Senju Haruto could feel it clearly—the raw fear radiating from the scar-faced man and his companions.
The little girl they had once trampled underfoot, humiliated and used like a worthless object, now stood before them as the executioner of their fate.
They wanted to back away, to distance themselves from Karin. They even wanted to beg her for mercy.
But under the crushing weight of Haruto's overwhelming chakra, they couldn't move a muscle. All they could do was stare in horror as Karin's trembling steps carried her closer and closer.
Her hands quivered violently.
Taking a life terrified her.
And yet, she couldn't let this chance slip away.
No matter who Senju Haruto was, no matter what dangers might lie ahead, she knew that following him was better than remaining here in endless torment.
She remembered vividly—her own mother, abused again and again by these very men.
Her mother, stripped bare, reduced to nothing more than a tool for their recovery.
Those men, like starving wolves, had sunk their teeth into her flesh over and over, draining her chakra to heal their wounds.
Until finally, under that cycle of cruelty, her mother had been literally bitten to death.
If Karin stayed here, her future was clear—she would walk the same tragic path.
I have to leave. No matter what. I must.
Her hands trembled, but she whispered courage into her own heart, forcing her body to keep moving.
Step by step, she finally stood before the scar-faced trafficker.
Their eyes met.
And for the first time, she realized—his gaze no longer carried the cruel viciousness it once had.
Now, he looked at her like a frightened rabbit, silently begging her to spare his life.
But…
This was her only chance.
Karin bit down hard, shutting her eyes.
She had made her decision.
She had gathered her courage.
But she still couldn't bear to watch the moment of death with her own eyes.
Just as she thrust the kunai toward the scar-faced man's chest—her hand was stopped.
A firm grip closed around her trembling fist.
Her eyes flew open in shock. A strong, steady hand enveloped her own.
It was Haruto.
He was standing right behind her. She could even feel the rhythm of his breathing, the quiet thrum of his heartbeat.
A wave of unfamiliar tension swept through her body, her pulse racing. Yet no matter how hard she tried, the kunai would no longer move forward.
Haruto didn't need her to kill.
What he wanted was her resolve.
After all—no matter how cruel this world was—she was still just a child.
To force her to bloody her own hands in this way would be too merciless.
I am not Momochi Zabuza, a demon who revels in slaughter, Haruto thought. I… am kind.
"You may leave," Haruto said at last, his voice calm as he slowly withdrew his chakra.
The scar-faced man and his partners exchanged quick, bewildered glances.
At last, they realized—life had been spared.
Fear drained from their faces, replaced by overwhelming relief.
With desperate gratitude, they staggered to their feet. Forgetting Karin, forgetting Kusagakure's shinobi, they turned and bolted with everything they had, like drowning men gasping for air.
Hope surged in their hearts again, brighter and sweeter than anything they had known in years.
But then…
Haruto's hand slid gently upward, covering Karin's eyes.
"Sand Burial."
The ground beneath the traffickers suddenly liquefied into swirling sand.
With terrified cries, they were seized by the shifting earth, their legs ensnared, their bodies dragged downward.
The fragile hope they had clung to was ripped away in an instant.
Their screams rang out, shrill and desperate, as despair consumed them. Their hands clawed wildly, feet kicking frantically—yet nothing could break the grip of Haruto's jutsu.
The earth would drag them two hundred meters down.
Before suffocation could even claim them, the sheer weight of the underground pressure would crush their bones and organs into pulp.
And that torment would last several minutes before unconsciousness offered release.
In Haruto's mind, this was the perfect punishment for human traffickers.
First—give them hope.
Let them see light, let them believe they had escaped.
And then, at that very peak of joy, drag them into the deepest abyss.
From heaven to hell in a single heartbeat.
This despair would follow them to their very last breath.
The Kusagakure shinobi who had been watching staggered back, his eyes wide, his scalp tingling. His mind went blank.
This man… what kind of demon is he?
He didn't just kill them—he shattered their spirits before the end.
Especially that cruelty: letting them glimpse survival, then plunging them into despair even worse than death.
Just imagining it sent chills through the Kusagakure shinobi's bones.
And that chakra—vast, immeasurable, suffocating.
Who… what is this man really?
Haruto slowly lowered his hand, letting light return to Karin's eyes.
She blinked, dazed.
The street ahead of them was now empty.
She had no idea what Haruto had done, but one truth was undeniable:
Those screams…
They were the most horrifying she had ever heard.
Even more terrifying than her mother's final cries.
What kind of power… could force people to scream like that?
What kind of power could make people despair so completely?
Karin swallowed hard, her throat dry. She didn't even dare turn to face the man standing behind her.
Is he a god… or a devil?
"D-Don't… don't come any closer…"
The Kusagakure shinobi stumbled backward, eyes filled with dread as he stared at Haruto.
"If you kill me, do you have any idea what consequences you'll bring upon yourselves?"
His back slammed against a wall. He had nowhere left to run.
Then, like a drowning man seizing a lifeline, he blurted out desperately:
"Wait—I see it now! You're Konohagakure shinobi, aren't you?"
Though Haruto never wore a forehead protector, the silver-haired man beside him—Hatake Kakashi—bore the unmistakable crest of the Leaf.
"If you're from Konoha, then you should know this—Konoha and Kusagakure have always maintained a close alliance! Your very presence in our village is proof of that!"
"But if you lay a hand on me, the meaning changes completely! Would you dare to destroy a treaty between allied nations?"
The Kusagakure shinobi spoke in a rush, words spilling out faster and faster as his panic gave way to frantic hope.
No matter what else, there was an alliance.
Surely, that bond would protect him. Surely Haruto wouldn't risk a diplomatic disaster.
"As long as you leave Karin here, I'll treat this as though nothing ever happened. I won't pursue any consequences."
"You're shinobi—you know better than anyone. Following the rules, upholding the order—that is what defines us!"
He finished breathlessly, clinging to that argument like it was his last shield.
Karin was Kusagakure's most valuable asset.
If she were lost here, the consequences would fall squarely on his head.
But Haruto… did not think like a shinobi at all.
What treaty? What alliance?
To him, it was nothing more than weak villages clinging to Konoha for survival.
He sneered inwardly.
Then, without a word, he plucked the kunai from Karin's trembling hand and flicked it effortlessly toward the Kusagakure shinobi.