Early the next morning, Maito Dai, upon receiving the message from the Hokage, went alone to the guesthouse and met Sunaen.
And so, accompanied by Sunaen's yawns and a group of curious onlookers, everyone headed toward Maito Dai's home.
The small room was filled with one, two, three... ten people.
Sunaen looked at the F4, the Sannin, and the Maito father and son, and spoke to them.
"Now, I am about to begin the treatment. During this time, you must not make any noise or interfere with my process. Can you all manage that?"
"Rest assured, with this old man present, no one will utter a sound!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's guarantee was immediately conveyed.
"Mm!"
After responding, Sunaen closed his eyes.
About ten minutes later, just as everyone was growing impatient, Sunaen opened his eyes.
This was immediately followed by the appearance of golden wing patterns around Sunaen's eyes and Jiraiya's exclamation.
"Sennin Mōdo (Sage Mode)!!!"
"Hmph~!" Sunaen glared intensely.
Jiraiya, realizing his mistake, quickly covered his mouth with both hands, narrowly avoiding being thrown out.
Next.
Everyone watched as Sunaen placed his hand on Nanako's wrist. Immediately, wisps of golden energy particles surged toward her wrist, slowly spreading throughout her entire body.
"Sluuurp!"
This was the sound of Orochimaru licking his face with his tongue. He couldn't help it; it was simply too exciting for the snake. If he wasn't mistaken, this wasn't just treatment—it was directly infusing the patient with life force. Orochimaru now wished it was him lying on the bed.
In fact, Orochimaru wasn't wrong. Sunaen was using Shizen Enerugī (Natural Energy) to repair the damage to Nanako's cells and restore their vitality.
Simply put, it was resetting the body's cells. It was practically the same as increasing longevity.
After an hour of infusion, Sunaen finally stopped.
He couldn't help it; an ordinary person's body was simply too fragile, so Sunaen had to infuse the energy very slowly.
"It's done. She should wake up in a few minutes. She'll be quite hungry these next few days, so remember to feed her plenty of nutritious food."
Sunaen, having finished his work, spoke to the Maito father and son, who had been watching with anticipation.
"Thank you, Kazekage-sama!"
"It's nothing. After all, you are now a member of Sunagakure, aren't you, Hokage-sama?"
"Indeed, the Kazekage is right. Since we have already agreed, the Shinobi of Konoha naturally will not go back on their word!"
"Dai! You will accompany the Kazekage back to Suna, but remember this: Konoha will always be your home, and the Hi no Ishi (Will of Fire) will illuminate every wanderer abroad!"
"Yes, Hokage-sama! I will definitely keep your teachings in mind!"
"Incredible! This is truly unbelievable! The depletion in her body has been completely cured! Heh heh heh, this is so exciting!"
As soon as Sunaen finished the treatment, Orochimaru impatiently rushed forward, summoning various instruments to examine her, speaking excitedly as he checked.
"Yes, what an incredible ability!" Tsunade, standing nearby, also commented.
But immediately after, she grew sad.
[If only, if only I had known Sunaen possessed this ability earlier, Grandmother...]
"Mito-sama gave up."
Facing the suddenly dejected Tsunade, Sunaen, who felt little girls like her were the easiest to handle, spoke a single sentence that hit exactly what Tsunade was thinking.
"Are you saying..."
"Yes! Mito-sama personally refused. She said she wanted to rest."
"I'm sorry, I was too selfish. But still, thank you."
"Mm! Marrying me would suffice!"
"Go die! You scumbag!"
The next scene was Nanako waking up and the family embracing each other.
Everyone else tactfully retreated.
Sunaen, meanwhile, returned directly to the guesthouse. After all, if he didn't leave soon, a certain snake would practically be climbing onto his body.
Sunaen felt the time wasn't right yet; only by casting a long line could he catch the "Great Snake."
Inside the Hokage's office at this time, the new and old core group of seven were sitting together.
"Jiraiya, are you certain?"
"Certain! It must be Sennin Mōdo. During the Sandaime Kazekage's treatment, I sensed the fluctuation of Shizen Enerugī. I just don't know which Senpō (Sage Art) it is."
"Are you sure it isn't a Senpō from the Sandai Senchi (Three Great Sage Regions)?"
"I'm sure. The Sandaime Kazekage's Sennin Mōdo is easy to distinguish. None of the Sandai Senchi currently have a form with wings!"
"Understood! Then there is another question! Jiraiya, can you accomplish this feat? To restore vitality to someone who was near death!"
"No! At least, I haven't heard of anyone who can achieve this level!"
"I see! Very well!"
With Jiraiya's affirmative reply, Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression grew increasingly solemn.
"Therefore, based on the current intelligence, we can conclude:
First, there is another Sage Region besides the Sandai Senchi, and this region most likely involves flying summons!
Second, this type of Senpō currently possesses extremely powerful self-healing and even life-restoring capabilities, along with great longevity in its use!"
"Does anyone have anything to add?"
"Hiruzen! If your analysis is correct, doesn't that mean that the older generation Shinobi in Sunagakure..."
"Exactly! This is my greatest concern right now. No matter how powerful an individual is, as long as they haven't reached the level of Hashirama-sama, Konoha has nothing to fear. But I worry that Sunaen's ability can truly increase a person's lifespan, or even if it can't, that it can heal the hidden injuries of those older, powerful Shinobi, making their peak period last much longer."
"Imagine this: when you are in your fifties and your combat power is declining, next door in Suna, their Shinobi are also in their fifties but are still in their prime. The gap created by this difference is massive!"
Following Sarutobi Hiruzen's line of thought, everyone felt a chill of apprehension.
Indeed.
Shinobi frequently fight and often get injured. The principle of Iryō Ninjutsu (Medical Ninjutsu) is to accelerate the division of one's own cells to achieve rapid healing. But as everyone knows, cell division has a limit, and every accelerated division is essentially consuming your remaining lifespan prematurely.
Fighting, getting injured, healing, fighting again, getting injured again, healing again—each cycle wears down the body and shortens one's lifespan.
This is why a Shinobi can start referring to himself as "this old man" even in his thirties.
But what about Sunagakure now?
Fighting, getting injured, healing, feeling depleted?
Sunaen: "No problem! Lie down, you'll be fine in an hour!"
The only cost is eating more nutritious food!
When they go to war, while other villages send father-and-son teams, Sunagakure will directly send grandfathers, sons, and grandsons to the front lines, instantly increasing their military strength by a third!
And that third consists of experienced, powerful veteran Shinobi!
Thinking of this, everyone felt a shiver of dread.
"Hiruzen! We cannot allow Suna to continue developing like this! Konoha must impose sanctions on Sunagakure!"
"Mm."
Surprisingly, no one opposed Danzō this time, which momentarily made Danzō feel uncomfortable.
"Danzō! Increase infiltration into Sunagakure! Confirm what the Sandaime Kazekage's summon is! Ascertain the physical condition of Suna's older generation!"
"Don't worry, Hiruzen! Leave it to me! However, if this is the case, Ne's (Root's) manpower..."
"Draft a list for me later, and I will assign the personnel to you!"
"Rest assured, Hiruzen! I have nine—nine methods! I guarantee I will get the intelligence for you!"
Having heard what he wanted, Danzō excitedly assured Sarutobi Hiruzen and then left immediately, already impatient to write down the names of the people he wanted.
"Hiruzen, won't doing this..."
Looking at Danzō's excited departure, Mitokado Homura spoke up to caution him.
"It's fine. Sunagakure's threat is greater right now. I have things under control!"
"Mm! Alright then."
Seeing that Hiruzen had said so, Mitokado Homura said no more.
"Jiraiya!"
"Sensei!"
"How much longer until you master Senpō?"
"Uh... well... old man... learning Senpō doesn't happen overnight..."
"Then make it fast! From now on, you cannot leave until you have mastered Senpō! The Anbu will assist you!"
"Old man, you can't... Fine, I understand!"
Looking at his master's unquestionable gaze fixed upon him, Jiraiya knew he had no room to negotiate and could only nod in resignation.
"Alright, that settles it. Orochimaru, Tsunade, you two also go back and ask your respective summons about this."
"Mm." (x2)
After everyone had left, Sarutobi Hiruzen let out a small sigh.
"Sigh~, I wonder if what I'm doing is right?"