In a bustling area of the slums, a crowd had gathered, rubbernecking eagerly.
Few people felt sympathy for Yahiko and Konan—they'd been caught stealing, after all. Some muttered that getting beaten up was exactly what they deserved.
Konan had been protected beneath Yahiko's body and only suffered minor injuries, but Yahiko wasn't so lucky. His entire body was covered in bruises and blood.
Even if he managed to survive this beating, he'd likely be bedridden for months—or worse, left permanently disabled.
Crack!
At that moment, the shop owner's rolling pin snapped loudly, breaking clean in half.
Yet he had no intention of stopping. He tossed the broken pieces aside and raised his fist toward Yahiko's head.
A punch like that would at best cause a concussion, or even brain damage leading to permanent mental disability.
Smack!
Suddenly, an immense resistance blocked his arm midair, preventing it from landing.
It was a muscular giant nearly two meters tall who had grabbed the shopkeeper's arm with one hand. No matter how hard the latter struggled, he couldn't move.
"Who are you? What do you think you're doing? Are you their accomplice?"
The shop owner looked up at this hulking man with fierce features and prominent OxHorns, feeling slightly uneasy. He tried to sound tough while rapidly questioning him.
"I'm just an ordinary passerby who couldn't bear to watch anymore. Stealing is wrong, yes, but not deserving of such punishment. Don't you agree?"
Heiyan gazed calmly at the shop owner and asked, "How much were the items they stole worth from your shop? I'll pay double."
Well, well! Lucky me!
The shop owner's eyes lit up. Thinking he had stumbled upon a kind-hearted fool, he immediately demanded, "Ten thousand taels! Hand it over!"
"He's lying... We only stole two loaves of bread… At most... a few dozen taels," Yahiko weakly protested, lifting his face off the ground.
"You little brat! Shut your mouth! Do you want another beating?" the shop owner growled at Yahiko, raising his foot to kick him again.
"Stop!"
Just then, Heiyan's sharp command startled the shop owner, whose legs momentarily weakened, almost making him lose balance.
"Here's your money. I'm taking them with me."
Saying so, Heiyan handed the shopkeeper a stack of banknotes totaling ten thousand taels, then turned to Yahiko and Konan on the ground, asking, "Can you stand? If so, get up and come with me."
"T-Thank you..."
Upon hearing Heiyan's words, Konan quickly helped Yahiko up. The two exchanged grateful yet wary glances at Heiyan.
They couldn't understand why this stranger would spend ten thousand taels rescuing two homeless kids. It just didn't make any sense.
"Don't worry, I'm a doctor."
Seeing their unease, Heiyan reassured them.
"Oh, so you're a doctor. That explains your kindness."
Grinning from ear to ear, the shop owner gave Heiyan a thumbs-up after counting the money.
He noticed that Heiyan acted generously, pulling out ten thousand taels without batting an eye. The shopkeeper surmised he must be a wealthy physician. At this thought, the shop owner started plotting again, unwilling to let such a big fat goose go so easily.
Therefore, when Heiyan and his companions U and Nagare were about to leave, the shopkeeper blocked their path once more.
"What else?" Heiyan asked calmly.
"Hehe, look at my memory—I almost forgot."
The shopkeeper slapped his head, then pointed at U and Konan behind Heiyan and lied bluntly, "These two brats have stolen from me before. Counting all previous thefts, it's a total of hundreds of thousands of taels. I'll trouble you to finish this good deed by paying for them too. Otherwise, I can only take them to prison."
"You're lying!"
U and Konan shouted simultaneously, glaring angrily at the shopkeeper. To escape the ravages of war, they had wandered here starving and desperate, stealing bread from the store just one time.
"Thieves daring to talk back?"
Instantly changing expressions, the shopkeeper raised his hand again, threatening to strike.
"Alright, that's enough."
Heiyan glanced at him coldly, saying indifferently, "Don't push your luck too hard or you might invite disaster upon yourself."
"You're threatening me?"
The shopkeeper sneered, folding his arms defiantly. He was determined not to let them go without getting what he wanted.
He simply couldn't believe that in this town under Iwa ninja rule, with so many people around, Heiyan could actually do anything to him. Remember, he had paid significant protection fees to Iwagakure—he was an important taxpayer.
"Well then."
Heiyan sighed, said no more, and raising his large right hand like a palm fan, slapped the shopkeeper across the left side of his face.
Whooosh!
This slap came rushing through the air; before the shopkeeper could react, he had already been struck hard. His body spun around on the spot like a top, finally falling flat onto the ground.
Just a moment ago, the arrogant shopkeeper had been so proud and domineering, but now he lay on the floor like a dying stray dog, one side of his face swollen, mouth full of blood, several teeth knocked out.
"Waaa..."
His face swelled up like a pig's head. Dazed and unable to speak clearly, he could only moan weakly. Judging from appearances, he probably had brain damage—likely permanently ruined afterward.
"Sssshhh!"
Witnesses standing nearby inhaled sharply upon seeing how pitifully bad off the shop owner had become, hastily stepping backward nervously to avoid angering Heiyan.
Even U and Konan stared wide-eyed and open-mouthed, gaining a deeper understanding of the doctor who had saved them.
At this point, Heiyan bent down, took back the ten thousand taels from the shop owner's pocket, pulled out a single hundred-coin note, and threw it toward the man.
"This hundred taels (about a month's wage for a common worker) should cover the cost of the bread and medical expenses—you'll find it more than sufficient."
After saying this, he stepped over the shopkeeper's body and strode outside the village.
Seeing this, U and Konan hurriedly limped after him.
No sooner had the three departed than a female Iwa Jonin appeared at the scene, along with her several subordinates.
"Did you identify those two brats' identities yet?"
Gazing idly at the backs of Heiyan and his group as they vanished into the distance, the female ninja casually asked her subordinate.
"Lord, they don't seem to be important figures—just ordinary wandering orphans," reported a ninja.
Really now?
Upon hearing this, the female jonin slightly frowned but wasn't willing to let things go so easily.
Her intuition told her the man with OxHorns on his head was anything but ordinary. If captured and tortured properly, he might yield some unexpected information.
Thinking of this, the female jonin waved her hand coldly,
"Chase them!"
Ten minutes later, outside the city along a forest path.
Heiyan walked steadily ahead, neither fast nor slow, while Yahiko and Konan gritted their teeth, struggling to keep up.
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