Chapter 331: Rescue

Renjiro's words surprised Fujin's team. Unlike Renjiro's teammates, who had spent almost four months in the Land of Water, they hadn't heard of these atrocities happening in the Land of Water. To know that a village was committing such atrocities on their citizens was shocking.

Even Fujin, who had some ideas regarding the civil war, was shocked. He thought, 'No wonder such a massive rebellion is happening here. I initially thought that it was just the clans with Kekkei Genkai against normal clans. But this is disturbing.'

Fujin let out a sigh and wondered, 'Is this the act of some lunatics in the Mizukage faction or has Obito made the Mizukage commit such atrocities?'

Renjiro said, "Makoto, check who all are alive and can be saved. Heal them."

Fujin objected, "This place just had a conflict. If we spend time here, we could once again be attacked."

Fujin was opposed to Renjiro's decision. After all, Renjiro's squad was captured not long ago. And seeing the horrendous state, he doubted whether any of them would be able to live a normal life after experiencing such a horrifying incident.

Renjiro shook his head and said, "The situation is different. If we see any ships coming, we will run away. If not, we will save as many here as we can."

Fujin sighed and asked, "Would they even want to live after experiencing such an incident?"

Renjiro replied, "That isn't something we should decide."

Fujin said, "Alright. I'll help out Makoto. But keep an eye on your chakra levels, Makoto. Running away will be difficult if it is low."

Makoto nodded. The group immediately began looking for survivors. The village had around 450 people. However, only 60 were alive when they arrived. And among those 60, 20 were in a very critical state and couldn't be rescued without complicated medical treatments.

Makoto healed most of them while Fujin healed their external wounds. Among the survivors, 24 had lost one or more limbs. Only 16 were well physically. However, their mental health was a complete mess. It wasn't a surprise though. Not only did they undergo tremendous physical pain, but they also lost their loved ones. And the streets were still covered by their blood.

The Konoha group spent half a day on the island. Fortunately, no one sailed to the island. After putting everyone to sleep using Genjutsu, Fujin asked, "What are you planning to do with them? Leaving them here wouldn't be wise."

Renjiro nodded and replied, "Yeah, the trauma is too intense. I'll build a ship for them to sail away towards nearby islands. As for whether they survive or not, it's their fate."

Fujin nodded. Though Konoha was doing well, they couldn't interfere anymore in this matter. Until then, no other country had interfered in the Civil War happening in the Land of Water. But once Konoha stepped in, the remaining 3 villages would also have to step in. It would make the situation very complicated and could lead to an all-out war between the 5 villages with the Land of Water as the battlefield.

During the night, the Konoha ninjas built a boat large enough to carry 40 people. The next day, they asked whether the people wanted to stay on the island or leave. Knowing that the Mizukage's forces could return, everyone chose to evacuate.

However, one young boy, around 6 years old, approached Renjiro. He was very skinny, had pale skin and white hair. He looked into Renjiro's eyes and asked, "Can you train me to become a ninja?"

His voice was surprisingly calm and steady. Renjiro bent down to his level and asked with a kind smile on his face, "What is your name, brave child?"

Renjiro nodded and replied, "Thank you. Unfortunately, our mission was interrupted."

Hiruzen looked at Hayami and asked, "So, who is this young friend?"

Renjiro let out a sigh and said, "On our way back, we encountered a village in the Land of Water that was destroyed by Kirigakure ninjas from the Mizukage faction. We rescued and healed a few survivors. Kyushu Hayami was one of them. He wants to become a ninja, so I brought him with me."

Hiruzen observed the boy carefully. With a smile, he said, "Alright. We will take good care of you, Hayami. I have a lot of hopes for you."

He looked at Renjiro and asked, "Should I make living arrangements for him, or will you be taking him to the Senju clan compounds?"

Renjiro looked at Hayami. Hayami also looked back at him with eyes full of hope. Renjiro said, "I'll make arrangements for him in the Senju clan compound."

Hiruzen wasn't surprised. Over the last few decades, especially since the start of the Second Great Ninja War, the Senju clan frequently took in orphans. Hiruzen nodded and said, "Alright. I will leave it to you then."

He looked at Hayami and said kindly, "Hayami-kun, can you wait outside the room for a while? We have some matters to discuss."

Hayami obediently said, "I can."

He walked out of the room.

Hiruzen asked, "So, how did the mission go?"

Fujin replied, "It went well. I had a small confrontation with Mei, but no conflict happened. Since everything went well, I created some curiosity in her and handed her the scroll. She was grateful and said she owes us a favor."

Hiruzen nodded and said, "Good. The mission can be considered a complete success. Though your mission was cut in half, it can be considered a success as well, Renjiro. I have already moved the kids you sent over into the academy."

Renjiro nodded. They discussed some more details. Finally, Renjiro said, "I'll be needing some time off. It's been a while since I returned home."

Hiruzen nodded and replied, "You can leave. Send me a mission report later."

The group left the office. Renjiro looked at Fujin and said, "Meet me tomorrow at noon in Yakiniku with Hoka. It's been a long time since we have been together."

Fujin replied, "Yeah, it's been a while. Alright, I'll call him."

Renjiro nodded. He took Hayami with him and the group went their separate ways.