After treating the wounded, Yuji stepped back.
But his intervention had changed the perspective of the Village's Chunin toward these kids.
At the very least, Yuji had proven that besides Sasori, he could also be useful.
After graduating from the Ninja Academy, although they had taken on some missions, they were basically escorting merchant caravans or hunting down bandits... At worst, someone like him would intern at the hospital; except for Sasori, most Genin who had just left school were the same.
They were lucky with their timing, not like the previous two years... otherwise, the danger would have been even greater.
Things were relatively peaceful now.
According to what Yuji knew, of those who had graduated a few years before them... few were still alive.
In fact, the core combatant nations of the entire Second Great Ninja War were the Land of Wind, the Land of Fire, and the Land of Rain.
As for the other major Ninja Villages, although there was fighting, the scale was not large.
In the Village's hospital, Yuji had already seen too many casualties.
Sunagakure's foundation was nowhere near as deep as Konoha's... and under the attrition of war, it suffered the most severely.
The Ninja Academy system was proposed and reformed by the Second Hokage... Before that, it was just a schoolhouse, and only later was it integrated into the military-political system, which other Villages then began to emulate.
The positioning and deployment of Medical Ninja on the battlefield began to become formalized during this Ninja World War, thanks to the combat arrangements made by Konoha, which allowed other Villages to see the advantages.
The refinement of the combat system for Medical Ninja on the battlefield was also an idea proposed by Tsunade.
It was clear... the entire Ninja World was influenced by Konoha.
The Will of Fire was indeed remarkable.
One had to admit it.
"Let's go. I'll take you on a patrol of the territory and routes we need to scout," Nomura said after a moment.
Hearing this, Yuji and the other two stood up one after another and followed him out of the cave.
Sasori remained motionless, having no intention of joining the team.
No one bothered him either.
"The area we need to patrol is this canyon. If an enemy wants to penetrate deep into our country's heartland, this route is the most concealed."
"Besides us, there are other patrol squads in the vicinity... but they are on the surface and easily exposed."
The group leaped and ran through the canyon. Nomura would occasionally stop, pointing in certain directions to introduce the terrain to the three of them.
This included the details of their daily missions.
The canyon was vast. Their squad, plus the four newcomers, would be divided into two shifts for handovers.
Nomura was very responsible, explaining almost every route and environment within the canyon clearly so that his juniors could use the environment to cope with any emergencies.
"The border we are adjacent to is next to the Land of Rain and the Land of Birds, so the main enemies we deal with are Amegakure and Iwagakure... It's quite difficult for Konoha's people to penetrate this far. The Land of Birds hasn't been heavily affected by the flames of this Ninja World War; Iwagakure's people will pass through their territory to enter our borders. The main battlefield of this war is actually the Land of Rain... Places like the Land of Birds are just strategic buffer zones. They don't really get involved in the war, but they are exploited by the Land of Earth."
Nomura continued to educate Yuji and the others on the current situation.
"Patrol and escort missions are a good opportunity for you to hone your tracking and scouting experience."
"Yuji, you are a Medical Ninja... an important asset to our squad. You will patrol with us veterans to ensure your safety."
Nomura gave Yuji a slight smile.
"Okay."
Yuji nodded.
The other two companions looked at him with a hint of envy.
This was the importance of a Medical Ninja.
Having a powerful healer would be very effective, whether in small-unit operations or on a large-scale battlefield.
And the difficulty of becoming a Medical Ninja was much greater than that of a regular Ninja.
In addition to Ninjutsu and training, a Medical Ninja had to master a vast amount of medical and textbook knowledge; it relied heavily on talent.
It wasn't something just anyone could do.
Along the way, Yuji looked at the system interface before him.
Host: Yuji.
Identity: Sunagakure Genin (Medical Ninja).
Age: 8 years old.
Current stored positive experience points (saving people): 126.
Stored negative experience points (killing people): 0.
Currently exchanged mall items and abilities: Kuroo's Medical Notes and Insights, Special scalpel (from Black Jack).
Kuroo is the protagonist of Black Jack; he is an unlicensed surgeon, but his powerful surgical skills and medical expertise are unquestionable.
From the moment it appeared, Yuji's portable system had almost decided his path to becoming a Medical Ninja.
As a doctor, he would gain experience points whether he saved or killed people... and these two types of experience points could be exchanged in the system mall for different types of medical-related items.
The reason he, at only eight years old, was able to stand out was that he used the experience points gained from treating patients in the Village hospital to exchange for Kuroo's Medical Notes... and after fully mastering this knowledge, he possessed exceptional abilities.
This was the "talent" perceived by outsiders.
"Unfortunately... in Sunagakure Village, the only one who can be called an outstanding Medical Ninja is Grandma Chiyo. The collection of Medical Ninjutsu isn't extensive, and the foundation in this area isn't solid enough. Even if one becomes a Medical Ninja, the environment dictates that one's ceiling won't be very high," Yuji thought.
A thought flashed through Yuji's mind.
Fortunately, the system was there.
He didn't have to worry about the abilities for his future growth.
Medical Ninjutsu... could also be exchanged in the system mall.
"That's basically it. I'll arrange your daily patrol routes. For the first half-month, us veterans will personally lead you; after that, it'll be up to you." Soon, after wandering in the canyon for more than two hours, the group began to head back the way they came.
Nomura said.
"Yes."
The three of them responded.
By the time they returned to the cave, it was already dark.
The wind and sand in the canyon had calmed down a bit.
However, as soon as they returned, a Chunin frowned and said in a heavy voice, "He's overdue. Shimada hasn't returned yet."
Hearing this, Nomura's expression turned grave. "Something is indeed not right... we didn't run into him just now either."
"I'll go take a look."
The former spoke up.
"Be careful. If anything happens... prioritize sending back intel."
"I understand."
The other nodded and, as soon as he finished speaking, vanished in a flash.
Seeing this, Yuji and the others couldn't help but feel tense.
They hadn't expected that on their very first day, something seemed about to happen.
"Endo... you stay here and look after them. I'll go to the nearby outposts of other squads to report."
Nomura didn't linger either; he gave an instruction to the remaining Chunin in the cave and quickly departed.
Although this wasn't the front line of the border, the scouting network the Village had set up in the border area was very dense... At the slightest sign of trouble, these squads could respond quickly.
"Hehe... kids, are you ready for a fight?"
"Without being tempered by blood, you can't become a qualified Ninja."
There were two others in the cave: one was the Chunin named Endo, and the other was the injured man Yuji had treated, who had difficulty moving.
This man named Endo clearly had a bit of a nasty personality.
Looking at the two bewildered boys, he curled his lips with a hint of schadenfreude.
Sure enough, as soon as he spoke, the faces of Yuji's two classmates turned pale with fear.
Yuji, on the other hand, was very calm; he had long since prepared himself mentally.
He also knew what kind of situation he might face.
At that moment, Sasori, who had been sitting cross-legged at the cave entrance, suddenly put several Puppet parts into a scroll.
Then, with an expressionless face, he stood up and, with a whoosh, also left the cave.
No one knew where he was going.