A Unique Interrogation Method

After leaving the town and reaching a deserted area, he gently set down the five large wooden crates.

Uchiha Gen guessed that the people inside were probably all from outside the Land of Fire. That slave trader likely did not have the nerve to sell members of ninja clans from the Land of Fire.

He slowly walked to the first crate, pulled out the large nails with his bare hands, and removed the boards holding it shut. Only then did he see the unconscious person inside.

"Fair skin, long black hair, and an unusually delicate face. What clan is this?"

Curiously, he parted the person's legs and took a look, only to discover that she had a little something down there... Uchiha Gen fell into thought.

"Fine. The first one is actually from the Yuki Clan. Not bad."

He then opened the second crate. After just one glance, he determined that this person was from the Uzumaki Clan. There was no other reason—the bright red hair was simply too conspicuous.

The third was a chubby little fellow. He could not tell what clan he came from. Uchiha Gen grabbed his arm and lifted him up, but found no distinctive traits anywhere on his body.

The fourth was rather rare. He was not even human, because he had a shark face. Uchiha Gen had only ever seen such a face on Kisame Hoshigaki. Could he be from the Hoshigaki Clan? Was there even such a clan?

It had never been mentioned in the original work, and Uchiha Gen was not too sure. He continued to open the last crate. It held a woman, but she also made Uchiha Gen frown.

"This woman's skin is somewhat rough. She seems to have lived in an arid region for years. Is she from the Land of Wind?"

In his previous life, Uchiha Gen had only watched the anime. Aside from the well-known clans that had appeared onscreen, he truly could not identify those ninja clans that had barely received any screen time.

"The force behind this human trafficking business is no small matter. Their connections are wild! They actually managed to get people from so many countries, and they are all from ninja clans."

He suddenly became interested in meeting the people behind this slave trader. That way, he would not have to rack his brains searching for people whenever he needed experimental subjects.

"Come out. You've followed me all the way here and have been quite patient. I've inspected the goods, and you've had your look as well. Any thoughts?"

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Several kunai were the only response from behind him.

Smack!

With a flick of his sleeve, he knocked the kunai straight to the ground.

"Since that's how it is, then die!"

Uchiha Gen expressionlessly raised two fingers. The ground then shook, followed by several screams.

Without caring whether those people lived or died, he casually stuffed the five people he had bought into one wooden crate. He did not care whether they minded being packed together regardless of gender, either. He hoisted it onto his shoulder and left.

Since he was carrying "property," Uchiha Gen did not continue wandering the streets. He kept moving and soon returned to the Uchiha Clan Grounds.

With Uchiha Gen's current strength, no one below Kage Level—or without exceptional sensory abilities—could discover him. The Uchiha Clan Grounds did not yet have a barrier, so he returned home without a sound.

The five people in the crate seemed to have been drugged with some kind of powerful sedative and remained unconscious for a long time.

So, he first locked them in the basement with iron chains before checking on Haru.

Haru's room was right beside Uchiha Gen's. He entered without knocking, but naturally, none of those melodramatic benefits occurred.

"Still training?"

"Lord Yuan, you're back."

Uchiha Haru exhaled a breath of stale air. Though she was around Madara's age, wrinkles had already appeared on her face, making her look like a middle-aged woman in her forties.

Seemingly noticing Uchiha Gen's gaze lingering on her face, she spoke helplessly.

"It can't be helped. Lord Yuan, please forgive the unsightly sight."

"It's nothing, but you need to manage your time properly. Training is not something accomplished overnight."

"Yes~"

Uchiha Gen rubbed his chin and said,

"My experiments will begin soon. I'll leave behind a Shadow Clone Technique to guide you."

"...Yes."

Watching Uchiha Gen leave immediately after speaking, Uchiha Haru clenched her fist tightly. Yet her weak strength could not even break the skin, leaving only a few nail marks on her palm.

"I'm no use to Lord Yuan anymore. I'm like an ordinary servant, and I can't even..."

Haru's eyes dimmed. As she grew older, her talent and potential were becoming increasingly feeble...

Then, as if she had thought of something, her expression gradually turned resolute. She seemed to have made some kind of decision and, disregarding Uchiha Gen's earlier warning, began practicing the Breathing Technique again.

The basement was only a few square meters wide and was normally used to store miscellaneous items. Now, a large wooden crate was piled beside the wall, with two furry legs dangling from it.

Uchiha Gen grabbed the two legs and pulled the person out of the crate. He sent Chakra into the person's body and assessed his condition.

"Still alive, but his stomach is empty. He's been unconscious for quite some time, and some substance has blocked the meridians in his body. No wonder he can't use Chakra."

Too many of his meridians were blocked. Without outside assistance, he could never break through them himself. Moreover, the person helping him would need Chakra quality no lower than that of a Jōnin.

With that in mind, Uchiha Gen began waking him up the physical way.

Smack! Smack!

After two resounding slaps, the man jolted awake from the pain. He slowly opened his bleary eyes, apparently still dazed.

"Wh... where is this?"

"This is my home. You were sold, and I'm the buyer."

"What?!"

His flowing red hair whipped about, but his empty stomach left him without strength. A brief lack of oxygen to his brain made him collapse back onto the floor.

"You!"

"Stop talking and save your strength. Besides, since you were sold, you should have the awareness of being merchandise."

Uchiha Gen left the basement, dug out a stack of paper and a pen from his bedroom, then came back down.

"Come on, tell me about yourself."

"Hmph! Give up! I won't tell you anything!"

"Oh? You've got some backbone. But backbone is useless with me. I'm a scientist. You know what a scientist is, right? The kind of person who likes inventing and creating things. I have many ways to make you talk, but they'll be very painful. Want to try them?"

"Hmph! Kill me or torture me as you please."

So tough? Uchiha Gen slowly lowered the hand holding the paper and pen. Since this was a hard bone to chew, he could only grant the man's wish.

He turned and went back up through the passage. When he came down again, he held a pair of scissors in his hand.

Scrape, scrape!

The sound of the scissors rubbing together made the Uzumaki clansman raise his head in confusion. Seeing the white-haired man looking at him with a teasing expression, he began to feel uneasy.

"Y-you... what are you going to do?"

"Of course, torture you. As a man, you should know what matters most to you."

"Wh... what do you mean?"

"Hehehe, I'm going to use these scissors to cut the thing between your legs into little pieces. Hehehe!"

Upon hearing that, the Uzumaki clansman's face turned deathly pale, and he involuntarily squeezed his legs together.

"You're a demon!"

"Hehehe, this is what happens when you refuse to cooperate! Accept your punishment!"

As he spoke, Uchiha Gen reached to pry apart his legs. The Uzumaki clansman had been starving for days and could not use Chakra. Like a lamb waiting for slaughter, how could he possibly have the strength to resist?

"Don't! You evil demon! You monster! You'll die horribly! You'll go to hell!"

"Hehehehe!"

The snipping sounds of the scissors became exceptionally terrifying in the Uzumaki clansman's ears. His legs had already been forced apart, leaving his helpless little brother exposed. Uchiha Gen slowly pressed the scissors against it with a sinister grin.

The icy sensation touching such a sensitive spot made him jolt violently.

Thud!

Huh? Uchiha Gen looked at the limp body, then raised his head. This Uzumaki clansman had actually fainted from fright.