This time, the patient was none other than the renowned genjutsu jōnin of Konoha—Yūhi Shinku.
During a mission, Shinku had used genjutsu to manipulate the enemy's perception, setting up what should have been a flawless victory. But just as he was about to land the final blow, the enemy suddenly countered and struck him with a poisoned senbon.
It was a bitter reminder of the limitations inherent in traditional genjutsu.
Even for someone of jōnin rank, genjutsu had its weaknesses. As long as the opponent possessed sufficient training or experience in dispelling illusions, they could not only break free but even turn the tables.
In contrast, the Uchiha clan's genjutsu, which operated through the Sharingan, was a different matter entirely.
The Sharingan was the ultimate manifestation of Yin Release, giving its wielder near-unbreakable illusion-casting capabilities. Even when an enemy realized they were trapped in a genjutsu, breaking free wasn't easy—it often came too late.
Hence, the old shinobi saying: "If you meet a Sharingan user, one-on-one, you run. Two-on-one—you stab them from behind."
Worse still, if the user had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan and unlocked techniques like Tsukuyomi, even a moment of eye contact could deliver intense psychological trauma.
In the original timeline, Hatake Kakashi had been left hospitalized just from being struck by Tsukuyomi once.
It was a chilling testament to the power of bloodline abilities.
Thankfully for Yūhi Shinku, his teammates had reacted quickly. They eliminated the enemy and rushed him back to Konoha Hospital without delay.
"Scalpel," Aoshi called out calmly.
The nurse beside him quickly passed the surgical tool into his hand.
Without hesitation, Aoshi made a precise incision on the poisoned area of the patient's shoulder, then activated the Delicate Illness Extraction Technique, carefully guiding his chakra to isolate and extract the toxins.
"Apply medicine."
Once the last trace of poison was removed, Aoshi gave the next order. The critical part of the surgery was over—what remained was standard post-treatment.
The procedure concluded shortly thereafter.
[You have completed treatment for Yūhi Shinku. Reward: 1 Gold Orb.
Congratulations! You've obtained: Demonic Illusion — Tree Binding Death.]
The system's notification echoed in Aoshi's mind.
His expression froze. He had already received this exact reward before—he hadn't expected a duplicate.
Just as disappointment started to settle in, the system chimed again:
[Duplicate reward detected.]
[Demonic Illusion — Tree Binding Death proficiency increased. Current Proficiency: Skilled.]
Ah—so duplicates boosted skill mastery. That was a fair and well-balanced mechanic.
Still thinking about the proficiency, Aoshi stepped out of the operating room, only to accidentally bump into a small figure. A girl fell backward from the impact.
"I'm sorry! I'm really sorry!" Before Aoshi could even react, the girl was already apologizing profusely.
"It's alright. I wasn't paying attention either." He smiled gently and helped her to her feet.
"Little one, where are your parents?"
"My dad was injured and hospitalized. I just found out and came to see him."
"What's your father's name? Big brother will help you find him."
"Yūhi Shinku."
Aoshi blinked. Now that he looked closely, the girl had red-tinted eyes and familiar features that tickled the edge of his memory.
Right—she was Yūhi Kurenai, only a child right now. Judging by her size, she must've just enrolled in the Ninja Academy.
The graceful, poised genjutsu Kunoichi from the future was now just a frightened little girl.
"What a coincidence—I was the one who treated your father. He's safe. I'll take you to see him."
"Really? That's great!" Relief washed over Kurenai's face.
She had been terrified when the Academy informed her about her father's condition. Without hesitation, she'd rushed to the hospital during lunch break—and that's how she bumped into Aoshi.
Aoshi gently took her by the hand and led her to the recovery ward.
"Dad!"
"Kurenai? What are you doing here?"
She quickly explained everything. Yūhi Shinku looked over at Aoshi with gratitude in his eyes.
"Thank you, Aoshi-kun."
"It was just part of the job," Aoshi said modestly. "I'll take my leave now."
"Big brother, thank you!" Kurenai bowed deeply.
Amused and touched by her sincerity, Aoshi smiled and gently patted her head before returning to his office.
Since no new emergencies had arisen, he pulled out the Chakra Scalpel scroll and resumed his studies. He was determined to win his bet with Tsunade, and even with his talent, he couldn't afford to waste time.
Soon, the workday came to a close.
Besides Yūhi Shinku, all of today's patients had been genin or chūnin.
That was expected. After all, the war was over, and peace had returned to the Land of Fire. Injuries to jōnin were rare outside of special missions or ambushes.
[Chakra: D-Rank (1170/10000)]
"Not bad. I gained 350 chakra today—finally broke past 1,000."
Looking at his system panel, Aoshi felt genuinely pleased. In just two days, his total chakra had more than doubled.
Becoming a chakra monster was only a matter of time.
After work, Aoshi went straight to his private training ground to begin actual practice of the Chakra Scalpel technique.
During work hours, he couldn't afford to recklessly deplete chakra on training. At any moment, a patient might need urgent care.
Now was the perfect opportunity.
He wove the hand seals: Boar – Ox – Tiger – Rat – Horse – Monkey – Goat.
A faint glow flickered to life on his right hand—a focused, blade-like strand of chakra.
This was Stage One—the manifestation of the Chakra Scalpel.
But forming the chakra blade was only the beginning.
The real challenge lay in the next step: performing internal incisions without leaving any external wounds. The blade had to be razor-sharp yet precisely controlled—to cut nerves or organs without damaging surrounding tissue.
Aoshi pulled out a fish he had prepared earlier and held it with his left hand. He gently pressed his glowing hand against its body.
Shhhk. The fish was sliced neatly in two.
"Failed."
That's right, this result was technically a failure. Despite the clean cut, Chakra Scalpel was a medical jutsu, not a killing tool. Precision was the goal, not destructive force.
If the chakra wasn't finely controlled, it could end up harming the patient more than helping them.
Still, Aoshi wasn't discouraged. It was an A-rank technique. Failure on the first try was expected. He analyzed his chakra flow, adjusted his output, and tried again with a second fish.
This one also ended up halved. But the incision was cleaner and smaller; an improvement.
One by one, Aoshi 'sent off' eight more fish. By the tenth attempt, the result had finally changed.
The fish remained whole. There was no external wound—but internally, the organs had been cleanly separated.
Stage Two achieved. He could now cut inside the body without breaking the skin.