No Bow, No Bow

"Arghhhhhhhh--"

A roar like that of a wild beast erupted as the mother, whose flesh and bone had been stripped away, tightly gripped her weapon.

She wildly stabbed at Ding Hong's ugly body again and again.

"Ahhhhhh! Wuwuwu ahhh!"

Each stab drew blood and flesh, and also quickened the heartbeats of the other women in the area.

With every slash she made, the numb eyes around them would soften considerably, and more and more pupils began to twitch.

Then, they picked up their weapons.

"Don't worry, my friend left a large amount of Chakra inside him, he won't be dying anytime soon," Uchiha Kai said softly.

"Also, it's best to use a slicing motion. Stabbing directly will cause a penetrating wound, which could easily kill him."

Watching the gradually stirring crowd, Uchiha Kai and the other two walked out of the cave.

The wails and angry shouts from behind them intertwined, creating a bizarre scene.

Outside the cave, the three sat on the ground, silent for a long time.

"Creak—"

Aburame Keiichi arrived at some point, his dark gray combat boots crunching on the branches and fallen leaves, making creaking sounds.

"Are you alright?"

"How does it feel, the first time killing someone with your own hands?"

Aburame Keiichi asked casually, hands in his pockets.

"Wuwu—yue"

Morino Kei, already at his limit, could no longer hold it in and vomited frantically. He only managed to regain some control after emptying his stomach and starting to retch acid.

"Why?" Hyuga Rei asked blankly, clutching her chest.

"This is the real world, the Ninja World torn apart in the vortex of war," Aburame Keiichi said, looking up and sweeping his gaze over them.

"This is just a microcosm of the Ninja World. What happened here might not be common, but it's definitely not an isolated incident in the Ninja World."

"There are countless events far more cruel, terrifying, and disgusting than this."

"If you can't even handle this, then give up early. Why struggle?"

Aburame Keiichi spoke calmly, not hesitating to provoke them.

"If the ones we're killing are all people like this..." Uchiha Kai suddenly spoke up.

"Even if there were tens of thousands of them, I wouldn't waver in the slightest."

Aburame Keiichi paused, then a playful smile appeared on his face.

"Heh heh... As expected of the Uchiha Clan, quite spirited."

"What about you two?"

"If these scumbags can live with a clear conscience, plundering and harming others, how can I show such a pathetic expression?" The girl's eyes became determined.

"I am a man who will become Hokage, how can I stop so easily? How many people like them are still out there in this world? How can I stop?"

Not one of the three wavered, nor would they retreat even half a step.

This was their shared resolve, as it was now, and it would never change in the future.

"Good."

"Follow me."

Aburame Keiichi turned around, suppressing the smile at the corner of his mouth.

"What about them?" Morino Kei asked, raising his hand.

"They have long lost the desire to live." Aburame Keiichi said without looking back. The Destroying Insects he had just recalled had already given him the information.

"Your appearance is already the best release for them."

A cold voice from the panel sounded simultaneously.

[Quest: Evil That Could Have Been Avoided Completed]
[Reward: Body x0.2, Sealing Technique: Fūja Hōin]
[With full bellies, hearts are at ease; after drinking, spirits are high. This year, the south of the Yangtze River suffered drought, and the people of Quzhou ate each other.]

Hyuga Rei's body trembled, veins bulging around her eyes as her Byakugan swept over the scene in the cave.

"..." The girl fell silent, shaking her head.

"Let's finish this quickly. There's a dilapidated temple on the mountainside, we'll make do there for the night," Aburame Keiichi's voice drifted from afar.

And so, the three began their work in silence.

They gathered the corpses inside the cave that had just lost their breath, removed the remains and bones hanging from the iron hooks, and dug a large pit outside the cave to bury them together.

As for Dinhong the Demonic Monk's corpse, it had long been sliced into a bloody pulp and bone fragments, so Uchiha Kai simply incinerated it to ashes with a Great Fireball.

--Half an hour later, halfway up the mountain.

Looking at the dilapidated temple before them, the three pushed open the door and immediately saw Aburame Keiichi standing in the center of the courtyard, with a bonfire and a pot set up.

"Is everything ready?" Aburame Keiichi asked.

"Mm." The three nodded in unison.

"Good, it's getting late, almost dinner time." Aburame Keiichi nodded.

"You must be sick of eating dry rations these past few days. How about this, Kei, come with me, let's hunt some game to roast tonight." Aburame Keiichi beckoned Morino Kei to join him.

"Ah... why me?"

"Less chatter, hurry up."

With that, the two walked out of the courtyard gate, ready to go hunting.

Only Hyuga Rei and Uchiha Kai were left in the courtyard, the atmosphere was excessively oppressive.

"Let's go take a look inside. It's a temple, after all. Even if it's run-down, there should still be Buddha statues, right?" The girl spoke first, breaking the silence.

"There should be," Uchiha Kai replied, following the girl.

In front of the main hall, Hyuga Rei paused, clasped her hands together in prayer, and was about to enter. Uchiha Kai, however, strode straight in, his boots crushing the layer of incense ash on the ground, which had been there for who knows how long.

The hall was equally chilling inside and out. The red light of the setting sun seeped through the gaps in the broken tiles, and cobwebs covered the walls.

The Buddha statue sat majestically on a high platform. Apart from a layer of dust, it was surprisingly undamaged. Its appearance and expression were still lifelike, with a smile high on its lips.

Only its eye sockets were empty, its divine eyes nowhere to be found.

Uchiha Kai glanced at it and then looked away, stopping at the entrance and not venturing further inside.

Hyuga Rei, on the other hand, walked with some surprise to the only remaining meditation cushion, brushing away the dust and debris on it.

"It's still here?" With that, the girl knelt on the cushion, her expression softening considerably.

Gazing at the eyeless Buddha seated on the high platform, the girl clasped her hands together and was about to close her eyes in prayer when she suddenly turned her head.

Looking at the boy leaning idly against a pillar by the entrance, she couldn't help but ask.

"Kai-kun, aren't you going to pray?"

The boy startled and snapped back to attention.

"Oh, me? I don't really believe in that."

"Eh, it's just for good luck," the girl said, deflated.

"Don't you have anything you wish for or want to achieve, Kai-kun?"

Uchiha Kai pouted and said indifferently.

"If you're asking about that, then yes, I do."

"Then why not ask the Buddha? Praying might increase the chances of it coming true," Hyuga Rei said with a slight smile.

Uchiha Kai raised his head, his gaze sweeping over the eyeless, pupil-less Buddha statue.

"It's just a clay and wood idol. It won't listen if you pray, and it's useless to ask," the boy said with a hint of disdain in his tone.

"What can it do after hearing my wish? It's just a useless statue, not worthy of my prayer."

Hearing this, Hyuga Rei covered her mouth, her eyes curving.

"Is that so? Kai-kun is as cold as ever..."

"So aloof, it chills me to the bone," the girl said, covering her shoulder.

"It's not like that..." the boy said helplessly, reaching out his hand.

However, Hyuga Rei's demeanor suddenly shifted, and she asked.

"Then, Kai-kun, what is your wish? If the Buddha can't listen, can I?" The girl showed a sly smile.

"Ah... a wish?" The boy was taken aback and pondered for a moment.

"For now, at least--"

The arrogant Uchiha drew the sword from his hip, its edge and sharpness reflecting a cold glint.

"I only wish that the blade in my hand becomes even sharper..."