Naofumi of the Sharingan

Chapter 23 - Plauge of Mirso Village

Deciding he had done enough for one night, Naofumi placed the accessories into a bag and placed them inside the cart, before seating himself on a rock and continued on his watch. He had another hour and a bit to go before Keel took over, so he would spend that time diligently watching over his new family and ensuring their safety.

———

Just before setting out, they came across an old woman and a small boy, warning them that only death awaited them along their road, and that even the village elder had succumbed to the plague. After giving them some food for their journey, Naofumi and his team continued on.

Soon enough, they entered through the gate to the village, the buildings seemingly falling apart and decaying, and without a single person in sight. "It's like a ghost town." Naofumi muttered, looking over the sad excuse of a village. "They need more help than I thought."

Naofumi continued on until he found a person, standing in the doorway of one of the buildings, seemingly the only resident. "Well, what brings you to a god forsaken place like this?"
"I'm a travelling merchant with medicine to sell." said Naofumi, taking in the appearance of the old man. Withered and skiny, without any meat between his skin and his bones, his wrinkles telling that the old man had seen better days.

"Travelling merchant you say?" he asked, before laying eyes on Filo. "Wait, that filolial! Could it be?! Is that the Heavenly Fowl?!" Without even waiting for Naofumi to respond, the man rushed off in a gusto Naofumi had by no means expected. "Doctor! Quick!" he called, as Naofumi followed him.

They came to the building in by far the best condition, the hospital, as it seemed. The old man was already in the doorway talking with someone. "What is it? What's the matter?" asked an unknown voice, which Naofumi assumed was the doctor.
"Our Saviour of the Heavenly Fowl has come for us!" he exclaimed as the doctor walked out, looking where the old man was pointing. "He's right there!"

Naofumi walked down further in front of the doctor. "I heard you had a need for medicine Doc, I'm hoping mine could be of use to you."
"Oh, thank you. I can't make nearly enough for everyone." said the doctor. "I-if I may ask, a-are you really him, the Saviour of the Heavenly Fowl?"
"I didn't come up with the name, but people have called me that." said Naofumi, as the eyes of the two men lit up. "My companions here will unload the medicine we have whilst we talk payment. Let's see if my medicine can be of help."

———

Naofumi looked out upon the sea of sick people. It mad him slightly sick himself to see all the people struggling. The clinic, not hospital, had nowhere near enough beds for the people that needed treatment, so a good 70% of them were lying on the floor, in any space available. It reminded Naofumi of how bad things were during the Third Great Ninja War, where he and his team volunteered at the hospital, distributing supplies and medicines between wards and doctors. Without Tsunade Senju, there were far more deaths in the hospitals than there could have been.

"Good morning." said a voice, drawing Naofumi out from his memories. He turned to see a pretty nurse with pink hair and blue eyes greeting the three of them. "Oh, Doctor, are these people with you?"
"They just arrived." explained the doctor. "They're going to sell us some medicine."
Naofumi got to work instead. "I should probably give them all the medicine myself." he said, as he walked over to the first patient. A middle aged man with dark brown hair, but not enough strength to open his eyes.

Naofumi equipped his Book Shield, seeing as his Small Medicine Shield's Equip Bonus could be accessed from any shield at this point, allowing for not only a small increase in the effectiveness of the medicine, but also a power up to his magical capacity to utilise his Equip Bonus, making it even more effective. After the man swallowed the medicine, he could be seen far more relaxed, as if the weight of the world had been taken off his shoulders.