Morning came quietly. The underground lab was bathed in the artificial light of the lamps and cast a steady white glow across the polished metal surfaces. Within the secured lab, the only sounds were made by the bubbling flasks, the faint hum of chakra-infused instruments and the quiet scratching of pens on papers.
Daichi stood at the center table while being flanked by three active shadow clones who worked in seamless tandem.
One was adjusting the distillation process of an enzyme, another was reanalyzing Hashirama's cellular sequencing, and the third was reviewing the healing techniques to stabilize foreign cell interaction. The real Daichi, however, was writing intricate notes into his personal logbook.
The morning had passed without interruption—until 10:30 a.m., when there was a knock on the outer lab door.
Genma glanced from his seat by the entrance and got up. He opened the reinforced hatch just wide enough to see a Jonin from the Nara clan. The man was dressed in the standard flak jacket and with a small scroll tube strapped across his chest. His demeanor was calm, sharp-eyed, and respectful.
"Delivery from the Nara archives. I'm Hisagi Nara. I've come on Master Shikaku's behalf." the Chūnin stated.
Genma opened the door and the man handed him a large scroll. Genma accepted the thickly bound scroll from him and nodded. "Appreciated."
Hisagi bowed slightly before vanishing down the corridor.
Genma returned inside and handed the scroll to Daichi. "From the Nara archives. Looks like it's the medical encyclopedia you asked for."
Daichi stopped writing and turned, his eyes lighting up as he took the heavy scroll with both hands. "Excellent. They brought it faster than I thought."
"Of course. Master Shikaku knows what's at stake here… And Daichi, I know I don't need to say it, but this is one of the Nara clan's prized possessions. Do be careful with it." The Special Jonin gently reminded the boy.
"I know. I'll be careful." Daichi understood why his new sensei said those words. He turned his attention to the scroll in his hand and unsealed it on the clean surface nearby. Sealed inside the scroll was a large, old textbook—its pages thick, marked, yellowed at the edges, yet pristinely preserved with chakra-binding ink.
He created a new shadow clone and gave new orders. "Go through it. Top to bottom. Don't miss anything."
"Got it." The clone nodded, picked up the tome, and began reading—his eyes flashing rapidly as they scanned the words, finishing a page every six seconds with mechanical rhythm.
'No way. He's going through each page in just six seconds.' Genma watched, incredulous. "You're actually reading all that?"
The clone didn't stop flipping pages. "Yes."
"Seriously?"
Daichi glanced up. "I have a photographic memory. And I'm a fast reader. My clone will finish that in less than 3 hours and remember every word."
Genma blinked. "That's incredible… and kinda scary." The Special Jonin kept watching his new student at work. 'It's not like someone who's quickly reading a mission scroll. That's a medical encyclopedia. So he not only has to read and memorize it, he needs to understand it. To remember such a large amount of information with such speed… Unbelievable. This kid keeps finding new ways to surprise me.'
The clone ignored the comment and continued reading. 'This book is a treasure trove. Did they catalogue herbs from every part of the continent? Special Mushrooms from the Land of Swamps, volcanic saproots from the Valley near the Hidden Stone Village, salt-slicked special moss used by the Hidden Mist's medics…Even the herbs used in the Three Wolves Mountain Range is noted in here.'
Only as he went through the book did Daichi understand why the Nara clan considered it a secret treasure. 'Oh man. It's as if I'm going through clan secrets. How many generations did it take for them to find and study all these?'
There were details from herbs to the formation of chakra pills, glandular serums, chakra-stimulant brews, and medicinal incense to guide chakra through damaged meridian channels in the large tome. But more than that, there were chapters on parasitic healing organisms, chakra bacteria, and chakra symbiotic insects.
As time went by and Daichi studied the information in front of him, a system notification appeared.
[Skill Herbology has leveled up.]
This particular system message kept popping up several times during his study. The Gamer Ninja quickly opened his skill list and checked the current progress of the skill.
[Herbology - Passive/Active (LV.91): A crafting type skill learned after studying numerous herbs. This skill helps the player identify, process and distill botanical reagents for medicines, boosters and antibodies.]
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[Effects]
Passive Effects.
Herb potency extraction 54.6%.
Brew quality for herb-based items 45.5%.
Duration bonus for herb-based consumables 27.3%
Auto identify herbs(rank accuracy scales with level).
Herb contamination sense.
Cold Maceration.
Active Effects.
Essence Distillate: Converts 3x common herbs into 1x uncommon essence. Cost: 20 CP.
Phyto-Imprint: Imprint traits to cultivate targeted cultivars (30-55% desired trait).
Transmute Alkaloids: Reroll one herb trait(stimulant/sedative/antitoxin/analgesic) Cost: 44 CP.
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[Notes]
[Increasing Intelligence stat increases yield. Increasing Wisdom stat reduces waste. Increasing Luck Stat adds crit-brew chances.
This is a synergy skill that goes with Gardening skill (supply), Pharmacology skill (delivery) and Toxicology skill (antidotes).]
'Oh wow. This skill went up by 9 levels with just this book. I made the right choice asking for this.'
At precisely 12:34 p.m., the clone paused. "Found something." The clone held the book up.
"What is it?" Daichi asked without even lifting his gaze away from the microscope near him.
Genma, who was reading a book, paused and focused on the clone.
"Aburame clan subsection. Page 917. There's a mention of a rare strain of insect. A medicinal symbiont bred for chakra modulation. They're capable of identifying and suppressing foreign biological factors inside the host body. They're called Hachiyose Beetles."
Daichi raised an eyebrow and paused his work. He quickly approached the clone and read the page the clone pointed to.
Hachiyose Beetles… bred to recognize foreign chakra signatures… capable of injecting stabilizing enzymes into the bloodstream in response to infection or cell mutation… symbiotic binding.
Daichi's eyes widened. 'No way. If this is true, then this could be the key to adapting the serum without causing another rejection cascade! This could significantly increase the potency of the hormone serum.'
"What is it? Did you find something?" Genma came near the boy.
"Yeah. I need a sample of this beetle. Genma, can you request one from the Aburame compound?" Daichi asked, pointing to the insect shown on the page.
Genma quickly studied and memorized the details and nodded. "Yeah. But I'll need to go through the Hokage's channel. So I don't know how long it'll take. Is it important?"
"I can't say for sure until I've run some tests. But I need this as quickly as I can. If the enzymes from this insect work as I think they do, it will help me with my serum a great deal."
The Special Jonin nodded his head. "I understand. I'll return with the samples as quickly as I can." A moment later he vanished from the room.
Daichi turned back to the clone. "Keep reading. Extract everything relevant to enzyme generation."
The clone nodded. "Already flagged several enzyme-based agents and stimulants in the index." He created a clone and then dispelled it.
Immediately, everyone in the room got new information and they were thrilled.
The real Daichi went back to his table and continued with his work. 'It's a good thing I modified the function of the shadow clone jutsu when I learned it. With all my clones learning information in real time, when any one of them dispels, it saves me a lot of headaches. The only problem is, my clone would also have to share its remaining chakra with everyone present at the time… Oh well. Not exactly a problem for me anyway.'
Daichi had several new ideas in his mind. He pulled out Tsunade's genetic profile on the computer and set it beside the blueprint of 'The Storm' Serum.
'Right now Tsunade's body has the foreign serum Orochimaru injected her with. The changed genome and her original DNA. Her new genome is already expressing proto-Wood Style markers, but the compatibility rate is rising slowly. If I can map her original DNA against this new strain and add an adaptive buffer… the beetle enzymes might do the trick. A stabilizing factor that regulates chakra distribution at the cellular level… That will significantly boost the functions of the new serum. My original time frame could be much longer with this new drug.'
The Gamer ninja analyzed the structure and soon began sketching a new formula on a transparent chakra board. It combined serum binding agents, foreign cell dampening compounds, and chakra affinity inhibitors. At the top, he wrote in bold script:
Project: A.C.E.S.
At 1:21 p.m. Genma returned, holding a small container in both hands with deliberate care.
The container was a narrow, triple-insulated cylinder. It shimmered with a translucent blue seal across the surface, and a softly glowing stasis tag was placed over the top.
"Hey kid! I got it," Genma said. "It wasn't easy, but the Aburame head allowed a controlled sample. These beetles are rare, but they gave us a mated pair. Still alive and inside the stasis field."
Daichi looked over the container with a nod of appreciation.
The cylindrical box was chakra-cooled, and the beetles inside were suspended in a soft biogel, visible through a narrow crystal viewport. Their wings shimmered faintly, black and purple with pulsing chakra sacs across their thoraxes.
"They're beautiful," Daichi murmured. "Hachiyose Beetles…"
He brought them over to the analysis table. Using sterile tools and a micro-sampling probe, Daichi gently extracted a minute quantity of hemolymph from the male beetle's dorsal gland and placed it on a chakra microscope slide.
He examined the flow of enzyme-rich plasma in the beetle's body and began cataloging its genetic sequences.
'Chakra-regulating enzymes… They're similar to Type-B regulatory proteins in humans. But they have a unique chemical anchor—perfect for targeting rogue cells.'
Over the next two hours, Daichi and his doppelgangers worked tirelessly.
They extracted the required enzymes, mapped their chemical structure, and synthesized a refined stabilizer. Daichi then cross-stitched the enzyme strand with Tsunade's original genetic markers to ensure a high match rate.
"Introduce the modified melatonin-regulated chakra hormones to the new samples. That will encourage healing-state activation and reduce cellular stress by another 30 to 38%."
"Right." The real Daichi ordered, and the clone made the adjustments.
No less than twelve simulations were run on the chakra spectrometer, each one inching closer to the ideal reaction.
—-
While the clone and the real self were working with the beetles, to create the storm serum variant, the shadow clone studying the medical treasure trove found another interesting item.
"Hey, Genma." The shadow quickly called the attention of the man.
"What is it?"
"I need to speak with Master Jiraiya. Could you inform Lord Hokage that I need to see him at the earliest, please?" Daichi spoke with his nose still buried in the book.
"Yeah. I'll tell him right away. Any particular reason you wanna see him so suddenly?"
"It's regarding an ingredient." Daichi didn't explain more and Genma didn't waste time asking any more questions.
He quickly left the room and went to the Hokage and made his report. The old Kage agreed to Daichi's wish. Genma sighed as he left the office and made his way down the lab. 'I never thought I, the guard to the Hokage, would ever work as a messenger for a Genin. If he wasn't as strong as he is, this would almost be embarrassing.'
—-
By 6:07 p.m., Daichi stood before the central centrifuge, vial in hand.
The fluid inside shimmered with a unique aurora-like glow—golden at the base, violet toward the top, with flecks of luminous green coursing through the layers like fireflies in mist.
He slowly lifted it into the light and examined its stability. 'This is it. The fusion is successful. The variations to the formula and the enzymes extracted from the beetles are now in perfect harmony. '
[Skill Pharmacology has leveled up] x4
'I know, system. I know.' Daichi thought with humor as he looked at the skill update messages.
He etched the name onto the vial's seal.
Serum: Codenamed: A.C.E.S. – Adaptive Cellular Endocrine Synchronizer.
Genma stood nearby, watching him.
"You finished it? So soon?"
"Oh yeah!" Daichi exhaled. "This is just the stabilizer that will buy time for me but its effects are much better than I ever anticipated."
Genma was amazed at how quickly Daichi came with the serum. "That's good. But still, isn't that an untested drug? Are you sure about it?"
"I am. 100 percent!"
Genma nodded. "If you're sure, I won't question you anymore."
"It will work. There's no doubt in my mind." After hours of testing and retesting, Daichi was confident in his new drug. It was even better than what he had originally planned to create.
—-------------------
Author's note:
Sorry about the month long absence. But I'm back now. Hopefully.
I've decided to make this entirely about Daichi to once again showcase his skills as an excellent medic and researcher.