Feng Zheng saw that Renjiro had already calmed Hodaka and Mieko, so he dispelled his Shadow Clone.
Renjiro then brought Mieko and Hodaka to the small cave where Feng Zheng was. Sensing their arrival, Feng Zheng stood up and looked at them.
Renjiro was impressed by Feng Zheng's performance. He thought to himself,
“Excellent. He was able to focus and calm down so quickly after his first kill.”
Then he looked at the determined Mieko and Hodaka, thinking,
“These two should also perform very well.”
Feng Zheng said,
“Teacher, besides these people, there is also a little girl in the cave.”
Renjiro nodded and led his team there.
The horrific sight made the Genin's faces contort.
The girl was naked, wearing no clothes. She was bleeding from her genitals. She had multiple sword cuts all over her body, also bleeding.
She had two fingers cut on her left hand and three toes cut on her right leg. There were even some burns on her body.
Even Renjiro sighed, thinking to himself,
“I shouldn't let them see such things so early.”
Renjiro said,
“Feng Zheng, Hodaka, wait outside the cave. Mieko, perform first aid.”
Feng Zheng and Hodaka left the cave, while Mieko took out the first aid kit and began cleaning and bandaging the wounds.
Outside the cave, Hodaka asked Feng Zheng,
“Are you alright?”
Feng Zheng nodded and said,
“I didn't expect the first kill to be so hard to adapt to.”
Hodaka sighed and said,
“My parents warned me many times that some Ninja can't even continue being a Ninja after their first kill.”
Then he looked at the corpses and said,
“You're really strong, Feng Zheng.”
Feng Zheng smiled and said,
“Thanks, but you also need to be prepared. It will be your turn tomorrow or the day after.”
Hodaka nodded seriously.
It took Mieko about 25 minutes to clean up the girl.
Renjiro carried her out. Then he looked at the girl and said to his students,
“You must become strong, so that such misfortune will not befall you.”
The Genin heard an unusual sadness in Renjiro's voice. Everyone replied resolutely,
“Yes, Teacher.”
After leaving the cave, Renjiro created a Shadow Clone.
The Shadow Clone grabbed the two corpses outside the cave and threw them inside. Then he sealed the cave entrance with Earth Release Ninjutsu. Feng Zheng asked,
“Teacher, do we not need to provide any proof to the Village Chief to complete the mission?”
Renjiro shook his head and said,
“C-rank missions to eliminate bandits do not require proof. Assassination missions do. If the bandits' heads were handed over to the Village, then more bandits might target this Village in the future.”
Renjiro continued,
“Let's return to the Village.”
On the way, Feng Zheng asked,
“Teacher, have all the bandits been eliminated? What if some weren't at the base?”
Renjiro shook his head and said,
“That's unlikely. You can sense within a half-kilometer radius and still haven't found anyone else. Even if there are one or two outside, seeing their comrades dead, they won't cause trouble anymore. Besides, we were told there were over 15 bandits, and we killed 22. That's enough to complete our mission.”
However, Mieko retorted,
“But Teacher, wouldn't that mean those criminals are getting away with it? What if they were the ones who tortured this girl? What if they join other bandit groups and continue like this?”
Renjiro replied,
“Our mission is to eliminate the bandit group harassing the Village; anything else is not our responsibility.”
But Mieko didn't believe him and glared at her teacher. Renjiro sighed and said,
“Killing an entire bandit group doesn't mean no more bandit groups will appear. In a few years, new bandit groups might emerge. This is not something you or I can change. So, searching for any bandits not in their hideout is meaningless; if they join other bandit groups, they will also die when we receive a mission to eliminate that group.”
Although Mieko was unconvinced, she stopped arguing. Feng Zheng sighed inwardly,
“No matter what the world is like, the cruelty of human nature always exists. This world is many times more cruel than my previous world. To torture and mutilate this girl for fun and amusement. I can't even imagine what they did to other kidnapped girls.”
Then he glanced at Renjiro, thinking,
“Konoha, is considered a very peaceful Village. Led by the Kage who advocates peace. Of course, anyone with a bit of sense can see that Konoha is not as peaceful as it claims. Just the existence of Root throws that claim into the trash.”
“But, it is undeniable that it is still more peaceful than the other four Great Villages. Even so, it still engages in such behavior. While searching for other bandits is indeed troublesome, it's not very difficult. Now these bandits will form a bandit group in the future and become its leaders. Later, they will target this Village again, and the Village will again send a delegation to Konoha for help.”
“This cycle will ensure that this Village will always need Konoha's help and will always be grateful to Konoha. Similarly, every Village in the Land of Fire will be grateful to Konoha. Thus, pressure on the Daimyo will be maintained, forcing him to continue supporting and even funding Konoha. This is such a simple way to maintain influence. It costs Konoha Village nothing, but it costs dozens of lives for each Village. Alas, if the most peaceful Village is so cruel, I really don't know what a cruel Village would be like.”
Then he exhaled, thinking,
“Alas, never mind, none of this concerns me.”
They soon returned to the Village.
As soon as they entered the Village, the girl on Renjiro's back attracted several curious glances.
The team re-entered the Village Chief's house and placed the girl on the Village Chief's bed. Renjiro said,
“She needs immediate treatment.”
The Village Chief nodded and went out to send someone to call the Village doctor.
Just then, a middle-aged man ran towards the Village Chief's house. Seeing the Village Chief, he quickly sobbed and asked,
“Village... Village Chief, my... my daughter? Is she... here?”
The Village Chief quickly comforted him and said,
“Yes, she is safe, come in.”
He rushed into the house, running towards his daughter. Seeing him run over, Renjiro quickly stopped him and said,
“She is injured, don't hug her, don't hug her too tightly.”
Seeing the bandages on his daughter, the man finally stopped and sat by the bed, sobbing.
Soon, a doctor arrived and began treating her.
The father and the Village Chief repeatedly thanked Renjiro and the Genin.
A few minutes later, the Village Chief handed Renjiro a piece of paper, and the team left the Village and returned to the town.