Death Once More

A disheveled man stood before the front door. His hair was a mess, and his eyes were bloodshot, as if he hadn't slept in days. His gaze held a hysterical, frantic madness.

Uchiha Cheng recognized the man; it was his father, Uchiha Kenji. He was a degenerate gambler—a man who would snatch away his mother's wages to gamble even when his son was critically ill. He was a man who had barely shown his face in three years, rarely returning home and showing no concern for his family. He was the head of the household who had forced his mother to borrow money just to pay for his medical treatment.

"How did you get in?"

The moment the woman saw the man, she was overcome with terror and panic.

Seeing the woman, the man charged straight at her and grabbed her by the shoulders, screaming frantically, "My money is all gone! Give me the money in the house, now!"

"Enough! Let go of me first."

His mother wrenched herself free from his grip. "The money is in the cabinet in my room. Go get it yourself."

Hearing this, the man rushed into the bedroom. A cacophony of rummaging and crashing sounds echoed through the house.

However, it wasn't long before the man stormed back out. He grabbed his mother by the wrist and roared, "Why is there so little money? You cheap woman, did you spend it all? Where is your salary? Why is this all that's left of your pay this month? You wretched woman, give me the money!"

His mother struggled weakly. "That's all the money there is. A-Cheng is sick; the rest of the money went to his treatment. How could there be any more?"

The man glanced at Uchiha Cheng. "A brat like that should have died long ago. He's nothing but a burden while he's alive. You stupid woman, to think you'd waste money on this. If I don't have capital, how am I supposed to win my money back?"

The man slapped his mother hard across the cheek. A visible, red welt instantly swelled on her face.

Yet, the man was still not satisfied. He raised his fist and struck his mother viciously.

Uchiha Cheng lay limp in his wheelchair, watching the gambler assault his mother, yet he was powerless to intervene. His eyes were splitting with rage as he tried with all his might to move his body, but it felt like cast iron, remaining completely motionless.

"Stop it!"

The boy roared, but only a weak cry escaped his lips; he lacked the strength to shout.

This beast—Uchiha Cheng swore that this so-called father was the most shameless man he had ever encountered in his past or present life.

The man rained blows and kicks down upon his mother's head. Though she was a medical ninja, her attempt to resist was futile; her frail taijutsu was easily overcome by the man, who had awakened his one-tomoe Sharingan, and she was beaten to the ground.

"You dare resist?" The man spat viciously and raised his fist to strike the woman's head again. She could only curl up, shielding her head to withstand the assault.

Move, move! Watching helplessly, the boy screamed in his heart. His intense will forced his body to begin to stir.

Finally, trembling, his hand moved, and his body began to answer his call.

As the man continued to beat the woman, a thin, small body lunged at him, grabbing his leg with a death grip.

"Don't—you—dare—hurt—my—mother—again!" the boy roared. The words were squeezed out of his throat, stumbling and broken.

He glared up at the man with a vicious intensity, like a starving wolf ready to tear flesh.

The man wore an expression of disgust and kicked Uchiha Cheng square in the chest. His body, less than a meter tall, flew three or four meters backward and slammed into the wall.

"Don't you touch me, you sick little freak!"

"A-Cheng!" The woman descended into a frenzy. Green chakra surged from her hands—a Chakra Scalpel.

She swung her palms wildly. Knowing the lethality of the Chakra Scalpel, the man scrambled to dodge, giving the woman the chance to rush to Uchiha Cheng's side to check on him.

His mother's shrill, agonizing screams echoed in his ears.

Uchiha Cheng felt his body grow cold; his chest suddenly lost the strength to breathe.

He gasped desperately, but he could not expand his chest. He lay motionless, struggling in his heart, yet he felt the strength in his body gradually fading away. In that instant, his heart stopped. His already weak body had suffered a heavy blow, leaving him unable to move once more.

The sounds around him grew fainter, and the scene before his eyes gradually darkened.

He could see his mother push the man away and throw herself over him, screaming his name. He could also see the man, seeing that he had stopped moving, flee in a panic.

The light before his eyes blurred, eventually fading into total darkness.

Am I dying? He felt a strange sense of calm within.

How ridiculous. A transmigrator reborn in another world, only three years old, only to die at the feet of his own gambler father.

What a failed life, the boy lamented. His consciousness gradually slipped into silence.