure back to the village. Despite spending his time healing patients at the hospital, the boy's thoughts were mainly on what would happen in the coming months.

'By graduating this year, I'm giving up one year's worth of stat points and training time. That's a huge con. But I'll be able to visit different villages and gain more information. If I need to complete my long term quests then I can't waste anymore time training. I'll also need to see if I can become a Chunin this year. If I can become one before the canon Chunin exam then I'll have a significant advantage. I'll only be able to put some of my plans in motion if I get an official Rank as soon as possible.'

At that moment Daichi's mind drifted to who would become his future teammates.

'I wonder who my teammates and sensei are gonna be? They will most definitely be from Lee's class. I hope they're mature enough to work with me despite me being a year below them. Whatever the case, I just need to pass the test and I'll be a Genin.'

Daichi spent the remaining days polishing his skills and Leveling them up as much as he could. It was during this time that he met Kensei's friends at the capital.

Daichi and Kensei were in a small villa on the Eastern side of the capital. Daichi looked around the small mansion that was beautifully designed.

'This must be the home of some kind of noble. Or at least someone with a thriving business.' Daichi deduced as he walked through the long halls.

At that moment he saw someone around Kensei's age coming towards them. The man had tan skin and a slightly skinny body. He had a white beard and had a few beads attached to them. Daichi immediately noticed the slash with the Fire Kanji tied around his waist. 'One of the Twelve Ninja Guardians. Or a former one based on his age.'

"Hello young man. I'm Jin. A friend of your grandpa's. Welcome to my humble abode." The man smiled and introduced himself in a cheerful manner.

"Hello sir, I'm Daichi Hekima."

"I know. Your grandpa has spoken about you on more than one occasion. You should hear him talk."

"Alright that's enough." Kensei interrupted Jin with an annoyed yet slightly embarrassed tone.

"Hahaha…. Come on. Isen is waiting in the other room." Jin led the two to another large room where another man was waiting for them.

"So this is the child. I can already tell that he's strong. Tsunade certainly has been training him well." The man known as Isen spoke looking at Daichi.

"Daichi, these are my friends. Isen and you've already met Jin." Kensei introduced them to his grandson with a smile. He was happy Daichi finally got to meet his former teammates and colleagues.

"How do you like your stay in the capital so far?" Jin asked the boy.

"It's great. There's lots to see and places to visit. And the history behind this place is incredible."

"Hmm… True. The Fire Capital is one of the oldest territories in the world. It is a hub that connects to every corner of the world."

"Your grandfather tells us that you're a genius. That true?" It was Isen who asked that question.

"I do pick up things much faster than others and everything does come much easier for me. So yeah. You could say I'm a genius." Daichi replied with a grin.

"You're not even gonna pretend to be modest huh."

"Why should I, when it's the truth."

Despite Daichi's seemingly arrogant answer, Isen just laughed. "Ha! I like you kid. You got spunk."

"I can already tell, the kid's gonna be a riot. He reminds me of you Kensei. During your 'I'm better than everyone else' phase." Jin said with a smirk as he sat down.

"I'm still better than everyone." Kensei said with a large smirk.

Isen grinned at Kensei's response. "Keep telling yourself that old man." He then looked at Daichi and spoke. "Your Gramps tells me you're looking to graduate a year early."

"Yes. I came to the capital to learn Medical ninjutsu and now that I've accomplished that, I feel that it's time to move on to the next stage. I've already learned everything taught at the academy, so passing it is just a formality." Daichi nodded and replied.

Isen nodded. Based on the information Kensei shared, Isen knew the boy was more than ready to graduate. He also learned of the attack thwarted by Daichi that happened last year. He didn't have any proof but he was sure that it was Danzo who sent them. He was slightly concerned for the kid but knew that any move against him by Danzo would result in the wrath of Kensei and the Hokage.

Kensei and his friends decided to catch up. The two people asked Daichi about his training, travels and goals in his life.

As Kensei and the other two talked, Daichi used 'Observe' to see if he could get anything from them.

Daichi used 'observe' skill on Jin first. On Jin, the skill information confirmed that he was a former member of the Twelve Guardian Ninjas. He was level 44 with health and chakra points in the low 4 digits. The information showed that he had an unknown disease that was eating away at his body.

'So that's why he has such low stats. He doesn't have much time left. Maybe a year or 18 months at most. I'll need to talk to Gramps about this.'

Daichi used the Health Manipulation skill. It had the ability to sense the health of a person within a certain range. At that moment an unexpected quest appeared in front of him.

[Quest Created - 'Heal Jin.']

[Jin is diagnosed with an incurable disease and doesn't have much time left. Even Tsunade Senju could not find a permanent cure. Identify the cause of his illness and aid him.

Time limit: Find a permanent cure within 12 months or a treatment that will increase his life span in 16 months.]

[Conditions:]

Perform the correct diagnosis and identify the real cause of his illness.

Create a treatment that will increase his life span by at least 5 years or more.

[Bonus:]

Completely heal Jin and save him from the illness.

[Rewards:]

10000 Exp.

Reputation increases with Isen, Kensei Yasaji.

Reputation increases with Jin, Tsunade Senju and an Unknown person.

[Bonus Reward:]

+2 Level in Health Manipulation skill.

Reputation massively increases with Jin and Tsunade Senju.

Reputation decreases with an Unknown person.

[Failure:]

Possible early death of Jin.

Reputation slightly decreases with Kensei.

Reputation decreases with Jin, Isen.

[Note: This quest will only be accepted if Jin lets you examine him.]

Daichi read the quest details and was amazed. 'Wow. A quest that can only be activated on certain conditions? That's new... And it says here even Tsunade sensei couldn't heal this guy?... Even if she couldn't, maybe I can. My medical skills rival and even surpass Tsunade's. I'm the only chance he has… Now the only question is whether or not he'll accept my help. I'll need the old man's opinion and I need to pay Tsunade sensei a visit.'

Turning his attention to Isen and used 'Observe' on the man. When he did, he only got question marks… 'I should be able to see up to level 95. So that means this guy is even higher than that?

It was late evening when Daichi and Kensei bid farewell to the two men and headed home. When they reached their residence Kensei asked the question that's been bugging him since they left Jin's home.

"What's on your mind?" Kensei recognized Daichi's thoughtful expression and asked.

"That man… Jin. He's dying." Daichi's reply was more of a statement than a question and the information startled Kensei.

"How do you know?"

"I've been with Lady Tsunade for two years. Trust me. I know a dying person when I see one." Daichi replied.

Kensei slightly nodded in understanding. He knew a highly capable medic would be able to tell Jin's state when carefully looking at his body's behavior. He couldn't believe Daichi had reached such a level in just such a short time. He let out a sad sigh and thought about what his friend said.

"He has some kind of a rare disease that's attacking his body. He caught it around 5 years ago. Jin went to every doctor he could. None of them could help him. He only had a few months to live. That's when he went to Tsunade. Even though she couldn't figure out what was wrong with him, she created a pill that would slow down the progress of this unknown disease. It gave him several more years. But it's only slowed down the illness and it's still progressing. By our estimates he has less than 2 years."

"An illness even Tsunade sensei couldn't figure out? That's rare…" Tsunade was the best medic in the world. So the fact that she couldn't figure out what was wrong with the man amazed Daichi.

"It's going to be even more of a challenge than I thought." Daichi said to himself.

Kensei heard that and looked at Daichi as if he had grown a second head. "Daichi, this is something I don't think even you can help with. Even Tsunade couldn't. Just… Just let this go."

Daichi couldn't accept that. There was no way he was going to back out after seeing the quest. He looked at his grandfather and spoke with a determined tone.

"Gramps… I need you to talk to him. I need to examine him."

Despite Daichi's resolute stance, Kensei didn't budge. "Daichi, I've let you do some risky things… But on this matter I'm going to have to say no. Just let this go."

"Can you tell me why?"

"Even your teacher Tsunade couldn't cure him. Jin has already made peace with what's going to happen. Don't give him hope and then take that away from him."

Hearing Kensei's reply, Daichi understood where the old man was coming from. 'Even though I'm a genius and learned Medical ninjutsu in just a couple years, he would trust her opinion over mine. It's the logical thing to do. Can't blame him for that. She has decades of experience and is known as the best in the world… But still… I can't let this change go.'

"Gramps. You know I'm not someone who would take a situation like this lightly. Trust me when I say, I know the weight of what it means when even Tsunade sensei couldn't find the true cause… But I'm still asking. All I need is just a check up. Please." Daichi made sure his grandfather knew that he was taking this with the utmost seriousness.

Kensei was conflicted as he looked at his grandson. He knew his grandson was a capable medic but he didn't think he could succeed where someone like Tsunade failed.

"You can even say that Tsunade sensei sent me to examine him and check up on his prognosis. You don't need to tell him anything else." Daichi tried his best to convince his grandfather and let him examine the man.

Kensei closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose in exasperation. After pondering for several minutes he let out a sigh that indicated he would at least try.

"Before we do anything, We'll meet Tsunade first thing in the morning. I want her opinion on this before we move forward with anything." The old man told Daichi.

"Deal. That way I can get an idea as well as to what's really going on."

Daichi went to his room and thought about the part of the quest that confused him. He opened the quest and looked at the rewards portion.

[Rewards:]

[10000 Exp.]

[Reputation increases with Isen, Kensei Yasaji.]

[Reputation increases with Jin, Tsunade Senju and an Unknown person.]

'This is strange. This reward is the one I get for increasing his life span. And it says reputation increases with an Unknown person.

[Bonus Reward:]

[+2 Level in Health Manipulation skill.]

[Reputation massively increases with Jin and Tsunade Senju.]

[Reputation decreases with an Unknown person.]

'But here if I save Jin's life then my reputation decreases… How the heck does that happen?... Are they two different people? But then there is no reputation increase from Unknown person when I save his life… This is strange… But still… This does prove something. There is someone involved in this matter. I bet that there is someone out there who knows more about this illness than even Tsunade… And if that's true then the only way they could have such knowledge is if they were the cause of his illness.'

[Due to logically deducing new information from very little, you have obtained +1 WIS]

'Huh!? So you agree with my deduction?... I see… Good to know.'