Daichi closed the massive medical encyclopedia with a soft thud. He had gone through the book cover to cover twice just to make sure he didn't miss anything. He then spread the large scroll it came in and resealed it.
"This one's done." The shadow clone who studied the medical tome held the sealed scroll towards Genma.
Genma took it, eyes narrowing in disbelief. "So… you actually read all of that?"
The Genin had a smirk on his face. "Twice."
The Jonin had a stunned expression on his face. "You know, if someone told me you secretly had the Sharingan, I would believe them."
"You don't need the Sharingan to have a good memory. But you're right. My brain is a little bit better than the rest." The boy had a cheeky smug grin as he looked at the man.
"How humble and modest of you." Genma said with a deadpan expression.
"Well, it's kinda true. I do have an excellent memory and recall ability. It's actually how I became her student. I kinda tricked her with it."
Genma blew a quiet whistle around his senbon. "Remind me never to play cards with you."
The Genin smirked and turned his attention to his creator.
Nearby, the real Daichi and another clone were examining their new creation. 'The stabilizing enzymes from the Hachiyose beetles are now fully integrated into its base. This is it. The result of everything I've learned over the years.'
Ssss…
The gentle hiss of a pressurized seal filled the room. Daichi placed the finished vial of A.C.E.S. serum inside a small sterile containment box lined with temperature-regulating chakra seals. The glow within the vial had not dimmed.
'Perfect.' The boy smiled as he looked at the container in his hand.
"Well, since my work is done, I'm gonna go. Good luck." The shadow clone working on The Storm Serum told Daichi and vanished with a smile.
"I've memorized everything. I'm gonna dispel too." The clone spoke and his creator nodded.
A small puff of smoke later, the real Daichi and the two remaining clones received a vast amount of memories. They paused for several seconds to digest the large quantity of information.
"You all right?" There was concern in Genma's voice. He knew there was fatigue backlash for the jutsu but unsure if there was a memory backlash as well.
Daichi and his doppelgangers quickly recovered. "I'm fine. Don't worry about it." The real one answered. He let out a slow breath of air.
With careful fingers, Daichi activated the final storage seal, placed the containment box into a reinforced scroll, and sealed it shut. A soft click confirmed the lock.
The young medic ninja glanced across the lab where his remaining clones were still engaged with their work. One was analyzing a specific cell they took from Orochimaru's lab and the other was observing chakra and cell assimilation graphs from the First Hokage's blood.
"All right. Dispel yourselves. Time to see how far we got." The real Daichi ordered, and seconds later two sets of memories appeared in his head.
The sudden influx of knowledge sharpened his mind even further. He knew every micro-adjustment made to the First Hokage's cells, every successful simulation, every variation that had failed and the tests conducted on the specimens taken from Orochimaru's laboratory.
The Gamer ninja used his parallel processing skill and quickly worked through the vast new information in seconds. He nodded to himself and made a single seal.
Poof!
Two new shadow clones appeared and they seamlessly took over the ongoing tasks.
"Let's get this to sensei." Daichi said to his new teacher as he held the small scroll. Genma nodded and the two left the lab without any more delays.
They exited the lab and headed down the cold, steel stairs that spiraled to the chamber beneath—the makeshift treatment room where Tsunade was being kept.
"You're pretty good with the Shadow clone jutsu. Not many people can use it the way you do." Genma told him. He was impressed that Daichi could use such a dangerous technique so effectively and without any negative side effects.
"My chakra level is way above average for someone my age. And I have good chakra control. That's the key to using this jutsu to its full potential." Daichi didn't mind sharing that intel with his new superior.
"I see. No wonder not many use it like that." Genma nodded.
"Hmm, maybe in the future, someone might take this jutsu to even greater heights." Daichi had a small smile as he recalled Naruto and his future battles.
Genma looked down at his new student with a questioning gaze. "You say that like you know something… Do you?"
Daichi looked at the man with a mysterious smile and shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows…"
Genma internally groaned. 'This kid might have picked up a lot more than just fighting skills from Kakashi.'
Daichi kept a calm expression, but deep inside he was running through a dozen outcomes and even more contingencies. 'If this doesn't work… If her body rejects the enzyme-protein binding… If the serum causes an unpredicted reaction with the Orochimaru-altered genome…'
He slightly shook his head as if to get rid of the negative thoughts. 'No. It won't fail. I've accounted for every possible variable. The A.C.E.S. serum is stable. Her body will respond to it… It has to.'
When the two reached the reinforced chamber door, the ANBU guard made a hand seal to unlock the barrier. Immediately the door clicked open, revealing the pristine medical room behind it.
Shizune was already there, standing beside the bed that held her teacher. She didn't move from her spot, but her eyes immediately turned toward Daichi.
As the Genin came near her, she gave him the chart in her hand. Even though he had a shadow clone present, he wanted to read the notes himself.
"You look a lot better," Daichi said to her as he observed her condition.
The female medic nodded with a small smile. "I feel better. You were right."
"I know," Daichi replied with a grin, trying to ease the tense atmosphere.
The Genin quickly went through every detail recorded with a keen eye. 'Vitals have been stable for the last several hours. Foreign-cell integration curve trending down since the Life Blood infusion. But the metamorphosis activity is still present... A.C.E.S. is the gate.'
As Daichi studied Tsunade's chart, Shizune's eyes went to the scroll in his hand. "I take it that's the new serum?" she asked softly.
Daichi nodded. "It's ready. Adaptive Cellular Endocrine Synchronizer. It's a stabilized variant with chakra-harmonic hormones tuned and keyed to sensei's baseline genome. This is stronger and safer than I originally anticipated."
Shizune nodded. "The stabilizing buffer created with the Hachiyose beetle enzymes. Your clone filled me in on the details."
"Yes. With that I've tripled the compatibility rate and neutralized all of the previous cascade triggers. You can check if you want to see it for yourself."
Shizune hesitated only for a second, then she nodded. "No, I trust you." She exhaled and the knot in her shoulders loosened as she said those words.
Daichi stepped toward the bed and unsealed the scroll. He retrieved the vial and inspected it one final time before passing it to Shizune for verification.
She took it, holding it up to the ambient light in the room. The liquid shimmered within the glass. "It's beautiful," she murmured. "You really think this will help?"
Daichi nodded. "This isn't a cure… but it's the buffer we need. If this works as intended, it'll not only slow down the metamorphosis—it'll repair the tissue damage and stabilize her chakra flow. I've recalculated the degradation rate. This should buy us some time."
The shadow clone Daichi had left with Tsunade quickly prepped the injection site. The real one aligned the needle with one of the stabilized chakra veins and took a deep breath.
"Beginning infusion," he said aloud.
The needle slid into Tsunade's arm with barely any resistance. The serum was pushed in slowly, carefully regulated through a chakra-guided syringe. The moment it entered her bloodstream, shadow clone Daichi activated his absolute cellular analysis technique.
Soon a pale gold shimmer appeared under the skin where Daichi injected his drug. The pale glow slowly spread across her arm and then through her chest and gradually dispersed throughout her entire body before it vanished.
Shizune, and Genma who was watching from outside the isolated chamber, turned their attention to the monitors connected to Tsunade's vitals. It showed heart rhythm, chakra-phase wavelets, organ perfusion rates. Numbers and curves flashed across the screens.
The Special Jonin looked at the screens and sighed. 'Is the serum working or not?'
For a minute, nothing happened. Then…
'The chakra pulse rhythm is changing. There was a shift in the wave pattern. It won't be long now.'
Beep. Beep-beep.
The monitors chimed. "Look," Shizune whispered. Daichi's head jerked toward the monitor and then towards his teacher.
Tsunade's body responded to the new drug. Her breath hitched for a moment, then stabilized. On the monitor, the readings changed rapidly. The regenerative marker increased. The simulated mutation progression curve slowed by almost 68%.
"Oxygen extraction improved by a measurable notch. Organ stress is down—liver, kidneys, spleen; all trending toward normal." The clone announced to the two medics.
Shizune placed her hands above her teacher and they quickly glowed green with medical chakra. "Her wounds… They're healing," she whispered in awe.
Daichi leaned closer, watching the screen. "And chakra flow is returning to its normal phase. The enzymatic buffer is working." The boy's eyes flicked across the data like a hawk.
'The cellular regeneration rate is increasing. No signs of necrotic backlash. Compatibility above 93%.' A small smile formed on his lips.
"She's stabilizing." Shizune placed a hand over her chest, as if releasing a breath she didn't know she had been holding. "You did it…"
"Yeah," Daichi corrected. "But this is just the first step. Now, we have some time to come up with a permanent solution. Based on how her body is responding, I bought us a little over a week before the next critical stage."
"Exactly how much time do we have?"
"Eight days, conservative. Maybe ten if the next phase integrates cleanly. Either way… for now, we're not at the edge of a cliff anymore." Daichi replied calmly.
Genma who was standing outside, exhaled in relief, letting his back rest against the wall. 'That kid really is the best medic in the world… Maybe it is for the best that he works alone on this.'
[Reputation increased with Shizune Kato, Genma Shiranui and others present.]
Shizune exhaled in relief. "Thank you."
"Don't mention it." Daichi smiled and then looked toward his clone. 'His chakra is running low. Time for your replacement, buddy.'
The doppelganger understood his creator's intentions and nodded. He dispelled a moment later and his memory and chakra swiftly poured into Daichi and the other two shadow clones working in the lab. The real Daichi quickly absorbed the details and made a hand seal.
A fresh clone appeared in a whisper of smoke. Without the need of any orders, he had already taken his position.
Shizune turned to Daichi. "So what now?"
He looked at the monitor one last time and then straightened.
"Now I hand her care over to you. I'll continue refining the treatment plan and find a solution, but I need to speak with the Hokage."
Shizune held his gaze for a long beat and then nodded. "All right. Leave it to me."
Daichi brushed Tsunade's hair back, letting his palm linger on the Slug Sannin's forehead. "I'll be back soon, sensei. Just hang on for a little longer."
With those soft-spoken words Daichi exited the isolation chamber. He turned to Genma and nodded. "Let's go."
Both of them reached the door and the ANBU guard stationed inside opened it without wasting a second. The two exited the room and made their way up the building to the Hokage's office.
The Genin was in a much better mood than when he came here in the morning. This moment was a victory for him, even if it was just a small one.
As they made their way towards the main office, Genma glanced at the boy and suddenly spoke. "The Nara clan is deeply tied with the Akimichi clan."
"Your point being…?" The Gamer ninja raised an eyebrow at that unexpected statement.
"That encyclopedia… I'm sure there is a section on chakra-compounding pills. You planning on brewing any of those infamous 'second-wind' tablets?"
Daichi scoffed. "Please don't take me for a greedy idiot who steals clan secrets." 'Even if I did do it a couple times…'
"Besides, while there are formulas for some pills, the really powerful and secret ones are still with the Akimichi clan." he continued. "And the ones in here, well… Most of them are too crude for my taste. Overclocking the user and then crashing them. I can do better with my serums. Especially now that I can improve it even more."
"Ha! The Akimichis might be insulted if they hear that. It took a long time for them to make and perfect those pills."
"I can give them a better recipe if they want. That beetle was a game changer."
"Never thought I'd see the day a bug saves the Slug Princess." Genma said dryly.
"Yeah." Daichi snorted. "Life is weird like that sometimes."
As they neared the office, Genma rolled the senbon with his tongue and asked a question. "Before we go in, tell me, how far are we from completely saving her?"
"Well, she's out of the danger zone but we don't have a lot of time." Daichi said. "Now I have to heal the rest of her."
Genma nodded his head and looked at the guard.
The ANBU at the office door inclined his head. "Lord Hokage is expecting you."
"Thank you." Genma nodded to the guard and they both went in.