Healing X and X Recuperating

AN: I nearly forgot I was supposed to make a chapter today, I was pretty burned out as I just got done with the first quarter of my spring semester and a few papers and tests were due near the end of the week. I think I'm going to spend the rest of the day painting or playing nomifactory... enjoy the rest of your day and hopefully the chapter.

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"You look somewhat familiar? Did you go to JHS high school over in Jappon?" lying as easily as I breathed I fabricated a somewhat plausible story. And seeing her expression shift from suspicion to slight confusion to a neutral one I gave myself a mental pat on the back.

"No, I did not." Nodding at the response I walked over to the table and placed the briefcase between us before sliding out of the chair with my foot and I slumped back into the chair. Drumming my fingers on the table for a second I stared at the case before raising my gaze to look at her.

"Well I suppose we should get down to business now… how should we go about this?" Thumbing the numbers on the case lock I began slowly inserting the first half of the code before I began to speak. Rather than giving a sense of urgency or rushing through these sorts of small details, I wished to remove as many complications and costs from this transaction.

"I can just take the money at the end, I need to see the injury and I will ask a few questions regarding it before I get to fixing it up." Peering down at the briefcase for a moment she pushed for us to move away from the topic of payment. Not that she seemed to care much about it, but more that she knew what she was getting and had the ability to take it from me willing or unwilling.

"Alright then… It was roughly 84 hours ago, It was a clean cut and it has been cleaned and on ice since." finally opening up the suitcase with a short click noise I began to explain my own injury with as many details excluded besides the bare minimum. Looking inside the suitcase were two subsections, one filled to the brim with stacks of paper notes and the other filled with a small stack of three styrofoam to-go boxes. Grabbing the boxes that were being used as an impromptu cooler and opening them up on the table I revealed my bandaged-up but severed hand sitting in a small bed of half-melted ice.

"Should this be fine?" rolling up the sleeve of my left arm while keeping my hand beneath the table I began to dispel the Hatsu covering my arm and right after I placed the still bandaged but now bleeding stump on the table alongside the hand.

"Well, that's a new sight." looking at my unique choice of cold storage with a brief look of surprise or bewilderment. Though her stoic expression quickly recovered as she grabbed the sides of the container before sliding it over and inspecting the hand while occasionally peering at my bleeding stump.

"I think the server misunderstood me when I asked for a ham sandwich to go… my apologies." rolling my eyes at her comment, I began to suck in a short breath as I felt the unsettling sensation of blood seeping out of my wound as the pain started to settle in. Making me fall into my old habits of cracking jokes and annoying people, is probably not the best thing to do when said person you are annoying is both your doctor and a serial mass murderer and thief.

*Sigh* "I can handle these injuries given the good condition of both the severed hand and your arm, This will take longer than usual as it has been cut off for a while and I will need you to hold it in place." Pointedly ignoring me, She began to unravel the bandages surrounding the hand whilst I did the same on my stump. Afterward, she handed my hand back to me as I gave her a quizzical look.

"Don't hold it to the wound but about six inches away from it." standing up and sliding her chair next to mine she began to stare at the various veins, muscles, and bone that were cut as she began to focus her aura on the back of her hands and tips of her fingers.

"Should I be prepared for any pain?" adjusting my elbow on the table and holding my arm out over the floor I interlinked my fingers with that of the clammy, cold, and wrinkled wet skin of the separated hand as instructed.

"Not really… at least not anywhere near as painful as when you received the injury I would guess, I have to reattach all of the nerves so your hand maintains all functionality that is why I also can't sedate you in any manner." Pulling one of the needles out from her odd pin cushion glove combination, she began to pull an aura thread taught that was about twice the length of the gap between my arm and hand.

*thwip* puncturing and looping through the solid bone of my hand a thick aura thread anchored into bone before she quickly switched to another set of needles as thinner strips of aura began to create a shimmery bridge between my lost limb. The whole time I marveled at the sight and speed at which she was creating and regulating these fine wires of aura. It was a level of skill that whatever I was fighting the night before couldn't even begin to display. I was so engrossed I barely noticed the slight stinging sensation from my arm, somewhat like it had fallen asleep.

And as I continued to watch the operation happen we didn't speak, both of us were too engaged in what was happening. Though on my part it was mostly watching on at the fine control displayed by her as she used her Hatsu as I somewhat hoped I could pick up a few tricks. Because while my hatsu was not malleable when activated the manipulation and movement of her aura were quite inspiring. It also gave me a good and safe look at where I was in the power scaling of this world.

'The troupe is not the strongest but they are probably around the lower end of high-strength fighters. Yet, each troupe member's power or versatility can vary heavily.' humming in the content I watched as the last few hair-sized stands pieced together my skin right before all of the threads were pulled taught and my hand and arm were whole once again without any seams or scars.

'And now we have to discuss payment… fuck' instantly souring my mood as I leveled a glare at the briefcase opened up on the table.