Ayaka walked toward the Senju compound with heavy steps. She had missed a day or two here and there due to extra work at the hospital, a grueling pace that had been increasing recently given the Hidden Leaf's unusual rising activities around the neighboring countries.
She felt a tension that no civilian could. It was something only a person who dealt with shinobi on the highest level could sense. Although they were all tight-lipped, and she suspected they did not even know the full picture themselves, she knew Konoha was preparing for something huge.
If she had to make an educated guess, war was on the horizon. With whom or when, she did not know. However, the hidden signs were there, and her experience as a medical trainee during the Third Shinobi War warned her that a similar conflict was drawing close.
She shook the dark thought out of her head. Scarred by what she had seen during that brutal war, she wished to never experience it again. Unfortunately, being one of Konoha's capable medical-nin meant she would not have much of a choice.
The ancient guard at the gates, whom she had initially thought of as just a placeholder, nodded slightly toward her as she walked in. She now knew better than to judge him by his frail body. The Senju always had a lingering fire in their eyes, and he still had plenty of it.
Waving at a few familiar faces inside, she performed quick checkups and minor healing jutsu on a few of the Senju elders. They were happy to spend the money for a medical-nin making house visits, as it was extremely convenient for those who moved slowly and with great pain. She certainly did not mind the extra work, since she was already there anyway.
As she finally approached her destination, she exhaled a heavy sigh upon seeing the exact trouble she knew would be waiting.
The acting Senju clan head stood stubbornly in front of the house. Takemura had his arms crossed, showing off his surprisingly tough muscles. His sharp eyes and dark hair framed powerful facial features that spoke of a hardened warrior. Next to him was his son, Genta, who looked very much like his father right down to his brooding demeanor. To their side stood a blonde kid in a white and green shirt. Naruto usually looked cheerful and cute with his whisker marks, but today his face was deeply sad.
He spoke first. "Sister Ayaka, can you please allow us inside? We have not seen him in almost a month now. I am really worried."
Ayaka groaned internally at the idea of refusing the poor boy again. She knew he would probably draw something ridiculous on the hospital walls as revenge, just like he did the first time she turned him down, but she truly could not help him. "I am sorry, Naruto," she replied softly, trying to ruffle his hair.
Naruto stepped to the side and looked away, puffing out his cheeks to escape her hand.
Takemura spoke next, his heavy voice laced with barely contained anger. "Is he awake? Is he doing okay?"
Ayaka shook her head. "He is fine, though he is still not awake. I told you before, this is part of a secret project approved by the Hokage. The barrier around his house only allows my specific chakra signature. He made sure of that for a good reason. You would not want to see him right now. Trust me, it would only make you sadder."
Genta's face twisted in sympathetic pain, while his father shot forward and wound his arm back.
"I can try to shatter that barrier!" Powerful chakra rapidly coated Takemura's fist.
Ayaka stepped directly in front of him, raising her hands in alarm. "Please do not do that, Takemura-sama! I am certain an experienced shinobi like you knows better than to directly attack a seal master's personal barrier." A bead of sweat formed on her tense face, exposing her genuine worry.
Takemura eventually lowered his arm. The glowing chakra faded, but his sheer frustration only rose. "I am going to hit that brat so hard when he wakes up. He is incredibly stupid! Someone his age should be having fun with his friends, not seeking power to this extreme."
He turned sharply and stalked away. "We are not at war!" he shouted back. "Naruto, Genta, come along. It is time to get some training done." He popped his knuckles menacingly, causing both boys to gulp in fear before quickly following him.
Ayaka breathed a sigh of relief as they disappeared into the distance.
She made a single hand sign and ignited her chakra.
"Release," she whispered, pushing her energy into the barrier ahead.
Multiple symbols activated in bright white light. They snaked forward to connect with her body, meticulously checking her chakra signature before withdrawing. An opening in the barrier shimmered to life. Ayaka walked through it, feeling as if she were wading through thick jelly for a moment before finally entering the house.
Taking a deep breath, she muttered, "This always feels weird. That barrier is very intrusive. I am amazed at the level of fuinjutsu he has reached at such a young age."
She walked into the quiet, empty house. Fine dust covered most of the furniture, except for the exact route she always took. "I will just clean the place once before he wakes up as a favor. I will also add that to the extra charges he has to pay me, especially for the annoyance I face every time I come here."
Walking slowly down the hall, she reached a door covered in fuinjutsu symbols. She closed her eyes and reached out. The symbols shifted, authenticating her identity once more before the lock disengaged with a loud click, allowing her to push the door open.
A simple, empty room greeted her. Moonlight spilled through the windows to reflect on a boy lying on the bed, creating an almost ethereal scene. His facial features were somewhat delicate. His hair had grown unnaturally long in such a short time, reaching his lower back, and it was so dark and thick that she felt a bit of jealousy. He was approaching twelve years old, however, his physical frame was now larger than that of some adults. His build was somewhat slender, yet powerful muscles seemed to roll under his skin, which glowed with an almost imperceptible blue hue.
Ayaka approached slowly, coating her eyes with chakra, an act only someone with the incredible chakra control and vast experience of a medical-nin could maintain, to observe the incredible scene of transformation she never grew tired of seeing.
Chakra moved in fixed, geometric channels just beneath his skin, following impossibly complex designs. The array sent harsh pulses of lightning chakra directly into his cells, organs, flesh, skin, and even his bones. His entire body was actively morphing into something terrifying, given the sheer volume of chakra his system was producing and consuming almost immediately.
His face was scrunched in constant agony, and his lips twitched erratically. He was almost always grinding his teeth. It was probably a blessing that the etched seal consumed so much chakra that it kept him completely unconscious. Otherwise, he would most likely be screaming constantly from the pain if he were awake. Seeing his body change in real time during each visit made her absolutely certain the internal torment must be horrific.
She shook her head. "Stupid kid."
Reaching over, she removed the already dry IV bag. "Sorry, Noa. I forgot to visit yesterday, but I am sure you are fine. A single day will not do you any harm."
She swapped out the old bag and attached a fresh one. As the rhythmic drip of fluid entered his body, the faint blue aura surrounding him increased slightly. This specific IV was specialized for shinobi, containing nutrient-dense fluids infused with extra chakra to suit bodies that burned through resources much faster than civilians.
She gently touched Noa's arm to check his pulse, but gasped in surprise as a small arc of electric current stung her fingers. She yelped in pain.
"Damn it, Noa! Did you do that because I missed yesterday?" She narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Kid, are you awake?"
She waited, but did not sense any change in his pained expression or any conscious reaction.
Approaching again slowly, she reached out to check his pupils, admiring his dark, heavy lashes for a brief second before yelping again. Another nasty shock of electricity bit into her skin.
"I know I missed more than one day, but you do not have to be so mean to me!" she shouted.
She tried a third time, and to her relief, she was not electrocuted. As she finally peeled his eyelids back, her own eyes widened in pure shock.
She expected to see Noa's sharp yellow irises. Instead, it looked as though literal waves of lightning were surging beneath the surface of his eyes in a rhythmic pulse. The vibrant yellow color was now swirling with chaotic streaks of bright blue. The unnatural phenomenon proved that something incredible, yet profoundly dangerous, was happening to him.
She stepped back from the bed and clasped her hands together in a silent prayer. "I hope you make it out of this alive, kid. That way, I can kill you myself for the amount of trouble you have caused me and for how stupid and life-threatening what you did to yourself is."
A sound escaped Noa's dry lips that almost suspiciously resembled a pained groan. She chuckled as she sat down on the chair next to his bed, basking in the moonlight while observing electric pulses moving through the beautiful, complicated seal all over his body in a hypnotic, almost soothing pulse.