Chapter 73: Mission Completed
Kaito noticed that Renjiro had successfully calmed Hodaka and Mieko, so he dispelled his Shadow Clone to conserve chakra.
Renjiro then brought Mieko and Hodaka to the smaller cavern where Kaito was resting. Sensing their approach, Kaito stood up and faced them.
Renjiro felt impressed by Kaito's performance. He thought to himself,
"Excellent. He was able to center himself and regain composure so quickly after his first kill."
He then regarded the now-determined Mieko and Hodaka, thinking,
"These two should also perform admirably when their turn comes."
Kaito reported,
"Sensei, besides the bandits, there's also a young girl in one of the caverns."
Renjiro nodded and led his team there.
The horrific sight made all three genin's faces contort with shock and anger.
The girl lay naked, wearing no clothing. She was bleeding from her genitals. Multiple sword cuts covered her entire body, also bleeding.
She had two fingers severed on her left hand and three toes cut from her right foot. There were even burn marks across her skin.
Even Renjiro sighed heavily, thinking to himself,
"I shouldn't expose them to such atrocities so early in their careers."
Renjiro ordered,
"Kaito, Hodaka, wait outside the cavern. Mieko, perform first aid."
Kaito and Hodaka departed the cave, while Mieko retrieved the first aid kit and began carefully cleaning and bandaging the wounds.
Outside the cavern, Hodaka asked quietly,
"Are you alright?"
Kaito nodded and admitted,
"I didn't expect the first kill to be so difficult to process emotionally."
Hodaka sighed and said,
"My parents warned me repeatedly that some shinobi can't even continue their careers after their first kill."
He then glanced at the corpses and said,
"You're genuinely strong, Kaito."
Kaito smiled faintly and replied,
"Thanks, but you also need to mentally prepare yourself. It will be your turn tomorrow or the day after."
Hodaka nodded with serious determination.
It required approximately 25 minutes for Mieko to properly treat and bandage the girl.
Renjiro carefully lifted her. He then looked at the unconscious girl and said to his students,
"You must become strong, so that such tragedies will never befall you or those you protect."
The genin heard unusual sadness in Renjiro's voice. Everyone replied with resolve,
"Yes, sensei."
After exiting the cave, Renjiro created a Shadow Clone.
The clone retrieved the two corpses outside the cave entrance and threw them inside. He then sealed the cave entrance permanently with Earth Release jutsu. Kaito asked,
"Sensei, don't we need to provide any proof to the village chief to complete the mission?"
Renjiro shook his head and explained,
"C-rank bandit elimination missions don't require physical proof. Assassination missions do. If the bandits' heads were delivered to the village, then other bandit groups might target this village for revenge in the future."
Renjiro continued,
"Let's return to the village."
On the way back, Kaito asked,
"Sensei, have all the bandits been eliminated? What if some weren't at the base?"
Renjiro shook his head and reasoned,
"That's highly unlikely. You can sense within a half-kilometer radius and still didn't detect anyone else. Even if one or two were absent, seeing their entire group dead, they won't cause trouble anymore. Besides, we were told there were over 15 bandits, and we eliminated 23. That exceeds mission requirements."
However, Mieko protested,
"But sensei, wouldn't that mean those criminals are escaping justice? What if they were the ones who tortured this girl? What if they join other bandit groups and continue these atrocities?"
Renjiro replied pragmatically,
"Our mission was to eliminate the bandit group harassing this village—anything beyond that isn't our responsibility."
But Mieko remained unconvinced and glared at her instructor. Renjiro sighed and elaborated,
"Eliminating an entire bandit group doesn't prevent new groups from forming. In a few years, different bandit groups might emerge. This isn't something you or I can change fundamentally. So, searching for any bandits not at their hideout is ultimately meaningless—if they join other groups, they'll die when we receive a mission to eliminate that group eventually."
Although Mieko remained dissatisfied, she stopped arguing. Kaito sighed internally,
"No matter what world you're in, the cruelty of human nature persists. This world is exponentially more brutal than my previous one. To torture and mutilate this girl purely for entertainment and sadistic pleasure. I can't even imagine what they did to the other kidnapped girls."
He then glanced at Renjiro, thinking critically,
"Konoha is considered a very peaceful village. Led by a Hokage who advocates for peace. Of course, anyone with basic awareness can see that Konoha isn't as peaceful as it claims. The mere existence of Root obliterates that claim entirely."
"But it's undeniable that it's still more peaceful than the other four great villages. Even so, it still engages in such calculated behavior. While searching for remaining bandits is indeed somewhat troublesome, it's not particularly difficult. Now these survivors will eventually form a new bandit group and become its leaders. Later, they'll target this village again, and the village will again send a request to Konoha for assistance."
"This cycle ensures that this village will always require Konoha's protection and will always remain grateful to Konoha. Similarly, every village in the Land of Fire will be grateful to Konoha. Thus, pressure on the Daimyo is maintained, forcing him to continue supporting and funding Konoha financially. Such a simple method to maintain influence. It costs Konoha Village nothing, but costs dozens of civilian lives per village. If the most peaceful village operates so ruthlessly, I genuinely wonder what a truly cruel village would be like."
He exhaled heavily, thinking,
"Whatever. None of this directly concerns me yet."
They soon returned to the village.
As soon as they entered, the injured girl on Renjiro's back attracted numerous curious glances from villagers.
The team re-entered the village chief's residence and carefully placed the girl on the chief's bed. Renjiro stated,
"She requires immediate medical treatment."
The village chief nodded and quickly departed to summon the village doctor.
Just then, a middle-aged man ran frantically toward the chief's house. Seeing the chief, he sobbed desperately and asked,
"Village... Village Chief, my... my daughter? Is she... here?"
The village chief quickly comforted him and confirmed,
"Yes, she's safe. Come inside."
He rushed into the house, running toward his daughter. Seeing him approach rapidly, Renjiro quickly stopped him and cautioned,
"She's severely injured—don't embrace her, don't apply pressure to her wounds."
Seeing the extensive bandages covering his daughter, the father finally stopped and sat beside the bed, sobbing uncontrollably.
Soon, the village doctor arrived and began comprehensive treatment.
The father and village chief repeatedly thanked Renjiro and the genin with profound gratitude.
Several minutes later, the village chief handed Renjiro a signed mission completion document, and the team departed the village to return to town.
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