Outside the ward door, hushed voices drifted through the corridor.
"…This is it, A-307." A young nurse's voice carried a mix of excitement and nervousness. "Be gentle when you change the dressing, don't disturb his rest."
"That kid—he really took down a Kumogakure jōnin and two chūnin all by himself!? Is that true? How old is he? He hasn't even graduated from the Academy, right?"
"It's true! My cousin's neighbors went to the scene. They said it was brutal—lightning everywhere, like they'd been skewered on a stick!"
"Shh! Keep your voice down! Don't talk nonsense in the ward!"
"I know, I know." A calmer voice replied. "Still, I can barely believe it. The report says he alone—"
"Shh!" the young nurse hissed, panicking a little. "Stop talking! It's not good for him to overhear. Anyway, be respectful. The Hokage gave strict orders—use the best medicine and make sure he recovers completely."
"I understand, I understand. He's a hero of Konoha—who would dare neglect him?"
Squeak—
The door opened softly.
Hiroki leaned against the headboard, pretending to look out the window, though he had clearly heard every word outside.
All that praise made him a little uncomfortable. Since graduating from elementary school in his previous life, he hadn't been praised so openly—or so unreservedly.
Once he started working, compliments became even rarer.Everyone was too busy chasing promotions and pay raises to flatter anyone else.
The only place people ever said "awesome" or "nice" was in online games.
…
"Sawada-kun, we're here to change your dressing," the young nurse said as she entered with a tray. She wore a gentle, professional smile, but her eyes betrayed curiosity—and a touch of awe.
"Thank you for your help," Hiroki replied with a nod.
The nurse carefully undid his bandages and began tending to his wounds. As she approached, a familiar pop-up window flickered to life in Hiroki's consciousness.
Ding Dong~
[A connectable computer 'Nakajima Aki' has been detected. Temporary connection established via Chakra Communication Protocol.]
[Do you want to open and view the files?]
Here it comes.
So it really wasn't a dream.
His golden finger could connect to anyone.
Whether ordinary people or ninjas—everyone was treated like a computer by his ability.
Hiroki's heart quickened. This was his first time testing the ability outside of battle. He wanted to see just how far this "connection" could go.
He mentally selected [Yes].
A new window appeared: "Nakajima Aki's Computer."
He ignored the main memory drive for now and opened the "Temp" folder—her immediate thoughts.
In an instant, a flood of random thoughts and "files" streamed across his mental screen like a waterfall.
File name: Oh my god, he's so small and thin.log
File name: Is this really the genius who beat three Kumo ninjas by himself?
File name: He looked at me_Did I do something wrong.log
File name: His face is so handsome_Will he get even more handsome later_Is he dating_.log
File name: Should I ask for his autograph? My brother would be inspired.
File name: No, no, that's too forward. I'll look like some fangirl.
File name: Ugh, I *am* a fangirl. I want to lick his face.log
Hiroki: "…"
The corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
What the hell… do girls' minds always run this fast?
Having people's thoughts projected straight into his brain—especially this kind of stuff—made his skin crawl.
Ugh, this is kinda greasy…
He resisted the urge to close the window and kept searching for something useful.
Before long, he found a folder in her "D Drive (Memory Drive)" labeled "Medical and Nursing."
He opened it, and his eyes lit up.
[Medical Ninjutsu – Palm Healing Technique (Beginner).dat]
[Precise Chakra Control (Intermediate).dat]
[One Hundred Common Phrases Used by Shrews on the Street (Master).pdf]
[Rules for Pursuing a Partner in a Relationship (Expert).pdf]
[Konoha Encyclopedia of Pharmaceutical Knowledge.pdf]
Found it!
He could copy not only combat ninjutsu, but also medical and support techniques!Even… weird stuff like this.
Overjoyed, Hiroki selected everything and hit [Ctrl+C].
Then, in his own [D Drive (Memory Drive)], he created a new folder named [Skill Backup], and pressed [Ctrl+V].
A transfer progress bar appeared:
[Calculating required time and space…]
[5 files total, 21.4MB.]
[Copying from another computer (Nakajima Aki) → My computer (Sawada Hiroki)…]
[Estimated remaining time: 12 minutes.]
"Twelve minutes?"
Hiroki frowned. He was in balanced mode right now—this was much slower than expected.
Meanwhile, the nurse finished dressing his wound and picked up the thermometer.
"Alright, Sawada-kun," she said with a relieved smile. "36.5 degrees—completely normal. Your recovery rate is amazing. I've already spoken to the attending physician. You can be discharged this afternoon."
As she packed her tray and turned to leave—
[Connection interrupted.]
[Disconnected from computer (Nakajima Aki).]
[Target lost. File transfer failed.]
The progress bar in Hiroki's consciousness turned gray, followed by an irritating pop-up.
Hiroki: "…"
He leaned back against the headboard in silence.
His golden finger was undeniably powerful—unbelievably so. Theoretically, if given enough time and contact, he could copy the knowledge and skills of everyone in the ninja world.
But… it wasn't exactly convenient.
First, "connection" required physical contact, and continuous contact at that. He couldn't just walk up and start "downloading" someone on the street.
Long-term physical contact with another ninja? Practically impossible—unless you were in a very close relationship. Even holding hands for ten minutes would be awkward enough.
Second, "downloading" took time. A simple medical technique like Palm Healing already took twelve minutes in this low-load state. Larger jutsu would probably take days.
In real combat, that was hopeless.
He needed sustained contact, like when he was kidnapped before—otherwise, it was useless.
Unless…
Hiroki opened the list under "Network & Internet."
Six or seven Wi-Fi signals flickered on the screen.
Unless he could connect through Wi-Fi—and start downloading ninjutsu that way.