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Sakura was interested in medical chakra the first time Iruka spoke about it in their second year. She knew she had good chakra control- she could plaster twenty leaves on her arms and face without breaking concentration- so medical jutsu should be easy to grasp.
It took her two months to just grasp how the human body was made up, how all organs were related to doing what; why people could survive with one kidney but not other organs. Why was the transplant so hard. It was so much to look into, as soon as she was finished with one book about anatomy, she had twenty questions and twenty new books.
She earned her bookworm nickname fair and square, she spent most of her free time devouring books at the library.
Haruno Sakura walked back home with her nose in a book - she had learned to channel chakra into her surrondence so she could walk and read without bumping into others - which had given her praise as a sensor after Iruka saw her using it at the schoolyard.
It was an easy twenty minutes walk into the Red district, three minutes straight then one left and up four stairs.
“Mimiko!” She greeted her older sibling, who was practicing her flute playing. The white haired beauty welcomed her with a warm smile, “Sakura,” She beckoned her to lay in her lap as she played. Sakura continued to read, and Mimiko continued to practise with the weight of someone in her lap - a man, soon.
“You’re debuting soon, right?” Sakura looked up.
Mimiko paused her playing, “In a year's time, when I become 13 springs.”
13 sounds too early. But they aren’t allowed to touch until 15, per madames rule. It’s still too early, but Sakura knows that when she graduates at 12 she will kill, and has heard of honey missions.
Honey and flowers. Sakura with her flawless skin, big green eyes and framing, exotic pink hair is destined for eather; madam usually sneers. So Sakura has to become used to killing, if she doesn’t want to end up as either of the pretty names.
“Iris told me you’re too good at everything. That you will probably be sold a virgin.” Sakura says back, even if she was only nine, she wasn’t stupied. She knew what their flower names meant. Knows what it means to be deflowered.
From all the flower girls, she’s the only one who made it past the first year in the academy.
“Yes, I just have to be exceptional, at dancing to music, to conversations. Perfection, in the eyes of the beholder.” Mimiko said back, brushing Sakura's hair softly.
“Raise your prize enough that you can buy out some of the other kids' freedom,” Sakura said dryly. She had the same wish.
The other flower girls mingle around, Lily attems to draw with her tips as far back on the pencil, her hands shake once and she has to start once again. If they aren’t perfect beauty in all womanly sports they can be sold quickly without value.
Sakura thinks this room has more motivation and ambition than her whole shinobi academy put together.
“I’ve healed a rabbit. Took me over a year since I first heard about mystical palm, but I’ve healed a cut. I can do bruises and cuts now.” Sakura said out loud from Mimiko’s lap. She turned the page. Music continued to play around her from different traditional instruments as they practiced for keeping their flower name.
The rumor will circulate towards those 15 or older, those with less talent and more rogue customers.
Haruno Sakura was a month shy from ten years old, and the regular one flowers went to if they had bruises, cuts, and sprain. At post one month after her tenth birthday, she could handle clean breaks.
Bookworm Sakura didn’t really have any friends in her class, and as they entered year four of six things became serious. There was no more time bullying others for their poor background or large forehead- now it became real taijutsu and more reading materials. Sakura didn’t have a problem with the latter, but the first was a huge mountain for her to climb.
Sakura took it upon herself to make a morning jog, every week a little bit further; always reading and using her chakra to sense people and obstacles in her way. It wasn’t a big improvement, but it was a small and steady one.
Her little chakra reserve grew with every injury she healed back home, and sensing chakra came as natural as breathing.
“This month, we’re going to learn to write a big essay! I want to have an introduction, questions you will answer, an argument for, an argument against, and some end thoughts!” Iruka smiled, having written out all four points.
All of her classmates groaned, except her seating buddy Shikamaru who was mostly asleep.
“It’s easy! You don’t have to have any sources, just write about what you want. For example, it can be a question like ‘Why kunai is better than a sword’, as long as you have arguments both pro and con, and some final conclusion!” Iruka smiled back.
It was an easy task, and Sakura could hear what he didn’t say - you don’t have to use sources to use sources for better grades ; final conclusion means imperial judgment without speaking for oneself .
Sakura nudged Shikamaru, “It’s an interesting task, who do you think will get the best score?” She knew he was a genius, he got shit scores on the exams because he only bothered to get exactly the point that got him through the class, and then he was a Nara.
Sakura knew more about all the Clans by being a flower, than she had as a shinobi student. The library will freely give away medical text to academy students, but clans and it’s secrets was a big no-no.
“The Nara ones are always so hard to please, they are either completely broken from their work, or want logical games matches,” Iris always complain - Lily is one of the usual go to whenever the frontman spots a Nara, she’s the only one that have studied enough shogi and go to make them shut up and think for hours while she sits up perfectly straight and pour tea like her posture isn’t hurting.
Shikamaru shrugs, “I’ll go with the suggestion Iruka-sensei just said.”
Sakura frowns, she always tries to give an olive branch but the lazy boy just ignores it, “Maybe you should write about why lazy deers still survive burns,” She sneers.
Shikamaru shook and set his eyes on her. She felt like a prey. “Sorry, I- I’m stressed. I’m only good as a book ninja.” She confesses back. She doesn’t want an heir - the Nara heir- to look at her too closely.
“I’m sorry- I just..” She couldn’t find the words.
“Wanted some intellectual competitions?” He asks back, shrugs and then falls asleep, “The other ones are too dumb and I’m too lazy. You’ve won- and stop apologizing.”
Sakura nods.
She thinks she made her first real friend today. Even if she did kind of insult him.
When Shikamaru awakens as the class gets out, his desk mate is already out. To his left is a detailed essay against why kunai is better than swords, with a note at the bottom ‘I know you can probably give better arguments, but I was bored as the lesson dragged on. Also it’s stupied, swords are better than kunai simply because they are cooler. S.H’
Shikamaru shook his head with a smile, it was all very good arguments for kunai’s, even if Sakura thought swords were better. Well, he might be lazy, but he will write this essay with why swords are better than kunai. Just to humor his deskmate who left him an easy A essay.
Sakura already knew what she was going to write about in her essay: medical jutsu. But more interesting: The few laws surrounding medical jutsu.
It was more that she wanted to know if she was breaking any law as she healed her flower sisters. Sakura really hoped she didn’t have to have a medical certificate to heal - she knew that you need to have rooftop road certificate to roam around over houses -which made sense, otherwise loud genins would bulldoze their way loudly in the middle of the night- and all of the different certificate the civilians had to have just for some simple stand in the busy streets.
The Flower district didn’t need any certificate, but they had their own rules and bouncers that enforced them.
Haruno Sakura was writing this essay in hopes to find that she was not breaking any laws.
Haruno Sakura was a week into writing her essay and had changed her title multiple times. She needs to stand out, to get a 100% because being a paper ninja was her biggest hope from becoming a full time flower or honey.
Medical Jutsu: The laws surrounding it.
Medical Jutsu: The few rules that apply.
Senju Hime: Medical genius and medic combat squad and laws.
No man's land: Medical jutsu.
If there is no rule, where does ethics come in?
Medical ethics: Gray zone wonderland.
The past week, Sakura had gone through more books than normal, creating a small mountain to the annoyance of the librarian. She bowed and apologized profusely as she put everything back in five minutes before the library closed at eleven.
She was concerned as she came home. From all her finds, there was no exam for medic nin. If you could heal, you worked at the hospital, simple at that.
Senju Tsunade changed it with her program of a medical ninja for every squad (which was a long way from completed - a medic ninja per class might even be pushing it), but it was more that the hospital ninja learned combat, instead of the other way around. Sakura was glad she hid her medic talent from her teacher, otherwise she would be sent straight to the hospital, a free genin headband and no skill to defend herself.
“Iris,” Sakura had almost gotten a small office, her bed was covered with a big red towel -washed every day- where she treated her fellow flowers. She was seated on a dentist chair without anything for her back, making it easy for her to roll to the patient at her bed and her small office table that was filled with all their jours’ Sakura painfully made and hid behind a sorting system only she knew and chakra safe. The only thing giving them privacy from the other girls under 13 was two shoji screens, dark in colors and gave the older flowers a sense of security.
She healed her bruised wrist, made the purple hand print on her neck disappear as she urged the body to speed up the healing with her chakra. With a serious look in her eyes, Sakura laid her hand on her hip, “I have never healed this, but I’m sure of my anatomy, I know how the muscle should bind, and it wouldn’t be of much concern or hurt as you have no chakra to fight against.”
“Please,” Iris said, her broken femur has been giving her pains these last weeks, but she’s been ignoring it with a pretty face and plenty of opium.
Sakura has to use both hands as she concentrates, it’s hard, it’s so much further in, but she's got this she knows what she is doing. Slowly tending the broken bones, mending the skeleton with precise chakra and slowly goes over every inch.
Almost an hour later, Sakura massages her leg without chakra.
“It’s?” Iris asks, shakingly. It didn’t hurt, but it felt like a weird massage attacking her inner body. Not bad, just weird.
“You can walk.” Sakura said, with a proud smile.
Iris laughed so much that she cried, “Thank you, thank you,” She didn’t have to settle down to serve just one. She could continue to be a dancing flower.
“But,” Sakura said, “You know everyone over forty. Can you give me anyone who has been a client of the sannin? I heard Jiraiya was a local super spender.”
“Why me?” Iris asked, curious more than anything. This brat’s been healing them for two years, and she knew Madame adored her so, for making sure her flowers could continue on.
“I want real information. I want to know what two real medical geniuses were like. And you’re so charming, I know all the old flowers love you.” Sakura said.
Iris made a
hmm
-ing sound, “I’ll ask around the elder, but most would be married by now.”
dead, married, or ruling their own flower harem.
left un said. “Thank you.” Sakura bowed again, before taking in the next flower with a broken bone from a too affective lover.
‘Have you found your subject?’ Shikamaru lazily taps next day, morse code; over the loud exiting ten year olds screaming before Iruka-sensei gets them under control at the start of the first lesson. It’s Thursday so it’s only one morning class containing geography and the rest is purely outside. Sakura hates Thursday, and she reckons Shika does too.
‘It keeps getting deeper and more complex,’ She taps back and she wonders if his ear is pressed to the scratchy table to hear over the squealing of their classmates, or if he can read finger taps like she.
‘It’s too much. Medical jutsu have no laws.’ Sakura pauses, ‘None, whatsoever. I can’t get a good argument if there is no law.’
Shikamaru actually sits up from his sleeping position and looks at her. “None?” He whispers.
Sakura nods her head, “The only law I can find about medical jutsu is about Senju Tsunade and her code about combat medics. There’s no certificate -nothing- to prove you use medical ninjutsu. Straight to the hospital if you have medical chakra and then you swear under hospital oaths.”
Shikamaru pauses, thinks, then shakes his head, “That’s nuts.”
Sakura looks at him, finally someone who understands the problem, “It means that if you are not in the hospital,”
“You have no law to fall under.” Shikamaru finished.
Iruka-sensei sent a glance toward the quiet student’s in the back and they both backed down to morse code.
‘You can see my problem. How can I argue back and forth if I have no legal grounds?’ Sakura tapped back.
‘I can see if I can find anything in my library.’ Shikamaru tapped back, this was actually interesting.
‘Nara? . . . Medical Ninjutsu. . . ‘ She really tapped the dot out individually. Shikamaru paused, she did have a point.
‘. . .’ He tapped back just to be petty. He couldn’t be of any help for her, but he did look for her future essay, it was a good point she raised.
Going deep into ethnic of medicine led her toward Orochimaru, and Tsunade. Same team. Same revulutionution in the medical field.
One went to heal, one went to experiment, history says.
Haruno Sakura reads the Sannin’s story in the library- it’s an interesting beginning of all their tales. The Senju Princess is hailed as a queen wherever she goes, her healing ability is something she simply scoffs off. A natural genius, and granddaughter of the first Hokage.
It’s a bit like her, Sakura finds with mild disgust. She doesn’t want to be like a sannin that never shows up, a hero only in name. They only have their natural medic chacra and need to hide, in common. She, from the hospital, prostituation and honey mission; Tsunade, from the limelight.
The other sannin was a snake, a prodigy from a no man's clan. Clanless and proud, and with a perfect face, probably from the Flower district and chose a name for himself -- after all, no one would name their son after a snake fable. Like the Senju heir, he was a prodigy with medical jutsu, but he weaponized it. And then he started his research, his experiments.
The third roamed around the land, finding inspirations for his series. Sakura didn’t need to read about him, he had been an amazing client at the flower districts, and after Iris’ inquiring the old ladies were happy to indulge in old memories. Sakura could read between the lines, they told him stories of all other clients more than having fun. He was a spy master, she guessed. Fit, to use the flowers no one thought twice about.
And they all left Konoha. And they were her generation's fabled heroes. The Sannins. San-nin. Three Ninjas. Jokes.
Ethics in Medic
Synopsis: As I was struggling to find material for my original question: The laws surrounding medical jutsu, I have changed the title to Ethics in Medic for the sole purpose to see where the line is drawn between the non existing law of medical jutsu and the ethic we all hone.
I couldn’t argue pro and con as there was no law; but I could argue with ethics. What could be considerate
-bad + but for a good future.
-bad + but in preparation of a future threat, or war time law.
-good + for a good future
-good + but in preparation of a future threat, or war time law.
It was a small intro, but it was something she could hold onto. Bad and good for a good future basically stayed the same- it will shine under the Hokage’s order and under T&I. Bad medical/ethnic tests could go even further, if it falls under war time policy.
And then Sakura was stuck, again. Ethics was highly debatable. Could you test poison on a Konoha person? No. On an Iwa? Yes, in peacetime. On a Suna? No, as we are allies. Could you test poison on a Konoha in Wartime? Yes, if the result would be that it could save many more.
And then it was the ethics to consider: Could a normal medic carry out these tests? To hear someone scream, cry and beg as you inject them with it? Probably not, but there are of course outliners (See: Orochimaru), but could the same normal medic carry it out with it being ordered? Now they had no guilt if the subject died.
And Sakura continued to scribble notes on ethics, but in the end there were barely any laws. The biggest ones she could fall back to was “Protect the civilians to your utmost duty.”, and “Never harm a fellow Konoha ninja.”
‘to your utmost duty’ - if it came to it, they could be used as experiments if the end justifies the means.
‘fellow konoha nin’ fellow: noun, male or female colleague, friend, associate, companion, structor, etc. One could then argue: if the medic felt no comrade towards his fellow konoha ninjas, if they saw themselves over them: could you be a fellow?
Ergo, had Orochimaru only experimented on criminals (officially branded by T&I or bingo books which holds the same value in the eyes of the law) he would not be a criminal.
In the end, all Sakura wrote just sounded so bad as she re-read it. It sounds more like a rebellion in waiting. Treason. If she ever published this as a paper instead of her scribbles on a scroll, she would never be able to graduate.
Because in the end, what she wrote was what every civilian dreams nightmares about.
The boogeyman of Konoha could, arguably, have done nothing wrong.
With thoughts on her future, Sakura threw the scroll into the fire and started working on a simpler essay.
(Sakura woke up in a frenzy, and re-wrote it all in a ROT8 with every true vowel would change backwards, to forwards, to backwards. She opted out of the classic rot13, and hoped that at best it looked like she was trying to learn kumo. She wished Shikamaru would read with her, and tell her she isn’t crazy and there’s a huge glaring red hole in the village's most secure place.)