"Abdominal swelling near the right rib... Skin and eyes jaundice... Pale and sickly figure."
"Ryoko-san, what were the patient's activities before these symptoms emerged?"
'Based on my knowledge, his body grew weaker due to a large amount of malignant cells coupled with these symptoms. I could safely assume this is liver cancer.'
Examining the condition, Yoichi looked seriously and asked about the patient's day-to-day movements from day to night.
When someone grows older, they are susceptible to sickness associated with harmful substance intake such as smoking, drinking alcohol, or UV radiation from the sun would result in genetic mutations in the normal cells turned into cancer cells.
Psychological factors such as stress, disorders, or traumas could also be a massive aspect when it comes to such complicated illnesses.
"When Sumiko's father, Soujiro's best friend perished in the war, my husband went into his drinking rampage. After his scheduled patrols, he always went inside of izakaya in the center. Drowning his sorrows because of what happened. And I... I just tolerated it until it came to this..."
The atmosphere went into sadness when they heard the story seemingly "aware but couldn't do anything to help the situation".
"Please... Yoichi-kun! I will do anything just to treat my husband! Please, help us..."
"Uncle Yoichi!!!" X3
'This is the everyday situation of every civilian family in this era... Desperate... Drowned in anguish and sorrow with no one helping them... Since I am here, I will help them. It will always gonna be my curse and blessing.'
Sobbing and pleading, Ryoko and the other three asked for help as Yoichi looked at them with a gentle expression.
"Please stop kneeling, I will save him. Luckily it is a treatable situation, if this persists a while longer..."
With certainty in his words, Yoichi revealed his face and began healing the patient as the kids and Ryoko stopped crying, looking at their benefactor with endless gratitude for saving a life.
"Wow, what's that? It feels so warm."
"I thought Uncle Yoichi was a warrior..."
"U-uncle Yoichi is handsome!"
"Yoichi-kun..."
'He looked so handsome... Those muscles and his eyes are captivating... What? What the hell are you thinking, Ryoko?! Why are you having thoughts about your benefactor?! But we don't have any way to pay for his benevolence...'
Looking at Yoichi's visage, the three kids are curious about the warmth aura he emanates meanwhile Ryoko looks at Yoichi's handsome face and slightly blushed about the thought she had in mind.
'I need to be careful here. With absolute precision and usage of Ki, I could expel all of the cancer cells within his bloodstream. If I went aggressive with the approach, I might destroy his organs alongside his blood vessels potentially killing my patient. But if I go passive here, the effectiveness of healing will be slow, and the Ki inside my body will gradually exhausted. I need to end this with absolute concentration!'
As Yoichi put his hands on the stomach of Soujiro, overwhelming Ki penetrated the bloodstream and began searching for cancer cells like police with arrest warrants.
The Ki inside of Soujiro felt warmth and comfortable like a sun as the Ki destroyed multiple cancer cells including the malignant tumors infesting in his liver.
On the other hand, Sumiko silenced her peers as well as her Aunt Ryoko with a serious expression. These times, they begged and prayed for a successful healing and faster recovery.
"Husband!"
"Uncle Soujiro!" X3
After 30 minutes of intense focus, Yoichi's face went pale as Soujiro coughed some black and pungent blood scent permeating around the room.
"W-what happened, Yoichi-kun?!"
"Don't worry, Ryoko-san. Soujiro-san will occasionally cough some black blood now that this problematic disease has been expelled from his body. He needs some proper rest and healthy food for now before he can recover."
Panicked at the sight of blood, Ryoko went to wipe her husband's blood and asked Yoichi about the situation. Yoichi replied that everything was fine.
"... What...is...going...on? Who...are...you?"
Looking at the complexion of Soujiro, Ryoko and the kids heaved a sigh of relief from the previous concerns as Soujiro woke up from the comfortable sensation he felt earlier.
"Husband! What are you feeling?! Are you fine?"
"... Yes. I feel fine, Ryoko. It feels like there's a profound strength helping me recover."
Soujiro sat down, looking at his sickly figure and his mysterious benefactor who saved him from the Shinigami's sickle.
"... Sir, thank you for saving my life! I will do anything to pay for your magnanimous assistance!"
In an instant, Soujiro knelt in a dogeza position and appreciatively said those words, his heart filled with gratitude.
"Soujiro-san, please stop kneeling and sit down. You need some decent rest right now. Please, just rest first and then we will talk about it at a later date. Is that okay?"
Yoichi sat down comfortably and reminded his patient of proper rest and healthy living.
"May I ask for the benefactor's name? My family is deeply in gratitude for helping us!"
"Dad, his name is Uncle Yoichi! Look at him, he looks handsome with those beautiful eyes! Wow, and even those muscles. Dad, you don't even have a fraction of Uncle Yoichi's muscles!"
A brat harshly interrupted the man-to-man conversation and hugged his father happily, earning the ire of his parents as well as Sumiko and Natsumi with a hand in their faces seemingly shamed for their friend's perfect intervention.
"You little brat! Still naughty, even in front of our valuable guest! When I recover, I will beat you hard since your mom didn't beat you hard enough! When I was your age, I was in the rice fields helping and maturing so fast! Look at you... Ah..."
Severely berated, Ryoma jumped up and hid in his mother's rear as Soujiro suppressed his angry and wrathful state, pointing his finger at his naughty youngster with a demonic expression written on his face.
"Mom, I—"
"Ryooooma~~"
Staring at Ryoko, Ryoma looked at his mother and noticed the 'caring smile'.
"HAHAHAHA!"
At that moment, Yoichi diffused the situation by laughing at the kid with a smile on his face filled with enjoyment as the husband and wife as well as the 2 girls shook their heads with helpless smiles.
The atmosphere right now was filled with admiration and happiness, permeating the room and giving energy to their casual and generic lives that were occupied by struggles of life.
———————————————————
"Oh, it's noon now... Are there any kinds of animals in the forest nearby? I will hunt for some food for us."
"No, no. Yoichi-kun, just stay right there and let me cook some meals."
"That's right, Yoichi-san. Just rest here and let my wife cook! My wife is one of the best cooks here! Let her do her thing and continue our conversation."
Yoichi stood up and asked for information as the husband and wife convinced him to stay, wanting to not disturb their guest's time resting.
"No, please let me do the work. I am a little bit weird in some cases. I need to do something or I'll die in boredom. Here's a proposition, I will go with the kids, and you two will rest here. Is that fine?"
"Yeah! Yeah! Mom, let us escort Uncle Yoichi! There are rabbits and boars there, hehehe I can't wait to savor them once again!"
"Let us go, Aunt Ryoko. We will pay attention to this blockhead and help Uncle Yoichi hunt some food."
"Y-yes, Auntie. Let's go."
Recovered from the Ki he released, Yoichi and the kids ran away from the house without even giving the married ones a chance to control the situation any longer.
"Children, what are your dreams? Like what do you think about your future selves? What were the ambitions and goals you wanted?"
After going out, Yoichi went into the woods with the kids, curiously asking about their aspirations and dreams.
"I want to be a mighty warrior just like my father... Protecting my family and the town but after seeing Uncle Yoichi, I want to be like Uncle Yoichi!"
"Hmph, blockhead. You can't even fight those snotty brats in our neighborhood and you dream this high."
"There's one and only Uncle Yoichi! You can't be like Uncle Yoichi!"
Ryoma revealed his ambitions and goals to the gang as the two girls vehemently interjected seemingly denying Ryoma's dream as just a fart's wish.
"Heh... Then what's your dream huh? Don't tell me you wanted to be like those extravagant officials in the eastern part of town. Hmph, such a coward job and they are just parasites my father said."
"I wanted to be the best merchant so I could help with my family and friends but looks like Ryoma doesn't need help so I will leave you out! I am a brilliant girl and many people know that. I will achieve my dreams and then buy some thugs to beat you up!"
"Heh... Fart's dream!"
Sumiko gritted her teeth and harshly commented on her dreams of beating Ryoma while becoming the best merchant alive.
"Stop fighting, we are in the forest okay? My prey will leave if you are this loud."
Yoichi felt like he was looking at the mountain rams fighting with their horns as Ryoma and Sumiko glared at each other with childish hate and annoyance.
"What about Natsumi-chan? What's your dream?"
"I... I want to be a teacher like Uncle Yoichi and my Mom! Mom is a fierce but caring teacher and Uncle Yoichi is a great, gentle guy who always helps!"
Lastly, Natsumi proclaimed her dreams to everyone as Yoichi patted her head with a gentle smile on his face.
'This kid is super adorable. I didn't teach anything but this kid was very...perceptive.'
"Hmmm... A mighty warrior, the best merchant, and a helper like a teacher huh..."
"That settles it! I will be your sensei!"