The night passed without incident, and Bai Sui woke early the next morning.
He would have liked to get a good night's sleep, but the bandages around his abdomen were so uncomfortable.
In theory, he should have undone them and replaced them. That would help prevent infection and keep them from pressing too tightly.
But he didn't know enough about this sort of thing. If he removed the bandages and started bleeding again, there didn't seem to be a doctor in the village.
Besides, the journey wasn't far. He'd reach the Uzumaki Clan Territory after another five or six hours on the road, so Bai Sui decided to set out early and let the Uzumaki Clan treat him.
However, although Bai Sui thought he'd gotten up quite early, he found that the village chief's family was already awake when he stepped outside, and breakfast was nearly ready.
After a simple breakfast, Bai Sui thanked the village chief's family once more, then set off for the Uzumaki Clan Territory.
"Stop!" Outside the Uzumaki Clan Territory, two ninjas suddenly appeared from nowhere.
They had appeared in a pincer formation, trapping Bai Sui where he stood.
Feeling the Kunai pressed against the back of his neck, Bai Sui chose his words carefully and said, "I'm with the Fifth Transport Squad. I was assigned to deliver supplies, but the Uchiha Clan ambushed us on the way. After the squad's escort killed them all, he told me to bring their bodies back. The scroll and letter are in my clothes."
After Bai Sui finished speaking, another member of the Uzumaki Clan emerged from the woods nearby and nodded to the two ninjas.
"Take them out," said the person behind Bai Sui.
Bai Sui carefully took the scroll and the scrap of cloth from his clothes, holding one in each hand as he extended them in front of him.
Only then did the person behind him pull the Kunai away from his neck and take both items.
The three members of the Uzumaki Clan unfolded the cloth and saw the Uchiha Clan Crest. They understood what had happened.
They briefly read the letter and checked the seal on the scroll. Once they had confirmed it hadn't been opened, they were satisfied.
Seeing that there was no problem, two of them vanished in a flash, leaving only the one who had been standing behind Bai Sui.
"All right. You know the clan's been at war lately, so we have to be extra cautious. Your injuries haven't healed yet. Come with me, and I'll take you to get treated."
"Ah, all right. Thank you, sir." Bai Sui replied as he tried to recall how he usually acted.
Following the man, he wound his way around the outskirts of the clan territory until they reached a cluster of buildings. This was the Uzumaki Clan's "hospital."
There usually weren't many people here. The Uzumaki Clan had strong recuperative abilities, so minor injuries hardly needed treatment, while those with serious wounds might not even make it here.
As for ordinary people like them, they didn't come here for treatment. There was a doctor in the outer area where they lived, but that doctor was just an ordinary person.
When they entered an empty room, a ninja in the standard uniform of the Uzumaki Clan looked up at Bai Sui in surprise.
As far as he could sense, Bai Sui was an ordinary person with no chakra, and he was dressed like a civilian. The ninja had thought he'd entered the wrong room.
But then he saw the clan member who had come in ahead of Bai Sui and turned his questioning gaze toward him.
"Kinya, he was injured while carrying out a transport mission for the logistics team. I brought him here for treatment," the clan member who had escorted Bai Sui explained, understanding the other man's confusion.
The ninja, Uzumaki Kinya, didn't say anything more. He simply motioned for Bai Sui to sit in front of him.
He asked Bai Sui about his injuries.
But Bai Sui didn't know much. "I'm not really sure. The Uchiha threw a huge fireball, and it sent all of us flying. I only remember losing a lot of blood from my abdomen. Lord Uzumaki Sanjin bandaged me while I was unconscious, and I haven't taken the bandages off since."
Hearing what had happened, Uzumaki Kinya furrowed his brow. "All right. Lie down over there. I'll remove your bandages. It might hurt, so you'll have to bear with it. They've been on for quite a while."
Bai Sui's face went pale. He realized that, at the very least, the blood had dried and stuck to the bandages. Taking them off would be like reopening the wound.
But it had to be done. He couldn't just let the bandages grow into his skin.
Bai Sui gritted his teeth, lay down on a nearby bed, and shut his eyes, waiting for the other man to begin.
But nothing happened. He waited, and still nothing. The longer he lay there, the more nervous he became, so he opened his eyes again to see when Uzumaki Kinya would start.
At last, the other man finished preparing the things he would need and came over to Bai Sui. He tapped him and told him to take off his shirt before closing his eyes again.
Embarrassed and red-faced, Bai Sui quickly took off his shirt, revealing the bandages wrapped around his abdomen.
Now that he could see them clearly, the front of the bandages was completely stained with blood, which had dried and crusted over.
Thinking of the pain when the wound was uncovered, Bai Sui squeezed his eyes shut, trying to forget about it.
But when people lost their sight, their sense of touch grew sharper. A faint waft of air across his skin made him shiver, and the hairs on his body stood on end.
Seeing how nervous Bai Sui was, Uzumaki Kinya didn't make him wait any longer. With one swift motion, he sliced through the bandages from the side.
His aim was perfect. He cut through all the bandages without so much as nicking Bai Sui, who only felt a chill along his side.
Then he made another cut, slicing through the bandages on the other side.
Now came the hard part: peeling away the gauze that had crusted over.
An ordinary doctor would have carefully peeled it away bit by bit, but the man before him was a ninja—and a medical ninja from the Uzumaki Clan at that.
With a clean, decisive movement, he ripped the entire crusted bandage from Bai Sui's body.
"Ah—ugh?"
Pain shot through him for an instant, but it had barely begun when Uzumaki Kinya pressed his right hand against the wound.
Instead of the pain he'd expected, Bai Sui felt a tingling sensation. Curiosity made him open his eyes.
A green glow spread from the other man's palm, its light covering Bai Sui's wound.
Seeing Bai Sui open his eyes, Uzumaki Kinya said, "You're not a ninja, so you don't have chakra. I can only stop the bleeding. You'll have to recover on your own after that."
Bai Sui was curious about Medical Ninjutsu, but he knew all he could do now was agree.