When Mizuki arrived at Hayate Gekko's hospital room, the surrounding guards didn't offer much opposition. Everyone was fairly familiar with this ninja who had been showing his face frequently these days.
Watching the medical ninja coming and going from the hospital room, busy with their duties, it was clear Hayate's condition wasn't looking promising.
"How is he?" Mizuki asked a busy ninja.
"His body has been temporarily stabilized, but he shows no sign of waking up at all. It's already barely managing to keep his organs from failing."
"Still can't use the mind-reading technique?"
"There's nothing more we can do unless there's further improvement in his condition."
It seemed without further measures, it would be very difficult to save Hayate's life.
"When will Inoichi Yamanaka be coming over?" Mizuki asked with a sigh.
"He was just here; maybe he went out for a meal. He should be back soon."
"That's good. When the senior comes, please notify me. I'll rest outside for a while."
To be honest, these past few days had consumed too much energy. Mainly though, it was mental exhaustion. With the Chunin Exams approaching, his anxiety grew stronger and harder to suppress. He always felt like something was missing from his preparations.
Sitting on a bench in the hospital, waiting, Mizuki couldn't help dozing off. A few days ago, this was where Karin slept; she never expected it would be Mizuki's turn next. Speaking of which, the ninja from other villages had already left several days ago. No wonder the hospital was much quieter than before.
Just as Mizuki was falling asleep, he suddenly sensed someone approaching. When he lifted his head, it was exactly who he was looking for—Inoichi Yamanaka.
"Senior, long time no see," Mizuki greeted first, as a junior should.
"Didn't we just meet a few days ago?" Inoichi replied politely. "My daughter Ino must've caused you some trouble lately."
"Not at all. Actually, Ino helped me greatly."
"You flatter me. So, what did you need to talk to me about?"
"It's about Hayate…" Mizuki became serious. "Let's go find somewhere else to talk?"
...
On a quiet corner of the rooftop terrace, Mizuki and Inoichi leaned against the railing, engaged in conversation.
"What did you want to talk about regarding Hayate?" Inoichi asked.
Looking down at the crowd below, Mizuki murmured softly, "There's something I'd like to discuss with you. But once we leave this place, I'll deny ever having said it."
"Hmm?" Mizuki's solemn tone caught Inoichi's attention.
"Three days ago when I went to report to the Third, I overheard some troubling rumors."
"The village elders have requested that we quickly extract the intelligence inside Hayate's brain."
"Even if it means killing him?" Inoichi asked gravely.
"Precisely." Mizuki answered bluntly. "I'm sure you're not completely unaware of this situation. I suspect you've also been under great pressure, haven't you?"
Inoichi didn't speak, tacitly acknowledging Mizuki's words.
"Frankly speaking, as an old comrade-in-arms, I'm relieved he survived. But having his life taken by fellow villagers like this—this outcome is really hard to swallow."
"So you came to ask me if there's any way?"
"You could say that. Actually, I'd rather try to see if there's any possibility of saving him. Even if Hayate Gekko ends up beyond saving, I'd still like to try my best to change that outcome."
After hearing Mizuki's words, Inoichi Yamanaka tightly gripped the handrail.
"What should we do?"
『So Yamanaka Inoichi isn't as stubborn as he seems—there might still be room to shift things.』
"I have no intention of prying into your mind-reading secret technique, elder, but I'd like to understand: what poses the greatest danger to Hayate Gekko?"
"The main threat comes from spiritual damage," Inoichi decided to share some insights and experience regarding the spirit. "A person's mind isn't a perfect, unified whole—it's actually a collection of slightly different personalities, like fragments making up an overall identity. At various moments, people don't always behave consistently. For example, they might occasionally do things that even surprise themselves, like going somewhere they didn't want to go, eating food they dislike, or buying something utterly useless that they regret bringing home."
"This is the first time I've heard this kind of explanation," Mizuki said. The topic had become difficult to delve deeply into philosophical discussions about the existence of consciousness; such questions were simply too complicated and lacked standard answers, so one could only grasp them abstractly.
"According to your explanation, Senior, does that mean everyone is somewhat of a split personality?"
"Well, you can't exactly put it that way. Actually, this is just how the human spirit and soul are. When these different personalities don't recognize each other—or worse, start rejecting each other—that's when schizophrenia occurs. Normal people don't have to worry about this; at most, they might possess certain sub-personalities that deviate from the norm but remain hidden or suppressed. However, as long as all these personalities coalesce into a single, inseparable, mutually recognizing whole, then it's considered a complete soul."
"Oh, really?" Mizuki honestly wasn't completely convinced by that explanation, but considering the sign outside his own flower shop—where even basic microbes could develop simple consciousnesses capable of cultivating chakra—it seemed like Inoichi's theory might actually hold some truth.
"When used against normal people, the Yamanaka family's secret techniques can cause severe spiritual recoil to the user. Normally, with sufficient rest afterward, the harm isn't too great. But Hayate Gekko's situation is extremely special—both his body and spirit have suffered severe damage, and his consciousness is in self-defense mode. This also indirectly proves he has absolutely no resistance left. Once his mind is forcibly breached to extract intelligence, the possibility of ever reconstructing a complete personality becomes virtually zero. Without spiritual support, his physical death becomes merely a matter of time."
"Has it gotten this bad already?" Mizuki muttered.
"That's why Hayate Gekko needs fundamental improvement. As for extracting information—I can easily obtain it. Even if someone just died recently, as long as their brain remains intact, I can peek into it a little. But under these circumstances, I feel quite helpless." Inoichi also felt powerless in this case.
"The real issue is we're dangerously short on time."
"Mizuki muttered under his breath.
"Yeah, we can't afford to wait. The higher-ups are getting impatient."
Looking down at the bustling crowd and the prosperous scene below, Mizuki let out a sigh. He couldn't file intelligence reports personally anymore—he had finally cleared his name and couldn't risk falling under suspicion again. Still, there were a few things he could manage when it came to Hayate Gekko.
"Sir, maybe I can handle the situation you're worried about..."
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