Only a very few truly shine in war.
Kaede Tsukasa felt he wasn't one of them—but others thought differently.
After crushing the Sand Village, numerous Konoha ninja cheered and celebrated, returning to the main camp one after another to deliver the spoils of war and captured prisoners to designated areas.
These would all serve as bargaining chips for Konoha in post-war negotiations.
Many were battered and dirty, but their spirits soared as they loudly recounted their battlefield exploits.
The medical corps, in particular, was the liveliest. Many ninja's first priority upon returning was healing, making the area densely crowded.
"Hey, hey, hey! Did you hear? Araki of the Sandstorm is dead—he was an elite jōnin of the Sand Village!"
"I heard! Kato Dan's strength is incredible—he might even rival the Hokage!"
"Not only that, I heard Kato Dan say it was Kaede Tsukasa who interfered with Araki of the Sandstorm and created the opportunity!"
"The one using the Dead Soul Technique?"
Kaede Tsukasa's performance brought unprecedented attention to the Dead Soul Technique. The ability to freely control corpses was so unusual, and on this battlefield littered with bodies, everyone immediately understood just how terrifying the jutsu was.
Especially when Kaede Tsukasa developed a new space-time ninjutsu through the Dead Soul Technique, it caused a sensation.
It couldn't be hidden. The battle to eliminate Araki of the Sandstorm had already drawn attention, and many present witnessed Kaede Tsukasa's Void, which spread the news even further.
Space-time ninjutsu!
Who wouldn't want it? Who wouldn't want to learn it?
Just hearing the name Minato Namikaze—without even seeing him in action—was enough to imagine the dizzying spectacle of instantaneous movement.
Just as the Flying Thunder God Technique had begun spreading, now there was a young ninja here mastering a space-time technique?
"This was developed based on the Dead Soul Technique? It has that potential?!"
Nearly everyone, curious about Kaede Tsukasa's exploits, wore expressions of astonishment.
Medical ninja, in particular, felt their minds overwhelmed.
Controlling corpses alone might have drawn some resentment, but adding space-time ninjutsu? That completely changed the perception of Kaede Tsukasa's version of the Dead Soul Technique.
That was the allure of space-time ninjutsu.
The medical corps grew almost frantic, seeking to learn the Dead Soul Technique by any means, even trading battle merits with the village. Yet once obtained, no matter how much they studied, they confirmed it was only a short-term corpse-control technique.
"No matter how much one trains, it can only animate a corpse for a few dozen seconds, and it can't handle intense combat. How did Kaede Tsukasa overcome this limitation? How can he control corpses for so long and even use their pre-mortem jutsu?"
And that's not even mentioning that Kaede Tsukasa could command multiple corpses simultaneously, achieving formidable combat power—and even perform space-time ninjutsu through them!
Under this mix of intense curiosity and astonishment, Kaede Tsukasa's name spread at an astonishing speed.
Logically, he hadn't yet achieved feats capable of changing the tide of battle, nor become a Konoha hero—but the stir he caused temporarily outshone others.
Kato Dan's offhand comment calling Kaede Tsukasa a genius—whether to open a conversation with him or not—also began circulating rapidly.
More and more people began to reassess Kaede Tsukasa, increasingly convinced that he, too, was a genius.
On the battlefield against Iwa, producing a Minato Namikaze was extraordinary—so having a Kaede Tsukasa on their side seemed reasonable, right?
"…My talents are far from comparable to Minato Namikaze. The rumors from my comrades are far too exaggerated," Kaede Tsukasa said, standing before Tsunade to report, looking extremely helpless.
A genius?
Perhaps in time—but not yet.
"Don't belittle yourself. Everyone can see your abilities. Your main shortcomings can also be addressed," Tsunade said.
Her style was exceptionally efficient. Despite her busy schedule, she had specifically summoned Kaede Tsukasa—not to listen to some routine report. Kato Dan had already briefed her on the details.
The main purpose was to observe Kaede Tsukasa up close—after all, he was a ninja directly under her command in the medical corps.
But upon seeing him up close, Tsunade was still shocked by his physical condition.
She placed a finger on Kaede Tsukasa's shoulder, sensing his chakra in a quick sweep. "With your physical condition… how are you even alive? No wonder you were overlooked during the Root recruitment screening."
It was almost horrifying. To Tsunade, this skinny young man seemed like a paper doll!
The incredibly sparse number of cells was impossible to conceal from a top-tier medical ninja like her.
"There's nothing I can do. I was born this way, so I said before, surviving this long is thanks to the village's care," Kaede Tsukasa explained.
Tsunade had never seen a body like this. On the surface, he looked normal—but a detailed examination revealed him to be like a flat, hollow figure, with terrifying internal deficiencies.
With a body like this, even a common flu could be fatal—but Kaede Tsukasa had survived to sixteen and become an outstanding chūnin.
"No wonder your profile mentions that you're solitary, though some teammates didn't notice this. I roughly understand now… a body like this should indeed be reclusive. If you'd gotten too close to people carelessly, you might not have survived."
Her research instincts urged her to study this unprecedented body carefully, though she only thought about it mentally.
"I will teach you the technique to stimulate the body with chakra. With your learning ability, mastering it won't be difficult. It can help alleviate your chakra deficiency somewhat. But your fingers… I can't do anything about that. Though it seems you don't mind," Tsunade said.
Immediately, Kaede Tsukasa summoned a zombie. "Lord Tsunade, the jutsu I wish to perform can be executed through zombies, effectively compensating for my shortcomings."
"Zombies… indeed, your jutsu has already diverged from the original Dead Soul Technique and taken another path."
"Yes. I've named this secret jutsu of mine the Zombie Release."
Zombie Release…
Just the name sounded like a forbidden technique.
But that was fine. She judged Kaede Tsukasa to be a cautious, intelligent person—he wouldn't recklessly follow a forbidden path exploiting the corpses of his comrades.
As for using enemy corpses… in times of war, that was acceptable.