Bang!
The Grass Ninja paid no heed to the woman's pleas and simply shut the door behind them as they walked out.
In their eyes, the mother and daughter inside were nothing more than tools bred for their use. Their only value lay in helping the Grass Ninja rapidly recover from injuries. If one day they could no longer fulfill even this purpose, they would be discarded without hesitation.
The Grass Ninja never entertained thoughts of allowing the mother and daughter to leave the village. After all, an ordinary man has no crime, yet possessing treasures can become a sin. Given the two women's special Physique, if discovered by ninja from other villages, it might bring catastrophic disaster upon the Grass Ninja Village.
Darkness returned to the thatched hut. In the gloomy, damp air, the woman crouched on the floor, overcome with despair.
A soft rustling sound came from behind her: "Mom, eat something."
The girl pulled out a hard, stale bun from within her clothes, her face full of worry.
Mother... please don't get hurt... not ever...
Looking at the offered bun, the woman's pale face softened into a gentle smile: "Yugao, you're still growing. You should keep the bun for yourself."
Hearing this, Yugao couldn't help bursting into tears: "Mom, I'm scared. Please don't leave me, okay?"
The woman wrapped Yugao in her arms and forced a smile: "Don't worry, Yugao. Mom isn't going to fall down so easily."
Her words brought Yugao some comfort. In this place, if she lost her mother, she couldn't even imagine what kind of situation she'd face...
Overcome with fear and anxiety, Yugao soon drifted off to sleep in her mother's arms. Even after falling asleep, Yugao kept her brows furrowed, occasionally muttering in her sleep: "I don't want to stay here anymore… Someone, anyone… save me…"
"Mom, please don't die..."
Hearing Yugao's soft mumbling in her sleep, the woman let out a silent sigh.
Ever since the Land of Whirlpools was destroyed, she had wandered desperately from place to place before finally making it to the Grass Ninja Village. Her deep knowledge of Sealing Techniques earned her and Yugao swift acceptance among the Grass Ninja.
Originally, she had hoped to start a new life with Yugao here in the Grass Ninja Village. But unexpectedly, everything changed after she healed a Grass Ninja who was near death.
Once the Grass Ninja discovered her Physique could quickly heal any wound, they imprisoned her and Yugao. Initially, they only brought critically injured ninja to her for treatment.
But over time, the Grass Ninja became increasingly cruel and demanding. Even for the smallest injuries, they would come rushing in just to drain her Chakra for healing.
Her treatment had also worsened over time, gradually deteriorating from having ample meat-based dishes to only receiving plain rice porridge, wild vegetables, and wheat buns per meal.
As the Grass Ninja themselves put it—
After all, their so-called healing merely drained her life force. There was no real benefit in providing better food, as just enough to sustain basic life needs was sufficient.
Now, her life force had been nearly drained completely—she wouldn't last much longer before death claimed her.
Wasn't there anyone who would come to rescue them from this living hell?
Unfortunately, in such a remote village—where visitors were rare—no one would ever know of their suffering.
Now, she could only hope that Yugao might live a somewhat better life after her death.
After all, those Grass Ninja probably wouldn't want to waste their life-saving hidden trump card for nothing.
————
Several Grass Ninja strutted toward the village outskirts.
One of them rolled his shoulder and said excitedly, "That girl was truly amazing! Thanks to her, even with such severe injuries, I recovered instantly."
"Without that woman, I probably wouldn't have made it."
Another Grass Ninja spoke up: "Should we treat that woman better? Judging by her complexion, she seems close to death…"
"Hmph! That woman had practically no life force left. Giving her better treatment would just be wasting resources."
"Besides, there's still her daughter. If that woman dies, then so be it."
Upon hearing this, the Grass Ninja who had just spoken still seemed somewhat concerned: "But what if the little girl also dies from draining her life force?"
"It'd be such a shame to lose such a useful tool."
Hearing this, the other two Grass Ninja burst into laughter: "Forget your pitiful mercy. Uzumaki Clan ninja aren't nearly as fragile as you imagine."
"Besides, once Yugao grows up, we can simply have her give birth to several children before she dies anyway."
Seeing how their companions reacted, the Grass Ninja who had expressed concern could only nod reluctantly.
Just as they were about to leave the village to hunt for some wild game to satisfy their hunger, a sharp voice rang out nearby: "You trash dare to do something like this!"
The three Grass Ninja raised their heads in surprise, only to discover that without them noticing, a man and a girl had appeared behind them.
From the girl's expression, it was clear she had overheard their entire conversation.
"Who are you?"
"And why did you sneak into our Grass Ninja Village?"
As they asked questions, the three Grass Ninja pulled out their weapons and surrounded Mirai Uchiha and Hydrangea.
Seeing that Mirai Uchiha remained unmoved, the three Grass Ninja exchanged glances, then launched a signal flare skyward before charging straight at Mirai.
"If you won't talk, then die!"
The grass ninja launched attacks from three sides at Mirai Uchiha simultaneously.
Their movements were wild and unrefined, clearly employing a life-for-life combat style.
If this were an ordinary ninja, they would likely suffer grievous injuries due to the sudden assault.
Unfortunately for them, they were facing none other than Mirai Uchiha.
As the three grass ninja reached the halfway point of their charge, Mirai Uchiha unsheathed the long katana at his waist. With a quick motion, he covered Hydrangea's eyes before swinging his blade effortlessly.
Shua!
A blade aura flashed by, slicing all three grass ninja cleanly in half.
Rather than using the elaborate sword dances favored by the Uchiha clan, Mirai Uchiha chose the most primitive and brutal method of combat.
Only deaths like this could match the nature of these grass ninja.
"Shit! We've got intruders!"
"Kill them!"
"Charge together—we must not let them escape!"
The grass ninja regrouped as well, forming a force of nearly a hundred warriors who raised their weapons and charged at Mirai Uchiha.
"Hmph!"
"Fools."
With one hand, Mirai Uchiha held onto Hydrangea while steadily advancing toward the room where Yugao and her daughter were imprisoned.
Every grass ninja who dared stand in his way was slashed down without hesitation, split cleanly in two.
As the battle raged on, the remaining grass ninja grew terrified.
Without hesitation, they dropped their weapons and fled in the opposite direction.
Seeing this, Mirai Uchiha formed a one-handed sword seal: [Wood Release - Hellish Thorn Dance]!
A thick and mighty giant tree erupted from the earth, its countless thorny vines shooting out at incredible speed to entangle the fleeing grass ninja.
Continuous screams of agony echoed throughout the Grass Ninja Village.
After a short while, cries filled the air once more before the village fell into a deathly silence.
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