I Am Uzumaki Menma

Chapter 363 - 363 Saving Kanon

His originally direct route to Amegakure was unhesitatingly altered. His figure transformed into a blurry stream of light, streaking towards the direction he had sensed.

Not long after, Menma arrived over a small village nestled in a valley.

The village was built against a mountain, not large in scale, but currently in complete disarray. Cries, shouts, and the clashing of weapons were mixed together.

Five Ninja wearing Kusagakure's forehead protectors were running amok like wolves among a flock of sheep, wantonly capturing panicked villagers.

Their actions were brutal. Any villager who showed the slightest resistance or intent to flee was mercilessly struck down with kunai, instantly losing their lives. Several villagers' corpses already lay on the ground, their blood staining the earth.

"Sir! Found it!" Two Kusagakure's Ninja roughly dragged a thin, red-haired girl and shoved her in front of a Kusagakure's Jonin who seemed to be the leader, their voices excited with the desire for credit.

"Just as described in the intel! Red hair, red eyes, possessing special healing abilities! Must be an Uzumaki Clan's survivor for sure!"

That Kusagakure's Jonin was lean and wiry, with a sinister gaze and a vicious scar on his face.

Hearing this, a flash of greed gleamed in his eyes. He extended a rough hand, grabbing the girl's chin, forcing her to lift her pale, fear-stricken face that still showed delicate features.

After scrutinizing her for a moment, he roughly grabbed the girl's slender arm, opened his mouth revealing yellowed teeth, and mercilessly bit down!

"Ah!" The girl let out a short, painful gasp. Two rows of clear tooth marks instantly appeared on her arm, seeping with strands of blood.

However, the next moment, something astonishing happened.

The bleeding at the wound stopped rapidly, and the muscle tissue began to writhe and heal at a visible rate. In just a few seconds, the tooth marks had mostly disappeared, leaving only a bit of bloodstain as proof of the recent injury.

A torrent of vitality flowed into the Kusagakure's Jonin's body through the wound, making his accumulated internal injuries from years of missions feel somewhat alleviated, and his chakra became more active.

"Hahaha! Good! Good!" Kusagakure's Jonin released his grip, feeling the surging warmth in his body, unable to help but laugh heartily, his face filled with wild joy.

"Such healing power, such immense vitality and chakra! It's definitely the Uzumaki Clan! God blesses our Kusagakure! With her, the treatment of our village's injured Ninja will improve by leaps and bounds!"

"Sir!" Another Kusagakure's Ninja approached, lowering his voice, his gaze sweeping over the villagers who had been rounded up, trembling. "These villagers... what to do? They saw our actions, and they know about the girl's specialness..."

Kusagakure's Jonin's wild joy instantly vanished, replaced by a cold killing intent.

He swept a vicious glance over the terrified villagers. "We must ensure the Uzumaki Clan's intel doesn't leak to other Ninja Villages, especially Konoha! Understand what needs to be done?"

The other Kusagakure's Ninja understood, responding in unison: "Yes, sir! Understood!"

They drew their kunai and ninja swords, cruel smiles appearing on their faces as they advanced towards the defenseless villagers.

"No! Don't!" The captured red-haired girl, seeing this scene, struggled to rush over, but was held down firmly by Kusagakure's Jonin.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she pleaded desperately: "You're looking for me! I'll go with you! Please, let them go! They're all innocent!"

"Hmph!" Kusagakure's Jonin snorted coldly, not a shred of pity in his eyes, instead growing impatient with the girl's struggles.

He suddenly threw a heavy punch into the girl's abdomen!

"Urgh!" The girl grunted in pain, her body curling up like a shrimp. The intense pain instantly sapped all her strength, and she collapsed to the ground.

Not yet satisfied, Kusagakure's Jonin raised his foot clad in a ninja sandal and viciously stomped on the girl's fiery red hair, grinding her face into the cold dirt, his voice filled with contempt and cruelty: "A mere survivor of a defeated clan, a walking 'medicine pouch', what right do you have to make conditions? Being able to contribute to Kusagakure is your honor!"

He raised his head, shouting sharply at his subordinates who had already raised their blades: "Carry out the order! Leave none alive!"

"Yes!"

Cold kunai reflected the grim light of the setting sun, aimed at the villagers who closed their eyes in despair or let out their final wails.

The red-haired girl, pinned firmly to the ground, tears mixing with mud blurring her vision, was utterly drowned in boundless despair.

At this critical moment, a clear, ringing voice sounded from the sky, clearly entering the ears of everyone present:

"Adamantine Sealing Chains."

The next moment!

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

Five dazzling, brilliant golden lights descended from the sky like shooting stars piercing the twilight!

They were five chains completely composed of highly condensed Chakra. Like living golden pythons, they carried a powerful sealing aura, moving at a speed difficult for the naked eye to follow, striking with pinpoint accuracy towards the five Kusagakure's Ninja!

"What?!"

"Urgh!"

"Thud!"

Cries of shock, screams, and the sound of blades piercing flesh rang out almost simultaneously!

The four Kusagakure's Ninja preparing to slaughter the villagers had no time to react before the golden chains instantly pierced their chests or vital points!

The powerful sealing power contained in the chains instantly destroyed their life force, flinging them away like ragdolls to crash against distant walls or tree trunks, dead on the spot!

As for the strongest Kusagakure's Jonin, the moment the voice sounded, he sensed the deadly crisis. He instinctively tried to perform a Substitution Technique, but the golden chain's speed was too fast!

He only had time to see a golden flash before his eyes, then a heart-rending, excruciating pain erupted in his chest!

He looked down incredulously to see a golden chain already protruding from his chest, its tip dripping with hot blood.

With great difficulty, he raised his head to look at the sky. His vision began to blur, only able to make out a vague figure slowly descending from the air.

"Uzu... Uzumaki... Clan... how is it possible..." Using his last ounce of strength, he spat out these words filled with shock and incomprehension, then his eyes glazed over, his body going limp as he collapsed to the ground, dead.

All this happened too fast. From the voice sounding to the deaths of all five Kusagakure's Ninja, barely a second had passed.

The villagers who had survived the disaster, as well as the red-haired girl still pinned to the ground, all stood dumbfounded, looking at this sudden reversal.

They fearfully and uncertainly raised their heads to watch the figure descending like a god from heaven.

It was a black-haired boy who appeared only twelve or thirteen years old, handsome in appearance, his eyes terrifyingly calm, as if he had just casually crushed five ants, not five Ninja.

He wore simple, dark casual clothes, with no insignia of any Ninja Village on him.

Menma did not look at the corpses. His gaze fell on the red-haired girl still collapsed on the ground, her face smeared with mud and tear stains.

He walked forward slowly, crouched down, reached out, and gently helped the girl up.

He brushed the dirt from the girl's hair, looking into her eyes that appeared especially bright due to fear and tears. A warm smile, completely different from the coldness of his earlier actions, appeared on his face as he softly said:

"Don't be afraid, it's alright now. Hello, my name is Uzumaki Menma. I'm one of your clansmen."

Menma's gentle voice carried a soothing power, slightly calming the girl's violently trembling body.

Her red pupils stared blankly at Menma. Though she didn't know why he had black hair and black eyes, she could feel the faint, familiar, and immensely comforting chakra fluctuation emanating from him. The fear in her heart gradually gave way to an unbelievable surprise and bewilderment.

She trembled slightly, replying in a thin, weak voice tinged with a sob: "You... hello... I, I am Kanon... Uzumaki Kanon."

Menma nodded, his gaze sweeping over the five Kusagakure's Ninjas' corpses on the ground and the shocked villagers around.

He raised a hand and took out a blank sealing scroll from his clothes, deftly spreading it open.

Then, the five golden Chakra Chains appeared once more, like dexterous arms, coiling around and dragging the five corpses onto the scroll.

"Seal!"

Menma formed hand seals and gave a low shout. The characters on the scroll glowed faintly, and the five corpses were instantly absorbed into the scroll, disappearing.

The scroll automatically rolled up, and Menma put it away.

This neat and efficient handling once again left the surrounding villagers dumbfounded.

After finishing this, Menma looked back at Kanon, his tone calm: "Kanon, your identity has been exposed. Kusagakure won't let this go. If you stay here, you'll only bring disaster to these villagers who took you in. Come with me. I'll take you to a relatively safe place."

Hearing this, Kanon's delicate frame trembled slightly.

She looked at the villagers around her who had once given her warmth and shelter, now suffering calamity because of her, their faces etched with fear. She looked at the bloodstains on the ground not yet dry and the collapsed houses.

She understood Menma was right.

Her exposed identity had become a source of disaster.

She bit her pale lower lip, a flicker of pain in her eyes. Finally, she nodded with determination.

She turned to face the terrified villagers, bowing deeply, her voice choked but clear: "I'm sorry... for causing everyone so much trouble... for involving all of you... I'm sorry... Also, please... escape from this place quickly... go somewhere else... start a new life..."

The villagers looked at this kind girl, their feelings complex: relief at surviving the disaster, concern for her future, but mostly bewilderment and fear facing the unknown fate ahead.

Menma said nothing more. He turned and began walking in the direction of Amegakure.

Kanon took one last look at this valley she had once considered home, wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, and quickly followed Menma's steps. Their figures soon disappeared into the deepening twilight and the shadows of the dense forest.

Only after their figures had completely vanished did the surviving villagers seem to wake from a dream, erupting in suppressed sobs and panicked cries.

They knew they could no longer stay here.

The disappearance of the Kusagakure's Ninja would soon attract more searches and retaliation.

They had to pack their belongings immediately and flee this place of trouble under the cover of night, seeking new, slim chances of survival elsewhere.