Naruto: I Have Cursed Spirits!

"Since you claim to have mastered healing jutsu, then try this!"

Tsunade reached out and forcefully yanked Shiratori's hair, almost pulling his head right off his neck.

Shiratori steadied himself. Out of the corner of his eye, he glanced down, and sure enough, black mist was beginning to seep out from the ring on his finger again.

"Don't..."

"Don't go near Yuta..."

A ghostly female voice drifted through the air.

Tsunade's expression turned serious as she searched for the source of the voice.

Shiratori quickly reached for the ring and spoke softly, "Rika, Tsunade-sensei is guiding me in training. Be good, okay?"

Don't get jealous over nothing, alright?

As he gently caressed the ring, the black mist gradually faded.

"I will behave…"

"Will listen to Yuta…"

Tsunade heard the voice lingering in the air and focused her gaze on the ring on his finger.

What is this?

Her confusion was written all over her face.

Shiratori gave her a gentle smile and explained, "She's my fiancée, Rika. She's a bit jealous. I hope you don't mind."

Tsunade stared at the ring in disbelief. She couldn't quite understand his words.

His ring… is his fiancée?

And it talks?

Jiraiya facepalmed. From Tsunade's expression, he knew exactly what she was misunderstanding.

He explained on the boy's behalf, "Rika and Shiratori were childhood friends. After she died… her soul stayed in the ring to protect him."

Tsunade was dumbfounded. She stared at Shiratori in shock.

Her expression gradually turned more serious. "How could a soul remain behind? After the body dies, the soul should pass on to the other side, right?"

Shiratori's lips pressed together, his voice quiet when he spoke. "I cursed Rika… I made it so her soul couldn't cross over, and would stay by my side."

"A curse?"

Tsunade glanced at Jiraiya. Judging by his expression, he clearly knew about this. "How did you curse her?"

She had never seen anything this strange before.

Shiratori shook his head slowly. "I don't know. I only know that I couldn't accept Rika's death. So… her soul remained. I want to let her move on to the Pure Land, but I can't."

His head lowered, shoulders sagging slightly.

Seeing the way his hands trembled just barely, Tsunade's stern expression softened. She had originally thought he had used some kind of forbidden jutsu that went against the will of the dead. But it didn't seem to be the case. It looked like the soul had been unintentionally bound due to his feelings.

This must be some secret technique he possessed.

A technique he himself couldn't even control.

But... could this technique be harmful to him?

She caught herself thinking too much and quickly shook her head to rid herself of the worries. He was Jiraiya's student. It was Jiraiya's responsibility to worry about these things.

She was only temporarily guiding him in medical ninjutsu. She had no intention of getting overly involved.

Acting as if nothing had happened, she changed the subject: "The next jutsu I'll teach you is the Chakra Scalpel."

As she finished speaking, she extended both hands in front of him. A layer of blue chakra instantly coated her hands.

The chakra flowed over her palms, forming the shape of blades.

She glanced at Jiraiya. Understanding her cue, he handed her the live fish once again.

The chakra scalpel was incredibly sharp, slicing open the fish's belly with ease.

She explained, "The chakra scalpel can cut through the outer layer of the skin without leaving external wounds, allowing you to operate inside the body. It can also be used as a weapon."

Shiratori listened and nodded. "I understand."

The chakra scalpel in Tsunade's hands disappeared, replaced by a glowing green light. The wound on the fish's abdomen quickly healed.

She placed the fish in front of him. "You try."

Shiratori nodded.

While Tsunade was demonstrating the chakra scalpel earlier, he had already activated Copy.

With the amount of cursed energy he currently possessed, copying two A-rank jutsu was well within his capacity.

He stretched out both hands.

Tsunade and Jiraiya both watched his hands closely, inexplicably tense.

In the next moment, a blue light appeared in their pupils. Blue cursed energy gathered over his hands, quickly forming blade-like shapes.

It looked exactly like the chakra scalpel Tsunade had just formed. The only difference was, his was a cursed energy scalpel.

Using it, he sliced open the fish's belly.

The incision was smooth and clean.

Tsunade looked at his focused profile. The shock she had accumulated was so overwhelming, she was numb to it now.

She still couldn't believe such a talented ninja existed in this world, but the facts were in front of her and could not be denied.

The cursed energy disappeared from his hands, and he placed his hand over the fish's wound. His healing technique also relied on cursed energy.

Tsunade grabbed his hand.

He looked at her, confused.

She glanced at the fish and said, "This fish has been used for many rounds of medical ninjutsu experiments. Even if you use healing techniques, you won't be able to save it."

This was the most important lesson she wanted to teach him, "Medical ninjutsu cannot save every life."

Her gaze dropped.

Even though she was the strongest medical-nin, there were still times when she was powerless. When facing severely wounded, dying comrades, all she could do was ease their pain, not stop death.

As the fish's tail, which had been slapping the ground, gradually stilled, Shiratori shook free from Tsunade's iron grip. He placed both hands over the wound on the fish's belly, his brow furrowed in concentration.

A green light quickly radiated from his palms.

The long wound healed rapidly. Just as the fish's tail had gone still, it suddenly began to flap again.

He gently cradled the fish and released it back into the sea.

The moment it touched the water, it regained full vitality, darting away like lightning and vanishing from view.

Tsunade stepped forward, grabbed his hands, and held them up to her eyes.

"What did you do?"

These hands looked no different from hers. But they had just healed a fish that should have been impossible to save. No one knew better than her: that fish had undergone countless experiments, its cells had lost all vitality. The wound should've been impossible to heal.

Shiratori seemed not to understand Tsunade's outburst. He looked at her quietly and said, "I didn't do anything special. I just thought… I wanted to save it."

All strength seemed to drain from Tsunade's body. She let go of his hands, letting them fall.

She stared deeply at him.

On the battlefield, she had once desperately tried to save her fallen comrades, but no miracle had ever occurred. No matter how much chakra she poured in, they still died.

But now, this miracle had happened.